History VideoGame / TheyAreBillions

** The most basic unit, the Ranger, is by far the most important unit in the early game. It is quickly and cheaply built, doesn't need special resources, is the fastest unit in the game and its silence makes it less prone to gather unwanted attention. They are also very useful for drawing mobs away from your walls during swarm attacks, since Rangers can easily outrun most enemies.

** The Lucifer gets a double helping as its flamethrower is one of the most powerful weapons in the game, but it can't fire from behind walls, making it significantly harder to use than most other units in a game centered around hiding behind your walls.

** The most basic unit, the Ranger, is by far the most important unit in the early game. It is quickly and cheaply built, doesn't need special resources, is the fastest unit in the game and its silence makes it less prone to gather unwanted attention.

* HoldTheLine: The objective of the survival campaign is for your colony to survive for a certain number of days, with 100 being the default setting, against waves of undead hordes. Alternatively, defeating the final horde will automatically count as a win.
** Note that difficulty is ''increased'' by reducing the number of days, as it will just spawn the same hordes, ''faster''.

* EarlyGameHell: You start each mission with only a command center and a tiny handful of troops, which you have to use to both defend your base and clear mobs for expansion. Since it can take a lot time to acquire the resources and buildings needed to recruit new soldiers and fortify your base with walls, it can be quite simple for a single zombie to slip past your few starting troops and set off a chain reaction among your buildings that will overwhelm your whole base.

* SettlingTheFrontier: Every survival game has you attempting to establish settlements in the zombie wild-lands and pacify the surrounding territory.

* StartingUnits: In the survival campaign you start the missions with four Rangers and a Soldier.

* ReinventingTheWheel: Research options at the wood and stone workshops, and the foundry, have to be purchased and re-purchased for each scenario.

* ContinuingIsPainful: In the campaign, losing a mission applies a stacking 10% decrease to the reward each time you attempt the mission. As the rewards are used to unlock the tech tree, repeated failures early on can significantly hamper your ability to keep up with the escalating difficulty.

* AwesomeButImpractical: Top tier units and structures are spectacular to look at in action but also cost a ton not just to build but also to research, build the production structure for, and maintain. Most importantly the [[JackOfAllStats versatile]] (and in campaign, [[MasterOfAll powerful]]) Soldier is at the very start of the TechTree, and aside from the [[CripplingOverspecialization underwhelming]] Sniper every other unit type afterwards requires ''four more buildings and three technologies'' and the limited oil resource to even be able to produce.

** The most basic unit, the Ranger, is by far the most important unit in the early and mid game. It is quickly and cheaply built, doesn't need special resources, is the fastest unit in the game and its silence makes it less prone to gather unwanted attention.
** Due to upgrades available in the campaign, the humble Soldier is likely to be a big part of your army on every difficulty and every map. Their fast rate of fire prevents overkill, they do great single target damage, are among the easiest units to produce, and overwhelmingly the most durable unit on a per-unit-cost basis.

* AwesomeButImpractical: Top tier units and structures are spectacular to look at in action but also cost a ton to maintain and some require a constant supply of oil which is at a premium throughout the game.

* HeroUnit: Introduced with the campaign mode. Currently there are Caelus, a MightyGlacier, and Calliope, a GlassCannon.

* OnlyInItForTheMoney: Soldiers will abandon the colony if you can't pay their wage. The Rangers in particular make it clear they're just there to get paid.

* NotHyperbole: While a single player will most likely never face such numbers, the game can track a total of Infected killed across ''all'' players, and the developers revealed that, as of July 2nd, [[https://steamcommunity.com/games/644930/announcements/detail/1612767708795327709 a total of 44 billion infected have been struck down]]. So yes, They ''are'', quite literally, Billions.

* DeadWeight: The Infected Chubbies move as fast as Infected Fresh but are massive in comparison. They are also the most durable type of zombie.

** The Executor is the most powerful turret but it also has the highest maintenance cost at 50 gold, where the ballista it upgrades from only costs 12. Most players hold off on upgrading their ballista until the final wave to avoid tanking their economy.

* VeteranUnit: Units that manage to kill enough zombies get a veterancy upgrade, which results in a stat boost and a new skin so you can tell them apart from regular troops.

** The Executioner is the most powerful turret but it also has the highest maintenance cost at 50 gold, where the ballista it upgrades from only costs 12. Most players hold off on upgrading their ballista until the final wave to avoid tanking their economy.

* GatlingGood: Titan mechs are armed with dual gatling guns, and the Executioner, the most powerful defensive turret, mounts a truly huge gatling gun that chews through zombies.

