Season 1 Overview: The Crimson Plague

Welcome to the Crimson Plague

Season 1 begins once your server completes the pre-season countdown. If you followed the pre-season guides and reached HQ 30 with a geared mono-Tank squad, you are in a strong position. If you did not, you will spend the first half of Season 1 catching up instead of competing.

Season 1 is not about rushing to the next HQ level — HQ 30 remains the cap for most of the season. Instead, the focus shifts to horizontal progression: stronger squads, Exclusive Weapons, star-promoted gear, a second squad type, and new systems like the Age of Oil.

The Big Picture

Season 1 is about deepening your account, not racing to the next HQ level. Exclusive Weapons, T10 troops, star promotion, and the Age of Oil all provide massive power increases without touching your HQ. The players who invest in these systems pull ahead permanently.

What Is New in Season 1

Exclusive Weapons

The single biggest power system introduced in Season 1. Every hero can now equip an Exclusive Weapon that fundamentally changes their combat output.

Costs 50 hero shards to unlock
Progress through Levels 10, 20, and 30
Each level provides significant stat boosts and new effects
Priority weapons in Season 1: DVA's Energy Master (Aircraft), Kimberly's Rocket Shadow (Tank), Murphy's Mitigation Master (hybrid), Tesla's Lightning Enhancement (Missile)

Exclusive Weapon Rule

Get all 5 squad members to Level 20 before pushing any to Level 30. The power distribution across your full squad matters more than one maxed weapon on your carry.

T10 Troops

T10 troops represent the largest single power spike between consecutive troop tiers. Unlocking them requires Tech Centre Level 30, Special Forces research, and Valor Badges. Prioritise this immediately.

Age of Oil

After HQ 30, the Age of Oil tech tree opens. Oil becomes the primary resource bottleneck, replacing the construction materials that gated pre-season progression.

Oil SourceNotes

Oil WellsPrimary production building. Upgrade early — oil research requires constant supply

Oil NodesGatherable on the map. Send marches to oil nodes daily

EventsArms Race and other events reward oil. Never skip event participation

Alliance ActivitiesAlliance Train and cooperative events provide oil income

Age of Oil research provides permanent account-wide combat stat boosts. Prioritise combat stats first — the economic nodes can wait.

Mason's UR Promotion

Mason upgrades from SSR to UR in Season 1. If you collected his shards during pre-season, this is an immediate power spike for your Tank squad. He becomes a legitimate A-tier secondary DPS hero alongside Kimberly.

Star Promotion

Gear progression shifts from crafting gold gear to star-promoting existing pieces. The key breakpoints:

Star LevelImpact

2-StarFirst major power spike. Target this for your carry's Gun and main tank's Radar first

4-StarSecond major spike. Significant stat jump that creates visible power gaps

5-StarTransforms Legendary (gold) gear into Mythic (red) gear. Most players will not reach this until Season 2

The Meta Shift: Aircraft Rises

This is the defining strategic change of Season 1. The Tank-dominant pre-season meta gives way to Aircraft dominance in PvP.

Why Aircraft Takes Over

DVA's Energy Master Exclusive Weapon makes her the strongest DPS hero in the game
Aircraft squads have natural type advantage against the Tank squads everyone built in pre-season
The Murphy Exception (using Murphy in Aircraft squads) gives Aircraft access to the best tank hero in the game

The Combat Triangle Matters Now

MatchupResult

Aircraft vs TanksAircraft wins — the dominant matchup in Season 1

Tanks vs MissilesTanks win — your Tank squad remains essential as a counter-pick

Missiles vs AircraftMissiles win — Missile squads become alliance-essential

All three squad types are now necessary for coordinated alliance warfare. Alliances that only have Tank players will struggle against opponents who have diversified.

The Murphy Exception

Murphy — a Tank hero — becomes viable in Aircraft squads thanks to his Exclusive Weapon (Mitigation Master). At Level 20+, the superior tankiness Murphy provides outweighs the 5% mono-type bonus you lose by breaking the Aircraft-only composition.

