Picking Bases to Attack in War

PICKING WAR ARMIES AND BASES

Because you have the opportunity to scout bases, you can build armies and devise strategies to go after particular bases. Some people, however, are more comfortable using certain types of armies (or have some troops upgraded but not others), and therefore need to be able to pick the right base for their army, rather than picking the right army for a base (though we encourage all our players to work on this as well). 

Remember also, we ask that you stay within +/-5 of your experience level, and follow our other general guidelines for picking which bases to attack, which can be found in this post. 

Here is a brief rundown of 5 main types of war armies, and the things to look for when picking a base.

GIANT, WIZARD, and/or HEALER – This is actually the weakest of the four war armies, but also the most versatile in terms of the bases you’re able to successfully attack…any player in our clan that is Town Hall 7-9 should be able to get 2 stars on pretty much any base in their range with this types of army (or similar). That’s the trouble, however…you should get at least 1 star unless something goes horribly wrong, and you’ll usually get 2 if you have a decent attack and concentrate on destroying the town hall, but it’s also much more difficult to 3 star a base on your level with this type of army than it is with one of the others.

Keep this in mind when picking bases to attack with this army--because your decision on who to attack becomes the most crucial, not for you personally, but for the entire clan, since you’re really trying to 2 star, and have a wider selection of bases than players using dragons, hogs, or balloons, who are more likely to get 3. So, your decision should be based not so much on which bases look easy to you, but on which bases do not look like good bases for other types of armies. For this reason, it’s also generally better to wait and do these attacks later in the war if you can, or ask which bases to go after if you’re not sure.

The same basic logic applies at later levels, when you'll want to start dropping Giants and Healers, and adding PEKKAs, Golems, and even Witches (see below). 

DRAGONS – Dragons are pretty much the easiest of any army to use, and are a good choice for players who tend to have trouble getting stars in war. You don’t really have to worry about the clan castle or heroes…you just have to pick a base that is good for dragons, pick a good spot to drop them, put them in a tight fan, and then follow them with your spells at the ready (either all rage spells, or 1 healing and the rest rage)

Since dragons are slow, you generally want to pick bases that are relatively compact. Bases where all the air defense is tight in the middle generally makes it difficult to get the Town Hall, but it can still be somewhat inside. Look for air defense that is mostly on one side, or that is on the edge and can be quickly destroyed. Try to target air defense early on if you can...the longer it takes to destroy, the less chance you have of getting 3 stars. Your heroes may be useful in taking out remaining air defenses later in the attack, on the opposite side of the base from where you started our dragons.

As mentioned in our previous post, we recommend that if you're going to use dragons, use all dragons. At most, you may want to forego one maybe two dragons in favor of minions, archers and/or wizards, which can be used to clear out outer buildings and direct your dragons toward the middle, but we wouldn't advise more than that. 

HOGS – Next to dragons, hogs are probably the second easiest army for mid-high level players to use, though the attack strategy is a bit more complex, and the base choices may be more limited.

If you can tell that most of the spring traps and bombs are outside the walls, it’s a good base for hogs. If the heroes are near the edges and can be engaged by other troops, that is even better. Otherwise you need to try and avoid the heroes until most of the defense has been destroyed. Make sure you lure the clan castle and kill the troops at the beginning of the battle, test for traps on the way in, and use healing spells to keep your hogs alive.

Generally, you want 30-35 hogs, along with at least 4-5 wizards, 20 archers, and possibly a few barbarians and/or minions for support. A PEKKA can also be useful sometimes, and is generally dropped in tandem with the barb king to take out the enemy barb king and provide cover for some of your archers and wizards. 

*Since heroes can no longer be lured, hog attacks have become much less effective for high level players. Hogs will not go after the heroes until all the defense is gone, so while they can generally handle getting attacked by one hero, and live to finish off the defense, having two heroes in the center of the base can make hog attacks very difficult.

BALLOONS – Like hogs, you have to deal with the clan castle first. The barb king is not a problem, but the archer queen can pose a serious threat, so look for bases where she can be easily engaged by other troops. Air defense is also a much bigger problem for balloons than it is for dragons, so you’re looking for bases where the air defense can be taken out quickly. Unlike dragons though, which usually work best dropped all in one place, balloons can be dropped in a clump or a line, usually on 2-3 different sides of the base. You can use a rage spell to get to air defense that is further inside before it does too much damage, but you generally want at least 2 healing spells as well. Launch at the air defense as your primary target, and archer towers second, and save some balloons to drop in a second wave if your first wave drifts away from the air defense or gets taken out before finishing it off. Also watch for air bombs, and use healing spells for balloons that get hit by them, or that are taking numerous hits from wizard towers.

You generally want a minimum of 24 balloons, though 28-30 is usually recommended. While minions are often used to support balloons, archers and wizards are more effective for dealing with the enemy clan castle, so it may make more sense to bring a mix similar to what you might use with a hog army.
Any troops left after taking out the enemy clan castle can be used to take out a defensive piece the balloons are not engaging quickly enough, but try to also save some for cleanup to ensure you have enough time to destroy the entire base.

GOLEM, WIZARD, PEKKA with possible WITCH and/or VALKYRIE - Town hall 8's can start using this type of army (minus the witch), and it can be a good alternative to Giant/Wizard/Healer on bases where you're worried about air defense and spring traps. At level 8, you probably only want 1 golem and at most 3 PEKKA, and you may even be tempted to bring a healer. For spells, you'll want at least 2 rage, and possibly 1 healing, though 3 rage would also work well.

This army does require a fair amount of practice to get good with, and is mainly used by town hall 10 players with leveled up golems and PEKKAs who have to go against inferno towers, as other types of armies become much less effective at this level, particularly since heroes can no longer be lured. With max army camp spaces, you usually want 2-3 golems and 3-4 PEKKA, at least a 15 wizards, and sometimes a few witches and/or valkyries, and of course at least a few wallbreakers to help you get in. As for spells, the you're probably best off bringing 3 freeze and 2 rage, though a jumping spell can also be helpful.

LAVALOONION/GOLAVALOONION COMING SOON