Advice for new players

[jmck]

Hello, all. I don't want to call this a guide, but rather just a list of tips/suggestions. Tried to keep it spoiler free, and it is largely just general advice rather than specific instructions.

Meta progression priority - these things stay with you even after finishing an expedition
1. Relationship <until Ashe's classes are unlocked>
2. Rune fragments <until ally classes are upgraded>
3. Sacred Embers/Essence of Fire
4. Coral stones
5. Relationships after classes are unlocked

Run progression - things that you lose/get reset after an expedition
Prioritize upgrades to stats that are actually used by that character; ex. no reason to upgrade Magic Attack on Marco, because he doesn't have a magic attack. EVERYONE benefits from Guard; I'd say it's more valuable than actual defense. The lowest level HP UP is rarely worth it; it doesn't add enough HP (+2) to be meaningful, but higher level HP UP (+4, +6) can often be better than a +1 to attack or defense.

Prioritize skills you'll actually use. Ex. Emile has a couple of skills that involve repositioning and entering stealth. One of them, he just moves past enemies and enters stealth. I almost never use this. The other, he swaps places with an enemy and enters stealth. I use this all the time; grab a distant enemy and set them up for a takedown before the rest of their group is in range.


Resonance stones are pretty plentiful, relative to how valuable they are. Therefore, I would usually prioritize meta progression over Resonance Stones when deciding on a path.
When using Resonance Stones, based on how they currently work, I advise prioritizing the highest Resonance Strength available to you. High Priority on getting 'Very Strong' Resonance on a shield; this will open up the Radiant Flash skill, which is extremely valuable.

Relics are very hit or miss. Some are awesome. Regain % of HP after every battle? Yes, please. 10% chance of legendary or mythic skill? Nice. Some, however, are kind of 'meh'. The worst, imo, are the 3-part relics that require you gather 3 relics and assemble them into one. There's a high likelihood you won't find all three in a single run. I never have. I can't speak to whether or not the item they assemble is good; like I said, I've never found all three in a single run. But it's hard to imagine what would be worth it. I generally rate "always on" relics, with a weaker positive bonus, over relics that activate randomly, or only in specific conditions, or that have a larger positive with a big downside.

Money and mid-run shopping is helpful, but imo it's rarely worth prioritizing money over meta-progression, or shopping over a fight with some other reward.
'Allies' - NPC companions that can join your active party for a few battles - are mostly useless. With the exception of the Healer. The others are too fragile compared to your party, and their damage is pretty negligible.

Class upgrades
When you gather runes, you'll sometimes get the choice - in a particular event - between collecting some 'normal' stones, or collecting a 'whole' stone. A whole stone is generally one for a specific class, and can not be used for another class/character. I always go for the 'whole' stone. Meanwhile, the 'normal' stones, I like to use to upgrade characters' first class evenly, using 'whole' stones if I run across them to advance characters to their max class upgrade.

Party Composition
Mandatory for every run: At least one healer, one axe-wielder, one archer, and one shield user. Sword/Spear do not need to be prioritized. If you make sure these are prioritized, you will almost assuredly already have one of each.

Ashe's starting class is fine with the starting party. If you decide to run with the additional party members, they pair well with Ashe serving as a Mage (standing in for Laurent).

Tactical considerations
Use the terrain effects; target wet enemies with lightning for extra damage, use fire on areas covered in miasma, etc.

Go for the kill! I included this in my tips for Lost Eidolons, and it's true here. An injured enemy can still hit you just as hard as an uninjured one. It's usually better to finish off one target than to injure 3-4.

Most human and creature enemies will take 2-3 hits to take down. Fallen often go down in one hit, if you're using the appropriate weapon (Spear/Bow for Cloth, Sword for Leather, Axe for Plate, etc). Bigger creatures may take more hits. Coordinate your units accordingly.

AOE skills are excellent. Learn them. Use them. Heals as well as damage/debuffs.

This is a bit of a cheese, but; the boss battle of Act 1? You can use it to powerlevel your party. Just, intentionally don't extinguish the beacon, even after you've beaten the boss. This only works up to a point; the enemies will stop coming eventually. But several of your characters are likely to max out their XP gain before that happens.

This information is for the current build of the game, as of 12/3/2024. version 0.06.006, Early Access. This information is opinion of the author, and not a substitute for your own judgment. Later versions of the game may make this out of date, due to future changes. I hope it is helpful, and that you have fun playing this game!

