Clash of Clans, the massively multiplayer online strategy game developed by Finland's Supercell in 2012 as a mobile gaming app has reached mainstream consciousness and is reported to have generated in $892 million in revenue in 2013 on the strength of only two games,  the other one being Hay Day. Supercell reportedly spent nearly $1 million a day on publicity and marketing in 2014 to achieve their goal of "global domination."

And from the looks of it, Supercell is succeeding.

Clash of Clans requires players to build a community, train fighting troops and attack other players to earn currency and potions for protection and upgrading defenses. Forming strategic alliances with other clans allow the players to gather more support and materials. Allied clans can wage wars and battles against one another and destroy and opponent's community. The victors can share the loot of wars, of course.

Below are some cheats and strategy tips for all Clash of Clans addicts:

Canons - Canon play an important role in a community's defense strategies. Always protect your canon from aerial attacks with a tower and always upgrade them for a more deadly firepower.

Mortar - For effective firepower, set up a mortar in a strategic part of your community to deliver a massive punch against an opponent.

Gems - It is very important to gather more gems, but spend them wisely and keep them safe from opponents. It is very easy to spend gems on upgrades but if you spend them early in the fight, this might leave your pockets empty, especially when you need them. Do not spend gems to speed up the construction process or the training. If you do this, you will be forced to spend real money buying gems from online sellers. Keep a tight hold of your gems and be frugal when spending. The rule is, spend gems only when you need to.

Troops - Blow up incoming troops from your enemies and do not wait for them to destroy your walls. You will be wasting your troops if you wait for this to happen.

Cheat Tips

Build Smartly - When building your community, it is wise to build like a good architect by building your structures closely together. Doing so will make it easier for you to defend your village from attacks. Your turrets can defend more buildings using this strategy.

Move and Make - Be always on the move, including your buildings. In fact, moving is the best part of the game so make the best out of it. In case you built your buildings far apart, it is advised that you move them closer together. As stated above, buildings that are closer together are easier to defend from attacks.

Invite Friends - The more the merrier is never more true in Clash of Clans. The more friends you have playing Clash of Clans, the more advantage you and your friends will enjoy. You can see who amongst your friends are playing Clash of Clans through Facebook or Game Center or if they rebuilt their Clan Castle in the Friends menu. Just tap their name and invite them. Using the global chat room works also in the same way. Just tap a player's message and choose Invite from the context menu.