Attacking by the Numbers

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Table of Contents

  1. Primary Click Analysis
  2. The Close Combat Table
  3. The Ranged Combat Table
  4. The Capturing Table

Primary Click Analysis

It's sometimes useful to know how good a figure's attack or defense values are when compared to whatever else is out there.  The key number in all cases, of course, is 7.  If you need 7 to hit, then you have a 55% chance to succeed.  If you need 8, you have only a 42% chance.  So, when planning an attack, you're looking for something that will work if you roll 7 or better.

Each figure has a position on its combat dial known as the primary click.  This is the click that has the best attack and generally (though not always) does the most damage.  For most figures, the primary click is their full health position.  For some, however, they start out weak and get stronger as they take damage.  A figure that does this is called a push spawn, because generally you have to push the figure to get it to full strength.  The following table lists the push spawn currently available, along with the position of each one's primary click.

Code Figure Cost Click   Code Figure Cost Click
D031 Werecat * 19 2 R139/U139 Werebear * 34 4
D032 Werecat ** 22 2 R140/U140 Werebear ** 40 4
D033 Werecat *** 25 2 R141/U141 Werebear *** 45 4
D055 Wereboar * 40 3 R142 Crypt Worm * 35 3
D056 Wereboar ** 44 3 R143 Crypt Worm ** 39 3
D057 Wereboar *** 52 3 R144 Crypt Worm *** 43 3
D058 Weresabretooth * 44 2 L046 Goblin Volunteer * 5 2
D059 Weresabretooth ** 50 2 L047 Goblin Volunteer ** 6 2
D060 Weresabretooth *** 60 2 L048 Goblin Volunteer *** 7 2
D111 Ankhet 32 2 L138 Martyr 74 5
D119 Tusk 57 3 L158 Podo 3 2
D120 Atayet 73 2 W070 Thorn Crawler * 33 4
R136/U136 Werewolf * 22 2 W071 Thorn Crawler ** 37 3
R137/U137 Werewolf ** 28 2 W072 Thorn Crawler *** 38 3
R138/U138 Werewolf *** 30 2        

We make the simplifying assumption that most figures spend the bulk of the game on their primary click.  It's not true, but it's what each player is hoping will be the case for his or her own army, so it's a useful assumption to make.  The following tables look at how many figures have each attack value on their primary click.  Alongside each is the defense that attack has a better-than-even chance of hitting, and the number of figures that have that defense or lower on their primary clicks.  

Please note that each version of a scalable figure and each dial of a multi-dial figure is considered a different figure in the tables below.  So, for example, the Great Fire Dragon counts as six figures-- one for each dial, plus one for the Young version and one for the Mature version.  The numbers below include all figures available as of 3/20/02 plus the Castle pieces.

The Close Combat Table

In this first table, the attack and defense values shown are close-combat, not ranged.  The first and last columns are graphed in the chart to the right.

Close Combat Attack Analysis

Attack Count Defense Count
15 1 22 992
14 3 21 992
13 28 20 992
12 69 19 992
11 111 18 982
10 204 17 935
9 209 16 831
8 212 15 548
7 121 14 157
6 27 13 20

It's worth noting how effective close-combat attacks are on average.  An attack of 8, which is pretty far down the list, still has a better-than-even chance of hitting 55% of the possible targets.  Don't get over-confident, however:  not all figures have an equal chance of being played, and special abilities like Defend can make close combat attacks a lot harder.  (Even a Goblin Volunteer is a hard target when next to an Elemental Priest.)

The Ranged Combat Table

Ranged combat is a little different, because not all figures have ranged attacks, and because figures with Battle Armor and Invulnerability get a +2 defense against ranged attacks.  In addition, figures with Limited Invisibility can't be targeted at all! Here's the corresponding table and graph for ranged attacks.

Ranged Combat Attack Analysis

Attack Count Defense Count
15 1 22 976
14 2 21 976
13 11 20 975
12 37 19 961
11 47 18 920
10 99 17 800
9 89 16 660
8 124 15 452
7 61 14 143
6 13 13 20

Battle Armor is more common than it appears.  A close combat attack of 10 has a good chance of hitting 935 figures, but a ranged combat attack of 10 has a good chance of hitting only 800 figures, a reduction of 135 (a little less than 15%).  Battle Armor is the difference.  There are also more mitigating factors for ranged combat than close combat:  both hindering and elevated terrain can increase a target's defense for ranged combat.  You pay a price for your ability to hit from a distance!

The Capturing Table

There is a third type of attack-- capturing.  Capturing is only an option if neither figure has Battle Fury, Invulnerability, or Berserk, if the target does not have Command, and neither figure is multi-dial.  That knocks 322 figures out of the equation right off the bat! In addition, the target gets +2 defense, so an attack of 6 is only going to have a better-than-even chance if the defense is 11 rather than 13.  Here's the table for capturing.

Capturing Attack Analysis

Attack Count Defense Count
15 0 20 670
14 2 19 670
13 11 18 666
12 39 17 651
11 60 16 608
10 111 15 414
9 128 14 117
8 140 13 16
7 91 12 3
6 26 11 0

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