Troop Stacking

Troop stacking is one of the most important advanced strategies in Total Battle. Mastering it will significantly improve your performance in Epic Monster events and save you millions in revival costs.

What is Troop Stacking?

Troop stacking is a strategy for organizing your army so that:

• Your strongest troops attack as many times as possible
• Your weakest/cheapest troops die first (absorbing enemy attacks)
• Your expensive units (monsters, mercenaries) survive the longest

This technique is essential for Epic Monster battles where all your troops will die. The goal is to maximize damage output while minimizing revival costs.

Why Stacking Works: Combat Mechanics

Understanding how combat works is key to understanding why stacking is effective.

Attack Order We Want To Achieve

Your goal is that squads attack in this order:

1. Leadership troops attack FIRST (Guardsmen, Specialists, Engineers)
2. Monsters attack SECOND
3. Mercenaries attack LAST

Squads are sorted by squad health - the squad with the highest total health is attacked first.

Target Selection

When a squad attacks, it targets the enemy squad with the most health pool (including feature bonuses).

Alternating Turns

Combat alternates between sides. If both sides have 5 stacks, they attack back and forth until all stacks are gone. If one side has more stacks, those extra stacks get "free" attacks at the end. If all stacks are not dead, it will re-start with remaining stacks until all stacks in either side is dead!

Death Order

Squads with the highest total health die first.

The Key Insight: By bringing MORE units of weaker troops, we give them similar total health to fewer strong troops. This means weak troops die (absorbing damage) while strong troops keep attacking.

The Three Resource Limits

Every march has three separate limits that determine how many units you can bring:

Resource | Controls | Where to Find
| Leadership  | Trained troops (Guardsmen, Specialists, Engineers)  | Troop selection screen
| Authority  | Mercenaries  | Troop selection screen
| Dominance  | Monsters  | Troop selection screen

Important: These limits vary significantly based on:

• Which Hero or Captain you select
• The level of your Hero or Captain
• Some equipment or artifacts can give you feature bonuses to Leadership, Authority or Dominance
• Some titles gives you additional Leadership, Authority or Dominance
• Whether you bring your Dragon
• Your research levels

Always check your limits on the troop selection screen before planning your stack!

The Basic 2:1 Stacking Rule

The traditional stacking approach follows a simple rule: take double the amount of each lower tier.

How It Works

If your highest guardsmen are G7, you would stack like this:

Tier Multiplier Example Count
| G7 (strongest)  | 1x  | 1,000
| G6  | 2x  | 2,000
| G5  | 4x  | 4,000
| G4  | 8x  | 8,000

This creates a pyramid structure where lower-tier troops act as "sacrifices" that die first while your G7 troops keep attacking.

Why 2:1 Works

• Lower tier troops have less health per unit
• By doubling the quantity, you roughly equalize total health per stack
• This means stacks die in the order you want: weakest tier first
• Your strongest troops (G7 in this example) get the maximum number of attacks

Including Monsters in Your Stack

Monsters are trained units that use your Dominance limit. They have higher base attack and health than regular troops.

Monster Tiers

Monsters range from M3 to M9, following the same tier system as guardsmen. There are four monster categories:

• Beast
• Elemental
• Giant
• Dragon

Stacking Monsters

Apply the same 2:1 principle to monsters:

Tier Multiplier Example Count
| M7 (strongest)  | 1x  | 50
| M6  | 2x  | 100
| M5  | 4x  | 200

Monster Attack Order

Remember: Monsters should always attack AFTER your leadership troops but BEFORE mercenaries. This means they're in the middle of your attack sequence - plan accordingly!

Including Mercenaries in Your Stack

Mercenaries are special units acquired through the Mercenary Exchange. They use your Authority limit.

Key Mercenary Facts

• Mercenaries should always attack LAST in the battle sequence
• Different mercenaries have different bonuses (vs. players or vs. monsters)
• They're ranked by pure strength for efficiency
• Epic Monster Hunters are a special mercenary type with bonuses against epic monsters

Mercenary Strategy

Since mercenaries should attack last and are often expensive/rare, your goal is to keep them alive as long as possible. A properly stacked army will have mercenaries surviving until the end, dealing maximum damage.

