Grand Cross: Age of Titans - Beginner tips and tricks
When downloading a new game, in the back of your mind you might be thinking: "What’s my strategy? How will I progress?" Well, you’re not alone as many others face the same dilemma, often more than you think! Do not fret, as we have prepared a full-throttle beginner's guide, fully loaded with personalised tips that I have observed throughout my journey as a new player. I have also taken feedback from veterans of the game who are ranked quite high on their individual servers.
To give a quick background, Grand Cross: Age of Titans is a great blend of city-building, gacha and RTS. It gives off a serene and mesmerizing feeling, something which can only be explained by playing the game. You can indulge in an Isekai-themed storyline that follows two young friends Eugene and Mio into a fantasy world full of lush flora and fauna. Of course, it can’t be an Isekai game without your classic doomsday saviour theory. Let’s not give too many spoilers now, as I am here to present a beginner’s guide for Grand Cross: Age of Titans.
Any player, new or returning or existing, can get some help through this guide. I’ve tried to limit the amount of generic information that is presented to every new player. You are here for some secret, hidden, tips, and you will definitely get them! Let’s proceed with the guide.
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Tip #1 - All about the Castle and how to expand your Kingdom
When you first start your adventure, the kingdom of Skyna presented to you is going to be more or less like a hollow and barren land with little to no buildings. After the tutorial, you’re going to be on your own with decisions to make. Your mission is to construct, upgrade, and maintain new buildings in order to keep the kingdom flourishing. You’re dealt the right cards in the beginning, to encourage more growth and building construction.
The Castle remains the place where you have supreme control and reign over all the aspects of the kingdom. In true Isekai fashion, you get to explore different areas of the world, conquer new territories, and reclaim lost ones with the help of your armed soldiers.
Free up more space, manage existing plots, and construct buildings as soon as their blueprints are available. On a personal front, I would advise levelling up your Castle as the number one priority since it directly affects other buildings' upgrades.
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Tip #2 - Understanding the Unit Types
If you’re going to operate a kingdom, having an army is of the utmost necessity. Armies are made up of different types of troops, each of whom can be trained in different barracks/training grounds. Diversity is strength - you must’ve heard this saying quite a lot. In this case, this saying works perfectly well. Troops come in different types, and each of them specializes in something. We’ve presented a short description for each:
- Infantry – The tell-tale walking soldiers that will assist you as far as the ground permits. A healthy quantity of Infantry is always helpful, especially if you’re being invaded or you’re invading through the ground. All brawn and no brains, these units are best to combat those pesky Cavalry types.
- Archer – Ferocious warriors that make use of slick bows and arrows. They are best used against infantry units due to their range advantage.
- Cavalry – Godspeed! Lightning-fast men put up on horses, armed with swords. They are an Archer's nightmare.
- Combat Engineers – These brave science gurus are not to be used in battles. Instead, they are used to move resources from one place to another.
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Tip #3 - Hiring more Artisans
You will be required to build and level up different buildings in your kingdom. Naturally, a king does not do that himself! You’re going to require multiple Artisans, each one costing more than the previous. As a rule of thumb, you will only be able to unlock one Artisan permanently. The rest of the two Artisans can be hired for a particular duration of time by paying them.
We would definitely buy them during the new player phase, as you are going to have a hefty amount of work cut to get done. Tons of buildings to construct and level up, each requiring more time as they are upgraded. You can find more details for Artisans in the Artisan's house, which is, ironically, another building.
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Tip #4 - Emphasis on completing chapter missions
Netmarble understands that you might be freaked out by the abundance of gameplay systems and mechanics imposed upon you. Worry not, the “Chapter missions” are going to be your holding hand through these tough times. While I am not personally an advocate for hand-holding in mobile RPGs, credit where credit is due, these missions are designed perfectly to guide a new player. I was enthralled by their simplicity and the amount of rewards they offer.
Now, don’t get me wrong, they do get progressively tougher, but that SHOULD be the case! It’s the one thing that is done perfectly right amidst the chaos in Skyna. The starter missions are generic, such as building stone mines, researching different technological advancements, or training a specific type of troop. You can get a hold of generous resources as rewards, such as Gems, Adamantium, different types of speed-ups, Food, Wood, Stone, and Gold.
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Tip #5 - Understanding the Hero Talents
Heroes stand to be the best commanding officers for making sure your troops follow your orders. Much like troops, these heroes can also be trained and get hold of unique abilities that are useful inside and outside of battle. With great power, comes great responsibility. And for players who don't like to pick on their own and think about those choices, we have a GC: Age of Titans tier list, which ranks all of the heroes in the game.
Sadly, our heroes here do not get that message and remain biased towards siding with a particular type of troop. We can’t blame them, though, as each of the troop types is lucrative to command. This is known as “Hero Talents” in the official game terminology. Let’s check out the heroes and their talents:
- Infantry Talent – Heroes of this type have an exceptional liking towards commanding Infantry-type troops.
- Archer Talent – While we all love some good ranger expeditions, these heroes tend to love commanding only Archer troops.
- Cavalry Talent – The perfect heroes to command Cavalry troops. Period.
- Combat Engineers Talent – Appreciators of science, these heroes have an affinity towards preaching non-violence by commanding combat engineers.
- Combine Talent – Such heroes have no favourites and show no issues with commanding a mix of different types of troops. Unbiased, as we would say, or rather balanced
