ic-infantry-Defence ic-cavalry-Defence

A server cannot be won without defense. Millions of troops will die in battle during the few months of the game. Your role, as a defender, will be to take part in the war in the best conditions.

What do we expect from a defensive player ?

Sending def when needed
Performing sniping waves
Having a sitter in case of absence (even in the night)

There are three essential things to get by being def : to have as many DEF as possible to participate in as many def operations as possible during the server, to be available during the hottest hours during opponent operations (in the evening) to perform sniping waves, and to send def from the accounts you may sit.

:: Just like offensive players, def players also need to know how to calculate and plan their accounts to achieve their goals. It is recommended to run 1 stable for every 3 or 4 barracks. Also, you get more def from infantry than cavalry.

Having a big defense is good, but not being able to use it is stupid. If you’re far from center 0/0 (on classic servers), your goal will usually be to farm a massive inf DEF (artifacts protection, plans, WW), leaving the front lines to deal with fast placing DEF since the traveling times are smaller. You can add a few stables to your account if needed.

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FARMING

“You play for yourself before you play for others. Unless you are def.”

The most important thing in setting up an account is the capital. The higher the fields in your capital, the faster your account will grow. Players in the center will have to stop farming their fields before the players far from the center. It’s common to start training defense at fields 11/12, and higher if you are further away (15/16). It is more than essential to increase the production of resources before starting to produce DEF. This may seem simple to understand, but in reality, far too many players start their production of defense before the account is self-sufficient in resources. So, before you start producing DEF, ask yourself: “According to my production, if I start producing DEF now, will I be able to double/triple/etc the number of my DEF villages in 1/2/3/X weeks?

Don’t think that because you are a def player, you won’t be able to produce as many troops as an off player. Therefore, if you think you need a big cropper (>15c 100%), fight for it.

The two most common def account schemes:

The split

Capital
Def village : INF/CAV
Supporting village : resources
Supporting village : resources
Def village : INF/CAV
Supporting village : resources
Supporting village : resources
Def village : INF/CAV
Supporting village : resources
Supporting village : resources

Best combo for non golders players as it only requires a smithy/tournament square every 3 villages. You can train troops on the capital if you want, but know that there is a limited space when it comes to buildings. It would require a barracks, a stable, a tournament square and a hospital : 4 slots that you might keep for granaries instead. (and I am not even talking about pre-requirements like academy, smithy…).

The wall

Capital
Def village : INF
Def village : INF
Def village : INF
Def village : INF
Def village : INF
Def village : INF
Def village : INF
Def village : INF
Def village : INF

Brut force. Expensive account as you need to develop def requirements on every single village. However, it might be the best solution if you gold.

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TROOPS

“Playing def is like barbecuing, the more bags, the more chips”

This table below shows the classic ratios infantry/cavalry in order to set up an efficient account that can optimally meet the demands for def.

TEUTONS	75% Spearmen 25% Paladins	Good def balance. Demanded for their spearmen, due to a lack of anti cavalry in the alliances. Paladins are slow but can raid.
GAULS	70% phalanxes 30% Druidriders	Great ability to rebuild and produce quickly. Fast cavalry. The haeduan is stronger but the druid goes much faster and makes him the ultimate defensive cavalry.
ROMANS	Praetorians or Legionnaires (no cav.)	The weakest defensive play in the game. Super slow inf. No def cavalry. The legio is 10% weaker than the preto, but is anti inf/anti cav, can raid and goes faster than the preto.
HUNS	70% Mercenaries 30% Marksmen	Large production capacity. Often compared to Gauls. Mercenary at 6 fields/h instead of 7/h for the gauls phalanx. Marksman at 16 fields/h and balanced off/def, possibility to defend quickly a village only with them.
EGYPTIANS	70% Ash Warden 30% Anhur Guards	Ultimate defensive tribe. 2 inf. choices, 2 cavalry choices. The game’s biggest prod def capability mostly because of the huge resource production asset (waterworks).Beware of the dark side of the slave militia: Crop Consumption is quickly unmanageable if the troops are not used quickly. It’s generally recommended to go with Ash.
SPARTANS	60% Shieldsmen 40% Elpida Riders	Fastest def combo in the game. Similar to Gauls and Huns. The shieldsmen aren’t really great, you can easily play 100% Elpida with no inf. Spartans def also has the lowest defense to consumption ratio, making this tribe easier to play.

:: When you play def, you have to think about producing as much def as possible/hour. Know that a wall is composed of several tribes. You are part of a whole. It is absurd to produce as many anti-infantry as anti-cavalry since you will not be alone on the walls. It is the role of the def lead to balance/unbalance the def walls. Your job is only to provide as much def as possible.

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F.A.Q

“If someone tell you that they can produce 300,000 praetorians and don’t need advice, then shut up and produce 300,001”

Do I need to gold if I play def?

No. Some players tend to gold more than others and will probably come out with more def since they will be faster at farming. This doesn’t mean that a player with more def will be a better asset.

I’ve heard praetorian is a good def unit in the game because it has 65 point anticav ?

We are talking about a whole army. There are multiple factors to take into account. Def points, ressources, speed and time, according to what you look for. It can be the good option in a specific case, but not all.

Who’s producing the most defenses?

Are GB/GS useful for def players?

When we play def, we don’t run Great Barracks (GB) or Great Stables (GS). These are both buildings reserved for an offensive play. If you want to run a GB, run 3 barracks on 3 different villages instead. For the same production cost, you come out 3x as many troops.

Rams and catapults on a def village ? What for?

Training a few slow troops allows to slow down the def. In the case of a sniping wave, it gives you a better chance of success by redoing it again with a faster unit if you mess up the first time.

Do I need to feed my troops when they are defending a village?

Yes. The players you assist already have troops to feed themselves. If it is too far, you can ask someone in your alliance, closer to the village, to feed your troops. Don’t forget to refund the same amount of resources they sent to the village for you.

The defense job is completed only when you can send troops + support with crops.

Always send def the closest to impact.

Do I need to retrieve def after impact or do they send it back?

Usually, you retrieve def after impact. If the player you assist is online, ask them if they still need it and for how long. You also can refer to the def leader of your alliance.

I play def but I also want to have a small hammer, is it possible?

It is quite possible to produce a small offensive to break the residences and walls, to chief a village, to crop death some small villages in a war, to fake, to raid… Think nevertheless that your hammer does not encroach on the development of your def account.

I get more fun by doing 90% cav and 10% inf, is that bad?

Dig it ! If you want to invent a new account scheme, go for it, it’s a game. Make sure your def leader knows about it though. Some players will never make stables and prefer to produce 100% inf. during the server and that’s fine but make sure that you can defend your alliance with high tournament squares if it’s the case.

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