20 min read

Lords of the Realm II

Last updated: January 22, 2026

Overview

Lords of the Realm II is a medieval strategy game that masterfully blends turn-based resource management with real-time combat, set against a rich historical backdrop of 13th-century England.1 Released on October 31, 1996, the game was developed by Impressions Games and published by Sierra On-Line, representing one of the first major titles from Impressions after their acquisition by Sierra in 1995.2 The game places players in the role of a feudal lord competing against four other nobles for the vacant English throne following the death of the king in 1268 A.D.3

What distinguished Lords of the Realm II from many medieval strategy games of its era was its commitment to historical authenticity over fantasy elements—the game features no magic, no supernatural forces, and no technology tree.4 Instead, players must carefully manage food, population, and happiness levels to build their power base while avoiding Malthusian population crashes.4 PC Gamer praised the game as offering “the best of two worlds, adding the real time combat model of a WarCraft II to the turn-based strategic elements of a Civilization.”5

The game achieved significant commercial success, selling over 2.5 million copies and generating nearly $3 million in revenue by 1998.6 It consistently appeared in PC games best-seller charts throughout 1997, reaching as high as number 9 in January of that year.7 Steam user reviews remain overwhelmingly positive decades later, with 96% of 1,517 reviews recommending the game as of November 2025.8

Story Summary

The year is 1268 A.D., and the King of England has died without an heir to succeed him.3 While the news spreads sadness across the land among the common folk, for the nobility it signals an opportunity—the crown is now within reach for any lord bold enough to seize it.10 The lands of England and Wales are ruled by powerful feudal nobles who cruelly oppress the people, and all have their eyes on the English throne, willing to do anything to claim it.11

Players assume the role of one of five competing lords, each with distinct personalities and strategies. The computer-controlled opponents include the Bishop, a religious figure who uses faith as a weapon; the Baron, a traditional military commander; the Knight, a chivalrous warrior; and the Countess, a cunning noblewoman.12 Each rival lord is fully voice-acted by talented and well-directed actors, speaking with English-accented voices that perfectly evoke the spirit of the Middle Ages.13

The path to the throne is inevitably a bloody one. Those who would dare deny the player’s right to rule must face their wrath on the battlefield.14 Victory requires not just military might but also economic prowess—a well-managed realm provides the resources necessary for conquest. Players must balance the needs of their subjects against the demands of war, for unhappy populations will revolt if happiness drops below 25 and stays there for more than four seasons.14

The game’s narrative is straightforward yet compelling in its simplicity: “Because in the end, you’re either King, or you’re dead.”15 This stark premise drives all gameplay decisions, from the allocation of peasants between farming and military service to the design of castle fortifications.

Gameplay

Interface and Controls

Lords of the Realm II features a simple interface that is easy to pick up, making it an excellent starting point for those new to the strategy genre.16 The presentation is excellent throughout, making good use of drag bars to ensure players always know exactly what’s going on, with everything looking neat and organized.17 The game combines mouse-driven county management screens with keyboard controls for real-time battles.1

The interface allows players to be as hands-on or hands-off as they prefer—a steward AI can help manage the kingdom for those who want to focus on military conquest rather than economic micromanagement.11 However, experienced players recommend micromanaging everything rather than trusting the work sliders and auto-calculating battles.18

Structure and Progression

The game operates on a seasonal turn-based system for county and economic management, switching to real-time control during battles and sieges.9 Each turn represents one season, during which players allocate their population between various tasks: farming, cattle herding, weapons manufacturing, and castle construction.1

  • County Management: Players control individual counties, managing population distribution, food production, and resource gathering on a turn-by-turn basis.4
  • Army Management: Troops must be recruited, equipped, and organized into armies that can be moved across the strategic map.3
  • Castle Building: Defensive fortifications can be constructed in any county, with multiple castle designs available from simple wooden stockades to massive royal castles.11
  • Diplomacy: Players can negotiate with rival lords, though contemporary reviewers noted that diplomacy was largely meaningless in practice.19
  • Real-Time Battles: When armies clash, control switches to a Warcraft-style isometric battlefield where players command their troops directly.20

The default campaign setting is Britain, but the game includes scenarios for Ireland, Scotland, Italy, France, Europe, China, India, and over 20 other maps including fictional locations like Yin-Yang, Rose, Pretzelland, and Rubix World.21

