How to deal with plunder / city breach
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This iv'e experienced for years playing, is maybe the most common topic for new players as they are inexperienced how to deal with and react to being attacked and plundered, especially by players with powerful armies and often also city defenses making it difficult to respond.
#1 " Ignorance not an excuse only an explanation" (or "You can ignore reality but not the consequences of ignoring reality")
Ignorance is not an excuse for complain about being attacked and / or plunder. Read about the game before starting playing it. This is a fighting AND city building game where attacking and defending people in same "Hood" is a integral, and essential part of the game, it gives you fighting train how to defend and attack other people, you can benefit from it with tower points and medals each week and also gain goods and FP's etc. when plundering others.
The fact you have several entire GB specifically design to benefit those that plunder and attack others, should tell you all about how integral attacking and plunder has been and is in this game. Ignoring it will not help you, it will ruin you. Learning how to improve your defense both when attacking and defending and what GB's to use for this purpose and how to design you city and act within your "Hood" will greatly reduce the rate at which you will be attack and plundered. Regardless of age you can greatly reduce this, denying this is ignorance, its a lack of understanding of the game.
#2 "Overreacting will usually be counterproductive"
When you overreact by blaming others, like game creators, programmers, plunderers or "bullies" you ignore the fact that there are reasons why you became a target. By accepting you are a target and instead of whining to others witch only lead to you being attacked even more or ignored and possibly insulted back, be constructive and realize WHY they attacked you and try to rectify it by being proactive.
You become proactive by finding reason/s why they attack you, how they do it, the,n finally ways to make it harder and more costly for them to keep attacking. Usually this means learning how the game defending city army "AI" works which is not like how a human fights and how attacker normally act against it, how different unit types in different eras work best against each other, other way sto help your defenses, and finally removing any incentives or possible rewards for attacking you which usually involves collecting in time every day, so that even when breached you lose no resources.
There are many strategy that are easy and free that will aid you in this matter. Follow them and you will have much less problems with being attacked in any era and stage of the game, this is a lot more constructive and beneficial to you than complaining and striking back at attacker verbally and / or by attacking them back, witch usually is rarely even effective as they often have great defense if they are an avid player and attacker, and also may result in the attacker attacking you even more as revenge for your rants and/or counter attack. Sending a friend invite is a better option as this will stop their attacks if you keep aiding them, this is one of many option how to deal with attackers in a effective and constructive way.
#3 "Simple steps to reduce attacks and plundering"
A. What Buildings to use (proactively)
Set, and use buildings that either 1. cannot bee plundered (like any Great Building like Hagia Sofia for instance) 2. can be collected in 8 or 12 hours intervals or at least use those that can't be plundered once motivated. This is a proactive strategy that removes some incentive to becoming a regular target.
B.Timers, Collection Strategy
Building Collections If you have any buildings set a good interval minimum 8 hours, set them so that you can collect like before school or work and then after work or school this allows for personal life without missing collecting normally.
If you go on vacation you can disconnect all roads to buildings if you are out of game play 100% that way they will not bother attacking you (not that i matter if they do, as they cant plunder a city disconnected from roads). If you set any to 24 hours try collect before work or set it to be collected before bedtime, this way it wont interrupt personal life much and you avoid missing.
Also you can you a kitchen timer or hand watch and set the alarm, either to ring after 8 or 24 hours or both if you use both 8 and 24 productions, or if using hand watch even better set regular alarms daily alarm for the times you collect, it will beep each day when u collect either 8 hours 2x times or / and 24 hours once per day. This should avoid missing any collections.
C.Set up a good city defense.
Most people have strong defense boost on their city defense, not all, but some, but very weak or no attack boost for defending city units.
The AI is very bad at defending and will rush most units except artillery with long range to the enemy and get killed and also use wrong type vs wrong
enemy type and often not use the terrain to their advantage. You city defense is vary bad accept this and adjust accordingly!
Use units that can either take huge hits and survive many times so that when they attempt to "suicide" they will take 3 hits by enemy before they die, this way other units will survive as enemy need to waste more attacks killing same dumb unit.
