Warden · Eselfred · Defender
Archer #264
Warden
Eselfred
DefenderBest comboTop ranked
WardenEselfredDefenderDefender — what the skills grant
Totalled from Defender's own skill descriptions. Squad buffs apply to the hero's own squad; legion buffs apply to the whole legion — they stack differently in game, so they are counted separately.
Damage Taken
-20% hero's squad
Resistance
+65% hero's squad
+40% hero's legion
Might
+65% hero's squad
Troop Power Recovery
+67% hero's squad
HP
+15% hero's squad
Damage
+30% friendly squads
Skill damage. Damage these skills deal when they land — listed, not totalled, because each is a separate hit: skill 5 — +310%.
About Defender
Defender is an Archer hero in Rise of Castles. On ROCMeta, Defender appears in 3 ranked combos in Archer lineups. Defender's highest-ranked appearance is Warden · Eselfred · Defender, which currently sits at Archer #264.
Across Defender's skills, the hero's own squad gains -20% Damage Taken, +65% Resistance, +65% Might, +67% Troop Power Recovery, and +15% HP. The wider legion gains +40% Resistance.
Defender's strongest recorded skill hits for 310% damage.
Defender is most often ranked alongside Warden, Eselfred, and Ramses II — the heroes that share the most ranked combos with Defender. The full list of partners is further down the page.
Why Defender ranks where it does
Defender is built around team buffs and healing — stronger there than 77% of the roster.
Pairs best with Al-Hawra, Ashen Verdict and Beowulf. Al-Hawra's Desert Phantom supplies the trigger-rate boosts; Defender's Heavenly Smite feeds on them. Defender supplies the combat-skill casts; Al-Hawra's Desert Phantom feeds on them. No lineup around this pair clears the era and composition gates.
Read from Defender's eight skills and compared against every other published hero — not an editorial opinion.
Most often ranked with Defender
Counted from the published lists: the partners who appear beside Defender in the most ranked lineups.
Proven synergies
A different question from the grid above: not who Defender is listed with, but whose kit the skill text says Defender actually feeds — or feeds on. Each claim names the effect and, wherever the card records one, the skill producing it, so you can check it against the cards further down. Some of these pairs share no ranked lineup at all; each one says why.
Hannibal
Not yet listedDefender supplies the follow-up attacks; Hannibal's Dual Strike feeds on them. Defender's Heavenly Smite supplies the extra basic attacks; Hannibal feeds on them. Hannibal's Dual Strike supplies the extra basic attacks; Defender feeds on them. No lineup around this pair clears the era and composition gates.
Warden
2 shared lineupsWarden's Aspect of the Eagle supplies the trigger-rate boosts; Defender's Heavenly Smite feeds on them. Warden's Aspect of the Tiger supplies the extra basic attacks; Defender feeds on them.
Al-Hawra
Not yet listedAl-Hawra's Desert Phantom supplies the trigger-rate boosts; Defender's Heavenly Smite feeds on them. Defender supplies the combat-skill casts; Al-Hawra's Desert Phantom feeds on them. No lineup around this pair clears the era and composition gates.
Saladin
Not yet listedDefender's Heavenly Smite supplies the extra basic attacks; Saladin feeds on them. Saladin's Whirlwind Slash supplies the trigger-rate boosts; Defender's Heavenly Smite feeds on them. No lineup around this pair clears the era and composition gates.
Cyrus
Not yet listedCyrus's Tolerance supplies the trigger-rate boosts; Defender's Heavenly Smite feeds on them. Defender supplies the combat-skill casts; Cyrus's Strategy to Victory feeds on them. No lineup around this pair clears the era and composition gates.
King Arthur
Not yet listedDefender supplies the combat-skill casts; King Arthur's Sword in the Stone feeds on them. Defender's Heavenly Smite supplies the extra basic attacks; King Arthur feeds on them. No lineup around this pair clears the era and composition gates.
Best Archer combos with Defender
Defender appears in 3 ranked Archer combos.
- 10 F
M
B Warden · Eselfred · Defender Mid progression Beats 1 of 8 reference lineups 81.34/100 out of 100 Warden (X06), Eselfred (X14) and Defender (X03) score 81.34 out of 100 together, and each of the three has a job.
Warden is the multiplier, raising what the other two put out rather than adding a number of its own: carries 65% of damage amplification across its kit, and takes the front as the one built to survive the opening exchange. Eselfred is the win condition, bringing 82% of the lineup's expected damage: Lady of the Mercians puts 522% into one enemy squad on a 65% roll, and sits in the middle, where the support reaches both the front and the back. Defender is the second amplifier -- with two heroes raising the output, the carry hits far above its own numbers: carries 30% of damage amplification across its kit, and stays in the back, where the range-3 skills still touch the enemy front line. The lineup works because Warden’s Aspect of the Eagle produces trigger-rate boosts, the exact trigger Defender’s Heavenly Smite and Eselfred’s Thunder and Heavy Arrows both wait on; Warden’s Aspect of the Tiger produces extra basic attacks, the exact trigger Defender waits on; Warden raises Eselfred’s output directly rather than adding a number of its own. What you give up: little here disrupts the enemy plan, so the fight is decided on raw output; raw damage reaches only about 18% of the hardest-hitting trio in the roster. Budget note: every hero in this lineup can be completed without spending.
- 22 F
M
B Defender · Ramses II · Spectral Reaper developer pick Mid progression Beats 0 of 8 reference lineups 77.68/100 out of 100 Defender (X03), Ramses II (SP · paid) and Spectral Reaper (X03) score 77.68 out of 100 together, and each of the three has a job.
Defender is the multiplier, raising what the other two put out rather than adding a number of its own: carries 30% of damage amplification across its kit, and takes the front, able to both absorb the opening rounds and heal through them. Ramses II is the lifeline: that healing decides whether this lineup is still standing in round five — carries 238% of recovery across its kit, and sits in the middle, where the support reaches both the front and the back. Spectral Reaper is the win condition, bringing 80% of the lineup's expected damage: Tamashi-kusari puts 742% into one enemy squad on a 35% roll, and stays in the back, out of the enemy's easy reach, and those range-4 skills lose nothing for it. The lineup works because Ramses II’s Peace of Silver Plate produces extra basic attacks, the exact trigger Defender waits on; Defender’s Heavenly Smite produces extra basic attacks, the exact trigger Spectral Reaper waits on; Spectral Reaper shuts off enemy recovery, so what Spectral Reaper deals stays dealt. What you give up: Spectral Reaper (X03) is the era weak point -- the enemy will aim at the oldest squad; raw damage reaches only about 8% of the hardest-hitting trio in the roster. This is one of the lineups recommended in-game by the developers -- the score above is what that classic core is still worth against the current roster.
- 24 F
MB Warden · Lilith · Defender Mid progression Beats 0 of 8 reference lineups 81.92/100 out of 100 Warden (X06), Lilith (X09) and Defender (X03) score 81.92 out of 100 together, and each of the three has a job.
Warden is the multiplier, raising what the other two put out rather than adding a number of its own: carries 65% of damage amplification across its kit, and takes the front as the one built to survive the opening exchange. Lilith is the lock: every squad silenced or suppressed is a turn the enemy plan does not happen — Infatuated Shadow applies Confuse on a 50% roll, and sits in the middle, where the support reaches both the front and the back. Defender is the second amplifier -- with two heroes raising the output, the carry hits far above its own numbers: carries 30% of damage amplification across its kit, and stays in the back, where the range-3 skills still touch the enemy front line. The lineup works because Warden’s Aspect of the Eagle produces trigger-rate boosts, the exact trigger Defender’s Heavenly Smite and Lilith’s Poison Needle both wait on; Warden’s Aspect of the Tiger produces extra basic attacks, the exact trigger Defender waits on; Warden raises Lilith’s output directly rather than adding a number of its own. What you give up: raw damage reaches only about 14% of the hardest-hitting trio in the roster; a mid-era lineup anchored by Warden (X06). Budget note: every hero in this lineup can be completed without spending.
Defender — skills
All 8 recorded skills for Defender, straight from the hero's game card.
1 Dictator
The soldier amount cap of the hero's squad is increased by 23,100.
2 Jericho's Iron Wall
After a normal attack, 80% chance to make the damage the hero's squad takes -20% for 2 round(s). The status can be stacked.
3 Archer Defensive Formation II
Archers in the hero's squad have 50% more Resistance.
4 Archer Offensive Formation II
Archers in the hero's squad have 50% more Might.
5 Flames of Resurrection
50% chance to deal 310% damage to 1 random enemy squad within range after basic attacks, and recover some troops for the self-squad (67% recovery rate).
6 Archer Awakened
Archers in the hero's squad gain +15% Might and Resistance, HP +15%, 250% bonus to the skill "Dictator".
7 Defensive Order - Archer
Archers in the hero's squad gain +40% Resistance.
8 Heavenly Smite
35% chance to make 2 random friendly squads to attack twice, with 30% increased damage for 2 turns.
Which Defender lineups can you field?
Select the heroes you own and the generator returns every ranked Defender lineup you can field today, the ones you are one hero short of, and the single unlock that opens the most.
Open the Combo Generator