Combat

Managing provinces is only half the game; the other half is combat.

Combat is all about conquering shards and provinces. The tiny nuances of dominating the field of battle can take weeks or even months to perfect. But once you do, you can handle the unpredictable nature of warfare and then use it to your advantage.

Turn Based Strategy

On your turn, each of your units has a certain amount of spaces that they can move OR they can attack. As you upgrade units, some of them will be able to attack twice or move more often. But for the most part (and especially at the start of the game), each unit is very limited in it's action.

After you take your turn, then your opponent can move all of his units or attack and then the turn reverts to you.

However, there is a catch. Whenever you attack a unit, if it is not killed straight away, it will counter-attack you. And depending on the units and heroes involved, some counter-attacks can be devastating.

Tip #4: occasionally, because units can counter-attack, it's better to sit back and let the enemy rush you rather than the reverse. When an enemy strikes, you counter attack and damage them to some extent. Then on the next turn, if you're able to kill them outright, there's no counter-attack. This can precipitate a huge swing in momentum.

Unit Stats

Each unit (hero or troop) on the battlefield has three stats:

• hit points dictates the health of the unit; when this level gets to zero, the unit dies and is removed from the field (unless it's brought back as a skeleton by a necromancer
• morale dictates the courage level of the unit; when this level gets low (because he sees comrades in nearby hexes die), he will run away and leave the battlefield
• stamina dictates the energy level of the unit; when this level gets low, the unit becomes fatigued he is forced to skip a turn in order to rest.

Tactics

The goal to winning is to clear the battlefield by any means necessary. The first way is to scare the people from the field by killing their friends and frightening them into abandoning their position. Another way is to slaughter them outright. You can also position your troops behind hills at the start and then allow your enemies to exhaust themselves climbing over hills and trudging through swamps before they get to you.

These tactics apply to units and heroes.

Initiative

Maybe not when you first start, but who goes first will change your strategy. This is determined by comparing the initiative of both the attacking force and the defending force:

• If the attackers have the most initiative, they go first.
• If the defenders have the most initiative, they go first.
• In the event of a tie, the attackers go first.

Initiative is one of the stats held by the heroes and troops. The more troops you have and the more you level up your force will dictate your total initiative.