The Complete Guide to Promotions
Flying Pig
Promotions are the means by which you make your units individual. Once your men prove themselves in action, they can take a promotion which improves an aspect of them and heals them a little. This is a guide to using promotions most effectively; in the form of a list of them. Comments and suggestions are gladly accepted.
Combat Promotions
These promotions are the most basic honours conveyed on units; they give a small increase to the unit’s Strength across all battles. Since they are basic, most of them unlock other, greater promotions.
Name: Combat I
Available to: All units
Requires: Nothing
Effects: +10% Strength
Usage: This promotion is a good starter for versatile units which can expect to come up against anything and air units, since they get few promotions. It should be given to field units as opposed to defensive units and ships, since they have no conception of terrain. What is most important about it is that it paves the way for more, specialist promotions. Bear in mind that Aggressive leaders get it for free.
Name: Combat II
Available to: All units
Requires: Combat I
Effects: +10% Strength
Usage: Like Combat I, this is a jack-of-all-trades promotion, since it gives a small bonus across all combats. It still only gives +20% in total, so if you expect to need to, say, attack cities a lot then it is not worth taking, but it does open up the path to other promotions which is a feature of this line.
Name: Combat III
Available to: All units
Requires: Combat II
Effects: +10% Strength
Usage: By now, a unit with all of the Combat promotions has enviable power, so I recommend taking this on ships and air units. You also need it for some of the best promotions, so take it on Tanks and air/sea units which want the high-up lines like Ace and Blitz. Scouts may want it, since it unlocks Sentry.
Name: Combat IV
Available to: All units
Requires: Combat III
Effects: +10% Strength, Heals +10% in neutral lands
Usage: Although I do not think that a level 4 unit with Combat IV is a good idea, it is the highest Combat promotion which unlocks something else. It makes your ships almost invincible, which is good since they can not take terrain promotions. When you have the specialist lines that you want started, and your unit is expecting to work as a general-purpose unit, take this; for it can fight hard in the enemy’s country then pull out to a neutral country and recover, before returning to finish the job.
Name: Combat V
Available to: All units
Requires: Combat IV
Effects: +10% Strength, Heals +10% in enemy lands
Usage: This is the highest Combat promotion that can be unlocked without a Great General in command, and by the time that you have all of these you are at 150% Strength, so an Infantry unit, with a base of 20, gets 30 with all of these – better than a Tank! Beware anyone with five Combats on their colours; for they will hit hard and not stay down for long
Name: Combat VI
Available to: All units
Requires: Combat V, Lead by Warlord
Effects: +25% Strength
Usage: A unit with this promotion is truly fearsome, since they have three quarters on top of normal strength levels! If you give a Great General to a sea unit, then this will be the method you have of ruling the waves.
Anti-Type Promotions
These promotions are given to land units to fight against specific other land units, based on their type (or combat).
Name: Cover
Available to: Archery, Melee and Gunpowder units
Requires: Combat I or Drill I
Effects: +25% against Archery units
Usage: In contrast to the Combat line, which gives a small, generalist, bonus, this promotion gives a fairly large bonus against one type of unit – archers. I recommend giving this to men who will be attacking cities, since before gunpowder they are often protected by archery units, and to units who expect to fight a lot of barbarians, who often use Archers in attack. It can be granted by an event to all of your melee units; and is also good on units which expect to be attacking cities without the City Raider line, like Musketmen as it will lead to better odds against common defensive units.
Name: Shock
Available to: Archery, Mounted, Melee and Gunpowder units
Requires: Combat I or Drill I
Effects: +25% against Melee units
Usage: This one is like Cover in its effects, and it can also be granted by an event to all Axemen. Give it to Axemen, to further increase their bonus against melee units and to men who defend cities as Swordsmen have a natural bonus in this field, and melee units are the most likely attackers (horsemen take resources and archery units tend to be defensive). On Mounted units, it provides protection against Spearmen and Pikemen, which is useful
Name: Pinch
Available to: Mounted, Gunpowder, Armoured, Helicopter and Air units
Requires: Combat I or Drill Iand Gunpowder
Effects: +25% against Gunpowder units
Usage: As soon as Musketmen enter the scene, you can best them with Pinch. It is available to all units who can expect to see action against powder units, and provides the key to getting the edge in both attack and defence. Use it as an early promotion for your men if the enemy have Gunpowder.
