Nice graphics. Looks like there is a great game idea hiding here but I'm completely at loss as to how to make stuff happen, really needs a better explanation.

I've added a little more information above, and an annotated screenshot which should hopefully make the UI easier to understand.

Very confusing, probably needs a tutorial/introduction. I like the concept though!

Kinda confusing at first but eventually figured it out and was able to restore glory to the Thatcher line once more.

Nice concept and I like the style. Perhaps too difficult to get in to so maybe it would have been better to have it easier to play at the loss of some features? Just my opinion.

Cool idea, a little tricky to understand but you can't maek a tutorial in 48 hours!

Couldn't figure out what was happening

Hmm, sounds like I should explicitly explain how combat and morale work - I thought they were intuitive enough from the description/theme of the game (alas, no time in a jam to get fresh eyes telling me it's nonsense!).

When one castle attacks another, the strongest wins. Strength is just troops * morale. Bigger castle sprites are stronger than smaller ones, so will always win in a fight.

The loser's character and all their troops are killed. The winner loses troops according to the loser's strength and their own morale (specifically troops lost = loser_troops * loser_morale/winner_morale).
If the attacker (ie. player) wins, and they have a family member without a castle, that family member gets given the castle and its troops are reinforced - that's how you get more power to continue conquering. If there are no unlanded family members remaining, the castle is left abandoned.

Morale depends on what family members a character has lost; losing a spouse drops it by 50%, a child by 35% and a sibling by 20%. Losing a parent doesn't affect morale - just think of the inheritance!

Note that your family suffer exactly the same morale penalties, so be careful who you get killed weakening a tough enemy.

I hope that helps people get a bit more fun out of the game!

I really liked this! I love when the strategy is not just about geography and force, but also about something else.

I did have to read your write-up in the comments section.

Hey, i found it a bit confusing too! I saw your explanation comment but I think it's still a bit overcomplicated. The game looks nice tough, a tutorial might have helped :)

Agree with everybody else it's tough to get into it, but the idea is entirely original, very well done!

I got the idea thanks to the annotations! Got through the game once I understood the principle - it was ultimately quite easy but I feel there is something here to be developed. The notion of mourning affecting morale is good. Kind of fits in with the theme too! Would have been good if the opponents mounted some kind of counter-attacks I thought, so if you can then please develop this further. I liked that spouses could be of any gender.

This is an original idea, it was a little confusing at the beginning but well done! You should keep on developing this.

A bit bewildering at first but definitely an interesting concept. The tactic of just targeting the weakest castle was pretty effective for the most part, but I can definitely see how the morale mechanic could be used to construct more tricky puzzles that force the player to exploit the family relationships.

It's almost like a puzzle game. Not a very easy one either. If you get the hang of it it's fun

Once I finally figured out what to do, the game was pretty fun.

Good idea , but I think that it is looking like a bit incomplete

very cool