This guide will be improved upon as the species of the games are introduced or updated or even become playable.

It will talk about all of the species from the starting ants to the most recently added ones.

We will first talk about the first Ants we are introduced to, the player's Formica Ereptor Ants... or the Gene Stealer Ants...

Formica Ereptor, the Gene Thief Ant Species, not a real ant species and only exists in the game, is the player's controlled ant species. The Queen of the Species at first starts out rather pathetic compared to what it's name suggests, only capable of producing a single type of ant at first, the worker.

However, this is only at first, as every ant colony starts out similiarly to what the player starts with, a single Queen and a few workers.

Where Ereptor's strengths come into play is the fact that, unlike the other species of ants, Formica Ereptor can use the genetic strains of 'other' species, and build their ants as if they were one and the same species.

This makes Ereptor the ultimate ant species, as the others cannot do this and are stuck with their own species which will be discussed in their own seperate sections of the guide.

Formica Ereptor Queen


Formica Ereptor's queen is like all other Queens, a giant ant that sits in the center of your colony and does nothing by herself...

She cannot attack, she cannot defend herself, but unlike all the other ant queens, she possesses unique abilities, and can activate two of four powers when her health drops below 75%

She can summon the Royal Guard, a squad of 6-7 giant Ereptor ants that have high health and strong attacks around her that will attack and defend the queen from attackers to the death, for a set period of time.

She can unleash a hoard of ants for free for a set period of time, allowing nursery tiles to be refilled with eggs even if empty and hatch their ants wihtout needing to pay for them instantly...

She can stun enemies around her and in the whole nest for a period of time

Or she can restore her health and fully plant and release a new group of ants from their nursery tiles for free


Formica Ereptor Worker

The first and Only ant available to Ereptor at the start, the ereptor worker fullfills two jobs crucial to the colony's survival and thriving.

While any ant can collect food, only the workers can either Dig tunnels or chambers, plant down nursery tiels, plant down food storage tiles, plant down highway tiles, or pick up and plant larvae from the queen and to their assigned nursery tiles...

They are needed and despite their small size, low health, and weak attacks, can defend themselves if their numbers are high enough. However, workers should only be used for attacking or defending as a last resort, as they much prefer to do their duties as egg carriers to the queen while the soldiers do the real fighting...

All other species of ants that Ereptor can use are covered later on, and will have a (Ereptor) word next to the ant type's name...

Formica Fusca is the first ant introduced to us in the game, and while Formica Fusca has very little diversity, only two ant types to the colony, it fullfills the purpose in the Ant universe and the game, to the tutorials and basics in the game and the Undergrowth as an empire...

Formica Fusca's Queen is just a giant fat ant that sits there and does nothing, she lays eggs and if she dies the colony dies

As for the two Ants available to Fusca... they are Worker and Soldier

Formica Fusca Worker Ant

Formica Fusca's worker is a basic ant, it performs all the functions of the workers, similiar to Ereptor's worker. It can gather food like other ants, and picks up eggs from the queen, delivers them to nursery tiles that the player builds, places down food storage and highway tiles.

Unlike Ereptor's Workers though, Fusca workers tend to be also capable soldiers, as i've personally noticed that workers can deal slightly more damage and are best used in large numbers against single enemy targets. Don't rely on them for warfare, but if necessary they are more than capable of acting as soldiers in large numbers...

Formica Fusca Soldier Ant (Ereptor)

The Fusca Soldier is the workhorse of the Fusca empire, its a capable ant with average health and an average attack strength. What it has over the worker is that its attack speed is higher, and when upgraded can deal much higher damage and attack faster while also enduring more hits than the worker can ever do.

It costs more food to plant but it pays for itself by being a staple soldier and capable asset to any army.

When controlled by the player in the Ereptor Hierarchy, Fusca Soldiers are the swarming melee soldiers. They are best used as front line combat ants, and meatshields for other weaker ants, or even a screening force for workers going about their buisness.

When upgraded they can either deal more damage or endure more damage, or even recover health while out of combat or retreat from combat when they lose a percentage of their overall health.

Formica Sanguinea is a Non Player Controlled (NPC) Ant, and is only encountered during the Fusca Level in Challenge 1.2.

Formica Sanguinea are not really 'dangerous', per say, in that they dont have the numbers or strength to overpower the Black Ant soldiers 1 on 1, but they are dangerous to the colony because of their nasty ability and how they attack the colony.

They will attack in waves, charging into the nest in squads of increasing number as the colony progresses in time...

Sanguinea only have '1' ant type that is encountered, a Slave Maker Soldier...

