Tabletop Tavern Faction Guide: All 8 Factions Ranked

This Tabletop Tavern faction guide covers all 8 launch factions, which ones suit new players, and what the pre-launch Faction Overhaul changed about how each roster feels in practice. Picking the right faction at the start of a run shapes every decision that follows: different units, different campaign bonuses, different ways the morale system eventually catches you out.

TL;DR: Empire/Iron Legion is the beginner faction, full stop. Durable Kriegesguard infantry, a balanced unit pool, and a campaign bonus that rewards playing defensively rather than punishing you for it. Vikings are the second-easiest choice if you want to hit hard. Dwarves are the most reliable for sustained defense. Elves and Cathay demand you already understand morale before they click. Orcs punish every mistake by making it expensive to heal. All 8 are viable; the difference is how quickly each one makes you pay for errors.

Tabletop Tavern faction guide: which faction to pick first (quick answer)

Start with Empire. The Kriegesguard infantry holds a line without constant attention, the roster covers all five army roles without hunting for rare recruits, and the campaign bonus rewards sitting back and playing conservatively. That's exactly what new players do anyway, so the faction works with you instead of against you.

If you've already won a run or two and want more aggression, Vikings are the next step. Their Jomsviking elite units carry strong charge bonuses that close battles fast in manual play, and the campaign bonus pushes you to keep pressing encounters forward. After that, Dwarves are the third-easiest transition: slower, but their high-health elite infantry tanks through scenarios that'd end an Elf run after the second fight.

How the Faction Overhaul changed the game

Before launch, TJ shipped a Faction Overhaul that changed how unit rosters work across all eight factions. The core change was a "Quality over Quantity" redesign: units no longer have the same model count regardless of tier or cost.

Cheap infantry like Goblins, Skeletons, and Ashigaru Spearmen now field 84 models per unit with lower individual stats. Elite infantry like Dwarves, Kriegesguard, and Jomsvikings run 36 models with significantly stronger health and armor per soldier. Cavalry sits at 16 models with higher charge bonuses, and monsters land at 4 or 12 depending on type.

This matters for faction choice because it changes how losses compound. An Orc run fielding cheap Goblin infantry absorbs more visual punishment before a unit breaks, but each individual loss hurts less. A Dwarf run where one 36-model elite unit routes means you've lost real combat power in a single event. Same mechanic, different weight.

The faction selection screen shows each roster's unit types. High-tier factions field fewer models per unit, but each soldier carries noticeably stronger stats after the Overhaul.

The 8 factions, broken down

Empire (Iron Legion)

Good for beginners, defensive players, anyone on their first run.

The Empire's Kriegesguard heavy infantry and balanced roster mean you can cover all five army roles without scrambling for rare recruits. Their defensive formation bonuses activate when you hold a front line, which is exactly what new players do by default. Armor was added to all units in the Faction Overhaul, and Kriegesguard benefit from that more visibly than lighter infantry factions do.

The campaign bonus rewards conservative play. You take less punishment for fights you hold rather than push, which gives you more margin for the learning-curve mistakes that are going to happen in the first few runs regardless.

Vikings

Good for aggressive players, second or third playthrough.

Vikings center on Jomsviking elite infantry. Jomsvikings carry strong charge bonuses that, in manual play, translate to breaking enemy formations in the opening seconds before they establish defensive stance. The campaign bonus rewards pushing encounters forward rather than pulling back to heal after every fight.

The risk: if a battle drags and your Jomsvikings eat too many flanking hits, you're exposed fast. Vikings have less recovery tolerance than Empire or Dwarves. Their whole game is ending fights before that becomes a problem, so if you're still learning when to switch from auto-resolve to manual control, the faction punishes hesitation.

Dwarves

Good for sustained defense, players who keep losing runs on attrition.

Dwarves hold. Their elite infantry runs 36 models with the highest health and armor values in the game post-Overhaul. They're slower than Elves or Cathay, they don't have Orc monster units, and they don't hit as hard on the charge as Vikings. What they do is survive sustained damage that would collapse lighter rosters by the third battle.

If your runs fall apart because you arrive at a boss half-depleted, Dwarves are the answer. Units don't route from flanking hits as readily, and the stat block absorbs auto-resolve variance better than any other faction.

GODEEPER: Healing between fights and how attrition compounds is the system that decides whether a Dwarf run or an Empire run actually survives long enough to matter. Tabletop Tavern Tips: 9 Ways to Win More Runs 2026 →

Elves

Good for experienced players, ranged-focused builds.

