TL;DR: be french until you know differently.
obviously, 'best nation' depends on personal priority; what is fun for you.
for me, the pretty blue graphics of british/french/germans is very important as a quality-of-life issue.
(!!) unique; (!) exceptional; (?) questions. the best perks are tangible and thematic.
british: +1 range, +15% damage archers (!!); +15% loot.
favored nation for high-end ww.
the +1 archer range is to the edge of target buildings, while bulidings calculate their range from their center; if player strategy is wise they can kill anything.
british have the best loot bonus; it it makes you efficient. i think of it as more useful the less you want to raid.
british are stronger in the later ages. if you specifically want british for elite ww but are just beginning, consider starting with something else and switching.
choose british if you like outranging defenses with a mass-archer strategy and taking harder bases than other nations in later ages.
koreans: +40% damage archers (!); +1 tactic (!!); refunds loot 10%.
favored for highly skilled players that use the extra tactic well in ww.
the archer bonus is excellent, and like british it compels an archer strategy to utilize the national bonus.
criticism: if you are not *perfect* it's no better than the others. from ego, comparing players to the best or at our best, korean is overrated.
consider that in multiplayer, you don't use all your tactics every battle... making the perk ww-specific.
the loot bonus isn't as good as the british, but it has a nice emotional value in denying opponents loot, and it synchronizes with storage blessing.
this is the advanced player's nation for people who don't need to be reading this except to correct me.
german: 'fury' +15% damage (all units) (!!); better rally (!); +20% damage foot (independent of 'fury').
fury management adds a cognitive burden to german play; imo 'fury' is due to be buffed to 'always on'.
you mentally keep track if fury is on or off (there is no display on the base screen, it's in the barracks info screen).
consider upgraded weapon blessing (43%) + fury (15%) ... germans have the highest dps.
management of 'fury' means 'gaming' the medals system to maximize german potential; after experience imo this is an excessive burden.
germans are the absolute best for destroying *weaker* opponents fast. british will be able to take a target german can't, but german can do it faster.
french: +20% health, +15% damage tanks (!); -20% training time (!!); bigger alliance gate.
the best casual nation; great for new players -- the TL;DR of this analysis is "be french until you know differently".
fast barracks add *significant* quality-of-life; players changing from french bemoan it's loss.
the great tanks make multiplayer easier without requiring skill/experience, and alliances will love you for them.
20% health on already high health tanks adds up, obviating factory heavy tanks. each team should have french players to give these tanks.
if you have two accounts, eg if you are a couple, you can really 'abuse' the very nice alliance gate bonus.
greeks: +10% health, +25% damage tanks (!); instantly finish +5m/age; 5% upgrade refund
great tanks like the french, though tactically different. opinions vary which is better; i think they are well-balanced.
the two other unsatisfying perks imbalance greeks.
the 5m/age perk in context of week(s)-long upgrades is a QoL mistake. many greeks say it bothers them; it's an 'optics' insult.
most importantly: *it applies to general recovery*. greek players may be more free with generals; they can take more damage without being 'harmed'.
the refund is effectively a wall discount (thematic to athenian 'long walls') which makes it hard to balance. greek players report they like it.
greek secondary perks are weighted against fundamental considerations - time and cost. they compete with crowns so are inherently conservative.
eg compare minutes off a 1w upgrade vs french 20% faster barracks. they are both about time but the former competes with crowns.
roman: +10% army size (!); +25% health foot.
the roman army allows for more variety of deployments from the extra slots.
how good romans are depends on how creatively you use the extra space, and experiment with different combinations.
it may be the best for adaptive tacticians.
from gargantuar (just below): "romans are the only nation that can field 7 HT MK4".
chinese: +1 worker/merc (!); 2x speed, -60% damage archers; bonus defenders
great if that extra worker makes a QoL difference, but it feels light compared to the others.
extra workers are high-value (crowns speed productivity); consider the opportunity cost of the extra worker vs the other nation perks.
japanese: +20% damage foot, tc fires defensively, +25% peace treaty length (?)
radically unambiguously underpowered.
its catchphrase is "mighty defenses" .... to make that true i expect the japanese to have a more interesting defensive bonus.
consider if i were a person who really hated being attacked; if i went full meltdown and spilled my beer ... i'd be the one who should go japanese.
give that person a lively interpretation of "mighty defenses" and i think this has a logical place with the other nations...
summary:
french is the default best nation, especially as a first choice. good tanks, fast barracks,and a big alliance gate make for a relaxing game.
germans were my first choice on the gaming proverb "try highest dps first" but fury management is burdensome.
british are good for taking strong bases by outranging defensive structures; you will think about range a lot.
koreans are good for skilled ww players who know how to apply blessings perfectly; imo they are overrated for casual play.
roman flexibility is good for experimentation and complexity; if you change your offensive profile a lot they might be a good fit for you.
chinese is good once you understand the value and opportunity cost of that extra worker vs the other nations.
be greek if you like their tank bonus better than french; consensus suggests they will get a small buff to the other perks.
japanese is due to be strongly buffed; this is the only 'mistake' choice.
consensus advice to the design team: fix japanese and greeks. imo, make german fury 'always on'.
TL;DR: "be french until you know differently".
