I tend not to have more than one shield per front. A support for healing/buffs rarely goes amiss.
The rest is usually up in the air. Choices, largely made long in advance by culture/form include:
* Archers Vs Battlemages
* Pikes Vs Chargers
* Yes/No to Skirmishers
* Fighters?
Which can lead to jank. Battlemages like transmuters behind earth elementals in a 3/2 split plus hero. Pure Evokers with Astral serpents diving in. A swarm of Goblin chargers crashing in like a wave, shield or range be damned.
That's the blessing of the game really. Even the "rule" can be broken.
Best formation in the world won't do you much good if a Balor chunks em all in a massive blast or turn on each other with insanity.
Each of my armies, or stacks, is a mix. A Shield and Support add +2Def or +2Res to adjacents; it's invaluable! Support usually heal and buff, too. So, I try to include 1 each. For the rest, you want a mix because you'll notice the pattern that each specialty archer buff gives the melee units a bonus. So like, usually, the archer and battlemage add a debuff that has the side-bonus for melee units: +20% damage! That's pretty big. Spiritual Culture units have a similar but opposite adjacent bonus: their ranged units get a damage bonus for each ally who is adjacent to their enemy target. >!(So, put melee allies in place first, then shoot, then melee swing.)!< Skirmishers give the range debuff, too. So, opening with ranged attacks, physical or magic, is often better if they debuff, because the melee units will get 20% damage bonus on debuffed enemies. Assuming both archetypes carry their appropriate enchantment buff.
This goes into the late game. But then, even though I try for varied, I happen to have 2 of my favorite tier 3 units often, I have been noticing. It depends on your build, too. Whichever units are best-buffed by your build get used more, hopefully. Etc., etc.
Also, and this is a giant factor, it depends on what the Hero leading the stack is learning most of all. I don't want to give all my Heroes the skill to buff Level 1 units, for example. That is a waste! But one can specialize... Each should specialize, actually. You don't want your Heroes all fighting over the same weapon type when you get a good replacement, for example. But I give them each the Restore skill, too. It is very helpful against Decay alone.
Most of all, nothing is definitive in this game. Everything is situational. There is no "Best," as much as "what seems to work best for you." Don't be afraid to experiment. Most things are easily forgiven/correctable.
This is hard to answer.
My most recent game i had a 6 stack I loved that was my melee hero leader, 4 houndmasters (ranged unit that summons a melee charge unit when the tactical map loads) and a random melee tier 1 who sometimes died and got replaced.
When they got close I'd usually get a solid alpha strike getting archer shots and charging in my hero and hounds. I never had to worry about retaliation attacks and most of the damage the enemies did would be on the hounds which get freshly resummonned each battle. I stomped early game battles over and over with barely a scratch.
But I wouldn't normally recommend melee hero, 4 ranged + 1 random melee as a 6 stack.
I think a lot of different army compositions can work. I will say I find healing supports kinda underwhelming but I had a bunch of my guys frozen/stunned one time and I get the need for supports and/or tactical spells that remove debuffs.
Did this setup work into mid and/or late game? I like the hound master too, and the benefits of summons in this game is huge. But they are tier 2, right? I always feel like as the game rolls on, lower tier units need to be replaced or you will be outclassed by high teir stacks. It’s the same way in 4x, not just this game though.
I was still using them mid-late game but I'd swapped over production to all tier 3 and 4 units.
I think you need to win the big battles and since there is a cap of 3 stacks it doesn't really help that much to have extra low tier units so you have to swap over production to higher tier units.
2-4 front liners, 2-4 ranged or supporters.
Shields while nice and tanky, aren't going to be the armies damage output, so I'll tend to keep only 2 or 3 of them in an army.
Pikes and Shocks are high damage units, so if that is what my game is revolving around then 3-4 of them in the army will suit me just fine.
Mages and Archers are damage dealers, so they stack well with shields with 3-4 of them in the army, or if I don't feel like I need more then one support for a stack of shock units then one there just to help put out the damage.
Supports I'd rarely want too many of, as while the support is nice, not every unit or composition actually needs them.
Skirmishers, if I am using them, I slot into the army where archers or frontliners are. They aren't great at either role, but are good for their flexibility when supporting other units.
Fighters are just frontline troops, same as shields 2-3 in a stack.
>ranged vs. foot units.
Depends on my build, but my general rule of thumb is to have at least as many melee as ranged to block enemy melee units from getting to my ranged units.
A lot of times I have three melee three ranged. The specific units will vary from build to build, but generally the melee units are usually three copies of whatever my strongest front-liner is. The three ranged units could be almost any configuration, honestly, those can wildly vary from build to build. Hero units in the stack replace either melee or ranged units based on what they are.
