ANB League FAQ

[ShotDead]

Bronze #2 took me roughly 1 hour to get to CoW, so it's almost 2 hours in total to get to level 70 - ran Warrior and did full clear of other levels, which obviously takes longer than the "rush" suggested. My best was around 1 hour 30 minutes total, again Warrior - I'll do rush in Silver and see how much I can improve on it...

I think Martin (on Discord) took 45 minutes in total with CoW, and there were posts there of people taking only 20-30 minutes or so - not sure what class those were...

BH (in ANB Silver 1 or Gold 1, cant remember ) took roughly 65 minutes from L1 to L70 with CoW farming. Can be better with more efficient farming. Other classes take a bit more time due to low MS.

[NoSuchReality]

I was wondering if you're using a slow hero like a Mage, if it's more efficient to not use a XP booster until CoW. You can buff your fireball to level five, short path the boss on the levels and get to CoW where the movement speed is a non-issue. Since you're lower levels, the mobs are lower level and your fireball is more OP moving you through the long levels faster. You then get to the dense starting mobs on CoW and play catch up.

[Nhat]

I was wondering if you're using a slow hero like a Mage, if it's more efficient to not use a XP booster until CoW. You can buff your fireball to level five, short path the boss on the levels and get to CoW where the movement speed is a non-issue. Since you're lower levels, the mobs are lower level and your fireball is more OP moving you through the long levels faster. You then get to the dense starting mobs on CoW and play catch up.

I've always "Gems upgraded" abilities to at least level 4 (18 Gems each, relatively small price to pay) as soon as they unlock and what ever I am currently upgrading just finished - never leave an empty upgrade slot, unless you're asleep... This helps boost Synergy level, giving you Vitality boost - AR and AS are nice too, but not really noticeable at lower levels.

If you've going to rush through the stages, then saving the boosters until CoW would be best, since you're just going to be wasting them while you're running through the other levels...

[Coda]

I will try to contribute to the part of Nhat's guide, for how to level up efficiently. In ANB, you are battling against time. In-map time is the -limited resource. In order to end up high on the LB, you have to level up as far as possible in CLs in the time allotted, and towards the end, have very high level gear & jewelry and attacks/utilities/passives. You also need skill to play well, the hand you're dealt by RNG. All other resources besides time are, in theory, more or less unlimited:

You can buy unlimited amounts of:

• gems (with money)
• gold (with gems)
• gemstones (with gems)
• crafting resources (with gems)
• XP & currency boosters (with gems)
• the equivalent of research books = level up attacks/utilities/passives (with gems)

Some things are somewhat limited:

• you only get 6 Epic ephemeral pieces of gear which are of limited use vs. Legendary ; plus a toon uses 9 pieces of gear+weapons, not 6
• Legendary gear/weapons can only be crafted (crafted gear is mediocre) or it can be farmed (so RNG is a factor)
• however XP gear can be reforged to DPS/push gear -- with significant gems
• you only get 2 Celestials
• you only get 3 ephemeral pieces of jewelry (2 rings, 1 necklace)
• you only get 3 P-Rare jewelry boxes
• to reach the highest levels you have to craft one set of either XP jewelry or DPS/push jewelry or a combination ; this takes a huge amount of gold (or gems) & gemstones
• you can buy a limited number of research books ; however these are equivalent to gems

That's why the top of the LBs of these events are P2W. With unlimited money=gems you could do all of the following

• immediately buy & run XP and currency boosters for the entire event
• immediately buy 2 Endars, or, don't even bother rescuing Robin from TBD and buy 3 Endars (500 gems each)
• immediately unlock all attacks, utilities and passives (unlock the third utility and passive when you can)
• as soon as a new attack/utility/passive unlocks, pay gems to immediately level it up (if you do this, you only need one research slot)
• if you're not going to pay to level everything to L10 with gems, then pay to unlock all the research slots
• purchase gear from the blacksmith often on your way up to level 70 (you'll have to buy gold with gems)
• craft gear on your way up to level 70 (you'll have to buy resources with gems)
• craft XP jewelry every 10-20 levels, on your way to level 70. At least pure Epic XP jewelry, if not full legendary (using gems + possibly gemstones)
• as soon as you reach level 70, craft legendary gear + weapons (replace/skip the Epic ephemerals)
• if you're slightly patient, use the ephemeral jewelry once you get it, for your XP set ; then later, craft a full replacement DPS set
• I'm sure I am missing some things you would do if you had an unlimited budget.

You'll also need to already have Crafting Mastery Level 50 and all the important recipes for the toon/class of your choice. Having previously "won" some events and thus having some medals, would also give an advantage.

So, the key to doing "ok" in these events, is how to do all this "efficiently" while spending a "modest" amount of gems.

... continued ...

[Coda]

Continuing...

The next concept that is critical to understand, is how do you 'level up' the fastest? Well, that is the build/map/level/style at which you earn XP the fastest.