** The Executioner is the most powerful turret in the game and mounts a truly massive gatling gun.

* EliteMooks: The soldiers (and arguably snipers) fulfill that role, being stronger than the rangers, but still being basic infantry.

* GarrisonableStructures: You can build guard towers as part of your base defenses and they can be garrisoned with up to four soldiers.

* InvulnerableCivilians: The colonists walking around the colony cannot be attacked. However the zombies can infect your buildings and turn the occupants into more zombies.

* SceneryPorn: The game is actually quite nice to look at.
* ScoringPoints: Survival maps have a final score based on a number of factors including: Number of infected killed; maximum colony population; and number of colonists infected. An overall score modifier is applied to this score based on the difficulty settings.

* FragileSpeedster: Rangers are the fastest infantry unit you can build early on but are by far the most fragile of your units with only 60 hp.

* ShockAndAwe: The aptly named Shock Tower which discharges a massive electrical burst that hits all zombies in it's area of effect. Weaker zombies will be killed instantly, and it can hit as many zombies as can fit in it's range, but it's range is relatively short and there is a long recharge between shots.

* BoringButPractical: The most basic unit, the Ranger, is by far the most important unit in the early and mid game. It is quickly and cheaply built, doesn't need special resources, is the fastest unit in the game and its silence makes it less prone to gather unwanted attention.
* BottomlessMagazines: Downplayed. Units do reload, but they never run out of ammunition to reload with.
* CannonFodder: Your Soldier and Ranger units are the default infantry units and will likely make up the bulk of your army. Rangers in particular are dirt-cheap and easy to spam in large numbers.

** The historical documents recovered on said missions are also presented in the style of a printed newspaper, though this may just be a framing device.

* ClownCarBase: Ignoring the player's colony, Villages of Doom have a big case of this when disturbed. A small house will spawn dozens while a Town Hall will spawn hundreds.
* ColdSniper: The flavor text for your Sniper units specifically says "this sadistic killer would be in jail in times before the apocalypse." They are slow to move and reload but have a very long attack range and are extremely accurate. Their attacks are pretty powerful too since they can kill most of the infected with just one shot.
* CommandAndConquerEconomy: Nothing gets built unless you order it but the colonists harvest resources automatically.
* ConstructAdditionalPylons: You will be building a lot of worker tents and cottages before a game is done. Not to mention buildings that supply energy and food.
** Power Plants may require additional stone and wood harvesting buildings as they consume those resources. If a plant will leave your production rate in the negatives, it cannot be built.
** Mechanized units reduce your oil production rate and cannot be built if that would lead to negative oil production, requiring additional oil refineries.

* AwesomeButImpractical: Top tier units are spectacular to look at in action but also cost more to maintain than standard units and require a constant supply of oil which is the least common resource.

In the 22nd century a ZombieApocalypse has destroyed civilization and nearly the entire human population of Earth. Technology for those who survived has regressed to late 19th century levels with the collapse of civilization. General Quintus Crane is attempting to establish a new Human civilization capable of withstanding zombie attacks and slowly reclaiming the planet. You are one of his field commanders, tasked with reconquering lands from the Infected and building new colonies.

* ApocalypticLogistics: Averted, as the survivors have regressed in tech but have started manufacturing new equipment roughly at the late 19th, early 20th century level. There are some tactical missions in the campaign with the goal of obtaining advanced technology from the ruins of the old Human fortress and cities.
* ArmyScout: Your Ranger units. They are some of the fastest units in the game with a long sight radius and pack a steampunk bow so they can kill small groups of the infected without alerting a large horde.
* ArtificialStupidity: Unless one your combat units aggro some infected, their default behavior, once they make a beeline to your colony, is to attack the nearest unit or building, even if it is a wall or an empty tower. So it is possible for zombies to stupidly strike your walls and ignoring the very obvious gaping hole nearby. Even the Infected Venoms will stupidly try to attack your walls rather than a building behind it.
* AwesomeButImpractical: Top tier units are spectacular to look at in action but also cost more to maintain than standard units and require a constant supply of oil which is the least common resource. The Lucifer gets a double helping as its flamethrower is great at clearing large groups of infected but it also can't fire from behind walls, leaving it vulnerable.

** The Titan is hit particularly badly with this; incredibly expensive just to unlock[[note]] you have to unlock and build an Engineering Center, itself expensive, and then research the Titan itself, which costs '''6000 currency''', hands-down '''the''' most expensive thing in the game and more money than you can even ''store'' without at least two Warehouses[[/note]], it's expensive to build, has a high upkeep, and its damage output is comparatively weak in comparison to all the money and other resources you spent getting the thing. They can't even gain experience and become veterans like your other troops.

