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Veteran flame bearer – Goodgame Empire

Veteran flame bearer

Defensive Melee Veteran

One of the best defensive units against close combat you can get into a castle, and at 3 food very cheap. Not universal, you need to cover the weaker side against archers with another unit. When you encounter him in special offers or events, take as many as you can and build the backbone of melee defense from them.

18Attack
196Melee defense
79Ranged defense
25Speed
3Food upkeep

Quick overview

TypeDefensive, Melee
SourceSpecial
Game stageSpecial
Cost—
RecommendationRather yes

rating

Attack
Defensive
Cost
Speed

The Veteran Flamethrower is a defensive unit that the game itself describes as very strong in defense against close-range fighters. Defense 196 against close combat makes him one of the toughest walls against infantry and cavalry you can put on the walls, and 79 against archers is a solid secondary value. Attack 18 means you'll never attack with him, don't let the name fool you. He's not a unit from the Barracks or from research, you get him from special offers and events, and you'll also encounter him as a defender on the castles of the Famous Invasion event.

How to use it

You deploy him exclusively in castle and base defense, on positions where enemies usually push melee units. With food consumption of 3, this is very cheap defense for such a high value, so you can afford to keep plenty of them without the garrison throwing off your supply. Speed 25 you only deal with when moving between castles and bases, where the slower pace shows, in the actual defense it plays no role. The sum of defense on a position matters more than the quality of a single unit, so keep them in numbers, not individually.

What to combine it with

The difference between 196 and 79 practically calls for supplementation with an archer-resistant unit, ideally the Veteran Composite Archer, which has the same consumption and covers exactly the opposite side. Adjust the ratio of both on a position based on how enemies come at you, against archer-focused attackers put more archers. Defensive tools and a castellan with close-combat defensive equipment will push the value of 196 even higher and the position becomes practically impassable for infantry.

Weaknesses and what to avoid

Never take him into the attack army, attack 18 is just wasted space in a camp and causes no damage in battle. Don't rely on him as universal defense, against an opponent who attacks mainly with archers, 79 alone won't hold you and the position slowly falls. If you expect mostly archers, build the position around archer-resistant defenders and add the Flamethrower only as insurance against melee, not as the foundation.

Pro player tipBecause the same Flamethrowers defend the castles of the Famous Invasion event, use the knowledge of his numbers from the other side too. When a scout reports him in defense, don't send infantry at him, which will break against 196, but build your attack on archers, against which he only has 79. In your own defense, conversely, let your opponent try it the other way around.
Common mistakeA common mistake is distributing him across positions blindly without regard to what comes at each position, and then wondering why the section with archer superiority fell. The second mistake is collecting only Flamethrowers and not supplementing archer defense at all, the result is a wall that holds great against infantry but has one obvious weakness that an experienced attacker will find on the first scout.

Related units

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