Optimizing Pot Consumption V2

Discussion in 'Strategy' started by Cowlegend999, Aug 7, 2010.

  1. Optimizing Pot Consumption

    Changes in this guide
    •made the chart easier to read
    •colour coded the sections
    •added an extra section
    •fixed minor math problems
    Thanks to the feedback of everyone who helped with these changes.


         I have decided to write the ultimate guide on using potions effectively during a war. I will go over potion use at low levels (10 lands), medium strength (20-25 lands) and full strength (max builds). I hope you enjoy and please feel free to leave comments or suggestions below :)

    Table of Contents:
    1. What is a potion
    2. Why should I use potions?
    3. Potion stats
    4. Low strength pot use
    5. Mid strength pot use
    7. Max strength pot use
    8. Conclusion
    9. Extra

    What is a potion?
         A potion Is a single use item you can buy from the marketplace. These items can be used to either boost your attack, defense, spy attack or spy defense. You can use up to one of each item you own per action. When you attack a target you get the option to choose which potions you want to use, and it lists the stat bonus it will add. When someone attacks you however, it will automatically use 1 of each potion you use unless you can achieve a 99% chance of victory without using them. The devs implemented this feature to prevent pots from being wasted when they don't increase your chance of winning anymore (99% is max possible). Potions are a necessity in wars, and many owners may not allow you to fight without them. :)


    2. Why should I use potions?
     Potions should be used because they provide an incredible stat increase, and the bonus is static. This means that potions function in a manner similar to towers. This means that although normally when you are attacked/attacking both you and your opponent lose troops, causing you to get weaker. However, a potion, much like a tower, will add exactly the same amount to your stats each time! The benefits of this is unless your opponent also uses potions as they attack/are attacked they will continue to get weaker causing your chances of victory to keep increasing (unless they are much stronger then you without potions). Potions are an important part of kaw life and I recommend you go potion crazy after you this guide. :)


    3.How much to my stats do potions add?  
         Here is a list of all the potions and their cost and their bonus in simplified terms (2% of what it says so it's easier to compare stats). The first number refers to the cost, the second refers to the bonus it adds, and the third refers to the bonus per dollar
    •Attack potions
    5      | 300   | 3
    10    | 600   | 3
    25    | 1.5K  | 3
    50    | 3.6K  | 3.6
    100  | 6K     | 3
    250  | 14K   | 3.2
    500  | 26K   | 2.6
    1.0m |54K    | 2.7
    2.5m | 140K | 2.8
    7.5m | 460K | 3.1
    •Defense potions 
    1.25   | 300   | 12
    2.5     | 600   | 12
    6.25   | 1.5K  | 12
    12.5   | 3.6K  | 14.4
    25      | 6K     | 12
    62.5   | 14K   | 12.8
    125    | 26K   | 10.4
    250    | 54K   | 10.8
    1.25m | 140K | 5.6
    3.75m | 460K | 6.1
    •Spy Attack Potions
    5        | 150   | 1.5
    20      | 650   | 1.6
    60      | 1.7K  | 1.7
    150    | 6K     | 2
    400    | 18K   | 2.3
    1m      | 40K   | 2
    2.5m   | 140K | 2.8
    7.5m   | 300K | 8
    •Spy Defense Potions
    1.25   | 150   | 6
    5        | 650   | 6.4
    15      | 2K     | 6.8
    37.5   | 6K     | 8
    100    | 18K   | 9.2
    250    | 10K   | 8
    1.25m | 140K | 5.6
    3.75m | 300K | 16


    4. What potions should I use at low levels (land 10-15)?  
          During the early stages of kaw you should be concentrating on maxing your plunder bonus and upgrading your buildings to level three. However I also feel that potions, especially defense ones, play a vital role in your survival. They are great to prevent farming, and if you ever go to war you will be able to handle attacks much more easily then most people your strength. At this level however, you shouldn't be totally dependant on buying pots. The majority of your money should be used on allies and upgrading. I would recommend you get the 7 cheapest defense potions, and the 5 cheapest spy potions. About 20-50 of each should put you in decent shape without cutting too deep into your budget. Don't be too worried about pots at this stage of the game, concentrate on upgrading. These pots you buy should prevent you being farmed and will end up saving you money. In total buying all these potions should cost about 8-20 million gold, not that much when you put into perspective all the gold it will save you.

