Quick Links
Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Editionis all about defending and attacking castles or meeting the foe out in the field. As such, having the best units is a must, although their prowess in battle must also beweighed against their costin Gold and the weapons and armor required to recruit them.
Some units alsofill unique roles, such as those involved in breaking down walls. Lastly, there are8 new Bedouin unitsin this latest edition, and some units from the original have been slightly buffed or nerfed, meaning anew tierlist of the bestStronghold Crusaderunitsis required. Players canuse cheatsor Free Build mode to test out all these units at no cost.
S Tier Units In Stronghold Crusader Definitive Edition
Knights
Knights are easilyone of the best units inStronghold Crusader, but recruiting them is not easy with lots of Iron needed for their equipment, as well ashorses from the Stables. They are the joint fastest in the game, allowing for surprise counterattacks.
Horse Archers
Thanks to greatmobility,range, andheavy armor, Horse Archers are considered atop-tier unitinStronghold Crusader.
Players cankite melee unitswith them, while raining down arrows.
Engineers
Engineers areincredibly useful, as they are the only ones capable ofbuilding and using siege equipment. Players will need plenty of them asmost siege equipment requires 2 or 4 mento man them.
They can build Portable Shields, Catapults, Trebuchets, Siege Towers, Battering Rams, and Fire Ballistas. Out of these,Catapults are considered the strongestgiven their mobility and devastating power.
A Tier Units In Stronghold Crusader Definitive Edition
Ambushers
Ambushers are essentiallyFire Throwers who hide until the last moment, making them devastating to attackers. If players have the Gold, they aremuch better than normal Fire Throwers, and can also beused to light Pitch Ditches.
Pikemen
Pikemen areone of the best defensive unitsthanks to their Metal Armor, and their Pikes canhold the enemyfor a long time atchoke points.
Crossbowmen
Crossbowmen are highly accurate andcan penetrate heavy armor, making themideal for defending the walls. However, theirslow movement speedmeans they aren’t good at attacking.
Camel Lancers
Seeing as theyonly cost 40 Gold, Camel Lancers are right up there with the other mounted units, especially when deployed in large numbers. Think of them as acheaper but lighter alternative to Knights. Use them to chase down enemies.
Sappers
Sappers are used tobreak down enemy walls, and can be particularly good, seeing as theytake less damage from fire. Send in a medium-sized group of Sappers and they will bring a wall down in no time, given the right protection.
Heavy Camels
Out of the new units introduced, Heavy Camels are easily one of the most interesting, serving as aversatile tank. This is thanks to them having an archer and melee unit on the camel’s back. Whilenot as fast as other mounted units, they aren’t much slower than Archers and can defend against melee attackers.
Heavy Camels also seem to counter Horse Archers, which are popular.
B Tier Units In Stronghold Crusader Definitive Edition
Monks
If players are able to afford1000 Gold to build a Cathedral, then Monks become one of the best units atjust 10 Gold per head. They are tough in battle and deal decent damage, but alsofairly slow.
Swordsmen
Whilstincredibly slow, Swordmen are an elite unit once they reach the enemy,dealing lots of damagewhilst shaking off returning blows.
Arabian Swordsmen
As Arabian Swordsmen areslightly faster than standard Swordsmen, they are better at attacking the foe, although this is at the cost ofless armor. Theircost isn’t too higheither, seeing as no equipment is required.
Fire Throwers
These unitsthrow fiery grenades, ideally from a wall or tower where they will have increased range. Try toprotect Fire Throwers from ranged unitswho will be sent in first to neutralize them. Fire Throwers can alsoset Pitch Ditches alight.
Having a few of these when defending is ideal.
Assassins
Assassins use grappling hooks toclimb enemy walls. They can theninfiltrate gatehousesand raise the gate. Their stealth helps them do so, and they can eventake down heavily armored foesin single combat.
For how useful they can be,60 Gold isn’t too much to ask, but if used badly, they will die before achieving anything.
Healers
Havingone or two Healers can be great, especially when defending against waves of attacks. They can be abit of a hassle to micromanagegiven their short range, but there isno other way to healtroops in the game.
Archers
Requiring only woodfor the production of their bows, Archers areeasy to field earlyand in large numbers. While theystruggle against armored targets, they are great for manning thewalls of a defensecheaply, or for taking out Fire Throwers from range before sieging.
Archers are great forbeginners inStronghold Crusader.
Skirmishers
For just 25 Gold, large numbers of Skirmishers can serve asbetter arrow fodder than slaves, whilst being able to take out some foes bythrowing their spears. They are alsogood at destroying siege equipment.
Their high speed also means they can be moved around to protect or attack specific targets.
Tunnelers
Tunnelers are a unique unit as theydig tunnels under wallsto eventuallybring them down. The downside to Tunnelers is that playersmust build a Guild for 100 Gold, and it has no other purpose than to recruit them.
C Tier Units In Stronghold Crusader Definitive Edition
Macemen
Macemen arefairly fast and deal good damage, but only wearing Leather Armor, they arevulnerable to missile attacks. They can alsoscale ladders.
Eunuchs
Eunuchs are alternatives to Pikemen,excelling at defending choke pointswhere they can use AoE damage towipe out multiple attackers at once. Given theirhigh price, however, players should usually go with Pikemen unless they have no resources for equipment.
Slaves
Slaves areincredibly cheapand can be used asarrow fodder to distract defenders. In large numbers, they can set a castle or resources on fire.
Slingers
Slingers are a good early game unitagainst unarmored foes. They are thecheapest ranged units, but do suffer fromshort range, so they will die to Archers before being able to attack.
Demolishers
Demolishers aretanky, but slowerversions of Sappers. They use ashield to protect themselvesas they approach the walls, and impressively, they willspot and disable traps. Consider sending them in first, followed by some cheaper Sappers.
D Tier Units In Stronghold Crusader Definitive Edition
Spearmen
Spearmen arefast but vulnerabledue to wearing no armor, and they are alsocheap to produceas Spears only use 1 Wood. They can alsoscale ladders or push them away.
These lower-tier units can alsodig moats inStronghold Crusader.
Arabian Bowmen
The Arabian Bowmen are similar to normal Bowmen, but theircost is rather high, so they should only be considered when you have no wood for Bows. Slingers are also considered more cost-efficient.
Laddermen
Whilstincredibly cheapto recruit, Laddermenrarely make it to a castle’s walls, making them useless without the right tactics.
