Overview
This guide is meant for players who have already read the "Legion TD 2 Official Gameplay Guide" and are interested in playing ranked mode at a higher level.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1793195628
We will go over the following:
Legion/Mastermind spells & my evaluation of them.
Different starts/starting units & why some starts are more common than others.
Auto-sends/Income/Saving & the different methods of "econing".
Build Value & Damage/Defense or Hybrid type units & how it can be misleading. Also positioning.
General Strengths & Weaknesses of units & mercenaries.
**Bonus tips; miscellaneous.
Overall this guide is intended to teach you how to teach yourself. There will always be exceptional scenarios and variations to account for. Basically, this is an "advanced starting point" where you can develop your own preferred build/style from here.
Mastermind Spells
Lock-In
+3 Income
Lock a fighter
This is very useful for beginners but isn't seen a lot in higher ranks due to the limiting nature of it. If you play with a Duo, it increases the power of this spell since both players can work towards creating a synergistic playstyle.
Greed
+5 Income
A neutral option. Neither high or low risk. Pretty boring honestly. I'd pass but there's nothing wrong with this.
Redraw
+3 Income
+3 Reroll
I think if a certain other spell didn't exist, this would be my next best choice. Sometimes you just get a bad roll, or two bad rolls. You don't want 6 of any same damage or defense type, but it happens. Even if it doesn't, this spell works favorably if you're trying to factor in the Legion spell after wave 10. Seeing Magician as an option means you can aim for units like Sacred Steed or Disciple and have a better chance at rolling multiple units that work very well together.
Yolo
+7 Income
Fully random roll
Reroll costs 1 income
The darker half and riskier sibling of Redraw. More starting income but a fully random roll? You better know what you're doing. The good thing is +7 income is crazy to start with. You never run out of rolls. However, you can never plan ahead as efficiently either. Think on the fly or don't. This be not, a n00b friendly spell.
Chaos
+5 Income
New roll every wave
No rerolls
This is the 3rd, awkward sibling of Redraw & Yolo. You can choose your starting wave but there's not much point since you can only build 1-3 various units at most. The new roll every wave is fully random. You do not get to keep any of your starting units/roll. Again, this is not a beginner friendly spell.
Fiesta
When you leak, gain 14-50 gold based on the wave number
Ah. The coveted and beloved fiesta. You either love it or hate it. You can solo carry the game or throw it all by yourself more than any other spell. The idea is to leak 1 single unit at most every wave. Realistically that won't happen. Instead, a 20-40% leak, is the practical range and leaking should only be intentional in the first 10 waves. After which the gold penalty for the player leaking is increased notably and is not worth the gold you feed the enemy.
There are certain units that lend better to a Fiesta start, but I am not a filthy dogwater player. Jokes. I am just terrible with Fiesta. We will go over some of these units in the other section of this guide.
Cash Out
+22 Gold
This is my go to spell. My one and only. I think it's one of the best, noob friendly spells to start with. It increases your start options and gives you access to units like Holy Avenger wave 1. That will hold any send up until wave 4, so you can safely push 5-6 workers without worrying about "what to do next". Alternatively, it also opens up other interesting starts that usually are not seen and aren't possible with any other spell.
Castle
+45 Income after wave 10
A late game option. Not very worth it in my opinion. The 45 income you would've gotten after wave 10 is probably the same, or slightly more income than you would get otherwise by then. Having absolutely no benefit for 10 waves is devastating, but this isn't a spell I opt for. So try it out if you still want to, or if it works for you.
Cartel
+9 Income
-36 Income after wave 10
Strongest income starter of the game. Can likely offset the amount you'd lose by wave 10. Again, this isn't a spell I've tested. This is another one of those "better know what you're doing" spells but is less risky than Yolo or Chaos. I mean, it's in the names.
Legion Spells
This section included images, but hit a character limit of 8000 very quickly. Sorry :(
ALL OUT ASSAULT
+100 mythium, -20 incomeA spell that works with saving together. Take this if you plan to send on wave 11/12 with your teammate and if you have not sent wave 10.
