How to advance?

[Gkyr]

Welcome to the game @QueenArwenEvenstar. I would recommend Golden Abyss as your first ancient wonder. It provides massive amounts of both gold and population once upgraded. The best uses of diamonds early in the game are: A. Getting extra expansions for your city, B. Upgrading the Magic Academy beyond level 2, and C. Getting a 3rd builder. I would conserve your diamonds and save them for these 3 tasks.

I second the advice of Henroo. Especially because the Golden Abyss takes up the least space of all the AWs.
Having said that I will warn you that you will find positive reports and negative reports for every one of the AWs across the web if you look hard enough. It is tempting to buy into someone's compendium on "the best and the worst" but the truth is that the best combination of AWs is as varied as the manners in which this game is played.

 

[Lelanya]

Ah Yes Elvenar's Great Buildings, called Ancient Wonders. They are unlocked in mid chapter 2, and yep, you know how much fun it is to collect a whole set of rune shards, aka blueprints. Confusingly Elvenar also has blueprints but they are special 'one up' kits for premium houses and workshops.

Rune shards are not randomly awarded while polivating; in fact polivating is very slow in Elvenar unless you are in a large (max 25) Fellowship. Rune shards are earned by completing provinces on the map, in some tournament provinces or ending rewards, and of course by donations to others'. Elvengems has the list.

Elvenar's equivalent to ForgeDB is called ElvenStats.
Elvenar's equivalent to FoE planner is called the ElvenArchitect.
Ask us when ready to know more.

 

[Deleted User - 849487592]

Whoa, that's a lot. Is it possible to sell goods for KPs? Is a full set of rune shards needed for every level beyond level 10? I saw that the cap is level 30? I guess that's sad because it's just in front of the sweet spot.

 

[NightshadeCS]

Whoa, that's a lot. Is it possible to sell goods for KPs?

Yes, you can buy KP (Knowledge Points) using goods, coins, or diamonds. Click on the little green plus button next to your KP bar at the top of the screen.

Others may disagree, but I use excess coins to buy KP. The cost goes up every time you buy and never goes back down. But, I have never been short of coins and I buy KP almost every day. There are a few buildings or research points where I may have to use a coin instant rather than wait, but that is VERY few and far between.

 

[NightshadeCS]

Is a full set of rune shards needed for every level beyond level 10? I saw that the cap is level 30?

No, you will need to fill the rune wheel every 5 levels. KP is used to upgrade AWs for all other levels, and upgrades cost relics or other goods, coins, supplies, mana, seeds, etc, depending on the AW.

I think the cap has gone up since they added new chapters? Not 100% on that. But don't worry, it takes forever to get an AW up to that level unless you are a Power Player.

 

[NightshadeCS]

Oh, one more note on saving researches for event quests. I think at your level, you will be able to move through researches quickly enough that you don't have to save them up. If you are concerned, though, you can save one research to complete until you have another one filled with KP. That way you will always have one ready if the quest comes up.

If you get stuck and have to complete one to move on in the tech tree (Research tree/menu), I would opt to go ahead and unlock it rather than waiting on an event quest. There are usually alternatives since some players are at the end of the research tree and would not be able to progress in the event without an alternative.

There are different styles of events, but most of the quests are similar to the ones you will see in this event. There are resources to get a complete quest list in advance, if you want them, for planning. TomatoeHu provides and excellent Google Sheet each event (you can find it in her or SoggyShort's signature lines), or you can see a list on the elvengems site.

 

[Deleted User - 849487592]

Yes, you can buy KP (Knowledge Points) using goods, coins, or diamonds. Click on the little green plus button next to your KP bar at the top of the screen.

What I actually meant was selling goods to other players for them to give you KP. So basically someone wants goods to build an AW that is way ahead of their chapter. So that person donates KP to another person's AW, and in return, that person gives goods (by trading), so that person can build that AW ahead of their age.

 

[Deleted User - 849487592]

But don't worry, it takes forever to get an AW up to that level unless you are a Power Player.

Huh, I guess the levels work differently than in FoE, where many people (not me, unfortunately) already have level 100+ GBs (FoE AWs)

 

[Deleted User - 849487592]

Oh, and also, are wholesalers worth it?

 

[Gladiola]

Usually you can get people to donate KP to your AW just for the reward chests. You will have a chance to win KP instants in tourneys and events that you can also use in your own or others' Ancient Wonders.

The wholesaler is a good option if you have excess coin or supplies. The costs go up with each trade you make (and reset daily), so it can be good to plan ahead and make one trade for various goods before the reset and another after. I don't use the wholesaler as a substantial source of goods, but when I have extra supplies or more usually coins, I grab some of whatever resource I'm lowest on from the wholesaler.

 

[Lelanya]

Ancient Wonders only have a rune shard level @ multiples of 5.
You can buy KPs for goods, yes, but it is not a general strategy.
Wholesaler is necessary for bleed off because the Main Hall caps goods. But it's only 'good', with the Wonder "Blooming Trader Guild", unlocked for placement after chapter 7, at level 25, iirc.

 

[Henroo]

Oh, and also, are wholesalers worth it?

