Empires and Puzzles Troops: A Complete Guide
This is a complete guide to understanding Troops in Empires and Puzzles. It’s stuffed with useful information, so you really should share a link with your teammates.
I would like to thank a subscriber, David P, for his suggestion, research and contribution to this post.
Before we start, please consider sharing a link to this post with your alliance or on social media. It really does help.
EMPIRES AND PUZZLES TROOP & MANA GUIDE
1. What are Troops?
2. Attaching Troops to Heroes
3. What Impact do Troops have?
4. Mana Speed and Mana Troops
5. Levelling Troops
This post may contain speculation, personal opinion, and adult comedy. It is not advice and is solely for entertainment and informational purposes.
What are Troops in Empires and Puzzles?
Troops are a mechanism used to enhance a hero’s core stats.
Here’s an example of an Empires and Puzzles hero with a set of 1-Star Level 1 Troops assigned:
And here’s the same hero with a set of 4-Star Level 15 Troops assigned. Spot the difference?
You’ll see that the Battlemages Level 15 Troops offer no Health bonus whatsoever. And that, Malosi’s Health is actually greater with the Rogues Level 1 Troops, which give a +4% Health bonus.
However, his Attack, Defense, and Mana Generation have all improved with the Level 15 Troops.
Troops can improve a hero’s stats in the following areas:
- Attack
- Defense
- Health
- Healing Bonus
- Critical Damage
- Mana Bonus
- Bypass Defensive Buffs
Each Troop set has up to four of these buffs (1 and 2-Star Troops only have three buffs).
The image below shows three examples (top to bottom) of different Troops and their bonuses.
The top 4 icons represent: Attack, Defense, Health, and Critical damage.
The middle 4 icons represent: Attack, Defense, Healing Bonus, and Mana Bonus.
The last 4 icons represent: Attack, Defense, Healing, and Bypass Defensive Buffs.
As you Level-up your Troops, their four core buffs will also increase in value.
4 Types Of Troops in Empires and Puzzles (Standard, Ninja, Magic, and Cyclopes)
There are currently four distinct sets of Troops to obtain and Level. The first are Standard Troops, which can be found routinely in the Epic Troop summoning portal. This grouping includes Mana Troops.
Standard Troops may enjoy any of the buffs listed above, aside from the ability to Bypass Defensive Buffs, which is exclusively reserved for the second type of Troop; Ninja Troops.
Ninja Troops are only obtainable when the Ninja Tower Event is on.
Next, we have the Magic Troops, which accompany the Magic Tower Event.
Magic Troops are expected to be highly sought after, as they offer a high rate of Mana Bonus (5% higher than standard Mana Troops).
Magic Troops (Level 30):
- +22% Attack
- +16% Defense
- +22% Healing
- +20% Mana
And finally, we have the recently introduced Cyclopes Troops, which accompany the new Tower of Styx Event.
These Styx Troops are like a super blend of the Ninja and Magic Troops, offering a Mana Bonus and a chance to Bypass.
Cyclopes Troops (Level 30):
- Attack – 20%
- Defence – 15%
- Mana Bonus – 20%
- Bypass Defensive Buffs – 25%
Where are my Troops!?
All Troops are housed in your Barracks, which is also where you upgrade them.
You’ll need to be at Stronghold 10 in order to build Barracks. As you Level-up the building, the maximum possible level of your Troops will also increase.
Here’s how it works:
| Barracks Level | Max | Troop | Level | Cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-Star | 2-Star | 3-Star | 4-Star | |
| 2 | Level 10 | Level 7 | Level 5 | Level 3 |
| 4 | Level 15 | Level 11 | Level 6 | |
| 6 | Level 20 | Level 12 | ||
| 10 | Level 30 |
How do I Attach Troops to my Heroes in Empires and Puzzles?
In the prep screen before any battle, you’ll see your team of heroes lined up. The A.I will automatically pair a set of Troops to your hero, as seen above.
When selecting heroes for battle, the A.I will always automatically pair them with the highest possible set of Troops.
The best Troops will always go with the first hero you add to the line-up. If you’re using more than 1 hero of the same element, the second-best set goes to the next hero you select, and so on. -Until the line-up is complete.
If you want to change the Troop for another, simply tap the Troop you wish to change and your selection of available Troops will appear. You can now tap on another Troop to assign them to your hero.
There are some restrictions, though:
- Troops are linked by Element. That means you can only link a Blue set of Troops, with a Blue hero.
- In Tournaments, you can assign up to 4-Star Troops to 5-Star heroes, up to 3-Star Troops to 4-Star heroes, and finally, up to 2-Star Troops, to 3-Star heroes. Elsewhere in the game, you can attach Troops however you like.