Puzzles and Mechanics

The fundamental theorem of Lords of the Realm II is that the player’s power is directly proportional to the skill with which they run their economy.22 Players grow crops, accumulate resources, manufacture weapons, manage armies, build and lay siege to castles, capture provinces, and ultimately attempt to conquer their enemies.3

Each type of troop has its own strengths and weaknesses, though an army of knights is usually practically invincible.13 The game features five unit types: peasants (cheap but weak), macemen, pikemen, swordsmen, crossbowmen, and knights (expensive but powerful).10 If players shield their archers with a wall of pikemen, they can defeat enemy forces relatively cheaply.23

Perhaps the game’s most remarkable feature is the need to carefully manage food, population, and happiness levels in order to build population levels while avoiding Malthusian meltdowns.4 A well-run realm becomes less dependent on constant player intervention, allowing focus to shift toward military expansion.24

Reception

Contemporary Reviews

Lords of the Realm II received strong reviews upon release, with critics praising its blend of economic simulation and tactical combat. PC Gamer awarded the game an exceptional 92% score, calling it “immense fun for both the empire-builder and the medieval combatant with all the intrigue and bloodletting you could want.”19 The magazine noted that the game strikes a delicate balance between micro- and macro-management, resulting in “one of the richest historical sims ever.”17

GameSpot’s Tim Soete gave the game 7.6 out of 10, acknowledging that “The Middle Ages were tough times and similarly, Lords of the Realm II is a tough game.”25 IGN scored it 7.8, praising its combination of turn-based strategy with real-time combat.26 TotalGames.net awarded a 90%, noting that “Lords of the Realm was one of the best selling historical simulations ever but there was room for improvement. Lords 2 takes all the elements of the original and embellishes them, with added graphics, sound and gameplay.”19

The Adrenaline Vault gave a score of 70%, noting that “The AI in this game failed to impress me. It was not bad, but I thought it would have presented more of a challenge.”19 Computer Games Magazine also scored it 70%, calling it “A solid game, but it isn’t terribly original.”19

Modern Assessment

Modern retrospectives have been increasingly favorable, with many considering the game ahead of its time. One user review on Metacritic declared it “Simply way ahead of its time, a defining piece of the Grand Strategy Genre, featuring more polished and complex gameplay than titles from the Total War series offer 15 years later.”19 Steam user reviews show an overwhelming 96% positive rating from over 1,500 reviews.8

Home of the Underdogs called it “one of the most underrated strategy games of all time” and “the best game designed by David Lester, prolific designer and founder of Impressions.”13 Modern players appreciate that despite dated mechanics, they remain “rock solid, and the art style is timeless.”27

Aggregate Scores:

  • Metacritic: 77/100 (6 critic reviews)8
  • MobyGames: 80% (Critics)1
  • MyAbandonware: 4.67/513
  • Steam: 96% positive (1,517 reviews)5
  • GOG: 4.5/5 (94 reviews)15

Development

Origins

Lords of the Realm II was developed by Impressions Games following the success of the original Lords of the Realm in 1994.17 The first game had won PC Gamer US’s 1994 Best Historical Simulation award and was nominated for Computer Gaming World’s Strategy Game of the Year.17 While considered by some not so much a sequel as a remake featuring enhanced graphics and improved gameplay mechanics, Lords II expanded significantly on the original formula.16

Designer David Lester explained the key design decision to add real-time combat: “We wanted the game to be more multiplayer friendly, and one way to do that was by adding realtime combat. Besides, when you can bring a castle down by aiming a battering ram or a catapult at it in realtime, it’s a lot more satisfying.”6 This shift from the original’s turn-based battles to real-time tactical combat proved to be one of the game’s most celebrated features.

Production

Impressions Games had been acquired by Sierra in 1995, and Lords of the Realm II became the studio’s first major release under the Sierra banner.2 The development team was led by David Lester, who had founded Impressions and would later become known for city-building games like Caesar and Pharaoh.27

Composer Keith Zizza worked on the game’s soundtrack during the spring and summer of 1996.28 It was his second game with Sierra, following Rise & Rule of Ancient Empires.28 The audio production faced significant technical constraints due to CD-ROM space limitations.