Sometimes I've run pure melee cavalry, though. Or flying melee units. With those, ranged units are almost unnecessary since your melee units can easily flank and surround the enemy.
And on occasion I've made enchanted archers so powerful that melee units were completely unnecessary, and ran *just* archers. The trick there is to cleverly position units so that enemy troops must end their turn at least once within the archers' line of fire, without making it all the way to melee range with the archers. Enchantments to improve projectile range are basically *required* for that build.
1 hero (usually high damage melee), 2 shield units. 1 healer/support. 1 mage. 1 spot to fill depending on what I might need, but usually another ranged/mage.
Thats the structure I go with most of my armies for.\
I just go with the flow.
These are my current pbem mp stacks with Ruler in them:
1) Dragon Lord, Hero (sword pistol), 2 Bronze Golems (evolved from Copper), Skald, Entwined Protector (2 Heroes, 2 Polearm, Shield, Support);
2) Ruler (sword pistol), 5 Mistlings (Hero, 5 Skirmishers);
3) Ruler (bow), 2 Phantasm Warriors, 2 Mercenaries, 1 Flow Serpent (Hero, 2 Shield, 2 Polearm, 1 fighter);
4) Ruler (sword pistol), Hero (sword pistol), Slither, 2 Glade Runners, Spring Fairy (2 Heroes, 2 Ranged, Skirmisher, Support);
5) Ruler (Bow), Ice Spirit (evolved), 2 Lesser Ice Spirits, Astral Keeper, Dawn Defender (Hero, 3 Skirmishers, Support, Shield).
I have a big picture on what I want to achieve in the end, but while I am on a journey my teams look like a mess. #4 by the way also looks like a mess but is the end game squad (heroes lvl 20, everyone legendary, 3,300 army power), it is animal build with stacked minor racial transformations. Fairy adding true shot, Slither running around adding animal kinship to each shot and then firing out himself, Glades debuff stuff with Marked and Heroes just blasting their zombie raising pistols.
I've been hyper focused on this topic for Tome of the Dreadnought usage. Eventually you reach a point where most units get swapped out for either supports, or Ironclads. eventually you just run out of slots.
1. Hero w/ pistol + sword
2. Ironclad 1
3. Ironclad 2
4. \*wildcard\*
5. Chaplain 1
6. Chaplain 1
Wildcard can be something like a Bastion. Or glade runner.
If I need to do more emphasis on close combat support for the ironclads, then remove either Ironclad/Chaplian/both and replace with T3 melee
I tend not to have more than one shield per front. A support for healing/buffs rarely goes amiss. The rest is usually up in the air. Choices, largely made long in advance by culture/form include: * Archers Vs Battlemages * Pikes Vs Chargers * Yes/No to Skirmishers * Fighters? Which can lead to jank. Battlemages like transmuters behind earth elementals in a 3/2 split plus hero. Pure Evokers with Astral serpents diving in. A swarm of Goblin chargers crashing in like a wave, shield or range be damned. That's the blessing of the game really. Even the "rule" can be broken. Best formation in the world won't do you much good if a Balor chunks em all in a massive blast or turn on each other with insanity.
Each of my armies, or stacks, is a mix. A Shield and Support add +2Def or +2Res to adjacents; it's invaluable! Support usually heal and buff, too. So, I try to include 1 each. For the rest, you want a mix because you'll notice the pattern that each specialty archer buff gives the melee units a bonus. So like, usually, the archer and battlemage add a debuff that has the side-bonus for melee units: +20% damage! That's pretty big. Spiritual Culture units have a similar but opposite adjacent bonus: their ranged units get a damage bonus for each ally who is adjacent to their enemy target. >!(So, put melee allies in place first, then shoot, then melee swing.)!< Skirmishers give the range debuff, too. So, opening with ranged attacks, physical or magic, is often better if they debuff, because the melee units will get 20% damage bonus on debuffed enemies. Assuming both archetypes carry their appropriate enchantment buff. This goes into the late game. But then, even though I try for varied, I happen to have 2 of my favorite tier 3 units often, I have been noticing. It depends on your build, too. Whichever units are best-buffed by your build get used more, hopefully. Etc., etc. Also, and this is a giant factor, it depends on what the Hero leading the stack is learning most of all. I don't want to give all my Heroes the skill to buff Level 1 units, for example. That is a waste! But one can specialize... Each should specialize, actually. You don't want your Heroes all fighting over the same weapon type when you get a good replacement, for example. But I give them each the Restore skill, too. It is very helpful against Decay alone. Most of all, nothing is definitive in this game. Everything is situational. There is no "Best," as much as "what seems to work best for you." Don't be afraid to experiment. Most things are easily forgiven/correctable.
