The Valiant

The Valiant is a PC squad-based real-time strategy game with RPG progression, medieval warfare, and an isometric battlefield perspective. Developed by KITE Games and published by THQ Nordic, it follows a small group of knights across Europe and the Middle East while combining hero abilities, equipment choices, tactical positioning, and online multiplayer.

The current Steam, Epic Games Store, GOG, and publisher listings continue to use the name The Valiant. No verified rebrand, renamed replacement edition, or free-to-play transition was found during the current storefront check.

Squad-Based RTS Combat

The Valiant is built around commanding compact forces rather than producing enormous armies. Your main battlefield decisions involve selecting hero squads, supporting them with auxiliary units, identifying threats, and using each unit's strengths before an engagement becomes difficult to recover.

The perspective is primarily isometric and bird's-eye, giving you a clear view of objectives, enemy formations, and movement routes. Battles reward active control, with infantry, cavalry, ranged units, and specialist troops each demanding different positioning and timing.

Combat is driven by unit abilities, target selection, formation movement, and retreat decisions. A strong attack can still fail if a squad is isolated, caught by a counterattack, or committed before the rest of the warband is ready to support it.

Unlike larger economy-heavy RTS games, The Valiant keeps its strategic scale focused. The emphasis is on frontline control and tactical execution rather than building a sprawling settlement, managing a complex technology economy, or expanding across a persistent world map.

Players who enjoy the compact medieval battlefield and territorial pressure of squad-focused historical RTS games like Ancestors Legacy will find a familiar emphasis on formations, flanking, and battlefield momentum, although The Valiant places more weight on named heroes and RPG-style customization.

Heroes, Skill Trees, and Equipment

The campaign features five or more hero squads, and each hero squad has three distinct skill trees. Leveling therefore involves more than simply improving statistics: players choose passive and active abilities that influence how a hero operates in combat.

These choices create different battlefield roles. One hero may be shaped toward direct melee pressure, while another can be developed around support, ranged attacks, control effects, or abilities that improve the effectiveness of nearby units.

The campaign also includes lootable weapons and armor. Equipment has its own statistics and special skill options, allowing players to adjust hero builds around preferred tactics rather than relying on a single fixed loadout.

The most important progression decisions come from combining skill trees with equipment bonuses. A weapon that complements a hero's active ability can change how that squad approaches an encounter, while defensive equipment can make a frontline commander more reliable during extended fights.

The result is a tactical RPG layer inside a real-time strategy structure. The game does not ask you to manage a conventional role-playing party turn by turn; instead, it asks you to prepare a small group of specialized leaders and use their capabilities quickly during live engagements.

Campaign Structure and Story

The single-player campaign contains 15 handcrafted missions, each built around a specific scenario, objective set, and narrative situation. The missions include custom cinematics, narrated journals, selectable difficulty levels, and progression for the heroes who accompany you.

The story follows Theoderich von Akenburg, a former crusader knight who is drawn back into conflict after learning that his former brother-in-arms, Ulrich von Grevel, is pursuing the remaining pieces of the Rod of Aaron.

The campaign moves across Europe and the Middle East as Theoderich gathers allies including Reinhard von Kempten, a veteran of the Teutonic Order, and Grimhild Eidottr, a young mercenary associated with the Raven Company.

This narrative structure gives the campaign a clear forward direction. It is best understood as a mission-based tactical adventure with character progression, not as a freeform grand strategy campaign or a sandbox where political choices reshape an entire world.

The campaign also acts as the main introduction to the game's systems. New missions gradually expose players to hero abilities, auxiliary squads, equipment decisions, difficulty settings, and the importance of coordinating multiple units during fast-moving encounters.

Co-Op, PvP, and Replay Loops

Beyond the campaign, The Valiant offers three-player online co-op through its Last Man Standing mode. Players face waves of enemies together, earn experience for their knights, and unlock additional skills and cosmetics as they continue developing their cooperative squads.

Last Man Standing changes the campaign mindset. Instead of progressing through a fixed story mission, the team must coordinate roles, cover one another's weaknesses, and survive escalating enemy pressure while deciding how to use each hero's abilities.

The competitive side supports 1v1 and 2v2 PvP. These matches focus on direct tactical competition, with cosmetic meta-progression and special rewards connected to ranked play.

There is no local split-screen mode identified in the current PC storefront information. Multiplayer is presented as online co-op and online PvP, so players looking for couch co-op should not treat The Valiant as a local multiplayer game.

