Different types of strong player:
There are a few main strategies.
Energy player: Usually used as a secondary account, can get loot quickly, all points go into energy. Weak fighter.
Low level fighter: Powerful only compared to its level (decent if you buy skill points), relatively useless against much higher levels unless they're energy accounts. Achieved by putting all sp into attack/defense, a slight amount into energy.
High Level Fighter: Energy/stamina to get high level, then feed att/def: very effecient way to create fighter (best for daily playing minimum and free players, i.e. after time, through mastery sp etc this is the best option).
Stamina player/Energy-stamina hybrid: Main ability = autolevel, not great for getting loot or much really.
Former styles:
Hitlist rider: High health and defense. Exp gained from one hitlist session has been reduced to 50xp, seeing most of these accounts adapt to balanced fighting.
Gameplay:
"The best strategy is to buy as many properties as possible and upgrade your energy a lot."
This is the fastest way to level up but not always the 'best' option. First you need decide what your goal is from playing the game, do you want to have a higher level than your friends or do you want to be a stronger player than your friends?
If your only goal is to climb the levels as fast as you can then buying and upgrading energy is exactly what you need but if you want to be a stronger player than others then you need to improve your fighting stats; health, defence, attack and stamina - which will of course come slower as your sacrificing energy improvements to get them.
personal choices will matter the most, i personally improved energy until i had a nice high amount to grow with and then started pumping all my upgrades into the other stats to improve my abilities in a fight/robbery.
Major hint:
Build every day from chop shop etc. for skill points, and get 500 or 501 mafia (different strategy) if you're really serious.
When they go to war their 6 top mafia is displayed. these are the ones that have to be killed to win the war.
you will win a war if you have more friends who help you fight in the war regardless of the rank.
You find you've wasted your life on a pointless waste of time
No such item exists in mafia wars
On your Mafia Wars Home there's a notification table
shut up you can't win Answer: try your best?
claymore is an item sold in the Godfather special offer a few months before. it is even given as a reward before for mafia members who helped a mafia win a war. it is not available at this time.
get stuff and click attack
win the lottery
When they go to war have a look at their top mafia.
You cannot heist any more in Mafia Wars because Robbing has been replaced by Declare War.
Looted items in Mafia Wars helps you to win more fights if the looted items are better then your current items you already have.