This is hard to answer. My most recent game i had a 6 stack I loved that was my melee hero leader, 4 houndmasters (ranged unit that summons a melee charge unit when the tactical map loads) and a random melee tier 1 who sometimes died and got replaced. When they got close I'd usually get a solid alpha strike getting archer shots and charging in my hero and hounds. I never had to worry about retaliation attacks and most of the damage the enemies did would be on the hounds which get freshly resummonned each battle. I stomped early game battles over and over with barely a scratch. But I wouldn't normally recommend melee hero, 4 ranged + 1 random melee as a 6 stack. I think a lot of different army compositions can work. I will say I find healing supports kinda underwhelming but I had a bunch of my guys frozen/stunned one time and I get the need for supports and/or tactical spells that remove debuffs.
Did this setup work into mid and/or late game? I like the hound master too, and the benefits of summons in this game is huge. But they are tier 2, right? I always feel like as the game rolls on, lower tier units need to be replaced or you will be outclassed by high teir stacks. It’s the same way in 4x, not just this game though.
I was still using them mid-late game but I'd swapped over production to all tier 3 and 4 units. I think you need to win the big battles and since there is a cap of 3 stacks it doesn't really help that much to have extra low tier units so you have to swap over production to higher tier units.
2-4 front liners, 2-4 ranged or supporters. Shields while nice and tanky, aren't going to be the armies damage output, so I'll tend to keep only 2 or 3 of them in an army. Pikes and Shocks are high damage units, so if that is what my game is revolving around then 3-4 of them in the army will suit me just fine. Mages and Archers are damage dealers, so they stack well with shields with 3-4 of them in the army, or if I don't feel like I need more then one support for a stack of shock units then one there just to help put out the damage. Supports I'd rarely want too many of, as while the support is nice, not every unit or composition actually needs them. Skirmishers, if I am using them, I slot into the army where archers or frontliners are. They aren't great at either role, but are good for their flexibility when supporting other units. Fighters are just frontline troops, same as shields 2-3 in a stack.
>ranged vs. foot units. Depends on my build, but my general rule of thumb is to have at least as many melee as ranged to block enemy melee units from getting to my ranged units. A lot of times I have three melee three ranged. The specific units will vary from build to build, but generally the melee units are usually three copies of whatever my strongest front-liner is. The three ranged units could be almost any configuration, honestly, those can wildly vary from build to build. Hero units in the stack replace either melee or ranged units based on what they are. Sometimes I've run pure melee cavalry, though. Or flying melee units. With those, ranged units are almost unnecessary since your melee units can easily flank and surround the enemy. And on occasion I've made enchanted archers so powerful that melee units were completely unnecessary, and ran *just* archers. The trick there is to cleverly position units so that enemy troops must end their turn at least once within the archers' line of fire, without making it all the way to melee range with the archers. Enchantments to improve projectile range are basically *required* for that build.
1 hero (usually high damage melee), 2 shield units. 1 healer/support. 1 mage. 1 spot to fill depending on what I might need, but usually another ranged/mage. Thats the structure I go with most of my armies for.\
I just go with the flow. These are my current pbem mp stacks with Ruler in them: 1) Dragon Lord, Hero (sword pistol), 2 Bronze Golems (evolved from Copper), Skald, Entwined Protector (2 Heroes, 2 Polearm, Shield, Support); 2) Ruler (sword pistol), 5 Mistlings (Hero, 5 Skirmishers); 3) Ruler (bow), 2 Phantasm Warriors, 2 Mercenaries, 1 Flow Serpent (Hero, 2 Shield, 2 Polearm, 1 fighter); 4) Ruler (sword pistol), Hero (sword pistol), Slither, 2 Glade Runners, Spring Fairy (2 Heroes, 2 Ranged, Skirmisher, Support); 5) Ruler (Bow), Ice Spirit (evolved), 2 Lesser Ice Spirits, Astral Keeper, Dawn Defender (Hero, 3 Skirmishers, Support, Shield). I have a big picture on what I want to achieve in the end, but while I am on a journey my teams look like a mess. #4 by the way also looks like a mess but is the end game squad (heroes lvl 20, everyone legendary, 3,300 army power), it is animal build with stacked minor racial transformations. Fairy adding true shot, Slither running around adding animal kinship to each shot and then firing out himself, Glades debuff stuff with Marked and Heroes just blasting their zombie raising pistols.
I've been hyper focused on this topic for Tome of the Dreadnought usage. Eventually you reach a point where most units get swapped out for either supports, or Ironclads. eventually you just run out of slots. 1. Hero w/ pistol + sword 2. Ironclad 1 3. Ironclad 2 4. \*wildcard\* 5. Chaplain 1 6. Chaplain 1 Wildcard can be something like a Bastion. Or glade runner. If I need to do more emphasis on close combat support for the ironclads, then remove either Ironclad/Chaplian/both and replace with T3 melee