The wholesaler is not very efficient. The only time I ever use the wholesaler is if I am capped out on either gold or supplies. And before using the wholesaler, I will check to make sure there is not something else I can spend gold or supplies on.

 

[The Unbeliever]

Re: Ancient Wonders
- While only maxing @35 currently, you really don't need them to go beyond Lv25-30 depending on which AW it is.
Lv's 31-35 basically have no/almost no stat gain, yet every single AW level will negatively factor into the difficulty calculation for your weekly Tournament + Spire costs. (ie: every AW level makes these cost more to fight/cater - yes, it's very dumb, but hey, Elvenar gets the crappy devs. )

- Due to the above, it is vital to only build & level those AW's which will effectively complement your play style & weekly goals.
If you decide for example to focus more on fighting, then AW's like the Blooming Trader Guild are almost entirely useless. Building it would only screw you over in you fighting for basically 0 gain... (yes, it *will* make the Guest Race chapters go a bit faster, but the negative effects on the Spire/Tournament are hellish!)

- Like FoE, some AW's are just pure hot garbage and should never, ever be built, unless you simply don't care about having even a semi-efficient city...
Tome of Secrets + Endless Excavation for example are basically worthless... the KP + Relic bonuses are laughable, and if you *really* need the supplies they generate that badly, well, your city simply needs some drastic improving.
Likewise, not all military AW's are created equal, as both the Victory Springs + Hero's Forge are terrible... the Springs boosts the game's most worthless & near-useless troop type (Light Infantry - you will learn to hate them!), while the Forge boosts Heavy Infantry, which is really not much better. (too slow moving + gets screwed over by terrain too often = high losses)


Re: Humans vs. Elves
- Overall, human goods factories early game produce more goods vs. the elven versions, but elves have insanely stronger military units with 1 notable exception. (Priests vs. Sorceress)
As a human, you will need slightly fewer goods factories, but you will then sink those 'saved' resources into your military, (barracks + armouries), while elves will be the opposite.

- Human units are generally completely worthless with 2 exceptions; Xbows are decent, but it's still the worst Light Ranged option in the game. However, until you unlock Rangers in Ch9, they will serve you well.
Priests are (thankfully!) the single most OP unit in the game! Their only real terribad match-ups currently are vs. enemy doggies + the much loathed Mist Walker enemy. (...though it's still a bad idea to throw them into combat vs. 3-4+ enemy light ranged units of course!)
On the downside, both your Light Infantry unit (Barbarians) + your Heavy Ranged unit (Mortars), are just about the most useless piles of steaming rodent gak in the game! As a human, you will want to craft yourself 2-3 'Grounds of the Ork Strategist' which will give you access to the Ork Strategist unit, which normally doesn't unlock until into Ch8. (plus it also requires a second resource to train on top of just basic supplies!)
If/when they return to the Spire/Crafting, a human city will also want to keep their eyes out for both the Brown Bear & Witch's Hut buildings + the artifacts to level them up... these buildings yet again give you 'free' troops, the former giving you 4 different troops, while the later gives you Frogs which are a juiced up version of your Mortar. (...and once they eventually hit 3*, they're almost as OP as Priests!)

- Elves do much better on the military front, as their Archers + Gollums are great units. the only area they fall flat is in their Mage unit, the Sorceress who has well, never recovered from the epic beating of INNO's dreaded 'Nerf Bat(tm)'
In Ch7 though, you will unlock the 3rd military building - the Mercenary Camp, and with it will soon after gain the ability to train Blossom Mages, which are a slightly inferior version of the human Priests. (less HP & specialise towards killing Heavy Infantry vs. Heavy Range, but they are still amazing units, just not quite as OP as Priests)


Re: Combat
- Unlike in FoE where you can just throw up stupid-high atk+def% boosts & auto-battle away with the '1-2 real units + 6-7 rogues' insta-win "strategy", Elvenar will require you to always pay careful attention to the specific unit bonuses...
Each unit in this game is 'strong' vs. 2 different unit types, but gets blasted in turn by 1-2 other unit types. (think of it as the 'Weapon Triangle' from Fire Emblem games, but there's 5 different types vs. only 3)

- Also unlike in FoE, terrain in this game SUCKS!!! As in, terrain will ACTIVELY screw you over so bad, that you will ALWAYS lose some fights!
Now the reverse is also true, that sometimes, the terrain will allow to win fights with 0 loses, but overall, this game will drive you completely bonkers since the fight system is basically garbage.
Because of this, in general, Range >>>>>>> Hand-to-Hand.

- On the world map, your fighting/negotiating difficulty is determined simply by the number of provinces you scout. Each province will get slightly harder than the previous (noted too by the increase in cost + time to scout), and the difficulty will take a higher jump once you move into each new 'ring' of provinces around you city.
Now, if you go into the research tab, and look ahead to the next 'Chapter', you will see a tech called 'Advanced Scouts'. This tech will reduce your scouting costs/time + the difficulty factor. Also, you will typically see a text box over the AS tech that will show you how many provinces you must clear in order to access the tech. This is your 'safety net' gauge! If you stay within the target of just only ever doing the 'required minimum' of provinces, your world map encounters will quickly become very easy/cheap to fight/cater.

