Li Shimin Evony Guide 2026: Skills, Best Use & Build

Li Shimin Evony Guide 2026

Li Shimin is an accessible Ranged PvP General in Evony: The King's Return.

He is best suited to:

• Ranged PvP

• secondary Ranged marches

• F2P and low-spend accounts

• early and mid-game Ranged development

• Ranged rallies

• players who want a Tavern General that can realistically be Ascended

His biggest strengths are:

• built-in March Size

• solid Ranged Troop Attack

• good Ranged Troop HP

• useful Ranged Troop Defense

• Rally Capacity through Ascension

• Tavern accessibility

• realistic duplicate acquisition

• General Hall value

Li Shimin should primarily be built around Ranged Troops.

Is Li Shimin Good in Evony?

Yes.

Li Shimin remains a useful Ranged General, particularly for F2P and low-spend players.

His Special Skill provides:

• March Size Capacity +10%

• Ranged Troop Attack +15%

whenever he is leading the army.

That is a very practical combination.

March Size increases the number of troops in the battle, while Ranged Attack improves their damage.

His Ascension and Specialties make the overall package much stronger.

Li Shimin Best Role

Best Role: Ranged PvP

Also Good For:

• secondary Ranged marches

• Ranged rallies

• F2P Ranged progression

• early and mid-game PvP

Avoid Using For:

• Ground PvP

• Mounted PvP

• Siege PvP as a primary role

• Monster Hunting

• Subordinate City Mayor

• Main City Defense as a long-term specialist

Ranged is clearly Li Shimin's strongest troop type.

Li Shimin Special Skill

Li Shimin's Special Skill is:

Reign of Zhenguan

When Li Shimin is leading the army:

• March Size Capacity +10%

• Ranged Troop Attack +15%

The skill is always active.

There is:

• no attacking-only condition

• no Dragon requirement

• no Spiritual Beast requirement

That makes Li Shimin simple and flexible to use.

Why Li Shimin's March Size Matters

March Size is one of the strongest features of Li Shimin's base skill.

He receives:

• March Size +10%

without needing:

• Ascension

• Specialties

• Skill Books

• premium systems

A larger march means more Ranged Troops can participate in battle.

That improves:

• total damage

• total survivability

• rally contribution

• Battlefield pressure

This is one reason Li Shimin remains useful despite his age.

Li Shimin Ascension

Ascending Li Shimin improves Ranged damage, survivability and rally utility.

1 Star

• Ranged Troop Attack +10%

This gives an immediate offensive increase.

2 Stars

When Li Shimin is leading the army to attack:

• Troop Death into Wounded Rate +8%

This helps reduce permanent troop losses during offensive PvP.

3 Stars

When Li Shimin launches an Alliance War:

• Rally Capacity +6%

This increases the maximum size of rallies he launches.

4 Stars

• Ranged Troop Attack +10%

• Ranged Troop Defense +15%

This adds both damage and survivability.

5 Stars

• Ranged Troop Attack +15%

• Ranged Troop HP +15%

The fifth star gives another useful balanced Ranged increase.

How Much Ranged Attack Does Li Shimin Gain from Ascension?

Li Shimin gains:

• Ranged Attack +10% at 1-Star

• Ranged Attack +10% at 4-Star

• Ranged Attack +15% at 5-Star

That gives:

35% additional Ranged Troop Attack

from Ascension.

Combined with his base:

• Ranged Attack +15%

that gives:

50% Ranged Attack

before Specialties.

Li Shimin Specialties

Li Shimin has four Specialties.

Ranged Troop Assault

• Ranged Troop Attack +10%

• Ranged Troop HP +10%

This directly supports his primary role.

Siege

• March Size Capacity +6%

• Attacking Siege Machine Attack +10%

• Attacking Ranged Troop Attack +10%

The Siege buff is secondary.

The important parts for Li Shimin are:

• March Size

• Ranged Attack

King's Ambition

• Troop Death into Troop Soul Rate in the Main City +10%

This is a niche defensive utility effect.

It is not central to his Ranged PvP role.

Battle of Hulao

• Marching Ranged Troop Attack +26%

• Marching Ranged Troop Defense +26%

• Marching Ranged Troop HP +26%

Battle of Hulao is Li Shimin's standout Specialty.

It gives him a large balanced block of Ranged combat stats.

How Much Ranged Attack Can Li Shimin Add?

Li Shimin gains Ranged Attack from:

• Reign of Zhenguan: +15%

• 1-Star Ascension: +10%

• 4-Star Ascension: +10%

• 5-Star Ascension: +15%

• Ranged Troop Assault: +10%

• Siege: +10% when attacking

• Battle of Hulao: +26%

That gives:

96% Ranged Troop Attack

from his own fully developed attacking kit.