[Jiffytanner]

Originally posted by jmck:

Hello, all. I don't want to call this a guide, but rather just a list of tips/suggestions. Tried to keep it spoiler free, and it is largely just general advice rather than specific instructions.

Meta progression priority - these things stay with you even after finishing an expedition
1. Relationship <until Ashe's classes are unlocked>
2. Rune fragments <until ally classes are upgraded>
3. Sacred Embers/Essence of Fire
4. Coral stones
5. Relationships after classes are unlocked

Run progression - things that you lose/get reset after an expedition
Prioritize upgrades to stats that are actually used by that character; ex. no reason to upgrade Magic Attack on Marco, because he doesn't have a magic attack. EVERYONE benefits from Guard; I'd say it's more valuable than actual defense. The lowest level HP UP is rarely worth it; it doesn't add enough HP (+2) to be meaningful, but higher level HP UP (+4, +6) can often be better than a +1 to attack or defense.

Prioritize skills you'll actually use. Ex. Emile has a couple of skills that involve repositioning and entering stealth. One of them, he just moves past enemies and enters stealth. I almost never use this. The other, he swaps places with an enemy and enters stealth. I use this all the time; grab a distant enemy and set them up for a takedown before the rest of their group is in range.


Resonance stones are pretty plentiful, relative to how valuable they are. Therefore, I would usually prioritize meta progression over Resonance Stones when deciding on a path.
When using Resonance Stones, based on how they currently work, I advise prioritizing the highest Resonance Strength available to you. High Priority on getting 'Very Strong' Resonance on a shield; this will open up the Radiant Flash skill, which is extremely valuable.

Relics are very hit or miss. Some are awesome. Regain % of HP after every battle? Yes, please. 10% chance of legendary or mythic skill? Nice. Some, however, are kind of 'meh'. The worst, imo, are the 3-part relics that require you gather 3 relics and assemble them into one. There's a high likelihood you won't find all three in a single run. I never have. I can't speak to whether or not the item they assemble is good; like I said, I've never found all three in a single run. But it's hard to imagine what would be worth it. I generally rate "always on" relics, with a weaker positive bonus, over relics that activate randomly, or only in specific conditions, or that have a larger positive with a big downside.

Money and mid-run shopping is helpful, but imo it's rarely worth prioritizing money over meta-progression, or shopping over a fight with some other reward.
'Allies' - NPC companions that can join your active party for a few battles - are mostly useless. With the exception of the Healer. The others are too fragile compared to your party, and their damage is pretty negligible.

Class upgrades
When you gather runes, you'll sometimes get the choice - in a particular event - between collecting some 'normal' stones, or collecting a 'whole' stone. A whole stone is generally one for a specific class, and can not be used for another class/character. I always go for the 'whole' stone. Meanwhile, the 'normal' stones, I like to use to upgrade characters' first class evenly, using 'whole' stones if I run across them to advance characters to their max class upgrade.

Party Composition
Mandatory for every run: At least one healer, one axe-wielder, one archer, and one shield user. Sword/Spear do not need to be prioritized. If you make sure these are prioritized, you will almost assuredly already have one of each.

Ashe's starting class is fine with the starting party. If you decide to run with the additional party members, they pair well with Ashe serving as a Mage (standing in for Laurent).

Tactical considerations
Use the terrain effects; target wet enemies with lightning for extra damage, use fire on areas covered in miasma, etc.

Go for the kill! I included this in my tips for Lost Eidolons, and it's true here. An injured enemy can still hit you just as hard as an uninjured one. It's usually better to finish off one target than to injure 3-4.

Most human and creature enemies will take 2-3 hits to take down. Fallen often go down in one hit, if you're using the appropriate weapon (Spear/Bow for Cloth, Sword for Leather, Axe for Plate, etc). Bigger creatures may take more hits. Coordinate your units accordingly.

AOE skills are excellent. Learn them. Use them. Heals as well as damage/debuffs.

This is a bit of a cheese, but; the boss battle of Act 1? You can use it to powerlevel your party. Just, intentionally don't extinguish the beacon, even after you've beaten the boss.

This information is for the current build of the game, as of 12/3/2024. version 0.06.006, Early Access. This information is opinion of the author, and not a substitute for your own judgment. Later versions of the game may make this out of date, due to future changes. I hope it is helpful, and that you have fun playing this game!

Hey! Thank you!!