turnrs

TurnRS is a lightweight, open‑source library designed to streamline the development of turn‑based strategy games. It provides a standardized engine for handling turn logic, resource management, and combat resolution, allowing developers to focus on narrative and design rather than core mechanics. The library supports multiple player modes—including single‑player AI, local multiplayer, and networked play—while maintaining a consistent set of rules across all platforms.

The core of TurnRS is a turn queue system that manages state changes in a deterministic order. Each turn, actors can issue actions such as move, attack, or use special abilities, which are interpreted by the engine according to configured rule sets. Resource pools, cooldown timers, and unit health are updated automatically. The library also includes a simple scripting interface for defining custom behaviors and a data‑driven approach that lets designers tweak parameters without code changes.

TurnRS is written in C++ with a modern API that exposes hooks for graphics and audio engines. It ships with a set of sample projects demonstrating hex‑grid movement, tile‑based terrain effects, and a modular event system. Documentation emphasizes extensibility, offering guidelines for adding new unit types or integrating existing AI engines.

The community around TurnRS has produced a variety of add‑ons, from campaign editors to AI modules that implement Minimax and Monte Carlo tree search strategies. While the project remains in beta, it has been used in a handful of student and hobbyist projects that have shown substantial reductions in development time. TurnRS is distributed under the MIT license, encouraging collaboration and rapid iteration in the strategy‑game developer community.