Multi Player Strategies

Tool Age Warfare

by Blitz

Are you caught in the trap of being pretty good in Bronze if you can get there? Experts tend to separate themselves from the field by having great Tool Age warfare skills. There are a few things to focus on to becoming a good player in Tool Age warfare. The biggest factor that will take practice is timing. Timing of Tool attacks takes excellent early exploration, a good Tool time, and a stockpile of resources to invest in your army.

Good players most often don't go into a game thinking they are going to "Tool Attack." They simply have excellent exploration skills and can find your economy in the Stone Age usually. Once they find your economy, they are skilled enough to kill it in any Age. So for starters ask yourself this question: When do I usually find my opponent's economy? If you are finding them with Compies or Chariot Archers, then here is a skill for you to take your game to the next level. If you are finding them with a Scout, how early are you finding them? Where is your stable in relation to their economy? For attacks to be successful you will need Barracks/Archery Ranges/Stables within striking distance of your opponent.

To set up your Tool attack, build a Barracks in Stone by enemy base. Make a couple Clubmen as you Tool. Build 1-2 more Barracks. Have one Barracks ready to do Axer upgrade the second you enter Tool. Upon entering Tool there are several details that need attending to quickly;
 

  • Axer upgrade from Barracks.
  • Infantry armor from storage pit.
  • Have 4-5 Clubbers walking towards enemy woodies. You want the Axer & armor upgrade to complete when you walk in the middle of enemy Villagers.
  • Start booming Villagers from Town Center. Having an economy that continues to grow will be important. As the Tool Age matures, you will need more food and less wood. Adjust Villager ratios to compensate for this. Five woodies will be plenty, if not overkill.
  • Have forward builders build a Stable, and then build a Scout. Have Scout explore and find where enemy Villagers are hiding/running. Send military to all spots where their economy is.

    • Timing once again becomes important after this initial attack. Should you invest in more Tool military units or advance to the Bronze Age? Can you do both? Is your opponent going to Bronze soon? If so, with how big of an economy? If I choose to stay in Tool, I like to do the stone mining upgrade in the Market. Have an army with a high Slinger ratio. 10-12 Slingers, 5-8 Axers, and 1-3 Scouts is a decent sized army. If an opponent is still in Tool, only a bigger mass of Slingers can kill a large group of Slingers. Your economy should be bigger and you can simply run over his remaining army and economy. If your opponent does Bronze, I like to have lots of Slingers and Bowmen. They will stop early waves of Cavalry and Compies / Chariot Archers. You must have a stronger economy, and a bigger army though. Usually this isn't a problem if your early Axer attack had much success.

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