Castlecore
Castlecore
Castlecore is a medieval dress up game where the armour comes apart. Shoulders, elbows, forearms, gloves, a neck plate, hips and two different chest plates sit on their own shelves, so plate is built piece by piece over whatever is already on, and a steel breastplate above a long trailing gown is the look the game is named for.
The face has moods. Brows, eyes and lips each carry the same set, so devastated or angry has to be chosen three times before it reads.
Then the clutter that makes it medieval: a chatelaine of keys and scissors at the belt, a drop spindle, a lute, a wooden spoon, and a wolfhound or a goose at her feet.
How to play Castlecore
Armour goes on top, not instead
The fourteen pieces are separate layers, so shoulders and a chest plate sit over a gown or a corset rather than replacing it. Dress her first and add plate outwards, until it looks like something she put on herself.
The metals have their own palette
Steel, brass and the darker finishes are a colour set of their own, kept apart from the fabric one. The armour can be matched to the jewellery or deliberately set against the dress.
A mood takes three shelves
Brows, eye shape and lips each carry the same expressions. Angry eyebrows above a calm mouth read as nothing at all, so choose the mood on all three before deciding it does not work.
The small things are placed, not slotted
Flowers, feathers, keys and the chatelaine are stamps rather than fixed positions. Drag them where you want them, and put a second one down if the belt still looks bare.
Pick the room last
A gown that looked washed out against the foggy meadow usually holds up against stone, and the battlefield changes a quiet outfit more than another necklace would.
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Frequently asked questions
What kind of game is Castlecore?
A medieval dress up game drawn by Tia Christine for Doll Divine, built so modern clothes and historical ones share the same shelves. Nothing is scored and nothing ends.
Can I put armour over a dress?
That is the point of it. The fourteen armour pieces layer over whatever is underneath, so a chest plate and shoulders go on top of a gown or a corset without replacing it.
Can I change the colour of the armour?
Yes. The metals have their own palette, separate from the fabric one, so steel, brass and darker finishes are a choice rather than a fixed part of the piece.
What can she hold?
A sword, a lute, a drop spindle, a wooden spoon, a book, a bag or a purse. The spindle and the spoon are there on purpose, next to the sword.
Are there animals in it?
A crow, four cats, a beagle, a chicken, a duck and a goose, and on a shelf of their own a wolfhound and a horse that stands beside her.
What are the backgrounds?
Twenty two of them, from a castle wall and a stone hallway to a pub, a town, a battlefield, a foggy meadow, a marsh, a flower garden, a bedroom and a plain runway.
Are there hennins and horns?
Both. A single hennin and a double one, a flower crown, a witch hat, a knight helmet, a mail hood, a metal headpiece, and horns or antlers if the character is not meant to be human.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes, in the browser. The board is drawn tall and resizes itself to the screen.
Is it free?
Free, no account and no download.