What Impact do Troops have?
What quantifiable impact do Troops actually have?
Here’s what they do again, but this time we’ll go a bit deeper:
- Attack – This will increase the Attack stats of the hero.
- Defense – This will increase the Defense stats of the hero.
- Health – This will increase the Health stats of the hero.
- Healing Bonus – This improves how much a hero heals from Specials and Items.
- Critical Damage – This increases the chance that a hero will do Double the damage.
- Mana Bonus – This increases the speed at which a hero generates mana.
- Bypass Defensive Buff – This will create a probability that the hero will bypass Defensive buffs when attacking.
Some other useful notes:
Attack: Ninja Troops have the highest Attack buff, and they’re the only Troops which allow the hero to bypass Defensive buffs.
Mana Generation: Mana Troops are highly sought after because they speed up the time it takes for your hero to charge their Special Skills. This is a vital ability in battle because the faster your hero charges, the more likely you are to be victorious.
Multiple Troops: If you like to play a Mono team, ideally you’ll have a Levelled set of Troops for each hero. That means Levelling multiple Troops of the same color, because Troops can only be assigned to one hero at a time.
2-Star/3-Star Troops: It’s also worth levelling at least one set of 2-Star Troops for 3-Star Tournaments. That might give you the edge over the competition. You can also do the same for 3-Star Troops for 4-Star Tournaments.
Empires and Puzzles Mana Speed Chart/Table
The following table will illustrate how mana generation works in Empires and Puzzles. First in isolation and then with Troops.
This is the most important table – showing Standard mana generation for all Mana classes:
(For more on Mana, check out my quick and handy guide here.)
| Mana Speed | Tiles to Charge |
| V.Fast | 6.5 |
| Fast | 8 |
| Average | 10 |
| Slow | 12 |
| V.Slow | 13.5 |
| Ninja 1 | 5 |
| Ninja 2 | 10 |
| Ninja 3 | 15 |
| Magic 1 | 5.6 |
| Magic 2 | 12.3 |
| Slayers | 11 |
| Styx 1 | 6 |
| Styx 2 | 9 |
| Styx 3 | 12 |
| Changing Tides 1 | 8 |
| Changing Tides 2 | 10 |
This next chart shows the value of the Mana Troops bonus:
| Mana Troop Level | Percentage Mana Bonus |
| 1-4 | 5% |
| 5-10 | 7% |
| 11-16 | 9% |
| 17-22 | 11% |
| 23-28 | 13% |
| 29-30 | 15% |
And this final chart shows the impact of fully Levelled Mana Troops on the Standard mana charging times. This gives you an idea of the maximum bonus available:
| Mana Speed | Tiles to Charge | With Level 30 Troops |
| V.Fast | 6.5 | 5.7 |
| Fast | 8 | 7 |
| Average | 10 | 8.7 |
| Slow | 12 | 10.5 |
| V.Slow | 13.5 | 11.8 |
While there are other ways to further increase the Mana speed of your hero, these methods fall outside the scope of this guide. For reference, these methods include hero Costumes, the Talent Grid Path, hero Special Skills, and the use of Battle Items.
Levelling Troops in Empires and Puzzles
In order to increase the stats of a set of Troops, you need to ‘Level’ them. This means, feeding lower Level Troops to the ones you want to keep (just like Levelling a hero).
But before you begin, make sure you Lock your Troops, just as you would an important hero. Locking a set of Troops will prevent them from being Fed to other Troops. To find the lock option, click on the ? in the top right corner of the Troop.
Where do you get Troops? (Empires and Puzzles)
You can obtain Troops from the Free Daily Spin (the silver coin) at the summoning gate. These Free Spins normally produce 1, or 2-Star Troops, which are ideal for Feeding to higher-level Troops. But, you also have the chance of pulling 3-Star Troops here.
To obtain the best 4-Star Troops, you’ll need to use a Golden Troop Coin (a reward from Chests or other Loots), or pay 200 gems, and spin at the Epic Troop Summoning Gate.
To obtain Ninja Troops, you have to wait for the Ninja Tower event to appear. Then you’ll be able to try and summon them at the same Epic Troop gate.
Finally, you can also get Troops by training them in the Hero Academy (see below), or as a reward for completing Stages.
Troop summoning odds & Levelling Tips
Here are the current odds for Troop summoning:
| Troop | Free Daily Spin* | Epic Troop Spin | Ninja Troop Spin |
| 1-Star | 16% | 0% | 0% |
| 2-Star | 15.7% | 0% | 0% |
| 3-Star | 1.7% | 90% | 85% |
| 4-Star | 0% | 10% | 10% |
| Ninja | 0% | 0% | 5% |
* Note: The Free Daily Spin does not add up to 100% as it also includes 1-Star, 2-Star, and 3-Star heroes.
