THE MEGA ALLIANCE

When BFTN started selling troops, the game changed.  Overnight, already powerful players became enormous and server leaders became practically untouchable.  Today, there are players that have hundreds of millions in might.  Armies that size render many alliances meaningless.  How then can players without thousands of dollars to spend on the game even begin to compete in an environment where the player with the most money wins?  The answer: form a Mega Alliance.

The concept of the Mega Alliance is a simple one.  Form an alliance large enough to take on your server's biggest players and dominate all other alliances.  Since BFTN limits alliances to just 100 players, the only way to form a Mega Alliance is to join together 2 or more alliances under one name.  For example, YourAllianceI, YourAllianceII, YourAllianceIII, etc.

While the concept of a Mega Alliance is simple, proper execution is anything but.  There are serious obstacles that must be overcome.  First, a command structure will need to be designed.  Who will make decisions for the alliance and how will battles be led are just two of the questions to ponder when designing an effective chain of command.

The next major obstacle is communication.  Alliances have communication tools built into the module.  How will you replicate features like Message Everyone and Alliance Chat?

The last major obstacle to overcome is organization.  How will you organize a group of players that may number in the hundreds and create a sense of cohesion and unity?  How do you prevent infighting and splintering?

While there are admittedly serious obstacles to forming a Mega Alliance, they are not insurmountable and the benefits to finding solutions to these problems make the trouble worth while.

In my next post, we will delve into the specifics of how to create a Mega Alliance and overcome its obstacles.

SPRING HAS SPRUNG IN CAMELOT

You've spent your life savings on this game, your marriage is on the rocks, and your closest friend is a complete stranger named Lord Ballz who you think lives in the Philippines... or was it Belgium?  Just when you thought things couldn't get any more depressing; enter the game's newest feature - rain!

To make it rain in Camelot, type "A storm is brewing" in either Global or Alliance Chat.  To wring every last ounce of depressing out of the experience, enable Sound Effects under Settings and you will even hear thunderclaps.  To make the rain stop, simply type "No more rain". 

THE HOME-FIELD ADVANTAGE IN BATTLE

Like most games, there is a significant home-field advantage in BFTN when it comes to battle.  Defending cities have the following advantages over attacking cities:

• Army Size - An attacking city is limited to sending waves of up to 100K troops but a defending city's response is unlimited.  If troops are unhidden, a defending city's entire army will rush out to meet the attack.  Should incoming attacks threaten to overwhelm defenses, a defending city has the additional benefit of being able to hide its troops at a moment's notice and preserve what's left of its army.

•  Marshal - A high level knight set to Marshal greatly improves a city's defenses.  For instance, a level 212 knight set to Marshal would increase the Attack and Life of defenders by 106%.  That means every single soldier would have an attack that is more than twice as deadly as it normally is and could survive in battle more than twice as long as normal.  Essentially, a level 212 knight set to Marshal more than doubles the size of a defending city's army!  As if this wasn't enough, the real benefit of the 212 Marshal is that the benefit remains in place for as long as the level 212 knight is set to Marshal.  An attacking city may have a 212 knight leading the charge of its first attack but it is highly unlikely that it will have a 212 knight available for every subsequent attack.        

• Walls - Walls are the first line of defense in an attack.  When used in combination with an unhidden army and a level 212 knight set to Marshal, well developed wall defenses become a challenging obstacle for attacking armies.

• Reinforcements - Depending on the level of one's Embassy, a defending city can host up to 1 million reinforcing troops at any given time, creating a nearly impenetrable defense.

• Watch Tower Details - Depending on the level of a defending city's Watch Tower, the defending city receives precise details of an incoming attack(s) including troop composition, research levels, and level of knight leading the attack.  Since defending cities can be reinforced at any time, an attacker would need a continuous flow of scouting reports to approximate this level of information and even then, he still would not have any info on the defending city's knight levels. 

MAKE IT SNOW IN CAMELOT

Now you can make it snow in the game by typing a "magic phrase" into either global or alliance chat.  In case you haven't already figured it out, the phrase is "Let it snow".  To turn off the snow, just type "No more snow".

 

HOW TO REPORT AN INCOMING ATTACK

Time is of the essence when under attack so it is crucial that you quickly give your alliance members the information they need to help defend you. 

TIP:  At a minimum, your alliance members need to know when the attack(s) will land, if you need reinforcements, where to send them, and the level of your Embassy.  Knowing who is attacking, how many incoming attacks, and what they are sending is also helpful.  To efficiently report the incoming attack in alliance chat, use the following as a model:

3 incoming from 576,150 in 6 min, 270K mix, need rein at 577,131, lv 9 emb.

Though not absolutely necessary, it would be reassuring to your alliance members if you would follow this initial message with some information about your own defences such as the level of the knight set to Marshal, research levels of Poisoned Edge and Healing Potions, and any attack and defence bonuses you may have applied.

POP A PLAYER'S PROTECTIVE BUBBLE

Beginner's Protection and Dove of Peace protect players from attack. After this protection expires, the "bubble" over their city/cities will remain in place until they send out an attack or until another player pops the bubble. If you click on the city from the map, you will still get a message stating the player is under protection or truce. However, a simple trick allows you to bypass this protection and pop the bubble.

TRICK:  To pop the bubble, simply attack from your Rally Point instead of clicking on their city.

CHOOSING THE BUILDING SITE OF YOUR 2ND AND 3RD CITIES

The locations of your cities will likely change from time to time as you select new farms and move cities closer to or away from enemies.  However, the building site for your 2nd and 3rd cities should be a little more predictable.


TIP:  Choose a building site close to your established city/cities as you will initially be transferring a lot of resources to your new city.  I recommend a location no further than 2 minutes away in transport time.  Once your new city is more self-sufficient, you may move it wherever you would like.