Goal
Use the correct troops and bonuses to minimize losses when attacking a Citadel. The calculator sizes each wave for you.
Most important rule
Maximize First Striker health. In a proper attack, the First Striker is the only group that should take losses. First Striker count CAN be higher than calculated. Every other troop MUST be the exact number shown.
First Striker
Must be your strongest flying Guardsmen: Corax or Griffin (Royal Lion when using M8/M9).
Captains
Recommended: Wu Zetian, Brunhild, Skadi, Beowulf, Aydae, Ramses, Sofia.
Artifacts
Use artifacts that increase Health for Flying, Guardsmen, or the Army.
Health bonus
Enter Health % on Wall Killer and every striker. Same family (all Corax, all Phoenix, etc.) shares one value. First Striker health still decides how many extra troops you send for the citadel opening hit.
Assault simulation
After the wall falls, initiative is 50/50. Calculate shows both cases: you strike first, and the citadel strikes first. Estimated losses follow community squad data (Life Dragon, Pegasus Rider, Centaur, Ent, Bear). Names and exact traits can differ from a live report. The sim does not model double attacks or blocking.
Recalculate
After any strength or health bonus change, enter the new bonuses and press Calculate again. Small changes matter.
How to find your bonuses
The dragon cannot join citadel attacks. Do not include dragon bonuses in the numbers you enter here. If the dragon is in the city, barracks Strength/Health will be too high — send it to a clan fort first (or leave it out of the reference march).
Copy the Strength and Health % that will actually be on the citadel march. Barracks numbers are not the same as a fight: they include whoever is currently in the city (hero talents/gear if the hero is home, and dragon bonuses if the dragon is home).
Best: attack a level 10 Citadel with 10 of each troop you will use, with the same hero/captains (or captains only), gear, artifacts and boosts as the real hit. Open the report, tap each troop, and copy Strength and Health from there. Hero bonuses are already in those numbers if the hero marched. Dragon bonuses are not, because the dragon cannot go.
Barracks shortcut: park the dragon at a fort so its bonus is not in the barracks. If the citadel march is captains only, park the hero too and copy research + captains/artifacts. If you will attack with the hero, leave the hero in the city (or copy from a report with the hero) — bringing the hero after a captains-only reading will raise the % and the calculator will undercount troops / misread losses.
For a full walkthrough with examples, read How to use the Citadel Calculator.
