Battle Royale: Small, Tactical Teams
In Battle Royale, parties are capped at five players. This is consistent with what most players expect from a battle royale experience—it’s small enough to require coordination but not so large that communication becomes chaotic.
How it works in practice:
Teams of five generally stick together during the early game, scouting and gathering resources.
Most players recommend assigning roles (such as scout, ranged DPS, or tank) early on to make the team more effective.
Since the team size is small, losing a single member can significantly affect your chances, so staying close and communicating is usually critical.
Guild Mode: Medium-Sized Raids
When you switch to Guild Mode, the dynamics change. Here, players can link parties together for raids of up to 20 players.
Practical insight:
Most guilds tend to break down these 20-player raids into smaller units for easier management. For example, having four groups of five can make coordination simpler while still allowing the full raid to act together during major objectives.
Leaders usually assign specific tasks to each subgroup, which helps in large fights and during objectives like resource control or defending key points.
Interestingly, there’s a lobby option that allows you to link multiple parties together for guild-based matches, again up to twenty individuals. This gives smaller groups a way to participate in larger-scale content without forcing everyone into one massive group at once.
Castle Sieges: Coordinated Raids
Castle sieges are one of the more complex modes in AoC: Apocalypse. The design allows parties of five within a raid, and each team can field five raids, meaning a total of 25 players per team.
Practical advice:
Most players find it effective to assign each party a specific section of the castle or siege objective. For example, one party might focus on walls, another on gates, and another on defending key NPCs or siege engines.
Communication tools, whether in-game voice or third-party software, are almost always necessary. Players often report that poorly coordinated parties tend to get overwhelmed quickly, even if each individual player is strong.
This structure balances the need for small-team tactics with the thrill of large-scale battles, allowing players to experience both teamwork and strategic depth.
Horde Mode: Large-Scale Cooperation
Horde Mode is arguably the largest-scale content in AoC: Apocalypse. Here, each party consists of five players, but there are ten groups in total, resulting in 50 players on a single side.
How it plays out:
Most players treat each group as a unit with defined roles, while the raid leader coordinates the larger battle strategy.
Players often rotate between the front lines and support roles to keep the party sustainable, especially in longer waves.
Because of the sheer number of participants, organization is key. Without clear leadership, small parties can get lost or fail to support each other effectively.
This mode often draws the most organized and competitive groups, with experienced players usually taking charge to maximize efficiency.
Linking Parties in Different Modes
Across most modes, linking parties is a critical tool. Whether you are trying to field a larger guild raid or just want to coordinate with friends in the lobby, knowing how to combine smaller groups into one cohesive unit is essential. The game’s design makes it clear that flexibility in group formation is key to success.
For players who are also looking to improve their in-game resources, it’s worth noting that some communities use services to quickly acquire gold. For example, you can buy AoC gold online with fast delivery from U4N, which can help new groups get the equipment they need for large-scale activities without spending excessive time farming.
Tips for Most Players
Communicate constantly: Even the best group composition can fail without coordination.
Know your roles: In almost all modes, having players understand their responsibilities is more important than raw skill.
Plan your parties: For modes like Castle Sieges or Horde Mode, pre-assigning parties and strategies can save a lot of confusion.
Stay flexible: Sometimes parties need to adapt mid-match, especially if a member disconnects or the enemy strategy changes.
In general, AoC: Apocalypse emphasizes both small-team coordination and large-scale strategic play. Understanding how group sizes work in each mode will help you plan better, improve your team performance, and enjoy the game’s diverse experiences.