.
obviously, 'best nation' depends on personal priority; what is fun for you.
for me, the pretty blue graphics of british/french/germans is very important as a quality-of-life issue.
(!!) unique; (!) exceptional; (?) questions. the best perks are tangible and thematic.
british: +1 range, +15% damage archers (!!); +15% loot.
favored nation for high-end ww.
the +1 archer range is to the edge of target buildings, while bulidings calculate their range from their center; if player strategy is wise they can kill anything.
british have the best loot bonus; it it makes you efficient. i think of it as more useful the less you want to raid.
british are stronger in the later ages. if you specifically want british for elite ww but are just beginning, consider starting with something else and switching.
choose british if you like outranging defenses with a mass-archer strategy and taking harder bases than other nations in later ages.
koreans: +40% damage archers (!); +1 tactic (!!); refunds loot 10%.
favored for highly skilled players that use the extra tactic well in ww.
the archer bonus is excellent, and like british it compels an archer strategy to utilize the national bonus.
criticism: if you are not *perfect* it's no better than the others. from ego, comparing players to the best or at our best, korean is overrated.
consider that in multiplayer, you don't use all your tactics every battle... making the perk ww-specific.
the loot bonus isn't as good as the british, but it has a nice emotional value in denying opponents loot, and it synchronizes with storage blessing.
this is the advanced player's nation for people who don't need to be reading this except to correct me.
german: 'fury' +15% damage (all units) (!!); better rally (!); +20% damage foot (independent of 'fury').
fury management adds a cognitive burden to german play; imo 'fury' is due to be buffed to 'always on'.
you mentally keep track if fury is on or off (there is no display on the base screen, it's in the barracks info screen).
consider upgraded weapon blessing (43%) + fury (15%) ... germans have the highest dps.
management of 'fury' means 'gaming' the medals system to maximize german potential; after experience imo this is an excessive burden.
germans are the absolute best for destroying *weaker* opponents fast. british will be able to take a target german can't, but german can do it faster.
french: +20% health, +15% damage tanks (!); -20% training time (!!); bigger alliance gate.
the best casual nation; great for new players -- the TL;DR of this analysis is "be french until you know differently".
fast barracks add *significant* quality-of-life; players changing from french bemoan it's loss.
the great tanks make multiplayer easier without requiring skill/experience, and alliances will love you for them.
20% health on already high health tanks adds up, obviating factory heavy tanks. each team should have french players to give these tanks.
if you have two accounts, eg if you are a couple, you can really 'abuse' the very nice alliance gate bonus.
greeks: +10% health, +25% damage tanks (!); instantly finish +5m/age; 5% upgrade refund
great tanks like the french, though tactically different. opinions vary which is better; i think they are well-balanced.
the two other unsatisfying perks imbalance greeks.
the 5m/age perk in context of week(s)-long upgrades is a QoL mistake. many greeks say it bothers them; it's an 'optics' insult.
most importantly: *it applies to general recovery*. greek players may be more free with generals; they can take more damage without being 'harmed'.
the refund is effectively a wall discount (thematic to athenian 'long walls') which makes it hard to balance. greek players report they like it.
greek secondary perks are weighted against fundamental considerations - time and cost. they compete with crowns so are inherently conservative.
eg compare minutes off a 1w upgrade vs french 20% faster barracks. they are both about time but the former competes with crowns.
roman: +10% army size (!); +25% health foot.
the roman army allows for more variety of deployments from the extra slots.
how good romans are depends on how creatively you use the extra space, and experiment with different combinations.
it may be the best for adaptive tacticians.
from gargantuar (just below): "romans are the only nation that can field 7 HT MK4".
chinese: +1 worker/merc (!); 2x speed, -60% damage archers; bonus defenders
great if that extra worker makes a QoL difference, but it feels light compared to the others.
extra workers are high-value (crowns speed productivity); consider the opportunity cost of the extra worker vs the other nation perks.
japanese: +20% damage foot, tc fires defensively, +25% peace treaty length (?)
radically unambiguously underpowered.
its catchphrase is "mighty defenses" .... to make that true i expect the japanese to have a more interesting defensive bonus.
consider if i were a person who really hated being attacked; if i went full meltdown and spilled my beer ... i'd be the one who should go japanese.
give that person a lively interpretation of "mighty defenses" and i think this has a logical place with the other nations...
summary:
french is the default best nation, especially as a first choice. good tanks, fast barracks,and a big alliance gate make for a relaxing game.
germans were my first choice on the gaming proverb "try highest dps first" but fury management is burdensome.
british are good for taking strong bases by outranging defensive structures; you will think about range a lot.
koreans are good for skilled ww players who know how to apply blessings perfectly; imo they are overrated for casual play.
roman flexibility is good for experimentation and complexity; if you change your offensive profile a lot they might be a good fit for you.
chinese is good once you understand the value and opportunity cost of that extra worker vs the other nations.
be greek if you like their tank bonus better than french; consensus suggests they will get a small buff to the other perks.
japanese is due to be strongly buffed; this is the only 'mistake' choice.
consensus advice to the design team: fix japanese and greeks. imo, make german fury 'always on'.
TL;DR: "be french until you know differently".
.
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