Thus it is important to recall:

• XP maxes at Trial 100. Playing this trial as fast as possible yields the most efficient XP
• XP/time is usually greater for the mobs than the boss. However, I haven't re-run the calculations since the balancing patch. Maybe things are different now. Anyways, in ANB you probably do need the loot from the boss -- gears, gemstones, gold, and research books. So, it's a trade-off but in ANB you're probably going to be killing Kara except at the very end when you make your push.
• The more time during the ANB you spend running Trial 100, the higher your XP = CL will be, and then the higher you'll be able to push at the end.
• Pushing higher than 100 (except at the end), is a waste of the limited time you are allotted. You are merely earning XP more slowly by doing that.

Obviously, during the whole event (except at the end), you should run the highest %-XP build you possibly can, and run the max XP booster the whole time.

So, the goals for ANB's are, generally:

1. run the highest % XP build + booster you can at all times
2. get up to level 70 as fast as possible, then
3. get up to trial 100 as fast as possible, then
4. run Trial 100 as long as possible, then
5. at the end, switch everything to a DPS build and push to your max trial

{More on this later when I have time.}

[Mr.Salino]

ANB Leagues #1 (Feb 2019) Players' Posts:

Gems cost for Event Hero, total 1,545

Sample Gems usages, from my Silver #1 run

• Unlocks: 1,545
• Boosters:
• Jewelries: 3 Uncommons = Total: 156
• Abilities: Total: 43 each ability, Warrior have 21 => 903
• This may have been a bit much, going to level 4 probably would have been enough, and reduced the total to 378, which was what I did in Gold #1, and will be doing for ANB League #2.

(I shortened the quote a bit, hope that's okay).
My question here: didn't you pay for any companions? If so, did you use all three that are given in Act 1?

I will try to contribute to the part of Nhat's guide, for how to level up efficiently. In ANB, you are battling against time. In-map time is the -limited resource. In order to end up high on the LB, you have to level up as far as possible in CLs in the time allotted, and towards the end, have very high level gear & jewelry and attacks/utilities/passives. You also need skill to play well, the hand you're dealt by RNG. All other resources besides time are, in theory, more or less unlimited:

…

That's why the top of the LBs of these events are P2W.
...

So, the key to doing "ok" in these events, is how to do all this "efficiently" while spending a "modest" amount of gems.

... continued ...

Please do allow some newbie questions here:
- RNG?
- P2W?

[hades0505]

RNG = Random Number Generator
P2W = Pay to Win

[Nhat]

(I shortened the quote a bit, hope that's okay).
My question here: didn't you pay for any companions? If so, did you use all three that are given in Act 1?

No probs, and yes, I used the 3 free ones that you get from Act 1.

While having multiple Archers, or other companions, would help given you a boost, I'm not really aiming high enough to need them. And since I'll be deleting the event hero afterwards, the extra cost isn't worth it.

[Nemesis]

Is it a complete waste to rush to broken dragon in legendary and stop there to farm resources and books? I don’t have extra money to spend and I can’t even do the 100 gems a day for 30 days from my iPhone. I was reading a guide and it said something about finishing legendary story for a craftable legendary but that doesn’t seem to be true.

I wasted time clearing legendary fully in bronze (luckily made top 250 still) in silver I just went to legendary broken dragon for the aforementioned reasons. I would rather lvl through trials once I’m 10 and I know I can farm normal TBD for gemstones but the books won’t be as good. I’ve been skipping making XP jewelry or gear except what drops so I prob need to start doing that. In silver it took me way too long to hit 70 I did it in less play time in bronze I think dunno how that happened maybe I had more gems for boosters then. I know I could rank higher if I played defender but I love whirlwind juggernaut right now.

Also so I noticed you said you don’t have to clear a milestone trial lvl if you pass a trial higher than the milestone requirement but I can confirm I had to go back and clear the specific trial lvl to get the milestone reward / credit. I guess I’m just looking for tips I’m worried about the gold time restraints. I wish I could go with a mage or BH so I can have the cheap unlocks but I’m more focused on making sure I get my 2 celestials and hopefully more medals (no experience with mage or BH at all)

Sorry is this is inappropriate to ask this here.

[Kosmacka]

Hi guys,
really helpful since this is my first ANB. Just a short question, couldn't find it anywhere - what happens to companions that I buy in the event? Are they also transferred when I hit the End event button?

[Nhat]

(Apologies for the delay, don't have much time over the weekend to check things...)

Is it a complete waste to rush to broken dragon in legendary and stop there to farm resources and books?

As far as I am aware, you don't get that much more drops on Legendary than on Normal. Gemstones are definitely the same, based on previous tests by a lot of players, there are notes of potential increased drops for the others... But during ANB, it's not worth it to play Story past Normal - you may go as far as Act 4 for Bronze, to farm there, but don't think most top players even go that far, Normal The Broken Dragon is enough for farming... (sorry, will need inputs from other players here, I've never bothered with farming/crafting during ANB)

I was reading a guide and it said something about finishing legendary story for a craftable legendary but that doesn’t seem to be true.

Yeah, unfortunately Story based rewards were removed after Act 4 went live. The existing guide was for the old format, and have now been archived.

