It’s a massive year for mobile gacha games. Big studios like Netmarble and Scopely have already cashed in on the trend, but there are still underdog titles on the rise. Frontline Hero – Epic War Games is one of them.
Of all the latest games with character-pulling systems, Frontline Hero is one of the most straightforward, which makes it stand out in a way. This guide will help you understand why. Stick around at the end for some detailed Frontline Hero tips and tricks.
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The Basics
Getting started in Frontline Hero is pretty direct. There are no sign-ups or long cut scenes you have to go through. All of the features are open from the start, so there’s no need to grind to unlock them.
On the game’s home screen, there are two banners on the right that stand out: Campaign and Hero Recruit.
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You can battle enemies in Campaign mode to gain resources like coins, diamonds, and EXP chips. Hero Recruit is the gacha system where you can summon champions to join your crew. Let’s discuss these features further.
Campaign
There are three chapters in this mode, and each one has 14 battles you have to clear. To start a battle, you need to have enough energy. This is represented by the green battery resource at the top of the screen.
Finish fights with as many stars as possible to obtain the bonus rewards on the bottom left side of every Campaign chapter. Be wary of the recommended level of every stage before proceeding to battle to ensure victory.
When you clear all the chapters, you can return to square one with an amped-up difficulty. Your first run is set to Normal, but you can try the Hard mode after that. And after you finish all Hard battles, the Hell mode will be open.
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Battle System
Frontline Hero’s combat is patterned after tower defense games. You must deploy heroes by sliding them from the bottom of your screen to the battlefield so they can defend your base from waves of enemies.
To station your troops, your point counter at the bottom right side must meet the required number for the hero you desire to use.
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The battle arrangement is similar to that of Code Geass: Lost Stories, except this one is more uncomplicated. Also, Frontline Hero has handy combat gadgets you can use to help your fighters.
Gadgets
There are three gadgets you can use mid-battles. You can view them by tapping the blue circle on the bottom right side of the screen during fights. Tap, hold, and drag them to the battlefield to see their effects.
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You will also notice these devices before starting your encounters. They are on the right side of the pre-battle screen, and you can tap the plus icons above them to increase their quantity.
Each Frontline Hero gadget costs 50 diamonds. But before buying and using any of them, it’s best to know their functions.
Bom-ba
This device will likely be your most-used one. That’s because it’s the only gadget that deals direct damage, and it’s simply fun to see monsters vanish in an instant.
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Bom-ba inflicts 9999 damage, which is enough to take down most foes in one strike. Just drop it on the ground, and boom! They’re gone.
Signal Column
The Signal Column can be used if you want to get a little strategic. It attracts all attacks from nearby enemies for five seconds.
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It’s a good distraction if your champions are low on HP and incoming monsters are immense damage dealers.
Ice Zone
There is no way to speed up the deployment point counter. However, if you think you will be a split second short of setting out the right hero on time, use this gadget.
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Ice Zone will take away 90% of the enemy’s movement speed. Its effects will only be active in the surrounding area where it is dropped.
Hero Recruit
To win battles, you need strong champions. You can get them in the Hero Recruit section. You can summon one or ten heroes at a time using tickets that you can get from various means.
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You have a 78.5% chance to get R-ranked fighters, 18.5% for SR, and 3% for SSR. Apart from rarity, characters are divided into fractions and roles.
Fractions are like their elements, but this aspect is not as vital in Frontline Hero as it is in games like Pokemon Rumble Rush or Monster Super League. However, this is not the case for character roles.
Frontline Hero – Roles
The roles of characters in Frontline Hero determine many things, including their range and attack types. It’s crucial for every player to familiarize themselves with each category in order to master the art of team formation.
Caster
This is the most common role in Frontline Hero. At the time of writing, there are two SSR casters and one SR in the game.
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Casters are witches and wizards that have medium to long range. Aside from considerable damage, their active skills can leave lasting effects.
Ranger
There’s also an abundance of rangers in the game, but there are no SSR-ranked heroes in this class. Still, some of the most adept combatants are rangers.
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They have a good range, like casters, but the characters in this category use weapons-based skills. Thus, their effects typically cause direct damage.
Supporter
Buffs and debuffs are the specialty of supporters. They can either boost your team’s performance or extensively devastate the stats of your opponents.
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There are currently three supporters of Frontline Hero. There’s Lumi, who slows down enemies; Alicia, who enhances ally attacks; and Lily, the only healer available.
Defender
Heroes in the previously mentioned roles have to be placed on elevated platforms, but defenders operate on the ground. They face monsters head-on.
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Defenders have outstanding base HP, but they can only strike enemies that are in front of them. You can put them in front of your base to act as guards.