Troops and the Hero Academy
The Hero Academy is a powerful building which allows you to train Special heroes and Troops.
You can train Common Troops (1-Star), Uncommon Troops (2-Star), and Rare Troops (3-Star). You can also re-train Epic Troops, just like you can Legendary heroes.
Training Troops can be expensive:
| Troop | Iron | Recruits | Materials |
| 1-Star | 50800 | 50 | 3 Daggers |
| 2-Star | 103K | 100 | 5 Arcane Scripts |
| 3-Star | 151K | 150 | 5 Tall Boots and 5 Scabbards |
| 4-Star | N/a | – | – |
| Ninja | N/a | – | – |
Levelling Troops (Empires and Puzzles)
Troop Levelling requires a significant amount of Food, so upgrading your Farms is crucial to making progress.
The higher the Level of the Troop your Levelling, the more Food it cost to feed them. For example, feeding a 1-Star Level 1 Troop to a 4-Star Level 13 Troop cost 77000 Food.
Whereas, feeding the same 1-Star Level 1 Troop to a 4-Star Level 1 Troop, only cost 11000 Food.
If you want to speed up your Troop Levelling, here are a few tips (taken from my Empires and Puzzles Tips page):
1. Prioritise Troops over hero Levelling. That means using Food on Troops before heroes, and manufacturing Troops rather than training low-Level heroes.
2. Keep improving your Farms, because you’re gonna need Food for the Troops.
3. Train Troops in the Hero Academy. Do the math and work out which level provides the best value (See above for help).
4. When Farming old Map stages, focus on those which offer the most Troops (I believe Season 1: 8-7 & Season 3: 4-5 Normal are good options).
5. Enjoy the grind: Complete all Quests, Watch Mystic Visions, use up World Flags, and generally do all you can to accumulate resources and low-Level Troops.
Empires and Puzzles Troops Guide
I’ve learned so much about Empires and Puzzles since deciding to blog about it. And that’s because people like David have shared their knowledge and experience.
Hopefully, this post will prove useful for the wider E&P community.
[Please always check in-game Hero Cards to confirm details and never chase Heroes]
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Hey! Congrats for the article – it is the best explanation of troops I’ve seen around.
I would just detail a bit more on training/ retraining troops from hero Academy, as it is extremely important.
I’d also maybe include some recommendations on the ratio of food cost/ experience gained per troop. For example, I decided not to use 1* troops to upgrade level 11+ 4* troops as it’s too inefficient food wise. I usually use the 1* to get the 4* troops to level 11 and then I use 2* troops to get to level 17. I am still on my way to level 17 though 😀
Hey Seeker, thanks for the feedback. I’ve updated the post.
Thanks for reading, too!
Cool, mate!
Where or when can I build the, “Hero Academe?” I’m level 13 and castle is level 8.
Hi Cynthia, the Hero Academy can be unlocked from Stronghold 25. A Mine/Farm/Training Camp/Forge is converted into it. Tho, they must be level 5 to covert. That info is from the in-game help as it’s been a long time for me.
Another terrific article to share with my alliance. Thanks
Thanks Centaur!
Good article, I’m sure lots of newer players find troops confusing. I know I did.
For healing troops, it’s my understanding that also affects healing RECEIVED. I’m not 100% sure but I asked that question elsewhere recently and was told that. The way it’s written implies that troop is only useful for healers: “improves how much a hero heals from…” but I believe it’s also for healing received.
PS you disabled copying/pasting, which is annoying as I have to re-type the description rather than just copy/paste. I doubt people will steal content, it’s just a game article.
Hey byzanthia,
Are you saying, it improves how much a Hero heals when firing off their healing Special? As I’ve written it, and understand it, the Healing Bonus only works on healing received for the hero it is attached to -in isolation. I am happy to be corrected though.
Regarding copy/paste, sadly people have and will steal content for a number of reasons. While I can’t stop this, I can make some effort to protect it. I may change my position in future and appreciate the impact it has on normal users.
Very good article, man!
I have a question for you all: when (or for which heroes) is better to equip Ninja Troops instead of Mana Troops???
I’ve never seen a Youtube video in which Ninja Troops were used, so my question is still in my head!
Thx
A question on which lower level troops to add to 4* and 3* heroes for tournaments. I know that when adding emblems to heroes you recommend defense/health for all the right reasons imo. What about for 2* and 3* troops? Should we add troops focusing also on defense and health or use the opportunity to add some additional attack? Thanks!
