Best and Worst Units

Without question, the most powerful unit in the game is the dragon. It comes in first in stamina, attack, counterattack, speed, resistance, ranged attack, and ammo. It also comes in second in hit points, defense, and morale. A dragon on the battlefield will destroy everything in it's path.

But they are astronomically expensive!

So can you really call dragons the best unit in the game? I say no. Without considering how much gold and gems you have to spend in upkeep, an army of dragons will wipe out your reserves rapidly, leaving you penniless and doomed.

I created a mathematical system by which we compare all of the statistics in the game and compare them. And the results are pretty interesting. Spoiler alert: dragons, it turns out, are not the best unit.

Assumptions

Keep in mind that I'm assuming the the unit lives forever -- so the amount of gold you have to spend to get him is negligible. If you play poorly and your units die regularly, then these numbers mean nothing.

Also, this assumes that the unit is always in battle. You'll have to decide for yourself which units are the best castle guards to leave behind while you're out conquering the world.

Most Efficient Units (Gold)

Of course, if you have a hero who is a ranged class, then you'll play differently than if you make your hero the tank. But at the end of the day, units that drink more gold than blood are impediments between you and victory. So, to keep your treasury from depleting, your armies should contain a mix of units from the following list:

	ALIGN	LVL	GOLD RATING	GEM SCORE	VALUE
GOBLIN	E	1	0.65	0.00	0.65
BRIGAND	E	1	1.10	0.00	1.10
SPEARMAN	N	1	1.23	0.00	1.23
CENTAUR	N	2	4.25	0.00	4.25
HORSE ARCHER	N	2	4.35	0.00	4.35
THUG	E	2	5.06	0.00	5.06
MINOTAUR	N	3	10.30	3.65	13.94
EXECUTIONER	E	3	12.69	0.00	12.69
OGRE	E	3	12.78	0.00	12.78
CYCLOPS	E	4	16.81	0.00	16.81
GIANT	U	4	18.03	0.00	18.03
WARLOCK	EI	4	21.89	0.00	21.89

Most Efficient Units (Gems)

Magic units require gem upkeep. As a result, if you get your hands on a solid source of gem income, you will want to specialize your armies with these units:

	ALIGN	LVL	GOLD RATING	GEM SCORE	VALUE
ELF	GC	1	7.08	4.39	11.47
IMP	EI	1	0.00	4.87	4.87
SHAMAN	U	1	2.15	5.33	7.47
PEGASUS	G	2	5.39	8.35	13.75
MONK	G	2	5.81	9.60	15.40
MINOTAUR	N	3	10.30	3.65	13.94
MANTICORE	N	3	9.61	10.22	19.83
PALADIN	GC	4	24.43	15.15	39.57
TREANT	GC	4	15.36	16.32	31.68

Most Efficient Units (Gold & Gems)

At the end of the day, gems and gold both play a part. Across all units (magical and not), here are the best ones to have in your army:

	ALIGN	LVL	GOLD RATING	GEM SCORE	VALUE
CYCLOPS	E	4	16.81	0.00	16.81
GIANT	U	4	18.03	0.00	18.03
WARLOCK	EI	4	21.89	0.00	21.89
TREANT	GC	4	15.36	16.32	31.68
EXECUTIONER	E	3	12.69	0.00	12.69
OGRE	E	3	12.78	0.00	12.78
MINOTAUR	N	3	10.30	3.65	13.94
CENTAUR	N	2	4.25	0.00	4.25
HORSE ARCHER	N	2	4.35	0.00	4.35
THUG	E	2	5.06	0.00	5.06
GOBLIN	E	1	0.65	0.00	0.65
BRIGAND	E	1	1.10	0.00	1.10
SPEARMAN	N	1	1.23	0.00	1.23
MILITIAMAN	N	1	1.23	0.00	1.23
SLINGER	N	1	1.27	0.00	1.27
THIEF	E	1	1.55	0.00	1.55
ORC	E	1	1.75	0.00	1.75
HALFLING	G	1	1.83	0.00	1.83
BARBARIAN	U	1	2.68	0.00	2.68
LIZARDMAN	N	1	2.85	0.00	2.85
PIKEMAN	L	1	3.78	0.00	3.78
SWORDSMAN	L	1	4.63	0.00	4.63

