Kingdom Clash

Kingdom Clash puts a castle at each end of a green valley with three lanes, a river and bridges between them. Before the battle you build a deck of six cards from thirty-six: six factions (the Kingdom, the Elves, the Undead, the Orcs, the Barbarians and the Dwarves) times six unit types (swordsmen, spearmen, archers, knights, mages and siege engines). Every card is a building. Tap a free plot in front of your castle, pick a card, and the building rises and starts sending that unit down its lane, again and again, for as long as it stands.

Gold comes in on its own and faster with farms, so the first choice is always more soldiers or more income. Upgrade a building twice for quicker, tougher units. The unit types counter each other: spears beat knights, knights beat archers and mages, archers beat spears, swords beat spears and archers, mages beat swords, and siege engines break buildings and towers. Three or more cards from one faction give that faction's units a boost. Across the valley an AI commander with a deck of its own does the same, named after its main faction, and a tower guards each lane. Break the enemy castle and you win; lose yours and it is over.

Matches take two to four minutes. There is a pause screen with the counter chart, and your deck is kept on the device. It runs on desktop with the mouse and on phones and tablets with a finger.