ATTACK ORDER 101! Learn Skills & Formations NOW! Age of Empires Mobile

Storyline

• The video doesn’t focus on a narrative storyline. It instead frames combat “order” mechanics as the foundation for winning battles in Age of Empires Mobile.

Gameplay highlights: Attack order & skill mechanics

Squad editing / formation order

• Go to Squad Editing and click the question mark to see in-game explanations of the mechanics.

Turn-based commander attacks (the core concept)

• Three heroes take turns leading units into attacks, with each turn lasting 1 second.
• Units can still attack even if their corresponding hero slot is empty during that turn.
• When a hero’s skills activate/effect matters depends on when that hero’s turn occurs.

Skill types determine activation behavior

Signature skill (check priority)

• On a hero’s action:
  • The hero first checks the signature skill.
  • Then it checks other skills to the right/left in a consistent order (described as left-to-right).

Active skills

• For heroes with active skill setups:
  • They have a chance to activate every time the hero acts.
• Example mentioned as active-skill users:
  • Amaterasu, King Knud, Ramses, Lagertha, Pyrrhus, Confucius
• Activation chance example stated:
  • ~28% each time the hero acts (as stated in the video).

Secondary strike skills

• These activate based on the hero’s normal attack hit chance.
• Example stated:
  • ~20%

Commander order controls the rotation

• The first hero in formation attacks first, then the second, then the third.
• Because of this, outcomes depend heavily on who sits in which slot, including:
  • buffs
  • “next hero” effects
  • skill triggers

Key strategy / formation principles (what to do)

1) Always build around the timing of skill activations

• The creator emphasizes that optimal formations are about ensuring the right skills trigger at the right second to maximize:
  • damage output
  • survivability

2) Example: Zhao Yun + Liu Bu targeting / damage state timing

• A formation example is used to show how “next hero” mechanics behave depending on placement.
• The takeaway: putting heroes in the wrong order changes which hero receives the intended power-up / double-attack state.

3) Example: Confirming turn order with turn-based skill activation

• A formation using heroes such as Julius Caesar, Qin Shi Huangdi, Octavian (with multiple turn-based skills shown, e.g.):
  • “The King Without a Crown,” “King’s Blade,” “Savage,” “Peaceful Harbor,” “Emperor of Ages,” “Power of the Ruler,” “Triple Onslaught,” etc.
• Notes from the creator:
  • Some skills don’t activate again while an existing effect is still active (e.g., “King’s Blade” not repeating immediately).
  • Observed activations follow the same repeating rotation, supporting earlier claims about attack order.

Recommended formation guidance (hero placement logic)

Core “why” behind common placements

• The creator argues that certain metas put commanders in specific slots so that:
  • Primary DPS activates early
  • Enabling/support effects land on the key DPS at the right moment
  • Damage scales against remaining troop counts (early burst leaves fewer troops for the enemy to respond with)

Example: King Knud / Lagertha / Scipio style placement

• Recommended slot idea:
  • King Knud first (primary DPS)
  • Lagertha second (enabler)
  • Scipio later (support/passive-focused)
• Reasoning:
  • Scipio’s passives are described as less important than the specific enabling/judgment impact from Lagertha.
  • Placing Lagertha in the second slot is said to improve activation timing and burst windows (the creator frames this as supported by testing trends: winning frequently unless the enemy gets unusually lucky activations).

Example: Tactical Swordsman (Ramses vs Pius) + Confucius placement

• Placement suggestion:
  • Put Ramses instead of Pius (stated as “100%” in the video).
  • Put Confucius so his signature active healing applies as early as possible.
• Reasoning:
  • Faster healing creates more opportunities for additional activations for the main commander (the chain accelerates when healing happens sooner).
  • If the hero has multiple passives (the video mentions “Mysterious Ball Dance” as an example), placement matters less because passives still function regardless.

Pikemen-specific note (what changes)

• The creator says pikemen support placement usually doesn’t matter much because many relevant builds rely on passives.
• Potential exception:
  • Treatment/healing limits per turn can cause one hero to heal less if another exhausts the maximum heal for that turn.
• Testing suggestion:
  • Test who heals more if you place Roland or Mansa first, since timing may affect how much healing is allowed before the limit is reached.
• Vlad mention:
  • References Vlad vs Roland for pikemen in specific modes (“Miracles” and “Battle of Dawn”), claiming Vlad can perform better in 1v1 / more frequent close fights.

Other damage-order guidance (secondary attack users)

• For heroes whose kits rely on active/secondary activation, the general takeaway is:
  • Put the main DPS so their damage triggers on the earliest turns.

Example: Liu Bu / Attila / Zhao

• Recommended configuration for full 5-star lineups:
  • Liu Bu first, Attila next, Zhao last (as framed by the creator).
• Why:
  • If Liu Bu doesn’t deal damage on turn 1, the team “loses more often” because fewer enemy troops remain after the first burst, and the key turn-based damage tempo is disrupted.
• Conditional exception noted:
  • A higher-star Zhao in the main position is only recommended if:
    • Liu Bu is only 3-star, and
    • Attila/Zhao star ratings match the creator’s specific example scenario.

Final takeaway / key tips

• Formation order matters most because:
  • Commander turns are fixed (1st/2nd/3rd slots)
  • Skill effectiveness and activations happen on the hero’s turn
  • Success often comes from early burst and reducing enemy troop counts before they can respond

Gamers / sources featured

• Snick (creator/host)
• In-game sources/characters referenced as examples (not “channels”):
  • Amaterasu, King Knud, Ramses, Lagertha, Pyrrhus, Confucius, Zhao Yun, Liu Bu, Julius Caesar, Qin Shi Huangdi, Octavian, King Canute, Scipio Africanus, Tactical Swordsman, Pius, Zhuge Liang, Roland, Mansa, Vlad, Cyrus, Attila the Hun, Sagarm (mentioned as doing testing)