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Lord of the Hundreds

The most aggressive counter-insurgent faction—police the table or lose

Advanced
The Marauder Expansion
Counter-Insurgent
Police the Table
Aggressive Combat
Complexity
4/5
🎯 Win Condition

Score 30 points through Oppress and destroying enemy cardboard

⚙️ Crafting Method

Craft by activating strongholds (Contempt for Trade: score half VP rounded up)

🎲 Starting Position

4 warriors + Warlord in corner, 16 warriors in supply, 1 stronghold placed, 5 strongholds in reserve

Overview

The Lord of the Hundreds (Warlord) is the most aggressive counter-insurgent faction in Root, with exceptional battle actions but the worst card draw in the game. You are the SLOWEST scoring faction—Oppress typically nets only 2pts/turn, so you CANNOT win by racing. Instead, you must use your massive army (21 warriors) and superior action economy to police the entire table and score from enemy cardboard. Your success hinges on building strongholds early (they passively recruit every turn) and managing your mood selection. Each mood enhances your actions but locks out once you take the corresponding item type. The Warlord himself is powerful but killable—smart opponents will target him. You are weakest at game start and strongest once you hit 2 Command + 2 Prowess, becoming a terrifying "ratball" that can take multiple Advance actions (move+battle) per turn.

Faction Board

Faction-Specific Cards

Essential cards unique to Lord of the Hundreds

Stubborn Mood

In battle with your warlord, you ignore the first hit you take.

Relentless Mood

Whenever you advance your warlord and both move and battle, you may move or battle with your warlord (like half of an advance).

Bitter Mood

In battle with warlord, before the roll, place one warrior in the battle clearing per mob you choose to remove from the battle clearing and adjacent ones.

Grandiose Mood

Swap your Advance the Warlord step and Command the Hundreds step.

Jubilant Mood

After you incite your warlord's clearing, you may roll the mob die to place a mob (as described in your Rage step) up to four times.

Rowdy Mood

In Evening, draw one more card. If your warlord's clearing has three or more enemy pieces, draw two more cards instead.

Wrathful Mood

As attacker in battle with your warlord, you deal an extra hit (When looting, you do deal this hit).

Lavish Mood

At the end of Birdsong, you may remove any items from your Hoard to place two warriors per item removed into your warlord's clearing.

🎓 Step-by-Step Walkthrough

Lord of the Hundreds Walkthrough

Starting Position & First Three Clearings

Choose starting position where clearings match your hand's suits - you need matching cards to build strongholds. Look for adjacent clearings that also match your hand. Your primary goal is to secure 3 clearings to score 2 oppressed points per turn. This is your safe base that provides continual point flow. For first mood: Rowdy (recommended for beginners) is the only way to get extra card draw, or Grandiose allows you to swap Command and Prowess order to move Warlord out and build stronghold on turn 1.
•Card draw is very hard to come by for this faction
•Starting position is extremely important
•Secure 3 clearings for consistent 2 VP per turn
•Don't spread too thin too quickly

Mob Token Mind Games & Soft Pressure

Use mobs strategically to pressure opponents and expand territory. Don't be obvious about where you're inciting mobs - incite mob in clearing ADJACENT to where you actually want it. Next Birdsong, you might roll lucky and spread mob to desired location for free. Great for positioning near ruins or enemy buildings. Prioritize Prowess items (Root Tea, Crossbow, Swords, Hammer) over Command items - Prowess gives 2 actions (move + battle) vs Command's 1 action.
•Mind game tactic: incite mob adjacent to target, let it spread naturally
•Spreading mob tokens can be dangerous - opponents can attack them for points
•Prowess items > Command items for action economy
•Consider scoring certain items (like Bag) to remove powerful moods from circulation

Mood Management & Ability Optimization

Master your mood abilities and craft strategically. Mood tier list: Stubborn & Wrathful (extra hit or armor - universally powerful), Relentless (two extra actions - huge swings), Rowdy (extra card draw), Grandiose (swap order - situational), then Lavish/Jubilant/Bitter (very situational). Craft card draw cards (Swap Meet, Charm Offensive) and Fox items (Crossbow, Swords, Hammer). Fox abilities like False Orders, Informants, and Eerie Emigrate are excellent. Consider building strongholds in Fox clearings.
•Your flavor as a player comes from which moods you prioritize
•Fox items are best: natural alliance with foxes thematically
•Jubilant can be dangerous (spreading mobs opponents can attack)
•Some moods are clear benefits, others are situational