Elves have the strongest ranged output if you position correctly. Duskspears, Glyphstone Phalanx (shield and spear formation), and Elarion Sentinels (glaive-armed heavy infantry) cover ranged damage and hold specific matchups well. Aerindel Guard is their baseline heavy unit after the Faction Overhaul stat rebalance.

The problem is morale tolerance. Elf units have lower base morale than Human or Dwarf infantry, so a cavalry flank that reaches your back line cascades through the formation faster than you'd expect. Their ranged output is only as good as your positioning, and Elves don't give you much time to figure out where you went wrong.

One thing the community flagged early: Elves struggle against high-armor opponents. Their damage advantage comes from ranged attacks before melee, and once you're stuck in a prolonged melee with armored units, that edge is gone.

Orcs

Good for high-ceiling aggressive play, players who read matchups well.

Orcs field Trolls, Giants, Ironguts, and Fleshshredders. Fleshshredder Fanatics had their Blood Frenzy ability fixed in the Faction Overhaul and got a health buff on top of it. Monsters run 4 to 12 models depending on type, with stats that dwarf comparable infantry. A Troll hitting a line of lighter infantry does things visually that no other faction can replicate.

The tradeoff is heal cost. Orc units are more expensive to recover than Empire or Viking units, so every battle where you take significant losses hits your campaign resources harder. The faction rewards winning fights cleanly. If your play is aggressive and your matchup reads are good, Orcs have the highest damage ceiling. If you're still making positioning errors, those errors cost more here than anywhere else.

Undead

Good for attrition-focused play, players who want a different kind of front line.

Undead field Skeletons as baseline infantry: 84 models, lower individual stats, and campaign replenishment mechanics that work differently from living factions. You don't pay to heal the same way. The Undead roster suits players who want to hold a line with mass cheap units while building toward a specific rare unit or gear combination in the back half of the army.

They don't win head-on fights as cleanly as Empire, Vikings, or Dwarves. But mass Skeleton formations absorb a lot before a unit breaks on morale, which buys time for ranged or monster units behind the line to do actual damage. It's a slower, more patient style, and honestly it's underrated because most players dismiss it before understanding the replenishment difference.

Large-scale clashes show the Quality over Quantity system in practice. Elite infantry units are smaller on screen but each soldier carries significantly higher stats than mass-roster units like Goblins or Skeletons.

Cathay (Secura Dynasty)

Good for experienced players, mobile tactical builds.

Cathay's Ashigaru Spearmen and Ronin Wanderers received a stat rebalance in the Faction Overhaul to bring them in line with comparable infantry. Both units are fast and mobile rather than the anchoring role that Dwarf or Empire heavy infantry fills.

The faction plays hit-and-run and punishes formation mistakes hard. If you understand how morale chain-breaks work and can create flanking opportunities on purpose, Cathay delivers consistent results. If you're still learning when to commit a flanking push versus hold the line, the light style will lose fights a sturdier roster would survive without issue.

The r/totalwar thread covering the game's launch made the case that Cathay suits players who found Total War's cavalry management intuitive. I think that framing is right: if chasing flanking opportunities while keeping your line intact felt natural in Total War, Cathay clicks faster here than it does for everyone else.

GODEEPER: For a broader look at where Tabletop Tavern sits among this year's indie strategy roguelikes, the roundup has the full picture. Best Roguelike Games 2026: Top Picks Across Every Budget →

Lizardmen (Drakosaur Brood)

Good for monster-focused builds, players who want something genuinely unusual.

Lizardmen bring the Drakosaur Brood: dinosaur-adjacent units with attack patterns that don't map to anything else in the game. Before the performance overhaul, the Drakosaur Brood's assets were flagged as among the most memory-intensive in the entire game. They run cleanly now, but the faction is still one of the more demanding to build around because the monster units need the rest of your roster to support them.

A Drakosaur against unarmored infantry is efficient. Against armored spear formations, you need to read enemy trait cards before committing, because anti-large resistance interactions change how those fights play out completely. Lizardmen don't forgive a lazy trait check.

What's coming: new factions on the roadmap

Two roadmap additions were confirmed before launch. Update 1.2: Banners of War (Winter 2027) adds the Olympian Phalanx as the game's ninth faction, plus one more chosen by community vote. Every future faction is permanently free. No paid DLC, no expansion passes.

Update 1.1: The Rift of Magic (Fall 2026) doesn't add a new faction but brings spellcasting and Mage units, which will interact with existing rosters in ways TJ hasn't fully detailed yet. Mage units weaving into Viking or Elf armies will likely shift how factions rank when that update arrives.

