Defense Basics
The best defense is a mix of Rangers, Guardians, Templars, and Ballistae in towers. Sloops are great defensive units, but suffer from getting no advantage from towers or walls (The 50% defense bonus from a level 10 wall can make a huge difference) and being unable to support landlocked cities.
It is also important to have plenty of scouts. If every single one of the attacker's scouts are killed off, he'll be intimidated and may think twice about attacking you. He'll also be clueless as to what kind of defenses you have. This could lead him to send a force that's much too small, or a force of the wrong type (such as an all cavalry force against your city filled with guardians).
I would prioritize towers over traps because at level 10 towers double the strength of 2000 troops, while traps only neutralize 1000. First, I put 2 lookout towers in every city. This gives you enough warning time to span an entire continent and can double the defense of up to 500 scouts. Then get enough towers to double the defense of every defender. When towering city guards it's best to use ballista towers, as these house 2500 troop strength at level 10 instead of the standard 2000. Finally, fill in any remaining wall slots with a mix of traps. If you have a water city you may want to focus on camouflage traps, as these can neutralize boats. But keep in mind that the number given by traps is the neutralized troop strength, not troop count. A level 10 camouflage trap would only neutralize 2 war galleons (which count as 400 troop strength).
- Rangers are the best defense against Infantry
- Guardians are the best defense against Cavalry
- Templars are the best defense against Magic
- Ballistae are the best defense against Artillery
It is also important to have plenty of scouts. If every single one of the attacker's scouts are killed off, he'll be intimidated and may think twice about attacking you. He'll also be clueless as to what kind of defenses you have. This could lead him to send a force that's much too small, or a force of the wrong type (such as an all cavalry force against your city filled with guardians).
I would prioritize towers over traps because at level 10 towers double the strength of 2000 troops, while traps only neutralize 1000. First, I put 2 lookout towers in every city. This gives you enough warning time to span an entire continent and can double the defense of up to 500 scouts. Then get enough towers to double the defense of every defender. When towering city guards it's best to use ballista towers, as these house 2500 troop strength at level 10 instead of the standard 2000. Finally, fill in any remaining wall slots with a mix of traps. If you have a water city you may want to focus on camouflage traps, as these can neutralize boats. But keep in mind that the number given by traps is the neutralized troop strength, not troop count. A level 10 camouflage trap would only neutralize 2 war galleons (which count as 400 troop strength).
Siege Defense (Castles only)
If you find yourself under attack (incoming attacks are indicated by the crossed swords next to your mana angrily flashing red. attacks that have already hit will be in your reports), it is important to let your alliance know: that you are being attacked, who is attacking you, from what city, and when the attack is going to hit. A good alliance will send units to support your defense; and your alliance may wish to counter-attack.
In the meantime, you may want to purify your resources or send them to another city just before the attack hits, to prevent the enemy from stealing them.
If you see multiple incoming attacks against your castle, you may want to try this interesting approach: Do NOT have your defense present for the initial attack.
Many people use the approach I've mentioned in the Attacking Other Players section. This means that they'll lead off with an assault or two in an attempt to clear out your defenders, and then follow with their siege.
As powerful as assaults are, they're actually very limited. This is because as soon as they hit, the attacking forces have to walk home before they can be re-deployed. This can effectively take them out of action for several hours, depending on the attacker's distance from you. Without a single defender in your city, the only thing you can lose is resources (which you've purified or sent to another city right?) or maybe a few building or fortification levels if they happen to send rams, catapults, or war galleons.
Having your defenses absent during these initial assaults allows you to see what you're up against without taking any casualties. For instance, if they sent an all mage assault it's time to recruit some templars. This will allow you to have your full defenses present during the siege; and sieges often include a baron, which is a costly loss for the attacker.
They may see your defenseless city, and think it's a good time to start their siege. Let this happen. Remember, it doesn't matter if they siege you with 500k berserkers; they can knock on your walls all day and not do a damn thing if they don't have a baron or siege weapon present. So their baron gets to your castle and easily claims his maximum of 10% control against your non-existant resistance. That's when your defense arrives. Siege wave 2 hits and the attacker suddenly finds that he has lost his baron and many of his attacking troops to your impenetrable defensive forces.
In the meantime, you may want to purify your resources or send them to another city just before the attack hits, to prevent the enemy from stealing them.
If you see multiple incoming attacks against your castle, you may want to try this interesting approach: Do NOT have your defense present for the initial attack.
Many people use the approach I've mentioned in the Attacking Other Players section. This means that they'll lead off with an assault or two in an attempt to clear out your defenders, and then follow with their siege.
As powerful as assaults are, they're actually very limited. This is because as soon as they hit, the attacking forces have to walk home before they can be re-deployed. This can effectively take them out of action for several hours, depending on the attacker's distance from you. Without a single defender in your city, the only thing you can lose is resources (which you've purified or sent to another city right?) or maybe a few building or fortification levels if they happen to send rams, catapults, or war galleons.
Having your defenses absent during these initial assaults allows you to see what you're up against without taking any casualties. For instance, if they sent an all mage assault it's time to recruit some templars. This will allow you to have your full defenses present during the siege; and sieges often include a baron, which is a costly loss for the attacker.
They may see your defenseless city, and think it's a good time to start their siege. Let this happen. Remember, it doesn't matter if they siege you with 500k berserkers; they can knock on your walls all day and not do a damn thing if they don't have a baron or siege weapon present. So their baron gets to your castle and easily claims his maximum of 10% control against your non-existant resistance. That's when your defense arrives. Siege wave 2 hits and the attacker suddenly finds that he has lost his baron and many of his attacking troops to your impenetrable defensive forces.