How do I beat Illuvium: Arena Survival Mode?

To beat Illuvium: Arena mode, first and foremost, players must be familiar with the elements and mechanics of Illuvium to gain better knowledge of how the game works. Getting familiar with Illuvials will be easy for you to build a strong deck/team that will lead you to win the game. Players should also strategize his own tactic such as knowing how to counter an illuvial based on its affinity and be aware of the field positioning to avoid fatal damage from the opponent.

It is quite easy to become overwhelmed by the elements of the game, but Illuvium currently offers an almost unmatched level of depth as an auto battler. Because of this, it is essential to adopt a strategic mode when entering every game, ensuring the utilization of your preferred team composition and exerting a substantial amount of force.

What are the basics of the game?

For you to enjoy and have a better knowledge of the game, you must first become familiar with the basic elements of Illuvium, such as mana, health, minions, augments, and mastery points. If you ever played Teamfight Tactics, you'll easily recognize how the Illuvium: Arena gameplay works. Let's start by talking about the fundamentals!

• Mana - Mana is vital for Illuvials in combat, powering their spells and abilities. They generate mana through attacks, automatically casting spells when the bar is full. Psions and Invokers in Illuvium,  was very similar to a mage type which rely heavily on mana, unleashing potent spells and abilities.

• Health - In Illuvium, health serves as a vitality for Illuvials. The objective is to eliminate all opponent minions and reduce their health to zero before the game starts. Losing occurs when a player's health hits zero and all Illuvials are eliminated. By enhancing gear and using health-boosting augments, players can improve health, gain physical resistance, and more. Class synergy in team formation also grants additional health boosts.

• Minions - In Illuvium, minions also known as illuvials, are summoned by players to fight on the battlefield. Each Illuvial possesses unique skills, stats, and mana requirements. Summoned minions engage in combat against opponent heroes or minions. It's crucial for players to strategize with their minions, as they can be harmed or destroyed by spells and abilities. Augments can be used to enhance the stats and skills of minions.

• Augments - A boost spell/card in Illuvium that enhances illuvials, which provide unique properties like increased damage, critical hit chance, or higher max health. Equipping an augment permanently boosts the minion's stats and skills. The choice of augments greatly influences an Illuvial's effectiveness in battle. Each Illuvial can be equipped with a maximum of two augments.

• Mastery Points - Mastery Points is a spending coin in illuvium. It is earned through battle victories and used to unlock Illuvials, upgrade Hero gear, and purchase augments. Additionally, there’s a unique mechanic in Illuvium, where players can return the illuvials back on their hand and the Mastery Points cost will return as well.

Building a Strong Deck/Team

In Illuvium: Arena mode, building a winning team or deck is important. Considerations include Illuvials, mastery point management, augment distribution, and synergies between Illuvials and the hero.

When creating a team, choose a strong DPS Illuvial with suitable defensive attributes as your main carry. Build the rest of your team based on your main carry's affinity, focusing on that element. Being a player, you should learn as well about the Illuvium’s affinity buffs, so you can identify which will be the best affinity to build.

Once you determine your primary carry, develop synergies accordingly. For example, if you aim for three DPS and Tank units, focus on building a team with synergies that boost DPS and defenses.

Consider the costs of each Illuvial as you build your team. Each card, Illuvial, and augment has a Mastery Point cost. Aim for a balanced mix of inexpensive and expensive options in your deck, based on their effectiveness for your strategy.

Building a well-optimized deck requires experimentation.. Try out various card combinations to find your playing style. Test new cards and Illuvials in your deck to see how they perform, and maybe you can create a unique meta in Illuvium. With time, you'll gain a better understanding of what works best.

Win Conditions and Tips

Knowing about Illuvium fundamentals, including class synergies and illuvial strengths/weaknesses, is key to winning. At the start of the game, assess the battlefield, identify opponent illuvials' affinities and classes. Based on this information, strategically choose which illuvials to summon to counter the opponent. Once you've decided on what illuvials to summon, strategically position them on the field, taking into account your opponent's classes. Illuvium field mechanic is quite different compared to other auto-battler games. In illuvium, you can field your minions or illuvials in any spot, there’s nothing like a fixed place where you can put your minion.

Here are some possible positionings that I was using when I play:

1. Rushing/Bursting- Bursting your opponent’s DPS illuvial is the best way to weaken its whole army. Now that the damage dealer is out, you can easily take down the remaining units. 
   

   

1. Stalling- Stalling the enemy's rogue was one of the wittiest moves in Illuvium: Arena. You could avoid receiving  fatal damage overall and could easily win the game.

   

1. Taunting- Taunting opponents using the dominant affinity was the wisest move you could do. When taunting opponents you must also consider the synergistic relationship between illuvials, if your illuvial is dominant in affinity, it will enter on its Hyper Mode or Rage Mode, that overpower other illuvials and has the capability to take down multiple opponents.