     
    5. How many potions should I have at mid strength (lands 15-25)?
            During the middle portion of the game (lands 15-20) potions become much more important and are necessary during wars. Although you may be able to go without pots during the early stages of the game, once you reach land 15 you should seriously consider investing in them, especially if you are going to war. I would recommend you buy the cheapest 8 defense potions and the cheapest 6 spy defense potions. This will provide a large bonus to your stats without costing you too much if youre hit. I would recommend having 100-200 of each potion depending on your build. This will cost you about 100-200 million but it is worth it completely. Also at this point in the game I recommend you start buying some attack potions to help cancel out the effects of the opponents likely pots. They will also reduce your troops loss, and if you use enough you may achieve minimum troop loss allowing you to pin multiple people. I would recommend about 50 of each the 100k, 250k,500k and 1m potions. Used together they will cancel out the effects of all 8 defenders potions (you must use all 8 cheaper attack potions for this), and if the opponent uses less then 8 defense potions you will easily get minimum troops loss. Once you're at minimum troop loss, start using less and less attack potions as you are almsot guaranteed a victory. Spy attack potions are very useful during war times, however usually prevent you from making any profit. They can be used to allow someone with a couple guilds to scout a pure spy down to make them useless. I would recommend getting some basic spy attack potions, a few hundred of the first 4 (for scouting) and a few of the 400k and 1m ones. This is the stage in the game where potions start to provide a much larger role in who emerges victorious.


    6. How many potions should I have as a max build?
           Potions are vital towards going to war once your a max build. If you don't have them, you will bring your clan down and give away "free" money to your enemies. It's important to have a large stash of potions at this stage of the game especially if you will be warring. I will list how many of each of all 10 and 8 potions you should bring into a war using math. The 3 categories are: Max Possible usage, Optomal Usage, Probable usage.

      Max Possible Usage
    This is the maximum number of potions you could use in each war, it would be impossible to use more.
    Attack potions: 24x54=1296
    Attack (w/ av): 24x54+12=1308
    Defense potions: 59x54=3186
    defense (w/ aviary): 60x54=3240
    Spy attack: 18x54=972
    Spu attack (w/ scouts): 84x54=4536
    Spy defense (20% weak builds only) 60x54=3240

    Optimal Potion Usage
    This suggests you will be attacked or attacking for 16 hours per day, and all crystals used will benefit you.
    Attack Potions: 24x38=912
    Attack (w/av): 24x38+12=924
    defense potions: 59x32=1888
    Defense Potions (w/ av): 60x32=1920
    Spy attack: 18x38=684
    Spy Attack (w/ scouts): 84x38=3192
    Spy defense (20% weak builds only): 60x32=1920

    Probable Potion Usage
    The average player in a war will probably only be hit a maximum of 12 hours a day worth, and hit others for the other 12 hours in a day. All regens will be used as if they benefit the player.
    Attack potions: 24x30=720
    Attack (w/av): 24x30+12=732
    Defense Potions: 59x24=1416
    Defense Potions (w/ av): 60x24=1440
    Spy attack: 18x30=540
    Spy attack (w/ scouts): 84x30=2520
    Spy defense (20% weak builds only): 60x24=1440
          These are the number of pots you should bring into war based on these numbers. Note if your build isn't too weak when under 20% spies there is no limit to the number of spy defense potions you need for 100% protection. Also to calculate this the first number is max possible actions per hour, the second is the number of hours (plus the 6 regens where applicable)
    The +12 is added to builds with a mix of aviary and subs/caths because every crystal would grant you 2 extra hits. Since you can use 6 regens total in a war that is a possible 12 extra hits. Also note that these numbers are all at minimum troop loss, so it is unlikely you will ever need these numbers of potions, however it is always better to be safe.


