The free version has "Energy" for battles. Buy the premium unlock ($9.99) to remove this. The PC version has no microtransactions.
| Faction | Starting City | Difficulty | Unique Trait | | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | | | Xiaopei (Small) | Very Hard | Gains free "Benevolence" recruits but starts poor. | | Cao Cao | Chenliu (Large) | Medium | "Hedong" trait: 20% cheaper spy actions. | | Sun Ce | Kuaiji (Coastal) | Easy | Naval dominance; Trade routes generate double gold. | | Gongsun Zan | Beiping (Border) | Nightmare | Start at war with Yuan Shao; cavalry focus. | | Ma Teng | Xiliang (West) | Medium | Free horses every season; no siege units. | three kingdoms the last warlord wiki