Getting started
Starting your first run comes down to two decisions: which world and chapter to enter, and which three fighters to bring (they lock for the whole run). Before either, make sure you meet the two prerequisites.
Before you start
You need both of these, or the Journey tab won't let you begin:
| Prerequisite | Why | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Discord linked | Journey identity is keyed to your Discord account — without it the mode won't load. | Settings → Linked Accounts |
| A team of three | You commit three fighters up front, and they're locked for the run. | Build it in the Roster (your fighters) |
The same Discord link gates your Kitchen and Arena too. Do it once, up front, and everything unlocks together. See Link accounts.
The World Picker
Open the Journey tab and you land on the World Picker — a season map with a card per world. Three worlds are playable today:
| Card | State today |
|---|---|
| Cinderfall (Season 1, Volcanic) | Open — the starter world, playable from the start |
| The Stillair (Season 2, Storm) | Open once you clear Cinderfall's Herald — Season 1's capstone boss unlocks it |
| Meridian Deep (Season 3, Tidal) | The newest world — unlocks after you clear The Stillair's Herald |
| Seasons 4+ | Countdown or "coming soon" — locked |
| Sonentius (Event) | Live — a limited-time event world in the Event slot, open to everyone now. See SkyScape |
Worlds unlock in order. Each locked world opens when you clear the Herald — the capstone boss — of the world before it. So everyone starts in Cinderfall; beat its Herald and The Stillair (Season 2) opens, then Meridian Deep (Season 3) behind Stillair's Herald in turn. Later seasons stay sealed the same way. See Worlds & Where to Play Next for the full ladder and how to know you're ready.
Enemies scale up with each world. Cinderfall is a gentle entry; The Stillair's foes are meaningfully tougher, and Meridian Deep's tougher still. That climb is matched by loot: each world drops its own gear line in a higher power band (Ashen → Stormswept → Barnacled) and opens the next Ascension stage. Expect to re-gear and ascend as you enter each new world, not coast in on the last one's kit.
Picking a chapter
Inside a world you choose a chapter, then run its 16 nodes as a gauntlet. Before you commit, each node shows you:
- Its type — Standard, Elite, Swarm, or Boss (see Node types).
- Its energy cost.
- A recommended power read — green if your team meets it, yellow if you're within about 20% below, red if you're further under.
- A loot preview — an honest "1 of N from a family pool" (the item shown is an example of what can drop, not a guarantee).
- Your best star rating so far, 0 to 3.
Use the recommended-power read as your go/no-go: green is a comfortable clear, yellow is a real fight, red means come back stronger.
Starting the run
- From the chapter, choose the sprint to begin (runs open at Sprint 1: nodes 1–4).
- Pick your three fighters. This is your last chance to change them — they're locked once the run starts.
- Confirm and node 1 begins at full health. Playing while you have Attunement spends a little for the loot bonus; out of Attunement, you play on at the normal rate.
Combat is a turn-based fight you play out; when a node resolves you carry your team's condition into the next one. See Run Mode for the full flow, and Difficulty tiers for what you can pick today.
Different node types reward different builds — the team that melts a boss gets swarmed by a horde, and vice versa. Aim for a small pool of fighters you can mix and match between runs. Node types explains which team suits which fight.
See also
- Run Mode — the 16-node gauntlet, checkpoints, and retries
- Node types — the kinds of fight and what they demand
- Energy — the Attunement loot bonus behind your runs
- Your fighters — build the team you'll bring