If you’ve just dived into the hybrid open-world RPG and tower defense blend that is Endfield Arknight, you’ve probably noticed it’s a far cry from the original Arknights turn-based mobile experience most long-time fans know. I’ve spent the last three months grinding every available mode, testing every character rarity, and making every silly mistake you can think of so you don’t have to. This guide breaks down the most important rules to follow if you want to progress fast without wasting your hard-earned in-game resources.
Core Endfield Arknight Progression Rules You Should Never Break
The biggest mistake new players make is rushing the main story without laying a solid foundation for long-term progression. You might be excited to see where the story goes, but cutting corners early will leave you stuck on difficult boss fights later with no way to grind the resources you need to catch up. Don’t waste premium Permit pulls on standard banners unless you’ve already saved enough for the next limited banner, because limited banners have higher pity rates and exclusive S-tier characters that make open world traversal way easier. Prioritize unlocking the Base Construction system before you push past chapter 3, because it generates passive XP, upgrade materials, and in-game currency even when you’re offline.
Stick to these non-negotiable progression priorities for your first 10 hours of play:
I ignored the fast travel tip my first week of play, and I ended up wasting almost 2 hours backtracking across the entire first zone just to turn in a side quest I’d picked up early. You don’t want to make that same mistake. A few extra minutes to unlock fast travel points as you explore will save you hours of frustration later.
Best Character Builds for Early-Game Open World Exploration
Many of the hidden chests and environmental puzzles scattered across Endfield Arknight’s first open zone require specific character skills to unlock, so you want to build your party to cover as many utility needs as possible first, not just raw damage. You always want one Geo element damage dealer in your party because 60% of early-game environmental puzzles and hidden chests require Geo damage to unlock. The 3-star unit Rockrock is a great free option if you don’t pull a 5-star Geo unit early, she has low upgrade costs and her AoE skill can break multiple Geo barriers at once.
Always slot a healer with area healing skills for open world runs, because random mob ambushes and fall damage can chip away at your party health faster than you think. The free 4-star healer you get from completing the prologue is more than enough for all early-game content, you don’t need to pull a limited healer banner to progress. I used that free healer all the way through chapter 5, and I only swapped her out when I got a limited 5-star healer for endgame raid content. Don’t waste pulls on healers early, save them for damage units that speed up your clear times.
You also want at least one unit with a movement skill, like a double jump or grappling hook, to reach high-up hidden chests and secret areas. The free 3-star unit Courier has a built in grappling hook skill, so you don’t need to pull a special unit for this utility either.
How to Optimize Combat for Both Tower Defense and Open-World Modes
What makes this game stand out from other gacha titles is its blend of two distinct combat styles, and you need to adjust your playstyle for each mode to get the best results. For tower defense sections, don’t just place your highest damage units first. Place melee blockers at chokepoints first before adding damage dealers behind them, even if your damage dealers are higher level, they’ll get one-shot by enemy waves if they don’t have a tank in front. You also want to place support units that boost attack speed or damage next to your highest damage dealers to maximize their output.
For open world combat, you can swap between party members mid-combo to trigger elemental reactions, which deal 3x more damage than regular attacks. For example, if you use an Ice unit’s skill to freeze an enemy, then swap to a Fire unit to use a charged attack, you’ll trigger a melt reaction that can one-shot most elite enemies in early zones. Save your ultimate skills for elite enemies or boss fights, don’t waste them on regular trash mobs, because ultimate skills take 5 to 10 minutes of combat to recharge if you’re not fighting large groups.
One of the most common complaints new Endfield Arknight players post about is running out of stamina too fast when grinding materials. You can cut your grind time in half by using elemental reactions to clear mob camps faster, which means you use less stamina per run to get the materials you need.
Common Beginner Mistakes to Avoid Wasting Resources
It’s easy to make small mistakes early that cost you weeks of progress later, if you don’t know what to look out for. First, don’t sell low-rarity upgrade materials, you’ll need them to ascend higher rarity characters later. A lot of new players sell grey and green materials to get extra cash, but they end up having to grind for hours to get those same materials back when they unlock character ascension at level 40. Keep all low-rarity materials in your storage, you’ll use them eventually.
Never use 5-star characters as upgrade fodder, even if you don’t plan on using them right now. The devs regularly release balance patches that buff underrated units, and many characters that are considered bad at launch become top tier after a single buff. I’ve seen players feed a 5-star unit to upgrade a 3-star unit, only to complain a month later when that 5-star gets a buff that makes them the best unit in the game.
Also, don’t skip side quests, even if they seem like low-reward fetch quests. Most side quests give you exclusive account upgrades like extra bag space, higher base stamina, and exclusive skins you can’t get anywhere else. I skipped almost all side quests my first playthrough, and I ended up running out of bag space every 20 minutes because I didn’t get the free bag expansion rewards from side quests. You can knock out most side quests as you explore the open world, so you don’t have to go out of your way to complete them.
At the end of the day, Endfield Arknight is designed to be fun first, so don’t stress too much about min-maxing every single part of your playthrough. The tips in this guide will help you avoid the most frustrating mistakes new players make, so you can spend more time exploring the beautiful open world and less time grinding for resources you wasted by accident. If you have your own favorite tips, drop them in the comments below to help other new players out.