China is the best starting civilization in Rise of Kingdoms because construction time is the primary bottleneck for new accounts. Choosing China awards Sun Tzu—the strongest starting epic commander—alongside a permanent 5% building speed buff that shortens the prerequisites required to unlock higher-tier troops.
Keep China as your civilization until your City Hall reaches Level 21 or Level 22, at which point you should use your free Civilization Change item to switch to Germany.
Why China Outperforms Other Starter Civilizations
Early account progression revolves entirely around upgrading your City Hall to reach Tier 3 and Tier 4 troops. Because construction timers quickly scale from hours to multiple days, building speed offers far more immediate value than troop training or research boosts.
China provides three distinct civilization bonuses:
- +5% Building Speed: Directly reduces construction timers on every building prerequisite, saving hundreds of hours of construction speedups across your early progression.
- +5% Troop Defense: Applies universally across infantry, cavalry, and archers. Because early accounts must field mixed-troop armies, universal defense provides consistent value where single-troop civilization buffs fail.
- +5% Action Point (AP) Recovery: Increases your AP regeneration, allowing you to defeat more barbarians to earn commander experience tomes and speedups.
The Value of Starting with Sun Tzu
China gives you Sun Tzu as your initial commander and provides his sculptures through early main quests, letting you expertise him much faster than commanders unlocked later. Unlike most epic commanders who lose relevance after the early game, an expertised Sun Tzu remains competitive in Kingdom vs. Kingdom (KvK) Season 1 and Sunset Canyon.
- Area-of-Effect (AoE) Damage: His primary active skill, Art of War, hits up to five targets in a frontal fan once fully upgraded.
- Rapid Rage Cycling: Art of War restores 50 rage for every target it strikes, letting Sun Tzu trigger his active skill repeatedly in clustered fights.
- Universal Damage Buffs: His passive skills provide 10% damage reduction, a 10% infantry health bonus, and a 20% increase to all active skill damage, which also amplifies whichever secondary commander you pair with him.
Crucial Upgrade Step: Do not increase Sun Tzu's star rating past one star until his primary skill, Art of War, reaches Level 5 (following the 5-1-1-1 rule). Promoting a commander prematurely risks allocating random skill points into their passive abilities rather than maximizing their main offensive skill.
Comparing Alternative Starting Civilizations
Other civilizations fall behind early because their bonuses target stats that new accounts cannot efficiently use.
| Civilization | Starter Commander | Key Bonuses | Early-Game Drawback |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | Sun Tzu | +5% Building Speed, +5% Troop Defense, +5% AP Recovery | None; building buff matches the primary early bottleneck. |
| Britain | Boudica | +5% Training Speed, +5% Archer Attack, +5 Ally Garrison Capacity | Training low-tier units wastes the training buff; Lohar replaces Boudica. |
| Rome | Scipio Africanus | +5% Infantry Defense, +5% March Speed, +10% Food Gathering | Scipio lacks AoE damage, slowing PvE and expedition clears. |
| France | Joan of Arc | +3% Troop Health, +10% Wood Gathering, +20% Hospital Healing | Joan functions strictly as a support buffer, leaving marches without direct damage. |
| Germany | Hermann | +5% AP Recovery, +5% Training Speed, +5% Cavalry Attack | Lacks building speed; Hermann and archers are too fragile for early combat. |
When to Switch Civilizations
Upgrading your City Hall to Level 10 rewards one free Civilization Change token. Do not use this token immediately. Additional civilization changes cost 10,000 gems, and switching away from China early strips away your building buff right as construction timers begin taking several days.
- Maintain China until City Hall 21 or 22: City Hall 21 unlocks Tier 4 troops, while City Hall 22 unlocks your fifth march queue. Keep China active until reaching one of these milestones.
- Switch to Germany: Once Tier 4 units are unlocked, your primary bottleneck shifts from construction timers to troop recruitment and technology research. Germany provides a 5% troop training speed buff, a 5% cavalry attack increase, and a 10% AP recovery rate, significantly cutting the speedup cost needed to train full Tier 4 armies.
Immediate Progression Steps for China Accounts
To get the most out of your China start, align your daily resources with these actions:
- Rush City Hall Requirements: Do not level every farm and quarry evenly. Upgrade only the specific prerequisite structures required to begin the next City Hall level, aiming directly for City Hall 16 (Tier 3 troops) and City Hall 21 (Tier 4 troops).
- Invest Gems into VIP 6: Spend all early gem rewards on VIP points until you reach VIP Level 6. VIP 6 permanently unlocks a second building queue, allowing you to run two simultaneous construction upgrades under China's 5% speed bonus.
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Emily Johnson
Emily writes practical mobile strategy guides with a focus on resource planning, base progression, and the early decisions that shape a long-term account.
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Player Comments
100 players commented on this guide.
Nice guide. I am checking the other Rise of Kingdoms articles next.
This saved me time in the early game.
The explanation is clear, especially for beginners.
I tried this today and it worked better than my old setup.