Those survivors can then attack the attacking (invading) army units and cause damage and maybe even kill a few. Use units that have high defense and attack like heavy units like tanks or artillery as the AI will hold them back and allow them to attack enemy a few times hopefully before they get killed, the more they can deliver they more costly the attackers assault will be to them, making it less likely they will continue with the attack or attempt to attack you again.
The main goal is to make it not profitable for them to attack not to stop all attacks or even stop them from beating you. if they lose units every time they attack and take a ton of damage and also not get any loot cause you collected on time they get hurt and get nothing for it, then you remove most reasons for them to attack you as there are other that will not be as wise defending and leave stuff uncollected, which they will probably prefer to attack instead.
D.Make sure your city defender have strong defense AND attacking boost. Typically to make it costly for an attacker to beat you city defense you need a minimum of 3-4 times the attack boost and same attack boost as the attacking armies attack boost.
Most players will have between 100 and 300% attack so to have a great defense you need between
400% and 1200% depending on era IMO.
Iron - Bronze = 300-400% is fine
Middle Ages= 400-500%
Colonial-Modern 500-600%
Postmodern-Future=-600% to 800%
Arctic or later*= 800%-1200%
(*If you use Champions or Ronin Bot 800% should suffice)
These are defense boost, you can get away with a lot less if you add other bonuses, also this is to stop almost any attacker, if you only want to hurt attackers you can get away with a lot less (about 100% less for each era).
E.Your defending army attack values (ideal attack you should get away with a lot less in most cases)
Iron-Bronze= 30%-50%
Middle Ages= 50%-70%
Colonial-Modern= 70-100%
Postmodern-Future Era= 100%-125%
Later Eras= 125%- 150%
Remember you don't have to match the attackers attack as defensive army only have a good atk boost so you make them pay and retaliate every time their units attack you within your defending units range, to this extend using stealth units that forces attacker to attack your defending units close range is ideal as this means every time they attack your def unit they will take retaliation damage, and as you see above the higher your def units attack boost is, they more damage their attacking units will take, making it more costly fot them to kill all your units and win. Make them pay, again.
This way when they attack and you retaliate they take a lot of damage each turn not just when it's your (AI really) turn. Use buildings that allows you to get both attack and defense boost, such as St Basil's Cathedral which also helps guild, and Terracotta Army (expensive but worth it in the long run) pr special buildings such as winter spire if you have it or the new Fire Pagoda which gives both attack and defense boost to your city defense and also same for your attacking army. City defense is not about attacking the enemy back in their city it's about making it expensive for them to attack YOUR city, EVERY time.
F. Good units for defense
Champions (mostly useful from CE to Virtual Age)
Ronin Bot (Virtual Age) high defense and have special armor
Battle fortress (Arctic Age) a heavy unit that have a cap of how many damage points it can ever take; this effectively means enemy need 3 hits minimum regardless of their attack boost to kill it, making it a very good defensive unit as it can afford to be with strike range and survive long and then strike back.
Hoover Tank (Future Era)
Plasma Guns (Future Era) works well against many attackers as it can strike virtually any unit type first round due to its huge range, also its huge boost
versus heavy units make it good defense as many prefer to use tanks in later eras to attack with as they have both good defense and offense and other great abilities like stealth (Hoover tank for instance).
or any similar unit with reactive armor, stealth with high defense in other eras
or any artillery in any era with good defense and attack stats
G.Additional defense options (great ones to bad ones)
Ritual Flames (8% def boost) and Watch Fires (4-6%).
Small items you can get in events or GE.
Very good for planting in-between larger buildings or behind them where no other "normal" building (anything 2x2 or larger), they have the advantage versus the other city def buildings like GB's or special buildings like Winter spire, that they don't need road connection which saves land and also make them easier to move, replant or plant overall.
Also they give you very fast and large increase in defense.
Just 10 added ritual flames will add 80% (8% each!) and 10 Watch Fires (4% def each) 40% more defense boost.
The upgrade will give the Watch Fire level 2, 6% def boost so 10x would give you a whopping 60% defense boost at just 10 squares
(just 1 more than a 3x3 building, imagine a 3x3 building with 60% defense boost..).
Champion
Use one or only champion is good defense from Future Era on, even better in Oceanic and later.
