Defense Strategy/Tactics: Peek-a-Boo

This is for when you are online:

This works best if you have a fairly strong army, but can be adapted. It has risks, just like any plan, but can work in the right situations, just like any plan.

Have 3k+ scouts in each city. Keep gates open. If they scout with too few scouts, your scouts will kill them and they will get no info. If they have enough scouts, they kill your scouts and get info BUT you still get a report on their scouting. Both instances give you advance warning that someone is looking at ya.

Have at least a level 8 Beacon Tower in each city. Keep an eye on the "Enemy" tab in Reports. This is where an incoming army warning will be shown by your Beacon. After they attempt and fail in scouting you, you are pre-alerted and can keep a closer eye on the "Enemy" tab for a follow-up probe attack. If you get a warning, click on view to see what details you get. If their initial scout failed, they will usually send in a probe attack of fairly light numbers to see what ya got and to check if gates are open.

This is the important part

IF you think it is a probe and that your wall defenses can easily take care of it, then you can play with their minds a bit. Make sure your gates are still OPEN. When they are less than an hour away, select a nearby valley, preferably right next to your city, and click attack. In that screen, in the Camp Time field, put in 2 hours. Then add everything but a token number of troops into the attack. The idea is to leave behind maybe 500 warriors, 500 archers, 10 pike....etc, something that will make it look like a city with few troops.

When their attack hits, they will see that the gate was open and think that they killed all your troops, and/or that you have very few troops there. Then, *hopefully*, they will send a main attack with just enough to take out your wall defenses without worrying about any troops you have.

AFTER the probe attack finishes, recall your troops and they should be back within seconds....cause the Camp Time only counts for the way out...NOT the way back.

Now wait for the main attack and hope they are unpleasantly surprised when they get to ya.

The idea is to let them think they are getting an illicit Peek...and then you go BOO