Unlike genres like FPS or MOBA, there is no way to transfer knowledge from other games to Auto Chess and Auto Chess Mobile. The mechanics of these games are extremely innovative and many players feel totally lost at first. So, to help your progress, know this: positioning is the most important of all. Check below the guide on how to position the parts in Auto Chess and Auto Chess Mobile!
1. Basic positioning
The first "law" of Auto Chess is that you should always position your parts so that they remain active most of the time. This means that, as soon as the shift starts, as many pieces as possible must contribute immediately, without the need to move. In addition, you can only place pieces on your half of the board (4x8). So, in order for your units to act immediately at the start of the rounds, you need to place them on your first line (if they are melee units, of course). In this sense, be aware that the basic positioning of Auto Chess follows the same logic as most RPGs: tanks at the front, DPS at the back. Thus, the pieces must be placed as follows:Melee units
Units that attack melee and tank units should be placed on the front line, as this allows them to be activated (start attacking) early in the round, in addition to aggravating opponents and protecting their most vulnerable units . Units that attack melee can also be positioned at the rear, but still in front of your DPS, to protect them from opposing Assassin units. Consider this when protecting your parts that do the most damage.Murderers
Assassins are the pieces that do the most damage in the game and have the ability to jump across the front lines and attack vulnerable units positioned behind. Generally the best way to position them is at the rear or on the sides of the board so as not to bring too many opponents together. Remember that Assassins are the famous “glass canon”, that is, they do a lot of damage but are also very vulnerable. So don't buy too many of them until you have enough tanks to protect them.Long range units
Long-range units such as wizards, archers and healers must be placed in the rear. This way, the pieces will be protected by the tanks and will also cause free damage to opponents who need to move to hit them. However, be on the lookout for Assassins, as they are able to jump and attack ranged units immediately. To avoid this, you can place tanks right in front of these fragile pieces. Another strategy to protect long-range units is to surround them with tougher pieces, somewhere in the board. That way, any unit that moves to the formation will need to walk a few squares while taking damage. See our guide on how to play Auto Chess!2. Effective positioning
Moving forward in the notion of positioning, in addition to wanting all of your units to be active most of the time, you must also maximize all of your resources. For this, you need to know the characteristics of the pieces well in order to maximize the best of each one. It is in this context that you must take into consideration, mainly, the last of each unit.Positioning ults
Much of your success in Auto Chess will depend on how you prepare the board so that the pieces use their ults in the best possible way. As the number of pieces is very high and each one has its own attributes, here are just a few examples:Ax / Chief of the Ax
Ax's ult (or Boss of the Ax in Auto Chess Mobile) has as effect area the red square in the photo above, that is, 1 square of distance in all directions. The ult is a taunt , so all opponents within that area will be forced to attack the Ax. This means that when the Ax ultar, he can save the lives of the two Troll Warlords at his side, who will still continue to attack even if they have very little HP. From the photo above you can also see that it is a waste of ult to put the Ax in the corners of the board, since it will have fewer targets to affect and fewer allies to save. For this reason, it is possible to safely say that the best position for Ax is more or less in the middle of the board . This does not exclude other uses that may arise in specific strategies.Beastmaster / Hunter
The Beastmaster's (Hunter) ult causes him to throw axes in a straight line in front of him, hitting all opponents in the way. Thus, the best position to place the Beastmaster is next to the opponent's front line . That way he will walk a square (to face an enemy unit) and, with that, he will have the chance to hit all the pieces of the same line when he ends.Queen of Pain / Ghost Queen
The Queen of Pain (Ghost Queen) follows the same logic as the Ax, with the difference that it is an Assassin piece, so you will prefer to defend it behind other pieces. Thus, according to the photo above, it is preferable that the ult fails to reach one of the opponents than you expose yourself to QoP. Therefore, the best position for this piece is more or less in the middle of the board, but behind the front line . But be careful. Like any Assasina piece, QoP can jump behind the enemy's frontline and attack the most vulnerable pieces. Therefore, the best use of Assassins is always situational. You need to carefully observe your opponents' position and choose where you want to invest your attack.Windrunner / Windward Tramp
The Windrunner ult (Vagabundo Barlavento) is a straight line that crosses and hits all opponents on the way. Considering that the character is long-range and has little HP, her best position is in the corners of the board . This way it is relatively safe while it can cause damage to many opponents when ulting, that is, try to position it on a straight line that has a lot of movement. The same logic applies to several other parts with similar characteristics. Note, therefore, that you will only be able to position your pieces well if you know their characteristics well. This applies to absolutely all parts of the game. Take your time learning the attributes of each one and accept that until you master the game, you will still waste many ults and lose many games, but that's okay. See all Auto Chess Mobile parts and their equivalents in Dota 2!Most common formations
The formations in Auto Chess and Auto Chess Mobile serve two things: exploring the potential of your pieces and negating your opponents' strategy. At the beginning of the game you should only be concerned with the first objective, so you should only think about what is best for you. In the final moments of the game, the primary objective of your formations should be to counter opponents. Considering that each match is a match, there is no way to talk about better formations for the late game. Just watch your opponents as much as possible and position your pieces in a way that gets in the way of your strategies. Even so, some initial formations stand out in relation to others, generally because they have more applicability. Bet on one of these as long as you don't master the game and your chances of doing well will increase.Online training
This is the most common formation in the game and was used in all the examples above. The line formation aims to activate all the pieces as quickly as possible, so melee pieces are already in the first line and others of greater range are right behind. Note that the most tank pieces are in the middle of the board, while Lycan, which is not as resistant, is on the side. Meanwhile, the Queen of Pain is behind, but still in range to deal good damage and ult several opponents. The same goes for Razor. Therefore, in online training your most important parts will usually be on the side or behind .Box formation
Box formation is a passive formation that aims to protect your carries (most important pieces) from long range, while forcing your opponents to approach and surround the formation. Box formation can be done in any position on the board, especially on the sides or in the corner. In the latter cases, opponents will need to approach with damage. In any case, the opponents will need to surround the box and, thus, gather in a smaller space on the board, thus entering into the reach of several ults of the game. For this reason, box formation is most used when you have many pieces that work in the area.