Strategies & Warfare
To become a true warlord in Thardferr, you must understand more than just unit stats – you must master battle strategy, the phases of combat, and the rules of engagement that govern both offense and defense.
Combat Phases
Every battle unfolds across three distinct phases, each one favoring different units:
- Long-Range Phase
Archers, slingers, siege weapons, and other ranged units unleash their attacks first, striking before the enemy can respond. - Short-Range Phase
Fast or tactical units (such as wolf riders, axe throwers, or runners) may strike here. Damage is dealt before melee. - Melee Phase
All remaining units clash in close combat. This is where heavy infantry, cavalry, and front-line warriors shine.
⚔️ Having strong ranged units allows you to kill enemies before they can hurt you. But only melee can truly hold the line.
Strategies
Before launching an attack (or preparing your defenses), you must select a strategy. Strategies shape how your army fights, altering damage, defense, and timing.
All races can access four basic strategies, and each race has a unique fifth option that reflects their racial combat style.
| Strategy |  Description | Effects |
|---|---|---|
| Archer Protection | Your infantry stays behind the line to guard your archers, rather than charging forward. Your ranged units will survive longer, but your infantry will deal less damage. | Infantry attack divided by 2. Archers damages decreased by infantry normal attack. |
| Infantry Attack | Sending your infantry first on the battlefield can greatly help your offensive strategy. While your infantry kills the most powerful units on the enemy side, your other men remain out of the fight until enough damages have been done to the enemy forces. This strategy works well with a large number of infantry units, but can be very valuable even with few men. | Infantry (unit2/unit3) Defense reduced -75%. Infantry defense points reduced get redistributed among the other units in the army. |
| Quick Retreat | Even if many general consider this strategy as one for cowards, it can be pretty effective if you want to try to capture land or defend your territory with minimal loss. Many famous commanders used this strategy when they believed their chances of winning to be low or if they thought their men lives were more valuable than the victory. Assigning your men this strategy will ensure that your losses are minimal and that many men survive. | All unit (both sides) attack power divided by 2. Victory chances reduced by half for you. |
| Anti-Cavalry1 | One of the best and most effective strategy against mounted units. It consists in placing a line of pikemen in front of your other units and wait for enemies to charge in order to easily kill any incoming mounted units. However, using this strategy against a walking force is totally useless since it is much easier for normal soldiers to stop before they run into pikes, so if you know your opponent to be weak in mounted units, do not use it. | Pikemen attack vs mounted units multiplied by 3.5. All units attack multiplied by 0.9. |
1Dwarves having no pike-like weapons do not have this strategy.
Race-Specific Strategies
Each race also has one unique strategy that complements their strengths:
| Race | Strategy | Description | Effects |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dwarf | Shield line | Shieldbearers move to the front, absorbing ranged damage while other units prepare to engage. Powerful against ranged-heavy armies. | All units melee attack -10%. Enemy long-range attack reduced based on % of your Shieldbearers. Shieldbearer melee defense -50%, redistributed to other units. |
| Elf | Energy Gathering | Mages unleash all stored energy in a powerful burst. Makes them more visible in combat, but incredibly deadly. | Mage melee damage ×2, ranged attack +4, and defense +2 during melee (partial invisibility). |
| Gnome | Far Fighting | Your army deploys further from the battlefield (or deeper in defense). Allows ranged units to fire longer but extends vulnerability. Even if this strategy is very effective, it is important to consider your opponent long-ranged army strength before using it, many gnome generals lost easy battles to elves because of this. | Long-range attack doubled for both sides. |
| Human | Charging! | Knights are sent charging ahead of the army. They smash into enemy lines and soften them up for the rest of your forces. | Knights attack multiplied by 1.5. Knight damages multiplied by 1.5. |
| Orc | Surrounding | Shadow Warriors flank the enemy and strike during the short-range phase instead of melee. Riskier, but powerful. | Shadow Warrior defense +2. They strike during short-range phase. 25% higher chance to be detected. |
💡 You can choose no strategy if desired. Even weaker strategies have value situationally. For example, Quick Retreat can reduce your losses in an unwinnable defense, allowing you to retaliate while your enemy’s army is still returning home.
Launching an Attack
Attacks in Thardferr are launched against castles, not entire kingdoms. You’ll only fight the portion of the enemy’s army that is stationed at or near the castle, typically around 70%, sometimes slightly more depending on how many castles they own.
What You Gain From an Attack
- A share of the enemy’s land, buildings, and population.
- Possibly 1 or more castles.
- Usually no more than 10% of their total land or castles in one strike.
Other Combat Factors
In addition to your army composition and chosen strategy, several hidden factors affect your damage output and survivability:
- BAS (Basic Army Strength): A hidden value representing your army’s morale.
- Tech Bonus: Defenders can gain bonus strength from fortifications technology.
- Luck: A small random modifier to keep things unpredictable.
🛡️ Defender BAS bonuses are doubled, giving defenders an edge even with fewer troops.
Generals
You must have a general available to launch an attack. Generals travel with the army and return once the attack is complete, even if no troops survive.
- You cannot train or purchase new generals.
- Your race determines how many you can field.
- You do not need a general to defend.
Food Consumption
Armies consume double food while on the march. Ensure your kingdom has enough supply before attacking, or you may cripple your own economy and starve your defenders.
Choosing a Target
Before launching an attack, consider:
- Kingdom Size: Bigger kingdoms have stronger defenses and are harder to break.
- Kingdom Strength: If your Kingdom Strength greatly exceeds your target’s, your troops will fight with less ferocity (lower attack).
- Morale Factors: Smaller kingdoms defending against large invaders fight harder, leading to more losses on your side
- Province Politics: Can you call in allies? Are you starting a war you can’t finish?
🧠 Best practice: Target kingdoms close to your own size for maximum efficiency and minimal losses.
Three Kinds Of Protection
Thardferr offers three kinds of protection:
New Kingdom Protection
- Lasts 120 game days from the moment you create your kingdom.
- You cannot attack, cast spells, or be attacked.
- Meant to give you time to build up safely.
Loss Protection
- Triggered when you lose land or castles.
- Duration is shorter, ranging from 4 to 20 days.
- Prevents others from attacking you.
- You can still attack or cast spells, but doing so removes your protection.
Castle Loss Immunity Protection
When you win a castle in battle, your kingdom gains 24-24 hours of Castle Loss Immunity (CLI) depending on your level of CLI technology researched. This applies whether the castle was taken in a regular attack or a retaliation.
CLI uses the Loss Protection system, so:
- You cannot be attacked during this time except by valid retaliation.
- You only gain CLI if you successfully capture at least 1 castle.
- CLI duration starts at 4 ticks (hours) at tech level 1, increasing up to 24 ticks to match the duration of retaliation rights.
- No CLI is given when attacking below 70% of your Kingdom Strength.
- Attacking below 70% of your Kingdom Strength will nullify your ability to use CLI for 12 hours.
- Retaliations bypass CLI, just as they bypass standard protection. This ensures that the original defender still has a fair shot at taking their castle back.
- All normal Loss Protection rules still apply.
Your protection status is always shown in the main menu.
Retaliation Rights
If you attack another kingdom, they gain the right to retaliate – even if you’re in protection.
- Retaliation lasts 24 game days after each attack you make.
- Each attack grants one retaliation right.
- These stack. If you attack twice, they can hit you twice, even under protection.
- Once they use a retaliation, it’s consumed.
🧨 Many players fall into the trap of attacking too many kingdoms and giving away multiple retaliation rights, be careful not to overextend.