Going Medieval Endgame Strategy Guide — Survive Year 5+ Raids
The game changes dramatically after Year 5. Raids grow from small skirmishes to massive sieges. If your colony isn't prepared, you lose everything. Here is exactly what you need to survive.
Raid Difficulty Scaling
| Year | Raid Size | Enemy Gear | Recommended Defense |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1-2 | 3-6 raiders | Clubs, basic bows | Wooden walls, 2 archers |
| Year 3-4 | 8-12 raiders | Iron weapons, crossbows | Stone walls, 4 crossbowmen, moat started |
| Year 5-6 | 15-22 raiders | Steel weapons, shields | Killbox operational, 6+ crossbowmen, full moat |
| Year 7-8 | 25-35 raiders | Steel armor, trebuchets | Double-layer defenses, 8+ ranged, dedicated melee squad |
| Year 9+ | 35-50 raiders | Full steel, siege engines | Max defenses, 12+ ranged, emergency bunker, production lines for ammo |
Defense Layout Tier List
| Tier | Layout | Strength | Cost | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S | Killbox + Moat | Handles 30+ raiders | 2,000 clay + 500 wood | A 3-tile-wide killbox with a 2-tile-deep moat funneling enemies into a crossbow firing line. Unbeatable when fully built. |
| A | Double-Layer Merlons | Handles 20-25 raiders | 1,200 clay | Two layers of merlons with a firing step behind. Archers on the high layer, crossbows on the low layer. Excellent coverage but vulnerable to trebuchets. |
| B | Wall + Tower Combo | Handles 15-20 raiders | 800 clay + 300 wood | Stone walls with wooden towers at corners. Solid midgame defense that buys time but can be overwhelmed by large raids. |
| C | Single Wall Ring | Handles 10-15 raiders | 500 clay | Basic perimeter wall. Adequate for early years but insufficient by Year 4. Upgrade to tier A or S before Year 5. |
Endgame Production Chains
By Year 5, you need industrial-scale production. Here is the minimum production capacity for a colony of 12 settlers facing Year 7+ raids:
- Food: 2 full-time farmers + 1 cook. Your food storage should never drop below 500 units. A single bad harvest during a siege means starvation.
- Steel: 2 smelters running continuously. Each smelter produces 1 steel ingot per 30 seconds. Arrows, bolts, armor, and weapons all need steel. Without constant production, your defenders run out of ammunition during sieges.
- Medicine: 1 herbalist with at least 50 herbal medicine stockpiled. A Year 7 raid will wound 3-5 settlers. Without medicine, wounds become infections, and infections kill in 2-3 days.
- Alcohol: 1 brewer producing constantly. Alcohol is not a luxury — it is a mood stabilizer. During extended sieges, settlers panic without alcohol, reducing combat effectiveness by 30%.
Settler Specialization for Endgame
By Year 5, every settler should have a dedicated role. Generalists die in the endgame:
- 6 Combat Settlers: 4 crossbowmen (long range) + 2 melee (close defense). These settlers do nothing but train and fight. Assign them a dedicated barracks near the killbox.
- 3 Production Settlers: 2 smelters/blacksmiths + 1 tailor. These maintain your weapon, armor, and clothing supply chain. Without constant production, your combat settlers eventually fight in tattered clothes with broken weapons.
- 3 Support Settlers: 1 farmer, 1 cook, 1 medic. These keep everyone alive. Never pull them from their roles during combat — their jobs are irreplaceable.
FAQ
Q: When should I transition from wood to stone walls?
Year 2. Stone walls take 3x longer for raiders to break compared to wood. Waiting until Year 3 means facing Year 3 raids (8-12 raiders with iron weapons) using Year 1 defenses. The transition costs ~500 clay — start stockpiling clay by Year 1 Autumn.
Q: Is a killbox absolutely necessary?
By Year 6, yes. Without a killbox, raiders attack your walls at random points, spreading your defenders thin. A killbox forces all enemies into a single chokepoint where your entire force concentrates fire. This turns a 15-vs-6 fight into a 15-vs-6-at-one-chokepoint fight, which your 6 can win.
Q: What about underground bases?
Underground bases are immune to trebuchets and reduce raid damage but have critical weaknesses: food production requires sunlight (surface greenhouses), and settlers take a mood penalty from lack of outdoor time. Use underground for storage and emergency bunkers, not as your primary living space.
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