5. Archers
While not having any special stats, attributes or abilities, your basic archers earn their place on this list simply due to their reliability in their role as skirmishers, and their accessibility throughout the campaign. This means that you’ll likely be using them a lot until you unlock the other units on this list. If anything, you’ll probably still use these a fair bit even after you unlock them! Their usefulness and accessibility is enough to place them on the list, even if they’re outmatched by every other unit here
Strengths
- Easy to recruit, cheap to maintain. It’s not necessarily the best archer unit, but it’s cost-effective and gets the job done!
Stats
Role: rear line | Poor in melee | Weak against cavalry
- Health Points: 54,000
- Morale: 25
- Melee Attack Rate: 20
- Melee Charge Bonus: 21
- Melee Damage - Base: 9
- Melee Damage - Armor-piercing: 2
- Bonus vs. Large Cavalry: 0
- Bonus vs. Large: 0
- Bonus vs. Infantry: 0
- Melee Evasion - Base: 6%
- Melee Evasion - Shield: 0%
- Ranged Block Change: 0%
- Armor Base: 32
- Shield Armor: 0
- Ranged Damage - Base: 25
- Ranged Damage - Armor-piercing: 8
- Range: 200
- Base Reload Time: 7
- Ranged Attack Rate: 8.6
- Ammunition: 26
Abilities
- Loose
- The unit spreads apart, making it more difficult for arrows to hit them.
- Smoke Screen
- Thick plumes of smoke obscure line of sight, making units seem temporarily invisible.
4. Imperial Palace Cavalry
Imperial Palace Cavalry is a late-game bow cavalry unit, available to you when your faction rises to becoming its own kingdom. Wielding crossbows with high armor-piercing damage, but still capable of charging down and fighting units in melee, they are one of the best all-rounder units in the game. However, the unit’s quality is held back by its reduced mustering/replenishment rate, and armies relying on such units may have a hard time recouping its own numbers.
Strengths
- Larger unit size than other cavalry units.
- High armor-piercing ranged damage and capable of charge/melee roles.
Stats
Role: skirmishers | Mobility | Good morale
- Health Points: 100,800
- Morale: 43
- Melee Attack Rate: 30
- Melee Charge Bonus: 140
- Melee Damage - Base: 25
- Melee Damage - Armor-piercing: 8
- Bonus vs. Large Cavalry: 0
- Bonus vs. Large: 0
- Bonus vs. Infantry: 0
- Melee Evasion - Base: 48%
- Melee Evasion - Shield: 0%
- Ranged Block Change: 0%
- Armor Base: 53
- Shield Armor: 0
- Ranged Damage - Base: 18
- Ranged Damage - Armor-piercing: 42
- Range: 220
- Base Reload Time: 15
- Ranged Attack Rate: 4
- Ammunition: 46
Abilities
- Loose
- The unit spreads apart, making it more difficult for arrows to hit them.
- Imperial Solidarity
- Whilst in the presence of other imperial forces, enemy blows will strike false more often, whilst their own will strike harder.
3. Onyx Dragons
Armed with the highest range of all archer units, Onyx Dragons are one of the most elite archer units in the game. Their range, fire rate and high damage makes them a dangerous unit to skirmish with, and can easily overwhelm any unit, barring artillery units. However, they are locked behind a late reform in the game, so it will take time and reforms to unlock Onyx Dragons, but once you do, they are undeniably an asset.
Strengths
- Highest range of any bow infantry unit in the game.
- High damage, ammunition and fire rate stats.
Stats
Role: bombardment | Missile attack | Weak against cavalry
- Health Points: 64,800
- Morale: 49
- Melee Attack Rate: 24
- Melee Charge Bonus: 100
- Melee Damage - Base: 20
- Melee Damage - Armor-piercing: 15
- Bonus vs. Large Cavalry: 0
- Bonus vs. Large: 0
- Bonus vs. Infantry: 0
- Melee Evasion - Base: 52%
- Melee Evasion - Shield: 0%
- Ranged Block Change: 0%
- Armor Base: 7
- Shield Armor: 0
- Ranged Damage - Base: 48
- Ranged Damage - Armor-piercing: 9
- Range: 250
- Base Reload Time: 7
- Ranged Attack Rate: 8.6
- Ammunition: 30
Abilities
- Smoke Screen
- Thick plumes of smoke obscure line of sight, making units seem temporarily invisible.
- Loose
- The unit spreads apart, making it more difficult for arrows to hit them.
2. Chen Royal Guard
Unique to Liu Chong’s faction, Chen Royal Guard are heavily armored archer units, armed with crossbows, they’re powerful all-rounder units that can hold their own in skirmishing (with high armor-piercing damage) and in melee (with their ‘Mixed Missile’ formation). This makes them versatile and reliable units, capable of responding to any situation on the battlefield. If you’re agonizing over your army’s composition, you can never go wrong with Liu Chong’s Chen Royal Guard! Provided you’re playing his faction, that is.
Strengths
- Heavily armored, good ranged damage and can hold their own in melee when needed. Reliable all-rounder units that can be used to bolster any army.
Stats
Role: all-rounder | Heavy missile attacks | Good armor
- Health Points: 64,800
- Morale: 43
- Melee Attack Rate: 20
- Melee Charge Bonus: 15
- Melee Damage - Base: 7
- Melee Damage - Armor-piercing: 24
- Bonus vs. Large Cavalry: 7
- Bonus vs. Large: 0
- Bonus vs. Infantry: 0
- Melee Evasion - Base: 12%
- Melee Evasion - Shield: 20%
- Ranged Block Change: 55%
- Armor Base: 53
- Shield Armor: 17
- Ranged Damage - Base: 18
- Ranged Damage - Armor-piercing: 42
- Range: 220
- Base Reload Time: 15
- Ranged Attack Rate: 4
- Ammunition: 17
Abilities
- Mixed Missile
- The unit splits into missiles at the back, in rows, with melee in front protecting them.
- Smoke Screen
- Thick plumes of smoke obscure line of sight, making units seem temporarily invisible.
- Loose
- The unit spreads apart, making it more difficult for arrows to hit them.
1. Mercenary Archers
Mercenary Archers are unique to Sun Jian’s faction. They are solid archer units with decent stats in both ranged and melee (don’t go charging them into battle unless necessary, still!) They’re cost-effective soldiers, especially using Sun Jian’s Heroism to reduce their recruitment and upkeep costs. They can also be recruited from the very start of the campaign, no reforms or ranks needed. However, their main strength lies in the fact that they require no mustering turns upon recruitment. They are immediately deployed at full-strength. This makes them extremely useful in pinches and emergencies, and relieves you of much of the time pressure that comes with any sort of crises in the game.
Strengths
- Require no mustering turns; they are immediately deployed at full-strength once you recruit them.
- Readily available and recruited by any general in Sun Jian’s faction without need to unlock any reforms or reach certain character ranks.
Stats
Resistant to heat | Role: rear line | Weak against cavalry
- Health Points: 59,400
- Morale: 20
- Melee Attack Rate: 30
- Melee Charge Bonus: 35
- Melee Damage - Base: 6
- Melee Damage - Armor-piercing: 17
- Bonus vs. Large Cavalry: 0
- Bonus vs. Large: 0
- Bonus vs. Infantry: 0
- Melee Evasion - Base: 7%
- Melee Evasion - Shield: 0%
- Ranged Block Change: 0%
- Armor Base: 20
- Shield Armor: 0
- Ranged Damage - Base: 40
- Ranged Damage - Armor-piercing: 10
- Range: 200
- Base Reload Time: 7
- Ranged Attack Rate: 8.6
- Ammunition: 30
Abilities
- Smoke Screen
- Thick plumes of smoke obscure line of sight, making units seem temporarily invisible.
- Loose
- The unit spreads apart, making it more difficult for arrows to hit them.