Drummer and other special units (ageless)
You can use one to boost all your other units, it will not survive long, but it will force enemy to take it out usually reducing some attacks on the other units in the first round of the battle.
Town Hall
If you do not yet have very high defense you can add 10, 20 or 30% for some time, this should only be used as a last resort until you find better options.
Defense Booster Packs
10%, 20% ,30%
Good for some extra defense but long term will not do, use them only as en emergency measure when you feel its really needed, you run out fast.
Decoy targets
To lure any attacker when breaching you, set up a building that only produce supply or some coin at 5 minutes and let it stay uncollected, this way some attacker may grab it instead of waiting for better things in your city.
Chaos
A bad option mostly, where you have a chaotic city to make it harder for an plunderer to find anything useful to grab, also this is not a proactive move or even a good defensive move, only a reaction to not having a good way to stop being breached and attacked.
Disconnecting building or entire city
Bad option only to be used possibly when 100% not playing anymore if you are retired from game and still want to keep you city as this will not only stop plunder but also make all buildings in your city non functional (even Great Buildings).
Minimize collections
By using Terrace Farms and larger buildings and GB's instead of smaller ones, you reduce the number of items to collect and time to collect, wich is practical as it saves time and also makes it faster and easier to collect and reduces risk of being plundered to some extent. Also it can help saving up road usage freeing up more land.
Rotate city defense, randomly, be unpredictable
Basically you switch out which defense units you use as city defense, so
let say you used 4x plasma and 4x battle fortresses then you switch to 2x plasma and 6x battle fortresses or 6x plasma and 4 x fortresses next time
but not in regular intervals, this makes the attacker worried as you are now predictable and this makes is hard for them to anticipate what unit type/s you will use next time they may attack and make it less likely they will attack as they units may not be matched up well next time.
Stay in your Era as long as possible !
Recommendation in actual time: 6 months minimum after middle ages, 1 year after modern era IMO)
The longer you stay the less opponents after a long time will be able to beat you defenses.
This is due to the progression of the game, most players will for various reason be compelled to move up an era or more and they will get stronger over time, the new ones moving into your current one are likely to have less formidable defenses and attacks also, making them less likely to beat your continued improving defense if you keep adding to it.
This you do be staying in you era as long as possible, at least until you are top or top 3, or longer, adding levels to your defense GB's and adding
more if needed fires and / or ritual flames in spots you can fill up.
During this process you will be weak but after a few months as you defense gets better and stronger hoodies leave your era your defense will eventually be to good for the new meat in your era to deal with, only those like you hang around very long will be able to contend with you, and by friending them you resolve that final threat , or you simple take their attacks which will be a lot fewer than moving to later eras where you will find many more capable of beating you defense.
The few attacks you will still take will be peanuts in comparison and not effect your game progress or enjoyment of the game the slightest.
"Hood" (Neighborhood)
Pay attention to your neighborhood. Some players are avid attackers, try to either not provoke them or try to friend them, open up slots so you can invite people, that's also a way to friend these stronger people and those that accept will not be able to attack you anymore.
Guild
The guild will help you with GE, goods, FP's profit and tavern bonuses and more, this will
help your game progress especially GB leveling which will also benefit improving your city defense atk+defense.
Alcatraz and Rogue Hideouts, Champions Retreat
Get Alcatraz ASAP as it will help i GE and also to get units from military buildings,
it wont boost city defense but help you in GE which gives you rewards like Terrace Farms for goods and FP's
and also ritual items for more city defense down the road. The units are used for attack but indirectly will even benefit your defenses long term.
The champ retreat will allow you to train and use same champions for defense or attack in GvG, GE and tower,
these are great in later era, especially after Future Era their stats are very good.
Monestery
Will give you 20% defense only for city defense army(not attack) but / sq not as efficient as ritual flames or fires, now no longer supported by Innogames (available as reward), do not use.
Rogues
they are usually easy to avoid by attacker and then left last to be instantly killed by enemy by one hit /rogue so not a very good defense unit in your city defense. Do NOT use them in city defense army.
City defense shield
Expensive, do not use, unless you have an emergency cant collect and need to wait and have a lot of FP that can be looted.
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Any other options and tactics to help city defense and plunder let me know!
