⚔️ T-MINUS 6 DAYS: FIRST BLOODS & RALLIES ⚔️

📝 OPERATIONAL NOTE This guide is intended to give easy-to-follow guidance and does not endeavor to be a full explainer. We want you to be able to take a clear instruction and, by following it, increase your odds of success. Just like at the start of the game, there is a lot to know, and sometimes it is best to just know what to do and then fully understand it later.

Today we are covering two core game mechanics that you have been living with in pre-season and you probably already understand, but your full understanding is essential to your success in Season 1.

1. THE TWO TYPES OF "FIRST BLOODS"

First Blood kills are a vital way of gaining critical virus resistance. Killing a new target gives a "First Blood" reward, but it has been so long since many of you have had a first blood on a Doom Elite, that a refresher on how they differ from Doom Walker first bloods may be helpful.

• One-Time First Bloods (Doom Elites): As we discussed yesterday, rallying Doom Elites is essential to gaining key virus resistance materials when Season 1 starts. Specifically, the vital Mutant Crystals you need to develop virus resistance is provided by Doom Elites only as a result of a first blood kill. The key thing you must understand is that First Blood on a Doom Elite is only paid out once per level, ever.

  Since most of us have already used all the First Blood kills on Doom Elites up to level 30, you will be glad to hear that Season 1 raises the level cap to level 60, giving you 30 new First Bloods you can gain. You must climb the ladder (Level 31, then Level 32, etc.) to get these vital, one-time drops of Mutant Crystals and Immunity Proteins. Attacking a Doom Elite level for a second time will still give you rewards (as it does today), but not the Mutant Crystals you seek.

• Daily First Bloods (Doom Walkers): Doom Walkers have a daily First Blood and are reported to also provide Mutant Crystals. Under most scenarios, there is only one Doom Walker First Blood per day, so you should be intentional about the level you target (based on your squad power/readiness) and be diligent about getting one every day.

2. RALLY STAT INHERITANCE (WHEN TO LEAD vs. WHEN TO FOLLOW)

Rallies are more complex than most players understand. When a rally is formed, the entire squad inherits the stats, tech, and VIP bonuses of the Rally Leader. I know this is not well understood by most of us, but it will matter starting next week.

In Season 1, the rally also inherits the leader's Virus Resistance. Since virus resistance is the strongest dictator of success in Season 1, this is vital to respect. Here is when that matters, and when it doesn't:

• When you MUST Lead (Doom Elites): To get your One-Time First Blood rewards for Doom Elites, you must be the one to initiate the rally. Your stats still matter, but you have to lead it to get your drops. Stronger players will join your rally to help you secure the kill.

  As you climb the Doom Elite levels you will need to ensure the heavy hitters are with you to defeat the Doom Elite, but you don't need them to lead. Don't be shy about starting a rally you know your own squad can't win. Call it out in Alliance Chat (e.g., "Level 35 DE up, need a carry") so our heavy hitters know to jump in and secure your kill.

• When you MUST NOT Lead (Strongholds, Map Objectives, etc.): When the alliance is attacking corrupted Strongholds or heavy seasonal targets, shared immunity is everything. If you lead a rally with low Virus Resistance, everyone in your rally will take massive virus damage. In most cases, the entire rally's troops will be instantly wiped out and everyone's hospital will fill up immediately. The debuffs will be punishing for everyone. For these alliance objectives, let our heavy hitters lead the rallies so we can shelter under their high Virus Resistance, and simply join their rallies with your troops.

• When you MUST NOT Join: As an alliance, recently, we have been hitting level 160 and 170 Doom Walkers. These rallies have largely been invite only and this has served as training for similar mechanics within Season 1. There will be times when we are going to be explicit about who is allowed to join a rally (by name or key stats) and you are expected to pay attention to these expectations (and as always read alliance chat actively).

  Blindly joining unfamiliar rallies while ignoring Alliance Chat is frowned upon. If you are booted from a rally... do not rejoin. If you are told after the fact that you should not have joined a rally, make sure you understand why, and learn from the experience.