Cheng Yaojin Evony Guide 2026: Skills, Best Use & Build

Cheng Yaojin Evony Guide 2026

Cheng Yaojin is a powerful Mounted PvP and Monster Hunting General in Evony: The King's Return.

He is best suited to:

• Mounted PvP

• Monster Hunting

• Boss Monster rallies

• secondary Mounted marches

• Mounted-heavy Battlefield play

• players who can develop premium Generals

His biggest strengths are:

• very high Mounted Troop Attack

• strong Mounted Defense

• strong Mounted HP

• large native March Size

• excellent fourth Specialty

• strong Monster Hunting potential

• useful Covenant bonuses

• some Ground support

Cheng Yaojin should primarily be built around Mounted Troops.

Is Cheng Yaojin Good in Evony?

Yes.

Cheng Yaojin is a very strong Mounted General because his base Special Skill already provides:

• Mounted Troop Attack +45%

• Ground Troop Defense +35%

• Ground Troop HP +35%

• Mounted Troop Defense +35%

• Mounted Troop HP +35%

whenever he is leading the army.

That gives him an unusually balanced Mounted profile straight away.

His Ascension, Specialties and Covenant then push his Mounted performance much higher.

Cheng Yaojin Best Role

Best Role: Mounted PvP

Also Excellent For:

• Monster Hunting

• Boss Monster rallies

• secondary Mounted marches

Secondary Use:

• limited Ground support

• defensive Mounted setups

Avoid Using For:

• Ranged PvP

• Siege PvP

• Subordinate City Mayor

• Duty Officer

Mounted is clearly his main troop type.

Cheng Yaojin Special Skill

Cheng Yaojin's Special Skill is:

Whirlwind Iron Axe

When Cheng Yaojin is leading the army:

• Mounted Troop Attack +45%

• Ground Troop Defense +35%

• Ground Troop HP +35%

• Mounted Troop Defense +35%

• Mounted Troop HP +35%

There is no attack-only condition.

There is no Dragon requirement.

That makes his base skill highly flexible.

Cheng Yaojin Ascension

Ascending Cheng Yaojin significantly improves his Mounted combat performance.

1 Star

• Mounted Troop Attack +5%

• Ground Troop Attack +5%

• Mounted Troop Defense +10%

• Ground Troop Defense +10%

This adds both damage and survivability.

2 Stars

When Cheng Yaojin is leading an attacking march:

• Troop Death into Wounded Rate +8%

This helps reduce permanent troop losses during offensive PvP.

3 Stars

• March Size Capacity +10%

• Mounted Troop Attack +20%

This is one of Cheng Yaojin's strongest Ascension upgrades.

It increases both:

• total troop volume

• Mounted damage

4 Stars

• Mounted Troop Defense +10%

• Mounted Troop HP +10%

This reinforces his balanced Mounted profile.

5 Stars

• Mounted Troop Attack +20%

• Ground Troop Attack +20%

• Mounted Troop Defense +15%

• Ground Troop Defense +15%

• Mounted Troop HP +15%

• Ground Troop HP +15%

The fifth star gives another major all-round increase.

Cheng Yaojin Specialties

Cheng Yaojin has four Specialties.

Mounted Troop Formation

• Mounted Troop Attack +10%

• Mounted Troop Defense +10%

This directly supports his primary role.

Annihilation

• March Size Capacity +6%

• Attacking Mounted Troop Attack +10%

• Attacking Ground Troop Attack +10%

The March Size increase is particularly useful.

Mounted Troop Ares

• Mounted Troop Attack +10%

• Mounted Troop HP +10%

• Mounted Troop Defense +10%

This gives another balanced Mounted increase.

King of Chaos

• Mounted Troop Attack +50%

• Mounted Troop Defense +15%

• March Size Capacity +15%

King of Chaos is Cheng Yaojin's standout Specialty.

It is a major reason his developed Mounted ceiling is so high.

How Much Mounted Attack Can Cheng Yaojin Add?

Before Covenant bonuses, Cheng Yaojin can gain Mounted Attack from:

• Whirlwind Iron Axe: +45%

• 1-Star Ascension: +5%

• 3-Star Ascension: +20%

• 5-Star Ascension: +20%

• Mounted Troop Formation: +10%

• Annihilation: +10% when attacking

• Mounted Troop Ares: +10%

• King of Chaos: +50%

That gives:

170% Mounted Troop Attack

from his own fully developed kit while attacking.

His Covenant can increase this further.

How Much Mounted Defense Can Cheng Yaojin Add?

Before Covenant bonuses, Cheng Yaojin gains:

• Mounted Defense +35% from Whirlwind Iron Axe

• Mounted Defense +10% at 1-Star

• Mounted Defense +10% at 4-Star

• Mounted Defense +15% at 5-Star

• Mounted Troop Formation +10%

• Mounted Troop Ares +10%

• King of Chaos +15%

That gives:

105% Mounted Troop Defense

from his developed kit.

How Much Mounted HP Can Cheng Yaojin Add?

