Clash of Clans keeps updating, and Town Hall 17 brings new challenges. However, if your base isn’t ready, you’re already falling behind.
Whether you're farming, pushing trophies, or at war, a solid layout is crucial, so let’s check the best base designs for every Town Hall to set you up for success from the get-go.
What Makes the Best CoC Base Designs
Before you start moving those Barracks and Archer Towers, let’s lay the foundation.
Every top-tier base in Clash of Clans, regardless of Town Hall level, sticks to specific rules, and your game plan decides the design:
Farming Bases: Resources are king, and the main goal is to shield your Gold Storages, Elixir Storages, and Dark Elixir Storage from goblins and raiders. The Town Hall should usually be placed strategically, acting as a shield, less heavily guarded than your loot.
Trophy Bases (Push Bases): Pushing the ranks? Your Town Hall acts as the crown jewel, and protecting it to prevent attackers from snatching those stars is the name of the game. Loot protection becomes secondary; instead, it's all about denying that second or, heaven forbid, third star.
War Bases: In Clan Wars and the Clan War League, stars win wars. Anti-3-star layouts are the gold standard, featuring offset Town Halls, compartmentalization to break up attacking troops, and cleverly placed traps designed to thwart popular attack strategies. An anti-2-star design is also a strong contender, especially at higher TH levels, aiming to concede no more than a two-star attack.
Hybrid Bases: For the Clasher who wants it all, a hybrid base attempts to strike a nice balance between protecting your Town Hall and your resources. These are flexible setups for everyday use, offering a decent shield against both trophy losses and resource grabbing.
Best Clash of Clans Base Designs for Every Town Hall
Town Hall 4 to Town Hall 6
At these starting town hall levels, your main concerns are protecting your limited storage and learning the basics of funneling.
Key Focus: Centralize your Mortar for splash damage against ground swarms. Your Air Defense also becomes a prized possession as aerial attacks, like mass Balloons, start to appear, so make sure your Clan Castle is not easily lured.
Layout Logic: Create compartments to slow down the Giants and spread out your storage so that an attacker can't grab everything from a single entry point.
Pro Tip: Even at TH6, a well-placed Clan Castle filled with high-level troops can be a great on defense.
Town Hall 7 to Town Hall 8
This is where the base design begins to take shape. Dark Elixir protection becomes a priority, and you’ll face more complex air attacks, especially from Dragons.
Key Focus: For TH7, centralising Air Defenses is vital to fend off Dragon spam, and as you move to TH8, protecting your Dark Elixir storage then takes priority. Wizard Towers should be placed to cover multiple defenses and storage.
Layout Logic: Create unique compartments for important defenses. Anti-dragon base layouts usually feature Air Defenses in a triangular or square formation, so it’s difficult for Dragons to pass through.
Don't Forget: Corner Builder Huts can be a great tactic in war bases to cause time fails.
Town Hall 9 to Town Hall 11
Now we’re into he big leagues. The Archer Queen and X-Bows (at TH9), the Grand Warden and Eagle Artillery (at TH11), change everything at these town hall levels. Here, Base designs become more complicated, focusing on anti-3-star strategies and strong protection for your Dark Elixir.
Key Focus: Protecting your Archer Queen is a priority, and X-Bows should be set to cover large swathes of your base to do so.. At TH11, the Eagle Artillery's placement should also be prioritized; it also needs to be deep in the base to maximize its shots.
Layout Logic: Compartmentalization is crucial for preventing Queen Charges and other hero-led charges. Tesla farms can also surprise and decimate attacking troops. Excellent layout design at these levels prioritizes central Town Halls and smart compartment usage for trophy hunting.
Consider This: For war, unpredictable trap placements around important defenses, such as Inferno Towers and the Eagle Artillery, can mess up an attacker's plan.
Town Hall 12 to Town Hall 13
Siege Machines arrive, adding another layer to your attacking strategy. Your Giga Tesla (TH12) and Giga Inferno (TH13) become the main point of your defense, and Scattershots (TH13) add high splash damage.
Key Focus: Protecting your Town Hall, now a strong defensive structure in its own right, is essential. Scattershots should also be placed to cover approaches to the core and other vital areas of defense.
Layout Logic: Anti-2-star and anti-3-star designs are important here. Tornado traps near the Town Hall can disrupt Blimp attacks or Queen Charges. Centralizing the Eagle Artillery remains a solid strategy. Spreading out high-value targets makes it harder for an attacker to get maximum value from their Siege Machines, too.
Town Hall 14 to Town Hall 15
The introduction of Builder's Huts that fight back (TH14), Pet House, Monolith (TH15), and Spell Towers (TH15) means base building reaches even higher levels of complexity!
Key Focus: The Monolith is a tank killer and requires protection. Spell Tower placement (Poison, Rage, or Invisibility) can seriously alter an attacker's approach. Protecting Dark Elixir remains a high priority for farming.
Layout Logic: Box bases, diamond bases, and intricate anti-3-star island-style compartment designs are common. The aim is to make pathing unpredictable and to protect key defenses, such as the Monolith, Spell Towers, and Scattershots. Storages are often used as high-hitpoint shields for more important defenses.
Town Hall 16 to Town Hall 17
Town Hall 16 has firmly sorted out its meta, and the TH17 strategies are already seeing the top tiers of CoC play. With TH 16, expect merged defenses and even more powerful signature weapons.
Key Focus (TH16): The Ricochet Cannon and Multi-Archer Tower add new defensive options. Bases often feature a heavily fortified core around the Town Hall, Monolith, and new merged defenses. Anti-3-star war designs and strong hybrid options are highly viable. Rage Towers and Poison Towers are strategically placed to counter popular attack strategies.
Emerging Trends (TH17): While still new, expect TH17 bases to further amplify core protection, with an emphasis on countering the latest troop levels and hero equipment.
Layout Logic: Creative compartmentalization, clever trap funnels, and strategic placement of Spell Towers and merged defenses are essential to defend against the strongest armies in the game.
Upgrading Your Defenses
Simply copying a base isn't the end of the story; a great base design is all about adaptation and understanding. Here’s what you’ll need to do to stay on top in Clash of Clans:
Stay Updated: The meta of Clash of Clans is constantly updating. For example, new troop levels, balance changes, and new defensive buildings are frequently released or updated, so your base will need regular check-ups and potential redesigns.
Customize Traps: Even if you use a popular base link, tweaking trap placements (Spring Traps, Giant Bombs, Seeking Air Mines) can catch even experienced attackers off guard. To perfect it, we recommend reviewing your defense replays to identify where attackers are pathing and adjusting your layout accordingly based on the data.
Clan Castle Troops: Never underestimate the power of defensive Clan Castle troops. From Lava Hounds that stall attacks to Super Minions that shred through troops, the right CC troop composition can sometimes turn a bad loss into a crazy defensive win.
Scout and Adapt: In CoC wars, always scout your opponent. If you see a common attack strategy working well, consider minor adjustments to your war base to counter it.