How to Include Mercenaries

You can either:

1. Use maximum quantity for all mercenaries (they all have the same attack priority) as long as their total health pool is below your lowest leadership stacks total health
2. Scale from a base quantity using the calculators

The calculators will suggest optimal mercenary numbers based on your authority limit and the rest of your army composition.

Complete Stacking Examples

Here are three practical examples for different player levels.

Example 1: Mid-Game Player (G7/G6/G5)

Player Profile:

• Highest Guardsmen: G7
• Leadership: 80,000
• Dominance: 2,000
• Authority: 500

Stacked Army (Mounted troops):

Tier | Melee |Mounted | Ranged | Flying

G7 | 50 | 500 | 1,000 | 1,000
G6 | 100 | 1,000 | 2,000 | 2,000
G5 | 200 | 2,000 | 4,000 | 4,000

Death order: G5 → G6 → G7 (lowest tier dies first)

Example 2: Advanced Player (G9/G8/S8)

Player Profile:

• Highest Guardsmen: G9
• Highest Specialists: S8
• Leadership: 150,000
• Dominance: 5,000
• Authority: 1,200

Stacked Army (Mixed):

Tier | Melee | Mounted | Ranged | Flying

G9 | 100 | 1,000 | 2,000 | 2,000
G8 | 200 | 2,000 | 4,000 | 4,000
S8 | 210 | 2,010 | 4,010 | 4,010
G7 | 400 | 4,000 | 8,000 | 8,000

Death order: G7 → S8 → G8 → G9 (S8 dies before G8)

Advanced Tip - Sacrifice Stack: E9 Catapults can be used as a "sacrifice stack". This makes your attacks more consistent (independent of who gets first hit).

Example 3: Early-Mid Player (G5/G4/G3)

Player Profile:

• Highest Guardsmen: G5
• Leadership: 40,000
• Dominance: 800
• Authority: 200

Stacked Army (Mounted preferred):

Tier | Melee | Mounted | Ranged | Flying

G5 | 25 | 250 | 500 | 500
G4 | 50 | 500 | 1,000 | n/a
G3 | 100 | 1,000 | 2,000 | n/a

Death order: G3 → G4 → G5 (protect your highest tier)

Early Game Tips:

• Don't worry if you don't have many mercenaries yet
• Focus on the 2:1 ratio with guardsmen first
• Add monsters and mercenaries as you unlock them

Captain Considerations

Your choice of captain affects your stacking because captains provide different bonuses.

Best Captains for Epic Monsters

Captain Effect on Stacking
| Hercules  | Bonus against epic monsters - top choice
| Cleopatra  | Large troop strength bonuses - very strong
| Beowulf  | Troop strength and health bonuses
| Skadi  | Strong fighting captain with health and strength bonuses for Guardsmen
| Aydae  | Guard health and damage bonuses

Health Bonus Adjustments

Some captains give disproportionate health bonuses to specific unit types:

• Wu increases flying unit health significantly
•  Ingrid increases monsters unit health and damage
• other captains have other specific bonuses

If using these captains, you may need to adjust your stacking ratios. The calculators allow you to input specific health bonuses per unit type.

Leadership Differences

Different captains provide different leadership limits. Always check your limits AFTER selecting your captain, as this affects how many troops you can bring.

When to Stack

Always Stack For:

• Epic Monster events (solo attacks)
• Epic raids (5-player raids like Jörmungandr in Ragnarok)
• Trial of the Chimera (Olympus event)
• Trial of the Basilisk (Olympus event)
• Trial of Briareus (Olympus event)
• Any event where all troops die

No Stacking Needed For:

• Pursuit of Experience (Runic raids) - troops don't all die
• Regular monster hunting - kill fast, minimal losses
• Citadel attacks - different mechanics apply

For Pursuit of Experience and similar events:

Send strongest troops in ratio of 1:10:20:20 for flying:mounted:melee:ranged. Add monsters & mercenaries for more layers. Aim to kill it fast so it doesn't get to hit back.