Also so I noticed you said you don’t have to clear a milestone trial lvl if you pass a trial higher than the milestone requirement but I can confirm I had to go back and clear the specific trial lvl to get the milestone reward / credit.

Thanks for the info, I've updated the faq and will be rechecking this with Gold #2 - I've only been doing "Kara trials", which happens to be the milestone ones - recalled seeing someone posted that it worked previously. But yeah, I'll recheck, thanks.

I wish I could go with a mage or BH so I can have the cheap unlocks but I’m more focused on making sure I get my 2 celestials and hopefully more medals (no experience with mage or BH at all)

What I've been doing this league is run with my Warrior, which I prefer, and then delete and create another class for unlocks and keep at the end of the event. Based on Adrian's reply in the "Limited Time Events" post back in Feb 2018

Only the highest scoring hero will be considered for rewards when the event ends. The ones with lower scores will be removed from all leaderboards.
No, you cannot get multiple celestials by deleting a hero and creating a new one.

Your highest Trial achieved will be kept for the purpose of ranking - have seen posts about this from the last league as well.

It does mean you'll need to leave time to get your desired hero up to level 55, if you want to fully unlock everything - those 3rd slots costs 450 (utility, available at level 51, costs 20 during event) and 750 (passive, available at level 55, costs 50 during event) respectively on normal Hero.

Sorry is this is inappropriate to ask this here.

No prob, I left this post open for exactly that reason - so that people can ask further questions, or to contribute.

[Coda]

Nemesis

During ANB, top players only play Normal mode until TBD or CoW. However, the XP farming technique used in CoW also works in Trials, so the extra time to reach CoW could be considered unnecessary.

TBD is worth reaching for most people, to unlock Robin, and (perhaps) farm stones & gold. For XP (past L70) and resources (especially MoTs) and definitely for gear, farm trials.

I have not ever had to play a specific Trial #, to receive the reward. Once you beat a trial above it, the rewards(s) are granted. Or, they always have been for me.

[Ozymandius]

Nemesis

During ANB, top players only play Normal mode until TBD or CoW. However, the XP farming technique used in CoW also works in Trials, so the extra time to reach CoW could be considered unnecessary.

TBD is worth reaching for most people, to unlock Robin, and (perhaps) farm stones & gold. For XP (past L70) and resources (especially MoTs) and definitely for gear, farm trials.

I have not ever had to play a specific Trial #, to receive the reward. Once you beat a trial above it, the rewards(s) are granted. Or, they always have been for me.

TBD is a must for unlocking Robin, and it is a good place to farm gemstones and gold for socketing gear. The advantage to the CoW XP farming is that the enemies are leveled to your current ability level instead of being set based on trial level (e.g., it is hard to push past level 70 enemies in Trial 7 until your hero levels up). Defeating bosses in trials are usually better for improving your gear drops, though early on you can upgrade by using gems to open locked chests.

[Nemesis]

Nhat Im really nervous to try deleting my ANB War when I make it especially on gold but I want to. I wish the gem costs for unlocks outside of ANB weren’t so crazy I want to just use the alts I already have.

I did a terrible job leveling to 70 in silver it took way too long, but somehow I still did better as far as my highest trial clear. I think I will need my whole timer to try for top 250 again in Gold. Do the brackets get more restrictive each league? I think I got 3 medals for being in the top 250 in Bronze 2? I guess that’s what y’all are calling it I must have missed the first set of ANBs. I narrowly missed top 100. I was ranked lower in Silver 2 despite pushing further, but still in top 250 unless something changes from when I ended the event. It appeared I would only qualify for 2 medals in this league.

I wasn’t able to spend any money at all for either of these events. I would at least get the 30 days of gems but all I have is my iPhone XR so I can’t. Will I get enough books from only normal TBD and Trials? I also don’t go out of my way for XP gear unless it rolls on my drops I’m happy to use it. I make push gear and jewelry with ephemerals. I try to farm as little as possible I’m too worried about making sure I get the 2 celestials then I focus on top 250 for more medals. I’m going to take yours and Codas advice and stop at normal TBD I just hit lvl 10 and then do trials and I don’t even unlock TBD until I have movement speed gear and/or champion points in speed. My bad I’m still confused about tagging people in posts and quotes it puts it at the top every time.

[Nemesis]

Nemesis

During ANB, top players only play Normal mode until TBD or CoW. However, the XP farming technique used in CoW also works in Trials, so the extra time to reach CoW could be considered unnecessary.

TBD is worth reaching for most people, to unlock Robin, and (perhaps) farm stones & gold. For XP (past L70) and resources (especially MoTs) and definitely for gear, farm trials.

I have not ever had to play a specific Trial #, to receive the reward. Once you beat a trial above it, the rewards(s) are granted. Or, they always have been for me.

I could be mistaken, but I’m pretty sure I did clear a trial or a few trial lvls above the milestone requirement and still had to go back and clear the specific one. It’s possible that I had simply unlocked a trial higher from clearing a lower one quickly but I don’t think that was the case. It happened in both the past leagues.