Introduction to the game

Introduction

Ash Echoes is an RTS (Real Time Strategy) game developed by Aurogon Shanghai and published on Global servers by Neocraft. It features a sci-fi setting with a varied cast of characters who come from different worlds, after a cataclysm known as the “Skyrift Incident” begins to tear reality apart (literally)

It’s very difficult to compare it to other gachas, as there isn’t anything quite like it at the market right now. However, you can probably think of “Divinity Original Sin 2” for its Elemental Reactions and Environmental interactions, as well as its strategical aspect. Another game that may have some semblance with it is “13 Sentinels”. Among gachas, enjoyers of Tower Defense titles like “Arknights” and “Path to Nowhere” may have a good time with Ash Echoes.

Setting

Stories of parallel worlds and strange substances with the power to change the environment and people around them are nothing new. From ancient mythology, to tales like H.P. Lovecraft's “The Colour Out of Space” (1927), to modern depictions of multiverse and Isekai across all types of media, modern audiences are more than familiar with this kind of premise.

Ash Echoes starts from a common place, with the “Skyrift Incident” tearing down the walls between realities and exposing the world of Senlo to a substance that can bring both power and disgrace. It is from right then in the Prologue that Ash Echoes approaches this theme from a different perspective: What would you do if one day you stumbled upon a reality that looks quite similar to your own and yet isn't the same? What would you do if instead you fell on an entirely different world? Would you try to adapt and build a new life? Would you try to find a way to return home?

From that point onwards, a tapestry of stories with endless possibilities begins to write itself. As the Chief Officer of S.E.E.D., we're introduced to people from all walks of life and locations affected in every way imaginable.

This won't be a simple path of investigating a strange incident. In an almost kaleidoscope-esque format, as players, we're invited to see reality from a different lens in each story, and from a different point of view from each character.

In this ever-expanding setting, bound together and streamlined by a common starting point, a journey unfolds. It's up not only to you, the “main character”, but to everyone involved to adapt and rebuild the fabric of reality, or let it fall apart into ashes that will echo across time, until the cycle begins anew.

Gameplay

As already mentioned, Ash Echoes is an RTS, with bits of Tower Defense. In most stages, you will have a Terminal that not only you have to protect, but who also will benefit your team with certain boons and has a set of skills that you can use. Unlike a standard Tower Defense, enemies won't spawn and make a predefined route towards the Terminal, with the main focus being on your team versus the enemies.

In most game modes, you can deploy up to four Echomancers on the field at once, and have four more as “backup”. You can switch characters between field ones and backup at any time (as long as the backup character isn't on cooldown). Each Echomancer also has a limited number of uses on their Active skills, which adds an extra layer of strategy to the gameplay, as you have to carefully plan when and how to use each skill.

Another core feature of the game are the Elemental Reactions. They can be triggered by creating zones of a specific element and mixing in another, or, in some cases, by enchanting an Echomancer's attack with another element.

The third core aspect of gameplay is the Environment. Each stage has its own weather, which can affect how your elemental reactions will play. Some of them have special mechanics that you can interact with in order to generate elemental zones, blow away enemies or poisonous mist, stun enemies under a spotlight, swallow them on a quicksand trap, and so on. Each new patch and event introduces novel mechanics to add a fresh spin to the gameplay.

Classes and Elements

The core structure of Ash Echoes is built upon five stats, seven classes and seven elements.

Stats

ATK
- Attack. Affects the Echomancer’s DMG Output. The actual ATK stat is affected by Engraving ATK and the Echomancer’s ATK Bonus.
MST
- Mastery. Increases the final damage dealt during battle. Additionally, for Bulwarks and Vanguards, it affects the Max Block and Block Strength. For Echomancers capable of healing, it affects the healing power.
DEF
- Defense. Determines the DR (Damage Reduction Rate).
VIT
- Vitality. Affects the Echomancer’s Max HP and Incoming Healing Bonus in battle.
TRM
- Terminal. This stat affects the Terminal’s HP, Energy, and affects several other mechanics in-game, such as Corrosion Blast or the strength of enemies during Nexus Encounters.