Slave Maker Soldier

Slave Maker Soldiers are after the colony not to exterminate per-say, but to steal larvae for their own colony. When they attack, half will engage the Colony Ants in battle, acting as a distraction while others rush and dash to the nursery tiles of the colony.

The Soldiers of the Sanguinea are on par with the Black Ant Soldiers in terms of health, damage, and speed. They are best engaged in standard Ant v Anything tactics, with numbers and unified with workers and soldiers combined.

If any of the Slave Makers that are going for the larvae manage to grab one, and get away, that tile will be put onto a cool down in which no larvae can be placed, and if the ant belonging to that tile is killed cannot be replaced until the cooldown is gone.

As stated before they do not pose a strong threat, but if Black Ant colony cannot get the numbers needed to push them back without suffering significant losses, the increasing raid strength will soon overwhelm the colony.

They cannot be encountered anywhere else and as such only are unique to level 1.2 of the black ant campaign...

Formica Rufa is the '2nd' playable species that can be encountered and played as besides Fusca and not counting Ereptor.

Formica Rufa is special in that unlike Fusca, Rufa has more types of ants than just traditional Worker and Soldier, having 2 types of soldiers that are best employed 'together' to form a powerful army.

Formica Rufa Queen

She is like all other Queens, fat, sits there, lays eggs, if dies you lose gg

Formica Rufa - Worker

Formica Rufa Workers are like all other Workers, they do little damage, tehy have little health, and perform worker jobs, unlike Fusca workers though, they do not possess strong attacks, and are best employed as gatherers, performing worker jobs underground in the nest, or only... as early game frontline forces...

Formica Rufa - Melee Soldier

Formica Rufa soldiers, the melee variety, have extremely weak attacks, however they make up for this by having an extremely high health. This makes them ideal ants to act as 'meat shields', as they can endure a ton of damage compaerd to the rest of the Rufa force.

In particular they are best employed alongside their ranged counterpart... whether motor or rapid...

Formica Rufa - Ranged Motor (Ereptor)

Formica Rufa Motor Ants have low health, and are more expensive then their melee counterparts, but make up for this by using 'ranged' attacks instead of melee combat.

The Motor version use much slower attack speeds but have higher damage

when Upgraded the Motor Ants can deal splash damage as well.

Formica Rufa - Ranged Rapid (Ereptor)

Formica Rufa rapid ants have low health but use a much faster attacking, if low damage output.

The Rapid variety can be upgraded and when they are, they can deal a slowdown effect to targets they hit.

=Note=

You can only pick '1' of the rufa ranged ants to use, so when you decide you must choose either Motor or Rapid

Rapid deal faster damage in which the individual shots are weaker, while the Motor deals slower but 'stronger' shots.

An Ant species based in the tropical jungles, and also the most complicated of the ant species released so far, Atta Cephalotes, also known as the Leaf Cutters, act very differently from every other ant species in the game.

As their name suggests, The Leaf Cutters get their food not from other insects, bits of meat from fish or even seeds... but from leaves.

This species harvests from plants by cutting up and bringing bits and pieces of leaves to its colony and drops them off, where they are picked up and taken to nursery tiles and become Fungus, which is what the colony uses for food.

As this species uses leaves for food, killing other insects will not offer them food of any kind.

As for the ants themselves in the species, Atta Cephalotes takes ant types to another level, and puts all of its Ants into various Castes, each with their own roles and purpose in the colony.

They are as Follows

Atta Cephalotes Queen

She's Big, She's Fat, She's in internet terms EXTRA THICC... and just as useless outside of making eggs like the other queens. She dies, GG

Atta Cephalotes Minum Workers

The Minums are the lowest caste, as well as being the absolute tiniest ant of any species. These little girls do not leave the nest for any reason and nor can they be commanded at all. They cannot attack, they have little health, and perform the most important jobs that the other ants can't do.

Minums go to leaf storage tiles and collects bits and pieces of leaves, and bring them to various nursery tiles to be cultivated into Fungus, which is used as food.

Minums also collect waste product that using fungus produces, and drops them off in 'refuse' chambers, where it sits and slowly disintegrates.

Minums also are the only ant that are unaffected by the Refuse Chambers negative effect on ants that are unfortunate enough to walk through them.

Atta Cephalotes Minor Caste

The Minors of the Leaf Cutters fullfill the role of other workers, they harvest, they plant nursery tiles, leaf storage tiles and plant waste refuse tiles on top of Highway tiles.

This caste of leaf cutter can harvest leaves like all leaf cutters, but because they are small they cannot carry heavy loads, and any leaf they carry will slow them down considerably.

