Total Battle Academy Research

A well-researched player at Capitol 15 beats a poorly-researched one at Capitol 20.

New player priority: Push Guardsmen to G4 (unlocks Artifacts, a major captain/might boost), then shift focus to Archeology and Economy while continuing toward G5. If you are still finding your feet, the getting started guide covers the basics before you optimize research.

Branch Priority by Phase

Branch	Cap <10	10–14	15–19	20–24	25–29	30–35
Economy	🔴	🔴	🔴	🔴	🟠	🟡
Guardsmen	🔴	🔴	🔴	🔴	🔴	🟠
Archeology	🔴	🔴	🔴	🔴	🔴	🔴
Specialists	🟡	🟠	🔴	🔴	🔴	🔴
Logistics	🟡	🟠	🟠	🟠	🟡	🟡
Blacksmith	🟡	🟡	🟠	🟠	🟠	🟠
Army Mod.	🟡	🟡	🟡	🟠	🟠	🔴
Monsters	-	-	🟡	🟠	🟠	🔴
Engineers	-	-	🟡	🟠	🟠	🟠

CP specifically

When spending CP (as opposed to VP), lead with Army Modernization. It buffs every army type you field at once (Guardsmen, Specialists, Monsters, Mercenaries), so each CP invested there returns value across your entire roster. Specialists are still a Red priority for PvP unlocks, but they only buff one army type; fund Army Mod first within your CP budget, and plan a run with the CP run calculator.

Gate Checklist

Each unlock requires both the research node level and the Academy building level. The city buildings guide shows where the Academy should sit relative to your Capitol.

Unlock	Research Node → Level	Academy
G2 Guardsmen	Carrying Capacity I → Lv4	10
G3 Guardsmen	March Speed I (Guardsmen) → Lv6	15
Crypts III / Epic Crypts	Crypt Exploration Cost I → Lv6	15
Crypts IV	Crypt Exploration Efficiency II → Lv8	20
Crypts V	Chance to Explore Twice II → Lv10	25

Research Strategy

Each branch has sections separated by gate nodes (lock icon). Push the gate node to its threshold + Academy level to unlock the next section. Alternate between vertical (push gate nodes fast) and horizontal (level support nodes to Lv3–5 for ~50–70% of total value at a fraction of the cost).

Key research habits: (1) Queue before bed; never let the Academy idle. (2) Archeology from day one, since gear/gems compound into everything. (3) Farm VP daily via monster hunting (the daily checklist keeps this routine going), since all research costs VP.

Milestones

Milestone 0: Foundation (Capitol < 10)

Lead with this 4-node opener, in order. Push each to Lv10 before starting the next: early levels give minor bonuses, and the payoff is concentrated in the final levels.

Order	Node	Branch	Target
1	Map Resource Gathering I	Economy	Lv10
2	Guards Training Cost I	Guardsmen	Lv10
3	Crypt Exploration Efficiency I	Archeology	Lv10
4	Crypt Exploration Cost I	Archeology	Lv10

After the opener, move on to Riders II / Spearmen II / Archers II as cheap Tier II unlocks, then loop back to economy and Archeology before pushing Guardsmen III. Repeat that rhythm (economy → tier unlock → economy) through all of Milestone 0 and into Milestone 1.

Within the same phase, keep these side tracks moving:

Priority	Nodes	Target
Gate	Carrying Capacity I (Guardsmen)	Lv4 (G2 gate)
Economy	Food / Silver Production I	Lv4–5
Prereqs	Archers / Spearmen / Riders I	Lv1+
Backfill	Tar Prod/Cap I, Food/Silver Cap I	Lv3–4
Light	Double-Strike I, Build/Research Speed I, Socketing I, Army Str/Health I	Lv1–2

Spearmen have the highest carry capacity (250 units), making them the preferred gathering troop. Locate the Specialists branch (Swordsmen deal 2× attack vs. players); no investment yet. Note: Tar Production is labeled “Torch Oil Production” in some server localizations; it’s the same resource.

