Best Strategy Games With Dedicated Servers (2026)

The best strategy games with dedicated servers are OpenRA (Red Alert, Tiberian Dawn and Dune 2000), The Battle for Wesnoth, OpenTTD, Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord, RimWorld Together, Mindustry, Eco and Colony Survival. Most mainstream strategy games use matchmaking or one player as host, so these are the ones where a server you own actually does something: keeps a lobby up for a league, runs a shared world for weeks, or holds a persistent planet of colonies. Most run on 1 to 4 GB of RAM.

Strategy servers come in three shapes. Lobby servers host many quick matches and need to be reliable rather than big. Persistent world servers keep a long game going between sessions. Shared planet servers connect separate single player games into one world. Each pick below says which shape it is.

Strategy games compared

1. OpenRA

OpenRA rebuilds Westwood's classic RTS games on a modern open source engine with attack move, replays and observer slots. Red Alert is the most played mod, with Allies against Soviets, tesla coils and naval fights. Tiberian Dawn brings back GDI and Nod, and Dune 2000 has spice, sandworms and three houses. The map sets the player count, spectators join on top, and AI bots fill gaps.

• Why a server: a client hosted lobby dies when the host's PC sleeps. A dedicated lobby stays up for regulars, coaching and weekly tournaments.
• RAM: 1 GB for a private lobby, 2 GB for public team games with observers.
• All three: Red Alert, Tiberian Dawn, Dune 2000.

2. The Battle for Wesnoth

Free turn based fantasy strategy on hex maps. Your server is a lobby where players chat and run their own games, many at once. Clans and leagues host their own to keep ladder matches, team games and AI survival scenarios in one place, under their own moderation. Clients only connect to a server from the same release series, so your lobby also pins your group to one version.

• RAM: 1 GB for a clan or league lobby, 2 GB for a busy public lobby.

3. OpenTTD

Transport Tycoon Deluxe, open source and far bigger. Players build rail, road, sea and air networks, as rivals or as one big co-op company, on maps up to 4096 tiles a side. Games last weeks, so the server is what holds it together: the clock keeps ticking, or pauses, while companies wait for their owners.

• RAM: 2 GB for a friends map, 4 GB for a full 15 company game.
• Read next: how to host an OpenTTD server.

4. Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord

Bannerlord's Captain mode gives each player a squad of troops to command in a round based battle, which makes it the closest thing to real time tactics with a team of humans. Skirmish and Battle are round based team fights, and Siege throws dozens at castle walls. The TaleWorlds server is multiplayer only, with no campaign co-op.

• RAM: 4 GB for Skirmish or Duel, 8 GB for Siege, Team Deathmatch or Captain.

5. RimWorld Together

A fan made mod that puts every player's colony on one planet. You still play at your own pace, pause included, but the settlement down the river belongs to a friend, the market has goods other players sold, and that caravan might be a raid from someone you annoyed. The server stores settlements and colony copies for visits and raids, so it needs to stay online. Every player needs RimWorld and the mod.

• RAM: 2 GB for a friend group with a light mod list, 4 GB for 10 to 30 colonies.
• Compare: RimWorld Open World vs RimWorld Together.

6. Mindustry

Factory building meets tower defense and real time strategy. Attack maps pit you against enemy cores, PvP maps pit teams against each other, and survival runs hold out against waves. Public servers run plugins for their own rules.

• RAM: 2 GB for a few friends, 8 GB for a public PvP or attack server with many plugins.

7. Eco

A civilization strategy game played in first person. Professions, a player run economy, laws and elections, all while racing a meteor without wrecking the ecosystem. The strategy is social: a server's politics decide whether the world survives.

• RAM: 4 GB for a default world of about ten, 8 GB for a mature world.

8. Colony Survival

A first person colony builder where each player can run a colony on the same map: hire colonists into jobs, research tech and defend walls every night. It is lighter on micro than an RTS and better for a relaxed group.

• RAM: 4 GB for two to five friends, 6 GB for ten or more.

Strategy games that do not need a server

Many big strategy games, such as the Paradox grand strategy titles and most Total War games, use player hosted sessions with no dedicated server. That is fine for one evening, but it ties the campaign to one person's PC. If your group wants a long campaign that anyone can join, pick a game from this list or one with a persistent world.

Host your strategy server

Strategy servers are cheap: OpenRA and Wesnoth lobbies run on 1 GB for 2.99 USD a month. A GamezServers server keeps your lobby or world up around the clock with a stable address your league can save once, version settings in the panel so everyone stays in sync, and one click backups for long games. Start with OpenRA: Red Alert or OpenTTD.

FAQ

What RTS games have dedicated servers?

OpenRA's Red Alert, Tiberian Dawn and Dune 2000 mods have dedicated lobby servers. Mindustry and Bannerlord's Captain mode also run on dedicated servers.

Can I host a Wesnoth server for my clan?

Yes. A Wesnoth server is a lobby where your clan chats and runs games, with your own welcome message and moderation.

Is RimWorld multiplayer possible on a server?

Yes, through fan made mods like RimWorld Together and Open World, which connect each player's colony to a shared planet on a server.

How much RAM does a strategy game server need?

Very little. Lobby servers like OpenRA and Wesnoth run on 1 GB. Persistent worlds like Eco and Colony Survival start at 4 GB.