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

Choosing the right troops in Rise of Kingdoms is a long-term decision. Your troop type affects which commanders you invest in, which military technologies you prioritize, and even which civilization fits your account best.

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

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

This Rise of Kingdoms Troops Tier List focuses on these concrete troop units rather than simply ranking the four major troop categories. The ranking considers each unit's combat profile, its civilization bonuses, and the situations where the complete unit package is most useful.

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Rise of Kingdoms Troops Tier List at a Glance

Tier	Troops
S Tier	Throwing Axeman, Argyraspides, Berserker, Janissary, Maryannu, Teutonic Knight, Mamluk
A Tier	Legionary, Longbowman, Spear-Thrower, Cataphract
B Tier	Samurai, Chu-Ko-Nu, Hwarang, Conquistador

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

 

S Tier Troops

These units stand out because their Special Unit profiles are supported by strong civilization bonuses and clear long-term roles.

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 emphasizes Health, while France adds troop Health and faster hospital healing.

This combination makes France particularly attractive for players who want a durable Infantry-focused account rather than a civilization designed for only one narrow activity.

Why S Tier: Strong overall Infantry package with durability and useful long-term civilization bonuses.

Argyraspides — Greece

Type: Infantry
Civilization: Greece
Best for: Infantry rally leaders

Argyraspides is supported by Greece's Infantry-focused bonuses, including Infantry Health and rallied-army damage.

This makes the unit particularly relevant for accounts that are built to lead or participate heavily in Infantry rallies.

Why S Tier: Excellent fit for a specialized Infantry rally role.

Berserker — Vikings

Type: Infantry
Civilization: Vikings
Best for: Counterattack-focused combat

The Berserker works especially well with the Viking civilization package. Vikings provide Infantry Attack and additional counterattack damage, creating a clear role for players who expect their marches to receive sustained pressure in combat.

Why S Tier: Strong Infantry identity with a specialized counterattack-focused role.

Janissary — Ottoman Empire

Type: Archer
Civilization: Ottoman Empire
Best for: Skill-damage Archer marches

The Janissary is supported by Ottoman bonuses that focus on Archer Health, march speed, and active skill damage.

This creates one of the clearest specialized Archer packages for accounts built around commanders and strategies that benefit from skill damage.

Why S Tier: Strong synergy for skill-damage-focused Archer builds.

Maryannu — Egypt

Type: Archer
Civilization: Egypt
Best for: Archer rallies

Egypt combines its Archer Special Unit with Archer Attack and rallied-army damage.

For players whose role involves leading or contributing heavily to Archer rallies, this gives Maryannu a clear strategic identity.

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

Teutonic Knight — Germany

Type: Cavalry
Civilization: Germany
Best for: General-purpose Cavalry accounts

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

These bonuses remain useful across different areas of gameplay, including troop development and active account progression.

Why S Tier: Excellent overall utility for a permanent Cavalry-focused main account.

Mamluk — Arabia

Type: Cavalry
Civilization: Arabia
Best for: Cavalry rallies

Arabia combines its Mamluk Special Unit with Cavalry Attack and rallied-army damage.

This makes the civilization particularly useful when your account has a clear role in leading rallies rather than simply using Cavalry for general open-field movement.

Why S Tier: Strong specialization for Cavalry rally leaders.

 

A Tier Troops

A-tier units are still strong options. Their lower placement does not mean they are weak; they simply offer more specialized value or less universal account utility than the S-tier choices above.

Legionary — Rome

Type: Infantry
Civilization: Rome
Best for: Mobile Infantry

The Legionary emphasizes Defense, while Rome also provides Infantry Defense and troop march speed.

This combination gives Rome a balanced Infantry package with additional mobility, making it attractive for players who value faster positioning without abandoning a defensive profile.

Spear-Thrower — Maya

Type: Archer
Civilization: Maya
Best for: Normal-damage-focused Archer marches

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

This makes Maya particularly relevant for setups that gain more value from normal attacks rather than focusing exclusively on active skill damage.

Cataphract — Byzantium

Type: Cavalry
Civilization: Byzantium
Best for: Durable Cavalry

Byzantium supports Cavalry with additional Health and Hospital capacity, while the Cataphract has a defensive profile.

This makes the package useful for players who prioritize survivability, although it offers less of the broad progression utility found in Germany or the rally specialization of Arabia.

 

B Tier Troops

These units remain useful, but their civilization packages are generally more focused on development, flexible progression, or specialized utility rather than a highly optimized late-game combat role.

Samurai — Japan

Type: Infantry
Civilization: Japan
Best for: General development and flexible accounts

The Samurai emphasizes Attack, while Japan provides general troop Attack and gathering-related benefits.

This makes Japan useful for flexible development, but it provides fewer specialized late-game Infantry advantages than more combat-focused civilizations.

Chu-Ko-Nu — China

Type: Archer
Civilization: China
Best for: Early development

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

China is therefore particularly useful during early account development, even if players later choose to switch toward a more specialized combat civilization.

Hwarang — Korea

Type: Archer
Civilization: Korea
Best for: Research progression

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

This makes the Hwarang package especially useful while pushing important technologies, although its primary value is more progression-focused than combat-specialized.

Conquistador — Spain

Type: Cavalry
Civilization: Spain
Best for: Commander leveling and secondary accounts

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

This can be useful during early development or on auxiliary accounts, but most dedicated combat accounts will gain more long-term value from a more specialized civilization.

 

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 normal T1–T5 troop progression system.

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 later tiers gradually unlock stronger units. T5 is the highest standard troop tier.

At T4 and T5, most civilizations can replace standard Infantry, Archer, or Cavalry troops with civilization-specific Special 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 the other civilization-specific Special Units.

General T1–T5 Progression

Troop Tier	Main Role
T1	Early-game progression and basic activities
T2	Intermediate progression
T3	Stronger mid-stage development
T4	Major combat milestone and Special Unit access
T5	Highest standard troop tier and late-game goal

T5 provides the highest troop tier among standard units, but reaching it requires substantial account development. As a result, most players benefit from developing a clear primary troop direction instead of trying to maximize every troop type equally.

 

Which Troop Type Should You Main?

Your Tier List choice should ultimately support your account rather than replace your existing strategy.

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

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

Choose Archers if your strongest commanders and long-term strategy focus on ranged damage or specialized Archer roles.

Use Siege primarily for its specialized utility. Siege has high load capacity and is particularly useful for gathering resources and structure-related tasks rather than serving as the primary focus of a PvP account.

The most important rule is to avoid spreading your resources across every direction without a plan.

Your:

• Commanders
• Military technology
• Equipment
• Civilization
• Preferred battlefield role

should all support the same primary troop direction.

 

Conclusion

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

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

For Archer players, Janissary and Maryannu offer particularly clear roles for skill damage and rallies.

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

The best way to use this Tier List is not to immediately switch civilizations for the highest-ranked unit. Instead, look at the unit as part of a complete account.

The strongest troop setup is the one where your Special Unit, civilization bonuses, commanders, and long-term investment all work together.