Please Fix Coalition Buffs in Friendly Challenges, It’s Long Overdue

[LuSt]

I’d like to bring up an issue that has been affecting the competitive side of the game for a very long time: Coalition buffs not applying properly in Friendly Challenges.



This has been a consistent problem, and the community has asked for it to be addressed countless times, yet it continues to get pushed aside. It’s frustrating, especially for war-focused alliances that rely on Friendly Challenges to practice new strategies and test base designs.



Right now, Friendly Challenges do not reflect real war conditions because coalition buffs don’t work at all. This makes it impossible to accurately test or prepare for war attacks. What’s the point of practicing if the conditions are different from the actual battlefield?



Fixing this would be a massive quality-of-life improvement for everyone, from casual players looking to improve to top-tier war alliances striving for competitive excellence. It would help players learn, prepare, and compete more effectively, and ultimately, it would strengthen the war scene across the board.



Please, stop letting this issue fall through the cracks. It’s not just a small tweak, it’s a necessary fix that would benefit the entire player base.

 

[SirBiggun]

I agree with this

 

[SolarRad75]

I sent this to Harlems, hoping for a reply.

 

[Mirtran]

I also support this one.
Thanks for reminding, Lust!

 

[oddin]

we have talked about it countless times. Every time I asked about it, I got zero reply. Lets hope they fix it

 

[LuSt]

I’d like to bring up an issue that has been affecting the competitive side of the game for a very long time: Coalition buffs not applying properly in Friendly Challenges.



This has been a consistent problem, and the community has asked for it to be addressed countless times, yet it continues to get pushed aside. It’s frustrating, especially for war-focused alliances that rely on Friendly Challenges to practice new strategies and test base designs.



Right now, Friendly Challenges do not reflect real war conditions because coalition buffs don’t work at all. This makes it impossible to accurately test or prepare for war attacks. What’s the point of practicing if the conditions are different from the actual battlefield?



Fixing this would be a massive quality-of-life improvement for everyone, from casual players looking to improve to top-tier war alliances striving for competitive excellence. It would help players learn, prepare, and compete more effectively, and ultimately, it would strengthen the war scene across the board.



Please, stop letting this issue fall through the cracks. It’s not just a small tweak, it’s a necessary fix that would benefit the entire player base.

@Harlems369th

 

[Harlems369th]

I’d like to bring up an issue that has been affecting the competitive side of the game for a very long time: Coalition buffs not applying properly in Friendly Challenges.



This has been a consistent problem, and the community has asked for it to be addressed countless times, yet it continues to get pushed aside. It’s frustrating, especially for war-focused alliances that rely on Friendly Challenges to practice new strategies and test base designs.



Right now, Friendly Challenges do not reflect real war conditions because coalition buffs don’t work at all. This makes it impossible to accurately test or prepare for war attacks. What’s the point of practicing if the conditions are different from the actual battlefield?



Fixing this would be a massive quality-of-life improvement for everyone, from casual players looking to improve to top-tier war alliances striving for competitive excellence. It would help players learn, prepare, and compete more effectively, and ultimately, it would strengthen the war scene across the board.



Please, stop letting this issue fall through the cracks. It’s not just a small tweak, it’s a necessary fix that would benefit the entire player base.

Thanks for bringing this up. Players have asked for this quality of life update in the past, but unfortunately, it hasn't been a high priority. This would be an entirely new update to the FC system and a very welcome one to me. As such, it's a little misleading to call it an issue in the context of a 'fix' since this wasn't the state FCs were in the past. But, it would fix your and many other competitive players' issue. My previous 'workaround', albeit not a great one, is to utilize custom world wars.

 

[SolarRad75]

Thanks for bringing this up. Players have asked for this quality of life update in the past, but unfortunately, it hasn't been a high priority. This would be an entirely new update to the FC system and a very welcome one to me. As such, it's a little misleading to call it an issue in the context of a 'fix' since this wasn't the state FCs were in the past. But, it would fix your and many other competitive players' issue. My previous 'workaround', albeit not a great one, is to utilize custom world wars.

Well, if it is a well recognized problem, then obviously it should've been a high priority... long ago.
Look, I know we don't talk about Clash of Clans, but use them as an example. Their friendly challenges allow you to choose what defenders come out of the clan castle without any price. Here's a great solution. What DomiNations could do in these terms is let players set defense coalitions for war bases before sending the challenge. Attackers can set offensive coalitions if it is a war base challenge.

Oh in similar fashion, TC and SH defenders don't work properly either.

 

[How]

i agree, solar, good idea

 

[LuSt]

Thanks for bringing this up. Players have asked for this quality of life update in the past, but unfortunately, it hasn't been a high priority. This would be an entirely new update to the FC system and a very welcome one to me. As such, it's a little misleading to call it an issue in the context of a 'fix' since this wasn't the state FCs were in the past. But, it would fix your and many other competitive players' issue. My previous 'workaround', albeit not a great one, is to utilize custom world wars.

Harlems, I really do appreciate you taking the time to respond. It does make the community feel validated in their concerns.

With that said, just because it was not the state of FCs in the past does not mean that it’s not an issue or a fix is needed. If it’s a broken game design, it’s an issue and should be fixed.

