It’s been over a month since the global launch of Exos Heroes and since then, we have seen the release of new units weekly and the first balance patch in the form of a slight adjustment to the Fate Core passive of the First Guardians/Dragon Emperor Knights. Given the influx of updates provided by the developers at LINE Games, players have been quick to build their accounts to define and/or compete with the current PVP meta i.e. some form of Bathory/FC Annie/FC Rera backline with Uloom/FC Ana frontline.

Given the existence of today’s current meta, many new players starting their climb up the PVP ladder are quick to criticize the balance of the game once they lose to a team of meta units. Regardless of the meta, there are ways to be competitive and climb at any level if you explore and really understand all of the game’s mechanics.

Here are five tips for new players to PVP to consider when starting your climb.

1. Understand your limitations and set a realistic goal

While this does sound cliche, it’s surprising to see how many people (new or veteran) give up or quit PVP altogether because they can’t reach Legend rank. They often fail to realize that even though you may have the meta units, at higher ranks you will lose to an identical team if they have better gear. Higher ranks are a gear check, do not forget that. As a new player or veteran just stepping into the Zebenstunier Arena, DO NOT expect to reach legend rank your first week. Even though it is possible, do not expect to reach even Master 3 rank. Look at your current gear level, and when you fight a team that gives you legitimate challenge and/or loss, expect to stay at that rank for the week. 

2. Learn how a unit’s passive skill and regular skills work

There have been so many complaints about losing to a solo FC Zeon defense since his release, and most stem from the fact that people do not understand how the Dragon Knight passive works. Yes, they released an update to FC Annie’s passive to allow for an easy counter; however, he was easy to counter before her update. If you understood how to remove stacks of dragon blood or were lucky enough to obtain multiple Banga Fate Cores to utilize their passive, you could easily build a team of non-meta units to beat a solo FC Zeon. The bottom line is, do not expect to win if you do not understand how the skills of a unit work.

3. Learn the break mechanics of each guard stone.

Having any unit on your team broken after the enemy’s first or second attack will greatly lower your chances of winning as it takes your unit out for 7 turns and doubles final damage received. As you can see from the screenshot above, when you break a unit’s final guard stone, the effect it has on the unit varies depending on the element. Given the current meta, if you are lacking in Fated armor you should try to convert your unit’s innate guard stones to avoid fire/nature/frost given the amount of FC Zeons/FC Rera/FC Anastasia/Bathory team compositions you will face. For those with Dragon Knights and multiple Fated armor pieces, try building a set of green guard stones as the damage per turn effect triggers the passive and causes Dragon’s wrath counters.

This leads to my next tip...  

4. Learn the Guardian Stone Set bonuses provided from Fated armor for matching guard stones.

As you progress in the game and obtain more Fated armor, learn what set bonuses you receive for each guard stone. This will greatly help you with your attack/defense strategy when you are able to equip units with set bonuses. For example, if you are trying to one-shot a Bathory/FC Uloom defense, using a single target damage dealer with the Final Hit passive and a set of Machine stones for immunity will allow your unit to remove the enemy’s tranquil buff, bypass the provoke from Uloom, and land final hit to secure a kill. Again, simple in-game mechanics that will increase your chances of winning and you do not need meta units to do this.  

5. Learn how your unit’s innate element attribute impacts mana gain.

When you Bless a hero to 5* or higher, they will generate mana differently depending on their innate element and type. This is important to be aware of during a battle so you can predict how much mana an enemy unit will have at different points in the battle. If you know that hitting a FC Rera will drop her below 30% giving her enough mana to attack with her Burst skill on her next turn, you might want to avoid hitting her. This game mechanic is often overlooked by new players and will greatly increase the chances of winning if you use it to your advantage. 

Not all of these tips will guarantee a player to Legend rank, but they are game mechanics that are overlooked and will increase chances of winning. Good luck and hope this helps you successfully climb the PVP ladder!