Heavy Tank/Fighter Combo

[Tsamu]

I use 5 mk7 heavy tanks with max Leonardo hitpoints and 8 maxed space age fighters with +50% hitpoints from the museum. I attack Atomic bases less than level 200 (230 if I see sprung traps). I drop my tanks then use my fighters to methodically destroy towers and air defenses around anti tank guns, then the anti tank guns themselves, before my HTs get within range. In 2:30 minutes I have cleared the base with no losses. I can make 10 of these attacks in an hour for 5 million food/gold and 25k oil, and more NTGs than I need.

The only time it goes bad is if I hit a 200+ base with unsprung traps and one of my tanks rolls over one too many land mines. I have 35 troop space available. What can I train to trigger the land mines and save my HTs? Are APCs effective? Or should I train a couple of tactical helicopters to heal my HTs? In my experience, any other troops I deploy die. I don’t want to wait to retrain between attacks.

 

[oddin]

commandos....










just kidding....








Obviously you need something that doesnt cost much, doesnt need much retrain time and is expendable. Foot soldiers maybe? Deploy your tanks and your soldiers spread out so that they triger the traps ahead of you.....give it a try and let us know...

When I am HT farming, I use 5 tanks and 4 commandos. It works nicely cause I don't have to send my airplanes very often for antitanks and AA

 

[Exiliado]

My thought is barracks tanks, especially if you happen to be French or Greek. Their preference for defensive buildings draws them ahead making them more likely to take the brunt of landmines. If one dies then you simply have one fewer in the next couple of battles. You can try it instantly using a heavy cavalry recruit from inventory. First aid is good for emergencies.

 

[sileepuppee]

It kind of strays from your original question but right now I raid with 2 cwa maxed transports and 2 maxed cwa airplanes exclusively than I used 3-4 HT sprinkled in as the back up so take away from the silo fire if it's a harder base. You have to be very careful on the drops like any other troops but I have not met an atomic base that can't be taken out using these units even without tactics and many times I don't even have anything but the airstrip units because I've donated my troops to ally members. It wouldn't be a hard transition because paratroopers fear the same thing as HT which are tank guns but you can drop right onto them destroy them without them even getting a shot off. I somewhat forced myself to play this style probably because I donate so many troops. No museum buffs for paratroopers and I don't usually use blessings. Only thing I have is fury. Once you pass kingdom league you notice a big uptick in space age or bases with max blessings. I will try and raid for an hour to get some numbers but I've gotten 40K - 50k oil in an hour. I only remember because I started at zero oil.

 

[Saruman the White]

For some reason whenever I have tried that Heavy Tank / Fighter combo has resulted in a blatant disaster to me. So I have turned to other strategies. Those Heavy Tanks are extremely slow, I can't understand how it is possible for many to achieve a Domination victory with them, even though I have seen many similar replays vs my poor base. Perhaps somebody would help me out as I might miss something

 

[Berend_War]

Tsamu I basically do the same as a industrial with mk2 always have first aid with me to heal a HT when he is in trouble.
Hardly use them only if his health drops really low.
most of my attacks are on low global age.

 

[oddin]

5 HT + 4 commandos
1. spread in a line the HTs. deploy your commandos too where there are doors in the walls. Use planes on masses of defenders, antitanks and enemy HTs. 1-2 at a time and not a whole bunch of them at one target.
2. Use Heal when health drops below 30% on an HT.
3. Use Assault Rally to gather the HTs or speed them up in tough spots.

that is all you have to do basically.

with this tactic, bases up to ~210 need 0 tactics. Up to 220-225 need a heal or two and an assault rally. From 230+, you will need a bit more. I usually lose a plane or two and the 4 commandos and that is it.

 

[No Angel]

Or, the lazy all hts + decoys composition

 

[Tsamu]

No Angel, not lazy at all. I am constantly scanning for which tower, AA, or anti-tank to take out next with my fighters. I can't just go for the anti-tanks because my fighters will take too much damage if I don't clear the AA and towers around them first. And I need to watch out for defending heavy tanks or even normal tanks if they are ganging up on one of my tanks.

 

[oddin]

that is the reason Tsamu I prefer the 4 commandos. They clear some defensive buildings and I dont need to send as often my airplanes.

 

[Tsamu]

wrathchild_78 thanks for your thoughts, especially your reply to Saruman. That is pretty much my experience. I can clear any base up to level 200 with just the heavy tanks and fighters, up to 230 if there are no defensive blessings and traps are sprung. It's the resource rich but risky bases I want to be able to attack while minimizing the chance of losing an HT.

​I currently have 3 protect and 4 AR tactics, which is what I use for war attacks. I don't keep any heal on hand because they don't help me clear war bases. I am a bad planner, so if I do train a heal I will probably forget to replace in advance of a war attack, and then have to wait while I retrain. But it is good advice, and I will try it out.

 

[No Angel]

Yeah Tsamu, that was actually sarcasm cause I read here somewhere people said all hts combo was not tactical at all. I still have to betray many enemy hts, so I include betrayal in the mix. Probably could add sabotage when anti air and anti tank are nearby so either fighters and hts would be a little safer. Commando should be good to add in the mix too, technically, but I'm handicapped on it, so I'd play safe with whole hts army.

 

[NateTheGreat]

Try using some machine gunners and a few foot soldier, they will help clear out enemy foot soldiers, slow enemy tanks, spring land mines, and take shots from the anti tank guns before the HT's get hit.

 

[Tsamu]

I found the answer; mercenaries! T-62 Tanks are great.

I use instant video retrain after a war attack, so I get my 3 heavy tank destroyers back for free, and I would save them for my next war attack. But I always have plenty of cider and metal, so now I use merc tanks in multi-player if I attack a base above the safe range. I only recruit the tanks as my resources fill up, and usually use them before the camp is full. I might try some other mercs too; soldiers of fortune look interesting

 

[oddin]

they usually get ahead of everyone else and as a result die fast....BUT they do unveil traps...Happy you found the solution

 

[Exiliado]

Here is another idea. Correct me if I am wrong, but supposedly French can train troops in 96% less time in Space Age (training blessing 66% + French 20% + library research 10% = 96% less time) meaning that a heavy tank would train in less than two minutes. Since you are deploying five HT's you could keep a sixth as a spare and if you use it be back to normal after one battle.

 

[Geezer]

Tsamu, this is a great topic for me - I’m using 5 HT in multiplayer and war. They’re maxed for health in leonardo and virtually maxed for attack now, with some extras from museum etc. Been scratching my head too with how to fill the remaining capacity to best effect. Will certainly try commandos again, just to see.

My question for you is whether you’ve considered some variety in the air? The extra airstrip is obviously well worth having! - 3 fighters, a bomber and a transport are doing a solid job for me at the mo. Exposed tank guns get bombed, more central ones get seen to with paras. Paras spring traps too, essentially doing a clearing job for the tanks.

 

[Tsamu]

Geezer, I maxed my fighters and did not upgrade the other aircraft at all. That is deliberate. My war weight would increase if I researched them. That is also why I haven't upgraded my barracks troops nor barracks in Space Age. And I only had to focus on one type of aircraft benefit in the museum. My fighters have 17,462 hitpoints, so I can go pretty deep into a base.

 

[NateTheGreat]

The max Leo HP + dmg and mk7 for Heavy Tanks is a key in this strategy imo. My mk6 and not maxed Leo makes this a difficult strategy for me to employ.

 

[pckrn]

8 maxed space age fighters with +50% hitpoints from the museum. I attack Atomic bases less than level 200

dont use any land units unless you need them as clean up crew. serious.