Combat Siege checked properly

Combat Siege is about exactly what the name promises. You raise a stronghold, build an army, and then spend the interesting half of the game attacking other people's walls and patching your own.

Composition beats numbers here. Siege engines, infantry and ranged troops each answer a particular kind of defence, and the wrong mixture against a strong wall throws away a week of recruitment.

Alliances carry the politics and the co-ordinated strikes, which is where the game opens out. Played alone it is decent; played in a group it is a good deal better.

Where it earns the slot

• Base defence
• Siege planning
• Alliance strategy

Checks out for

Players who enjoy the attacking side of castle strategy and want preparation to settle fights.

Does not check out if losing an army that took days to raise would spoil your week.

Starting properly

Fortify before you expand. A thinly walled stronghold is an invitation and the map reads it that way.

Scout before every attack. Committing to defences nobody looked at is the expensive beginner mistake here.