- For the weekly Tournament/Spire, your difficulty/costs, near as we can tell, are calculated based on: # of researched techs completed + # of expansions placed (premium expansions hurt less) + total AW levels.
So basically, pretty much everything you do to actually grow your city actively hurts your tourney/spire, because... "reasons".
Hence why it's now so critical to be very careful in which AW's you choose to build & level up.


Re: Event Buildings
- unlike FoE, our event buildings have been getting nerfed into the ground the past 18+ months...

- Most of the time the 'grand prize' will be an evolving building (ie: think something like the Terracotta Vineyards or Olympic Treasury). Occasionally a set building (like the Cherry Garden set) will show up.
Mostly though, outside of a few gems like the 2019 Phoenix & 2019 Bears, these buildings tend to be generally 'meh' to outright crap. Also, these 'evolving buildings' CANNOT! be returned to your inventory via the Teleport spell, so you *really* to be careful in choosing which one/s to place, since the only options afterwards are to keep them forever in your city, or else sell/delete it and then have to wait potentially years to rebuild later should you suddenly want it back! :O

- Don't get attached to the daily prizes either, since unlike FoE, they are basically designed to be replaced within a number of months/year or so...
A few really good ones do crop up, but overall, you will NOT! be building an OP city in this game through events like what FoE does!
(*cough*hippodrome*cough*)


On the other hand, the visuals in this game blow FoE out of the water, and Orks & Gobbos chapter "iz da best, cuz Orks iz da biggist 'an da strongist!"

 

[Farinx]

+ your Heavy Ranged unit (Mortars), are just about the most useless piles of steaming rodent gak in the game!

I just want to disagree with this a bit. While mortars are overall quite bad, they do find a niche when you are in much greater numbers, such as clearing 'very easy' provinces or low tournament rounds, even if they are mismatched against several of their enemies, their casualties usually lower than if you use other units. They end up being my go-to unit in these circumstances when the enemy is a mix of different kinds that no 1 unit is optimal against them.

If you play on browser you can actually fight the battles, and see how the units fight. I find the performance of a unit on the actual battlefield very similar to that in the simulated auto-battle. If you play this way just a few times you will understand all the units much better.

Mortars are unique in that they have huge range so they can attack basically anywhere on the battlefield, even if its a weak attack. Priests (and blossom mages) are awesome because their attack range is 5, while the other mages range is 3. Vallorian guards are unique for heavy infantry in that they have a range of 2 - and can attack through obstacles.

 

[Lelanya]

It's amazing how some folks really dislike the Endless Ex. This wonder gives a lot of supplies and is a great building for that alone.

 

[DeletedUser27062]

What I actually meant was selling goods to other players for them to give you KP. So basically someone wants goods to build an AW that is way ahead of their chapter. So that person donates KP to another person's AW, and in return, that person gives goods (by trading), so that person can build that AW ahead of their age.

I actually did this but in reverse when I was tiny and desperate. I messaged big cities and offered them a kp incentive to take my trades. It worked

 

[Henroo]

Re: Humans vs. Elves
- Overall, human goods factories early game produce more goods vs. the elven versions, but elves have insanely stronger military units with 1 notable exception. (Priests vs. Sorceress)
As a human, you will need slightly fewer goods factories, but you will then sink those 'saved' resources into your military, (barracks + armouries), while elves will be the opposite.

- Human units are generally completely worthless with 2 exceptions; Xbows are decent, but it's still the worst Light Ranged option in the game.

Actually I think humans also have the advantage in heavy melee. I play both and it seems to me Paladins outperform Treants in most cases. Mainly because Pallies have an attack range of 2 vs Treants which have a range of 1.

 

[Lelanya]

I have got to agree with Farinx and Henroo regarding troops. Each unit has its use, especially after the rebalance to damage calculations discussed in my thread 'Battle Change'.
Knights and mages rule as far as troops.

 

[Guurt The Destroyer]

I am a new player and I am not sure how to find a good Fellowship. In most games I have played there is a general chat and so by participating in that you end up making connections. But in this game chat is hidden behind Fellowship. So how am I supposed to figure out which people I would want to be in a Fellowship with and how are they to know if they want me or not?

I am a loss for how to move forward on that.

 

[Henroo]

I am a new player and I am not sure how to find a good Fellowship. In most games I have played there is a general chat and so by participating in that you end up making connections. But in this game chat is hidden behind Fellowship. So how am I supposed to figure out which people I would want to be in a Fellowship with and how are they to know if they want me or not?

I am a loss for how to move forward on that.

It is hard within the game itself. But there is an entire set of forums dedicated to this. Each world has a forum dedicated to Fellowships Seeking Members and a second forum for Members Seeking Fellowships. That would probably be your best place to start. There is also a website called Elvenstats.com. You can look up potential fellowships there. Information such as the fellowship's tournament average is there. Also if a player goes more than a few weeks without a change to their player score, then there is a black mark beside that player's name indicating possible inactivity. Try to avoid Fellowships that have lots of inactive players.