Whiteout Survival garrison defense: troop ratio, defender heroes and reinforcement

New here? How it works

Counters and captains built against the exact enemy wall you face. Buffs of the same category add; different categories multiply — so unique buffs win. The rally leader's 3 heroes use all their expedition skills + weapon; each joiner counts only its first hero's first (top-right) skill.

1 Your roster & strength
Caps Mythics at this gen. Epic joiners (gold) are always available.
2 The enemy you're attacking
Common walls
Notable enemy defenders (optional)
2 The attack coming at you
Common attacks
📊 Predict a battle before you fight
Load your attack or defense plan, then set troops (the garrison count for the enemy), gem buffs, pets and experts. Exact report stats are optional.
📘 Joiners guide — which first skill to send
In a rally only each joiner's FIRST hero counts, and only the 4 joiners with the highest first-skill level (ties go to whoever joined first). Send the hero whose first skill adds a buff category the leaders do not already have: the same category adds, different categories multiply. Ranked here as the first joiner added to the best leader trio of your generation.
🐻 Bear trap formations — best marksman Attack & Lethality per generation
Bear trap is a pure damage race: no need to survive. Rally leaders send 10/10/80 (infantry/lancer/marksman) and joiners send mostly marksmen (90-100%). Heroes are picked to maximize marksman damage (Attack and Lethality first, then the buffs that multiply with them): the leader's three heroes use all skills and weapons, each joiner counts only the first hero's first skill.
Leader march 10/10/80 · Joiners 90-100% marksmen

Most 2026 community guides give at least about 60% infantry for a castle garrison as a starting point (a few older guides give lower shares), because infantry has the most Health and Defense. They disagree on the rest: 60/40/0, 60/20/20 and 70/30/0 all appear. These ratios were written for T9/T10 troops and early-generation heroes, no source says whether T11, Fire Crystal or T12 changes them, and none cites battle reports. Defender joiners follow the attack rule (only each joiner's first hero's first expedition skill counts), and the useful skills are survival skills; epic examples are Patrick (+25% Health), Sergey and Bahiti (-20% damage taken).

Troop ratio for a garrison

  • At least about 60% infantry is the common starting point in 2026 guides; some older guides give 40-50%.
  • The rest is disputed: 60/40/0 (Buffget, Joytify), 60/20/20 (WosGuru, MMOCulture), 70/30/0 or 60/20/20 (Topuplive), and "60% infantry, 40% lancers and marksmen combined" (mone.gg). One older guide still lists 50/20/30.
  • mone.gg (August 2026) calls 60/40 a starting point to adjust from your own battle reports.

These guides were written for T9/T10 troops and early-generation heroes, none cites battle reports, and we found no source on whether T11, Fire Crystal or T12 change the advice. So we do not call any of them the best. Our 60/40/0 guide explains the lancer-heavy option.

Why infantry-heavy

  • Infantry has the highest Health and Defense, so it holds the longest and gives reinforcements time to arrive (WoSTools, heaven-guardian, mone.gg).
  • Without enough infantry, enemy damage reaches the lancers and marksmen quickly (mone.gg).
  • WosGuru and mone.gg also say that castle turrets target infantry first.

Defender heroes and joiners

Defense joiners follow the same rule as attack joiners: only the first hero's first (top-right) expedition skill counts. On defense the useful skills are survival skills (troop Health, Defense, damage taken reduction and enemy Attack reduction) instead of damage skills.

Epic examples that work at every generation:

  • Patrick, Super Nutrients: troop Health +25% at maximum level.
  • Sergey, Defenders' Edge: damage taken -20% at maximum level.
  • Bahiti, Sixth Sense: damage taken -20% at maximum level.

Newer generations add heroes with strong survival first skills, so the best choice depends on your generation. Guides advise swapping to defense heroes right after capturing a castle. We could not find any source that states how many defender joiners count on defense, so we do not publish a number.

Battle lead and reinforcement

  • WosGuru (undated) and a 2023 Korean post say the defender with the highest combined stats becomes the battle lead, and that lead's heroes, gear and research drive the fight; mone.gg only advises putting your best defender in the lead.
  • Reinforcement must be continuous: when defenders die, arriving reinforcement marches fill the free space, so keep sending even when the castle looks full.
  • Your Infirmary and Medical Tent capacity should be larger than your march size (wostools).

Castle turrets

Turrets that the opposing side holds keep hitting the castle holder (WosGuru adds that their pressure grows the longer they stay in enemy hands), and guides say they target infantry first, which is one more reason castle garrisons keep a large infantry share. See the Sunfire Castle guide for the event rules.

How defense differs from attack

  • Ratio: more infantry than an attack rally (50/20/30 is the usual attack baseline for T9/T10).
  • Heroes: survival buffs instead of damage buffs.
  • Timing: guides advise switching formation and heroes right after capture.

Using the planner for defense

The Defense tab of the planner (a license may be required) gives a baseline for your own setup against one attacking rally. It does not simulate turret fire or reinforcement refills. For castle garrisons follow the guide ranges above, use the planner only as a starting point and check the result against your own battle reports.

Frequently asked questions

What troop ratio should a castle garrison use?

At least about 60% infantry is the common starting point in 2026 guides, because infantry has the most Health and Defense and guides say turrets hit infantry first. The rest is disputed: 60/40/0, 60/20/20 and 70/30/0 all appear, and none of the guides cites battle reports.

Which heroes work as defense joiners?

Heroes whose first expedition skill gives survival. Epic examples that work at every generation are Patrick (+25% Health), Sergey (-20% damage taken) and Bahiti (-20% damage taken). Newer generations add stronger survival first skills, so the best pick depends on your generation. Only the first hero's first skill of each joiner counts.

Who leads the garrison?

WosGuru (undated) and a 2023 Korean post say the strongest defender (highest combined stats) becomes the battle lead; mone.gg advises putting your best defender in the lead.

Do I need to keep reinforcing a full castle?

Yes. When defenders die, arriving reinforcements fill the space, so guides say to keep sending marches even when the castle looks full.

Related guides

Attack each garrison · Joiners guide · Bear Trap formations · 60/40/0 formation · Troop ratio guide · Sunfire Castle · Method and how to cite · Rally planner

Computed by the WOS Formations planner (a model): full hero roster of the generation, equal gear, T11 troops without Fire Crystal. Baseline answers, not guarantees. Last updated 2026-10-05. Cite as WOS Formations, https://wosformations.com.

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