19 Vils Man-at-Arms Into Skirms

This is probably the strategy that benefited most from the latest patch. It can now be used either to pressure early, or to commit to a longer Feudal Age by adding more Men-at-Arms and potentially picking up Arson. It beats most Feudal Age compositions, and only really struggles against a full Scout mass with Bloodlines, though mixing in a few Spearmen handles that just fine. What stands out most about this strategy is how flexible it is: you start with 3 Men-at-Arms and a Range, then decide whether to go Archers or Skirmishers, and later decide whether to keep adding Men-at-Arms or not. The choice is always yours depending on the situation. This specific build walks through the full Feudal Age version, adding Men-at-Arms alongside Skirmishers and keeping the pressure on while upgrading both units. NOTE: from here on, builds don't rely on deer, but taking them when available still helps things go faster or cleaner. On Chicken Arabia, just adapt the build accordingly, the timing stays the same either way.

  1. [Dark] Send 6 villagers to sheep (pop 6)
  2. [Dark] Send 3 villagers to wood (pop 9)
  3. [Dark] Send 1 villager to boar (pop 10)
  4. [Dark] 1 to make a house then mill on chickens, if not then on berries (pop 11)
  5. [Dark] [Optional] Lure 1-2 deer if available
  6. [Dark] 2 more go to the mill (pop 13)
  7. [Dark] 1 to get second boar (pop 14)
  8. [Dark] 2 more to hunt under tc (pop 16)
  9. [Dark] 1 to make barracks then a house at the front of the base
  10. [Dark] Next 2 vils to hunt under TC (pop 19)
  11. [Dark] Research loom
  12. [Dark] Research Feudal Age (perfect landing time: 9:15) (pop 19)
  13. [Feudal] Send 2 vils from hunt or the barracks builder to build a mining camp on gold (pop 19)
  14. [Feudal] Make 3 militia then send them out
  15. [Feudal] Move 5 vils from hunt to wood (pop 19)
  16. [Feudal] When hunt starts to run out, send 3 vils from hunt to berries (pop 19)
  17. [Feudal] Research Man-at-Arms
  18. [Feudal] Research double bit axe
  19. [Feudal] [optional] Get horse collar (if you can afford it)
  20. [Feudal] Make an archery range in front
  21. [Feudal] New villagers should go to straggler trees
  22. [Feudal] Start farming with straggler tree villagers as soon as you can afford it
  23. [Feudal] Start making skirmishers
  24. [Feudal] Get a blacksmith when you can afford it
  25. [Feudal] Get fletching
  26. [Feudal] Start adding in more man at arms
  27. [Feudal] Constantly produce of MAA and skirmishers, and pressure the opponent
  28. [Feudal] After 7-8 man at arms, get arson, so you can easily break houses and walls
  29. [Feudal] Once berries run out, send them to wood/farms
  30. [Feudal] NOTE: We only need 2 vils on gold for maa production and fletching
  31. [Feudal] Get Infantry armor, then skirm armor, then forging (if needed)
  32. [Feudal] Get wheelbarrow once you have 14-16 farmers

What next: Consider adding a 2nd lumber camp and splitting your villagers if things get too messy. Get Horse Collar if you haven't already. From this position, balance your pressure against the idea of reaching Castle Age. If you're doing real damage, keep the pressure up. If you've mostly forced walls and a tower without getting much more value, it's time to aim for Castle Age instead. Going all-in as a Castle Age follow-up is highly recommended: Longswordsmen and Skirmishers with forward Siege is a strong choice, or you can switch into Knights, or even a forward Castle. From there, play a standard game, add economy, and grab relics. GLHF

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