Know what each round brings
Stages, rounds, monster rounds and the carousel.
After this lesson you can read a round number and know what kind of round it is.
Stages and rounds
A game is split into stages, numbered 1, 2, 3 and so on, and each stage is split into rounds. So when you see "3-2", it means stage 3, round 2. The stage tracker at the top of the screen shows the round you're on, with an icon for what each round of the stage brings. Stage 1 is short, just 4 rounds, while the later stages are longer.
Picture of the game
Play with the picture. Press Next round to walk through a stage one round at a time, and read what happens in each. Press Next stage to jump ahead.
The shop. Bottom of the screen. 5 units to buy each round. Press a unit to buy it; drag a unit back onto the shop to sell it.
Look around: pick a part
Press a part of the picture, or a button above it, to learn what it does. Point at a unit, a trait or an item to read about it.
About this picture
A moment partway through a recommended board (Solar with Karma), as its plan on the Recommended boards page has it at round 4-2: the units it has by then, on their saved spaces, with the items they hold by then. The gold, shop and other players are made up. It is not a real game and never reads one.
Question 1 of 3
In a real game
The game opens at 1-1 with an encounter, a random event that sets up something special for that game. The stage 1 monster rounds then drop your first item parts and gold while you buy units.
There is no carousel in stage 1, so the one at 2-4 is your first pick.
Players talk in round numbers, so if someone says "level at 4-1", they mean on round 1 of stage 4.
Try it next game: before each round, read the stage tracker and say what kind of round comes next.
Watch out for this
It's tempting to grab the flashiest unit on the carousel, but the item it holds usually matters more. Look at the items first and pick the one your team needs.
The whole screen, item recipes, traits and units.