How to Capture and Train the Best Thralls in Conan Exiles

Thralls are essential companions in Conan Exiles that can be leveled up to 20, gaining attribute points and perks along the way. Their effectiveness depends on proper management, including tactical settings, engagement rules, and combat commands. Understanding thrall attributes, growth chances, and feeding benefits will help you develop powerful allies for both PvE content and base defense. 

What Are Thralls and Why You Need Them

Thralls are captured NPCs who can be broken on the Wheel of Pain and converted into loyal followers. They provide critical advantages in Conan Exiles:

• Combat support during difficult encounters
• Base defense against both NPCs and players during raids
• Specialized crafting bonuses when placed at stations

💡 Pro tip: A well-equipped and leveled thrall can often survive encounters that would instantly kill a player character!

Types of Thralls and Their Functions

Combat Thralls

Combat thralls come in four varieties, each with unique strengths:

• Fighters: Melee specialists with high strength and vitality
• Archers: Ranged experts with high accuracy
• Bearers: Carry additional inventory while providing modest combat support
• Performers: Provide entertainment and remove corruption, with limited combat abilities

Crafting Thralls

Unlike combat thralls, crafting thralls:

• Cannot be placed in the world as followers
• Cannot gain levels or improve over time
• Must be assigned directly to crafting stations
• Provide immediate crafting bonuses and unique recipes

Thrall Leveling System Explained

Experience and Growth

Combat thralls begin at level 0 and can be leveled to 20 through combat experience:

• Experience is earned when either you or your thrall makes a kill
• Thralls only gain XP while actively following you, not while on guard duty
• Different thrall types level at different rates: easy (1×), medium (2×), or hard (3×)

Attribute Growth and Randomization

Each thrall type has:

• Fixed starting attributes (strength, agility, vitality, accuracy, survival)
• Total growth chance percentage that's consistent for their type
• Randomized distribution of growth chances across attributes

When a thrall levels up:

1. Each attribute has a chance to increase based on its growth percentage
2. A secondary check at half the growth percentage determines if it gains a second point
3. With perfect rolls, a thrall could theoretically gain up to 40 points in a single attribute

Follower Perks

At levels 10, 15, and 20, thralls randomly receive perks that can:

• Provide significant attribute boosts
• Add special abilities or resistances
• Sometimes include trade-offs with negative effects

This combination of random growth chances, attribute gains, and perk selection creates enormous variation in thrall development, making each one unique.

Feeding and Attribute Focus

What you feed your thrall impacts which attributes are most likely to increase:

• Gruel: Increases strength growth chance
• Cooked meat dishes: Boost vitality
• Savory foods: Improve accuracy
• Alcoholic beverages: Enhance agility
• Seeds and plant-based foods: Increase survival

Proper feeding can significantly influence your thrall's development toward your preferred combat style.

Thrall Management and Control

Placement and Deployment

To deploy a combat thrall:

1. Move the thrall to your hotbar
2. Place it like any building item
3. Set appropriate guard behaviors

Thralls can be placed:

• Within your base or clan territory
• Out in the open world (though not recommended on PvP servers)
• Anywhere outside other clan claims or restricted zones

⚠️ Important: On PvP servers, thralls will only attack other players during designated raid times when building damage is enabled.

Behavior Settings

Long-pressing the interact key while targeting your thrall opens the behavior wheel with these crucial options:

Tactics

• Stand and Defend: Thrall switches between ranged and melee based on enemy distance
• Prioritize Melee: Thrall aggressively advances toward enemies
• Prioritize Ranged: Thrall attempts to maintain distance for ranged attacks

Engagement

• Guard Me: Makes you the center of the guard area
• Guard Area: Makes the thrall the center of protection
• Attack All Enemies: Makes the thrall aggressive to anything within range
• Attack Nothing: Thrall remains passive even when attacked

Distance Settings

Fine-tune your thrall's behavior with:

• Attack Distance: How far away the thrall will detect and engage enemies
• Chase Distance: How far the thrall will pursue fleeing enemies

Combat Commands

During active combat, you can control your thrall using:

• Move: Commands thrall to move to a specific location
• Attack: Directs thrall to attack a specific target
• Return: Calls thrall back to your position
• Stop: Halts all thrall actions (including self-defense)

Quick command shortcuts:

• Single-click: Move or attack depending on target
• Double-click: Stop/resume actions
• Triple-click: Return to player

Advanced Thrall Management

Remote Follower Control

Access your thralls remotely through the Followers tab in your inventory to:

• View thrall status and location
• Show/hide thrall map icons
• Rescue lost thralls (they'll return without gear but retain level and stats)
• Break bonds with unwanted thralls

Stop Following Function

One of the most versatile commands is "Stop Following," which:

• Keeps thrall in place until commanded to follow again
• Prevents thrall from returning to guard position unless you die, log out, or leave the area
• Helps navigate tight spaces in other clans' bases or crowded areas
• Allows precise positioning during complex encounters

⚠️ Note: Thralls don't gain experience while in "Stop Following" mode.

Top Thralls Worth Hunting

While any thrall can become powerful with lucky level-ups, these named thralls offer exceptional starting stats:

1. Beastmaster Teimos: Exceptional growth chances across all attributes
2. Cimmerian Berserker: High starting strength and vitality
3. Volcano T4 Fighters: Excellent starting stats with good growth potential
4. Dalinsia Snowhunter: Well-balanced combat capabilities
5. Relic Hunter Treasure Seekers: Great accuracy and agility potential

Remember that a "lesser" thrall with lucky attribute rolls and perks can outperform even these elite options, so always level multiple thralls to find truly exceptional companions.

Best Practices for Thrall Development

1. Equip thralls properly with armor and weapons matching their strengths
2. Choose appropriate leveling areas based on thrall level and gear
3. Feed specific foods to guide attribute growth in desired directions
4. Adjust settings situationally rather than using the same configuration everywhere
5. Use "Stop Following" strategically in crowded or complex environments

Related Articles You Might Be Interested In:

• Complete Guide to Conan Exiles: Survival & Building
• Legendary Bosses in Conan Exiles: Complete Location Guide
• Best Base Locations in Conan Exiles