Squad tactics · free · in your browser

StakeOut: one plan, ninety seconds, no going back

StakeOut is a free squad tactics game played in the browser, in English and Spanish. You give orders to four soldiers, your rival does the same, blind, and the server fights out ninety seconds of combat that you both watch. Once it starts nobody can change anything: the best plan wins.

How it is played

  1. Give the orders at the Order Table: tap an objective and the soldier goes, then pick how (Assault, Caution or Stalk). Want more? In the Strategy Studio, fine-tune how they react when the fight turns, or dictate the order over the radio in your own words. No coding needed.
  2. Watch the battle: the server fights it out and you watch it on a diorama of the map, hands off.
  3. Read the after-action report: why you won or lost, which soldier to fix and how; the most common lessons apply in one tap. Correct the order and go again.

How a battle is won

Each objective (the Mill, the Crossroads and the Ford) scores 1 point every 5 seconds for the side that holds it: no enemy standing inside and at least one of its soldiers there neither pinned down nor under enemy fire. Points count ×3 in the last 30 seconds, and the most points at 1:30, or the first to 40, wins.

The squad

You pick four soldiers from five specialties, no more than two alike. Each carries one item of kit (smoke, grenade, mine, medkit or binoculars); the rifleman, two.

  • Rifleman: the deadliest at short and medium range; carries two items.
  • Machine gunner: suppressing fire at any range; cannot fire right after moving.
  • Scout: sees farther and marks targets for the squad.
  • Grenadier: hits neighboring positions without line of sight.
  • Medic: stabilizes the fallen and gets them back in the fight.

Bots, contracts and agents

Against the server’s bots you train for free. Contracts between commanders are played for credits from your funds (you start with 10,000, free), and you need not be online together: whoever takes yours on fights your order even while you’re away. Wins lift you up the standings and through the ranks, from lieutenant to general.

You can play with your agent (Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, Cursor…): it writes your soldiers’ minds, trains them against the bots and leaves them in your Order Library. Contracts and credits are yours alone: the agent never touches them. Pasting the agent link from the HQ into a chat is enough; it also connects over MCP at /mcp or over HTTP at /api/agent.

Ask it like this: “Write a mind for my rifleman: take the Mill and get into cover when fired on. Try it against the weakest bot and tell me what went wrong.”

Questions

What is StakeOut?
A free squad tactics game in your browser. You give orders to four soldiers, your rival does the same, blind, and the server fights it out. The best plan wins.
How do you win?
By holding the objectives. The Mill, the Crossroads and the Ford each score 1 point every 5 seconds for the side that holds them: no enemy standing inside and at least one of its soldiers free, neither pinned down nor under fire. In the last 30 seconds they count ×3. Most points at the end, or the first to 40, wins.
How long is a battle?
The fight lasts 90 seconds. Before it, take as long as you like over your orders; after it, read the report.
Is it free?
Yes. The account is free, with no card needed; you start with 10,000 credits, your stake in contracts against other commanders (the winner collects from the loser), and training against the bots costs nothing. There is nothing to download.
What if I lose my credits?
You never stake more than you have: you can only seal or take on a contract if your funds cover the worst that order can cost (the stake, the fallen and the items), and the first table needs 1,000 credits free. Nobody tops up what you lose; training against the bots still costs nothing, with your funds full or empty.
How do I start?
Hit “Sign up”: email, password and a callsign (we suggest one). Confirm with the link we email you and you’re in your HQ, where four soldiers and your first order against a training bot are waiting.
Can I play on my phone?
Yes, in the browser on your phone or your computer, with the same account and nothing to install. To keep it handy, add it to your home screen: it opens full screen, like an app.
Do I need another player?
No. Your first battle is against a training bot, and you can train against the bots whenever you like. Contracts pit you against other commanders.
Do we both have to be online?
No. You seal your order on the Contracts board and it stands even with the page closed: whoever takes it on fights against it, and when you’re back the battle is waiting in Reports.
Do I need to know how to code?
No. Tap an objective and the soldier heads for it; the Assault, Caution and Stalk attitudes write the mind for you, and over the radio you give the order in your own words. The Strategy Studio is there if you want to fine-tune it arrow by arrow.
Is it hard?
Starting is easy: tap an objective and the soldier goes. Winning takes more: the bots don’t give wins away, and losing your first few is normal. After every battle the report tells you which soldier failed and how to fix it.
Is it like Frozen Synapse?
At heart, yes: it’s simultaneous-turn (WEGO) tactics. Both sides plan blind, then watch the fight play out. The difference: you give one plan for all 90 seconds, and each soldier carries it out with the mind you gave them, acting on what they see.
Can my AI agent play?
Yes. Your HQ gives you an agent link: paste it into Claude, ChatGPT or Gemini and it writes and trains your soldiers’ minds. Contracts and credits are your call.
What do you keep about me?
Your email, your callsign and your battles. The email is for confirming your account, resetting your password and telling you about your contracts and sessions (you can turn those off from the email itself). Your password is never stored, only its hash (scrypt). No ads, no trackers: just two cookies, your session and your language. What you say over the radio is turned into orders by a language model (Anthropic’s Claude).

No download: sign up with your email and your first battle is against a training bot.