Strategy guide
Everything in POACH comes down to one decision a round. You look at a rival's real formation, every name turned face down, and you pick a position to raid. Get it right and you walk away with a star and a weaker opponent. Get it wrong and you have handed away your best chance to climb. So it is worth slowing down on that one click.
What you are actually choosing
Raiding a position does two jobs at once. You take that team's best player in the role, and if he beats the man you already have there, he signs for you. He also goes missing from their side for the match you are about to play. That second part is the bit people forget. A good raid does not just sign you a player, it leaves a hole in the team you have to beat.
It is why a raid on a strong rival can be worth far more than the player alone. Pull a title-winning side's best centre-half out of their back line and you have not only upgraded yourself, you have left them defending with a makeshift one. Two birds, one steal.
Safe steals and swing steals
Every raid sits somewhere between a safe bet and a punt. A safe steal is a position where you can roughly call what is hidden. Against a solid mid-table side you can usually bank on the first-choice keeper or a senior centre-back being dependable without being a world-beater. No nasty surprises, no fireworks.
A swing steal is a punt on hidden value. The fun one is raiding a poor team in a spot where they happen to hide a real name, the cult hero who banged them in for a season or the kid who went on to far bigger things. Land that and your whole XI changes for the price of one round. Miss and you have burned your steal on a journeyman.
When to play safe
Early in a run, while the sides above you are there for the taking, just patch your weakest area and move on. You do not need a miracle to beat a team near the bottom, you need to not slip up. Plug your worst position with a steady upgrade and climb a rung.
Play safe, too, when a defeat would cost you the most. One loss or draw and the whole run is gone, so if you are five or six wins deep and creeping up near the top, this is not the night to bet the lot on a hidden gem. Take the reliable upgrade and bank the progress.
When to swing
Swing when patching alone will not get you there. The team at the top is a real champion, and an ordinary XI will not lay a glove on them. If you can already see your side has a ceiling well short of the summit, the time to gamble on a star is early, not when you are stood in front of the champions wishing you had.
The best gambles are the ones that barely hurt when they miss. If you are weak in a position anyway, raiding it blind costs you next to nothing, because almost anyone you pull out is an upgrade. Hunt for the raids where a hit wins you the game and a miss barely registers.
The mistake almost everyone makes
Far and away the most common slip is raiding a position you are already strong in. Taking a great player feels like a win, but if he cannot get into your XI it has done nothing for you. Look at your own team first, find the gap, and raid into that. A merely decent player in your weakest slot beats a brilliant one warming your bench.
There is more on that idea in raid your weaknesses, and a guide to reading a side before you raid it in reading a hidden formation. If you are brand new, the how to play page walks through a full day from the bottom of the table to the top.
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