Cossacks (Козаки in Ukrainian) is a series of history-based Real-Time Strategy video games for Windows created by Ukrainian developer GSC Game World (which later created the First-Person Shooter series S.T.A.L.K.E.R.).
The series covers the major European conflicts from the early 17th century (the Thirty Years' War) to The Napoleonic Wars (including conflicts in Eastern Europe involving, well, Cossacks). The games are notable for the great number of units the player can deploy on the battlefield (up to a few thousands).
The series consists of:
- Cossacks: European Wars (2000) and its two expansion packs:
- Cossacks: The Art of War (2001)
- Cossacks: Back to War (standalone, 2002)
- Cossacks II: Napoleonic Wars (2005) and its expansion pack:
- Cossacks II: Battle for Europe (2006)
- Cossacks 3 (2016). Has some DLCs:
- Days of Brilliance (2016)
- Rise to Glory (2017)
- Guardians of the Highlands (2017)
- Path to Grandeur (2017)
- The Golden Age (2017)
GSC Game World also released American Conquest in 2003, which is basically Cossacks in the Americas in everything but name.
Tropes present across the franchise:
- Baseless Mission: Some of the hardest missions in the campaigns give the player a limited number of units to manage without any base to bring reinforcements or farm resources.
- Call That a Formation?: Troops begin without being in a formation, although they can form basic shapes. Sufficient numbers can form a regiment, that can assume a formation. Not all units can form regiments even if they have the numbers and a officer, and are usually easily killed by units that are in formation, as formations provide strong offensive and defensive bonus.
- Cannon Fodder: The player's units on the battlefield, naturally. Especially when they are not fully upgraded and going against upgraded enemies.
- Crippling Overspecialization: Most ranged units can not fight in melee (save for 18th century musketeers and grenadiers, who have bayonets) and try to escape when the enemy is too close. Some factions also have heavily limited unit rosters that restrict them to one or two main strategies.
- Ukraine has a total of 4 land military units, not counting mercenaries and generic artillery pieces like cannons and mortars. It lacks native melee infantry entirely (though its peasants - which, uniquely, can only be captured when in mines - can fight on the frontlines in a pinch), lacks heavy cavalry entirely aside from its expensive Hetman officer unit, lacks access to the 18th century, and has as its only warship the generic rowed galley that serves as one of the most basic naval units in the game. Ukraine players are therefore restricted to either trying to win the game early (ie, before the enemy reaches the 18th century) with a combination of its Serdiuk musketeers and its light cavalry units, or massing hordes of Serdiuks - which are very powerful when fully upgraded - and Hetmen to crush the enemy late on. Despite its limited roster, both strategies are extremely viable and this is why Ukraine is considered one of the most overpowered factions in the game.
- Algeria is almost comically geared towards an early-game victory. Not only does it - like Ukraine - have a very limited unit roster, it also lacks key technologies to sustain its war effort in long games. Its most viable strategy by far is to mass its cheap, weak, yet numerous infantry units - the Archer, which takes less than a second to train but dies to a strong gust of wind, and the slightly stronger Light Infantryman - and overwhelm the enemy soon after the game starts.
- Scotland in Cossacks 3 has a unique but limited roster of units, possessing in particular extremely strong melee troops: its unique pikemen unit has above-average attack stats and its Sword Clansmen have high HP and a powerful melee attack. While the faction does have units that are viable in the mid-late game (for example, Bow Clansmen, which have high HP and a long-ranged arrow attack), it does not have the 18th-century upgrade. Hence the best strategy by far for a Scotland player is to win the game with their powerful infantry early on.
- Game Mod: There are a number, but the most well-known is Mod 1 for Cossacks: Back to War. It added a variety of new units and balance changes, and was so well-received that the developers all but made it an official part of the game by including the installation files on the Back to War CD.
- Leitmotif: Like in American Conquest, every nation contributes one piece of music to the soundtrack:
- Ukraine has a dramatic folk music piece based on Hey Sokoli and similar tunes.
- France in 2 has a military fife motif, reminiscent of revolutionary French music, and in 3, a melody reminiscent of Versailles chamber music.
- Britain (and Scotland in 3) have a Scottish drums and pipes motif, England a Tudorian dance and hurdy-gurdy motif.
- Austria has an elegant waltz music motif.
- Prussia has a dark, drum and strings-heavy march-of-doom motif. In 3, it's a much more lighthearted one inspired by the Prussian Lockmarsch.
- Spain has a Flamenco-like guitar, trumpet and castanet motif.
- Egypt has a drum-heavy Saidi motif.
- Russia has a motif inspired by Russian dances and folk music, featuring snippets from Song of the Volga Boatmen, Mussorgsky's In the Steppes of Central Asia and even Moscow Nights.
- The Confederation of the Rhine has a generic motif incorporating bells and trumpets.
- Poland has a heroic drum and strings-heavy motif faintly reminiscent of Polonaise music.
- Bavaria features a potpourri of polka (specifically, In München steht ein Hofbräuhaus) and classical piano music.
- Both Sweden and Denmark makes heavy use of Scandinavian fiddles in their themes.
- Hungary's theme is inspired by Csárdás and similar folk tunes.
- The Netherlands' theme is closely based on Merck toch hoe sterck.
- Million Mook March: The huge number of units available to the players is the series' best-known trademark. The latest installment, Cossacks 3, has a global population cap of 16000.
- Rape, Pillage, and Burn: Implied: when your units capture enemy buildings, they have a chance of automatically catching fire. It's not unusual for entire settlements to be destroyed this way.
- Spiteful A.I.: The CPU makes extensive use of its frame-prefect reflexes to suicide every capturable unit it can before they fall into enemy hands.
- We Have Reserves: The aforementioned high population cap (in fact, theoretically infinite in Back to War) and the fact that some units can be trained in literally less than a second means that this is a perfectly viable tactic.
- Video Game Remake: Cossacks 3 is not a sequel or a remaster. Cossacks 3 IS Cossacks: European Wars, right down to the game mechanics, with graphical overhaul. There are new campaigns and nations, however.
- You Require More Vespene Gas: There are six resources for player to collect and keep track of.
- Food. Used to keep your people fed and do research. Food is constantly consumed, so players need strong economy or store food before creating their armies.
- Wood and Stone: Used to build buildings. Fortifications, whether they're made of wood or stone, constantly consume wood and stone too, and a strong production of both is needed as a result.
- Gold: Used to pay upgrades, or hire merceneries. Mercenaries use gold like normal troops use food, and if you run out of gold they will rebel against you. Artillery also uses gold to fire.
- Iron and coal: Used by gunpowder units to fire and to produce units. If you do not have iron or coal, your gunpowder units can not fire.
