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- Faction Wars is a set of crypts, one per faction. You can only bring champions of that faction, so the mode rewards a wide roster, not one perfect team.
- Each crypt has 21 stages that you clear in order. Bosses stand at stages 7, 14 and 21.
- You earn glyphs (extra stats for gear), materials for the Forge, and chickens. Clearing every Normal stage with 3 stars unlocks a Legendary champion, Lydia the Deathsiren.
- Hard mode opens after Normal. Its enemies are stronger, and its rewards include better glyphs, relic materials and a Mythical champion.
- It is a long project. Do the crypts your roster handles, and come back to the rest as you grow.
How it works
Every faction in the game has its own crypt. You enter one with a team made only of champions from that faction (the game has 16 factions, such as High Elves, Orcs or Undead Hordes). There are 21 stages in a crypt. You must clear a stage before the next one opens, and the stages at 7, 14 and 21 are fights against a boss, called a Crypt Keeper.
The regular stages are waves of enemies, so area attacks and damage over time help. The boss stages bring a special rule. The game shows five kinds of boss, told apart by colour, and each one has its own trick; read its description before you fight.
Stages use Faction Wars keys, which refill with time. Some advanced quests give extra keys, so check your quest list.
Building a team from one faction
The usual advice for any team still applies: one damage dealer, one champion who weakens the enemy, one who keeps the team alive, and some speed. The only difference is that the pool is small. Open the champion list, pick a faction (for example Dark Elves), and then add an effect filter to see who covers a missing job.
- A cheap, useful pick for a Dark Elves team is Coldheart, a Rare who reduces turn meter and places [Poison].
- Control that works in a crypt: turn meter reduction, Decrease SPD and Stun.
- For waves, look for Poison or HP Burn and a way to cleanse your own team: remove debuffs.
Stars
Every stage can be cleared for up to three stars. One star is for winning. The other two are challenges listed on the stage screen, and they ask you to finish without losing a champion. Stars add up, and passing set totals unlocks one-time rewards.
What you earn
| Reward | What it does |
|---|---|
| Glyphs | Extra stat bonuses that you attach to a piece of gear: HP, ATK, DEF, SPD, RES and ACC. Faction Wars is their main source. See glyphs and ascension. |
| Forge materials | Spent at the Forge, a crafting screen that turns materials into gear of a chosen set. Faction Wars materials are used to craft the Resilience set (HP +10%, DEF +10%) and the Perception set (ACC +40, SPD +5%). Guides also list Deflection and Swift Parry materials here. |
| Chickens | Fodder that counts as a champion of a star rank. See currencies and resources. |
| Star milestones | One-time rewards for reaching star totals. |
| A champion | Lydia the Deathsiren, a Legendary, for clearing every Normal stage with 3 stars. |
Hard mode
Hard mode opens when you finish Normal. It is another full set of crypts with stronger Crypt Keepers and minions. Rewards go up with it: higher-rarity glyphs, materials for Faction Wars relics and, for completing it, the Mythical champion Polara Fireheart.
Plan Hard mode as a long project. Bring a better team, fully geared, and expect to need several champions per faction.
Where to start
- Pick the faction with your best champions. Not the one with the best champions in the game; the one you own.
- Clear to the first boss, then read it. Bring what the boss's rule asks for, not just damage.
- Take one star everywhere first. Then raise stars crypt by crypt as you grow.
- Spend glyphs on gear you will keep. Putting them on a piece you replace next week wastes them.
Next: Doom Tower, the other mode that pays out champions you cannot summon.