Updated for Town Hall 18 (October 2026).
Town Hall 5 brings your first spell, your first splash defense that hits air, and a third Army Camp. You unlock the Spell Factory with the Lightning Spell, the Wizard Tower, Air Bombs and the Wizard, and your Barbarian King gets stronger without you lifting a finger. The upgrade to Town Hall 6 costs 500,000 Gold and takes 12 hours.
What Town Hall 5 unlocks
| New at TH5 | Count | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Wizard Tower | 1 | Splash damage to ground and air, range 7 tiles |
| Cannon | +1 (3 total) | |
| Archer Tower | +1 (3 total) | |
| Air Bomb | 2 | Hidden trap that chases flying troops, splash within 3 tiles |
| Bomb | +2 (4 total) | |
| Walls | +25 (100 total) | From level 5, Walls can be upgraded with Elixir as well as Gold |
| Army Camp | +1 (3 total) | |
| Spell Factory | 1 | 150,000 Elixir, 6 hours; holds 2 spell spaces at level 1 |
| Lightning Spell | Spell Factory level 1 | 1 spell space, damage in a 2-tile radius |
| Wizard | Barracks level 7 | 4 housing space, splash damage to ground and air from 3 tiles |
| Gold Mine and Elixir Collector | +1 each (5 each) |
The Barbarian King rises from 50% to 75% of his level 1 stats at TH5: 76.5 damage per second and 1,083.75 hitpoints. He still cannot be upgraded or defend until TH7. No pets, siege machines or Dark Elixir yet.
Max levels at Town Hall 5
Defenses and traps
| Defense | Number | Max level | At max |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cannon | 3 | 6 | 30 damage per second, 660 hitpoints |
| Archer Tower | 3 | 6 | 35 damage per second, 580 hitpoints |
| Mortar | 1 | 3 | 30 damage per shell, 500 hitpoints |
| Air Defense | 1 | 3 | 140 damage per second, 900 hitpoints |
| Wizard Tower | 1 | 2 | 13 damage per second, 650 hitpoints |
| Walls | 100 | 5 | 1,200 hitpoints |
| Bomb | 4 | 3 | 29 damage |
| Spring Trap | 2 | 1 | Capacity 10 housing space |
| Air Bomb | 2 | 2 | 120 damage |
Army and resource buildings
| Building | Max level | At max |
|---|---|---|
| Army Camp (3) | 5 | 45 each, 135 housing space total |
| Barracks | 7 | Adds the Wizard |
| Laboratory | 3 | |
| Spell Factory | 1 | 2 spell spaces |
| Clan Castle | 2 | 15 troop housing space |
| Hero Hall | 1 | 1 hero slot (attack only) |
| Gold Mine and Elixir Collector | 10 | 2,800 per hour, holds 100,000 |
| Gold Storage and Elixir Storage | 9 | 450,000 each |
Troops, spells and hero
| Unit | Max level at TH5 |
|---|---|
| Barbarian, Archer, Goblin | 3 |
| Giant, Wall Breaker, Balloon | 2 |
| Wizard | 2 |
| Lightning Spell | 4 (240 damage) |
| Barbarian King | 1 (75% stats) |
A maxed TH5 holds 1,000,000 Gold and 1,000,000 Elixir, counting the Town Hall’s own 100,000.
Upgrade priority at Town Hall 5
- Spell Factory. It takes 6 hours, so start it first. Two Lightning Spells change what your army can finish off.
- Laboratory to level 3, then research Lightning toward level 4 and your main troops to level 3.
- Third Army Camp, then Barracks to level 7 for Wizards.
- Wizard Tower, placed and upgraded. It is the only TH5 defense that splashes both ground and air troops, which matters against Goblin swarms and Balloons alike.
- Air Defense to level 3 and the two Air Bombs.
- Gold Storages to level 8 or higher. Two level 8 storages plus the Town Hall hold 550,000 Gold, just enough for the 500,000 Gold Town Hall 6 upgrade.
- Mortar, then Cannons and Archer Towers.
- Walls to level 5, using Elixir as well as Gold once your army upgrades are paid for.
Armies that work at Town Hall 5 in 2026
You have 135 housing space, 15 Clan Castle troops, two spell slots and a stronger King. Training is free and instant, so treat each attack as a test and change the mix as soon as something fails.
- Giants with Wizards. Giants absorb fire on the defenses while Wizards behind them deal splash damage from 3 tiles. This handles TH5 bases that lean on Cannons and Mortars.