They are poor attackers like all workers, but when in doubt, Numbers can make anything happen.

Atta Cephalotes Midae Caste

The Midae caste of the leaf cutters are considered a hybrid of soldier and worker, and are the workhorse of any Atta Cephalotes harvesting effort, capable of cutting larger chunks compared to their Minor sisters, without being slowed down.

In a pinch, the Midae Caste can easily fight off minor threats and in large enough numbers, can take on larger threats.

What they cannot do though, is take on major threats that are just too powerful to overcome even with numbers... That is where the Leaf Cutter Colony unleashes their final caste...

Atta Cephalotes Major Caste (Ereptor)

The Major Caste of the Leaf Cutters are the ultimate soldier, and are the backbone of any army in the Leaf Cutter Arsenal.

They are the largest, still dwarfed by the queen, but their powerful size and powerful jaws make them the ultimate force to be reckoned with on the field.

Though they are soldiers, the Major Caste can easily use their powerful muscles and slicing jaws to carve up leaves and carry chunks too large for even Midae to carry, back to their nest.

When the Ereptor Colony uses them, tehy can be upgraded to either draw in attacks toward them and away from other weaker ants, or can be used to 'stun' enemies smaller than them for a short duration.

Boasting high health and powerful but slow melee damage, they are the first into battle, and are often the last ones to fall...

Formica Odontomachus Bauri, more commonly known as Trap Jaw Ants, are only seen in the Leaf Cutter missions, in particular 3.1 while two warring leaf cutters compete

They typically roam the undergrowth in small groups of two or more, and rarely attack colonies and only engage leaf cutter ants if they happen to cross paths.

They only have '1' Trap Jaw ant type that they reveal, their wandering Soldier class

Odontomachus Bauri Soldier

The soldier of the Trap Jaw ant sports a powerful set of pincers, designed to ensnare and slice into their targets.

While individually they are dangerous, against groups of ants these often solo hunters do not fair well against their enemies. What makes them unique and dangerous is their uncanny ability to 'disengage' from their enemy after taking a bit of damage.

Once their health drops below a certain point, they activate their leap ability, using their pincers to fling themselves away from their target. This allows them to temporarily retreat, but at the same time it regenerates some health before they reengage.

As time passes the Trap Jaw hunting parties will grow in number, making them more and more of a threat the longer you deal with them.

Eciton Burchellii are by far among the 'strongest' ant species known thus far in the game

While the other ants possess a simliar type set to each other, workers and soldiers, Eciton Burchellii brings it to a whole new level.

Eciton Burchellii army ants are encountered only in 3.2 level of the leaf cutter ants, they make their presence and dangerous threat level known by simply 'appearing'. They have a simliar Caste system to the Leaf Cutters, but unlike their vegan cousins, the Army Ant roams the undergrowth in search of prey.

Where they go the horde as a whole roams as well, setting up their nest and spreading out to consume and hunt down for whatever they can. Insects will flee from their paths, threats the player may fear will become trivial to them... and their power becomes known in their caste of ants...

Eciton Burchellii Scout Caste

The Scouts of the Army Ants are about the size of Minums for the Leaf Cutter, if not even smaller, and they have extremely low health and low attack.

By themselves they are no threat to even the lowliest caste in the Leaf Cutters, but they possess a unique power that makes them a priority threat to the player's leaf cutter colony. If they encounter anything living that is a threat, or a potential target, they will retreat and lay down a trail to the location where they encountered the threat, bringing with them a small battalion of Army Ant Soldiers.

Eciton Burchellii Worker Caste

The Burchellii workers, like all workers, pose little offensive threat to their enemies, but in large numbers can become a massive threat.

They are seen walking along a trail guarded by the Majors of their colony, carrying food back to their nest or scavenging any poor creature foolish enough to wander into their hunting lines...

Eciton Burchellii Major Caste

Though only half the size of the Leaf Cutter Majors with less health compared to the massive warrior of the Vegan Ant colony, Eciton Burchellii Majors are just as recognizeable to anyone by their massive heads with powerful pincers.

Eciton Burchellii Majors may have less health compared to their leaf cutter major counterparts, but they compensate for this by having an even 'stronger' attack, and a unique ability. During combat if any Major engages in battle with others around it, after a while or after securing a kill, the Major will release a pheromone that encourages even faster attacks by allied ants around it... Making the Army Ant Major, the greatest threat to any ant colony they come across.

Unless overwhelmed quickly, a single Major surrounded by dozens of workers can overpower even mighty ant armies...

As of the Fire Ant Update, Solenopsis Invicta are by far the most 'invasive' and the most terrifying enemy to face when compared to the previously aforementioned Eciton Burcheli.

Unlike the Army Ants... Solenopsis Invicta are not just an enemy you do not want to fight, they are an enemy you 'hope' never reaches your door, for no matter how many you kill, there will always be 'more', when the Empire is on the warpath, they have countless warriors to throw at you...

If numbers are the game ant empires play, then they play it better than any other out there.

Solenopsis Invicta Queen

Just as with other empires, the heart of the colony is the queen, and all of her daughters serve her. She is the heart and soul of the colony, if she falls, so too does the colony... she also doesn't do anything else besides make eggs.

And she's tinier than the other player controlled Ant Species queens.

Solenopsis Invicta Worker

Like the other colonies, the workforce of the colony is the humble worker, useless in combat, they prefer to stay underground and do their work, but if necessary they can and 'will' fight.

The only way to use them in combat, is sheer overwhelming numbers, anything less will mean the colony is doomed.

But this is where the colony's true power comes from... in their soldiers and numbers.

Solenopsis Invicta Soldier

The colony's warrior, the fearsome soldier of the Solenopsis Invicta empire, the sword, shield, tip and shaft of the spear that is the workhorse of the Empire's conquest.

Compared to the other warriors that the player uses, the Solenopsis Invicta is no stronger then say a basic warrior of the Black Ant... at least if you don't take into consideration their unique capabilities.

First, each warrior comes with a stinger equipped, and this stinger does incredible damage, where the true damage comes from, but the true horror of this caste is in the power of sheer overwhelming numbers that this colony brings and is renowned for.

At lvl 3, each tile of the Solenopsis Invicta Warrior can carry '2' soldiers, doubling a Fire Ant army's strength while using 'fewer' space, and in a battle of numbers, a Fire Ant colony will still be pouring into an enemy's home long after their foe has run dry.

With how 'cheap' they are compared to other warriors, they are also capable of feeding this war machine, at '40' to plant and '2' to spawn, all the other colonies cannot hope to compete.

If controlled by the player, and by consequence, the Formica Ereptor colony, they can gain one of '2' special benefits.

The War Path

Or known as Vigorous Strain, when the warriors of the Fire Ants spawn, they will be granted a brief period of about 2-3 minutes of speed, power and resistance buff to reward players who enjoy a play style where they keep up the pressure and beat down their opponents with not only numbers but power.

The Sustain Path

Or the Pervasive Strain, after a brief period of time has passed, the warrior s of the Fire Ants can spawn at zero cost, enabling a colony to spend fewer resources 'rebuilding' their numbers. While the time it takes to recieve this benefit is about 1 minute, this rewards players who know how to be 'patient' and strike when they are ready, nearly tripling their numbers at less cost.

No matter which you pick, it doesn't matter how strong a colony is... after a while... 'someone' is going to run out of bodies to throw into the meat grinder.

Pheidole Morrisii are probably the 'cutest' ant species encountered in the swamp levels.

What they lack in size they make up for in shape, their iconic 'Big Head' which gives them their nickname... and probably the most 'fearsome' warrior thus released.

It all of course starts... with the Queen

Pheidole Morrisii Queen

She has a big head, she is no bigger than the Fire Ant Queen, and she is just as fat and useless for anything besides making eggs.

but she must survive, else the colony will die.

Pheidole Morrisii Worker

Nothing to separate the Big Headed Worker from its other colony workers, aside from its slightly bigger head by comparison.

They do the same tasks of digging, carrying food, planting eggs, and can fight if necessary but unless they outnumber their opponent, they don't do much on their own.

Pheidole Morrisii Major

The Majors of the Big Headed Ant Empire are slightly bigger then the workers, and they have a slightly bigger head, they act as both soldier and carrier, able to gather food and fight the enemies of the colony no matter who they are.

However... what truly separates a Big Headed Colony from its counterparts is the fact that it has access to the most powerful warrior seen in the game since released... the fearsome, terrifying, Super Soldier...

Pheidole Morrisii Super Soldier

When encountered in the Fire Ant Level, the Morrisii colony is not at all threatening and generally will not attack you early on. However, eventually they 'will' cross paths with you, and when they detect your presence, no matter how minor the clash, they will awaken the fearsome breed of warrior known as the Super Soldier.

Bigger then the Major, with a massive head and deep 'red' to distinguish it, this behemoth is filled with muscle and power to crush, stun, and topple over in its haste to destroy you.