Additionally, this correction to FCs wouldn’t only benefit competitive players but also less seasoned players so they have a more accurate expectation of a World War attack. Tell me how misleading and disappointing it would be for a player that doesn’t realize that Coalitions aren’t active in FCs that practice their attack/defense just to go into a war attack and get obliterated? Offensively and defensively.

On a more personal note- I took a break from the game and much has changed since I last played. I would welcome the chance to practice war attacks in a more realistic scenario rather than waiting 2-3 days for each war. I’ve known many players over the years that have taken a break and come back to play. Wouldn’t it be in the games best interest to help retain returning players instead of frustrate them to the point they decide the learning curve isn’t worth the time spent?

This fix truly would be a huge benefit to every level and degree of player game wide and would show the community that the developers are listening to their concerns.

Thank you for taking the time to read and respond to my original post.

 

[Harlems369th]

Harlems, I really do appreciate you taking the time to respond. It does make the community feel validated in their concerns.

With that said, just because it was not the state of FCs in the past does not mean that it’s not an issue or a fix is needed. If it’s a broken game design, it’s an issue and should be fixed.

Additionally, this correction to FCs wouldn’t only benefit competitive players but also less seasoned players so they have a more accurate expectation of a World War attack. Tell me how misleading and disappointing it would be for a player that doesn’t realize that Coalitions aren’t active in FCs that practice their attack/defense just to go into a war attack and get obliterated? Offensively and defensively.

On a more personal note- I took a break from the game and much has changed since I last played. I would welcome the chance to practice war attacks in a more realistic scenario rather than waiting 2-3 days for each war. I’ve known many players over the years that have taken a break and come back to play. Wouldn’t it be in the games best interest to help retain returning players instead of frustrate them to the point they decide the learning curve isn’t worth the time spent?

This fix truly would be a huge benefit to every level and degree of player game wide and would show the community that the developers are listening to their concerns.

Thank you for taking the time to read and respond to my original post.

Trust, you don't need to sell me on it. This, spying manufactory/council, and a few others that you've all mentioned in various spaces, I keep pushing as front of mind for the team. They make complete sense to implement, but it's just not a priority right now. We're a small team with only so much that can be focused on; I mentioned this in our Road Ahead 2025 post.

Without getting too in-depth, some tasks are much larger (ex., Replays), and trying to prioritize them gets tricky with our team size and balancing work on new features and the future of DomiNations. Which, we hear you, 'focus on the bugs', but it's a balance of new things for everyone to do while also working on fixes.

 

[I.D]

As such, it's a little misleading to call it an issue in the context of a 'fix' since this wasn't the state FCs were in the past. But, it would fix your and many other competitive players' issue. My previous 'workaround', albeit not a great one, is to utilize custom world wars.

Being a friendly match without competition prizes the preparation time should be less or absent. i think it is the best way to test well coalitions extra stronghold cards, strategies etc. in friendly competitions (custom world wars) the system does not consume extra stronghold cards (in attack or defense) , so it should be for coalitions as well. or maybe it is a wrong idea?

 

[Archimedes]

I’d like to bring up an issue that has been affecting the competitive side of the game for a very long time: Coalition buffs not applying properly in Friendly Challenges.



This has been a consistent problem, and the community has asked for it to be addressed countless times, yet it continues to get pushed aside. It’s frustrating, especially for war-focused alliances that rely on Friendly Challenges to practice new strategies and test base designs.



Right now, Friendly Challenges do not reflect real war conditions because coalition buffs don’t work at all. This makes it impossible to accurately test or prepare for war attacks. What’s the point of practicing if the conditions are different from the actual battlefield?



Fixing this would be a massive quality-of-life improvement for everyone, from casual players looking to improve to top-tier war alliances striving for competitive excellence. It would help players learn, prepare, and compete more effectively, and ultimately, it would strengthen the war scene across the board.



Please, stop letting this issue fall through the cracks. It’s not just a small tweak, it’s a necessary fix that would benefit the entire player base.

Hello! This is on a list to address. There are design considerations (do we 'hack' something in to toggle this? Do we let you assign coals for FC without actually activating them? Toggle them off/on? How to clearly present that to the player? How to clearly present that as people watch replays? many more). This leads toward reworking the entire FC interface / battle screens in a clean way instead of tossing something in that further confuses people. We discussed this very topic a few days ago, and are pondering the best path forward before spec-ing it all out for implementation. Once it gets spec-ed, we need to figure out where to slot into production vs. everything else. The item is noted! Harlem captures all thoughts and presents them to the team weekly (and we read the forums too!)

 

[oddin]

Hello! This is on a list to address. There are design considerations (do we 'hack' something in to toggle this? Do we let you assign coals for FC without actually activating them? Toggle them off/on? How to clearly present that to the player? How to clearly present that as people watch replays? many more). This leads toward reworking the entire FC interface / battle screens in a clean way instead of tossing something in that further confuses people. We discussed this very topic a few days ago, and are pondering the best path forward before spec-ing it all out for implementation. Once it gets spec-ed, we need to figure out where to slot into production vs. everything else. The item is noted! Harlem captures all thoughts and presents them to the team weekly (and we read the forums too!)

recoding this from scratch is indeed the best way to fix it. I am glad that you do plan to address this