Congratulations to the Realm ITF for winning the S4 round of Early Access!
We in the Arkheim team wanted to sit down with the winners for a moment and ask a few questions on how their game round progressed.
Hello ITF, and congratulations on winning the S4 round! How did you come up with the name ITF?
Originally ITF came from TTF, which came from another game called Talibri, which meant Talibri Trade Federation, which later when they expanded into other games became the Intergalactic Trade Federation.
When did you know you were going to win this round?
Of course we knew it from the beginning 
We didn’t know for sure until Travian Heroes and New World Order had a falling out, and all our enemies' focus turned away from us. At that moment it was just a question of time.
Before that however, as leader the realization that we might win started to dawn on me when we were all alone on Island 4, simply growing each day. When our enemies ascended we were first at our wits end, but each day and night we held on, and kept our control of the center and Eternal Anvil. When our friends finally managed to ascend too, the battle turned in our favour slowly, until they gave up near the end.
If you could have done one thing differently as a realm, what would it have been?
There is a lot we could have done differently. In the end it worked out, but the thing we should have done, was to be a lot more aggressive on Island 3. We played it quite passively, only attacking near the end. Being more aggressive here could have let to a much easier Island 4 for us.
Did you have any significant changes in your strategy compared to the previous round?
I don’t think so. ITF started in S2 where we learned most of the gameplay. For S3 the team was almost identical to S2, and while we did a lot better, we were still lacking. So for S4, unfortunately, only a few core players were kept, and then a lot of other (both new and old players) were brought in.
So I don’t think our strategy was any different from previous servers:
- Focus on eco and supplies
- Only build troops when needed or perceived to be needed
- Stay out of as many fights as possible early game to overwhelm late game
- Make smart agreements with neighbours to stay ahead in the game and remove competition
I think those 4 is what it really comes down to. The largest change I’d say, would be the team, the engagement in both discord and in-game, making sure everyone follows proper strats when cleaning supplies, when planting towers, when clearing goblin towers, when attacking and so on. Wasting as little time (as possible) and getting as much done (as possible) in the shortest amount of time.
Which realm was your most threatening opponent? (If you had any?)
It was a fine line between Silver Vales and Travian Heroes. Depending on who you talked to, and what time of the day it was, the answer would change. Because of our position on the map, we could not engage SV in a fight, and therefore most of our focus on Island 3 was on Travian Heroes. On Island 4 we did fight both of them, albeit mostly defensively.
What were the toughest challenges for you as a team?
When the dictator sleeps, everything else also sleeps. Even with strong individual players, our decision making process almost always relied on a “go” from me. So at times, we were very slow to continue attacking, set up new tower routes/portals and other such things.
Is there anything you as the winners would like to share with newcomers? Game tips?
- Do mechanics properly! Don’t send 5 warlords if only 2 are needed.
- Don’t waste time - just place those towers and clear those supplies.
- Stop thinking about yourself, it don’t do you no good to have 1 strong player if the rest are behind.
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Also, don’t be afraid to ask questions! Don’t know how to maximize Training ground XP? Don’t know which masteries to use? Just ask - a lot of people are more than willing to answer, especially if you write to them directly
- Refer to the steps in point 4.
Will there be ITF next round? Will the Realm stick together?
Yes. Probably not. We were a mixed bag of Oreos, and Oreos don’t stay together after a good shaking.
Honorary mentions
Rising Stars, MDS and Terra Nova for helping us establish a foothold and keeping it on I3, and allowing us to grow and also help us fight our largest competitors. Strong and Dragon on I4, for helping us survive and turn the tide on I4.