Recommended Calculators

These community-made calculators will help you optimize your stacks. They're much more accurate than manual calculations!

Kaiculator (Stack Calculator)

URL: https://kaiculator.kaikaiju.com/

Features:

• Automatic "Find it for me" base count optimization
• Support for all unit types including mercenaries
• Local profile saving for different captains
• Import/export settings to share with clanmates
• Health bonus adjustments per unit type

TotalCalculator.org (Epic Army Calculator)

URL: https://totalcalculator.org/epic.php

Features:

• Detailed strength and health bonus inputs
• Handles missing stacks (units you haven't unlocked)
• E9 sacrifice stack planning
• Monster boost research calculations
• Damage and cost estimates

TotalBattle-Calculator.com

URL: https://totalbattle-calculator.com/

Features:

• Efficiency rankings per troop type
• Revival cost calculations
• Mercenary optimization
• Combat simulation

Dragon-Wiki Stack Calculator

URL: https://dragon-wiki.com/tsc/

Features:

• Bilingual (English/German)
• Detailed recommendations
• Battle fight examples
• Profile management

TB-BUM Calculator

URL: https://tb-bum.com/guide.html

Features:

• Visual guide with examples
• Squad health matching
• Min/max level selection for all troop types

TBStacks (Premium)

URL: https://tbstacks.com/

Features:

• Advanced algorithm beyond basic 2:1 rule
• Optimizes attack sequences
• Preserves expensive units
• €10/month subscription

Total Battle Helper (Android App)

URL: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.silverfox.TotalBattleHelper

Features:

• Mobile calculator
• Epic monster troop calculations
• Monster strength optimization

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Forgetting the Specialist Trick

Specialists should die BEFORE guardsmen because guardsmen have bonuses against monsters. Add stacks of specialists to your stacks so they get targeted and killed first.

Wrong Troop Type for the Event

• Check event-specific guides for restrictions
• Some events ban certain troop types (e.g., no melee in Vaults 10-19)

Ignoring Silver Costs

"There's no point in sending 3 nicely stacked attacks, then being forced to make very inefficient mercenary-heavy attacks because you've run out of silver."

Plan your silver spending across ALL your attacks, not just the first one.

Not Using Your Full Limits

The calculators will help you fill your leadership, authority, and dominance limits completely. Don't leave capacity unused!

Using the Same Stack for Everything

• Different epic monsters have different mechanics (Snake vs Wolf in Ragnarok)
• Save multiple profiles in the calculators for different situations
• Adjust your stack based on which captain you're using

Ignoring Your Temple Level

Your Temple level affects revival costs significantly (ranging from 1.04x at level 1 to 5.91x at level 45). Factor this into your planning.

Protecting the Wrong Troops

Your strongest troops should be protected (die last), not your specialists. The goal is:

• Weak troops die first → absorb damage
• Strong troops survive → deal maximum damage
• Mercenaries should survive longest → attack at the end

Summary

Troop stacking is about organizing your army so that:

1. Weak troops die first (using the 2:1 ratio)
2. Strong troops attack most (maximum damage output)
3. Monsters and mercenaries survive (attack in the middle/end)
4. Revival costs are minimized (weak troops are cheaper)

Quick Checklist:

• ☐ Check your Leadership, Authority, and Dominance limits
• ☐ Select the right captain for the event
• ☐ Apply the 2:1 ratio to guardsmen
• ☐ Apply the 2:1 ratio to monsters
• ☐ Add specialists or Engineering troops (sacrifice layer)
• ☐ Fill mercenaries, but make sure they die last
• ☐ Use a calculator for exact numbers
• ☐ Consider your silver budget across all attacks

Master these principles, and you'll see dramatic improvements in your epic monster performance!