Compared to the other members of this colony, the Super Soldier's greatest weakness is how expensive if it to create/spawn and maintain.

at 140 to plant, 14 to spawn, it is far more expensive then its weaker sisters who are 20 and 25 to create and 2 / 2 to spawn

When it attacks, it charges forward to deliver an attack that 'stuns' the opponent, and also can crush an enemy with its head for an instant kill. They are harder to kill, attack faster, and occasionally topple over in their haste to attack, leaving them temporarily vulnerable until they get back up.

In an even fight, the Super Soldiers will 'always' win...

Monomorium Minimum are probably the smallest ant species, and this is something compared to the Fire Ants they encounter 'twice' in the swamp levels, but despite their small size, they do have a 'small' advantage... they are basic in their organization structure... and their soldiers use chemical warfare to even the odds.

They are similar to their Black Ant cousins found living under logs in the earliest levels, they share similar body types, but unlike them they are tinier and use their bodies to produce a chemical to deal with threats far larger than they are.

Monomorium Minimum Queen

She is smaller then the other queens, just as useless, and just as required to protect.

Monomorium Minimum worker

What hasn't been said about the worker that hasn't already been said before.

The Workers of the Monomorium Minimum colony are tiny builders, excavators, egg carriers and food collectors. Try not to use them in battle as they are very weak, even in numbers.

Monomorium Minimum Soldier

The Soldier of the Tiny Black Ant colony is extremely small, barely larger than the worker, and feeble in terms of health, probably the weakest warrior in the game.

However, what it lacks in size, strength, and durability, it makes up for with its blatant use of chemical warfare.

During combat the Monomorium Minimum Soldier will spray a special confusing chemical that temporarily confuses its enemy, rendering it unable to attack and stumbles around for a brief period of time, leaving it vulnerable to further attacks.

It does this with great frequency, the cooldown of which is only a few seconds.

The Megaponera Analis Ants of the Savannah, or more commonly known as the Matabele Ants, are a highly specialized group of ants in the world that focus primarily in raiding Termite Mounds and Nests for their soldiers and workers. While they can hunt and kill wildlife, it is generally not worth it in terms of losses for the colony in exchange for the minimal food they will return.

While they focus entirely on raiding and pillaging, plundering and pilfering Termite Mounds and Nests, they also practice restraint with their raiding parties, generally only taking as much as the raiding party can carry, or attacking until a certain number of raiders begin to fall, before finally retreating with their spoils and their wounded.

The Metabele come with the typical queen and her army of workers and soldiers, the Metabele also come with a unique type of soldier that only they have access to, at least in the wild. One that can very well tip the scales of a war in their favor.

Megaponera Analis Queen

The Matabele Ant queen is... actually not the fattest queen we have seen to date, in fact she is quite slim, big, and sadly just as useless for anything else besides egg production in Empires of the Undergrowth. But at least she seems to be hitting the gym.

Megaponera Analis Worker

The workers of the colony are the tried and true class of every ant colony, they perform nest duties, dig out tunnels, carry eggs to chambers, and harvest any food that they happen to come across.

But unlike other colonies, the workers of the Matabele can actually be run in smaller numbers compared to their other counterparts, due to a very specialized soldier caste in their ranks.

Megaponera Analis Major Soldier

The Soldiers of the colony are the workhorse of their empire, they are by far the toughest soldiers encountered with high health and incredible damage output for their type. They use powerful mandables and stingers to defeat the enemies of their colony and conduct raids onto Termite Mounds in search of food.

Megaponera Analis Medic Soldier

The Matabele Medic is the most specialized soldier of the colony, and as their name implies they practice medical triage onto wounded and lost soldiers found on the battlefield. Unlike in other colonies where soldiers are expendable and left to die where they fall, the Matabele cannot afford to treat their sisters as such when food is stretched thin enough as is, all bodies however wounded are required if the colony is to thrive. If an ant should fall in battle they release a pheromone to let their sisters know they can be saved, and nearby medics will quickly evac them to the safety of the nest where they will be treated, and given a second chance to fight for the colony.

Treated soldiers will have a second life, but reduced health and damage due to their grievous injuries. It should also be noted that treated soldiers don't occupy a tile, so when the soldier falls another takes its place, but if the first is rescued it is added to the pool at no cost, effectively doubling the soldiers and worker count of the colony.

When selected the medics can be given one of two traits to either improve their combat or medical prowess, combat medics gain a stinger which will confuse targets similar to those found in the termite castes, while fast responders will rapidly heal allies faster and move faster in the nest.

When the Ereptor Colony incorporates them into their brood, these ants can be further improved to reduce the penalties of the triage or even heal allies around them with an aura, or even when they deal damage they heal allies nearby.