Related Reading

• Tabletop Tavern Tips: 9 Ways to Win More Runs 2026: The companion guide to this one, covering morale, auto-resolve decisions, vault gold, and healing between runs.
• Tabletop Tavern Release Date: Roguelike RTS Lands June 11: Background on the launch, developer story, and what 120k wishlists with zero paid marketing looks like.
• Best Roguelike Games 2026: Top Picks Across Every Budget: Where Tabletop Tavern fits against the year's best roguelikes.
• Far Far West Strategy Guide: Spells, Loadouts and PvE: Another roguelike where faction and army composition drive run outcomes differently.
• Best Indie Roguelites Steam Summer Sale 2026: If the faction variety hooked you, this list covers other roguelites worth picking up.
• Tabletop Tavern Review: Roguelike RTS Gets It Right: Tabletop Tavern review: Very Positive on Steam, 94% of 500+ ratings.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many factions are in Tabletop Tavern at launch? Eight factions ship with the game: Vikings, Orcs, Elves, Empire (Humans/Iron Legion), Dwarves, Undead, Cathay (Secura Dynasty), and Lizardmen (Drakosaur Brood). The developer has confirmed at least one more faction coming via community vote in Update 1.2: Banners of War, expected Winter 2027, starting with the Olympian Phalanx.

Which is the best faction for beginners in Tabletop Tavern? The Empire faction, sometimes called Iron Legion, is the most forgiving starting choice. Their Kriegesguard infantry holds a front line without requiring precise positioning, and their balanced unit pool means you can fill all five army roles without scrambling for rare recruits. Vikings are a strong second for players who prefer an aggressive opening.

Are Elves good in Tabletop Tavern? Elves are strong but punishing. Units like Duskspears, Glyphstone Phalanx, and Elarion Sentinels deliver excellent ranged output and formation bonuses, but they have lower morale tolerance than Human or Dwarf infantry. Any flanking attack that reaches your back line can collapse an Elf run faster than you'd expect. They reward players who already understand the morale chain-break system.

What is the Quality over Quantity system in Tabletop Tavern? The pre-launch Faction Overhaul redesigned units so cheaper troops have more models with lower individual stats, while elite units have fewer models but much stronger stats per soldier. Cheap infantry like Goblins or Skeletons field 84 models; elite infantry like Dwarves or Kriegesguard run 36 models with significantly higher health and armor. Cavalry units field 16 models. This makes higher-tier units feel meaningfully stronger rather than just more expensive.

Can you change factions mid-run in Tabletop Tavern? No. You pick a faction at the start of each run and stay with it. Every unit you recruit belongs to that faction's roster, and the campaign bonuses are tied to your chosen faction. However, certain rare gear pieces can give you access to units from other factions temporarily, and the Prestige system lets you merge three identical units into a single stronger version regardless of faction.

Which factions are hardest to play in Tabletop Tavern? Elves and Cathay (Secura Dynasty) have the steepest learning curves. Both rely on fast, mobile unit types that punish positioning mistakes immediately. Cathay's Ashigaru Spearmen and Ronin Wanderers are individually strong but the faction's style demands you read enemy formations early and respond before the line breaks. Orcs are powerful but expensive to heal, so every lost unit hurts more than it would with sturdier factions.

What new faction is coming in Tabletop Tavern Update 1.2? Update 1.2: Banners of War, planned for Winter 2027, adds the Olympian Phalanx as a playable faction. A second faction will be added based on a community vote. The developer has also confirmed all future factions and updates are permanently free: no paid DLC, no expansion passes.

Do Dwarves have good units in Tabletop Tavern? Dwarves are among the most reliable factions in the game. Their elite infantry fields 36 models per unit with higher health and armor than most comparable infantry. They're slower than Elves or Cathay units, but they hold a front line through sustained damage that would break lighter factions in two or three battles.

References

• Tabletop Tavern on Steam for faction list, unit types, price ($14.99, Very Positive 95.3% from 380 reviews at launch), and system requirements.
• Garrison Battles, Faction Overhaul, and Lots of Bug Fixes for the Quality over Quantity redesign, unit model counts, and stat rebalances.
• 100,000 Wishlists, Free Updates Forever & Multiplayer Confirmed for the official roadmap: Update 1.1 Rift of Magic (Fall 2026), Update 1.2 Banners of War (Winter 2027), Olympian Phalanx, and multiplayer confirmation.
• Tabletop Tavern Official Launch Trailer on developer channel TJGameDev showing all eight factions in battle.