Teuton Right Hand: Clubmen. Especially on 3x servers it is probably the best Item in game.
Roman Right Hand: This depends a lot on what you choose to produce. But i would say Legionaires, or then Imperians or Equites Cesaris are a good choise.
Gaul Right Hand: This is easy, Phalanx. And Heduan as secondary choise.
Map: I really like this one, especially as an offensive player. This is my main go to in the Left Hand items. If enough offensive players have this, you can launch attacks in rapid succession. Combined with good planning, it becomes extremely powerful.
Horn: This is mandatory. Always attempt to get one. You cannot avoid fighting the Robber Hideouts, unless you are a King of course. For most part, the Tier 1 versioin holds great value for its cost and is even approachable for those who do not invest heavily on buying items.
Standard: This is very useful for Defensive Gauls, especially if they aim to protect Crop Capitals farther away with Heduans from Cavalry Snipes. I would advice to always seek this one if you are playing Defensive and your Kingdom have spread wide.
Spy Glass: This is utility. Importance of this scales up if you are a Duke or King, but is always nice to have. The usefulness of this will be reduced in the 3x servers (if it wont scale up to 3x effectivenes).
Shield: This is nice if you find it relatively cheap, or if you have lots of Silver to spend in the beginning. Usefulness of this item will scale down rapidly as the game continues. I see this as a powerful item to have at start, especially if you use the Resource approach, but would seek to replace it quickly with a Horn or a Map.
Pouch: This is something i would only get from discount, and even then am not impressed.
Pennant: I really do not see the use of this. At most in some extreme cases where you have a crop capital far away.
Helmet of Infantry / Cavalry: Usefulness of this scales up from the mid game onwards. But at early game, Helmet of Culture or Health are the way to go. I would still say, getting this sooner or later is mandatory, especially if you play offensive and want to gather a large army. Whats best, you can usually get them very cheap in the early to mid game and if you do, you should probably get it as a backup. I have found these with as cheap as 500 Silver or so. For that price, even the lower quality versions are a bargain.
Helmet of Culture: This is the one you want at the beginning, and its usefullness scales down later. If you have the Silver, always aim to get one as fast as possible and then change it to Helmet of Infantry or Cavalry.
Helmet of Health: This is solid, and good throughout the game. I would always get one if i find it with a reasonable price but you usually do not. For this reason, i would avoid and stick with Helmet of Infantry or Cavalry which are usually sold at much cheaper price. Stll, Helmet of Health can be a good alternative for Support and Defensive players who specialize on producing Troops in each Village, but not for Attack players who want to build a larger Army on their Capitol and need that time reduction.
Armor of Health: Basically a stronger version of Helmet of Health. This is always good, and its usefulness will scale up later on, when the damage reduction and attack power benefits that you get from other piece of Armor are not that important anymore. I would say that overall, this is the best option.
Scale Armor: This is good early on when you do lots of Adventures. If you like to use your Levels for Attack Power, this might be the best choise in the beginning. As the game progresses, in my opinion Scale loses to Armor of Health with small margin. If you find it early or mid game, go for it but with Tier 3, i would suggest to look for Armor of Health.
Chainmail Armor: This is the go to, if you go for the Resource Route in the early game. It gives you Damage Reduction and Attack Power both, which you desperately need. Later on, it is best to be replaced with either Scale Armor or Armor of Health. The best part is, that you will find these relatively cheap as the Resource Route is not popular, meaning everyone wants the Scale Armor or Armor of Health for their Health Gain benefits.
Breast-Plate Armor: This is only viable in the early game, and even then only if you get it cheap. It is only useful if you go for the Resource Route, and even then there is a better alternative (Chainmail Armor). If by some miracle you wont find yourself a Weapon and wont have a Shield, this is a solid option on Tier 1 when going Resources.
Shoes of Awareness: Needles to say, always get this if you can. And as fast as you can. But if you only plan to use the Silver from the Starting Package, you most certainly can not afford this. This is the item most sought after for many, and in 1x i would argue it is the best item you can have as it affects directly on the amount of Experience you gain.