Megaponera Analis Tactics

The Megaponera Analis benefit from restraining themselves with harvesting their preferred food source, Termite Mounds. They cannot afford to overpillage and overplunder a termite nest, lest the next time they raid it the returns will be extremely diminished. Prolonged conflict is also not to their interest, as the termites, while the primary target of the Matabele, are still formidable and will resist, resulting in losses. Pick a raid target, kill as many workers as you can, and then quickly retreat before the Termites Soldiers arrive to retaliate. Each raid should return with as many food as soldiers you send out.

Furthermore they benefit greatly from having a powerful army first and foremost. Utilizing their medics to the fullest will allow them to field large armies due to triage abilities, it is recommended that you only field more workers later when compared to the soldiers, and striking a mix of soldier to medic balance is key. The general rule is, for every 2-3 soldier you produce, one Medic should be planted.

Upgrades are key but for the Matabele, who gets the upgrades should be prioritized. if you are using Anasthetic Trait medics, they can be upgraded alongside soldiers as they will benefit from their stingers. However if you are using fast responders, then they need not recieve upgrades as they will often retreat from combat quickly to tend to any wounded, and those wounded will be returned to combat swifty after recovering. This allows you to focus your upgrades onto your soldiers and save food.

Palthothyreus Tarsatus - or as its more commonly known, the African Stink Ant is by far the 'largest' ant species ever seen, only matched by the Major Caste of the Leafcutters. Its titan sized status gives it a 'huge' advantage over its similiarly shaped rival the Matabele Ants.

Despite the two species being similiarly shaped, they are rivals and will attack each other, considering each a trespasser.

African Stink Bugs do not have a colony at this time, as they are normally solo hunters similiar to that of the Trapjaw Ants, roaming the Savannah and collecting what food it can, be it termites or anything else it can find.

It earns its name because of its powerful pheromone, allowing it to call upon reinforcements if its facing overwhelming odds.

they only have 1 soldier at this time, but considering its size and power, its all they need.

Palthothyreus Tarsatus Soldier

The soldier of the African Stink Ant, is powerful, it boasts a huge health and powerful jaws. In one on one even a level 3 Matabele Soldier will struggle to win, even with the odds against them they can hold their own for a while and only with overwhelming numbers can the Matabele Ant Davids defeat their African Stink Ant Goliath counterparts.

Dorylus Nigroicans or known as the Driver Ants, are another species of ant that the Matabele and even the Stink Ant, and especially the Termites contend with.

They swarm across the land like their cousins across the waters, the Eicton Bercheli Army Ants, searching for anything and everything that is edible. They are known to set up colonies but in game they do not have a colony/nest that the player can invade and attack, instead they arrive in a host, swarming in the direction of one of four Termite Mounds.

Alone the Termites will have no hope of defeating the Driver Ants, whatever resistance they could bring to bear will be futile, and without intervention from the Matabele, their primary 'raider', they will fall.

The Driver Ants have three castes that are seen in game.

Dorylus Nigroican Worker

The Worker caste of the Driver Ants are nothing more then scouts, and workers, they carry termites and whatever food they find back to the nest, they can fight, but they do not fare well, that is best left to the soldiers.

Dorylus Nigroican Soldier

The Soldier of the Driver Ant is an all round soldier, similiar to that of the Army Ant Soldier, its purpose is to attack in swarms and kill, rip, tear, and bring the spoils back to its nest.

Dorylus Nigroican Major

The Major of the Driver Ants, with their crushing jaws and enormous muscular heads, they give the Driver Ants their trademark image. They have a powerful health and attack to match, but when they get low they will 'bash' their targets sending them back and stunning them for a second, dealing splash damage.

Macrotermes Bellicosus, or as its more commonly known as, the African Termite, is in fact 'not' an ant, but is a playable species which will be covered later.

What is known about this species is that it is the primary source of food for the Matabele Ants, teh African Stink Bug, and the Driver Ants.

The African Termites are plant eating species similiar to the leaf cutters. First the plantlife is harvested and collected from the outside and then brought to the nest, where it is then eaten by the workers. Once digested it is regurgitated into a fungus to be eaten by the termites as a whole. The process is slow but continuous just like the leaf cutters, and just like them they operate in a very complex and specialized caste system.

Macrotermes Bellicosus Queen

There is only one way to describe her... EXTRA THICC!

She's so 'big' that she cannot move at all, even if she wanted to, once she begins to lay eggs and is focused on egg production for the colony, she will never move again. She is tended to by a swarm of workers who will feed her, clean her, carry the eggs she lays, and protect her. But... unlike her Ant Queen counterparts who live a single mother lifestyle... she is not alone in the nest...

