Victory

That Which Sleeps has several possible victory conditions. King Dinosaur Games has commented that the default one is to conquer and/or burn enough of the map. Specific Old Ones can add their own winning conditions, such as waking up fully and killing all life, or in Azlan's case, waking up fully, period. Religion, one of the met Kickstarter stretch goals, adds the option of victory via hostile takeover.

Earlier development versions featured a climactic battle against the Alliance in the endgame. This is no longer hardcoded but the game heads towards one anyway, especially as most awake Old Ones are a giant flashing exclamation point. Endless Mode, another Kickstarter product, removes some of the conditions - that ending-all-life trick still ends the game.

KDG commented that the game can be lost by having the good guys bring artifacts to the Great Seal to put the Old One back into its slumber, invent and perform a ritual to strengthen the seal, or bring armies along and stomp the place apart. Certain Old Ones can also be killed in battle. Posting on the Bay 12 Games forum, KDG mentioned Campaigns with a "dunk the ring in Mordor" feel to end the game.