DragonSword Progression Guide – Leveling & Resources

Understanding Hero Progression in DragonSword: Awakening

Progression in DragonSword: Awakening revolves around strengthening your roster of heroes to tackle increasingly difficult PvE content and dominate in PvP. Unlike many gacha games, leveling is not a simple matter of dumping EXP potions into a single carry. The game’s mechanics, particularly the Switching Signal system and Status Ailment synergies, demand a balanced approach to hero development. Neglecting your support units or failing to invest in key combo enablers will stall your progress, especially in later chapters of the Continent of Orbis storyline and high-floor Rift System climbs.

This guide breaks down every system you need to master: hero leveling, the Hero Request system, upgrade material acquisition, and a strategic order for building your initial roster. Whether you’ve just pulled Lute from your first summon or are eyeing endgame PvP with Kalien, this article provides a roadmap for efficient resource use.

The Core Leveling System: Experience, Breakstones, and Ascension

Heroes gain experience through two primary methods: direct combat in stages and consuming EXP potions. However, level caps are gated by ascension tiers, which require specific materials. Every hero starts at 1-star ascension with a level cap of 20. Ascending a hero increases their maximum level and unlocks new passive abilities. Here’s the ascension breakdown:

• 1-Star → 2-Star: Level cap 20 → 40. Requires 30 Lesser Breakstones and 5 Hero-specific Shards.

• 2-Star → 3-Star: Level cap 40 → 60. Requires 60 Lesser Breakstones, 20 Greater Breakstones, and 15 Shards.

• 3-Star → 4-Star: Level cap 60 → 80. Requires 120 Greater Breakstones, 10 Pristine Breakstones, and 30 Shards.

• 4-Star → 5-Star: Level cap 80 → 100. Requires 200 Pristine Breakstones, 5 Radiant Breakstones, and 50 Shards.

Breakstones are the universal bottleneck. Lesser and Greater Breakstones drop from story stages and the daily Breakstone Quarry, but Pristine and Radiant Breakstones are far rarer. According to community reports, Radiant Breakstones have an estimated drop rate of 2% from high-floor Rift System clears (Floor 15+), making them a critical resource to hoard. Do not spend Radiant Breakstones on heroes you don’t plan to use in your core team for late-game content.

Hero-specific Shards are obtained from gacha duplicates, the Hero Request system (detailed below), and event shops. A common mistake is spreading shards across multiple heroes of the same element. Instead, focus on one hero per role: a primary DPS, a sub-DPS with debuffing capabilities, and a healer/support. For example, if you pull Castella, prioritize her shards over a secondary fire DPS like Renia until Castella reaches 4-star ascension.

Mastering the Hero Request System

The Hero Request system is your primary source of targeted hero shards and upgrade materials outside of gacha pulls. Located in the Organa Order headquarters menu, Hero Requests are daily dispatch missions where you assign heroes to timed tasks. Each request has a recommended power level and element affinity, and assigning matching heroes increases success rate and bonus rewards.

Key mechanics to understand:

• Request Tiers: Requests scale from D to S rank. S-rank requests appear rarely and guarantee Pristine Breakstones or hero shards for rare units like Kalien or Theresia.

• Element Matching: Assigning a hero whose element matches the request’s affinity grants a 20% bonus to success rate. For example, a water-element request with Aria assigned will have a higher base success rate than using an off-element hero like Lute.

• Signal Skill Synergy: Some requests have a secondary condition, such as "Frost Gauge hero" or "Knockdown specialist." Using Johnny for a Frost Gauge request or Alex for Knockdown grants an additional 15% bonus. This makes building a diverse roster essential even if you don’t use those heroes in your main combat team.

• Time Investment: Requests range from 2 to 12 hours. Always prioritize shorter requests during active play sessions and longer ones overnight. Use the "Quick Complete" feature sparingly; the Chrono Tokens used to speed up requests are better saved for S-rank requests with Radiant Breakstone rewards.

A strategic approach is to maintain a pool of 8–10 leveled heroes specifically for Hero Requests, even if they aren’t part of your main team. Heroes like Liza (a 3-star wind support) and Jerome (a 2-star earth tank) are easy to obtain and cover common request conditions. Level them to 40 and ascend to 2-star, which is cheap and sufficient for most B-rank and A-rank requests.