ALLOWANCE
+100 goldA safe option that can bring you back if you're slightly behind, give you enough gold to upgrade a tier 6 unit or push extra workers.
BATTLE SCARS
After each wave, the fighter with the highest damage taken permanently gains +400 health and 3.5% attack speed.Excellent on high HP units that have health regen, or access to regen aura. Also great on Hybrid-DPS units. Be cautious of upgrading a unit to an HP threshold that you do not want Battle Scars on. Just something to keep in the back of your mind.
COUNTERATTACK
Every time you leak, gain 50 Mythium. Also, +50 Mythium immediately.Not a good option. You don't want to be leaking past wave 10 but if you know you're that far behind, then I guess it could be a barely viable option.
CREDITOR
Gain 50% of your spare gold at the end of the build phase on waves 11-13. You can save up to a maximum of 170 spare gold per wave.One of the worst legion spells in the game. Fight me. I can't imagine how far ahead you would have to be to take this and get any value out of it. Never take this if you are behind or not extremely ahead.
DARK RITUAL
Damages your king by 20% of current health, and +135 goldA selfish option that could be detrimental. May want to ask your teammate before you go for this, especially if your King is not upgraded, is at 100% health & the enemy has been saving for awhile. One big push could kill you. Conversely, if your king is at 20% health then taking this becomes much less of a problem.
DIVINE BLESSING
Gives a fighter +2350 health and +17% attack speed. If the fighter dies, the buff is permanently lost.High risk, high reward option. I would take this if you know how to position well and manipulate wave splits. Otherwise you'll just lose this buff and get little to nothing out of it. In the right hands, you can't leak them (although this was slightly nerfed recently).
EMBARGO
You can't hire mercenaries or upgrade the king until after Wave 12 spawns. Then, +80 gold and +80 mythium. Mercenaries hired after/on wave 11 will be refunded.A good saving option with your teammate. Pretty basic otherwise.
GIANT SNAIL
Your future Snails are replaced by Giant Snails that have 260 bonus health and 11 bonus damageA personal favorite, and an excellent option against high damage, slow attacking units i.e. Kingpin. This is only the case if their build doesn't include enough variety to deal with the snails fast enough.
GLACIAL TOUCH
Gives a fighter a chilling attack that slows movement speed by 90% for 3 seconds. If the target dies while chilled, it explodes, dealing 45 pure damage in a small area.An option meant for long ranged, fast attack speed or multi-hit units.
GUARDIAN ANGEL
Gives a fighter a buff that brings it back to life after it dies. It will revive with up to 1500 health.A boring option. Not very impactful IMO. However, units (most that I've tested) will retain their mana after death so that is something to keep in mind.
HERO
Gives a fighter an aura that buffs the damage and defense of adjacently-built units by 5.25%
A solid option for high-value units that are adjacently-built. No, your Harpy Queens may have high DPS early-mid game but do not have a high attack stat. Think Millenium, FireLord + Leviathan, etc. Or Lioness, because he already has bonus defense resistance and will want to be surrounded by higher value units anyways. A perfect recipient for this buff.
INVESTMENT
+34 incomeA strong, almost mandatory option. You will likely have 100-200 income average by wave 10, closer to 100. An additional +34 is significant. Can't go wrong with investment.
LIZARD ARMY
Summons Lizards to attack your lane opponent: 1x on Wave 11, 2x on Wave 12, and 3x on Wave 13. (No income). Also +50 Mythium.Another saving option. Even better if your opponent(s) are weak to pierce. If you know you're not going to leak the enemy, it's a waste (if there are better spells to choose from) because you feed free gold.
LOAN
+200 gold, -34 incomeBetter than allowance as the income loss can be quickly recovered. Same rules apply, can push for more workers or a very expensive unit.
