Greetings, emperors!
We’ve spent several posts looking at the new two-axis combat system, how shock and resolve now shape the outcome of battles alongside the physical fighting. Today I want to introduce something that builds directly on top of that, a brand new progression system for your armies called Military Tradition.
The idea is simple and, I think, very exciting. Your troops learn from experience. The more a troop type fights, the better it becomes, and over time you unlock the ability to customise it into something truly your own.
The system is built around what I’m calling Battle Honours. Each of your eight troop slots earns experience points independently through actual combat. Your cavalry only levels up if your cavalry fights. Your siege engines only progress if you actually use them in battle. This means your military tradition reflects how you actually play the game, not just how long you’ve been playing it.
There are four tiers of progression:
Base is where every troop slot starts. Standard values, no modifications possible.
Blooded (Tier 1) is reached at 500 XP and unlocks Equipment Loadout customisation for that slot. More on that in my next post!
Veteran (Tier 2) is reached at 5,000 XP and allows you to choose a Troop Trait, a special ability that defines a unique battlefield identity for that troop type. I’ll cover those in detail in the post after next.
Elite (Tier 3) is reached at 10,000 XP. Your troops earn a second Troop Trait and their loadout budget is expanded. This is a genuine long-term achievement, not something you’ll see in a short campaign.
XP is earned at the end of each combat round, calculated from the number of troops involved. The formula uses a square root rather than a straight count, which means larger armies earn XP faster than smaller ones, but doubling your army doesn’t double the rate. Different troop types also earn XP at different rates reflecting their battlefield roles. Heavy cavalry and siege engines earn at a higher rate than basic infantry, since they are rarer and more impactful. There is also a small flat bonus of +2 XP per round when your army wins the initiative, rewarding aggressive and effective play.
To give you a sense of the pace: a force of 400 basic infantry earns roughly 6 XP per round, reaching Tier 1 after around 85 combat rounds, which works out to 5 or 6 serious battles. A smaller force of 50 heavy cavalry earns around 4 XP per round thanks to their higher factor, reaching Tier 1 after roughly 125 rounds. Tier 3 Elite status is genuinely rare. Even a large force of 1,000 basic infantry needs approximately 1,000 rounds of active combat to get there. That’s a generational military achievement, not a routine part of mid-game expansion.
One important note: AI factions and rebel troops also make full use of the Military Tradition system. Veteran enemy armies are more dangerous than fresh ones, and Elite opponents will test you to your limits.
The figures I’ve mentioned above may be adjusted during playtesting, but they should give you a good feel for how the system is designed to work.
In my next post I’ll explain Equipment Loadouts, the first thing you unlock when a troop slot reaches Tier 1 and becomes Blooded.
If you haven’t already, please wishlist Imperium Sine Fine on Steam! It really helps as I head towards launch.
Cheers!