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Spy

The scout: hidden from the rival until it is detected, it sees twice as far and takes neutral land.

The spy sees 2 times as far as the others (566) and is the fastest unit (168.8). It is trained at the Monastery, from Level 2 · Full war.

Hidden and detected

A spy is hidden: the rival does not see it, even in its sight, and nothing may strike it but a Pirate Cannon’s blind ball. It is detected while it stands within 90 of a rival soldier (a monk included), 160 of a rival spy, or 200 of a Tower or the Castle, and for 3 s after it leaves the last of them, or after it strikes. In a forest those distances shrink to 50 %. Pawns, buildings with no archers and monsters detect nothing.

Detected, it is a unit like any other: seen, and fair game for soldiers and towers. Your own spies show half transparent while they are hidden; when one is detected you hear it and read Our spy is spotted!.

On its own

  • Detected, with a rival soldier or tower near, it runs for your land, round the rings your side knows of, and fights nothing on the way.
  • Hidden and standing idle, it steps out of a rival soldier’s or tower’s ring it comes within 30 of.
  • It strikes its prey only with no rival soldier or tower within 300; marking the prey yourself sends it anyway.
  • A Move order you give it is walked as drawn: no running, no stepping out.

Sabotage

With only spies in hand, the hand panel shows their acts: pick one, then a rival building (or the gold mine it works). Clicking a rival building with spies in hand does its natural act. Each spy walks there round the rings your side knows of, stands at the target a moment, and the act lands: the spy is detected for 6 s and runs home. A blow that lands on it on the way or at work breaks the act. A target that took an act takes none for 60 s.

  • Stop the mine (a rival house or castle): its pawns shelter for 20 s; the mine pays nothing meanwhile.
  • Stall (a rival barracks, archery or monastery): its training stands still for 20 s.
  • Burn (any rival building but the castle): it burns for 15 s, losing 25 % of its hit points, never the last one; a soldier of its side standing by it for 3 s puts the fire out.
  • Steal (a rival house): 10 % of the rival’s gold, 100 at most, out of its treasury at once; it counts for you once the spy stands in your land, and goes back to the rival if the spy falls on the way.

Bot-Normal and Bot-Hard sabotage too: a spy every 150 s and 90 s, on what they have seen of your land, and one stalls your training as their assault begins. A tower by your mines, a patrol, your own spies: they see spies.

What a spy may do

  • It walks past an army unseen, unless it comes within a soldier’s distance above.
  • It fights enemy spies, and monks with no escort: each blow gives it away.
  • It takes only neutral provinces, and counts only where no troops stand: it never takes or holds the rival’s land; alone it takes one in 24 s (provinces).

How to use it

  • Scout the rival’s buildings and army: the fog shows you only what your side sees.
  • Grab the empty provinces far from the war.