Rise of Kingdoms Troops Tier List: Best Special Units and Troop Types

Choosing the right troops in Rise of Kingdoms is an important long-term decision. Your chosen troop type influences the commanders you invest in, the military technologies you prioritize, and even which civilization is the best fit for your account.

However, there is an important distinction to keep in mind: troop type and troop tier are not the same thing.

Infantry, Archers, Cavalry, and Siege are the four main troop types, while T1 through T5 represent troop progression. At higher tiers, many civilizations also unlock their own Special Units, such as the Berserker, Teutonic Knight, and Longbowman.

This Rise of Kingdoms Troops Tier List focuses on specific troop units rather than simply ranking the four major troop categories. The rankings consider each unit's combat characteristics, civilization bonuses, and the situations where the overall unit package provides the most value.

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Rise of Kingdoms Troops Tier List at a Glance

Note: This ranking evaluates the complete troop and civilization package. A lower-ranked unit can still be the better choice if it fits your commanders, technology, equipment, and preferred battlefield role.

S Tier Troops

These units stand out because their Special Unit characteristics are backed by strong civilization bonuses and provide clear long-term advantages.

Throwing Axeman — France

Type: Infantry

Civilization: France

Best for: General Infantry and open-field combat

The Throwing Axeman is one of the strongest general-purpose Infantry Special Units. Its profile focuses on Health, while France further provides troop Health and faster hospital healing.

This combination makes France a strong choice for players who want to build a durable Infantry-focused account instead of specializing in only one narrow activity.

Why S Tier: A powerful overall Infantry package that combines durability with useful long-term civilization bonuses.

Argyraspides — Greece

Type: Infantry

Civilization: Greece

Best for: Infantry rally leaders

Argyraspides benefits from Greece's Infantry-focused bonuses, including Infantry Health and increased rallied-army damage.

This makes the unit particularly valuable for accounts designed around leading or frequently participating in Infantry rallies.

Why S Tier: An excellent fit for players specializing in Infantry rally gameplay.

Berserker — Vikings

Type: Infantry

Civilization: Vikings

Best for: Counterattack-focused combat

The Berserker works especially well within the Viking civilization package. Vikings provide Infantry Attack along with additional counterattack damage, giving this unit a clear role for players whose marches are expected to withstand sustained pressure in combat.

Why S Tier: A strong Infantry package with a distinct counterattack-focused identity.

Janissary — Ottoman Empire

Type: Archer

Civilization: Ottoman Empire

Best for: Skill-damage Archer marches

The Janissary benefits from Ottoman bonuses centered around Archer Health, march speed, and active skill damage.

Together, these bonuses create one of the strongest specialized Archer packages for accounts built around commanders and strategies that rely heavily on skill damage.

Why S Tier: Excellent synergy for Archer builds focused on maximizing skill damage.

Maryannu — Egypt

Type: Archer

Civilization: Egypt

Best for: Archer rallies

Egypt combines the Maryannu Special Unit with bonuses to Archer Attack and rallied-army damage.

For players who regularly lead or participate in Archer rallies, this gives the unit a clear and highly specialized role.

Why S Tier: One of the strongest specialized choices for Archer rally gameplay.

Teutonic Knight — Germany

Type: Cavalry

Civilization: Germany

Best for: General-purpose Cavalry accounts

The Teutonic Knight offers a balanced defensive profile, while Germany provides Cavalry Attack, troop-training speed, and Action Point recovery.

These bonuses remain useful across multiple aspects of gameplay, from troop development to active account progression.

Why S Tier: Excellent overall utility for players building a long-term Cavalry-focused account.

Mamluk — Arabia

Type: Cavalry

Civilization: Arabia

Best for: Cavalry rallies

Arabia pairs the Mamluk Special Unit with Cavalry Attack and rallied-army damage bonuses.

This makes the civilization particularly effective for players with a defined role in leading rallies rather than those simply using Cavalry for general open-field mobility.

Why S Tier: Strong specialization for Cavalry rally leaders.

A Tier Troops

A-tier units are still solid choices for many players. Their lower ranking does not mean they are weak. They simply provide more specialized benefits or offer less overall account value compared with the S-tier options above.

Legionary — Rome

Type: Infantry

Civilization: Rome

Best for: Mobile Infantry

The Legionary focuses on Defense, while Rome further boosts Infantry Defense and troop march speed.

Together, these bonuses create a well-rounded Infantry package with added mobility, making Rome a good choice for players who want faster positioning while still maintaining a defensive approach.