    7. Potions are in important part to creating a strong kingdom.  
         They can be used to bank gold (at 25% loss) and provide large static stat bonuses. Although they aren't affected by permebant items, they are still a must for wars, especially later in the game. Please feel free to say comments and suggestions, and hopefully this gets a sticky :)


    Extra
    I have decided to include this extra section to clarify some things I mentioned that may be confusing, give extra info on potions and explain why these are only rough guidelines. First of all j said: "Potions add a static stat increase". What does this mean? It means that the bonus the potions add won't decrease when your troops decrease. Also a thing to note, permanent items do not increase the bonuses potions add. That means if you have +25% attack, your attack potions won't be 25% stronger, they will be the same strength as if you don't have that +25% bonus.
    Next, when I was explaining about attack potions I said:"they can be used to achieve minimum troop loss". Minimum troop loss is when you are so much stronger than your opponent, that you lose the lowest number of troops possible per attack. This happens when you have about >85% chance to win your attack. If you are below this win chance you will lose more troops every attack. During a war, using enough attack potions to achieve min troop loss can work wonders. You will win almost every attack, you will be able to attack and pin more people every hour, and most importantly, you will create more plunder for your clan. Also when you are at min troop loss you get weaker at a slower rate then your opponent, so your chance of victory keeps getting higher. To calculate what your min troop loss is, you can use one of three methods:

    •attack an osf, since it has no defense (unless it has allies or potions) you will achieve min troop loss (24 hits a regen, or 26 with balanced buildings)

    • Multiply your number of attack buildings by 85 (note the last attack will always use less troops)

    • Attack a target who is much weaker then you. After every attack you should keep losing less troops (unless he has potions or large ally bonus), if not use attack potions to help. Once your troop loss stops decreasing, you have achieved min troop loss.

    Next I will explain the strat of using potions to lose the least money. The best way to explain this is through examples. You lose about 1% of the gold you are holding when you are attacked (changes alot based on your gold held, and attackers strength). You lose 0.025% of the gold you are holding when stolen from, unless you are holding less then a certain amount (a few hundred mill, if anyone knows exact amount and is willing to share I'd greatly appreciate it). It's also important to note the devs said they're increasing the amount you lose when stolen from. Imagine you use the 1.25m spy defense potion, how much money do you need to be holding for that potion to be worthwhile? Just multiply the cost of the potion by 4k (100/0.025) so 1.25x4k=5b. This means, that unless you are holding >5b, and win almost every time someone steals you, instead of they win everytime, this is not profitable.
    I personally don't like this strategy, especially if you will be going to war because:
    •less potions means they will attack more often because they will be winning more times
    •since you are attacked more times, you will lose more troops (and lose more troops a hit) then if you use more potions=less income
    •in a war you would be an easy target, and would give the enemy team "free money".
    This strategy can be useful if you are clanless, or don't go to war. You however, need to decide if it fits your playing style.

    Finally, all the potion amounts I reommended were rough amounts, and you should change them based on your build, playing style and experiences. The amounts I posted are probably a good minimum to have if you go to war. You won't be an easy farm for the opponents and cost your clan a win, and you won't worry about how little you lose every time you are attacked (in the potions cost). I suggest you use the amounts I listed then add/remove some and create your own potion using strategy. Good luck in your progress through kaw!

    Please feel free to comment, tell me about any incorrect info or spelling/grammar problems, or suggestions or requests for future guides.

    Thanks for reading,
    Cowlegend999
     
  2. Hard to see the light colors on ipod. Btw where did u get the numbers 58 and 59? War = 2 days = 48 hours. Multiply it by 24 or 26 = number of times you can attack. With pots its 48*2 = 96*24.
     
  3. For the 58 and 59 I tested it when I was land 20ish as a Hansel build I attacked bc people with full potions. I attacked Multiple people to see and I got same result.
    Yea I was worried about the colours :( do you have any suggestions ie. Change silver>?????
    I wanted to try and make the sections all different so you could more easily navigate
     
  4. Colors are just fine to me - I'm on an iPod.
     
  5. I'm on an iPod too, and the pink and silver are hard to read but still legible, I'll change them if I do another update tho
     
  6. Dear jesus the blue take it away oh god my eyes what have you done hnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnng
     
  7. Some of your text is bloody hell to read, mind editing color eh?
     
  8. Yea I realize that >.> please tell me which colour you don't like and what you think it should be changed to :)
     
  9. This color.
     
  10. Bump too bad forums are white again colours would have been good