In the Ancient Chinese Kingdom of Qin, war orphan and slave Xin trains with his fellow slave and best friend Piao to achieve their dream of one day being Great Generals of the Heavens.
However, after catching the eye of an imperial minister, Piao is taken to work at the royal palace until a coup sends him back to Xin. Piao arrives half dead in order to tell Xin to complete his mission for him.
This leads Xin to the young king, Zheng Ying, who Piao was posing as a double for. This encounter thrusts Xin in a brutal age of warfare and towards his destiny.
Kingdom, while a legendary manga, had a rough start with its anime. Luckily, it has had some time to improve with later seasons that see it become the military epic that it should be known as. If you are looking for more anime recommendations like Kingdom, head on down below.
Anime Like Kingdom
For Fans of Strategic Warfare
Alderamin on the Sky
The world is currently embroiled by war between the Katjvarna Empire and the Kiorka Republic.
Within a corner of the empire, a young man prepares to take his High Grade Military Officer Exam. He is lazy and lecherous, but no one would expect his name would go down in history as a legendary military general.
This is his story.
While Kingdom is fictional in that it takes place in a fictional era of Chinese history inspired by real Chinese history, Alderamin on the Sky is a war tale that fully crafts its own world.
While they can use magic in warfare in Alderamin in the Sky, they need to use World War I-inspired guns to do so combat is more gun-focused, but not quite as fast-paced as more modern weaponry would make it.
Ultimately what ties Kingdom and Alderamin on the Sky together is that they follow main characters that rise from nothing to become great military leaders because of their tactical minds in combat. However, Xin is a little more hot-headed than Ikta.
Valkyria Chronicles
In the neutral country of Gallia, they are known for a bountiful reserve of the versatile mineral ragnite.
However, when the Empire decides to invade in order seize the resource for itself, Welkin, the son of a former war hero, and the town watch of Bruhl rise up as Gallian militia group Squad 7 to defend their country.
Both Valkyria Chronicles and Kingdom are fictional war anime inspired by real conflicts. Valkyria Chronicles is more fantasy, but very clearly World War-inspired compared to Kingdom’s fictional era of China’s Warring States period.
While Kingdom is more about leading large units of men, Valkyria Chronicles is about leading only one small company of a larger army. However, while they use them differently, both anime put a huge emphasis on battle tactics.
Angolmois
As the Mongolian Empire rapidly expands in the 13th Century, they turn their eyes across the sea to Japan.
For Jinzaburou, once a trusted man of the Kamakura and now an exiled criminal, he finds himself at the first staging point of the invasion – the island of Tsushima.
As the first stop between Korea and the Japanese mainland, can they withstand the torrent of a Mongol invasion?
Alongside both Angolmois and Kingdom sharing inspirations from Chinese history, both are series that follow determined warriors, but the battles are not won by their strength alone.
While Kingdom can be prone to the occasional shounen-esque fight between the main character and his enemies as well as having large tactical battles, Angolmois is all about fighting as an army. It follows a smaller force, and tactics are crucial to success.
While both series are decent war anime, Angolmois is a shorter story. They also unfortunately share a passion for some wonky CGI when it comes to those larger battlescapes.
Sengoku Basara
In the Sengoku Period of Japan, constant struggle between local lords has fostered a chaotic Japan. Quelling these lords one after another under his might and military prowess was the Demon King of Owari, Oda Nobunaga who was slowly uniting Japan.
However, only two dared rebel against his rule, the One-eyed Dragon of Oshu, Masamune Date and the hot blooded warrior of the Takeda clan, Yukimura Sanada. Though Masamune and Yukimura share a similar goal of defying Oda rule, the two are locked in fierce rivalry that thwarts any hope of a united front.
However, under pressure from Oda’s looming force, they must learn to make peace and work together if they hope to survive.
Both Kingdom and Sengoku Basara tell war stories in a somewhat realistic, but also somewhat shounen-inspired way. Kingdom is occasionally prone to seeing Xin fight like a shounen main character while Sengoku Basara is more in love with flashy one-on-one battles than the larger scale conflicts.
Both series follow characters that either already are or will become generals on the battlefield as they use both battle strategy and leadership outside the battlefield to achieve their goals.
However, Sengoku Basara is telling a story that is more inspired by real events, but is still very fictional in some of the details.
For Fans of A Rise to Power
The Heroic Legend of Arslan
The young prince Arslan is ready to prove himself on the battlefield, but on his first battle, his father is betrayed and his kingdom is conquered.
With his army in shambles, Arslan is forced to go on the run in search of allies to bring him back home.
While Arslan and Zheng Ying are different types of people and leaders, The Heroic Legend of Arslan is a bit like if Zheng Ying was the main character in Kingdom.
Both series tell, at least in part, the stories of young monarchs who were ousted by a coup and have to retake their kingdom. However, while that is achieved rather quickly in Kingdom, it then instead focusing on unification and conquest, The Heroic Legend of Arslan struggles more with that goal.
