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There are several tips to succeeding at this game that beginning players will wish they knew before starting. Don’t worry though, this list will help those just starting their first character to avoid some of the mistakes that veterans to the game have already learned the hard way.
10 Memorize Hotkeys
Before taking one’s first character out for their inaugural fight, players should be sure to take a look at the default hotkeys. These hotkeys, as in World of Warcraft: Arena and the Diablo games, will save players valuable seconds while playing. In games like Arena of Kings, a few seconds can be the difference between victory and defeat.
The hotkeys players should get used to using are the default attack (set to “E”), and the Ability hotkeys (set to 1-8). The hotkey to target the nearest enemy, as well as the hotkeys for the party members and for the enemy combatants, are also very useful. Get used to hitting these without looking at the keyboard.
9 Items Aren’t As Important
In games similar to Arena of Kings, the items a player wins or finds while playing at high levels almost become the sole reason to keep playing. Character skill plateaus at a certain point, and the only way to continue to increase the power of a character is to find better loot to equip.
There’s loot in Arena of Kings, but it is not as important as it is in similar games. This is by design. The developers have stated that a character with the absolute best gear (for their character) has only a 5% advantage over another character of similar skill. Players have stated it is probably closer to 10%, but this still provides a fairly level playing-field.
8 Research The Classes
There are ten classes to choose from when starting a character. Many of these classes will be familiar to gamers, such as the Paladin, Ranger, and Wizard. However, many classes will be new, even to long-time players of traditional role-playing games.
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Some of the more unorthodox classes available in Arena of Kings are the Nihilist, Scholar, and Lich. Get to know what all the classes are capable of before starting. More importantly, players should make sure they are selecting a class with a play-style they wish to actually use.
7 Understand Buffs, Status Ailments, & Enemy Debuffs
One part of Arena of Kings with which players will want to become familiar is the system of buffs, status ailments, and enemy debuffs. Players will want to memorize what icon indicates what buff, status ailment, or debuff as well. These will be displayed at the top of the screen when one or more are affecting a character.
Green icons represent buffs, yellow icons represent status ailments, and red icons are debuffs. Status ailments, buffs and debuffs of the same type do not stack, so keep this in mind when attacking.
6 Use The Battlefield To Your Advantage
The three-on-three battles in Arena of Kings are fast-paced, chaotic affairs. There will be spells constantly being cast. Warrior characters will be racing to get close enough to perform their default attacks. It is important to be aware of everything that is happening during a fight: hit point totals, status ailments, etc.
One tactic new players will want to exploit is to use the pillars placed on the battlefield for cover. These pillars are great for putting an obstacle in the way of two characters to disrupt attacks. They are also nice if a player needs a shield while meditating.
5 Move With The Mouse
A lot of guides inform players to get good at moving their character around the battle arena by using the “W”, “A”, “S”, and “D” keys on the keyboard. This should not be done; instead, use the right mouse button to move around the arena. The reason for this is simple: by using the mouse to move, the player has their off-hand free to hit hotkeys on the keyboard.
The only time the keys should be used for moving the character is if the mouse needs to be used for an action not bound to a key on the keyboard.
4 Pick A Character That’s Fun For You
Players can create a new character if they don’t like the one they are playing. They shouldn’t feel obligated to stick with a character if they aren’t having fun. So, if a player thinks the Paladin is a bit boring or weak in a fight, and want something a bit flashier, they can start a Wizard or Lich character.
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Just remember that all characters are going to have a breaking-in period, where players will have to try their spells or abilities and see what works and what doesn’t. Find something that is fun to play; this will certainly translate to a more effective character in the arenas.
3 Always Have Healers
Every group a player fights with in the arena should have a healer of some kind — even a Paladin will do. Meditating helps, but it’s no substitute for having a healer in the party. Having a healer greatly increases the chance a team will emerge victorious over the other party.
Consequently, if the opposing team has a healer, they should be the target of the entire party’s attacks until the healer is defeated. There is nothing more annoying than constantly getting an opponent to death’s door only to have to opposing healer bring them back to fighting health.
2 Party Creation
This entry goes hand-in-hand with the previous entry about healers. It is important to have a healer in the party. When selecting “Quick Play,” a player can invite friends or just hit the “Ready” button and let the computer assign random companions. The random companions are, thankfully, assigned very quickly.
If a player doesn’t get a healer in their party, they should exit from the party creation screen and try again. Don’t be afraid to keep trying until the computer assigns a healer to the party. This tactic is also useful for preventing parties with too much magic — or not enough.
1 Trinkets & Meditation
Beginning players should not forget to use their Trinkets and Meditation. These valuable tools help characters stay alive, and be victorious in the arena. Trinkets provide assistance of some kind, such as removing status ailments that affect movement. Keep in mind Trinkets have a cooldown time.
Meditating is something players will want to learn to do safely. For spellcasters, Meditating restores a bit of mana. Non-spellcasters have some lost health restored instead of mana. Learn when to use Trinkets and the Meditate ability — Meditating should ideally only be done when the other two party members haven’t lost much health, and there isn’t an enemy actively pursuing.
Arena of Kings is available on Microsoft Windows.
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