Development Credits:61

  • Lead Designer: David Lester
  • Designers: Chris Beatrice, Simon Bradbury, Eric Ouellette
  • Composer: Keith Zizza
  • Additional Music (Siege Pack): Edward Saltzman

Technical Achievements

The game utilized the DOS4GW extender to overcome conventional memory limitations on DOS systems.9 It combined a turn-based strategic layer with real-time tactical battles, a design approach that would later become standard in games like the Total War series.24

The visual presentation featured 256-color SVGA graphics at 640x480 resolution, with the county management screens using drag bars and clear visual feedback systems.8 The real-time battles provided a Warcraft-style isometric view of the battlefield.20

Technical Specifications

DOS Version:29

  • Resolution: 640x480, 256 colors
  • Audio: Sound Blaster, Sound Blaster 16, Sound Blaster AWE32, Sound Blaster Pro
  • Minimum CPU: Intel i486 DX2
  • RAM: 8 MB minimum
  • Storage: 34 MB hard drive space
  • CD-ROM: 2X minimum
  • Multiplayer: IPX, Modem (up to 4 players online)

Windows 95 Version:29

  • Resolution: 640x480, 256 colors (full screen)
  • Minimum OS: Windows 95
  • DirectX: DirectX 3.0 required8
  • Multiplayer: LAN, Modem, Null-modem cable (2 players online, 1-5 offline)

Macintosh Version:29

  • Minimum CPU: Motorola 68040
  • RAM: 12 MB minimum
  • Media: CD-ROM

Cut Content

The game’s soundtrack was originally intended to be released on the CD-ROM as 16-bit 44100 stereo WAV files, but there wasn’t enough room on the CD to accommodate them.28 Because the music files wouldn’t stream directly off the CD, they had to be loaded into memory and were therefore released as 8-bit 11025 Hz files instead—a significant quality downgrade.28 Composer Keith Zizza later created a remastered version of the soundtrack in 2020 to restore the intended audio quality.30

A file called “Pumkin.wav” appeared on the game disc as a composite file used only as filler to maximize disc data capacity; it was never meant to be played by users.28

Version History

VersionDatePlatformNotes
1.0October 31, 1996DOS/WindowsInitial release6
1.011996DOSMinor fixes16
1.031997WindowsL2WINFIX patch31
Siege PackJune 13, 1997WindowsExpansion pack6
Royal EditionNovember 30, 1997DOS/WindowsCompilation with original game32
Mac OS XApril 23, 2013macOSDigital re-release33
Linux2024LinuxRebellion re-release1

Technical Issues

The game suffered from various compatibility issues on systems newer than its original target platforms. Setup would lock up when run on faster PCs.31 Users needed to play with display settings, using GPU scaling, 256-bit color, and 640x480 resolution for acceptable visuals on modern systems.34

Known issues include:33

  • Distorted colors on newer Windows versions
  • Multiplayer requires DirectPlay to be enabled
  • Sierra Internet Gaming System has been shut down
  • Black lines appearing in cut-scenes under XP/Vista
  • Loading errors on modern operating systems

A tax rate glitch exists where large numbers of counties at 50% tax rate causes high tax rates to increase happiness instead of decreasing it.4 A castle building glitch also allows Royal Castle construction for reduced resources.4

Controlling units when attacking castles has been criticized as “nothing short of impossible” due to poor pathfinding—described as worse than controlling Dragoons in StarCraft.35

Easter Eggs and Trivia

  • The game’s music was used in a propaganda video by the Palestinian group Hamas—an unusual cultural appropriation of video game audio.4
  • Players can choose to conquer either England and Wales or Germany as their campaign setting.15
  • The game features distinctive voice acting with iconic lines including “Slaughter THESE villagers, m’lord?”—a memorable quote that players recall fondly decades later.35
  • Advanced farming mode is always better than default farming, contrary to what the interface might suggest.18
  • The maximum population in a county appears to be capped at 2000 people.18
  • Neutral counties can experience spontaneous rebellions, allowing clever players to acquire territory without direct conquest.23
  • The AI tends to “turtle” in a corner of the map during battles unless they significantly outnumber the player.23

Voice Cast

The game features fully voice-acted AI opponents, praised for their talented and well-directed performances that evoke the spirit of the Middle Ages.13 The English-accented voices contribute significantly to the game’s medieval atmosphere.12

CharacterDescription
The BishopReligious leader using faith as a political weapon
The BaronTraditional military commander
The KnightChivalrous warrior
The CountessCunning noblewoman

Legacy

Sales and Commercial Impact

Lords of the Realm II achieved remarkable commercial success, ultimately selling over 2.5 million copies.6 By 1998, the game had generated $2.99 million in revenue from 245,324 copies sold in tracked retail channels.6 The game consistently appeared on PC Data’s best-seller charts throughout 1997:

  • January 1997: #9 (bounced back from #16)7
  • February 1997: #1136
  • March 1997: #1637
  • May 1997: #1938
  • June 1997: #1639
  • First Half 1997: #14 overall40
  • December 1996: #1441

Expansion Pack

The Lords of the Realm II: Siege Pack was released on June 13, 1997, earning critical acclaim as “an excellent expansion to one of the best medieval strategy games ever made.”42 Home of the Underdogs praised it enthusiastically: “If only more expansion packs today gave as much bang for your buck. Two thumbs up, way up!”42

The expansion featured:4243

  • 20 new maps
  • New castles for skirmish mode
  • All-battle mode for defending or attacking castles
  • Improved AI
  • Map editor
  • Enhanced diplomacy
  • More random events
  • New terrain features including flammable pitch

Collections

The game has been released in several compilation formats:44

  • Royal Edition (1997): Included Lords of the Realm, Lords of the Realm II, and the Siege Pack expansion
  • Lords of the Realm II + Siege Pack (1998): Bundled main game with expansion
  • Lords of the Realm: Royal Edition (GOG, 2009): Digital re-release including both original games and expansion32

Fan Projects

A speedrunning community has formed around the game, with 32 total runs recorded by 4 unique players.45 Notable speedrun records include:

  • Original Campaign: 54m 38s by TheObserver429
  • The New Campaign: 45m 47s by TheObserver429
  • Quaintville Any% (Siege Pack): 34.767s by Admiral_Iddy45

The game inspired long-running community engagement, with detailed strategy guides created by players with over 28 years of experience.18

  • Lords of the Realm II User’s Manual: Published by Sierra, praised by users for its quality (“Good manual”)46
  • Strategy Guides: Multiple fan-created guides available on GameFAQs and Steam Community, including comprehensive economic and military strategy documentation2218

Sequels and Series Impact

The game was followed by Lords of the Realm III in 2004, which received mixed reviews. GameSpot gave Lords III 84%, but most critics were disappointed—PC Gamer scored it only 66%, noting “Given the series’ heritage and the long buildup to this entry, it’s hard not to feel let down.”47 Computer and Video Games was harshest, giving it 19%: “God knows what happened to LOTR3, but the usually dependable Impressions Games has lost the plot on this one.”47

Lords III shifted to a primarily real-time format with a full 3D engine, abandoning much of what made Lords II beloved.48 Critics noted the gameplay became “horrendously simple” compared to its predecessor.47

Critical Perspective

Lords of the Realm II occupies an important place in strategy gaming history as a precursor to the Total War series, demonstrating that turn-based empire management could successfully coexist with real-time tactical battles.24 Rock Paper Shotgun noted that the game “favours economic management of a modest, decentralised land and its workforce,” emphasizing that “a well-run realm became less, not more dependent on your meddling.”24

The game represents a high point for Impressions Games, whose design philosophy of balancing accessibility with depth created an experience that remains playable decades later. Modern players describe it as “comfort food”—a strategy game that “isn’t overly demanding or stressful” while still offering meaningful decisions.27 This approach predated the casual strategy market by years, demonstrating that historical simulations didn’t need to be impenetrably complex to be satisfying.

The comparison to Total War is apt but also highlights what Lords II does differently. Where Total War emphasizes grand spectacle, Lords II focuses on the intimate management of medieval life—the allocation of peasants between farming and soldiering, the seasonal rhythms of crop rotation, the gradual accumulation of resources for castle construction. This grounded approach to medieval strategy gaming, stripped of fantasy elements, created an experience that many players find more satisfying than its flashier successors.

Downloads

Purchase / Digital Stores

Download / Preservation

Manuals & Documentation

Series Continuity

Lords of the Realm II built upon the foundation established by the original Lords of the Realm (1994), which had won multiple awards and established Impressions Games’ reputation for quality historical strategy games.17 The sequel streamlined the economy compared to the first game while introducing the acclaimed real-time battle system.49

The original game featured an Earl character not present in Lords II, and the economy was considered more complex.49 The sequel’s faster combat system and refined interface made it more accessible to new players while retaining depth for veterans.

The series concluded with Lords of the Realm III (2004), which marked a significant departure by abandoning the turn-based/real-time hybrid approach for primarily real-time gameplay with a 3D engine.4 The critical and commercial reception of Lords III was considerably weaker, with many fans considering Lords II the pinnacle of the series.