Upgrade Materials: Farming Routes and Priority

Beyond Breakstones, heroes require class-specific tomes, weapon catalysts, and common monster drops for skill upgrades. The primary sources are:

• Tome Domains: Open on rotation—Monday/Thursday for Warrior tomes, Tuesday/Friday for Mage tomes, Wednesday/Saturday for Support tomes. Plan your farming days based on your core DPS. If you’re building Castella (Mage), farm Tuesday/Friday aggressively.

• Catalyst Hunts: These elite stages drop weapon-specific catalysts like Blazing Horns for sword users or Frozen Cores for staff users. Catalysts have an estimated 10% drop rate per run, and you’ll need dozens per hero. Prioritize catalysts for your main DPS’s weapon type first.

• Open World & Rift System: The Continent of Orbis overworld and Rift System floors drop common materials like Nameless Soul fragments and Valiant Hatchling scales. These are used in all hero upgrades. Auto-farming Rift Floor 10 is a common strategy for passive material income, as it drops both Lesser Breakstones and Nameless Soul fragments with a high efficiency rate.

A common new player trap is over-farming Tome Domains at low world tiers. Tome Domains scale with your account level, and higher tiers (unlocked at account level 40 and 60) drop significantly more Greater and Pristine Breakstones. Until you reach account level 40, focus on story progression and Hero Requests to level your account, and only farm Tome Domains enough to ascend your main team to 3-star. Save your Stamina potions for post-40 farming.

Optimal Hero Leveling Order: A Tiered Approach

Building an efficient team early saves months of grinding. The game’s Switching Signal mechanic means you should level heroes in a specific order to maximize combo potential. Here’s a recommended priority:

• First Priority: Main DPS (e.g., Lute or Kalien). Your primary damage dealer should always be at the maximum possible level and ascension. Lute, the protagonist, is a strong fire-element sword user with a Knockdown Signal Skill, making him viable for both PvE and PvP. If you pull Kalien (a 5-star dark mage), he can replace Lute as your hypercarry, but his upgrade materials are rarer. Invest all Radiant Breakstones here.

• Second Priority: Signal Enabler (e.g., Johnny or Aria). The Switching Signal system allows you to tag in a hero after using a Signal Skill, triggering bonus effects. Johnny’s Freeze Status Ailment sets up Lute’s Knockdown for massive damage. Aria, a water support, can extend debuff durations. Level your enabler to 80% of your main DPS’s level; they don’t need to be maxed, but they must survive AoE attacks in high-floor content.

• Third Priority: Healer/Shielder (e.g., Castella or Theresia). Survivability becomes critical in Chapter 8 onward. Castella is a 4-star fire healer with a team-wide cleanse, while Theresia (5-star light) provides shields and healing over time. Level them just enough to keep your team alive—typically 10–15 levels behind your DPS.

• Fourth Priority: Flex Slot. This slot adapts to content. For Rift System, a second DPS like Renia or Alex can speed up clears. For PvP, a disruptor like Othello (dark tank with Knockdown) or Roxy (water mage with Shock) can shut down enemy combos. This hero can lag behind in levels but should have their Signal Skill upgraded for utility.

Avoid the trap of leveling all heroes equally. A focused team of four at level 60/80 will outperform a roster of eight at level 40/60. Once your core four are at 4-star ascension, you can begin building counter-picks for PvP or specific Rift System bosses.

Post-Launch Hero Acquisition Strategy

After the initial story rewards and launch events, acquiring new heroes and their shards requires planning. The gacha rates are low (0.6% for a 5-star), and the pity system carries over between limited banners. Here’s how to optimize:

• Save for Limited Banners: Standard banner heroes like Alex, Dana, and Eileen will eventually spook you. Limited heroes like Kalien and Theresia have unique mechanics that define the meta. For example, Kalien’s Frost Gauge manipulation is unmatched for crowd control. Hoard your Chrono Tokens until a limited banner aligns with your team’s element.

• Hero Request Shard Farming: Target-farm shards for your core DPS through Hero Requests. S-rank requests for specific heroes appear more frequently if that hero is in your active party. If you need Lute shards, keep him in your party even if you’re farming low-level stages.

• Red Fox Mercenaries Shop: This PvP currency shop rotates hero shards weekly. Prioritize shards for heroes you already own to accelerate ascension, rather than unlocking new heroes you won’t build. A 5-star hero at 0-star ascension is useless in high-tier content.

