Kingdom Two Crowns arrived on 11 December 2018 from Raw Fury, and it is the entry that finally lets a reign continue across five islands instead of ending the moment you lose your crown. You ride left and right through a side scrolling pixel kingdom, drop coins to recruit vagrants from camps, hand out bows, hammers and scythes, and hold the walls when the Greed come for the crown at night. Two monarchs can share one save in local or online co-op. The campaign roster now runs Europe, the free Shogun and Dead Lands settings, the paid Norse Lands, and Call of Olympus, which launched on 8 October 2024.
These tips go beyond the basics. They're the strategies experienced players use to play more efficiently, the hidden mechanics most people miss, and the optimizations that compound over a full playthrough. If you're just starting, check our beginner's guide first.
Essential Tips
1. Coins are the only order you can give
Coins are the only order you can give. Everything from recruiting a vagrant to upgrading a wall runs through dropping coins, so the whole game reduces to deciding what your purse funds next.
2. Farmers pay for archers, not the other way around
Farmers pay for archers, not the other way around. A kingdom that builds its farmland first can field a full archer line by day six, while an archer first kingdom is still short of coins on day ten.
3. Squires and knights carry coins as a health buffer, up to five for squires and eleven for knights in Two Crowns
Squires and knights carry coins as a health buffer, up to five for squires and eleven for knights in Two Crowns. Loading them up before a portal assault is the difference between reaching the cave and losing the whole detachment.
4. Each squire collects four archers behind them, so counting squires is a better measure of your attack force than counting individual units
Each squire collects four archers behind them, so counting squires is a better measure of your attack force than counting individual units.
5. Island one has no small portals, which is exactly why it works as a base to return to
Island one has no small portals, which is exactly why it works as a base to return to. Build your strongest economy there and sail out with what you can afford rather than trying to hold island four from scratch.
6. The Stable Hermit on island two is the unlock that quietly saves the most time, because without it your mount does not follow you across the water
The Stable Hermit on island two is the unlock that quietly saves the most time, because without it your mount does not follow you across the water.
7. Blood moons hit far harder than ordinary nights
Blood moons hit far harder than ordinary nights. Watch the moon and spend the day before on wall upgrades and ballista repair rather than on new recruitment.
8. The Unicorn on island five earns coins simply from riding, which is why so many monarchs save gems specifically for it rather than spending them on earlier mounts
The Unicorn on island five earns coins simply from riding, which is why so many monarchs save gems specifically for it rather than spending them on earlier mounts.
9. Shogun is mostly a setting change from Europe with one real mechanical difference: the ninja, a special unit that goes outside the walls and ambushes the Greed rather than waiting behind them
Shogun is mostly a setting change from Europe with one real mechanical difference: the ninja, a special unit that goes outside the walls and ambushes the Greed rather than waiting behind them.
10. Norse Lands is a full paid campaign, not a skin
Norse Lands is a full paid campaign, not a skin. Walls are weaker, builders are tougher, builders and archers carry shields with a shield wall mechanic, the berserker is a new unit, and artifacts come from solving puzzles instead of from gem spending.
Advanced Strategies
Build Optimization
The difference between an average build and an optimized one is massive. See our builds guide for full breakdowns.
For Europe (A-Tier):
- Focus on Coins, vagrants and tool assignment combinations for maximum output.
- Core gear: Archer
- Stat priority: Offensive stats first
For Shogun (A-Tier):
- Versatile approach that handles any situation.
- Core gear: Builder
- Stat priority: Balanced stats
Mechanic Interactions
Understanding how Kingdom Two Crowns's systems interact is where the real optimization lives. Our combat guide covers this in detail.
Coins, vagrants and tool assignment + The Greed and their portals: Coins are the only currency and the only command you have. Combined with The Greed and their portals, the greed attack at night, get stronger on blood moons and exist to take your crown.
Island hopping by boat + Mounts and their abilities: The campaign runs across five islands, each harder and carrying more bosses than the last. When paired with Mounts and their abilities, your mount is not cosmetic.
Two monarch co-op scaling: Two players can rule the same kingdom together, in shared screen, split screen or online. Each monarch carries their own coin purse and each can be caught out alone at night, so the practical split is one monarch pushing the left side while the other holds the right, rather than both riding together and leaving one flank undefended.