The replay value comes from experimenting with hero builds, replaying missions at higher difficulties, surviving co-op sessions, and learning the matchup logic of competitive battles. It is a mastery loop based on tactical refinement rather than an endless procedural campaign.

Content Model and PC Editions

The standard game provides the full single-player campaign, hero progression, cooperative Last Man Standing mode, and competitive multiplayer. The core content is sold as a conventional paid game rather than a free base game supported by required purchases.

The current Steam listing identifies two optional add-ons: The Valiant - Coat of Arms Collection and The Valiant Soundtrack. The Coat of Arms Collection is cosmetic content, while the soundtrack is supplemental audio material.

No separate gameplay expansion, new faction pack, or season pass is identified in the current storefront materials. Players choosing the standard edition receive the central campaign and multiplayer structure without needing to assemble a collection of paid gameplay modules.

The official publisher site lists PC availability through Steam, Epic Games Store, and GOG. The game is also available on consoles, but this guide focuses on the PC versions and their storefront-specific features.

Who The Valiant Suits

The Valiant is a strong fit for players who want small-unit RTS tactics with named heroes, medieval weapons, and a clear story campaign. It suits people who prefer controlling a focused warband over managing a huge economy or a civilization-scale empire.

It is especially appealing if you enjoy pausing to assess a dangerous engagement, combining active abilities, and adjusting equipment between missions. The hero progression gives the campaign more build variety than a purely mission-based tactics game.

Players seeking a deep city-builder, extensive diplomacy, or a massive faction roster should set expectations accordingly. The Valiant is deliberately narrower, with its strategic interest concentrated in squad control, hero development, objective management, and combat positioning.

Fans of squad-command RTS design can also compare it with hero-driven tactical strategy such as Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II. The settings differ, but both games emphasize small groups, active abilities, character progression, and battlefield decisions over traditional base-building scale.

PC Controls, DRM, and Languages

The PC version supports keyboard and mouse controls as well as robust gamepad support. A later official update added improved controller navigation, controller tutorials, controller assist options, and broader gamepad usability across menus and gameplay.

The game also includes an optional tactical pause. When enabled in the gameplay options, players can stop the action and issue commands while time is paused, making the campaign more approachable for players who prefer deliberate tactical planning.

Steam lists Steam Cloud, achievements, Family Sharing, online co-op, and online PvP. No separate anti-cheat product is identified in the current storefront information, so the available platform details should be treated as the authoritative feature list rather than assuming support for a named anti-cheat system.

The GOG version is advertised as DRM-free and can be installed through an offline installer without requiring GOG Galaxy. Galaxy remains optional for features such as cloud synchronization and achievement support.

Steam lists 13 supported languages: English, German, French, Spanish - Spain, Brazilian Portuguese, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, Japanese, Polish, Russian, Hindi, Indonesian, and Hungarian. English and German include full audio, while the other listed languages provide interface and subtitle support.

For another small-unit RTS comparison centered on battlefield control rather than fantasy hero progression, tactical frontline combat games like Company of Heroes 2 provide a useful contrast in cover systems, resource structure, and combined-arms management.

The Valiant FAQ

Is The Valiant still sold under its original name?

Yes. Current Steam, Epic Games Store, GOG, and publisher listings continue to use The Valiant. No verified rebrand or renamed replacement edition was found.

What type of game is The Valiant?

It is an isometric, squad-based real-time strategy game with RPG elements. The main systems are hero squads, auxiliary units, active abilities, skill trees, equipment, mission objectives, and tactical positioning.

Does The Valiant have co-op?

Yes. The game supports online co-op for up to three players through the Last Man Standing mode, where teams fight enemy hordes, earn experience, and unlock skills and cosmetics.

Does The Valiant support competitive multiplayer?

Yes. Competitive online multiplayer includes 1v1 and 2v2 modes, with cosmetic progression and ranked-play rewards.

Does the PC version support controllers?

Yes. The PC version has robust gamepad support, controller-focused tutorials, improved menu navigation, and controller assist options. Keyboard and mouse remain fully supported.

Does The Valiant have a tactical pause?

Yes. Tactical pause can be enabled in the gameplay options, allowing players to stop the action and issue commands while paused.

What DLC is available for The Valiant?

The current Steam listing identifies the Coat of Arms Collection and the Soundtrack as optional add-ons. The standard game includes the campaign and multiplayer modes, while no separate gameplay expansion or season pass is identified in the verified storefront information.