Hi Centaur! To be honest, when I first started levelling 2/3 star troops, I just picked the one I liked the look of… It was a long time ago.
If I were to start again, I’d prioritize health/defence. I love to see the impact of my low level troops in a 3-Star Tournament.
As it stands, I have a mixed bag, but I do try to keep levelling them so overall I’m happy.
Are magic troops available on HA retrain 4* troops? if yes what are the odds?
I know that I am a bit thick on this issue, can you possibly explain the healing bonus. Is it referring to an increase in the amount that a healer provides other heroes on the team, or is it meaning the amount that individual hero receives from any healing function?
Hey Cyeeyore, I’ve never dug into it, but I’ve always assumed the bonus is for the individual hero… or you’d only need to use that type of troop once -on the healer.
Happy to be corrected, but that’s by view!
I am a novice who has just joined. Can I train with a three-star army without a four-star army? How many levels do I need to train? Thank you
Hello WU, it’s really up to you.
The four star troops will help your main Defense and Raid teams, so logically should be your main priority. The others are useful for Tournaments. Also, Mana troops in my view, are better.
Levelling troops is a slow process, as you’ll see. I’ve been playing for a long time and am still levelling troops -it’s meant to be that way!
I was hoping to find advice on the best strategy for leveling. I currently only feed 1* troops to 2* troops and 2* troops are only for 3* troops, etc. Very slow. I have my 4* magic troops at about level 5-7 and finally got my first set of 2* at 15, so now I’m not sure if I should start a second set or just feed all the troops to the 4* and just live with inefficiency in favor or getting them leveled
Hey Milk, the answer to this question is really based on what type of player you are. I’m going to answer as if you were similar to me, for right or wrong!
Troops take forever! They’re one of the longest grinds in this game. I have only recently started to really focus on my Troops and am currently using HA4 to boost my accessibility to good food.
But, I love 3-Star/4-Star Tourneys as well and try to work on those now and then, as well!
In my opinion, work on what you enjoy.
If you like Raiding, work on 4-Star Troops. If you like tournaments, work on the focus of your fun.
I wouldn’t apply too much pressure to it, and I would deffo let it happen slowly over time.
All that said, it is only my personal opinion. Please ask your alliance for views too. And good luck!
Oh, PS. The Magic Troops are the best (imv), followed by the standard Mana Troops.
New Styx troops were just announced that (at present in Beta) offer mana boost on par with Magic Troops and vastly exceed Bypass by 10% from Ninja troops. Attack and Defense are the lowest of all 5 so there are tradeoffs to consider with these. Top Attack is Ninja with 32%, top Defense is Critical with 25%, top Mana is tied between Magic and Styx at 20%, top heal is Magic at 22%, top HP and Critical Chance is Critical at 9% and 15% and the top Bypass is Styx at 25%. The top mana of 20% now makes certain jumps possible with class mana bonus, costume mana bonuses, family mana bonuses and hero mana boost specials that make this an even more dizzying and complicated choice for the player. Careful placement of appropriately leveled troops can enhance a team significantly but is too often a neglected and poorly understood part of gameplay. Thanks for this article that helps unravel this knot of confusion.
Thanks Dave, I’ve been trying to keep an eye on them but this helps a lot!
Troops also add power to your team. It is calculated by the number of stars X 10 plus the number of the level. So a 4 star troop at level 11, (4X10)+11=51. If you have ever added up the power of each hero in a team and find the total team power doesn’t compute, this is why. If you had a team of 5 heroes, each at 800 power that would equal 4000 (800×5). If each hero had a 4 star troop at level 11 assigned that would add 51 to each hero and make the team power total 4255 (51X5=255, 800X5=4000, 4000+255=4255). A 4 star troop at level 30 adds 70 to the power of a hero in a team. So far, that is the max but you never know if there are plans to limit break troops or buff them in some way. This computation works for troops of all stars and levels. Just a bit of troop info that is not clearly spelled out anywhere that I know of.
Which troop set would you recommend to work on if you have a full set of Wizard troops( that give max 20% mana) & full set of the new Cyclops troops? I have both sets just not sure which is better to spend time an resources on since both give 20% mana at max. So any thoughts or opinions would be extremely helpful. Thanks
Hi Sahmirrah! Magic and Cyclopes are both great. Problem with new Troops is you’ve got to start from the bottom all over again. That said, of the two, I prefer bypass defensive buffs over healing. It’s my personal pov so deffo get other opinions. And good luck on the Troop grind and thanks for reading!