Shoes of Endurance: This is solid, especially if your Kingdom is positioned far away from others, you are a Main Attacker and combine it with a Map. For a Main Attacker, Shoes of Endurance + Map is almost a must. I suppose the reason why you find this cheap, is because everyone favors the Shoes of Awareness which of course are better, if not for the Team Strategies in mid to late game you need this with. And of course, the players who can afford the Shoes of Awareness, can usually afford these both. You might also think, that why use them as they give away what attack is real or fake. Or do they o.O ?
Spurs: This is something you only buy in the beginning because it is cheap and you cannot afford anything else.
Boots of the Chicken: You get this free, and you can basically acquire it free, so everyone has one.
Bucket: This is excellent. Similar to Ointment, but way better and you can never have too many of them. Between the Scrolls and a Bucket, always go for the Bucket. From all of the Consumables, you want the Artwork and the Bucket the most.
Artwork: This is really good, and again an item that you cannot have too many. If you have the Silver, always get them but if you dont, you are probably better of with saving to the likes of Scale Armor, Armor of Health, Helmet or Weapon.
Book of Wisdom: A very solid item. Always get it if you can find it cheap, but i do not think it is worth the price it might go for after the early game. I have seen these go routinely for 1k or 1.5k Silver. I usually get mine around 150 or so in the early game and store them for later use. Getting them cheap fast is usually one of my early priorities. (To get all of the equipment slots filled, and then few books).
Scrolls: Needless to say they are fantastic. Its basically free exp for your Hero, so always get them if you can afford it, but i would still value them way less than Armor of Health, Bucket, Artwork and so.
Ointment: This is valuable, and always useful. Alwys get them if you can get them relatively cheap, you cannot have enough of them. They are usually cheap in the early game, but become very expensive fast in which case, they are hardly worth the price any more.
Tablet (or the one that gives loyalty): Not a fan, but i guess its nice to have as a backup, so might as well get some if you can afford it. But again, i would prioritize other items that are generally more useful.
Bandages: This is only viable in 1x server, and even then it scales down when the game goes on. Probably not worth of spendinig Silver on, especially if you are on a Budget and seem to get enough of them from Adventures already. But still, if you find a cheap deal in the early game, that is when they are actually worth it.
Cages: The same goes with Cages than with Bandages. It is good in the early game, and its usefulness will highly scale down as the game continues. In 1x Servers, it is nice to have some Crocodiles in the early game. In 3x servers, this becomes no more than a Gimmick, and is never worth the price as the number of Troops start to build up fast. Nevertheless, you will always see someone that is interested on these or the Bandages in both kind of Servers.
I would rank the items to top 5 as follows:
1. Shoes of Awareness: The utility this item gives is unmatched.
2. Club of Clubmen: This is by far the best weapon, as Clubmen are the unit with the lowest Build Time. On 3x Servers, this is easily the most valuable item you can have. If you play Offensive and are Teuton, you NEED to have this.
3. Armor of Health: This is the armor that is best overall. Good in the early game and only gets better at time.
4. Helmet of Infantry: At the early game, the MVP is the Culture, but if we look at the big picture, i value faster Troop Production way more, and like the Infantry version more than Cavalry.
5. Bucket/Artwork: Both of these are fantastic one time boosts. Well deserved to be in the Top 5.
Ideal Equipment: (in my opinion)
Main Attack Teuton: Club of Clubmen, Map (and Natar + Spy Glass), Armor (Health), Helmet of Infantry, Shoes of Endurance
Support Attack Teuton: Club of Clubmen, Map (and Natar + Spy Glass), Armor (Health), Helmet of Infantry, Shoes of Endurance
Support Roman: Sword of the Legionaire, Map (and Natar + Spy Glass), Armor (Health), Helmet of Infantry or Cavalry, Shoes of Endurance
Defensive Gaul: Spear of Phalanx/Druidrider, Standard (and Natar + Spy Glass), Armor (Health), Helmet of Cavalry or Infantry
Gaul as Duke/King: Spear of Phalanx/Druidrider, Spy Glass (and Natar if Duke), Armor (Health), Helmet of Cavalry or Infantry
These are the items you should aim at the minimum. The Armor of Health is not a priority, its more important to just have an Armor than dumping large sums of Silver for Armor of Health. Weapon of Choise, Helmet of Infantry, Map and Shoes of Endurance: These are the items to prioritize instead.
