The Arena

Mage Arena

Gong · arena steward game character

Welcome to the arena! Here mages test their strength — one on one and team against team. Nobody picks an opponent: I deal the seats.

The common room

The arena has one common room: it holds fight requests of every format — one-on-one and team. Accept any that admits your hero's level — or post your own.

In this version every rival and teammate in the arena is a hero run by the game. The game says so itself — in the room and in its guide. That goes for requests, team fights, the weekly table and the Hall of Names alike. The game plays offline and has no live players.

  • What a request shows. Who posted it and their level, the levels it admits, the format and the mode, open seats and a reward hint. A rival's skills and life are never shown.
  • The level colour tells who is in front of you: plain — the same as yours, orange — a little above, red — far above, grey — below.
  • Your request. You set the format and the fighter levels — from and to. Your last choice is remembered.
  • The draw. Nobody picks an opponent. A one-on-one request gathers applicants for a few seconds and draws lots among them. In a team fight the game deals the sides so that they are even in levels.
  • The hero page. Tap a hero's name to open their page: level, gear and wins this week.
  • Game screenshot: The arena: the common room of requests — a hero's name and level, the format, the levels and the open seats
    The common room: requests of every format. In this version every rival and teammate in the arena is a hero run by the game
  • Game screenshot: The request form: choosing the format — one on one, two on two, three on three — and the fighter levels
    Your request: the format and the fighter levels — from and to
  • Game screenshot: The gathering window for your own request: the player's hero, an open seat and a note that a hero run by the game will answer
    Gathering fighters: nobody picks an opponent
  • Game screenshot: A hero page opened by tapping a name on a request: the hero with worn gear, their level and wins this week
    A hero page opened from a request: level, gear and wins this week

How a duel goes

Two mages, one board of potions. They take turns: every chain is a blow to the rival.

  1. A chain is a blow

    Longer chains hit harder; a blast inside a chain hurts even more.

  2. Dodge, block, fury

    A blow can be dodged or blocked, and a fury strike lands harder than a normal one. The odds depend on your hero's race, skills and gear.

  3. A charged staff

    Chains charge your staff. A charged staff hits three times harder and can't be dodged.

  • Game screenshot: The pre-duel window: the hero versus a rival; below, the rival's race and level and the Fight button
    Before a fight: the rival's race and level. In this version every rival and teammate in the arena is a hero run by the game
  • Game screenshot: A duel on a shared board of potions
    A duel: one board, taking turns
  • Game screenshot: An arena result: how much XP and how many sparks were earned, and for what damage
    The result: XP for damage, and sparks

XP for a fight

  • XP comes from damage. The higher the level of the one you hit, the more the damage is worth.
  • The higher price goes to the winners. Without a win, damage to higher-level heroes counts as damage to an equal. Damage to those below your level earns less XP.
  • The daily rule. The first ten fights of a day give full XP, later ones a quarter. A repeat fight with the same rival on the same day earns less XP.
  • The first arena win brings a one-time XP bonus.
  • Sparks follow the XP of a fight. A lost fight and a draw give XP too — and so sparks. The arena neither needs nor spends lives.

Team fights

A team fight is played in lanes: each pair of opponents has a lane and a board of its own. A chain hits the opponent in your lane, the staff hits any enemy. Whoever wins a lane goes to help a teammate.

  • Two on two

    Two lanes. Join a request from hero level 3, post your own from level 5.

  • Three on three

    Three lanes. Join a request from hero level 3, post your own from level 6.

  • Team seats. Teams gather for twenty seconds; heroes run by the game take the free seats one by one. The game deals the sides and the lanes so that the sides are as close in levels as possible.
  • XP is counted as in a duel: for your own damage to each enemy. The result is shared by the side. The first team win of the day doubles the XP.

Four ways to fight

  • Human

    All-rounder: a bit of everything, and a quicker learner than the rest.

  • Elf

    Dodger: agile and accurate; strikes back the moment a blow misses.

  • Dwarf

    Blocker: shrugs off hits and sends part of each blow back.

  • Orc

    Bruiser: hits hardest of all, and harder still in a fury.

The arena week and the Hall of Names

  • The weekly table. Arena wins go to the table; the count resets on Monday, and the top ten earn a prize in sparks. The table is shared by the player's hero and the heroes of the game.
  • The Hall of Names. A medal marks your first win over a character at full strength. Twelve medals earn the title Arena Champion.
  • Rookie's club. After your first arena defeat Blub gives you a gift: in the next fights the hero's plain blow is stronger.

In development

Plans, not promises: none of this is in the first version.

  • Live opponents — in duels and in teams — and a player league: only together with online play