Macrotermes Bellicosus King

That's right, the Termites have a 'King', the King breeds the queen to keep the colony healthy and growing, but the King is not merely a playboy, he is also her ultimate guard as she cannot move. If enemies penetrate the nest and enter the royal chamber, the King will fight fiercely to defend the queen until their dying breaths. The king may have a health bar but he cannot be targeted by enemies, and is technically invincible, only dying if the queen is killed. He will act as her most elite guard as a final line of defense, never leaving her side.

They live together, breed together, and if the time should come when the colony's ultimate fate is met, they will die together.

Macrotermes Bellicosus Worker Minor

The Termites have 'two' castes of soldiers and workers, first is the 'minor' worker. Their job is to tend to nest duties, dig tunnels, carry eggs, and occasionally harvest plant matter if they are ordered to. But they also 'digest' the matter and turn it into fungus. you 'need' these in the nest if you are to collect food to spend.

if upgraded they will increase the ammount of fungus they produce

Macrotermes Bellicosus Worker Major

Despite the 'major' name, the Major caste of the workers are nothing more then glorified workers, they harvest plantlife faster, and if upgraded can increase how much they can harvest and carry. They cannot handle nest duties nor grow fungus.

Macrotermes Bellicosus Soldier

The First Soldier of the termites is a powerful but focused all rounder, who's primary focus is to create confusion and havoc in enemies. When they bite they stab their enemies with a venom that causes temporary confusion in their target, and at higher levels reduces this cooldown. On their own they cant defeat most threats as they lack the 'power' that the Majors bring...

Macrotermes Bellicosus Soldier Major

The majors of the termites have the 'powerful' muscle and bite that the Termite Colony is known for, with their enormous heads and biting jaws they give the termites their trademark image. At higher levels their health and attack is further increased and when paired up with the soldiers they can easily turn the tide against 'powerful' threats to protect their nest.

When playing as any of the playable ant colonies, Ereptor, Fusca, Rufa, Atta Cephalotes, or Solenopsis Invicta one must have an overall strategy.

We wont cover the Ereptor Ants because that is player choice, and as such the only thing that stops you from becoming a dominating force is your lack of upgrades and ant species...

Formica Fusca

Formica Fusca, the Black Ants, are the most basic of basic ant colony species in the Undergrowth, only possessing 2 types of ants, workers and soldiers.

Their playstyle is as simple as it is basic, build up your workers and soldiers, and use the only thing they have to their advantage... Superior Numbers...

As they dont need overcomplicated strategies or plans, they have to simply build up a large army and swarm their enemies using superior numbers and overwhelming force.

Formica Rufa

Formica Rufa, or the Wood Ants, can use the same superior numbers playbook as the Black Ants, but combine it with army composition.

While one common plan is to use the cheap workers as simple fodder for your ranged ants, which deal the real damage of the Rufa Colony, they do not have the health needed to endure a sustained attack for long. The only way this works is if you invest 'heavily' into workers, and can keep up the sustained losses they will be incurring.

The real meatshields are in their melee soldiers, and should act as the frontline of your army.

For ranged Rufa's motor or rapid fire ants each deliver damage in their own ways, either dealing lots of smaller hits or massive damage in slow volleys. Upgraded they can also deal either slowing venom damage or splash damage.

One way to maxamize their damage output is to have just slightly 'more' ranged rufa ants compared to melee rufa ants.

Atta Cephalotes

Atta Cephalotes possess a unique if somewhat 'slower' way of producing food.

Their caste system also makes it so that most of the times there is always someone harvesting leaves, but the Major's time should be spent defending and only harvesting if the threat to the leaf cutter line is minimal.

Because of how Expensive Majors are (150 just to 'plant' a tile, and 15 to hatch a larvae) they are often not the ant type you will be buying a 'lot' of.

The Minors being cheapest, 20 / 2, will be doing a lot of the harvesting, alongside their larger cousins the Midae, 80 / 6.

When it comes to warfare, in particular the colony v colony warfare, its all hands on deck as because of how slow it is for fungus to grow and how expensive Majors and Midae are to plant, you will need to use swarming tactics to win, using every ant in the harvesting line to attack unless your income is high enough to support massive numbers of Midae alongside Majors.

While the others can rely on 'quantity' to win most battles, the Leaf Cutters should focus on 'Quality', upgrading their majors first and Midae second, as for every Major you lose its another 15 food to hatch another, and if the harvesting line is constantly under attack by stray bugs you'll be spending 2 for every worker, 5-6 for every Midae... which piles up fast and can deplete your fungus reserves quickly

Solenopsis Invicta

The strength of the Fire Ants is their numbers, both Workers and Soldiers.

