INKLINE DEFENSE

A SHORT MERGE-DEFENSE CAMPAIGN

Zhao Yun & A Dou: Inkline Defense

Recruit Chinese-character soldiers, merge matching units, and keep three lanes safe while Zhao Yun protects A Dou.

Internal prototype

How to play

Recruit a unit, place it in an open lane, then select two matching characters to merge.

INKLINE DEFENSE

Choose a mission

Enemy command
Buns
A Dou's camp
Battle plan Your units attack automatically. Recruit and merge to cover all three lanes; enemies move toward A Dou.

Command post
墨
A Dou
FormationSelect two matching characters to merge.
Spend 3 buns to call a new soldier.

TIP

Your first command

  1. Tap Recruit to place a new character.
  2. Select two equal characters. The second tap merges them.
  3. Cover all three lanes and use a general skill when pressure rises.

LEAVE BATTLE

Leave this battle?

Your current battle will be lost if you return to the mission map.

StarsTime
WeightPlay Original Game Guide

Zhao Yun & A Dou: Inkline Defense

Recruit Chinese-character soldiers, place them across three lanes, merge matching units, and keep the advancing enemy away from A Dou.

GameplayMerge Strategy Defense
GenreStrategy · Defense · Merge
DifficultyEasy to Challenging
Estimated Play TimeAbout 1–3 minutes per mission
Skills TrainedPlanning · Timing · Adaptation

World and Mission

The inkline around A Dou is breaking under repeated enemy waves. Zhao Yun has one short battle window to rebuild a reliable formation before the command post is overwhelmed.

Every unit is represented by a clear Chinese character. The character is a readable game symbol, while the real decision is where to place it, when to merge it, and when to spend a general skill.

How the Systems Work

Recruit spends three buns and places the next unit in the first open formation slot. Buns return gradually during battle.

Tap one occupied slot and then another slot. Matching characters at the same level merge. Two level-three units promote into a named general.

Each formation slot belongs to one of three lanes. Units attack automatically, but the player must keep coverage and choose merge timing under live pressure.

Generals have different active skills: cleave, stun roar, charge, and multi-target arrow. Skills have a visible cooldown and never trigger without player input.

The Battle Result is an overlay. Stages returns to the map, Next Stage enters the next unlocked mission, and Replay restarts the settled mission.

How to Play

  1. Enter an unlocked mission and read the three-lane objective.
  2. Recruit when there is a safe open slot, then select two matching characters to merge.
  3. Move a unit to an empty slot when a lane needs cover. Keep at least one reserve unit before a risky merge.
  4. Tap a ready general skill when a boss or fast enemy reaches a dangerous lane.
  5. Win by defeating every wave and the enemy command post. If A Dou's health reaches zero, retry with a different formation plan.

Strategy Tips

  • A high-level unit is powerful, but an empty lane can still lose the battle.
  • Use the enemy lane pattern to decide whether the next recruit should fill coverage or create a merge.
  • Save a general skill for the visible pressure peak instead of spending it immediately on the first enemy.
  • Later chapters add faster movement, armor-like health, split pressure, and boss waves rather than hidden rules.

Campaign and Difficulty Growth

Thirty authored missions are arranged in six five-mission chapters. New chapters increase wave pressure, enemy durability, and boss frequency.

The best local star result records survival and speed without creating a ranking, account, or child profile.

Developer Design Note

This is an original WeightPlay prototype inspired by the broad merge-defense genre. It uses its own stage data, battle geometry, controls, copy, and procedural prototype presentation rather than copying any source game's artwork, code, UI, or exact rules. The complete interface uses one centered logical layout with a 920-pixel maximum. Phone, landscape, and desktop views scale the same controls, hit areas, artwork, and game coordinates together instead of stretching individual pieces. Touch, mouse, and keyboard therefore act on the same legal state. The Main poster and Start Game action remain separate from Stage management, while Stage selection, Battle, dialogs, and Result keep their own bounded content and return path.

Parent Note

The game has no account, purchase, chat, leaderboard, or advertising flow in this prototype. Progress is stored locally in the current browser and does not collect child personal data. You can play without creating an account. Progress is saved in local browser storage on the current browser profile, not in an online account or cross-device database. Clearing site data, using private browsing, changing browsers, or moving to another device can create a separate save or remove the existing one. Language, sound, and reduced-motion preferences follow the shared WeightPlay controls when the browser permits storage. No guide result is a medical, school, or professional assessment.

FAQ

What do the characters mean?
刀, 槍, 騎, and 弓 are four unit types with different damage and attack rhythms. They are readable symbols for the formation, not a hidden vocabulary test.
How does a general appear?
Merge two matching level-three units. The result becomes the general associated with that unit type.
Can I lose after making a strong merge?
Yes. A merge improves damage but can leave a lane empty. Keep coverage in mind before combining.
Does progress save?
Yes. Cleared missions and best stars use local browser storage only.
Which controls and screen sizes are supported?
The same rules support touch, mouse, and keyboard where the game uses those inputs. The interface scales as one logical layout across the required phone, landscape, and desktop viewports.
Can progress move automatically to another device?
No. This game currently saves to local browser storage only, so another browser profile or device begins with its own separate local progress unless a future account system is added.