Deadliest Units

"Who cares about gold? I just want to see damage" you say. Well then here are the heaviest weapons in your arsenal without consideration for upkeep:

	ALIGN	LVL	POWER	VALUE
DRAGON	N	4	8.58	87.18
PHOENIX	N	4	5.52	106.11
DEVIL	EI	4	5.05	49.15
GIANT	U	4	4.99	18.03
PALADIN	GC	4	4.91	39.57
GHOST	EI	3	4.31	37.41
MEDUSA	N	3	3.67	43.39
UNICORN	GC	3	3.65	21.78
MANTICORE	N	3	3.64	19.83
GRYPHON	N	3	3.51	37.61
CENTAUR	N	2	3.53	4.25
HORSE ARCHER	N	2	3.22	4.35
PEGASUS	G	2	2.97	13.75
GARGOYLE	N	2	2.71	22.85
GIANT SLUG	N	2	2.68	5.98
FAIRY	G	1	2.84	14.51
ELF	GC	1	2.82	11.47
HALFLING	G	1	2.73	1.83
DWARF	G	1	2.55	6.67
IMP	EI	1	2.55	4.87

Most Expensive Units (Gold)

Sometimes the gold just isn't there to afford all the good things in life. We all know people who should be fired from their job because they're just there for the paycheck. And if you didn't before, the following is a list of units that should be fired from their job -- because they're just there for the paycheck.

	ALIGN	LVL	GOLD RATING	GEM SCORE	VALUE
ELF	GC	1	7.08	4.39	11.47
DWARF	G	1	6.67	0.00	6.67
BALLISTA	N	2	12.41	0.00	12.41
GIANT SPIDER	N	2	9.80	10.12	19.92
CATAPULT	N	3	45.21	0.00	45.21
KNIGHT	G	3	23.83	0.00	23.83
PHOENIX	N	4	72.43	33.68	106.11
DRAGON	N	4	58.27	28.90	87.18
HYDRA	N	4	35.67	22.12	57.79

Most Expensive Units (Gems)

Some magicians just aren't that good at their job. Unless you have seriously good sources of gems, avoid these units.

	ALIGN	LVL	GOLD RATING	GEM SCORE	VALUE
FAIRY	G	1	1.41	13.10	14.51
ZOMBIE	EI	1	0.00	14.18	14.18
GARGOYLE	N	2	0.00	22.85	22.85
GHOUL	EI	2	0.00	24.17	24.17
MAGICIAN	U	3	18.58	38.41	56.99
STONE GOLEM	N	3	0.00	38.81	38.81
DEVIL	EI	4	0.00	49.15	49.15
VAMPIRE	EI	4	0.00	51.14	51.14

Most Expensive Units (Gold & Gems)

In terms of overall financial health, here is a list of the most dangerously slothful units in the game. Limit the number of these units in your army the second you get the opportunity.

	ALIGN	LVL	GOLD RATING	GEM SCORE	VALUE
PHOENIX	N	4	72.43	33.68	106.11
DRAGON	N	4	58.27	28.90	87.18
HYDRA	N	4	35.67	22.12	57.79
MAGICIAN	U	3	18.58	38.41	56.99
CLERIC	G	3	19.49	32.22	51.71
CATAPULT	N	3	45.21	0.00	45.21
GHOUL	EI	2	0.00	24.17	24.17
GARGOYLE	N	2	0.00	22.85	22.85
FIEND	EI	2	0.00	20.08	20.08
FAIRY	G	1	1.41	13.10	14.51
ZOMBIE	EI	1	0.00	14.18	14.18
ELF	GC	1	7.08	4.39	11.47

Puny Units

These poor bastards are lucky they can get out of bed in the morning. Some may excel in one area, but overall they are vulnerable and weak. When the enemy sees these units, they start to lick their chops.