Before Covenant bonuses, Cheng Yaojin gains:

• Mounted HP +35% from Whirlwind Iron Axe

• Mounted HP +10% at 4-Star

• Mounted HP +15% at 5-Star

• Mounted Troop Ares +10%

That gives:

70% Mounted Troop HP

from his developed kit.

How Much Native March Size Does Cheng Yaojin Get?

Cheng Yaojin gains:

• March Size +10% from 3-Star Ascension

• March Size +6% from Annihilation

• March Size +15% from King of Chaos

That gives:

31% native March Size

before Covenant.

This is excellent.

Cheng Yaojin Covenant

Cheng Yaojin forms a Covenant with:

• Li Jing

• Li Shimin

• Sun Ce

His Covenant can provide several useful bonuses.

Local bonuses for Cheng Yaojin include:

• Mounted Defense +10%

• Enemy Wounded into Death +10% when attacking

• March Size +8%

• Mounted Attack +5%

• Mounted Attack +5%

• Mounted HP +10%

The Covenant can also provide account-wide:

• Mounted Training Speed +10%

• March Speed +10%

Cheng Yaojin with Full Covenant

With the local Covenant bonuses added, Cheng Yaojin can reach approximately:

Mounted Attack:

• 170% from his developed attacking kit

• +10% from Covenant

Total:

• 180% Mounted Attack

Mounted Defense:

• 105% from his developed kit

• +10% from Covenant

Total:

• 115% Mounted Defense

Mounted HP:

• 70% from his developed kit

• +10% from Covenant

Total:

• 80% Mounted HP

March Size:

• 31% native

• +8% Covenant

Total:

• 39% native March Size before Skill Books

This is an extremely strong personal Mounted package.

Best Skill Books for Cheng Yaojin PvP

There is one important limitation:

Cheng Yaojin cannot use a normal Mounted Troop Attack Skill Book because it conflicts with Whirlwind Iron Axe.

For Mounted PvP, a strong setup is:

• Lv4 Mounted Troop HP

• Lv4 Mounted Troop Speed

• Lv4 March Size

This gives:

• more survivability

• faster engagement

• more troops per march

How Much March Size Can Cheng Yaojin Reach with Skill Books?

Cheng Yaojin can reach:

• 31% native March Size

• +8% from Covenant

• +12% from Lv4 March Size Skill Book

That gives:

51% March Size

from his personal developed setup before account-wide systems.

That is one of the strongest parts of his build.

Best Skill Books for Monster Hunting

For large Boss Monsters, use:

• Lv4 Mounted Troop Attack Against Monster

• Lv4 Mounted Troop HP Against Monster

• Lv4 March Size

This maximises:

• Monster damage

• Mounted survivability

• troop volume

Monster Loot Hybrid Build

If you want more rewards instead of maximum survivability, use:

• Lv4 Mounted Troop Attack Against Monster

• Lv4 Luck

• Lv4 March Size

Luck increases:

• Double Items Drop Rate

This is useful when Cheng Yaojin is farming large numbers of Monsters that you can already kill comfortably.

Cheng Yaojin for Mounted PvP

Mounted PvP is Cheng Yaojin's strongest overall role.

His developed kit provides:

• very high Mounted Attack

• strong Mounted Defense

• strong Mounted HP

• huge March Size

• Enemy Wounded into Death through Covenant

• excellent offensive scaling

That makes him particularly effective against:

• Ground-heavy enemy formations

Mounted Troops naturally perform well against Ground Troops.

Cheng Yaojin for Monster Hunting

Cheng Yaojin is also an excellent Monster Hunter.

His base:

• Mounted Attack +45%

works immediately.

His developed Mounted buffs then increase his ability to kill:

• Boss Monsters

• Event Monsters

• World Boss targets

Mounted Troops are the standard choice for Monster Hunting because of their strong single-target damage.

Cheng Yaojin vs Dedicated Monster Generals

Dedicated Monster Generals may provide additional:

• Monster Attack

• Monster Defense reduction

• Monster HP reduction

• stamina efficiency

• Double Item Drop

Cheng Yaojin's advantage is flexibility.

You can use one General for:

• Mounted PvP

• Monster Hunting

without building two completely separate premium Generals.

Cheng Yaojin and Ground Troops

Cheng Yaojin also provides Ground support.

His kit can add:

• Ground Defense

• Ground HP

• Ground Attack through Ascension

• Ground Attack while attacking through Annihilation

However, Ground is clearly secondary.

He should not normally replace a dedicated Ground PvP General.

Cheng Yaojin for Main City Defense

Cheng Yaojin can technically contribute to defense because Whirlwind Iron Axe is not attack-only.

He provides:

• Mounted Defense

• Mounted HP

• Ground Defense

• Ground HP

However, modern dedicated Wall Generals provide much stronger:

• In-City buffs

• enemy debuffs

• multi-troop defensive support

Use Cheng Yaojin primarily as a field General.

Best Assistant Generals for Cheng Yaojin

Current TEBA data highlights:

• Artemis

• George Monck

• Hestia

as strong pairing options.

