Arena of Valor: Top 10 Tips & Cheats You Need to Know

Here are the top 10 tips/tricks/cheats you need to know for Arena of Valor.

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1. Don’t Skip Class

• When starting out, it’s tempting to pick whichever hero you like the design or weapon of best, but mind that each of them belongs to a class, which provides a huge hint as to how they fight, as well as their greater role in battle:

– Warrior: Tough frontline fighters who can hold their own in one on ones
– Tank: Great damage absorbers and advance leaders
– Mage: Exceptional burst damage dealers suited for following, not leading attacks
– Marksman: Ranged fighters who dish out high damage autoattacks
– Assassin: Fragile but agile fighters ready to lurk in the jungle
– Support: Healers and buff providers who work best by hanging back

• Deciding which class to start with often comes down to your playstyle preferences, but be mindful that you won’t always get your first choice when joining a team. Learning to excel with two or three classes is key to supporting balanced team dynamics and becoming an unpredictable player.

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2. Keep It Coming

• Upgrading gear with gold earned during a match is one of the best ways to become more powerful in Arena of Valor, so unless you’re saving up for a particularly pricey item, it’s a good idea to routinely purchase new equipment as soon as possible. If you’re not quite ready to navigate the entire equipment store, you can always tap one of the recommendations which appear beside the store icon once you have enough gold to purchase them.

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3. Know When to Fold

• It can be tempting to chase after an enemy on the verge of death, but overeagerness can quickly lead to your own demise. It’s common practice for wounded players to retreat behind towers for a breather, and it’s easy to forget how much damage towers dish out in the heat of the moment. If your hero is reasonably injured as well, chasing targets into the range of a tower is a surefire way to give up a kill. Opt to recall to your base and quickly heal up instead.

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4. Welcome to the Jungle

• Pushing lanes is undoubtedly the focus of Arena of Valor, but “jungling” is the role of managing your team’s half of the fields between each lane, and it’s a vital source of momentum to support single heroes or their entire team. Slaying beasts is key to a jungler’s experience and gold accumulation, and they often grant buffs which make junglers an invaluable asset when swooping in to assist their lane-defending teammates. The most powerful jungle beasts will even grant team-wide buffs, though junglers often need a little help from their friends to take them down.

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5. Communication is Key

• This might seem like a given, but it’s important to remember there’s no way you can manage an entire battlefield alone. Your teammates can’t read your mind, either; if you’re thinking of throwing your opponents a curveball, eager to group up with the team to fight the jungle’s powerful Dark Slayer, or just need help in an uneven fight, say so. Arena of Valor has built-in text and voice chat, or if you’re more of a minimalist, there are also simple attack, defend, pay attention, or rally phrases you can activate with a tap of the corresponding icons in the top right of the screen.

6. When In Doubt, Stay in Your Lane

• If you’re not the team’s jungler, straying from your lane can leave a dangerous opening for the other team. While dropping by another lane can inspire big enough surprises to turn a battle’s tide, it’s just as easy for your abandoned opponent to realize you’ve flown the coop and alert their teammates to your neglected line of defense (pictured above is the bleakest match I’ve ever had, where our team switched lanes sporadically without ever telling each other anything). And above all, do not decide you’re switching lanes permanently without telling your teammates.

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7. Be Cautious Around Tall Grass

• There are tufts of grass lining each lane as well as throughout the jungle which can hide heroes from view, so be alert during advances to avoid getting surprised by cunning enemies. Likewise, these can make for a perfect opportunity to catch an overly bold opponent making an unguarded push. With the right timing, it’s possible to attack them from behind and cut off their retreat, netting yourself easy experience, gold and a well-earned sense of accomplishment.

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8. Tour the Armory

• Arena of Valor automatically recommends equipment once you have enough gold to purchase an upgrade during a match, but you’re free to alter your progression paths to better fit your playstyle. Dive into the Armory from the main menu to check out alternative upgrade pathways which can favor things like dealing out sustained damage or making it easier to survive without recalling to your base, or use the Change function to customize your own gear path.

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9. Collect Your Daily Rewards

• Arena of Valor greatly rewards regular play, making it possible to enjoy an expansive lineup of heroes without ever spending a cent. If you’d prefer to unlock new heroes through regular play, make sure to finish at least three matches in a day. You can track your progress toward unlocking new heroes through the Road to Glory section in the main menu.

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10. Practice (Matches) Make Perfect & Dive In

• Following along with the game’s introductory tutorials is one thing, but taking new heroes for a test drive through low-stress battles is on another level. Practice Matches let you test out each hero’s abilities and playstyle however you’d like. Want to immediately max out your level, heap gold into your pockets and see how much damage a hero deals at full power? Go for it. Would you rather get a feel for their progression at a normal pace, but negate the risk of death? Then just toggle the invincibility option on. Practice Matches make for a perfect, restriction-free testing ground for mastering new heroes.

• Like everything in life, studying and practice will only prepare you up to a certain point. Eventually, you need to trust your knowledge and skills enough to hop in for some real-world experience, and casual PvP matches are the best arenas to get your bearings. Don’t worry too much about letting your team down or slipping up; as long as you give an honest effort, you’ll hold your own in no time. If you’re particularly skittish about team games however, you can always play a few rounds against bots to get a better grip on working with human teammates before jumping into true 5v5 matches.

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