Name: Formation
Available to: Archery, Mounted, Melee and Gunpowder units
Requires: Combat II or Drill II
Effects: +25% against Mounted units
Usage: Although it needs more training than other anti-type promotions, it is also the most useful promotion. The most dangerous units in the pre-Tank game are mounted, as they are fast and powerful, and so I recommend taking this at least once in each defensive stack or division operating in the field.
Name: Charge
Available to: Mounted, Melee, Armoured and Helicopter units
Requires: Combat I
Effects: +25% against Siege units
Usage: This is the easiest promotion in its class to get, but it is also the least useful, since siege units are not a challenge in field combat anyway. I suggest that you should give it to mounted troops to boost their ability against artillery which they naturally have from their flank attack, and to defensive units if you use any of the applicable classes in defence (not that likely, but I know some people like Axemen in defence).
Name: Ambush
Available to: Siege, Gunpowder, Armoured, Helicopter and Air units
Requires: Combat II
Effects: +25% against Armoured units
Usage: In the modern age, this is your red flag to be raised against the tyrannical oppression that you get from Tanks. Anti-Tank units get it for free, and if given to a Gunship it makes a deadly anti-armour unit; and seeing as Tanks are not likely to defend cities Gunships (which can’t take cities) are a good choice to take it, especially since they get a natural anti-armour bonus.
Special Promotions
These promotions have an effect not in the usual stat-based changes, and which fundamentally change the character of units.
Name: Amphibious
Available to: Recon, Archery, Mounted, Melee and Gunpowder units
Requires: Combat II
Effects: No penalty for attacking over rivers or off ships
Usage: You could write a whole article on this (indeed, I have). It lets you go over water without losing any advantage – so cities on islands or those in the meanders of rivers are no longer safe from you. The only down-side is that Tanks cannot get it, but Marines get it for free, as does the Viking Berserker.
Name: March
Available to: Recon, Archery, Mounted, Melee, Siege and Gunpowder units
Requires: Combat III, Medic I
Effects: Can heal while moving
Usage: This is one of the best promotions. It means that when you are wounded, you can run away at speed while re-gaining health every turn. Combined with Medic promotions, it can make a unit into a healer and a hit-and-run unit with no match, especially with Flanking; and it gives whoever takes it a lot of endurance. Mechanised Infantry and Navy SEALs get it for free.
Name: Blitz
Available to: Mounted, Armour, Helicopter and Naval units
Requires: Combat III, Military Science
Effects: Can attack multiple times per turn
Usage: Do I need to tell you what this does? It turns a deadly attack unit into metaphorical machine-gun firing atomic bombs. It can be used in attack, allowing your Gunships to scythe down lines of the enemy, or to allow men posted to protect cities to sally out and kill the enemy before they even reach the city. Armoured units get this for free, just increasing their awesome power.
Name: Commando
Available to: Recon, Archery, Mounted, Melee, Gunpowder and Armoured units
Requires: Combat IV, Military Science
Effects: Can use enemy roads
Usage: This promotion is the key to moving fast in enemy territory. Traditionally, when on the defensive an army has the advantage of being able to move at speed to bring a lot of men into contact with the enemy and fight them off, but with this you are on an equal footing. It takes a lot of training, but is a must for any plundering unit – and Spies get it for free (it is the only promotion that they can get)
Medic Promotions
These promotions increase the rate at which the unit which has them and nearby units heal. They are very useful in the field, and complement March perfectly.
Name: Medic I
Available to: All units except Air and Armoured units
Requires: Combat I
Effects: Units in the same tile heal +10% per turn.
Usage: This promotion means that a stack (including the bearer) heals faster; in all territory. You should put this in every stack, except possibly defensive stacks, and not risk the unit; I use Explorers for this since they have 2 moves, meaning that they can keep up with Tanks (who can’t take Medic promotions) and will rarely get used in attack anyway. The Red Cross wonder gives this free to all units built in its city.