Classes

Bulwark
- A tank in its purest sense, Bulwarks naturally draw the attention of enemies towards themselves. They naturally have the highest defensive stats and a Block Gauge.
Vanguard
- Vanguards are versatile frontline options who can adapt their skills on the fly, having both Attack and Defense modes.
Striker
- Strikers are specialists in breaking Block Gauges and dealing with Elite Enemies and Bosses.
Skirmisher
- Skirmishers have high mobility and burst capabilities, being able to cast their active skill twice in a row in order to trigger a combo. They also prioritize dealing with Airborne enemies.
Ranger
- Rangers are masters of long battles, often having mean to refresh their skill uses or have more of them. As a damage-focused class, they can also boast high burst damage or high skill range.
Tactician
- Tacticians are enablers by nature, and have a wide range of option to help the main DPS of the team shine. Buffs, debuffs, CC, elemental zones, they can have all sorts of utility, with each Tactician being unique.
Support
- As expected from the name, Supports focus on aiding the team, They can bring healing, buffs, shields and other utilities.

Elements

There are seven elements in total: Fire, Lightning, Water, Ice, Wind, Physical and Corrosion. Out of these, only the last three do not participate in elemental reactions, having their own mechanics instead.

Fire
- Certain Echomancers can generate Fire Zones. In [Dry Environments], Fire DMG also has a chance to generate Fire Zones, and they last longer there than in [Wet Environment]. Enemies inside a Fire Zone take Fire DMG equal to 1% of their current HP per second, with the damage capped at the value of the TRM stat.
Lightning
- Can trigger Elemental Reactions (Explosion, Electroconduct, Electrolyzed) but do not generate elemental zones.
Water
- Certain Echomancers can generate Water Zones. In [Wet Environments], Water Zones last longer and can even expand, while in [Dry Environments], they dry out faster. Enemies inside a Water Zone take 10% more Water DMG.
Ice
- Ice Zones can be generated by certain Echomancer skills or by dealing Ice DMG to enemies inside a Water Zone. Ice Zones are significantly easier to generate and keep in [Wet Environments]. Enemies inside an Ice Zone will be Frozen. Ice DMG on frozen enemies has a chance to trigger [Frostbreak], killing them instantly.
Wind
- Wind does not trigger elemental reactions, but it can blow away enemies, clear up poisonous mist, and deals additional damage to airborne enemies.
Physical
- Physical does not trigger elemental reactions, but can benefit from reaction bonuses, such as the Damage Reduction received from Vaporization or the extra damage dealt by Melt.
Corrosion
- Whenever one or more Corrosion Echomancers are on the field, a Corrosion Accumulation bar will appear on the top right of the screen. At 100 Corrosion Accumulation, a Corrosion Blast will occur, damaging all enemies in the map based on their current HP percentage. Corrosion scales with TRM and its bonus can be further enhanced once TRM exceeds 1000 points.

Elemental Reactions

[Vaporized]:
Fire
+
Water
. Generates a Vaporized zone. Allied Echomancers take 50% less damage while inside this zone.
[Explosion]:
Fire
+
Lightning
. When a target inside a Fire Zone takes Lightning DMG, it receives additional DMG based on the ATK and MST of the unit who triggered it.
[Melt]:
Fire
+
Ice
. When a target inside a Fire Zone takes Ice DMG, or when a target inside an Ice Zone takes Fire DMG, it triggers [Melt]. Each instance of Melt reduces the target’s Basic Damage Reduction by 5%, up to 60%.
[Electroconduct]:
Lightning
+
Water
. When a target inside a Water Zone takes Lightning DMG, it triggers [Electroconduct]. Enemies affected by [Paralyzed] are unable to take actions. While auto-attacks will only Paralyze the main target, Lightning skills will make the effect spread and affect all enemies within the Water Zone.
[Electrolyzed]:
Lightning
+
Ice
. When a target inside an Ice Zone takes Lightning DMG, it triggers [Electrolyzed]. This effect reduces the ATK of the enemies within the zone by 33%, stacking up to 3 times (less effective against Elite and Boss enemies).
[Frozen]:
Water
+
Ice
. When a target inside a Water Zone takes Ice DMG, or when a target inside an Ice Zone takes Water DMG, it triggers [Freeze]. Frozen enemies cannot act.

Game Modes

From players who just want to relax to those looking for a challenge, Ash Echoes has something for everyone.

Main Story and Events are already a staple on gacha games. Here, we also have a Roguelike mode (Echoing Nexus), two types of raids (Joint Training and Simultaneous Raid), mini-games both to pass time and to increase the bond and knowledge with your favorite characters, a guild mode (Clubs) with periodic challenges, among others.

Ash Echoes does not have PvP. It does have Leaderboards for its game modes. However, the Leaderboards don't give any rewards aside from badges to display on your profile and bragging rights. Furthermore, the game does feature Guilds (referred here as “Clubs”), where you can share Echomancers and Memory Traces with friends, and enjoy extra resources from the Guild shop and occasional Challenge.

For more information about game modes, check out our dedicated coverage guide of them: