How To Understand Any Unit Roster in a Scenario Game

Greetings everyone! With the flow of new players entering the scenario community in part thanks to the Mid-Rank Tournament, I decided to make a guide to help players understand the units in most scenario games that are being played. This is not meant to be a guide for every faction on every single map in every single scenario, but this is meant to be a guide to help players understand unit types and how they should be used on a map. I would like note that not every single unit will be used exactly as described here in this guide.

Before I get into any details, I'm going to briefly explain how hp (Hit Points) and crit (Critical chance) work in atwar as you will see several units with different hp and crit values and these terms will be referred to throughout the guide.

Let's take a look at this unit, we will look more into this unit at the end of the guide:



Here we have a unit with 15 max attack and max defense, 30 crit, and 15 hp. For starters we know that when this unit attacks, the range of damage it can do per round of combat it fights in is 1-15 hps of damage. This means every single time this unit fights, it will do 1-15 hps of damage unless it crits (will explain crits in a moment). A unit is able to continue to fight until it takes enough damage equal to or above its hp value. In this case the star dragon will deal at least 1-15 hps of damage every time it is able to fight until it itself has taken 15 hps of damage and dies.

Fighting in atwar is based on rounds like in a fighting ring. The two highest value units will each do some amount of damage, apply it to their opponents hp, and repeat until one of the currently fighting unit gets knocked out (in this case, dies). Once the current unit dies, the next stronger soldier in terms of their attack (if attacking) or defense (if defending) will fight next. This happens over and over again until someone has killed all of their opponent's units. Atwar calculates this super fast and most people don't have time to see this combat in action. If you want to see this happen, go to Settings when you are in an atwar game, and set Combat Speed to Normal or Slow. When you watch a battle you will see soldiers flash numbers while they are fighting. These are the rolls for damage that the units are doing. Its a cool way to see what strat your foe is if you pay attention to unit roles as well as see if any of your units had a critical hit,

Now back to looking at this unit's stats. When looking at crit, the number in that stat is a %. So this star dragon has a 30% chance to crit every single time it fights in combat. A unit that crits does max damage automatically on top of a damage roll, being between 1 and its max value in attack (if attacking) or defence (if defending).

So for our star dragon, this unit has a 30% chance to automatically do 15 hps of damage plus 1 to 15 additional hps of damage every single time it fights in battle.

Thus its attack damage is 1-15 hps of damage when attacking without a crit and 16-30 hps of damage if it cits and its defense damage is 1-15 hps of damage when defending without a crit and 16-30 hps of damage when defending with a crit. Hp damage carries over to another unit if the initial unit it is fighting is killed. So if this dragon was to deal 21 hps of damage (thus it would have had to have scored a crit), it would kill 3, 7hp units and the dragon would only take damage from one of those 7 hp units.


Now onto the main guide. For the sake of simplicity, the units that I will be showcasing are from maps that I made with the chosen strat being None.

Here's a list of the main categories that most units in any roster will fit in:

Cannon Fodder/Stack Builder
Main/elite Versatile Soldiers
Main/elite Attack
Main/elite Defense
Shock and Suicide Units
Stack Warfare Troopers
Heroes
Special Utilities Units


1: Cannon Fodder/Stack Builder

These units are used as filler units. Their job is to allow you to build up stacks and establish an army in the field. These units are often very weak but very cheap.





This unit is cheap, with very low attack. This unit when in large numbers would be great at making up most of the defense of any stack, leaving enough money to be used to buy better units. They won't be very useful if you have to be on the attack unless they are in large numbers supported by some elite attack units. This unit should be used to begin generating a stack on the battlefield



This unit's attack and defense value is the same but it has extremely low hp. This unit is a cannon fodder unit. It will be used in stacks since it is free to make, but if these units are used in combat, they will die in large numbers while doing little to no damage.

2: Main/elite Versatile Soldiers


These units are a hybrid between an attack and a defense unit. On most maps, these units will have a lower attack than a main attack unit and will have a lower defense than a main defense unit. They will often have an attack stat equal to the defense stat, making them useful in general combat. These units will be useful for taking over territory and holding onto it for future turns. Elite versatile soldiers will be able to take on main attack and defense units but they are not the best against other elite attack and defense units since the average stats will be lower than the enemy's main attack and main defense elites (crit and hp may vary but attack and defense will often be lower).