- Balloons with Giants and Lightning. Send Giants and the King into the Air Defense first, then Balloons. Two level 4 Lightning Spells deal 480 damage in total. That will not take down a full-health Air Defense, which has 800 or more hitpoints, but it finishes one your Giants have already worked on.
- Goblins with Giants for loot. Goblins still deal double damage to storages and collectors, and the Wizard Tower is the main thing that stops them, so use a few Giants or the King to draw its fire.
The Army Recipe Cookbook, which unlocked at TH4, still lists Starter Armies built for your Town Hall if you want a ready-made option.
Town Hall 5 base design
We used to keep separate Town Hall 5 farming, trophy and war layouts on this site. Part of that advice no longer holds. Losing your Town Hall no longer earns you a shield, so leaving it outside your Walls as bait gets you nothing. Trophies only move in Ranked Battles, which start at TH7, so there is no trophy count to defend at TH5. What still matters is protecting your loot in regular Battles and having a separate base for Clan Wars.
Base for regular Battles (loot protection)
- Put the Town Hall in the middle. Its stored loot can only be taken if it is destroyed, and destroying it gives the attacker a star and the win.
- Split your four storages across different compartments so one breach does not empty them all.
- Place the Wizard Tower next to your most valuable storages. Its splash is your best answer to Goblins and Barbarians bunched up on a storage.
- Keep the Mortar central, with the Wizard Tower or Cannons covering the 4-tile blind spot around it.
- Set Bombs in pairs beside storages, where Goblins bunch up. Two blasts at once do far more to a Goblin group than one.
- Your village gets an 8-hour Magic Shield after it is attacked in a regular Battle, so a good layout mostly limits how much you lose in each raid.
Defending against Balloons
- Keep the Air Defense near the center, where Archer Towers and the Wizard Tower can cover it from ground troops.
- Put the two Air Bombs on the path Balloons will take toward the Air Defense. Air Bombs trigger at 4 tiles and chase their target, so they do not need to be exact.
- Spread the three Archer Towers so every side of the base has one.
Wall layout with 100 Walls
One hundred Walls is enough for three or four compartments. Avoid stacking two Wall layers directly against each other, since a Wall Breaker’s splash breaks through both. Leave Army Camps, Builder’s Huts and the Laboratory outside the Walls, where attacking troops spend time on them while your defenses fire.
War base
Your war base is set up separately and only defends in Clan Wars, where your resources are not at risk. Build it around stopping three stars: Town Hall and Clan Castle in the core with the Air Defense, Wizard Tower and Mortar overlapping, and traps on the routes Giants and Balloons take.
Before you upgrade to Town Hall 6
- Spell Factory, Wizard Tower, third Cannon and Archer Tower, Air Bombs, extra Bombs and third Army Camp placed.
- Gold Storages at level 8 or above so you can hold 500,000 Gold.
- Laboratory working on a long research to cover the 12-hour Town Hall upgrade.
- Barracks at level 7 so Wizards are ready.
Town Hall 5 FAQ
What is the best Town Hall 5 base?
Town Hall and Mortar central, storages split into separate compartments, the Wizard Tower next to the storages you care about most, and the Air Defense covered by Archer Towers with Air Bombs on the approach. Keep army buildings outside the Walls.
What is the Town Hall 5 upgrade order?
Spell Factory and Laboratory first, then the third Army Camp and Barracks, then the Wizard Tower and air defenses. Get both Gold Storages to level 8 before trying to start Town Hall 6.
What are the max levels at Town Hall 5?
Cannon and Archer Tower 6, Mortar 3, Air Defense 3, Wizard Tower 2, Walls 5, Bomb 3, Air Bomb 2, Spring Trap 1, Army Camp 5, Barracks 7, Laboratory 3, Spell Factory 1, collectors 10 and storages 9. See the max levels page for every Town Hall.
What is the best army at Town Hall 5?
Giants with Wizards is the most reliable ground option, and Giants with Balloons works well against bases with a weak Air Defense. Use Goblins when you only want loot.
More Town Hall guides
Previous: Town Hall 4 guide. Next: Town Hall 6 guide. See also the Town Hall overview and max levels by Town Hall.
Sources: Supercell release notes for the May 2026 update, the Clash Anytime update (Mar 24, 2025) and the Battle and Ranked modes announcement (Oct 2025); in-game data.