Don’t hoard for a tier unlock

Unless you have real money to spend, never save VP to unlock a higher troop tier before key economy and crypt nodes are done. You’ll be resource-starved the moment the new tier opens.

Milestone 1: G2 Preparation (Capitol 10–14)

Priority	Nodes	Target
Gate	March Speed I (Guardsmen, not the Logistics version)	Lv6 (G3 gate)
Gate	Crypt Exploration Cost I (Archeology)	Lv4–6 (Crypts III gate at Lv6)
Economy	Food / Silver Production I	Lv6–7
Troops	Archers/Spearmen/Riders II	Lv3–4
Crypt	Crypt Efficiency I	Lv6
Backfill	Food/Silver Cap I, Build/Research Speed I, Tar Prod/Cap II, Double-Strike I	Lv3–5

Start Swordsmen I (Specialists). Contribute to Clan University (separate parallel research for the whole clan).

Milestone 2: G3 + Crypts III (Capitol 15–19)

Priority	Nodes	Target
Gate	Guardsmen Section III gate node	Toward Lv8 (G4 path)
Gate	Crypt Efficiency II (Archeology)	Toward Lv8 (Crypts IV gate)
Economy	Food / Silver Production II	Lv4–5
Troops	Archers/Spearmen/Riders III	Lv3–4
Specialist	Swordsmen II	Lv3–4
Backfill	Build/Research Speed I, Tar Prod/Cap III, Blacksmith Tier I	Lv5–6

Epic Crypts (level-15 crypts, much better gear materials) become accessible once Crypts III is unlocked.

Specialization fork: PvE → deep Guardsmen + Archeology. PvP → Specialists + Army Mod. Balanced (recommended) → all three progressing, economy leading. Start Engineers if your clan attacks citadels.

Milestone 3: G4 + Crypts IV + Artifacts (Capitol 20–24)

Priority	Nodes	Target
Gate	Guardsmen Section IV gate node	Toward Lv10 (G5 path)
Gate	Crypt Efficiency II (Archeology)	Lv8 (Crypts IV gate)
Gate	Chance to Explore Twice II (Archeology)	Toward Lv10 (Crypts V gate)
Economy	Food / Silver Production II	Lv6–8
Troops	Archers/Spearmen/Riders IV	Lv3–4
Specialist	Swordsmen III	Lv3+
Army Mod	Ranged/Mounted/Melee Strength I, Army Str/Health I	Lv3–5
Backfill	Build/Research Speed II, Training Cost III, Tar Prod/Cap	Lv3–4

G4 unlocks the Artifacts system, a major progression boost. Push Engineers to T2 if your clan attacks citadels.

Milestone 4: G5 + Crypts V (Capitol 25–29)

Priority	Nodes	Target
Gate	Chance to Explore Twice II (Archeology)	Lv10 (Crypts V gate)
Economy	Food / Silver Production III	Lv4–5
Troops	Archers/Spearmen/Riders V, Battle Griffins	Lv3–4 / Lv2–3
Specialist	Swordsmen IV–V	Push hard
Monsters	Begin/continue branch	-
Army Mod	All Strength nodes	Lv5–7
Crypt	All Efficiency and Cost nodes	Lv8+
Blacksmith	Tier II: Lv6–8. Tier III: Lv1–3 if active	-

Milestone 5: Late Game (Capitol 30–35)

Push all Crypt Efficiency/Cost nodes to Lv8–10 (Crypts VI at Academy 30, VII at 35). Consolidate: all Guardsmen + Griffins Lv8–10, all Specialists Lv8–10, Monsters Lv6–10, Engineers Lv4–8, Army Mod Lv8–10. Blacksmith Tier III: Lv5–8; Tier IV only for dedicated crafters.

Research cost reference

For exact VP and RSS costs per node and level, see the community-maintained Academy Research Costs sheet compiled by MrT Legal and the Alpha Ad Omega family (Kingdom 74). The Tier Upgrade VP Calculator uses a snapshot of its Guardsmen I branch to pre-compute VP targets for each section.