Spear-Thrower — Maya

Type: Archer

Civilization: Maya

Best for: Normal-damage-focused Archer marches

The Spear-Thrower focuses on Defense and Health, while Maya provides Archer Defense and increased normal damage.

This makes Maya a suitable option for builds that rely heavily on normal attacks instead of putting all their investment into active skill damage.

Cataphract — Byzantium

Type: Cavalry

Civilization: Byzantium

Best for: Durable Cavalry

Byzantium provides additional Cavalry Health and Hospital capacity, while the Cataphract itself has a defensive-oriented profile.

This combination works well for players who prioritize Cavalry survivability. However, it provides less overall progression utility than Germany and is less specialized for rallies than Arabia.

B Tier Troops

These units can still be useful, but their civilization bonuses are generally more focused on account development, flexible progression, or specific utility rather than highly specialized late-game combat performance.

Samurai — Japan

Type: Infantry

Civilization: Japan

Best for: General development and flexible accounts

The Samurai focuses on Attack, while Japan provides general troop Attack along with gathering-related benefits.

This makes Japan a practical choice for flexible account development, although players looking for stronger late-game Infantry specialization may eventually prefer a more combat-focused civilization.

Chu-Ko-Nu — China

Type: Archer

Civilization: China

Best for: Early development

The Chu-Ko-Nu has a balanced overall profile, while China provides troop Defense, building speed, and Action Point recovery.

These bonuses make China particularly effective during the early stages of account development, even if players later transition to a more specialized combat civilization.

Hwarang — Korea

Type: Archer

Civilization: Korea

Best for: Research progression

Korea combines an Archer-focused defensive profile with additional Hospital capacity and research speed.

As a result, the Hwarang package is especially useful for players who are focused on advancing important technologies, although its main advantages are related to account progression rather than specialized combat performance.

Conquistador — Spain

Type: Cavalry

Civilization: Spain

Best for: Commander leveling and secondary accounts

Spain provides Cavalry Defense, additional experience from neutral units, and passive city resource production.

These bonuses can be valuable during early account development or for secondary accounts. However, dedicated combat accounts will generally gain more long-term value from civilizations with a stronger combat specialization.

What About T1 to T5 Troop Tiers?

The Tier List above ranks Special Units and their civilization packages. It should not be confused with the standard T1–T5 troop progression system.

In Rise of Kingdoms, troops progress through five tiers, with each tier containing Infantry, Archer, Cavalry, and Siege units. T1 includes Warrior, Slinger, Horseman, and Battering Ram, while higher tiers gradually unlock stronger versions of each troop type. T5 is the highest standard troop tier.

At T4 and T5, many civilizations can use civilization-specific Special Units instead of the standard Infantry, Archer, or Cavalry units.

For example:

· T4 Legionary → T5 Elite Legionary

· T4 Berserker → T5 Elite Berserker

· T4 Longbowman → T5 Elite Longbowman

· T4 Teutonic Knight → T5 Elite Teutonic Knight

The same progression applies to other civilization-specific Special Units.

General T1–T5 Progression

T5 represents the highest standard troop tier, but unlocking and maintaining T5 troops requires substantial account development. For this reason, most players will benefit more from establishing a clear primary troop direction than trying to develop every troop type equally.

Which Troop Type Should You Main?

Your troop choice should ultimately complement your overall account strategy rather than replace it.

Choose Infantry if your commanders and preferred battlefield role focus on durability, frontline combat, or prolonged engagements.

Choose Cavalry if you prefer mobility and have commanders that support an aggressive, fast-moving playstyle.

Choose Archers if your strongest commanders and long-term strategy are centered around ranged damage or specialized Archer roles.

Use Siege mainly for its specialized utility. Siege troops have high load capacity and are particularly useful for gathering resources and handling structure-related tasks rather than serving as the main focus of a PvP account.

The most important thing is to avoid spreading your resources in too many directions without a clear plan.

Your:

· Commanders

· Military technology

· Equipment

· Civilization

· Preferred battlefield role

should all work toward the same primary troop direction.

Conclusion

There is no single troop that is automatically the best choice for every Rise of Kingdoms player.

For a strong general Infantry direction, Throwing Axeman, Argyraspides, and Berserker stand out thanks to their specialized civilization packages.

For Archer players, Janissary and Maryannu provide particularly clear roles for skill-damage-focused and rally-oriented builds.

For Cavalry accounts, Teutonic Knight and Mamluk offer strong options for general account utility and rally specialization.

The best way to use this Tier List is not to immediately change civilizations simply because a particular unit ranks highly. Instead, consider each unit as part of your complete account setup.

The strongest troop setup is the one where your Special Unit, civilization bonuses, commanders, and long-term investments all complement one another.