Attacker
Attackers are also ground units, but they don’t have tank-like abilities like defenders. What they lack in defense, though, they make up for in offense and range.
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While defenders can only attack foes in the one tile in front, attackers can reach surrounding tiles like an average caster.
Frontline Hero – Set Up Formations
After you get acquainted with Frontline Hero roles and recruit enough fighters, it’s time to build your teams. Go to your main screen and tap Formation at the bottom of the page.
There, you will see that you can create groups of up to ten heroes. You can also make five preset teams that you can choose from pre-battle.
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Of course, you can always change your lineup before a fight to match the landscape and opponent types, but having more than one preset team can save you a lot of time.
Train Heroes
To improve your team’s winning odds, you need to enhance the stats of your individual champions. You can do this by going to Frontline Hero’s home screen and tapping the Hero button beside Formation.
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You then have to choose the hero you want to enhance. After that, tap the Upgrade option on their character information panel. Choose from the EXP chips you have to level up your fighter, then tap the Upgrade button below. Remember that there’s a limit to how much you can upgrade a character.
When you reach this cap, go to the Promote section. This function can only be performed when you have enough of the hero’s shards, which you’ll get after summoning duplicates on Hero Recruit.
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Quests
There are two types of quests in the game: daily and weekly. You can access both at the game’s home screen below Hero Recruit.
If you have been playing gacha games for some time, you will realize that these tasks are not very demanding. You will likely finish them and earn the sizable rewards before their respective timers refresh.
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Speaking of rewards, you can also get some on the Battlepass section that’s at the top left side of the main screen. You’ll get more treasures here as you progress in the campaign battles.
Frontline Hero Tips and Tricks
As mentioned at the beginning of this article, the ABCs of Frontline Hero are not that hard to grasp. The rules are simple, but this doesn’t mean the game is smooth sailing.
There’s a chance that you might get stuck on a stage and not progress for a while. To avoid or get out of that situation, the tips below might help.
Have Two Defenders or Attackers
Ground units are necessary because they can directly stop enemies in their tracks. They can be your last resort when your heroes have given their all, but the enemies still reach the entrance to your base.
Most stages will have two openings for the enemy to reach the base. Having at least two defenders or attackers will be enough to cover those holes.
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Some landscapes will be more challenging than others. That’s why it’s wise to have preset teams. Your go-to team can have two ground-based heroes, and a backup team can have three or four.
Don’t Wait for a Better Healer
Incorporating a healer in any gacha RPG team is always advantageous. If that’s your playstyle, good for you. But remember that in Frontline Hero, there’s only one bona fide healer, Lily.
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However, Lily is only an R-ranked character, so some people may expect that there’s a healer with a higher rarity. Unfortunately, there is none. At least not yet. The game is still young, and many could change in future updates.
Lily will have to do for now, but this isn’t entirely a bad thing. She has decent base stats, and you can always upgrade her to keep up with teammates.
Replay Easy Stages with Good Rewards
One downside to the game’s minimalistic approach is its lack of AFK functions and mini-games. Tower of God: New World, Temple Run: Idle Explorers and other popular franchises apply these features because they give players more rewards.
Frontline Hero doesn’t have that, so you have limited options when you have insufficient resources. One thing you can do in this situation is to replay easy stages with high rewards.
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For example, stages 3-5 and 3-8 have exactly the same replay rewards, but the former is much easier to clear. When choosing a level to farm, go with the one you’ll finish with the least amount of time.
Don’t Expect Offline Energy Recovery
Be careful when replaying stages because, like the primary in-game resources, energy is hard to come by. You’ll get some from quests and Battlepass rewards, but there aren’t many from these sources.
Energy will gradually recover while you are on the game but not when logged off. Keep that in mind, and do not expect a full energy bar when you come back after taking a break.
When you are out of energy and still want to keep going, you can go to the Shop beside the Hero button on the main screen. Tap the Utility Shop and exchange some diamonds for batteries.
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Place Charon Tactically
Charon is one of the best characters to build your team around in Frontline Hero. He is a caster with optimum range and formidable stats.
Since he is an SR-rated hero, you will likely get him in the early stages of your gameplay. That means you can use him for a lot of battles, so you should know how to use him properly.
His active skill fires a beam that deals 350% ATK to all enemies it hits. That’s why you should, if possible, place him in a spot where monsters will gather in a straight line. This will maximize the number of targets Charon can hit.
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Wrapping Up
Frontline Hero – Epic War Games is a breath of fresh air in a time when gacha RPGs are slowly becoming too saturated with content for some fans of the genre. Although sticking only to the basics has disadvantages, the game is still a fun experience that makes you work with what you have.
