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Battle Realms FAQ - Serpent Clan
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By: UnSub (evilasahobby@graffiti.net)
Version: 1.15
Date: 26 July 2004

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Copyright: I hold the copyright to the material written below. You can distribute it freely, so long as you attribute me as the source, and you do not receive material compensation for the distribution of this guide. If you want to do something with this guide, please ask!

Email me if you have something of value to add, not to fill up your social calendar. And no viruses, thanks...


Contents:
- Introduction
- Units
- Buildings
- Levels
- Thanks
- Version History


INTRODUCTION
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Looking at www.gamefaqs.com for Battle Realms faq's, I noticed a disturbing trend. Although the Dragon Clan had quite a few things written about it, there was nothing for the Serpent Clan. What's the matter, don't you people like to be... evil? (*queue manic laughter*)

Since I don't mind the odd bit of evildoing (it's a hobby), I thought I should fill in this rather large gap. Don't expect the material below to be a definitive guide - it's simply some of my observations in playing with the
Serpent Clan in the single player game. I'll also try to dispense with the stuff you can find in the manual. You bought the game, you can read the manual.
If you didn't buy the game, send Liquid Entertainment, Crave Entertainment and
UbiSoft $8 each in compensation. You'll still come out ahead...

Version 1.11 Note:
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I'm updating this faq after the launch of Battle Pack 3 which moves Battle Realms to v1.50. I haven't played the entire game again from the outset but did receive a question that I felt I should answer. In short the patch seems to have toughened up the game a bit, so some of the levels are harder to play. Read the patch list of changes (available from the official
Battle Realms site at http://battlerealms.ubi.com/) to find out what has changed. My brief trip back into Battle Realms has reminded me that I never finished the Dragon Clan side of things, so I think I will give that a go.
The other change to this faq is to improve the layout (the original layout was a bit cluttered).

Version 1.15
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Note: Just adding in a few things sent to me and adjusting the format to meet the new Gamefaqs auto-submit requirements. Also, I had a look at the date I first released this guide - it was just over two years ago!
Sadly, I lent my copy of Battle Realms to a friend who has never gotten around to giving it back, plus the expansion was very hard to find... but cleaning up the guide brought back some pleasant memories of crushing enemy clans...

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UNITS
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The basic battle realms unit strategy is: mix them up. Don't stick to one unit type or you will find that that unit's weaknesses will be overwhelmed. Multiple unit types in an attacking squad will improve that squad's effectiveness.


BASIC UNITS
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Peasants:
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They build stuff, and die quickly versus second and third-tier enemy units.
Use them to collect resources and build structures, and send help if they get attacked. Managing peasants is something you will learn across Battle Realms.


Swordsmen:
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Not a bad unit, but I didn't use them that regularly. Their battle gears of Mugging and Glass Sword aren't that great (sure, an instant kill is nice, but its a one-shot, and then you are left with a bunch of weak units). I preferred using Bandits as my standard unit. Running Swordsmen have the unit ability of being harder to hit by enemy missle fire.


Crossbowmen:
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Another unit I didn't really use, except in the early stages of a level. Being able to hit enemies at a distance is a really important part of Battle Realms, and Crossbowmen serve as a good base defense until you can get Musketeers. The
Phosphorous Bolt battle gear is very effective in establishing a base perimeter, or as a scouting mechanism. Weakness Bolt is effective in making enemies easier to kill, but you need other units to do the killing to maximise the effectiveness of this battle gear.


Musketeers:
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My preferred base defense. I usually set up a perimeter using Musketeers armed with the Sniper Scope battle gear (along with Cannoneers in Watchtowers and some melee units). Enemy units start getting hammered a long way from this perimeter which can easily turn the tide of battle. I rarely used the Blast Shot battle gear - it can damage your nearby troops (I think - someone tell me if I'm wrong). Since Sniper Scope is a bit limiting in attack situations, I only used
Musketeers for defence.

**I've noticed with Battle Pack 3 that Sniper Scoped Muskeeter seemed to go down very quickly when engaged in hand-to-hand. It may have just been me, but this seemed to reduce their effectiveness somewhat.


Bandits:
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My standard infantry unit. With a reasonable melee and ranged attack, these guys served as the bulk of my forces. The Paralysis Darts battle gear has a good offense / defensive capability of freezing enemy units for a short time, and I try to start any battle by having my Bandits paralyse a few units.
Stealth is very useful for scouting enemy bases and for establishing a suprise strike to a base - my main force attacks and draws the bulk of enemy forces, leaving my stealthy Bandits to cause some internal damage to peasants. Bandits can also loot enemy corpses, returning a small amount of that unit's resource value to you. Use this early on to boost your resources.


