Nations

Nations are upgrade schemes that include nation bonuses and a unique unit, fit for different playstyles. Nations become available starting from the beginning of advancement to the Iron Age, during which players are required to choose a nation to be influenced by. Players still retain the ability to attack any other qualifying player, regardless of whether their nation (which means players can invade others of their own nation). Nations do not affect the wonders a player can construct, the coalitions he/she can form, the alliances he/she can join, etc.

Starting from the Medieval Age, players can use "Revolution" to instantaneously change their nation. The first revolution requires 600 crowns as well as all the builders the player has. The second revolution requires 1000 crowns. This feature was introduced in update v1.3.55.

• British
• Chinese
• French
• Germans
• Greeks
• Japanese
• Koreans
• Romans

British:

Nation Power: Increases the loot stolen during attacks by 15%.

Unique Unit: Longbowman, Elite Longbowman, King's Longbowman, Yeomanry, Royal Yeomanry, Black Watch, King's Royal Rifleman, Green Jacket Rifleman

Pros:

• Especially good for players that enjoy raiding other players.
• Longbowmen are able to outrange many defenses, placing them in a unique niche.
• Longbowmen from the Command Post can hold their own on defense.

Cons:

• No solid defense bonuses are provided.
• You must be an avid attacker if you aim to receive the full extent of this nation’s power.

Chinese:

Nation Power:

• Increases the number of citizens by 1
• Increases Mercenary Army capacity by 1
• Grants bonus defenders at the town center: +1 per age

Unique unit: Chu Ko Nu, Elite Chu Ko Nu, Royal Chu Ko Nu, Fire Lance, Fire Dragon, Manchu Rifleman, Long March Infantry, People's Rifleman

Pros:

• A generally well-balanced nation when it comes to economy, offensive and defensive attributes.
• Having an extra citizen enables you to complete more tasks and upgrades.
• The extra defenders make it more difficult for invading armies to earn stars, while the extra mercenary capacity makes it easier to earn stars on the offensive.
• In addition, the Chu Ko Nu from the Command Post can swiftly dispatch invading armies comprising mainly of infantry units while on defense.

Cons:

• Though this nation is well-rounded, there is not one particular attribute that excels beyond the rest.

French:

Nation Power:

• Reduces the time it takes to train an army by 20%.
• Can receive more donated troops from Alliance Members (+3 more donated troops). This becomes +6 more donated troops in the Gunpowder Age.

Unique unit: Chevalier, Heavy Chevalier, Elite Chevalier, Guard Chevalier, Hussar, St. Chamond, R-35 Tank, S-35 Tank, ARL-44 Tank

Pros:

• This nation trains troops the fastest of all nations.
• Utilizes the power of their strong cavalry troop to deal more damage against opponents while minimizing casualties.
• Extra donated troops can make the difference in an attack or on defense.

Cons:

• In exchange for the ability to quickly train troops, this nation forfeits additional defensive and economic benefits.
• Must be an active person and in an active Alliance to use nation's advantage.

Germans:

Nation Power:

• Decreases the cooldown on rally by 5 seconds.
• Increases the duration of rally by 100%
• Gains a 15% DPS boost upon a multi-player victory.

Unique unit: Vandal, Heavy Vandal, Landsknecht, Heavy Landsknecht, Junker, Wehrmacht, Volksgrenadier, Bundeswehr

Pros

• Using the 15% DPS boost can allow for German troops to easily steamroll through enemy bases.
• Has a tactical advantage as this nation is able to use the Rally command more frequently in battle.
• Once the Rally speed bonus effect becomes available its effects last longer, allowing troops to cross distances more quickly.

Cons:

• Although this nation receives an improved Rally option, it must be used tactfully in order to be of any benefit.
• German players must attack often and succeed in order to use the 15% DPS buff wisely.
• This nation lacks any additional economic or substantial defensive bonuses.

Greeks:

Nation Power:

• Refunds 5% of the upgrade cost
• Free upgrades under 15 minutes. This increases by 5 minutes per age that comes after.

Unique unit: Companion, Royal Companion, Heavy Royal Companion, Elite Royal Companion, Stradioti, Companion Tank, ELAS Tank, Hellenic Tank, Centaur Tank

Pros:

• With a heavy emphasis on their economy, this nation is able to complete buildings faster and for fewer resources than other nations.
• This nation boasts a powerful cavalry troop that’s arguably one of the strongest unique units available.

Cons:

• The lack of additional defensive bonuses coupled with the ability to generate more resources makes this nation a susceptible and popular target.
• None of the bonuses (excepting its unique unit) provided by this nation will aid in attacking, either.
• Utilizing the free building speed-ups requires meticulous attention and effort.
• The benefits of free building speed-up diminishes at later ages where buildings and upgrades can take up to days to complete.

Japanese:

Nation Power:

• Town Center shoots at invaders (functions like a Tower)
• Increases the length of peace treaties by 25%

Unique unit: Bushi, Samurai, Heavy Samurai, Nodachi Samurai, Ashigaru, Shizoku, Kazoku, JSDF Soldier

Pros:

• Boasts an assortment of defensive technologies such as a Town Center that can attack invaders and lengthened Peace Treaty effects.
• The generally strong Bushi enables this nation to deal a lot of damage quickly.