They key to winning is to overwhelm the enemy's defenses with numbers and kill their queen.

To t hat end once you have your first group of warriors, get them to lvl 3 as soon as possible and only use soldiers to go up top and gather food, leave the workers underground as they are not worth spending food on to replace.

At level 3 each Warrior tile can carry 2 ants, so as soon as you upgrade it a new one will spawn, and depending on your caste choice, whether Pervasive or Vigorous you can use your numbers to quickly overwhelm or sustain a prolonged assault against your enemy.

Same as before, but we will be covering how to 'counter' these colonies.

As you cannot play as these ant colonies, the only thing you can do is play against them.

Fighting against these 3 ant species has their own challenges

Formica Sanguinea

fighting against Formica Sanguinea is like fighting against a pair of pick pocket thieves.

You need to have 1 hand hold off one guy while the other fights off against the other guy.

The strategy when fighting against this ant species is simply to have higher numbers, and use everyone to attack them, while one group holds off their attackers, another one holds off and attacks those raiding the larvae nests.

They aren't that dangerous when numbers are on your side.

Odontomachus Bauri

Odontomachus Bauri trapjaw ants are not like the other ant colony enemies, they do not engage in colony warfare at this time in the game. All they do is roam the undergrowth in small groups of Ants.

Soldiers will leave their nests to scour around for food.

Their unique method of fighting, attacking and then leaping away to recover health means that to defeat them you need to consistantly engage them. If you can outnumber them while keeping them under constant attack, their ability to regenerate health will be minimal.

Eciton Burchellii

Eciton Burchellii are by far the greatest threat your colony will face, their numbers, their powerful attack, their hoard mentality, and the fact that if even '1' scout escapes it will bring in a battalion of Army Ants, makes them a threat to be respected.

The first thing you need to do is prepare for them, do not engage the Army Ants until you have a sufficient number of ants, and when you battle them you have to commit to throwing them back using 'everything' you have, Leaf Cutter Minors, Midae, and Majors together to fight them as using only the Majors will result in them being overwhelmed by the horde.

Because in 3.2 the horde of Army Ants will continue to assault a path until they've taken sufficient losses, you will need to keep the pressure up on them. To that end numbers alone wont be enough, you will need quality on your side, and one way to have that is to upgrade your Majors to counter 'their' Majors. Remember that Major Ants are the most expensive to rebuild of all the Ants in the Leaf Cutter arsenal, so investing into an upgraded batch of Majors is going to be a better investment then having a ton of Majors that will quickly drain your food reserves in a sustained fight against the Army Ants.

Speaking of Majors, Eciton Burchellii majors are by far the strongest and scariest of all the ants you've faced. They improve the attacking power of allies, they hit hard, and they never stop coming...

Their one weakness is low health, so if you can overwhelm them quickly their ability to boost damage will be lost.

When pushing the swarm back, be careful when you engage, as not only Workers but Majors will travel along the path together, so if you are fighting on one side you can find yourself in a pincer between two waves of Army Ants.

Fighting against these ant species requires the same strategy, but we will cover them anyway.

Monomorium Minimum

The tiny black ants are not threatening on their own, but their closeness to your colony often means they will frequently raid you and will constantly contest your resources. The one advantage they have over you is that their forces are far 'cheaper' to produce in large numbers until you can steal enough aphids to sustain your numbers and growth.

When you commit to the attack you must ensure all warriors are attacking, and keep the pressure up as they will continue to produce warriors with how cheap they are.

But because of how 'basic' they are they don't offer much difference from a normal Black Ant colony

Just have the numbers and even their chemical weapons will not stop you.

Pheidole Morrisii

The Big Headed ant colony is terrifying to face early on, as once they get their Super Soldier strain going, they become something terrifying to fight.

The best way to deal with them is to ignore them, and only fight if they attempt to 'raid' your aphids. Once the first clash occurs, they will begin producing Super Soldiers in increasing numbers and higher upgrade levels.

When that happens, you must have lvl 3 warriors and LOTS of them to equal their Super Soldiers... as stated before, if the numbers are even, then its an unfair fight for the Big Headed ants, as they will always win a head on assault with even forces.

Only a tidal wave of Fire Ants and large work force to sustain the push will drive the Big Headed Ants into the dirt...

Even at 50 v 50 lvl 3 Eciton Burchelli Army Ant Majors, the Big Headed Super Soldiers of Pheidole Morrisii won hands down...

And thats it for now, i'll update this guide as new ant species are introduced...

Gimme your thoughts down below~!

AND TREAT YOUR WORKERS RIGHT!!!