MAGICIAN
Gives a fighter an aura that buffs the mana regeneration of adjacently-built units by 0.57 per second.Obviously good on units that use... mana. Special mention to Disciple and Sacred Steed. A waste on low-value mana units like Protons.
OVERWORK
Your workers gather mythium 60% faster until the end of wave 11. After that, they gather mythium 30% slower until the end of wave 12.Only take this if you plan on sending wave 12/13 and if you have a lot of workers.
PAWN SHOP
You can now sell fighters for a 90% refund for the rest of the game. Also, +75 gold.A good option for tricksters. And not a bad choice overall. Being able to switch your build around and confuse the opponent is something I haven't seen very often, but it's doable and far from a silly idea.
PRESS THE ATTACK
+70 mythiumAnother option for a hard send after save (meaning you didn't send wave 10 at the very least). Better to take this spell in pairs, like the rest of these types. i.e. All Out Assault, Lizard Army.
PROTECTOR
Gives a fighter +700 hp and an aura that buffs the health regeneration of all allies in a large area by 0.9% missing health until the fighter diesSynergizes incredibly well with Ocean Tempest due to Resonance aura and also any other units that have %HP regen. *cough* Canopie.
PULVERIZER
Gives a fighter 4% attack speed and a 34% (17% for ranged) chance to stun its target for 2 seconds (0.3 to bosses)For attack speed units. Unless you really want to slap this on a Millenium.
SACRIFICE
Refund a fighter for full value + 85 goldNot much that needs to be said here. +85 gold. Sell a unit if you want. One that doesn't scale anymore/the most useless unit on your board.
SAVIOR
Heals your king by 10% + 15% of missing health, and +90 goldAnother free +90 gold and a heal to boot. Nothing fancy here. Won't save you from a terrible start if the opponent(s) are snowballing, but it can help recover a few mishaps.
SORCERER
Increases a fighter's ability damage by 57.5%.A lot of different takes on this one. Disciple/Starcaller is a standard choice.
TITAN
Gives a fighter +1350 hp.Another boring choice, but not as bad as Guardian Angel.
VAMPIRE
Gives a fighter an aura that grants 24% lifesteal and ability vamp to adjacently-built unitsNot actually strong, unless stacked with Butcher's vampirism aura.
VENTURE
Pay up to 105 gold now. Receive 3x that amount when wave 12 ends.Decent option, not as bad as creditor. Do not take if behind in econ/value. Can be amazing if ahead.
VILLAIN
Gives a fighter damage-amplifying attacks, increasing damage taken from all sources by 26% (13% for ranged) (half against bosses).For multi-hit or fast attack speed units. At the very least, not for front liners who die too quickly.
The Start
Arguably the most important part of the game. This is a race of exponential value, but it cannot be forced with a "one trick" build or anything of that sort. We can however, give ourselves several starting options we are more comfortable with.
I could go over every single unit in excruciating detail but a) too much time, b) character limit is annoying & c) the goal of this guide is to get YOU to think about this, rather than having this guide open while you're playing the game.
First thing. The roll.
You always want to have a low-cost unit. The 10, 20, 25g units. The absence of a low-cost unit means your gold management has to be that much tighter. You can't manipulate wave splits on the fly without as much penalty (selling a 15g unit for 9g is not a big deal if you know what you're doing).
You always want to have at least 1 high enough value unit in both the DPS and Tank types. The inclusion of Hybrids makes things a little trickier, as does particular combos. However, everything said here is a general guideline, not a one-size fits all. The lack of either means your strongest frontlines will melt and your strongest backlines will tickle by mid game.
Being able to mix up a healthy amount of "opposite" defense and damage types takes experience and practice. The "recommended" is a decent option for beginners, but players should learn to explore and tinker around; pushing the boundaries of what you can get away with. For instance, maybe you know that you have 1 too many 100-150g cost units but you really like their synergy. With that in mind, you might have to overbuild or wait to push workers on certain waves.
Now, the actual start.
