Emblems on 4* rather than 5* - candidates?

The 4s that have gotten emblems from me so far are Rigard and Wu. I have been cautious with them, but making those two closer to 5* seemed like a low risk. I have bumped up a few 5s modestly, so I am keeping the usage split up.

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Great topic. Iā€™m still needing to decide on my emblem recipients for more than half the classes; Iā€™m telling myself to hurry up as more and more emblems sit unused. But I want to make the right choices, and avoid losing any emblems unnecessarily because of wanting to reshuffle later on. My ā€œstrategyā€ is to pick the best option within each class considering end result but also not forgetting the fact that it takes so many more emblems for a 5* than a 4*. Also I do consider what heroes in other classes are already chosen or might be, for example I might want either Boril or Cyprian but definitely not both of those.

Barbarian class - while I have Grimm (unleveled) and Gormek, for me the choice came down to either Obakan or Little John, because the classā€™s Wound skill is most effective with high tile damage, and Gormekā€™s attack stat is far too low to being with. Grimm would be a contender if he were leveled up. I settled on Little John, I think his mana control is really useful, and he does nice damage. Because a talented up LJ is going to see battle against 5* teams (this is happening now), I am planning to choose the more defensive side of the talent tree, rather than maximizing attack, else Iā€™m afraid heā€™ll be too easy to kill.

Monk class - not counting 3* which Iā€™m not considering at all, literally my only choices in this class are Wu Kong and Li Xiu. Probably not very surprising, I chose Wu Kong, who is used against every Titan, in every war, and regularly in hard quest/event levels (but rarely in raids these days, I used to use him all the time for that also).

Druid class - my choices are Caedmon, Melendor, Gobbler (unleveled) and Kadilen. I have chosen Kadilen, I am a big fan of her as Iā€™ve mentioned before, and use her very very frequently in raid attacks and on defense. Gobbler, while his special is special, I think it is far too situational to be a candidate for emblems. Melendor and Caedmon are solid heroes and worthy of consideration, but also a thing to consider is that Melendor has his purple counterpart Sabina, and Caedmonā€™s is Sonya, while Kadilen is much more unique. Which leads toā€¦

Sorcerer class - my choices here are Quintus (currently at 3/47), Sabina, and Skilttleskull (unleveled). Choosing Sabina was fairly easy, as Iā€™m without 5* healers, and with her dispell ability she makes for quite a useful one, and she is used very frequently.

Cleric class - only 2 choices for me, Rigard and Boril. Both are solid options. I actually think that Riposte heroes might become a little bit more useful against other talented up heroes, as Riposte damage does not care how high the enemiesā€™ defense stat is, and will only do more damage against stronger attacks. So I will very likely choose either Boril or Cyprian. Because of that, and also since I have already chosen Sabina as an emblem recipient, Boril has the edge over Rigard.

But, because of not having a 5* yellow, nor a 5* healer, nor a 5* Cleric, I am really really hoping to get lucky and pull Vivica from TC20ā€¦ Iā€™ve got 3 of them running until I pull at least 1 yellow 5* (and Iā€™m prepared to make it 4 if I have to). So for now, I am holding out and not using any cleric emblems just yetā€¦

Paladin class - options are Richard (currently at 3/62, but 3 scopes short), Cyprian (unleveled) or Sonya. Undecided on this one. If I did not choose Boril, the Cyprian is a front runner even though he isnā€™t leveled up yet, but I donā€™t know yet whether Boril will be it or not. Else I think I would like Richard next, but then he will take some time to even get to max. In the meantime, a talented up Sonya would make for a good war and (if high enough), possibly raid hero. So, undecidedā€¦

Figher class - Iā€™ve got Boldtusk, Elena (at 4/40), and Magni. Also undecided on this one. I totally agree that Boldtusk is a solid choice and would remain very useful at 4+20 among 5*. Both Elena and Magni have a weakness in low defense, and in my mind using talents could be used to compensate for a heroā€™s weakness, to some extent at least, and has the potential to make them really shine. Iā€™m liking the idea most of an Elena at 4+20, where her health/defense and mana speed can be boosted (but with Riposte, low defense is in a way also good because it maximizes damage taken and therefore reflected backā€¦ as long as there is enough health to not die!). But it would also take a really long time to get Elena high up the talent tree. So, undecided.

Rogue class - Iā€™ve got Marjana, Scarlett and Kelile (at 3/60). Kelile is basically Marjanaā€™s little sisterā€¦ and sheā€™s not at max, so she is the least likely among the 3. And for that reason presumably not on @Kerridocā€™s list of 4* candidates. I think I will most likely choose Marjana but I havenā€™t arrived 100% on that decision yet, because really I think Scarlett is also very solid, and the talent tree would be a great way to make her less squishy, which is her biggest weakness.