The cost of the units will often be higher than a defense unit but cheaper than an attack unit (this is not always true for maps)

3: Main/elite Attack

These units are self explanatory. Their job is to attack enemy cities and enemy armies. Elite attack units will often have higher hp and crit than other attack units in a roster while, in some cases, also having a higher attack value than other units.





Here shows 3 attack units in this faction. At the top of this list, we see a basic attack unit with lower cost compared to the other two units. As we progress down the list, the attack, defense, crit and hp values of the unit have increased while the cost of the unit has also increased. On some maps, not all units will be unlocked at the start of the game, so you will have to make due with using main attack units and will have to wait before you can make elite units. In this case, the Heavy Weapons Stormtroopers will be your main attack unit and the Shadow Stormtroopers are your elite attack unit. Elite attack units are useful for killing a few elite defense units or several main defense units.


4: Main/elite Defense

These units are self explanatory. Their job is to defend your cities and armies from enemy attacks. Elite defense units will often have higher hp and crit than other defensive units in a roster while, in some cases, also having a higher defense value than other units.




Here shows 3 defensive units in this faction. At the top of this list, we see a decent defensive unit with lower cost compared to the other two units. As we progress down the list, the attack, defense, crit and hp values of the unit have increased while the cost of the unit has also increased. On some maps, not all units will be unlocked at the start of the game, so you will have to make due with using main defensive units and will have to wait before you can make elite units. In this case, the Skaven Shrapnel Globadiers are your main defensive unit and the Skaven Avalanche Bombardier is your elite defensive unit. Elite defensive units are useful for killing a few elite attack units or several main attack units.




5: Shock and Suicide Units

These units are often in the category of attack units but they are a unique type of attack units that are useful in different situations. Suicide units can range from event units that have high cost/upkeep to units that have extremely high crit and attack but lower hp. Shock units are similar to suicide units except that shock units are meant to be made right before any major battle to get their maximum effect without suffering from upkeep penalties.



Here's an example of a shock unit. This unit has an extremely high attack, hp, and crit chance making it a very good elite attack unit. However, the cost of the unit means it is unwise to make several of them and then not use them as their upkeep will drain your income. A unit like this should be made right before a major attack and then used the same turn it was made. If this unit has a massive stack with it, this unit could kill dozens of units before it itself is killed thanks to stack warfare.



Here is an example of a suicide unit. This unit cannot be made by the player and is an event unit. The thing about this unit is its upkeep is 200 so if you begin to hold on to a ton of them, you will lose your income very quickly. This unit should be killed off as soon as possible. However you don't want to waste the unit in this process. This unit here is an extremely deadly elite attack unit so it is best to use it on the attack and not on the defense. This unit will fight and die first in combat as long as it is attacking and not defending.

Quick note is these types of units come in several forms. Some suicide units have high attack and low hp and are used to try and kill enemy elites before your true attack units hit. Other times you can make these units but they will often have low hp and will be more a luck based unit. Another important note is that these units are more common as attack units but can also be seen as defensive units.


6: Stack Warfare Units

These units are difficult to use properly as their use is very situational. However when used properly, these units will save you when fighting overwhelming odds or in a major clutch situation. Stack warfare units have lowish attack and defense compared to other units in your roster, but have mid to high amounts of hp and crit. The goal of these units is to work alongside other troops that have higher attack and defense values.

The reason why they excel at being a support unit is thanks to their low attack and defense values. In any battle, the soldier with the highest attack (when attacking) or highest defense (when defending) fights first in combat. Once that unit dies, it goes to the next highest attack/defense and so on until you have units with very low attack and defense. In battle, elite units have very high attack/defense stacks so they will fight and die first.

Here's a list to show the typical progression of battle based on the max attack and defense values of units. (stats of units may cause certain categories to move around so you as the player must pay attention to the stats of your units):


Attacker
Highest Attack to Lowest Attack

Elite Attack
Elite Versatile
Main Attack
Main Versatile
Elite Defense
Main Defense
Stack Warfare Units


VS

Defender
Highest Defense to Lowest Defense

Elite Defense
Elite Versatile
Main Defense
Main Versatile
Elite Attack
Main Attack
Stack Warfare Units



Based on this list, the stack warfare units will fight last in most battles but instead of fighting against elites, main attack units (if your foe is attacking you) or main defense units (if you are attacking your foe), stack warfare units will be fighting against units that weak when attacking (such as main defense units) or weak when defending (such as main attack units). This means a stack warfare unit will begin to utterly crush any remaining soldiers that were there either to make a bigger stack or for future operations and not meant to engage in the current battle.

