'Farming' is raiding for loot rather than trophies — the resource engine that funds every upgrade. The whole game is really a farming game with a strategy layer on top: no loot, no progress.
Cheap armies, fast raids
The best farming army is the cheapest one that reliably takes the loot you need. Early on that's BARCH (Barbarians + Archers) hitting exposed collectors; later it's Sneaky Goblins flooding storages. The math that matters is loot-per-raid minus training cost — not stars.
| Town Hall band | Go-to farming army | Targets |
|---|---|---|
| TH5–9 | BARCH (Barbarians + Archers) | Exposed collectors & storages outside walls |
| TH9–11 | Barch + Loons or mass Goblins | Storages; light dips into the core |
| TH11+ | Sneaky Goblins + Super Wall Breakers | Storages / Town Hall loot behind walls |
Where the loot comes from
Sources to keep flowing
- Multiplayer raids — the main source; use the 'Next' button to skip bases without enough loot.
- Your own collectors & drills — passive income; collect them before you log off so raiders can't.
- Star Bonus & Season rewards — a big lump of loot for winning a few multiplayer attacks each day.
- Clan Games & events — periodic reward tracks worth completing.
Dark Elixir is the real bottleneck
Gold and Elixir are usually plentiful; Dark Elixir gates your heroes, which are your biggest power spike. Prioritize raids and armies that reliably pull Dark Elixir once heroes are unlocked.
Protect your loot too
Farming is two-sided — a farming base layout (storages in the core, Town Hall exposed) keeps what you earn. There's no point raiding hard if you leak it all back on defense.