@Kerridoc I see Scarlett didnā€™t make your list of candidates, but Iā€™m going to argue that she should be considered - I donā€™t believe there is any 5* that hits fast with splash damage, and gives an attack debuff to the 3 targets - the closest is probably Richard, but he is average speed, and also has a lot lower attack stat to begin with even though heā€™s a 5* and sheā€™s only a lowly 4* (but yes he is tanky and she is squishy).

Ranger class - on my bench, Chao, Tiburtus, Evelyn (at 3/60, Shrikewood is around the corner about to deliver her final Tonic), Khagan and just yesterday got Lianna from TC20. Neither of the 4* are on the list, and I think I would agree, neither is too likely to be the chosen recipient of the ranger emblems. It will probably end up being Evelyn, but I will say that I am also giving Khagan serious consideration. He is a solid hero, with his weakness being slow mana obviously, and also he is relatively squishy - but his special is a really useful one that fixes both of those things for himself and his neighbors. A 4+20 Khagan with a high level mana troop I think would make for a formidable hero. And now that I got Lianna, I also need to consider herā€¦ since sheā€™s new, I havenā€™t had much time to think about her yet in this equation. Iā€™ll still say Evelyn is the most likely candidate.

Wizard class - Kashhrek, Kiril, Sartana and Isarnia to choose from. Both 4* are on the list, and while I agree both are top 4*'s, given the premise of what 4* to choose if you have a deep bench of 5*'s, then I think Kashhrek isnā€™t likely to get chosen even though there may technically not be a 5* with the same skill. For me the choice is tough, Kiril is a hero I use a lot in nearly all scenarios. But I also use Isarnia quite a lot, she is one of my favorites. And Sartana also, but I have other fast snipers, making her less special. The Wizard special talent, Jinx, is more beneficial for offensive heroes, which also makes the case for Isarnia over Kiril. So Iā€™m leaning toward Isarnia, but not quite fully decided yet.

Well this ended up a lot longer than I intended, sorry for the long readā€¦

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My list of leveled heroes isnā€™t quite as extensive as some of the others listed here but here are my leanings as of today. Iā€™ve used emblems on three 4* and one 5* to date:

Barbarian: I went with Little John. I donā€™t have any of the 5* and got Grimm very late. Will level him after Isarnia finishes. But with Evelyn, LJ takes on new life. He and Eve just rip up blue tanks/titans. Use him every single day. No regrets.

Cleric: Lack of choices led me to give them to Rigard. I feel his cleanse is far too valuable. He is on the anti-holy tank squad with Khiona and Proteus. But I just pulled Viv from TC20. She is 2nd in line behind Joon for darts, so Rigard is a safe choice for quite a while.

Druid: I have ZERO druids to give emblems to. Only 2 shields so canā€™t finish Caed or Mel. Kadilen sits at 1/1. These may not get used for several months.

Fighter: For me the only choice was BT. Again used every day. Only 5* is Elena at 1/1. Just donā€™t see leveling her any time soon. Falcon is next in line for red mats.

Monk: This one is interesting. Pulled Wilbur last month from Atlantis. Will level when I finish Mits in a couple weeks. But pulled Joon ( and Viv) from TC20 in past 10 days. Joon or Wilbur? Joon is my only fast sniper but Wilbur isā€¦Wilbur. I do have the mats for one holy 5*. This one will be tough.

Paladin: No heroes here past 2nd ascension. Only 5* leveled at all is Aegir at 2/60. Will start Falcon in March and leaning strongly towards saving them for him. Will take couple months to finish him. So another class where the emblems will sit for a few months.

Ranger: Evelyn is the choice here. Will finish her in couple weeks. No other ranger has started leveling.

Rogue: Khiona got the emblems. That dodge has won several raids so far. Donā€™t have Scarlett so made the choice simple.

Sorc: Mits is in line to get them in a couple weeks. Sabina is stopped at 3/60 as I am leveling my 2 Proteus first.

Wizard: Another tough choice. WiIl finish Isarnia tomorrow. Onatel sits at 3/70 but may be a very long time to finish her (behind Joon and Viv). Choice will be between Isarnia and Proteus. Use them both extensively. Leaning towards Isarnia but havenā€™t made final decision.

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This may be the best advice (and I have posted something similar in other similar threads):

ā€œEmblems that spend their life sitting on the bench are poorly spentā€

So level those heroes that are used the most for whatever you focus on primarily.

Is Kiril awesome - yes. But I use Isarnia & Sartana WAY more and Isarnia on many titans, my defense team, sometimes my war team, and several raid attack configurations. Sartana is fantastic as is but Isarnia clearly has a gap (low health and defense) that can be remedied (at least partially) with the emblem.

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Thanks for making thisā€¦ wish there was a manual for this game and all these new thingsā€¦ esp these badgesā€¦ they almost seem unfair in a lot of ways in raids and wars. You can have a strong team and get wiped out by a lower team because they have so many badges and you are right attempting to get badges for 5 stars is really just not fairā€¦

Except for the fact that I donā€™t have Jackal or Falcon this is almost exactly who I picked to get my Emblems. The only one I differ on is Cademon over Melendor because my A-Team is Rigard, Grimm, Elena, Caedmon, and Wu.