	ALIGN	LVL	POWER	VALUE
GOBLIN	E	1	1.54	0.65
SPEARMAN	N	1	1.62	1.23
MILITIAMAN	N	1	1.62	1.23
ORC	E	1	1.72	1.75
ZOMBIE	EI	1	1.75	14.18
BALLISTA	N	2	2.01	12.41
GHOUL	EI	2	2.05	24.17
THUG	E	2	2.37	5.06
CATAPULT	N	3	2.21	45.21
CLERIC	G	3	3.08	51.71
OGRE	E	3	3.13	12.78
VAMPIRE	EI	4	3.64	51.14
WAR ELEPHANT	N	4	3.97	35.23
WARLOCK	EI	4	4.11	21.89

Skills and Attributes

Every hero -- like the units he commands -- has a series of statistics that govern his effectiveness during battle or exploration. Attributes are the numbers that determine outcomes of probability and skills are the numbers that determine effectiveness of actions.

Hero-specific Attributes

• Health
  Health is more complex than you think. It improves three universal attributes for the hero: hit points, stamina, morale. All classes need to make sure they occasionally upgrade this skill to keep from being overwhelmed later in the game. However, if you play your hero as a tank, then this is probably the only attribute you need to level up.
• Magic
  How many spells the hero can learn. This stat is critical for mages.
• Command
  How many units a hero can have with him on the battlefield. This stat is particularly important for commanders.

Universal Attributes

• Hit Points
  Total damage a unit can absorb before dying; <50%, unit attack is weakened; =0, unit dies. Regenerate 10% per turn when out of combat; more with certain buildings.
• Attack
  Damage dealt by a unit to an enemy during an attack by said unit.
• Counterattack
  Damage returned to an enemy by the unit after it is attacked by said enemy.
• Defense
  Reduces damage the unit takes from melee.
• Ranged Defense
  Reduces damage the unit takes from arrows and missiles.
• Resistance
  Reduces damage the unit takes from magic attacks and all counterattacks.
• Speed
  Total action points for attack or movement during each turn; altered by certain types of terrain.
• Attack Range
  Ranged-only damage dealt by a cast projectile.
• Range
  Ranged-only maximum distance of attack with projectile or healing actions.
• Ammo
  Ranged-only, =0, ranged attacks cease until more ammo is found. Ammunition is restored instantly after combat.
• Stamina
  Unit energy reserve spent on attacking, special skills, and movement; <5, attack and speed decrease; =0, the unit must rest (skips a turn). Energy is instantly restored after combat.
• Morale
  Increases when a unit kills an enemy or an enemy dies on a neighboring hex; decreases when the unit is heavily wounded or an ally dies on a neighboring hex; if morale >15, boosts attack; <5, weakens attack; =0, the unit panics and retreats. When out of combat, this attribute gradually returns to its base level.

Battlefield Travel Skills

Some units fair better in adverse terrain conditions than others.

• Hovering
  unit immune to terrain consequences; unit can share a hex with friendly troops and can be trampled.
• Flying
  unit immune to terrain consequences and trampling; unit cannot share a hex with friendly troops.
• Forest Knowledge
  travel through forest hexes only costs 1 movement point and no stamina; unit obtains additional defense.
• Hills Knowledge
  travel through hill hexes only costs 1 movement point and no stamina; unit obtains additional defense.
• Swamp Knowledge
  travel through swamp hexes only costs 1 movement point and no stamina; unit obtains additional defense.

Ranged Attack/Defense Skills

These are skills that are specific to ranged class fighting units.

