State of Survival Troop Ratios: Infantry, Rider, and Hunter Guide

To prevent catastrophic casualties in State of Survival, avoid the game's default equal troop split (33% Infantry, 33% Riders, 34% Hunters). Combat calculates damage sequentially from front to back. If your Infantry frontline collapses early, your Riders and Hunters take direct incoming attacks and fill your hospital with minimal offensive return.

Keep your frontline sturdy by deploying at least 40% to 60% Infantry depending on the combat mode, allowing your backline damage dealers enough time to trade effectively.

Troop Class Roles and Priorities

Each unit type occupies a specific combat position and serves a distinct function. Neglecting frontline survivability invalidates backline offensive investments.

Troop Class	Battlefield Line	Primary Role	Key Stats	Primary Weakness
Infantry	Frontline	Damage absorption and shielding	Health, Defense	Direct attrition from sustained fire
Riders	Midline / Flank	Flank pressure and backline targeting	Lethality, Defense	Rapid collapse once Infantry breaks
Hunters	Backline	Sustained ranged damage	Attack, Lethality	Zero survivability when exposed

When an opposing defense stacks high Infantry Health and Defense, under-protected Hunters and Riders inflict negligible early damage while suffering high wounded rates from counterattacks.

Recommended March Formations

Select your march ratio based on whether you are fighting solo, leading an alliance rally, or defending a settlement.

The 60/20/20 Solo and Open-Field March

Use this ratio for resource tile contests, Bunker skirmishes, and general solo attacks:

60% Infantry: Provides the meatshield depth required to absorb opening attacks and enemy hero skill triggers.
20% Riders: Delivers secondary burst damage to clear enemy flankers without taking excessive mid-tier wounded.
20% Hunters: Safely delivers sustained backline damage across multiple combat rounds.

The 40/30/30 Alliance Rally Formation

Rally leaders with high offensive stats can run a more aggressive composition against heavily defended targets:

40% Infantry: Acts as an initial frontline anchor, designed to be supplemented by alliance reinforcements.
30% Riders: Pressures defending backlines directly.
30% Hunters: Maximizes pure damage output to eliminate defenders before rally morale drops.

Note for rally joiners: Do not send default ratios to an alliance rally. Follow the rally leader's designated instructions, which frequently require 100% Infantry or specific unit types to avoid diluting the leader's hero buffs.

Settlement and Garrison Defense Rules

Defenders cannot choose when an enemy strikes, making frontline depth critical for garrison stability:

Maintain at least 50% Infantry: Never let your stationed garrison drop below half Infantry. If an incoming rally breaks your frontline, defending Hunters and Riders suffer direct fatal or hospital-filling losses.
Screen incoming reinforcements: During Kill Events or State vs. State (SvS), ensure reinforcing allies do not overload your base with low-tier Hunters or Riders. Unbalanced reinforcements dilute your frontline ratio and accelerate defensive failure.
Replenish wounded frontlines immediately: After surviving an attack with heavy Infantry losses, recall or retrain Infantry before taking another hit. A garrison composed primarily of surviving backline units will collapse on the next march.

Research and Gear Progression Order

To keep Riders and Hunters viable, allocate upgrade resources to frontline survivability first:

Chief and Hero Gear: Prioritize Infantry Health and Infantry Defense. Without sufficient frontline durability, high offensive stats on backline units provide no value.
Research Lab: Once your frontline consistently survives early combat rounds, focus research nodes on Hunter Lethality and Hunter Attack to increase the damage dealt during sustained fights.