This is before:

• Skill Books

• equipment

• refines

• Dragons

• Spiritual Beasts

• account-wide buffs

How Much Ranged Defense Can Li Shimin Add?

Li Shimin gains:

• Ranged Defense +15% at 4-Star Ascension

• Ranged Defense +26% from Battle of Hulao

That gives:

41% Ranged Troop Defense

from his own developed kit.

How Much Ranged HP Can Li Shimin Add?

Li Shimin gains:

• Ranged HP +15% at 5-Star Ascension

• Ranged HP +10% from Ranged Troop Assault

• Ranged HP +26% from Battle of Hulao

That gives:

51% Ranged Troop HP

from his own developed kit.

This gives him a reasonably balanced Ranged profile rather than being purely Attack-focused.

How Much Native March Size Does Li Shimin Get?

Li Shimin gains:

• March Size +10% from Reign of Zhenguan

• March Size +6% from Siege

That gives:

16% native March Size

when fully specialised.

If you also use a Lv4 March Size Skill Book:

• March Size +12%

his personal contribution becomes:

28% March Size

before account-wide systems.

This is one of Li Shimin's best features.

Li Shimin and Rally Capacity

At 3-Star Ascension, Li Shimin gains:

• Rally Capacity +6%

when launching an Alliance War.

Rally Capacity is different from normal March Size.

It increases the maximum number of troops that can participate in the complete rally.

This gives Li Shimin some additional utility for coordinated Alliance attacks.

Best Skill Books for Li Shimin

For Ranged PvP, a strong setup is:

• Lv4 Ranged Troop Attack

• Lv4 Ranged Troop Range Bonus

• Lv4 March Size

This improves:

• Ranged damage

• engagement range

• total troop volume

This is the cleanest standard build.

Alternative Li Shimin Skill Book Build

If you want more survivability, use:

• Lv4 Ranged Troop Attack

• Lv4 Ranged Troop Range Bonus

• Lv4 Ranged Troop HP

This trades March Size for more durability.

For most offensive builds, March Size is the more attractive option.

Why Ranged Range Bonus Matters

Ranged Troops rely on attacking from distance.

Range Bonus allows them to begin attacking enemy formations earlier.

This is especially useful against:

• Mounted Troops

• shorter-range formations

A strong Ranged march should usually include Range Bonus somewhere in its build.

Best Assistant Generals for Li Shimin

Current TEBA data highlights:

• Ragnar

• Sigurd

• Algernon Sidney

as useful pairing directions.

A strong Ranged Assistant should add:

• Ranged Attack

• Ranged Defense

• Ranged HP

• March Size

• attacking buffs

without disabling Reign of Zhenguan.

Always test the exact Main and Assistant combination in-game before committing valuable resources.

Li Shimin for Ranged PvP

Ranged PvP is Li Shimin's correct role.

His developed kit provides:

• Ranged Attack

• Ranged Defense

• Ranged HP

• March Size

• Rally Capacity

• Troop Death into Wounded support

That makes him a balanced and easy-to-use Ranged General.

Li Shimin Against Mounted Troops

Mounted-heavy formations are one of the natural targets for a Ranged march.

Li Shimin's:

• Ranged Attack

• built-in March Size

• Range Bonus through Skill Books

allow him to put significant pressure on cavalry-heavy enemies.

Scout before attacking and ensure the enemy formation suits your troop matchup.

Li Shimin Against Ground Troops

Ground Troops are generally a more difficult matchup for Ranged.

Li Shimin does not provide major anti-Ground debuffs.

Avoid blindly sending him into strong Ground-heavy formations.

Li Shimin and Siege Machines

The Siege Specialty gives:

• Siege Machine Attack +10%

while attacking.

However, that does not make Li Shimin a dedicated Siege General.

The Specialty exists mainly because it also gives:

• Ranged Attack +10%

• March Size +6%

Keep the build focused on Ranged.

Li Shimin for Main City Defense

Li Shimin can technically contribute some Ranged stats while defending because his base skill is always active.

However, he lacks the powerful:

• In-City buffs

• enemy debuffs

• Wall-specific effects

found on dedicated Main City Defense Generals.

Use him primarily as a field General.

Li Shimin for Monster Hunting

Li Shimin should not normally be used as a Monster Hunter.

Monster Hunting is usually much more efficient with:

• Mounted Troops

• dedicated Monster Generals

• Monster-specific Attack bonuses

• Monster HP and Defense reduction

His Ranged kit is much better used in PvP.