Requires Murphy's Exclusive Weapon at Level 20 or higher
Trading 20% mono-type bonus down to 15% for far better front-line survivability
Becomes the standard Aircraft formation by mid-Season 1

Key Season 1 Events

EventChange from Pre-SeasonKey Tip

Alliance Duel VSBetter rewards, Exclusive Weapons count on Day 4Type-match Day 6 fights — Aircraft vs Tanks, Missiles vs Aircraft

Marshal's GuardPush 2-3 levels higher than pre-seasonMurphy with Exclusive Weapon is the ideal rally leader

Zombie SiegeHigher difficulty, squad diversity mattersMurphy with Mitigation Master is the best garrison hero in the game

Alliance TrainBetter rewards, stronger guardsUse Exclusive Weapon heroes in all 3 guard teams

Sky BattlefrontExclusive Weapons transform rally damageDVA or Kimberly as rally lead DPS depending on squad type

Season 1 Priority Checklist

Unlock and train T10 troops — the single biggest power spike available
Invest in Exclusive Weapons — get your carry's weapon to Level 20, then spread across all 5 heroes
Start Age of Oil research — combat stat nodes first for permanent power
Promote Mason to UR (Tank players) — free power if you collected shards in pre-season
Begin star promotion — carry's Gun and main tank's Radar to 2-star first
Build your second squad — Aircraft if you are a Tank player, or whichever type your alliance needs
Upgrade Oil production — Oil Wells and gathering to keep research flowing
Participate in every event — rewards are significantly better than pre-season
Coordinate squad diversity — your alliance needs all three types for competitive play
Plan for Season 2 — understand the Temperature system before it arrives

Common Season 1 Mistakes

Not building a second squad — the Aircraft meta means mono-Tank alliances get countered. You need squad diversity
Rushing the second squad before finishing the first — one maxed squad and one developing squad beats two half-built squads every time
Skipping Exclusive Weapons — these are the biggest power multiplier in the game. Delaying them delays everything
Ignoring Age of Oil — the permanent combat stat boosts compound over the entire season. Starting late means falling behind
Not promoting Mason to UR — if you are a Tank player and you have his shards, promote immediately
Pushing one Exclusive Weapon to 30 before others reach 20 — squad-wide Level 20 outperforms one hero at Level 30 with four at Level 10
Ignoring the combat triangle — Aircraft beats Tanks, Tanks beat Missiles, Missiles beat Aircraft. Learn the matchups or lose winnable fights
Hoarding resources without a plan — Season 1 has clear investment targets. Spend on the priority list above
Not coordinating alliance squad types — an alliance of 50 Tank players will lose to one with 20 Aircraft, 15 Tanks, and 15 Missiles

Preparing for Season 2

Season 2 introduces the Temperature & Furnace system, a completely different progression mechanic. What you need to know before it arrives:

What Carries Forward

All buildings, heroes, resources, gear, and progress
Alliance membership and server politics
Squad compositions and Exclusive Weapon levels

What Changes

Temperature becomes the gating mechanic — fall below -20°C and you are locked out of rallies and teleports
Furnace replaces Exclusive Weapons as the primary building to upgrade
Rare Soil is the ranking resource — cumulative total, not territory held
Coal becomes a critical daily resource to manage
No inter-server wars — all competition is within your server

How to Prepare

Reach Season 1 goals on the priority checklist above
Have T10 troops trained and your primary squad fully geared
Ensure your alliance has strong coordination — Season 2 punishes disorganised alliances even harder
Save speedups for early Season 2 furnace upgrades

Related Guides

Season 1 HQ Guide — HQ 30 priorities and the Age of Oil system
Season 1 Hero Guide — Mason's UR promotion and Exclusive Weapons
Aircraft Squad Guide — the rising meta with full formation and gear order
Tank Squad Guide — adapting Tanks to the Aircraft meta
Missile Squad Guide — the essential counter-pick
Gear Guide — star promotion and the Mythic path
Alliance Squad Coordination — building a balanced alliance roster