To be a successful attack or defender, you need to understand courtyard bonuses.
Defense:
If you are DEFENDING, you must win at least ONE flank, in order to prevent the attacker from getting a 30% Courtyard Bonus.
If you are able to defend two flanks, then the attacker gets a -30% Courtyard Bonus.
Attack:
If you are ATTACKING, you need to win on at least TWO flanks in order to prevent the defender from getting the 30% Courtyard Bonus.
If you win at two flanks, then you and the defender both get 0% Courtyard Bonus.
If you win at three flanks, then you get a 30% Courtyard Bonus as the attacker.
This bonus is critical in helping the defender (or the attacker). It can mean the difference between a win, and a painful loss.
Castle Defenses:
Always have 0 – 0 – 100 (or 100 – 0 – 0) for defenses. You can tailor this to the attack if you are online during the attack. I’ll discuss that in more detail in another post.
Generally, you want your Melee/Range setup as a 70/30 mix.
And ALWAYS go for the best Melee/Range equipment you can put on your attacking commanders, and defending castellans.