Stack warfare units are also great against cannon fodder units as the high hp along with the ability to cirt and do additional damage at a greater rate means they can do as much damage as a main attack or a main defense unit for a longer period of time without dying. They often work well with versatile units since their stats will almost always be lower than versatile units, making them fight last with devastating effect.



This unit is an example of a stack warfare unit. This unit is slightly better when used in a stack that is defending against an enemy attack as its defense value is better than its attack value.



This unit is an extremely deadly stack warfare unit as its high stats in all categories means it can, when needed, go toe to toe with elites and come out on top.

Remember that these units are rather expensive and you need to pay very close attention to the stats of your other units so you can make the right stack warfare unit with the right army. Otherwise you will waste the unit and your cash.

Note: Other players will not always use stack warfare units in this way depending on who you are fighting and what your plan is. This is their main use but always try and be creative with any unit you have.




7. Heroes

Heroes are non-buildable units that, like stack warfare units, have low attack and defense, but unlike stack warfare units, have extremely high hp and crit. Hero units are often on a map to provide lore and flavor to the game. Some maps may give heroes unit capacity to carry either a specific guard unit or an army of soldiers. Use heroes however you want but try not to lose them if they have nice range and/or carrying capacity especially if they can only carry a specific unit.



Here's a hero with carrying capacity. Its hp and crit are extremely high so it can take out several units if it has to fight.





Here's a hero that doesn't have any special abilities but is there for flavor for the map.



Hero units will almost always be free so have fun using them for anything you want. Some heroes might even live up to their name and save your game when used correctly (or if you are just super lucky).




8: Special Utilities Units

These soldiers are units that have stats that fall into several different categories. These units can be used for several different situations. These units might seem overwhelming at first so the best thing to do with theses units is the following:

Look at their stats and see if the are similar to one of the categories discussed
See if they are a sea, land or air unit
Figure out what you want to treat them as (such as a main attack unit or an elite defense unit) and use them accordingly.



Here's an example. The star dragon is an extremely powerful and expensive unit. Using the list above, it can be classified into a few categories:

Shock unit (due to high cost/upkeep with high overall stats) and Elite Versatile Unit (since its attack and defense are the same and very high)
This unit is an air unit

Now you as the player have to decide how this unit could work with your game plan based on how you classified the unit.



I hope you guys found this guide helpful. I know some people will debate the names and uses of these categories and it is very much possible that I left out a category or two. Feel free to share your thoughts below. Good luck out there players!

Excellent guide

Well done!

Sorry for any errors with the pictures folks. That problem should be solved

Wow that is cool

Gj

Nice stuff!

So basically hp is live and def is shield

Written by Ciel Marronier, 11.08.2021 at 15:47

So basically hp is live and def is shield

Def is the riposte, works just like atk but only when you're defending.

Written by Mobster, 11.08.2021 at 16:17

Written by Ciel Marronier, 11.08.2021 at 15:47

So basically hp is live and def is shield

Def is the riposte, works just like atk but only when you're defending.

ik bout that,i mean,most still confusing with hp,def and crit

Written by Ciel Marronier, 11.08.2021 at 21:03

Written by Mobster, 11.08.2021 at 16:17

Written by Ciel Marronier, 11.08.2021 at 15:47

So basically hp is live and def is shield

Def is the riposte, works just like atk but only when you're defending.

ik bout that,i mean,most still confusing with hp,def and crit

Yeah but it's definitely not shield imo You know, shield doesn't damage the enemy.

Written by Mobster, 12.08.2021 at 04:23

Written by Ciel Marronier, 11.08.2021 at 21:03

Written by Mobster, 11.08.2021 at 16:17

Written by Ciel Marronier, 11.08.2021 at 15:47

So basically hp is live and def is shield

Def is the riposte, works just like atk but only when you're defending.

ik bout that,i mean,most still confusing with hp,def and crit

Yeah but it's definitely not shield imo You know, shield doesn't damage the enemy.

it is actually,in fact,in close combat shield is more important than sword