• Armor-piercing Shot
  ranged, enemy ranged defense -50%
• Heavy Ammo
  ranged, enemy ranged defense -1. Duration: 3 turns.
• Petrification
  ranged, unit freezes enemy, preventing movement but increasing defense; duration reduced by enemy resistance skill.
• Poison Shot
  ranged, unit poisons enemy, reducing hit points; amount depends on skill level. Duration: 3 turns.
• Precise Shot
  ranged, unit attack ignores some enemy ranged defense; amount depends on skill level.
• Web
  ranged, unit entangles enemy, preventing movement; duration reduced by enemy attack skill.

Melee Attack/Defense Skills

These are skills that are specific to melee class fighting units.

• Armor-piercing Strike
  melee, enemy defense -50%
• Bloodsucker
  melee, unit restores hit points based on damage dealt; amount depends on skill level.
• Cause Disease
  melee, causing damage adds poison effect
• Charge
  melee, if attacking on the move; bonus damage based on distance traveled.
• Crippling Strike
  melee, enemy speed -1. Duration: 2 turns.
• Crushing Blow
  melee, special strike, +50% damage at the cost of some stamina.
• Damage Armor
  melee, enemy defense -1. Duration: 3 turns.
• Damage Weapon
  melee, enemy attack -1. Duration: 3 turns.
• Does Not Fight
  melee, unit can’t attack or counterattack
• Intimidation
  melee, unit decreases the enemy morale; amount depends on skill level.
• Mass Attack
  melee, unit attacks all enemies in neighboring hexes.
• Parry
  melee, for the first time in a turn, its defense is increased; amount depends on skill level.
• Poison Attack
  melee, unit poisons enemy, reducing hit points; amount depends on skill level. Duration: 3 turns.
• Poison Flesh
  melee, poisons attacker when damaged
• Precise Strike
  melee, unit attack ignores some enemy defense; amount depends on skill level.
• Roots
  melee, unit entangles enemy, preventing movement. Duration: 3 turns.
• Round Attack
  melee, unit attacks all enemies in neighboring hexes at the cost of some stamina.
• Soul Stealing
  melee, on enemy death, unit steals its soul to restore hit points; amount depends on skill level.
• Steal Ammo
  melee, unit decreases enemy ammunition reserve by several units; amount depends on skill level.
• Stunning Blow
  melee, unit attacks reduce enemy stamina; amount depends on skill level.
• Trample
  melee, unit can trample enemy if enemy hit points remaining after the attack are equal to or less than the level of the ability; on death, unit moves to enemy hex. Flying enemies are immune.

Magic Skills

Some units have a small amount of natural magical affinity.

• Cause Vulnerability
  melee magic, the unit bestows "Vulnerability" spell on the enemy.
• Energy Control
  ranged magic, ignore some enemy resistance; amount depends on skill level.
• Fire Arrows
  ranged magic, normal and bonus magic damage; amount depends on skill level.
• Magic Shot
  ranged magic, ranged damgage instead counts as magic damage; countered by enemy resistance.
• Magic Strike
  melee magic, melee damgage instead counts as magic damage; countered by enemy resistance.

Activated Action Skills

Some units have bonus actions they can activate during battle.

• Collect Ammo
  activated, unit will scavenge for ammo. Duration: 1 turn.
• Extra Shot
  activated, spend stamina to use ranged attack twice per turn
• Forced March
  activated, unit’s speed +1, cost: stamina. Duration: 1 turn.
• Healing
  activated, heal a unit within shooting range; effectiveness depends on level of ability; collectively, all units possessing this ability boost the healing rate of the entire army when not in combat.
• Master of the Undead
  activated, unit raises dead enemies as skeletons.

Buffs

Boosts to friendly unit stats and attributes.