* BoobyTrap: You can build these. Examples include spike traps and land mines.
* BoomHeadshot: Snipers use these, potentially killing elite zombies in one shot.
* BoringButPractical: The most basic unit, the Ranger, will do most of the work, and do so efficiently. It is quickly and cheaply built, doesn't need special resources, is the fastest unit in the game and its silence makes it less prone to gather unwanted attention.

* ClownCarBase: Ignoring the player's colony, Villages of Doom have a big case of this when disturbed. A small house will spawn a dozen or so zombies while a Town Hall will spawn hundreds.

* DisasterDominoes: If even a single, slow-moving zombie is able to attack one of your buildings for long enough, it will break in and turn the colonists inside into fast zombies, which then in turn spread out and attack all other buildings in reach. Given that space is limited and players tend to put buildings close together...
* EliteZombie: Having an easy enough time dealing with the regular Infected? Don't worry! The game will soon start throwing increasingly tougher varieties at you. Some examples include:
** Infected Fresh and Colonists, which are just as weak as regular Infected but much faster.
** Infected Executives, are a tougher and harder to kill variety of fast Infected. They have a nice suit, too.
** Infected Chubbies, which are massive and extremely durable.

* EliteMooks: The soldiers fulfill that role, being stronger than the rangers, but still being basic infantry.

** Crane's forces are Powerhouse. Their forces are nowhere near as large as the zombies but on an individual basis they are much stronger. They also have better ranged attacks and are backed up by powerful defensive structures and fixed artillery emplacements.
** The zombies are the Horde. They are all about using ''massive'' numbers of weak, easily massed units to overwhelm enemies through sheer numbers.

* FragileSpeedster: Rangers are the fastest infantry unit you can build early on but they have smallest health pool (60 hp) of any of your units.

* GlassCannon: Calliope, one of the two heroes chosen at the beginning of the campaign, has a high movement and attack speed, but a much smaller hit point pool than Caelus.
* GradualRegeneration: Units that have been wounded heal gradually over time but buildings have to be repaired manually.

* HitAndRunTactics: A preferred way to clear out the map is to send a small raider group to aggro a bunch of zombies from the main horde, fall back with them pursuing you, than halting and wiping out the pursuers. This allows you to thin the massive hordes outside your walls without getting overwhelmed. Rinse, lather, repeat.

** Note that difficulty is ''increased'' by reducing the number of days, as it will just spawn the same amount of zombie hordes, ''faster''.

* InvulnerableCivilians: Played with, the zombies can infect your buildings and turn the occupants into more zombies, but otherwise your colonists cannot be attacked while walking around.

** The choices of mayor that are made available at each population tier are completely random. Some of them come with amazing benefits such as reduced build times or reduced research costs. Others may only offer you a couple of bonus rangers or extra wood.

* OneHitKill: Your Sniper units are capable of doing this to most zombie variants. Just watch their reload time.
* OnlyInItForTheMoney: Soldiers will abandon the colony if you can't pay their wage.

* ShockAndAwe: The aptly named Shock Tower which discharges a massive electrical burst in a wide area of effect that can kill dozens of the weaker zombies at once. The downsides are its short-range, slow recharge rate and power consumption.
* SiegeEngines: The first weapon tower that you can build in the game is the Great Ballista. It is very effective and will serve you well for a long time to come.

* SociopathicSoldier: The Sniper units you can get are implied to be AxCrazy and would have been in jail if not for the situation.

* SteamPunk: Justified as the game is actually set in the future so they have three centuries after the 19th century of advanced engineering knowledge to fall back on.

* WeHaveReserves: The zombies definitely do but many players so far seem to spam Rangers and Soldiers, grab a large group of them (say 20 or so), and set them on chase mode outside the base without caring whether they survive. And while the first group is busy clearing out the surrounding terrain another group is being queued up.

* YouRequireMoreVespeneGas: Actually, you require more gold, wood, food, energy, stone, iron ore, oil...
* ZergRush: Default tactic of the zombies, so much so that this game could be considered a master-class in defending against zerg rushes.

'''''They Are Billions''''' is a PostApocalyptic SteamPunk [[SurvivalSandbox survival]] [[RealTimeStrategy real-time strategy game]] by developed and published by Spanish independent studio Numantian Games, known previously for the ''VideoGame/LordsOfXulima''. The game released on Steam's Early Access in December 2017 with survival mode. A campaign title "New Empire" was released on June 18, 2019. Ports for the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 will also be release in July.

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