The trouble comes in because I donā€™t have Jackal or Falcon, thus I donā€™t see any 4*'s in those classes I want to use Emblems onā€¦ If I had Sonya Iā€™d probably pick her but sheā€™s one of two TC20 4*'s Iā€™m missing (along with Kash). In Rogue Iā€™ve got Kelile and Danzo at 3-60 but canā€™t see using the Mats to get them further anytime soon for me; and Iā€™ve got five virgin Scarletts sitting on my bench waiting to see if Hero Academy lets me do something new/creative with duplicate heroes.

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Have a question here, i guess kage for barbarian is a safe bet, but would you start monk with wu kong or santa? Santa will be my main tank for a long long time, but wu is used in every aspect of the game except defense.
Any opinion is welcome, thanks.

Is your priority AW or titans? And do you have Tarlak?

AW: Santa (tough tanks cost flags)
Titans: Wu, if you donā€™t have Tarlak.

Upgrading a 4* instead of a 5* has always a doublefaces effect: you gain more immediately (it cost much less in emblems, so your talent scale up faster), but stay behind on the long term, because sooner or later you have to touch you legendaries, and who start first end first.

Then thereā€™s the defence meta. At least 5 of them must be the best you have, or else you damage your trophies and your alliances in both alliance score and wars.

That said, thereā€™s some really good choices among 4* to pick on, and compromise some 4* and some 5* seems to me the most ā€œbalancedā€ choice.

I pretty much agree on all your list, and add Grimm as very good choice to pick.

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@Elpis you might have answered one of the questions I came here to ask. I think Grimm over Azlar for emblems right now?? Reason being goes into second questionā€¦
Do yā€™all think making a squishy hero less squishy a better choice than just making a hard hitter hit HARDER lol. I have Grimm and Magni(in works)ā€¦ and Iā€™m at the road of giving Grimm more Def and attack or health and Def since his attack is already 712. Which road should I choice?

Grimm is great because he is excessive good in attack.
If so, why take away this peculiarity and make him as all the others? :wink:

For what concern Azlar vs Grimm the question is always the same: have you already other legendaries to build your defence? You have 2 heroes per color or close to that? Other defence debuffer?

Long story short, base your choice considering all your deck.

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I have done one of my Rigards over Kunchen as we face Guiniveres in most of our wars. Itā€™s nice to have 5 purple healers. Why I also ascended Sabina

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Thatā€™s a great way to look at Grimm like that :thinking: Thanks @Elpis :+1:

My war defense and tower defense get emblems. Period. All 5 stars. Then my best 4 stars are getting them, the ones I use the most on attacks. A 3 color stack is still going to make holes, classed or not. What Iā€™m looking for is survivability for my favorite fragile heroes that I use in my war attack teams. I donā€™t need important heroes dying to slash attacks.

If I had Caedmon Iā€™d surely pick him over Melendor, good choice. Unfortunately he keeps avoiding me.

So hereā€™s a more nuanced question:

Would it be better to completely progress a 4* or reset and use them on a better 5*?

Iā€™m debating this now. Basically in economics, I can ā€œupgradeā€ 3 fours for the price of one five. For war this is much more cost effective. Possibly for stacking in raids as well. For titans, itā€™s a different story I suppose.
On a individual level w/ similar stats in a lot of ways. Would a maxed grimm be better or worse than a 1/3rd leveled magni?

Tough call I think.

I donā€™t have a lot of maxed 5ā€™s. Would be a no brainer I think if I did.

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I donā€™t have tarlak so i use wu on every single titan. Still thinking on itā€¦ have time since my santa is at 4 60 still, so it will give me a little more time to think about it xD

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First, I think taking most heroes to +20 is an extravagance. For most classes the best goodies come at +15, which is one of the better cost/benefit stopping points. +1 is another.

Many 4* are already better than many 5*. 7DDā€™s ratings of 4* and 5* heroes are on an absolute scale; Grimm at A is better than Obakan at B. Tougher to say as between A-rated heroes; thereā€™s a pretty wide range within each grade.

An issue to consider is that more and more defenses will be talented. Thatā€™s certainly what Iā€™m seeing already in diamond raids and top-end wars. There are two ways to think about the consequences of this growing toughness:

  1. Your 5* attackers need to keep up
  2. Your untalented 4* will be increasingly irrelevant

Point 1 suggests using emblems on 5*; point 2, on 4*. Your decision probably has a lot to do with how much you rely on 4* today.

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Iā€™ve mixed mine based on use.

Cleric - Rigard
Rogue - Khiona
Monk - Joon
Wizard - Onatel
Ranger - Lianna
Paladin - Sonya (thinking about reset for Captain of Diamonds)
Barbarian - Grimm
Druid - Caedmon
Fighter - BT
Sorcerer - I didnā€™t have one maxed and in the end decided to take Natalya up to fill this spot.

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Which talent path did you choose for Kunchen?