The ideal Assistant should add:

• Mounted Attack

• Mounted Defense

• Mounted HP

• March Size

• Monster buffs where relevant

without disabling Whirlwind Iron Axe.

Always verify the exact Main and Assistant pairing in-game before heavy investment.

Equipment and Refines

For Mounted PvP, focus heavily on percentage-based Mounted refines.

Spear

• Mounted Troop Attack % x4

Ring

• Mounted Troop Attack % x4

Armor

• Mounted Troop Defense % x4

Boots

• Mounted Troop Defense % x4

Helmet

• Mounted Troop HP % x4

Leg Armor

• Mounted Troop HP % x4

This gives Cheng Yaojin a balanced Mounted build.

Is Cheng Yaojin Still Relevant in 2026?

Yes.

His fully developed kit remains impressive because he combines:

• huge Mounted Attack

• strong Mounted Defense

• strong Mounted HP

• huge March Size

• Monster flexibility

• Covenant bonuses

He also does not depend on:

• a Dragon

• a Spiritual Beast

• attacking-only base conditions

That gives him useful flexibility.

Is Cheng Yaojin F2P Friendly?

No.

Current specialist sources list Cheng Yaojin as:

• Premium Packages

He is not currently a standard Tavern General.

Some databases display nominal Gold values such as:

• 60,000,000 Gold

• 80,000,000 Gold

but these values should not be treated as proof of Tavern availability.

Consider Cheng Yaojin a premium General unless the live game shows otherwise.

How to Obtain Cheng Yaojin

Current sources list Cheng Yaojin primarily through:

• Premium Packages

• premium Historic General recruitment pools

• limited premium events

Availability can change over time.

Check the current in-game General pool before spending specifically for him.

Is Cheng Yaojin Worth Ascending?

Yes, if he is one of your long-term Mounted Generals.

His Ascension adds:

• Mounted Attack

• Mounted Defense

• Mounted HP

• March Size

• Ground support

• Troop Death into Wounded support

The 3-Star and 5-Star upgrades are especially strong.

However, premium duplicate fragments can be difficult to obtain.

That can make full Ascension expensive.

Is Cheng Yaojin Worth Specialties?

Yes.

King of Chaos alone provides:

• Mounted Attack +50%

• Mounted Defense +15%

• March Size +15%

That is an enormous upgrade.

His other Specialties also add:

• Mounted Attack

• Mounted Defense

• Mounted HP

• March Size

If Cheng Yaojin is one of your core Mounted Generals, his Specialties are highly valuable.

Is Cheng Yaojin Covenant Worth Developing?

Yes.

His Covenant can add:

• Mounted Attack

• Mounted Defense

• Mounted HP

• March Size

• Enemy Wounded into Death

• March Speed

• Mounted Training Speed

The local buffs significantly improve Cheng Yaojin's personal combat ceiling.

Is Cheng Yaojin Worth Investing In?

Cheng Yaojin is worth investing in if:

• Mounted PvP is one of your main combat styles

• you also want a strong Monster General

• you already own him

• you can obtain Ascension fragments

• you can develop King of Chaos

• you can build his Covenant

• you value large March Size

He is less attractive if:

• you are strictly F2P

• duplicate fragments are unrealistic

• your Runestones are limited

• you already own stronger fully developed Mounted Generals

• you only need a simple Monster Hunter

TEBA 2026 Reality Check

Cheng Yaojin has one major limitation:

he cannot use the normal Mounted Troop Attack Skill Book.

That sounds worse than it actually is.

His own developed kit can already provide:

• 170% Mounted Attack while attacking before Covenant

• 105% Mounted Defense

• 70% Mounted HP

• 31% native March Size

and a full local Covenant can raise those numbers further.

That means he compensates for the missing Attack Skill Book through:

• Ascension

• Specialties

• Covenant

• very strong base buffs

His real drawback is not combat power.

It is accessibility.

A premium General can be expensive to obtain and Ascend.

TEBA Verdict

Cheng Yaojin is a powerful premium Mounted PvP General with excellent Monster Hunting flexibility.

His base Special Skill provides:

• Mounted Attack +45%

• Ground Defense +35%

• Ground HP +35%

• Mounted Defense +35%

• Mounted HP +35%

His Ascension then adds:

• more Mounted Attack

• more Mounted Defense

• more Mounted HP

• Ground support

• March Size +10%

• Troop Death into Wounded support

while his Specialties add:

• huge Mounted Attack

• more Mounted Defense

• more Mounted HP

• another 21% March Size

and his Covenant can add:

• Mounted Attack

• Mounted Defense

• Mounted HP

• another 8% March Size

• Enemy Wounded into Death

• useful account-wide Mounted support

His biggest strengths are:

• excellent Mounted Attack

• strong Mounted survivability

• exceptional March Size

• strong PvP performance

• strong Monster Hunting performance

• powerful Covenant

• no Dragon requirement

His biggest weakness is accessibility.

For players who already own him and can develop his Ascension, Specialties and Covenant, Cheng Yaojin remains a very strong Mounted General in 2026.