References

Footnotes

  1. MobyGames – Lords of the Realm II – developer, publisher, platforms, ratings, technical specifications ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9

  2. Sierra Gamers Forum – Where Does Sierra End – Impressions acquisition, first major Sierra release ↩ ↩2

  3. Internet Archive – Lords of the Realm II – game description, core gameplay elements ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  4. Gamicus Wiki – Lords of the Realm II – gameplay features, no fantasy elements, population management, bugs, Hamas trivia ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8

  5. Steam Store – Lords of the Realm II – user reviews, PC Gamer quote, system requirements ↩ ↩2

  6. Wikipedia – Lords of the Realm II – release dates, designers, sales data, development quotes ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8

  7. GameCenter Archive – January 1997 Best Sellers – chart position ↩ ↩2

  8. Grokipedia – Lords of the Realm II – Metacritic score, technical specifications, Steam reviews ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  9. DOSBox Wiki – Lords of the Realm II – engine, game type description ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  10. GameFAQs Strategy Guide by brian_sulpher – game introduction quote, unit types ↩ ↩2

  11. ModDB – Lords of the Realm II – game description, steward feature ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  12. AllGame Archive Review – AI opponents, maps, voice acting ↩ ↩2

  13. MyAbandonware – Lords of the Realm II – HOTUD quotes, voice acting praise, user rating ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  14. OpenLotR2 Documentation – Part 5 – battle mechanics, happiness revolt threshold ↩ ↩2

  15. GOG Store – Lords of the Realm: Royal Edition – game description, user reviews, campaign settings ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  16. Games Nostalgia – Lords of the Realm II – interface simplicity, remake assessment, version info ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  17. Wikipedia – Lords of the Realm (1994) – awards, PC Gamer US quote, The One review ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  18. Steam Community Guide by Sir Edward – micromanagement advice, multiplayer limitations, maximum population ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  19. Metacritic – Lords of the Realm II – PC Gamer score, TotalGames score, GameSpot score, Adrenaline Vault quote, user reviews ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  20. Sierra Gamers – Lords of the Realm 2 – Warcraft comparison, battle mechanics ↩ ↩2

  21. AllGame Archive – map list including fictional locations ↩

  22. SuperCheats Walkthrough – fundamental theorem quote, economy focus ↩ ↩2

  23. GOG Forum Discussion – tactical tips, AI behavior, neutral county rebellions ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  24. Rock Paper Shotgun – Have You Played – Total War comparison, economic focus, realm management ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  25. GameSpot Review – Tim Soete review, difficulty assessment ↩

  26. IGN – Lords of the Realm II – IGN score, release date ↩

  27. Scratch-That.org Review – modern assessment, comfort food comparison, Impressions history ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  28. VOGONS Forum – Audio Mod Discussion – Keith Zizza quotes on audio constraints, Pumkin.wav ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  29. MobyGames – Technical Specs – detailed platform specifications, ratings ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  30. KHInsider – Remastered Soundtrack – 2020 remaster by Keith Zizza ↩

  31. Sierra Help – Lords of the Realm II – technical issues, patches ↩ ↩2

  32. GOGDB – Royal Edition – release dates, package contents ↩ ↩2

  33. PCGamingWiki – Lords of the Realm II – platform releases, known issues, version history ↩ ↩2

  34. Steam Community Discussion – display settings workarounds ↩

  35. Reddit r/patientgamers Review – pathfinding criticism, voice line quote ↩ ↩2

  36. GameCenter Archive – February 1997 – chart position ↩

  37. GameSpot Archive – March 1997 – chart position ↩

  38. GameCenter Archive – May 1997 – chart position ↩

  39. GameCenter Archive – June 1997 – chart position ↩

  40. GameSpot Archive – First Half 1997 – annual ranking ↩

  41. GameCenter Archive – December 1996 – launch month chart position ↩

  42. Home of the Underdogs – Siege Pack – expansion review and rating ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  43. MyAbandonware – Siege Pack – expansion features ↩

  44. MobyGames – Lords of the Realm Series – compilation releases ↩

  45. Speedrun.com – Lords of the Realm II – speedrun records, community data ↩ ↩2

  46. Amazon – Lords of the Realm II Manual – manual review ↩

  47. Metacritic – Lords of the Realm III – sequel reception, critical quotes ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  48. IGN – Lords of the Realm III Preview – sequel development changes ↩

  49. TV Tropes – Lords of the Realm 2 – series comparison, Earl character, combat changes ↩ ↩2

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