What both Arslan and Kingdom do well is to emphasis that battles are won by armies and not main characters. Furthermore, both stories also emphasis the politics going on outside of the battlefield during war.
Beyond the Heavens
Based loosely on the events of the Three Kingdoms of China, this is the story of Cao Cao. However, while many tales paint him the villain, he is truly the hero of his own story.
Kingdom set itself apart form the many retellings of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms by being inspired by the events, but creating its own fictional era to do what it wanted.
That said, there actually aren’t too many Romance of the Three Kingdoms anime outside of the Chinese-made ones. Beyond the Heavens goes a bit of an original route as well by painting Cao Cao as a hero and not a villain like usual, as well as covering lesser discussed moments of his life like his childhood.
Drifters
While forming the rear guard for his uncle’s escape, Toyohisa Shimazu manages to mortally wound Ii Naomasa, but is critically wounded himself in the process.
While trying to limp back home, he finds himself transported from the field to a hallway lined with doors. There, a mysterious man sends him spiraling into another world.
Dragged into the forest by two young elves, Toyohisa is patched up by two others from the Land of the Rising Sun that turn out to be Yoichi Suketaka Nasu and Oda Nobunaga.
From there, Toyohisa and his fellow historical figures, named “drifters” must save (or conquer) their new world.
Kingdom has some historical influences, but it is a more original story. Similarly, Drifters has some historical influences via its characters, but is set in a fantasy world.
Both series are ultimately tales of conquest with hot-blooded warriors as main characters. While both main characters grow as military leaders, they still enjoy to fight. Drifters keeps a much larger emphasis on characters fighting one-on-one, but does have some tactical moments.
Utawarerumono
One day, a girl from a small village finds a mysterious man in the woods. With no knowledge of his past and a mask on his face, her family still welcomes him in.
However, not long after, a revolution against the tyrannical emperor that rules the land begins and conflict find its way to their home.
Both Kingdom and Utawarerumono follow a man’s rise to power from literally no one to a skilled leader of men. However, while Kingdom keeps things realistic in its still-fictional setting, Utawarerumono crafts its own world with unique peoples and culture.
What these series share above all is their emphasis on strategy in battle. The main character in Utawarerumono is less a hot-blooded warrior, and more a gifted strategist. As such, the larger-scale battles have more emphasis on tactics.
For Fans of The Political Intrigues of War
Berserk
Gutts has been a mercenary for as long as he can remember, caring for nothing but moving to the next battle.
One fateful battle puts him at odds with the rapidly rising mercenary group, the Band of the Hawk. Their charismatic, idealistic leader Griffith soon makes him join by force, but the bond he forms with the Band of the Hawk may very well mean the end of the world.
Both Berserk and Kingdom follow young men who spend their life on the battlefield and move up the ranks of an army. However, while Kingdom keeps true with that, Berserk takes a wild turn into dark fantasy where things are no longer about fighting men on the battlefield.
However, both series share a similar type of main character who is often serving a more clever and manipulative man. They are a sword to be used.
Altair: A Record of Battles
Tughril Mahmut is a young pasha that serves the Divan of the Turkiye Stratocracy.
However, an aggressive empire threatens the peace of his nation and the Divan is divided between the opinions of warmongers and pacifists.
Mahmut soon embarks on a quest to keep the peace, but as he moves further into politics, what will he do if war is unavoidable?
Like how Kingdom is based on a fictional era in Chinese history, Altair takes place in a fictional era of Turkey’s history. Both series follow main characters embroiled in war, but they are distinctly different main characters.
Xin fights for glory whereas Mahmut is fighting for peace. That said, Mahmut isn’t necessarily using prowess on the battlefield, but instead trying to use politics to bring a peace to his nation. Both series are tactical, but Kingdom is definitely oriented more towards the battlefield.
Vinland Saga
Ravaging every land they touch, Vikings have become renowned for their thirst and talent for violence.
Thorfinn, a son of a great Viking warrior, spends his childhood on the battlefield in order to reap his vengeance on his father’s murderer. A man who murdered his family in front of him, plucked him from his home, and now commands him in a band of warriors.
Like Kingdom, Vinland Saga follows a main character who grew up on the battlefield and it made them both into a very strong fighters. However, while Thorfinn is often a background character during the first season of Vinland Saga, the story is focusing on not just the tactical battles, but the intrigues that are happening off the battlefield around him.
As such, they both aren’t just about bloody battle, but rather the other political maneuvering that happens in war.
Both Kingdom and Vinland Saga come from legendary seinen manga as source material depicting life on the battlefield, but unlike Kingdom and its very shaky beginning with its CGI, Vinland Saga is a great adaptation throughout.
Do you have any more anime recommendations like Kingdom? Let fans know in the comments section below.
Kingdom anime sucked sadly, Berserk as well. Some of my favorites really need a new adaptation 😀
Shut the fuck up
come on man kingdom is awesome and you know that. That’s why u are here ‘?
Kingdom is the best