As a team, you should make a coordinated effort to get these items and for example, attempt to acquire the lower class items early on for some, and later for the rest of them. Dont outbid your own Team and dont acquire two of the same item for one player, even it would mean a better version. It is more crucial that each can acquire these. After all of your members have one, only then begin to upgrade the ones that need it the most.
Those players who use lots of Silver, they of course will acquire Artwork, Buckets, Shoes of Awareness, Helmet of Culture, Horn of Natar and so on. But those that wont, should aim for the basic set and only go with such as Horn of Natar, if they happen to find it cheap and even then, never outbid a Team mate who wont have one already.
As for player specialization. It is better for some of the Defensive Gauls to specialize on Helmet of Cavalry than Infantry, as many in your team want that already even they would go for the Spear of Phalanx instead of the Heduan. This can also be changed later on, first going with Helmet of Cavalry and then switching to Infantry if it becomes more widely available. For a Defensive Gaul, it would be reasonable to go for Helmet of Culture Tier 1, Helmet of Cavalry tier 2 and then possibly seek for Helmet tier 3 if any. It might also be better for acquiring the necessary items, that some Romans go for Lance of Cearis + Helmet of Cavalry (or Imperian + Infantry) too, taking a more offensive role, especially if paired with Imperians. This way, these players will find their items more easily, but this again, is not a priority you should break the Coherency of your Team for.
So to organize this, the King should make a list, and each player should report after acquiring an item to keep track, who needs what for their full set and the players should be encouraged to acquire the items they need. The ones who need the Map and Shoes of Endurance last, are the ones who need the stronger versions: The ones that find their Crop Capitol far away in the Outskirts. These players should only start to seek one after tier 2 items are released, and are in no big hurry for the Club of Clubmen either and again, some of them may even decide to go for Axemen instead which are then somewhat preserved for the late game if possible.
In my experience, many of the players prioritize different items such as Ointment, Buckets and Artwork making items like Helmet of Infantry and Shoes of Endurance widely available. They are also very cheap early on, so it should be relatively easy to grab one. The Club of Clubmen however, is an entire different story. You can only hope there are not much Teutons on the server so it might be unlikely that all your Teutons are ever going to have one. Luckily, almost all others of the mentioned items are not seen as the top ones, so the competition should not be that harsh, enabling you to possibly dominate the market on them and then acquiring the necessary and most useful items for your Composition. The hardest bargain should be the Club, and then i would say the Map.
And again, always have some lookout for the Night Auction. This is when you can usually find them cheap. Especially on the Night Truce, which in my opinion is the only reasonable way to play this game.
Ideal Setup for those with Low on Silver:
Right Hand: Any Weapon (not necessarily of own Tribe). Preferably the Weapon of Choise
Left Hand: Spy Glass, or any other cheap one. Preferably Horn of the Natars and later a Map or Standard
Helmet: Any Helmet that you get cheap. Most likely Helmet of Infantry or Cavalry in Tier 1
Armor: Any armor you happen to get cheap
Shoes: Spurs at Tier 1, Possibly try to find Shoes of Endurance cheap
Consumables: Book of Wisdom and possibly cheap Ointment at start
Ideal Setup for those with enough Silver:
Right Hand: Weapon of Choise
Left Hand: Horn of Natars Tier 1, Map / Standard Tier 2 or 3 (and a Spy Glass to spare)
Helmet: Helmet of Culture Tier 1, Helmet of Infantry or Cavalry from Tier 2 or 3
Armor: Either Scale Armor of Armor of Health
Shoes: Shoes of Awareness Tier 1 and possibly Shoes of Endurance from Tier 2 or 3
Consumables: Boook of Wisdom and Ointment at start. Artwork and Bucket. If Duke or King maybe a few set of Cages at start
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