[203] KISS Tower (some insight guide included)

In my opinion you can find three types of towers in KAG:
- hard to destroy, but also hard to build and repair
- easy to build and repair, but also easier to destroy
- fancy towers, still easy to destroy/avoid or time consuming to build

First type requires some skill and teamwork to build, it is typically built around tent as the last line of defense. Most of the times massive traps are also around. Main disadvantage of this tower is simple: if it is overtaken by enemy forces your team can be in serious trouble.

Third type can be found on the front line - built in hurry with lack of design. Sometimes it is also the front tower built by inexperience builders - tall but fragile tower with spikes all over the wall and without "windows" for archers.

Second type is my favorite. It can be build pretty fast, but still can withstand some major fire power. Main principle is Keep It Simple Stupid, so I called it KISS Tower.

I'm playing archer, but in warm-up time I'm also doing some engineering. I'm building shops if I feel that friendly builders can handle towers and traps, but sometimes front tower looks to weak to me and I get my own hand on second tower. This saved my team few times, when front tower collapsed in a matter of minutes. Here is example:



- It's good idea to choose highest ground available, many times it's second tower. Maybe pit in front of the tower isn't deep enough, but I didn't wan't to waste time playing solo (in combat I forgot to take screenshots). Besides after few bomb drops it'll get deeper.
- It is very important to build tower of strong ground. Use what map provides, if not use castle wall: at least two blocks wide and few block deep under the tower (2). You can also enforce front (1) and in future it can be used for traps. Why it's so important? Enemy knights will drop bombs, which will destroy blocks under the tower. Sooner or later enemy will try to dig tunnel under the tower. You should do whatever you can so delay enemy.
- (3) use only single doors, otherwise you will slow friendly units.
- (4) every few levels you should build doors. They can be used by archers, knights to drop bombs/jump on enemy heads or by builders to make "rock fall" traps.
- (6) doors aren't needed on the other side. You can use (5) draw bridges or make another door if tower gets higher. Otherwise you're wasting material.
- Most of the times I leave tower "unfinished" (7). It easy to add another level if needed - platform for catapult is easy to build also.

Anyway this tower doesn't look great, but it will do the job. Main purpose is to stop enemy at the gates and provide cover for friendly units. At the begging 3-4 levels are enough to hold enemy. I found that spike traps are also optional - bombing, rock droping and friendly archers can hold it even full game.

Critique is more than welcomed.

 

It is too easy for archers to climb over it - there should be a few blocks long overhang.

 

I've different opinion on that. Overhaul has it own disadvantages. "Static" (means that it'll be there most of games) makes shooting down for archer harder - archers just loves vantage points. Also bringing down overhaul on enemy knights won't come without price - friendly archer standing on platform etc. Lastly, with overhaul it's easier to bomb jump - I prefer to meet enemy archer on wrong side of the tower from time to time than knight.

 

Exactly, but this is also used (read "should be used") by builders to crash units below - can be built from door position, which I mentioned in description.

I dislike overhaul like this:









Which is quite common.

 

Let me show you an overhang every tower should have, and few other improvements (of course this needs more resources and time, but, yeah).

 

I know that this structure looks very uninteresting and uninspired, but think about it, this is a very flexible "base" structure (think like my modable castles) you can actually put as many "patterns" on top of this tower and since it has alternating teamdoors you can easily add-on to it. So even though this structure in itself is not directly perfect or special its REALLY easy to think of ways to add-on to it. I can see me using this, definately!

Compare this to Hillside Trapmaster that structure is finished in itself, its very hard to REALLY do major improvements on that, its a system that was brought to completion pretty much, every change that you do to it is integral and would change the function of the whole structure (except the usual like adding WS or thicker walls). I see it like the polar oposite to this tower here, which is extremely "open ended".

What do you guys think about it?

 

It can grow but it may not be worth growing.

 

I don't like the double spaced drawbridges very much- expensive and no cata access.

 

This is best tower:

 

That tower, IMO, is not the best tower, by a long shot. I'm watching in my minds eye asa knight breaks through both gates, and the whole thing collapses. If a knight can collapse your tower in a minute or less, that tower is a poorly designed tower. Now, the archer spots are pretty convenient, but that is only assuming you have archers on your team. Also because of how tall the tower is, it's rather annoying to climb, and the team trapdoors let enemy archers just walk right in through the top.

 

I believe that this thread should be revised and updated to build 228, because frankly I find myself building KISS towers quite often, and they are very "pub" friendly if you know what I mean. Sure there may be better towers out there, but this one is so simple and good at the same time its hard to ignore!

 

Well yeah simple towers are vital on the frontlines, however I wouldn't say any of these are particuarly solid, all of them have the doors far too low, if a knight can get at a door - whether it will collapse the tower or not - it's too low. Personally I think they should be beyond jumping height and then a few blocks further to prevent easy laddering, and there should be supporting backwall added as soon as possible.

As for height in general it should depend on the terrain, if you building at a pretty flat intersection or one that naturally towers over the terrain it's better to focus on something solid and robust. If you absolutely have to tower near a hill then by all means go for some height, but usually it's better to have a grander tower on a natural overhang or flat terrain a fair bit back, and then just have a small structure infront of it that the enemies have to bit a bit of effort into to vault to get at your tower, but will ultimately funnel them into a kill zone for archers. There's nothing more tactically useless then a massive tower near a hill, as it's easily jumped, can give them an advantage to attack a nearby tower that's actually in a good position, and once taken can usually be used by the enemy to protect the hill they're attacking from with a few new doors and bridges.

Don't see anything particuarly wrong with that archer overhang though. The bit to shoot through should never really be 2 tiles wide, as it's too easy for an enemy archer to shoot up at you when you should really have dominance over the gate without really been threatened. Also there should only really be 1 piece of door for the archer to shoot through at the front, and have 2 or 3 of them, again an archer is too exposed shooting through a proper 2 tile tall door.

 

If we are talking about the best tower design I think this one is really good; simple, cheap, and, basically, modular. We started from wall from 3 bricks and were adding another levels. I posted whole screenshot to show you how effective is this when used properly.

 

But i love catas *cries*.

 

this is for me the best tower for pro archer/s defending in it

 

Yeah that worked pretty well that game, especially since we didnt have any builders worth a damn :P

Also that me in the tophat!