A little bit of advice if I may: it can take a long time to get 4* troops for a rainbow team, so very often I have seen folks keep leveling their (in their opinion, of course) 3* troop for as much value add as possible. I ended up with a 14* purple this way before I got my first 4*. Do not feed that troop! Keep it. To play in every type of tournament, stack in war, or hit a titan with all 1 color ideally you want 5 4* troops, 2-3 3* troops, and 2-3 2* troops. Level the 4* as quickly as your resources allow, but as another commenter suggested, keep the 1* troops for the 2 and 3* folks. For POV, it is far easier and less expensive to meet the criterion for 150 points this way. I have also found it a better use of my funds to do 10 pulls on troops when I can. Makes leveling a good bit faster. I also shamelessly admit I purchase bundles with food in them as well.
Thank you for your opinion it helped a ton. Unfortunately I neglected troops an went for hero lvling when I first started playing but now realized I need troops lvled up as well lol. I save up tons of troop tokens I get for tower events so that I get better troop pulls which has helped give me 5 full mono 4* mana troops for each color a full set of Wizard 1 of each color and 1 full set of cyclops troops. An im very glad there is no limit to how many troops we can hold in storage because I have a ton since Ive been playing over a year now and only ever got my troops to lvl 5 than stopped. So im way behind on troops. Thats why I asked which to go with since Im already started from pretty much the ground up. But this post did help me tons. I just wish I would of known the importance of troops over a year ago so i wouldn’t be so far behind. LOL Oh well Time for my troops to be Top Priority.
Thank you for this! I knew *most* of it, but two years in I realize how badly I neglected troop leveling. I just needed a good chart and a comparison to decide how to proceed before I go too far on any of them.
Saw this when I searched for troops on Google, and figured, “Hey, I trust Old Cynic, even if he didn’t know Zagrog’s a girl!”
😄 Christy, thank you so much for trusting me despite my failings! Thanks for visiting!
Mana
Pct Mana Magic Styx
5 1-4 1-4 1-4
7 5-10 xxxx xxxx
8 xxxx 5-10 5-11
9 11-16 xxxx xxxx
11 17-22 11-16 12-15
13 23-28 xxxx xxxx
14 xxxx 17-22 16-22
15 29-30 xxxx xxxx
17 xxxx 23-28 23-26
20 xxxx 29-30 27-30
Here’s a little chart that shows the mana breakpoints for each type of troop.
Thanks Dave!
Hi Dave, it’s been awhile since this comment, but it was really helpful in making this post about Mana. Thank you!
Thanks for great information on troops. As a relative newbie I have a question. Where do you see the effect on your hero as in your Malosi demo? When I change troops my visible stats do not change so I can’t see what it’s best to do.
In-battle Rosalinda.
Note the stats on your Hero in the locker room. Then check out the stats at the start of a battle. Hopefully, you see a boost!
Thanks for reading!
Great article!
Just wondering if you’d post some recommendations for troops for all three levels of heroes?
It’s pretty obvious that 5* heroes are best with 4* (matched with either mana or attack/crit bonus) but what about 4* and 3* heroes?
Hey Knighthawk, for me personally, I didn’t even evaluate the lower Troops before I started levelling them. I was newer, saw a need for them, and just went with what I had.
As a defensively-minded player, I would forgo the Crit Bonus for more Health/Defense, but in honesty, having any levelled Troops for Tourneys is better than nothing. I have tried to level 3 for each (as I like 3/2 and it’s enough for Defense).
I hope this helps, there may be other views along shortly, and of course, ask about.
Thanks for reading and visiting!
Thanks for this article! I’m wondering how/where I can view how a troop will affect my heroes stats like you showed at the top of this article with the example of Malosi? Cheers!
Hello, if I understand you correctly: You simply hold your finger on the Hero in battle and it will bring up a new window filled with stats and info.
Ah thanks! I’ll give that a try. Is there a way to do this before you’re in battle? Thanks again, I’m new to the game (1 month) and have thoroughly enjoyed your blog!
No worries, Not that I’m aware of…. Although I’m sure someone will have a system. Thanks for finding my blog!
I am just about done researching Epic Troops at the Hero Acadamey. Based on the above, i WONT be able to re-train my epic Troops to be either Ninja or Wizzard? Is that correct?
No, I don’t believe you can but can’t say conclusively because there may have been an update or something I’m not aware of. I retrained for months just to get a mana set of purples… but never saw a magic or ninja, etc.
Just one addition, troops are crucial against titans, for the tile damage. And I do recommand to grow up at least 5 of each coloris. That’s what I do, giving priority to mana troops, not forgetting the 3 and 2 stars for events and tournaments.