Cons:

• Due to this nation’s lack of economic prowess, it must frequently engage in offensive battles to keep progressing its growth, which can negate the effects of the Peace Treaty bonus.

Koreans:

Nation Power:

• An additional war tactic can be brought into battle.
• Refunds 10% of loot stolen by other players

Unique Unit: Hwarang, Elite Hwarang, Royal Hwarang, Singijeon, Heavy Singijeon, Righteous Rifleman, Liberation Infantry, Republic Rifleman

Pros:

• An additional war tactic can help players attack more efficiently.
• The ranged Hwarang enables this nation to deal a lot of damage quickly.
• Hwarang archers from the Command Post can eliminate targets quickly and slow down invading armies.

Cons:

• No defensive bonuses besides its Command Post troops.

Romans:

Nation Power: Increases maximum army size by 10%.

Unique unit: Legion, Heavy Legion, Caesar's Legion, Praetorian Guard, Praetorian Fusilier, Alpini, Royal Alpini, Friuli Infantry

Pros:

• Able to field large armies containing soldier troops with more health makes the Romans an offensive powerhouse.

Cons:

• This nation does not receive any additional economic or defensive bonuses.

Summary

Each of the nations excel in different areas - some can overrun enemy bases with little effort, and others are capable of putting up a good fight against invaders. The following table contains the nations ranked in various fields, as agreed upon by the majority of players.

	Offense	Defense	Economy	Alliance Utility
Rank 1	Germans	Chinese and Japanese (Tied)	Chinese, Greeks, and British (Tied)	French
Rank 2	French and Romans (Tied)	French	Koreans and French, and Japanese (Tied)	British
Rank 3	British, Chinese, and Koreans (Tied)	British, Greeks, and Koreans (Tied)	Germans	Chinese, Greeks, and Koreans (Tied)
Rank 4	Greeks	Germans and Romans (Tied)	Romans	Germans, Japanese, and Romans (Tied)
Rank 5	Japanese

*Note: This list assumes equal town level.

Disclaimer: This list covers a subjective topic and does not necessarily determine whether one nation is objectively better than the other. In addition, rankings are not proportional between the categories (Rank 2 in Offense is not necessarily equal to Rank 2 in Defense).

Justification of Ranks

Offense

Germans is ranked 1st since its bonuses allow players to quickly destroy buildings of high priority using its rally command in conjunction with Teutonic Fury. With this in mind, players can leave take out defenses that pose the highest threat to their strategy and then proceed to overwhelm the rest of the target base.

French and Romans follow closely behind, but they lack the powerful strategic perks of the Germans. Nonetheless, these two are still offensive superpowers in the game due to their army size boosts. While the Romans' capacity increase is much more potent and does not rely on an active alliance, the French compensate with an arguably more useful unit in its Chevalier in addition to also being able to receive over-leveled troops through donation.

British, Chinese, and Koreans rank third (fourth if tied ranks are counted), and it's not hard to see what they have in common that grants them this high position - powerful ranged infantry. The Chinese and the Koreans have access to the Chu Ko Nu and the Hwarang, respectively, which excel at eliminating troops (and essentially anything in general with their damage output). However, the British Longbowmen have an absurdly long range that prevents them from being targeted by some defensive buildings, which some will argue is more than enough to rival the Chinese and the Koreans having additional attack capabilities (with the Chinese able to recruit more mercenaries and the Koreans able to carry additional war tactics).

After these six nations, the rest are hardly worth mentioning. The Greeks manage to score a higher position with a subjectively better unique unit than the Japanese's.

Defense

Chinese and Japanese are ranked the highest in this list due to their town center abilities. Although the Japanese is advertised as the nation that cares the most about defense in-game, the peace treaty extension cannot really be considered a defense perk since it does not affect defensive battles in any other way then simply causing them to happen less frequently. Even if the peace treaty is considered, the Chinese still have the benefit of having a ranged unit on defense (from the Command Post) as well as defenders that can attack 1 target each in comparison to the Japanese having a town center-tower integration that can only target 1 enemy in total at any given moment.

The French managed to reach its position with its additional alliance troop capacity, reinforcing the player's base when under attack.

The remaining nations do not have any solid defense perks other than those granted by the Command Post. The British, Greeks, and Koreans have some of the best unique units deployed by this building, whilst the Germans and Romans, unfortunately, do not.

Economy

The Chinese, Greeks, and British reached the top of the list with each of their unique national perks in addition to other more obscure advantages. It's immediately obvious to anybody who considered any of them why they placed so high, since they know that the Chinese offer an extra citizen, the Greeks can perform construction at a heavily discounted price, and the British obtain an enormous bounty of resources after each raid. However, despite the Greeks seemingly having the most potent economic perk, its value falls of incredibly due to its lesser effect at higher levels and lack of defensive measures to protect its own resources (aside from Command Post units). This is where the Chinese shine with their extra defenders to whittle down heavy cavalry and tanks that will attempt to pave the way for invaders to pour in and steal valuable riches. In addition, their army perks help to ensure that their own raids will be more successful. For active players, the British are a godsend with the ability to accumulate wealth through battle - even though they may lose resources more often due to poor defense, the British can always make it up with a well-timed revenge attack.