Woodland Wonders – A Look at Landmarks in Root Digital

Hirelings & Landmarks is now available on Steam and mobile platforms, with Nintendo Switch to follow later! The forest roars to life in this new expansion for Root Digital, bringing mischievous mercenaries and new wonders to the Woodland!

In previous articles, we’ve taken a look at the Hirelings of Hirelings & Landmarks, explaining how they work and introducing you to several of them. Today, in our final preview, we’ll turn our attention to the other star of the show: Landmarks!

Wonders of the Woodland

The Woodland is an old and storied place, and many secrets lay hidden within the thick underbrush of the woods… until now! A Lost City, an Elder Treetop, a Legendary Forge, and even a buzzing Black Market have all come to light. Will you take advantage of the new opportunities afforded by these Landmarks?

You can choose to add up to two Landmarks to the map during setup, which provide unique effects to the clearings they occupy. Let’s take a peek at these wonders of the Woodland!

The Elder Treetop

In the outskirts of the woods, a tree as old as the forest itself can be found — and it just happens to be some prime real estate!

The Elder Treetop Landmark occupies a corner clearing, and contains an extra building slot for that clearing. Whenever you remove an enemy building from the Elder Treetop, you score an extra point. Will you build under the shelter of the Elder Treetop’s canopy, or raid it for spoils?

The Lost City 

Legends speak of a Lost City where rabbits, foxes, and mice live together in peace instead of discord. What kinds of benefits could this unprecedented harmony bring to visitors passing through?

The clearing where the Lost City Landmark is located counts as a fox, mouse, and rabbit suit. With all three suits active at once, there is much to be gained from this unity. Place crafting pieces here for incredible flexibility! Fulfill quests as the Vagabond! Use any kind of ambush card to protect your warriors! Any card or ability that depends on suits will be made more flexible in The Lost City, making it a clearing you won’t want to ignore.

The Legendary Forge

No factions in the Woodland are strangers to artifice and crafting, but where did this knowledge come from? Could the mysterious Legendary Forge be a key to the puzzle? Either way, one thing is clear: crafting here yields items of exceptional value!

Make your way to the clearing of the Legendary Forge to do some legendary crafting. Four specific items are available at the forge, and when crafted, they allow you to draw a card and score an extra point. The twist? These items can only be crafted at the Forge, so if you’ve got one in your hand, you’re going to have to make a trip! 

Challenge Alert: Can you utilize the unique benefits of Landmarks to become the craftiest critter in the Woodland? Find out in the Legendary Crafting challenge! In this scenario, you’ll play with the Legendary Forge, Lost City, and Black Market, and you can’t win unless you’ve crafted at least four cards!

The Black Market

At last, the long-rumored seedy underbelly of the Woodland reveals itself: the Black Market! In wartime, where every advantage counts, the factions vying for power are willing to turn a blind eye to its existence. And who knows — they might even indulge a bit in its illicit wares!

The Black Market is a place where you can trade your unwanted cards for new ones. The game begins with three hidden cards representing the Black Market’s goods. When you have a faction token in its clearing, you can randomly draw one of these cards, replacing it with one of your own. This card remains face down — nobody gets to know what’s being sold in this shady marketplace!

What About the Ferry and the Tower?

The Ferry and the Tower were additions that came in The Underworld Expansion, allowing players to traverse the river and score extra points for ruling over the Tower’s clearing. For players who own The Underworld Expansion, Hirelings & Landmarks treats the Ferry and the Tower as Landmarks, allowing you to use them on all maps, rather than just the lake and mountain maps respectively. 

Hirelings & Landmarks: Now Available for Root Digital!

Landmarks bring new intrigue to Root Digital, changing the nature of the map itself and introducing new spatial strategies. Will you take advantage of their unique boons? 

Hirelings & Landmarks is now available on Steam and mobile platforms, with Nintendo Switch to follow later. Dive in today on your platform of choice! And last but not least, be sure to join us on Bluesky, Facebook, or Discord to stay tuned into all things Root Digital!