• Agility
  buff, unit immune to counterattacks
• Berserker
  buff, unit immune to fear; when activated by heavy damage, attack increases by level of ability and wounds do not reduce these effects
• Feels No Pain
  buff, wounds have no impact on unit’s attack.
• First Aid
  buff, hit points while resting; buff to out-of-combat HP regeneration rate
• First Strike
  buff, unit counterattacks before enemy attack; negated if both units have first strike.
• Forager
  buff, reduction in unit upkeep cost; amount depends on skill level.
• Intrepid
  buff, unit morale always remains unchanged.
• Mediation
  buff, unit recharges several units of magic while at rest; amount depends on skill level.
• Poison Immunity
  buff, unit immune to poison.
• Recuperation
  buff, unit recovers more stamina when resting; amount depends on skill level.
• Regeneration
  buff, unit recovers some hit points per turn; amount depends on skill level; hit point restoration boost when not in combat.
• Reincarnation
  buff, upon death, unit rises with full health once per battle
• Necrophagy
  buff, unit recovers some hit points by eating a corpse; amount depends on skill level.
• Smite Evil
  buff, unit inflicts extra damage on enemies with tainted souls.
• Spell Immunity
  buff, unit immune to spells.
• Tireless
  buff, unit immune to fatigue caused by travel or combat.
• Tolerance
  buff, unit immune to morale decrease caused by conflicting alignments with hero or fellow soldiers.

Debuffs

Reductions to enemy unit stats and attributes.

• Hex
  debuff, single enemy attack, armor, and resistance skills -1. effected by enemy resistance. Duration: 4 turns.
• Siege
  debuff, enemy fortification defense reduced; amount depends on skill level.

Toxic Troops

Reductions to friendly unit stats and attributes.

• Marauder
  reduces income from post-battle loot by a certain percentage.
• Plunderer
  reduces income from province in which the unit is located by a certain percent.

Unit Citations

As your troops perform admirably for you (get upgraded through experience), you can present them with awards for their heroism and dedication. The advantage is that they then perform better in combat; the disadvantage is that they cost more gold (or gems) to maintain.

Medal of Agility

• Ranged Defense +2
• Stamina +2
• Gold Upkeep +3

Medal of Courage

• Morale +4
• Attack +1
• Gold Upkeep +3

Medal of Healing

• Healing +2
• Ammo +1
• Gold Upkeep +3
• Gem Upkeep +1

Medal of Resilience

• Health +4
• Defense +1
• Counterattack +1
• Gold Upkeep +4

Medal of Resolve

• Resistance +2
• Morale +2
• Gold Upkeep +3

Medal of Zeal

• Stamina +3
• Counterattack +1
• Gold Upkeep +3

Order of the Defenders

• Defense +2
• Counterattack +1
• Gold Upkeep +4

Order of the Marksman

• Accuracy +1
• Ranged Attack +1
• Gold Upkeep +8

Order of the Victor

• Hit Points +5
• Morale +3
• Attack +2
• Counterattack +1
• Gold Upkeep +10

Order of the Willful

• Attack +2
• Counterattack +2
• Gold Upkeep +5

Pennant of Fire

• Ammo +1
• Resistance +1
• Fire Arrows +3
• Gold Upkeep +7
• Gem Upkeep +1

The Hero's Cross

• Attack +2
• Counterattack +2
• Armor +1
• Resistance +1
• Gold Upkeep +10

Badge of the Battleman

• Ammo +2
• Stamina +2
• Gold Upkeep +4
• Gem Upkeep +1

Badge of the Mercenary

The unit is signed with the Mercenaries Guild and demands higher wages for its services.

Star of the Mage

• Ranged Attack +1
• Energy Control +1
• Gold Upkeep +5
• Gem Upkeep +1

Armies and Troops

After building the appropriate buildings, you will be able to hire various units to march with your hero as part of his army. So, you can't hire -- say pikemen -- until after you build their first level one building.

The Garrison Screen

The garrison screen is divided in half -- one side dedicated to the units that are available for hire and have been hired and the other dedicated to your currently selected hero and his army. You can then interchange units as you see fit.