Always think about what waves your units are strong/weak against ahead of time in sequences of 10.
Using Pyro as an example. This is my thought process:
Pyro is a common & strong start because it holds waves 1-3 regardless of send. (in a rare scenario where someone full pushes with a duo, then okay they could leak you. Doesn't happen often.) This allows you to safely push up to 5 workers, maybe even 6 if they send you snails for free income or if they up king, relieving pressure. Pyro is 'ok' 5, but not if they saved, send a hermit and you're underbuilt. Same thing 6. Pyro is very weak 7 to mole/hermit, weak 8. Decent 9. Weak 10.
Then after thinking this, look at your other units, what how they're sending/saving & what you can change to alter this typical strength/weakness dynamic. Good players are able to accurately estimate when they are going to receive a send, and what sends they will receive. Even better players will be able to build accordingly and either hold or leak a much smaller amount than would have normally been the case.
Using Berserker as an example. It is less strong than Pyro but still unleakable wave 1-2 for the most part. Needs guaranteed assistance wave 3 and could still leak to an opponent who pushed hard (built more workers) and sent 80+ worth of mercenaries. That is, if you built 4 workers as standard and even split your defenses. Berserker is very strong wave 4, kinda weak 5, strong 6, decent 7/8, very weak 9, strong 10 (can easily solo boss if upgraded).
Using Oathbreaker as a different example, this is a "low value" start where you can have 5 or 6 workers by wave 2. Oathbreaker costs 20g + 75g = 95g total and can hold wave 1 by itself. If a snail is received, it has a ??% chance of leaking, but it can also hold by itself depending on RNG because of Oathbreaker's targeting design. Oathbreaker + Chained Fist can definitely hold wave 1 regardless of send. Should one use this type of start, they absolutely must build enough value by wave 2 or 3. Wave 2 if they didn't send (you will receive 40g maybe). Wave 3 if they did (they'll probably save wave 2 if they see how underbuilt you are).
Using Protons as an example, this is another type of low value start that will likely involve "proton spam". Some units work very well in numbers but must be accompanied with the appropriate front or backline (frontline usually). Typically a proton start has two upgraded versions (atom) and one not.
Another type of start is typically meant to be paired with the legion spell, Fiesta. That would usually look like:
Wileshroom
Chloropixie + Seedling(s)
Windhawk
Consort
Atom + Proton
Pack Rat + Looter(s)
Nekomata (2 stacks)
Very rarely do fiesta players start normally and then decide to leak starting on a later wave.
Picking the legion spell, Cash Out allows for higher value starts than normal.
Some units that are great to start with:
Holy Avenger
Lord of Death
Great Boar
Violet (upgraded form of Windhawk)
These can all hold waves 1-3/4 very safely for most of your games.
To recap and reiterate... think about the wave strength and weakness of all the units you want to start with. Adjust according to what and if the enemy is/isn't sending.
Autosend, Income, Saving & General Econ Strategy
Since this is a race of exponential value, a lot of players (even in friggen 2200 elo) like to auto-send. The difference in higher ranks is that people know how to push/build better, but it's still a prick move.
Autosend. Is it good? Should it be banned? Well I can't answer the latter but I'll say this. Saving together or sending together is better than splitting unless it is agreed that one person is pushing harder and the other has to overbuild. If your teammate autosends, it might be a good idea to follow along. If everyone is autosending, even better. However, if you're fairly confident you can leak your opponent X wave more than 80%, then that may be the better option.
Income. It's important, but fighting to get it as fast as possible isn't always the fastest way possible, ironically. Let's say your opponents both build the exact same unit. That means they are weak on the same wave (unless it is a later wave and more units are built). Going for a big send could cause a much larger snowball than the gold you selfishly gain & also feed (making your opponent send harder things for your teammate to deal with). If you're an excellent builder/positioner, you can be a selfish incomer. If you are not, it is probably more favorable to work on the same page with your partner. Also, income is not the only way to win a game.