Scoring Curve & Consistency (3-2-1 Rule)

Hit key oppression thresholds for maximum scoring. Scoring curve: 1-2 clearings = 1 VP, 3-4 clearings = 2 VP, 5 clearings = 3 VP, 6 clearings = 4 VP. Remember the 3-2-1 rule: First goal is 3 clearings (2 VP/turn), second goal is 5 clearings (3 VP/turn), third goal is 6 clearings (4 VP/turn). Don't waste effort on 4 clearings - jump straight from 3 to 5. Keep Warlord alive when possible, but sometimes it's better to let them die in bad position to respawn safely at home. Use last Prowess actions to retreat to safety.
•Scoring is slower than expected for aggressive faction - consistency is key
•Recruit 1 warrior per turn while Warlord pushes borders
•Warlord death slows early game momentum significantly
•Player count matters: Very powerful at 2, great at 3, good at 4, weaker at 5+

Avoiding Overextension & Victory

The biggest mistake is overextending too soon. You have tons of actions (moves and battles) but using them all too early is detrimental. Losing Warlord from overextension kills early momentum. Slow and steady wins the race. Maintain oppressed clearings with strongholds, recruit 1 warrior every turn, and let Warlord slowly push borders. By the time opponents realize the threat, it's too late - strongholds weren't destroyed, Warlord was just a distraction, and you've amassed an army larger than anyone expected.
•Consistency > explosive growth
•Keep strongholds defended, use Warlord for strategic strikes
•Don't chase 4 clearings - go for 5 or 6
•Opponents often don't realize your strength until too late
•Your scoring mechanic (zero enemy pieces) makes high player counts difficult

💡 Tip: Hover over highlighted game terms to see detailed explanations and related mechanics.

Mechanics & Strategy

Unique Mechanics
Special abilities and rules that define this faction

The Hoard

Items placed in Command or Prowess tracks provide permanent benefits. Command = extra command actions, Prowess = extra Advance actions and Warlord recruiting

Moods

8 moods enhance actions: Stubborn (defense), Grandiose (build), Rowdy (card draw), Relentless (recruit), Wrathful (battle), Jubilant (score), Contempt for Trade (craft), Lavish (draw). Mood locks out when you take corresponding item

Mob Tokens

Place on clearings with Incite. When you battle in clearing with mob, you loot an item from opponent or explore ruin. Defensive mobs deter enemy expansion

Strongholds

Recruit 1 warrior per stronghold per turn automatically. Building early is critical for sustainable army

Turn Order
Actions available in each phase

Early Game

  • Build 2-3 strongholds by turn 3
  • Reach 2 Command + 2 Prowess ASAP
  • Craft Tea (boot) or Bag for extra Command action
  • Keep Warlord and strongholds defended (5+ rats each)
  • Start in double-slot clearing that allows T1 crafting

Mid Game

  • Maintain 2/3 or 3/2 Command/Prowess
  • Police table threats aggressively
  • Score 2-3 VP per turn minimum
  • Protect stronghold backbone
  • Build "ratball" presence (6-10 rats in key clearings)

Late Game

  • Score 4+ VP per turn from enemy destruction
  • Maintain board presence despite losses
  • Use ratball to eliminate victory threats
  • Craft remaining items for VP
  • Leverage stronghold passive recruiting

Strengths & Weaknesses

💪 Strengths
  • +Exceptional action economy once hoard is filled
  • +Massive army (21 warriors) provides staying power
  • +Multiple Advance actions create terrifying offensive presence
  • +Strongholds provide passive recruiting every turn
  • +Mood flexibility for different situations
  • +Can police entire table effectively
  • +Difficult to fully eliminate
⚠️ Weaknesses
  • -Slowest scoring faction in the game
  • -Worst card draw in game (1-2 cards per turn)
  • -Vulnerable early game before hoard is built
  • -Warlord is killable—losing him is devastating
  • -Cannot win by points racing
  • -Predictable strategy invites table coordination
  • -Stronghold destruction is crippling
  • -Must balance policing with own progression
🤝 Synergies
  • • Games with multiple passive factions
  • • Maps with corners and defensible positions
  • • High player counts where policing is valuable
🛡️ Hard Counters
  • • Underground Duchy (matches battle actions, tunnel mobility)
  • • Charismatic Eyrie (overwhelming decree)
  • • Lizard Cult (conspiracies bypass combat)
  • • Vagabond (competes for ruins/items)

🎬 Video Guides

Watch & Learn (1 videos)
Expert tutorials to master Lord of the Hundreds