Proven Bear Hunt Setup in Kingshot
Bear Hunt runs every two days, costs you nothing and pays out Forgehammers, the material your hero gear lives on. In this guide I share the setup that took our rallies from average to painful, and the two mistakes I see in almost every alliance.
Why Bear Hunt is free loot you cannot skip
The bear does not fight back. No injuries, no troop losses, no stamina, no resources spent. Your alliance gets 30 minutes to deal as much damage as possible, and rewards scale with your damage tier plus lifetime milestones that go all the way to Truegold checkpoints. The only thing you can do wrong is show up unprepared, because every point of damage you leave behind is gear you don't craft.
Most players are surprised to learn that every defensive stat is worthless here. The bear has Defense to chew through and no health bar, so the whole event comes down to Attack and Lethality.
The formation: 1/10/89 once you reach Gen 4
Archers deal the most bear damage, cavalry comes second, infantry barely registers. That gives you a simple progression as your server ages:
- Gen 1: 10% infantry, 30% cavalry, 60% archers
- Gen 2: 10 / 20 / 70
- Gen 3: 10 / 10 / 80
- Gen 4 and later: 1 / 10 / 89, the golden ratio
Most players learn 10/10/80 early and never touch their preset again. Check yours before the next hunt, and keep a small infantry floor in absolute numbers so your troop-type hero buffs stay active. If your march preview says a nearby variant like 5/5/90 hits harder on your account, trust the preview.
Hosting: your whole account buffs the rally
The rally leader lends everything to every troop in the rally: research, governor gear, charms, pets, all three hero skills. So only your strongest members should host. The lineup that carries from Gen 3 deep into Gen 5 is Amadeus, Petra, Rosa, with Zoe stepping in for Amadeus on F2P accounts. Their widgets alone stack up to +30% attack and +15% lethality for the whole rally. Avoid hosting with Long Fei, two of his three skills are defensive and defense does nothing here.
Before you rally: activate Giant Rhino, Alpha Black Panther and Mighty Bison, and Great Moose if you host. Skip Moose's Horror Stare, it lowers health and the bear has none. More on that in the pets guide.
Joining: only your first hero's first skill counts
As a joiner you contribute your troops plus exactly one thing: the first expedition skill of the hero in slot one. Only four joiner skills are active per rally, and from the fifth joiner on, higher-level skills bump lower ones out.
The reliable picks are Chenko, Amadeus and Yeonwoo, all carrying a flat +25% squad lethality that stacks additively. Mix in an attack-category hero like Amane or Margot and the groups multiply against each other, which beats four copies of the same buff. Chance-based skills don't stack at all, so a second Jabel adds exactly nothing.
If your best slot-one option is defensive or chance-based, the counterintuitive best move is to join with no hero at all. Your troops still count in full, and you don't displace a Chenko from the four active slots. If you need heroes for march capacity, put one with a level 1 first skill in front so any better joiner overwrites it.
The trap level most alliances waste
Your alliance trap adds +5% attack per level, up to +25% at level 5, for everyone. It's fed by Explosive Arrowheads from daily intel missions, 24 per member per day. A 40-member alliance generates enough in two days to max the trap every single cycle, yet most sit at level 3 and eat a 10 to 15 percent damage penalty. Donate daily, and stop at level 5, extra arrows are wasted.
How we run the 30 minutes
- Five minutes before: pre-buff pets, recall gatherers, rally leaders teleport next to the trap. March time is the only cooldown, so a leader 15 seconds from the trap simply runs more rallies than one 90 seconds out.
- Opening burst: strongest joiners fill the top hosts first. Post a joiner troop cap in chat so one player cannot instantly fill the rally: rally capacity minus the host's own squad, divided by 14 slots.
- Mid-hunt: continuous cycling. Fewer, fuller rallies beat many thin ones, they concentrate the good joiner skills.
- Final five minutes: everyone opens a rally, even weak players. Every open rally is a landing spot for strong marches returning from their last hit. If your reward tier is locked, hand your spot to someone chasing their next milestone.
Frequently asked questions
How often does Bear Hunt run?
Every two days, started manually or on a timer by your R4/R5 leadership. Alliances have two hunting traps, so schedule them in different time windows to cover both halves of your alliance.
Is it better to join a rally with no hero at all?
If your best first-slot hero has a defensive or chance-based skill, yes. Your troops contribute their full damage either way, and an empty slot cannot displace a useful skill from the four active joiner slots.
Should I invest in Attack or Lethality for Bear Hunt?
They multiply each other, so for percentage skills it makes no difference. For raw stat points, invest in whichever is lower on your account, which for most players means Lethality.
Do rare blue heroes give bonus damage points?
No, that one is a myth. Rarity gives no score bonus, only the skills and stats matter.