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Basic Military Development for New Players

Source

Table of Contents

Introduction

This guide is written for new players in the first week or month of play. It describes the basics of how to build an army that can be used to:

  • Hunt NPCs
  • Participate in tournaments
  • Engage in limited player vs. player combat

Important Notes

Alliance Rules: If you are in an alliance, please ask your alliance about any rules or suggestions it has about appropriate use of armies. Different alliances have different rules about who or what may be acceptable targets for your armies.

Self Defense: If you are a new player interested in self defense, there are more effective ways to defend yourself than building an army right away. Check out this forum guide for information on basic self defense.

A Word on Military Development

"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed. This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children."

— U.S. General Dwight D. Eisenhower

The experienced players in global chat echo Gen. Eisenhower's sentiments. To be a successful leader of your Illyriad empire, you need to balance economic and military production. Military is an important aspect of Illyriad, but it is not the only aspect. This guide will help you seek balance as you build your military capacity.

Building Your Initial Army

You can work on these steps concurrently:

1. Create a Strong Economic Base

In your first day or two in Illy, focus on building:

  • Storehouse
  • Library
  • Basic resource production

You will need basic resources and research points to create buildings and perform researches necessary for military development.

2. Try Diplomacy First

Scout Development
  1. Research Negotiation
  2. Build a consulate
  3. Build a paddock
  4. Start producing horses (or buy them on the market/receive as gifts)
Scout Units
  • Build a level 1 consulate
  • Research Scouting (bottom of Diplomacy section)
  • Build basic scout units:
  • Human scouts
  • Elf trackers
  • Dwarf sentries
  • Orc hunters

Recommended Setup:

  • Build 10 basic scouts
  • Maintain positive gold income of at least 10 gold per hour
  • Use scouts for:
  • Quest completion
  • Resource exploration
  • NPC animal scouting
  • Strategic intelligence

Note: Many players consider it rude if not aggressive to scout their cities. Check with your alliance or the other player before scouting a city.

3. Develop a Stash of Gold

Minimum Recommended Gold: 20,000 gold before building more than a few military units

Gold Sources:

  • Gifts from established players
  • World map harvesting
  • Selling cows from common ground
  • Using cotters to harvest and sell:
  • Basic herbs
  • Basic minerals
  • Hides
  • Grapes

Warning: If you run out of gold, your units will leave. Always maintain sufficient gold reserves.

4. Upgrade Your Barracks and Research Military Units

Race Unit Type Barracks Level/Research Resources Support Buildings
Elf t1 bow (sentinel) Level 3/ Ranged Weapons Beer, Bow Brewery, Fletcher
Human t1 sword (swordsman) OR t1 cavalry (chariot) Level 5/ Infantry OR Level 11/ Cavalry Chainmail, Sword OR Beer, Saddles, Horse Blacksmith OR Brewery, Saddlemaker, Paddock
Dwarf t1 sword (axman) Level 5/ Infantry Chainmail, Sword, Beer Blacksmith, Brewery
Orc t1 sword (fang) Level 5/Infantry Chainmail, Sword Blacksmith

5. Build Production Buildings

Build the necessary production buildings to support your chosen troop types. This will:

  • Enable troop recreation
  • Increase population
  • Boost tax base
  • Provide more gold for army maintenance

6. Build Military Units and Create a Commander

Recommended Initial Army Size: 50 units

Next Steps

Once you have your army, consider these resources:

Final Word of Caution: Use your army responsibly. Consult with your alliance before attacking anything other than NPCs. Remember: Someone else ALWAYS has a bigger army.

Edited by Rill - 11 Feb 2014 at 07:17