Cannoneers:
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This unit has good offensive / defensive capabilities if used right, but beware - they walk slowly. I got so sick of Cannoneers lagging behind everyone that I would just leave them in base defense duties, usually in Watchtowers or laying Mines. The Mine battle gear is very useful, but be sure to use at least 3 grouped Cannoneers to lay a minefield - it's quicker to do this way. The
Smoke Bomb battle gear has its uses, but mainly for offensive attacks.
Cannoneers can be very effective in destroying enemy buildings, but make sure you don't leave them alone as they can fall quickly to melee attacks.
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**Canonneers are best used in taking out buildings - Battle Pack 3 has increased the hit point value of structures while reducing the effectiveness of fire. Use a couple in raiding party to help you destroy buildings but you will have to watch out for them destroying a building at maximum range and then just standing around doing nothing.


Raiders:
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My favourite offensive unit. Raiders are the quickest unit in the game, and should be used as scouts and for guerrilla attacks. I would group 3-4 Raiders separately from my main attack squad and have them set fire to a couple of buildings to draw the enemy forces, run back to my main group and wipe out the base defense. Raiders shouldn't focus on just one target - have them set fire to a couple of buildings to maximise their damage. This strategy is better detailed at the official site (www.battlerealms.ubisoft.com). The Caltrops battle gear is great for damaging units that try to chase the Raiders, while
Brushfire can be used to clear out forests or wipe out rice fields. Play around and find out what you like.

**Should have mentioned here that the Raider's Caltrops are great for reinforcing a minefield, or for creating another damaging barrier once you have maxed out your mines. Note that Battle Pack 3 has reduced the effectiveness of fire attacks.
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Ronin:
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Ronin suck in small numbers. Remember this. Since they run straight into battle, you need a number of them to back each other up. One Ronin surrounded by enemies falls quickly; four Ronin surrounded by enemies have a chance of surviving. Blood Bond will improve the chance of a Ronin surviving, whereas
Yang Blade increase the amount of yang returned from a fight. I suggest using
Yang Blade early on to maximse your ability to upgrade units, with Blood Bond being an effective later game battle gear to keep Ronin alive during raids. A dying Ronin will stick his swords into the ground, giving nearby units a bonus to their attacks.

By the way, the more Yang you have, the better your troops fight...


Fan Geisha:
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Vital to any battle squad are Fan Geisha. Having your units healed when fighting is often the difference between winning and losing a fight. Fan
Geishas often make up a quarter of my attacking squad. Their battle gears don't do much for me, so experiment and make up your own mind. You can improve the speed and health of Fan Geishas by putting them on horseback.


Ninjas:
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Not as good at fighting as Monks, but able to hold being stealthy for longer than Bandits can. You get the option of getting them at about the third map from the end.

- Low Little Flyer wrote to add:

"Ninja will fight better than Monks if they have more Yang points."


Monks:
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Since it is usually late in the game / level when you get them (depending on the level you choose - Monks or Ninjas) I only Monks to replace regular melee units in my defensive perimeter. They aren't bad fighters, but do seem to die rather quickly.

- Low Little Flyer wrote to add: "monks fights greater when Yin points increase, and because the serpent clan can only get Yang points , the monks are very weak"

Horses:
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Okay, so you can't build horses, but you can collect them to improve the strength of your troops. Units that ride horses have more hitpoints and can move faster (usually) than normal. Peasants that are given horses collect a lot more resources than those without them.

As the only finite resource in BR, horses should be collected wherever possible, even if you don't use them. Why? Because if you don't collect the horses, your enemies will, which means you'll have to fight them. Better to have them on your side than fight tougher opponents, agreed?


HEROES
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Kenji:
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A great fighting unit. Always remember to use his Critical Strike battle gear.
Only Serpent Zen Master with a ranged attack (which comes later in the game).
The Critical Strike battle gear works with his ranged attack as well.


Otomo:
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A great fighting unit. Always remember to use his Battle Cry battle gear to assist nearby allied units. Goes all moral on you later in the game.


Shinja:
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A great fighting unit. Always remember to use his Intimidation battle gear to assist nearby allied units.