Equipment Efficiency
| Equipment | Best Use Case | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Archer | Holding a wall line, early coin income from hunting, and every island where the Greed arrive in numbers rather than in bosses. | Made by paying a recruited vagrant for a bow. |
| Builder | Wall upgrades, overnight repairs, and any strategy that intends to hold ground rather than retreat between islands. | Made by paying a vagrant for a hammer. |
| Farmer | Every strategy, since coins pay for everything else, and especially for islands four and five where costs rise sharply. | Made by paying a vagrant for a scythe on cleared farmland. |
| Squire and Knight | Attacking Greed portals, escorting a monarch away from the wall, and the final push into the mountain cave on each island. | Paying a shield at the second tier house turns a villager into a squire, and swords bought at the forge upgrade squires into knights. |
| Ballista | Blood moon defence, the heavier Greed on islands three and later, and covering a wall section you cannot staff with enough archers. | A tower mounted siege weapon unlocked through the Ballista Hermit on island one. |
Location Efficiency
Island I (First reign, days 1 to 30): The starter island and the safest place in the campaign, with no small portals to worry about. It holds the Statue of Archery, the Griffin mount and the Ballista Hermit, and most monarchs return here repeatedly because the unlocks are strong and the nights are survivable. Gems are not available yet.
Island II (Second island, gems unlocked): Where gems finally appear, which makes it the first island that funds unlocks rather than just surviving them. The Stone Mine here opens the path to the Iron Mine later, and the Stable Hermit is the practical unlock because it moves mounts between islands with you.
Island III (Third island, defensive base recommended): The island where a secure camp stops being optional. The Statue of Building adds wall protection, the Warhorse and Drafthorse mounts appear here, and the Bakery Hermit is the pickup that carries into islands four and five because it drives recruitment and population growth.
Island IV (Fourth island, iron rush): The resource island. The Iron Mine here supplies the strongest walls and the knight upgrades, which is why most monarchs raid it fast rather than settling in. The Lizard and Bear mounts and the Warrior Hermit are also here for anyone who does stay.
Island V (Fifth island, final challenge): The hardest island and the end of the run. The Unicorn mount is the priority because it generates coins while you ride, which solves the money problem that island five otherwise creates. The Statue of Knights is here too, and the Horn Hermit is widely considered the weakest unlock in the game.
Mistakes Even Veterans Make
- Recruiting archers before farmers, which produces a defence you cannot afford to maintain and a kingdom that never accumulates coins.
- Riding into the night with a full purse, then losing every coin at once when the Greed catch the monarch away from the wall.
- Attacking the big cave in the mountain before clearing the smaller portals feeding it, so reinforcements arrive faster than the detachment can advance.
- Sailing to a new island with an empty boat, arriving with no builders and no archers and having to rebuild an entire kingdom from vagrants.
- Treating Norse Lands as a reskin of Europe and relying on wall tier, when its walls are deliberately weaker and its shield wall is meant to carry the defence.
Pro Quick Tips
- Coins are the only order you can give. Everything from recruiting a vagrant to upgrading a wall runs through dropping coins, so the whole game reduces to deciding what your purse funds next.
- Farmers pay for archers, not the other way around. A kingdom that builds its farmland first can field a full archer line by day six, while an archer first kingdom is still short of coins on day ten.
- Squires and knights carry coins as a health buffer, up to five for squires and eleven for knights in Two Crowns. Loading them up before a portal assault is the difference between reaching the cave and losing the whole detachment.
- Start with Shogun, switch to Europe when ready
- Invest in Archer above everything else
- Clear areas in order: Island I → Island II → Island III → Island IV → Island V. See our maps guide
- Coins, vagrants and tool assignment + The Greed and their portals together are stronger than either alone
More Kingdom Two Crowns Guides
- Kingdom Two Crowns Kingdom Two Crowns Overview
- Kingdom Two Crowns Best Builds
- Kingdom Two Crowns Tier List
- Kingdom Two Crowns Walkthrough
- Kingdom Two Crowns Beginner's Guide
- Kingdom Two Crowns Weapons Guide
- Kingdom Two Crowns Combat Guide
- Kingdom Two Crowns Boss Guide
- Kingdom Two Crowns Maps & Locations
- Kingdom Two Crowns Crafting Guide
- Kingdom Two Crowns Classes & Characters
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