Hiring

You are going to lose many, many, many soldiers. Resign yourself to this now. The reason I know this is because no matter which hero you choose, you will never be so powerful at the beginning of the game to protect all your guys.

As a result, you will be quite familiar with the garrison screen as you will constantly be looking for the next batch of mooks to absorb the arrows.

Costs

Whenever you hire troops, not only do you need to spend money immediately to retain their services, but you'll also need to pay them as you go along. Lowly level-zero units cost very little, so you can have many of them. However, as the units upgrade, you'll need more and more gold to afford to keep them. Keep an eye on your troop costs and plan accordingly.

Troops

The troops that you hire will accompany your hero into battle. Your troops cannot travel around the map without a hero. So they must remain in the garrison and the hero must come to pick them up.

While in battle, each unit will gain experience on an individual basis based on what each individual unit does. So if one unit kills three bad guys, he will gain more experience than a unit that kills only one enemy. Just as your hero does, when a unit upgrades, you'll be able to select specific skill boosts (like counter-attack +1).

Tip #2: whenever you are given an opportunity, use your ranged units to get an enemy down to minimum health and then bring in a melee unit to finish the guy off. Doing this will give experience to all of the ranged units AND they guy who finishes the job. However, only do this when you have like two or three enemies left to contend with; while facing eighteen bloodthirsty lizardmen, just kill them as fast as possible.

Each of the units is an individual; units do not stack. So as a result of the layout of the combat arena, you can only have so many units (plus your heroes) on the map in a single assault.

Alignment

Every unit that ever ends up in the army for either side has an alignment. Their alignment is based on their inclination to help the local population, look out for themselves, or stay completely ambivalent to all things political.

• GOOD
  LVL1 - DWARF, HALFLING, HEALER, FAIRY
  LVL2 - DRYAD, MONK, PEGASUS
  LVL3 - KNIGHT, CLERIC
  LVL4 - NONE
• CHAMPION OF LIGHT (GOOD + MAGIC)
  LVL1 - ELF
  LVL2 - NONE
  LVL3 - UNICORN
  LVL4 - TREANT, PALADIN
• EVIL
  LVL1 - THIEF, GOBLIN, ORC, BRIGAND
  LVL2 - ASSASSIN, HARPY, THUG
  LVL3 - OGRE, EXECUTIONER, TROLL
  LVL4 - CYCLOPS
• EVIL INCARNATE (EVIL + MAGIC)
  LVL1 - IMP, SKELETON, ZOMBIE
  LVL2 - HELLHOUND, GHOUL, FIEND
  LVL3 - DEMON, GHOST
  LVL4 - VAMPIRE, DEVIL, WARLOCK
• NEUTRAL
  LVL1 - SPEARMAN, BOWMAN, LIZARDMAN, MILITIAMAN, SLINGER
  LVL2 - BALLISTA, BASILISK, HORSEMAN, CENTAUR, HORSE ARCHER, GIANT SLUG, GARGOYLE, GIANT SPIDER
  LVL3 - CATAPULT, GRYPHON, STONE GOLEM, MANTICORE, MEDUSA, MINOTAUR
  LVL4 - HYDRA, DRAGON, PHOENIX, WAR ELEPHANT
• LAWFUL
  LVL1 - CROSSBOWMAN, SWORDSMAN, PIKEMAN
  LVL2 - GUARDSMAN
  LVL3 - NONE
  LVL4 - NONE
• UNSCRUPULOUS
  LVL1 - BARBARIAN, SHAMAN
  LVL2 - SORCERER
  LVL3 - MAGICIAN
  LVL4 - GIANT

When units of opposing alignments are thrown together into an army, the units take a hit to their morale. This effect is negated for units that have the "tolerance" skill. Ideally, you should have a good army, an evil army, a lawful army, and an unscrupulous army to prevent these problems. It's a pain, but it can be done. Obviously, neutral units are a huge bonus as they can drift between armies.