Saving. This creates "pressure". Saving is like hiding your move. Autosending or upping king is relieving pressure. Why? a) The value system factors in whether or not you/your opponent(s) have spent mythium. If enough mythium has been saved, it will somehow deceivingly say you are very undervalued even if they are not sending that wave. Saving can prevent opponents from pushing too many workers, in fear of leaking a large % of their wave. However it can also work against you, if your opponent decides to full econ (auto-send, up king) and over build.
If the saver(s) do not break the opponent or damage the king with their sends, they've lost several rounds of income & gained little gold in return. Conversely, if the recipients of the send decided to income and upgrade the king, they've been gaining that exponential gold & making sure they build hard enough to deal with the send appropriately. However... the recipient must have also needed to push workers at some point and if they overbuilt, they are likely behind in workers.
Econ. The old rule of thumb was "every 40 mythium received you can push one worker". I think it's a safe baseline but is a rule you should try to break as much as possible. Like maybe you know 90% chance they could not save enough to leak you for the next wave or two and you push hard. Or maybe they send you some weak, free gold & you decide to overbuild for a wave, making it really hard to leak you again for the next few. Usually though, it is a good idea to push a worker or a few if the opponent sends all their mythium and you hold. Or leak very little. Otherwise you may have to hold all your gold.
Never push too many workers (especially mid-late game) when the opponent has started saving. You will be very underbuilt when the send comes. UNLESS you are way ahead in power score/value by at least 800-1000 points.
Build Value, Damage/Defense Types & Positioning
Build Value or Fighter Value.
This number can be very deceiving but is not entirely inaccurate.. It factors in damage/defense type but not positioning. It's ok to rely on this number here and there but sometimes you should under or over-build regardless of what recommended value it tells you to have.
Damage/Defense types + Positioning.
Every unit has an icon that lets you know what type of unit it is and this is assuming you've already read the Official Gameplay guide that I mentioned, which goes over the basics.
The general rule of thumb is, tanks in front, support/carries in back. That's still acceptable sometimes, but not always ideal; you're not getting the bang for your buck. Example: Priestess of the Abyss/Azeria. She is usually placed on the left wall, 4-5 squares down from the top. This makes use of her HP regen & allows her to immediately damage the wave + tank a little amount of damage, while the right side "distracts".
Another type of frontline, DPS unit is Gatling Gun since it cannot move. It is weak to ranged (since it will be hit first before the backline can draw aggro) however it absolutely wrecks when positioned correctly. 1-2 spaces before the top and the first melee tank gets placed 4 & 1/2 squares back, allowing enemy melee units to breach the line just before they'll hit the Gatling Gun.
Hybrid type units are odd. They are beneficial in that they offer tanking and damage (2 in 1 package) but require additional Tank & DPS units. Whereas Tank & DPS units do not require Hybrid types in the roll.
Just because you think your units are strong on wave X, doesn't mean you are. Positioning is everything. If your units are placed in such a way where your tank or DPS unit gets targeted by too many enemies, it'll die too fast. This is why some form of wave splitting is necessary the higher rank you go. Even if it's just a low-cost, 15g unit. Movement traveled & wasted, is damage mitigated.
You can readjust positioning as you go along. Let's say you build a ranged DPS unit 1-2 squares directly in front of a a Golden Buckler (but not completely against the left or right wall), for wave 1-2. Wave 3 you know Buckler is weak to magic, so you build a Sacred Steed to the right 1 square, and up 1/2 a square. They will now split damage more evenly and the Steed will have a bit more priority.
More on positioning. Let's say you build a unit hugging the right wall and a unit hugging the left wall, directly across from it (neither up or down). The wave (except for boss waves) will split evenly. Change that up a bit. Instead of directly across, the unit on the left wall is half a space down. Now it'll pull roughly 30% of the wave. This is only if the units are both melee or both ranged, otherwise it works a bit differently and complicatedly...
Knowing how to place the right unit in a good spot is what gets you the W many a time.
