The Art of War is the heart and soul of the fine world of Utopia. While peace has it's place, War is essentially what makes the world go 'round here. War is your way of making a name for yourself not only on your own kingdom, but around the world. But beware -- too many enemies and you may not live to see tomorrow. I cannot make you a masterful general - that can only be learned through experiences of success and patience through failures.

I will, however, take this opportunity to offer you the various strategic attacks you can make and the benefits of each. You should be aware that sending your army out to battle takes time, as your forces must rest and recuperate before returning to available duty.

Risk & Reward
With risk comes reward. Remember this forever during your time here in Utopia. There will be plenty of opportunities to attack the smaller, weaker lands around the world. There will be plenty of bullies looking to attack you. There will be plenty of chances to feed on the remains of provinces ravished by others. The Lords understand this is not noble, and they will see to it that this behavior is not rewarded.

On the other hand, attack with honor, and you shall reap amazing rewards. Attack provinces worthy of yourself and you will gain numerous resources, lands, and people. Attack within the confines of war and your rewards will be that much greater.

Attacking Your Friends
Provinces within your kingdom are your friends. While conflict is inevitable, the Utopian Lords frown upon war amongst partners. On the other hand, war within your own kingdom can have a purpose -- to eliminate troublemakers, establish dominance, and complement diplomacy. Attacking a province within your kingdom will thus cause enormous damage, but will result in very little benefit to you. Use intra-kingdom combat sparingly and wisely, or you will find yourself wasting resources. Intra-kingdom attacks are limited to Traditional Marches and Raze Attacks.

Travel and Rest
Attacks are missions which take both time and effort to carry out, and subsequent rest for your military forces. Attacks against nearby islands will require about 20 days to complete -- this includes time spent attacking, resting, and preparing your new land or other resources for use. Attacks to islands farther away can take longer, as shown on the Attack Menu within your War Room.

War Horses
War Horses provide military benefits to a province. When sent with the army, they allow your military to fight with more power. You may include up to one horse per military unit sent in combat, and each offers an additional point of offensive strength.

Mercenaries
In addition to your own troops, you will have the opportunity to hire mercenaries to help invade neighboring lands. These mercenaries serve under you for only a single attack, and they expect their reward in gold. While Mercenaries can give you military might you couldn't otherwise achieve, be warned that you will pay a steep price in doing so. You will also learn that you can capture and hold enemy prisoners of war to serve as free mercenaries through the construction of Dungeons on your lands.

Understanding War
When going to war, it is important to understand there are inherent advantages to working through the diplomatic channels of your kingdom. As a loner, you will likely gain relatively little land & resources from attacks. Be sure to view your Kingdom Relations and understand the differences between attacking Kingdoms with which you are At War and those with which you have no relations.

The Plague
The Undead are a unique race of creatures who carry a rare disease known in Utopia simply as The Plague. Each time an Undead province -- or any province infected with the Plague -- successfully attacks or is attacked by another province, there is a small chance they will transmit The Plague to that province. While infected with The Plague, the province will have no population growth. Due to illness, utilization drops, your military will have trouble defending your land, and tax collection will be hampered (-15% Military Defense; -10% Utilization; -15% Tax Collection). The Plague will naturally be cured, on average in 10 to 12 Utopian Days -- at most, no more than 1 Utopian Month. Hospitals can help increase the pace of the cure, and Nature's Blessing has a chance of curing the plague from all your lands.

Your Attack Options
Traditional
March
A fairly simple attack, the Traditional March sends your army to march through an enemy's lands, destroying their military resistance, and capturing a portion of their land. You will find this to be the most common and beneficial form of combat.
Raze If your intent is simply to do damage to your opponent, razing their lands -- invading and burning their land and buildings -- is an excellent route to go. Because your army does not need to take great care in the attack, your forces fight far more effectively. Unfortunately, there are no gains to this form of combat.
Plunder Looting an opponent can yield amazing wonders. Sending your army in with the specific intent to loot an opponent allows you to steal a portion of your enemy's gold, food, and runes.
Learn By stealing an opponent's knowledge in the Arts & Sciences, you can gain a distinct advantage without spending your own time and resources in this area.
Massacre An unethical but brutally effective attack, this action sends your troops on a Rampage through an opponent's to seek out and eliminate Peasants, Thieves, and Wizards from around the province. This type of attack helps weaken an opponent's ability to retaliate against future actions of yours.
Conquest Available only in times of WAR, this attack sends your military on a mission of limited conquest. Smaller in scale than the Traditional March, this attack does not require the complete defeat of your opponent to capture territory. Depending on the amount of military sent, you can go out and capture smaller portions of your opponent's land. Beware, however, of sending too little military -- your opponent may still ward off your assault in its entirety.