Is Li Shimin Still Relevant in 2026?

Yes, particularly for F2P and low-spend players.

He still offers:

• 96% developed Ranged Attack

• 41% Ranged Defense

• 51% Ranged HP

• 16% native March Size

• 6% Rally Capacity

• Tavern accessibility

Those are useful numbers for an easily obtainable General.

However, modern Ranged Generals now provide much larger total combat packages.

Is Li Shimin F2P Friendly?

Yes.

This is one of his biggest advantages.

Li Shimin is available from the Tavern.

Current sources list his cost at:

• 32,000,000 Gold

That gives F2P and low-spend players a realistic route to:

• recruit him

• obtain duplicate copies

• Ascend him

This matters enormously when comparing him with premium Generals that may be much harder to develop fully.

How to Obtain Li Shimin

Li Shimin can be recruited from:

• Tavern

Current sources list his Tavern cost at:

• 32,000,000 Gold

He is also required for:

• King's Conquest

in General Hall I.

That gives him collection value even after stronger Ranged Generals eventually replace him.

Is Li Shimin Worth Ascending?

Yes, if he is one of your active Ranged Generals.

His Ascension adds:

• Ranged Attack +35%

• Ranged Defense +15%

• Ranged HP +15%

• Rally Capacity +6%

• Troop Death into Wounded +8%

Those are useful improvements.

Because he is Tavern-accessible, duplicate copies are much more realistic to obtain than for premium-only Generals.

However, Blood of Ares is still valuable.

If you already own a much stronger modern Ranged General that you can realistically Ascend, compare the long-term return first.

Is Li Shimin Worth Specialties?

Potentially yes.

Battle of Hulao adds:

• Ranged Attack +26%

• Ranged Defense +26%

• Ranged HP +26%

while his earlier Specialties add:

• Ranged Attack

• Ranged HP

• March Size

This is a useful complete Ranged package.

However, Runestones are expensive.

Do not max Li Shimin automatically if he is only a temporary stepping-stone.

Is Li Shimin Worth Investing In?

Li Shimin is worth investing in if:

• you are F2P or low-spend

• you need an accessible Ranged General

• you want a Tavern General you can realistically Ascend

• you need a secondary Ranged march

• you value native March Size

• you already have him partly developed

He is less attractive if:

• you already own stronger modern Ranged Generals

• you are building a fresh premium endgame Ranged march

• your Blood of Ares is limited

• your Runestones are limited

Li Shimin vs Modern Ranged Generals

Li Shimin's developed personal package is respectable.

However, newer Ranged Generals can offer:

• much higher Ranged Attack

• more Defense and HP

• larger March Size

• enemy debuffs

• Covenants

• Skins

• stronger rally effects

Li Shimin's advantage is not having the highest ceiling.

His advantage is accessibility.

A General you can realistically obtain and Ascend can be more useful than a premium General sitting permanently at zero Ascension.

TEBA 2026 Reality Check

Li Shimin is old.

But he is not useless.

A fully developed Li Shimin can provide approximately:

• Ranged Attack +96%

• Ranged Defense +41%

• Ranged HP +51%

• March Size +16%

• Rally Capacity +6%

from his own kit before Skill Books and equipment.

A Lv4 March Size Skill Book can take his personal March Size contribution to:

• 28%

That is a useful package for a 32M Tavern General.

The important thing is setting expectations correctly.

Li Shimin is:

• excellent as an accessible stepping-stone

• useful as a secondary Ranged General

• realistic for F2P Ascension

He is not:

• a cutting-edge 2026 endgame Ranged General

TEBA Verdict

Li Shimin is an accessible Ranged PvP General with unusually useful built-in March Size.

His base Special Skill provides:

• March Size +10%

• Ranged Attack +15%

whenever he leads.

His Ascension then adds:

• Ranged Attack +35%

• Ranged Defense +15%

• Ranged HP +15%

• Rally Capacity +6%

• Troop Death into Wounded support

while his Specialties add:

• Ranged Attack +46%

• Ranged Defense +26%

• Ranged HP +36%

• another March Size +6%

His biggest strengths are:

• good Ranged Attack

• balanced Ranged survivability

• 16% native March Size

• Tavern accessibility

• realistic F2P Ascension

• General Hall value

• very simple build requirements

His biggest weakness is age.

Modern Ranged Generals now offer significantly higher ceilings.

For F2P and low-spend players, Li Shimin remains a very practical Ranged PvP General in 2026.

For advanced accounts, he is better used as a secondary Ranged march or collection General once stronger modern options take over.