How to Play Hex Draft Kingdom

A beginner's guide to Hex Draft Kingdom, a free competitive draft auto-battler you play directly in your browser — no download, no install.

What is Hex Draft Kingdom?

Hex Draft Kingdom is a turn-by-turn draft auto-battler. Each round you draft units and buildings from a shared pool, deploy them on a hexagonal board, and then watch the auto-battle resolve. You spend gold, upgrade your units, counter your opponent's composition, and try to be the last kingdom standing. There's no twitch reflex involved — the skill is in the drafting, the board positioning, and managing your economy.

The core loop

1. Draft

At the start of each round you pick from a shared pool of units and buildings. Some counter cavalry, some shred armour, some support from the back line — read what you're given and build toward a composition that works together.

2. Deploy on the hex board

Place your army on the hexagonal board. Positioning matters: front-line units soak damage while ranged units and casters do work from behind. You can also set traps to punish where the enemy advances.

3. Upgrade by combining three of a kind

Collect three copies of the same unit to merge them into a higher tier. Tiered units have more health and deal more damage, so chasing duplicates of a strong unit is one of the main ways to spike your power.

4. Manage your gold economy

Gold is the constraint behind every decision. Spend it to draft and upgrade now, or hold it to draft better later. Balancing immediate strength against a stronger future board is the heart of the game.

5. Battle

Once both players lock in, the auto-battle plays out deterministically — the same boards always produce the same fight. Win and your opponent loses health; lose and you take the hit. When a kingdom's health hits zero, it's out.

Game modes

• 1v1 — duel a friend with a private code, or play against the AI.
• Free-for-all (4 or 6 players) — everyone drafts and fights in rotating pairings; the last kingdom standing wins.
• Practice vs bots — learn the ropes against the AI at your own pace.

Tips for new players

• Commit to a direction early instead of grabbing one of everything.
• Front-line tanks up front, ranged and casters protected behind them.
• Don't over-spend — a little saved gold often buys a much stronger next round.
• Watch what your opponent fields and draft counters to it.
• Three of a kind is a power spike — chase upgrades on units you're already invested in.

Play with a friend

Create a private lobby and share the invite link — your friend clicks it and drops straight into your game, no code typing required.

Free in your browser. No install.