General Strength & Weaknesses Of Commonly Seen Units/Mercenaries
APS is a super weak unit and is best placed after several units are in preset position to receive the buff.
Sakura Bloom (and other magic stuff) is weak 3, very weak 7, weak 8 and 10. It hates Dragon Turtles.
Berserker is weak to lizard/snail & fiend. Weak wave 3, 5 and 9.
Fatalizer is weak to 4 Eyes. Fairly strong on most waves. Weak 17 and 19.
Pyro/Honeyflower/Yozora + *insert aoe or multi-hit unit here* is "weak" to hermit/mole combo.
Sacred Steed + 2 or more Anglers gets trolled on by double snails every wave unless they really overbuild.
Kingpin + other slow attacking heavy hitters in the frontline are weak to Brute and snail spam + 4 Eyes. They are also very weak wave 13, 16 & 18.
Banana Haven very strong against all pierce waves. Very weak 16/18. Weak to 4 Eyes.
Fenix is weak to 4 Eyes. Very strong 13, 15, 16, 18. Very weak 17 and 19.
Azeria spam may be weak to: Nothing Kraken, maybe. Very weak 17.
Halo/Arc of Justice spam may be weak to: Actually nothing. Seriously. If the front line is good enough.
Soul Gate spam + heal/regen = ok you've actually lost. Or won, if it's you. "Weak" 14. Can be broken if there is enough Witch sends... maybe.
Utilizing Mercenaries in General:
Single tanks or hybrids with high HP may be weak to: 4 Eyes, Ogre (maybe, if fortified defense), Auras, or even better, Shaman + 4 Eyes.
Multiple unit tank spam may be weak to: Ogre, Centaur, Witch, Auras
Ideally, you want to send a specific mercenary for the front or backline. Either you want to break the front, or soak damage from the DPS units. 50-70% the time, you should be able to spot their weakness. Do not send Dragons or other income sends beyond a certain point (wave 10, usually). Do not send them ever, if you are trying to make the opponent leak.
If you have nothing better to send (can't spot a weakness, can't afford the mercenary) then Auras are a safe bet. Example. My teammate and I want to send wave 11. My opponent built Fatalizer for wave 10 and I cannot get 240 mythium by the time wave 11 starts. What do I send? 2 Dinos maybe? Or a Pack Leader? I'd opt for the Pack Leader.
The most common mercenary combos you will see (excluding autos) is:
Snail spam
Brute spam
Dragon Turtle, Fiend, Dino, Imp or Mimic
Hermit and/or Mole and/or Pack Leader (Auras)
4 Eyes and/or Shaman
Ogre spam
Witch spam
Centaur spam
Any of the mercenaries above 200 mythium + Auras.
Bonus Tips + Miscellaneous
There are a few extra things you can do.
Check the profile of who you're sending against. If you're real sweaty, check the profile of the other person too and let your teammate know of your findings. What you're looking for are Fiesta players. They typically like Chloropixie, Consort & Wileshroom. This is where you snail wave 1.
Communication. I'm lazy so most of the time I just follow whatever my teammate is doing. Or I'll send if the income is needed (1 gold away from building an important unit) or if I'm being a selfish prick. There is something to be said about communicating though. Even a simple "is thinking about sending wave X" and the "thumbs up icon" does plenty. Failing to communicate or arrive at the same page, often leads to a loss (split sends vs saved sends).
Sometimes that means biting your tongue. Maybe your teammate went Fiesta and autosent for 15 waves and now they want to save. You probably don't want to, understandably. However, if you want the win, you may toss aside ego for a second (more than a handful of times sadly) and just work with it.
Every time you play with a teammate who is doing something better than you, try to pay attention to what they're doing, even if it's one little thing. Where they positioned a unit differently and why it's working. When/why did they push 5 workers on X wave? Or maybe they're using a combination of units that work very well together! Whatever it is, steal or take it for yourself and expand your repertoire.
Source: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2914058709
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