• Event Shops: Limited-time events often feature a specific hero’s shards. Fully clear event shops before they expire. For instance, the "Valiant Hatchling" event featured Liza shards and Pristine Breakstones, providing a massive boost to early-game players.

According to community data, it takes an estimated 45 days of dedicated Hero Request farming to ascend a 4-star hero to 5-star from shards alone. Plan accordingly and don’t spread resources thin.

Synergizing Progression with Status Ailments

Your leveling order should also consider Status Ailment synergies. The game’s combat revolves around chaining ailments like Freeze, Shock, and Knockdown. Here’s a quick reference for hero pairings:

• Freeze + Knockdown: Johnny’s Freeze into Lute’s Knockdown is the most accessible early-game combo. Level Johnny to 40 for his passive that increases Freeze duration, then focus on Lute.

• Shock + Airborne: Roxy’s Shock sets up Alex’s Airborne, which deals massive fall damage. This combo excels in PvP but requires both heroes at high ascension to be consistent.

• Bleed Sustain: Eileen and Othello apply Bleed, which deals percentage-based damage. This is a tank-buster setup for Rift System bosses. Level Eileen as your secondary DPS and Othello as your flex tank.

Progression is not linear; it’s a web of interdependent systems. A well-leveled Lute without a Freeze enabler is half as effective. Conversely, an over-invested Johnny with no DPS to follow up is a waste of resources. Always view your roster as a single unit, and level heroes in pairs or trios that exploit these synergies.

Advanced Resource Management: Nameless Souls and Familiar Bonds

Two often-overlooked resources are Nameless Souls and Familiar Bonds. Nameless Souls are earned from dismantling duplicate hero shards and are used in the Soul Exchange shop for rare materials. Never dismantle shards for heroes in your core team; only convert shards from max-ascended heroes or unwanted 3-star units like Charlotte or Veronica.

Familiars, such as the Valiant Hatchling and Abyssal Direwolf, provide passive stat boosts when bonded to a hero. Bonding a Familiar requires Bond Stones, which drop from the Rift System. Prioritize bonding your main DPS with an attack-oriented Familiar like the Valiant Hatchling (increases ATK by 15% at bond level 10). Healing Familiars should go to your healer, not your tank—tanks benefit more from DEF or HP Familiars.

The Hound13 developer blog hinted at a future update expanding the Familiar system, so holding excess Bond Stones may be wise. According to community speculation, new Legendary Familiars will require 50% more Bond Stones than current Epic ones.

FAQ

What is the fastest way to level heroes in DragonSword: Awakening?

Focus on story progression first to unlock higher-tier EXP dungeons. Use EXP potions from Hero Requests on your main DPS, and auto-farm Rift System Floor 10 for passive EXP and Nameless Soul fragments. Avoid farming low-tier Tome Domains; push to account level 40 before heavily investing Stamina.

How does the Hero Request system work for hero shards?

Hero Requests are daily dispatch missions where you assign heroes based on element and Signal Skill conditions. Higher-rank requests (A and S) reward hero shards and Breakstones. Keep a diverse roster of leveled heroes to maximize success rates, and use Chrono Tokens to instantly complete S-rank requests with Radiant Breakstone rewards.

Should I level all my heroes equally?

No. Focus on a core team of four: DPS, enabler, healer, and flex. Level your DPS to max, your enabler to 80% of that, and your healer and flex enough to survive. Spreading resources evenly will stall your progress in the Rift System and PvP, where enemy scaling requires concentrated power.

Which heroes are best for early-game progression?

Lute (fire DPS) and Johnny (water enabler) are excellent starters. Lute is free and his Knockdown Signal Skill combos with Johnny’s Freeze. Castella (fire healer) is a strong pull from the beginner banner. If you acquire Kalien or Theresia, they are worth investing in as long-term carries.

How do I farm Radiant Breakstones efficiently?

Radiant Breakstones are the rarest ascension material. Farm them from S-rank Hero Requests, high-floor Rift System clears (Floor 15+), and limited-time event shops. Do not spend them on non-core heroes. An estimated 2% drop rate means you may need dozens of Rift runs per Radiant Breakstone, so prioritize floors you can auto-clear consistently.

What is the best use of Chrono Tokens?

Save Chrono Tokens for instantly completing S-rank Hero Requests that reward Radiant Breakstones or 5-star hero shards. Using them on lower-tier requests or to speed up Stamina regeneration is inefficient. For more details on daily Stamina and resource management, check out our beginner’s guide to daily activities.