General power is driven by: (1) Stats (leadership/attack/defense/politics) via leveling up, enhance (star level), Cultivate (up to ~+500 total; gold covers up to ~+300, gems needed beyond that; roughly +1 net stat per 10 Cultivate attempts on average, so ~3,000 Cultivates needed to reach +300), and assigning a dragon (+~6 to +100 depending on dragon level); (2) Specialty, unlocked at general level 25, with 5 quality tiers (Green->Blue->Purple->Orange->Gold) that each add more power; (3) Star Level: below star 5 power rises via stat gains; from star 6+ each red star itself adds a large power jump (e.g. Red Star 1 ~150,000 power, Red Star 2 ~180,000, Red Star 3 ~200,000) independent of stats; (4) Generals' Equipment: pricier gear + star-upgrading (up to 5 stars, 3-10x power) + refining adds the most power (first refine ~1.5x; top-tier Achaemenidae gear can reach +100% buff total per piece via refine); (5) Spiritual Beast and Dragon assignment also raise a general's power (dragon refining adds +60-100% depending on dragon type; power shown on the dragon's own screen does not reflect the boost given to the general). THE DANGER: power is only a rough guide, NOT equal to real strength; skillbook buffs, research buffs, and monarch gear buffs do NOT count toward the power number at all, so a general fully buffed via research/skillbooks can be far stronger than their power score suggests, and conversely a general decked in expensive but wrong-type (unrefined) equipment can have high power yet be weaker than a cheaply-equipped general with correctly-refined, type-matched gear.
Original research source: Evony Guide Wiki
