Essence: when to save and when to spend
Essence pays for every card you play. Each turn you choose whether to spend it or save it, and that choice wins battles.
How essence works
- You start a battle with 3 essence, enough for about one character.
- You gain 3 more at the start of each of your turns.
- Whatever you do not spend stays with you, up to 12.
- Every 4 essence you keep earns 1 extra next turn. Think of it as interest.
- You can summon as many characters in a turn as you can pay for.
- In an online duel, whoever goes second starts with 1 extra essence.
Arriving together
A new character always waits a turn before it can act. If you save up and summon several in one turn, they all start moving together on your next turn, which is much harder to stop than one character at a time.
What saving is worth
| Your turn | If you spend everything | If you save everything |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 to spend | 3 kept |
| 2 | 3 to spend | 6 kept |
| 3 | 3 to spend | 10 kept, with 1 from interest |
| 4 | 3 to spend | 12, the most you can hold |
Past 12, essence is wasted, so there is no reason to sit on a full row.
Three ways to play
Rush. Spend every turn and get characters moving early. You put pressure on your rival before they are ready.
Save. Hold back, earn interest and bring several characters at once. Your board is empty for a while, so watch for invaders.
Mix. Keep one or two characters out and save the rest. This is the safest way to learn.
Read your rival
Both players' essence is on show. If your rival's number keeps growing, a big turn is coming. You can hurry them with an early attack, or keep some essence back to answer it. Computer rivals each have their own style, so some rush and some save.
Build your deck for it
Cheap cards let you bring more characters at once, and expensive cards hit harder but need saving for. A deck with a mix of costs gives you the most choices. See how to win for the rest of the plan.