Name: Medic II
Available to: All units except Air and Armoured units
Requires: Medic I
Effects: Units in adjacent tiles heal +10% per turn.
Usage: With this, the unit which held a stack together in the field can now anchor a whole army across nine tiles! This makes it strong for combined-arms attacks, where you will want some units to shield the ones behind, and you can surround a group of Medics and thus have a lot of healing power to your men.
Name: Medic III
Available to: Recon, Archery and Gunpowder units
Requires: Medic II, Lead by Warlord
Effects: Units the same and in adjacent tiles heal +15% per turn.
Usage: Beware the army with one of these in it; all friendly units within a tile of its position heal +25%, and its own stack heals +35% per turn! This can hold together a large force through a lot of action; since your men need not worry about wounds so long as they win their battles.
Terrain Promotions
Terrain promotions give a boost to your unit in particular terrain, namely Hills, Forests and Jungles, and at high levels give another bonus which is meant to help in those terrains.
Name: Guerrilla I
Available to: Recon, Archery and Gunpowder units
Requires: Nothing
Effects: +20% hills defence.
Usage: If you build cities in hills, to give you a bonus in city defence, then give this to units defending them. It provides a bonus only in defence as of yet; but with the natural advantages of being in a city and carrying a bow or gun it can lead to large bonuses – and the Celtic Dun gives all units built in a city it for free, and the Gallic Warrior gets it for free as well; meaning that the Celts are the masters of hill warfare. It is also good for units expecting to go behind enemy lines (the enemy are slow in the hills) and for Scouts and Explorers, if only due to the later promotions on this line.
Name: Guerrilla II
Available to: Recon, Archery, Melee and Gunpowder units
Requires: Guerrilla I
Effects: +30% hills defence, double movement in hills.
Usage: Any unit with this promotion becomes a master of evading the enemy in his own lands – they can flee to the high ground and sit out waves of enemy attack, safe from the attacks that they make. The Gallic Warrior can take this, as can other Celtic melee units who got the Guerrilla I promotion from the Dun; so they can carry out commando missions better than anyone else. It also allows Recon units to move faster over difficult terrain.
Name: Guerrilla III
Available to: Archery, Melee and Gunpowder units
Requires: Guerrilla II
Effects: +25% hills attack, +50% withdrawal chances.
Usage: If Ché Guevara played Civilization, he would use troops with this. Units with this can attack fortified positions swarming with the enemy after long, fast marches through the hills and then half of their defeats leave survivors. This means that a Guerrilla III unit behind enemy lines is a thing to fear; if you see them, close them down or expect a lot of trouble.
Name: Woodsman I
Available to: Recon, Melee and Gunpowder units
Requires: Nothing
Effects: +20% defence in Forest and Jungle
Usage: Apart from the hills, wooded terrain is a good place to hide from the enemy, Soldiers with Woodsman are good when you have a lot of forests on your border as frontier defences; as they can be positioned at strategic locations to block the enemy advance. The Aztec Jaguar gets it for free.
Name: Woodsman II
Available to: Recon, Melee and Gunpowder units
Requires: Woodsman I
Effects: +30% defence in Forest and Jungle; double movement speed in Forest and Jungle.
Usage: This is like the Guerrilla II promotion except it works in forests and jungles; it turns the unit that takes it into an expert in forest warfare. If you play Boreal maps, then it is incredibly useful, and it is also good for moving under the cover of the trees into and through enemy lands.
Name: Woodsman III
Available to: Melee and Gunpowder units
Requires: Woodsman II
Effects: +50% attack in Forest and Jungle; +2 First Strikes; +15% heal rate to units in the same tile.
Usage: This is a scary promotion. When the enemy are in a forest, in your lands, then they are almost impossible to kill and will attack you relentlessly; with two First Strikes so that they can hurt the enemy before they can hurt you. If you have these, then plan routes through forests into enemy lands, caused damage then pull out along the same route. At level 6, you can have Guerrilla III and Woodsman III which make the best commando unit for its level ever.