Idle Horizons Guide: 7 Tips to boost your battles
Between figuring out which heroes are worth investing in and how to spend your Gems, there’s a lot that can make or break your early progress - which is where our Idle Horizons guide comes in.
Idle Horizons might look like your typical auto battler at first glance, but there’s a surprising amount of strategy behind it. Between figuring out which heroes are worth investing in and how to spend your Gems, there’s a lot that can make or break your early progress.
So, after plenty of experimenting (and more than a few wasted summons), here are my top seven tips to help you get a strong start.
Before anything else, don't forget to have a look at our Idle Horizons tier list, where we dive deep into which heroes are worth investing in and which ones aren't.
Let's get on with the Idle Horizons guide, then, shall we?
Tip #1 - Don’t skip those codes
It might sound obvious, but a lot of new players forget to use Idle Horizons codes - and trust me, you’re leaving free resources on the table if you don’t. Once the shop opens at stage 20, go into the Store section and scroll all the way down to the code input area. Pop in the active codes, and you're done.
These codes offer lots of freebies, gems, and other rewards that can give your early game a serious boost. It’s worth checking back occasionally, since the developers like to drop new ones around events or updates. Make a habit of entering them as soon as you see them - you’ll thank yourself later.
Tip #2 - Spend your Gems smartly
You’re gonna want to spend your Gems on summons, but that’s one of the biggest traps for new players. Instead, invest them in Auto Battle as soon as you can. Each upgrade gives you an extra scroll every hour between collections, with bonus rewards starting at the 5-hour mark and maxing out at around 8.5 hours. That’s a lot of idle loot waiting for you every time you log back in.
If you ever hit a wall or need a little more breathing room, you can also invest them into the factory to extend idle hours - but only after you’ve maxed your Auto Battle first. Think of it as setting up a steady stream of passive income that grows while you’re doing literally anything else.
Tip #3 - Always go for x100 summons
Summoning is the most exciting part of any idle RPG, but patience pays off here. Always save up for the x100 summon. Smaller pulls might feel good in the moment, but you’ll burn through resources way faster without getting the guaranteed value of a bulk summon.
And whatever you do, don’t use Gems to summon. They are far better spent on your Auto Battle or factory upgrades. Keep claiming your achievement rewards until you hit 100 scrolls, then pull. It’s a small bit of discipline that snowballs into a much stronger team later on.
Tip #4 - Manage your Gold (it’s more precious than you think)
Gold is your biggest bottleneck - there’s just never enough of it.
Your early goal should be to get all of your active heroes to around level 75. Once you reach stage 200, you’ll unlock the Gold Factory, which works like an idle generator that only produces gold.
The key here is to upgrade your Gold Factory early on. It sounds like a lot, but it pays off long-term since gold will gate your progress more than anything else. Treat gold like your real energy bar. Without it, you’re stuck.
Tip #5 - Build a balanced team around Ignis
When you first start, Ignis is the MVP. He’s free, easy to level, and can carry you surprisingly far into the story. Equip him with any decent gear you have, especially a legendary staff, gloves, and sword, and just keep pushing the campaign until you’ve saved enough for your first big summon.
Your early team should look something like this: DPS - Ignis or Prince, Tank – Himmel/Bell, Healer – Druid, and a fifth slot for Ignis or Lumina if you pull her early. Once you unlock better heroes, replace Ignis with Lumina, Necro, or Rosie, depending on what you get. Lumina is currently the strongest unit, so if you happen to pull her, build around her immediately.
Tip #6 - Prioritise talents and equipment
Once your team starts hitting certain levels, it’s time to focus on talents and gear. Aim to unlock talents on your tanks (Himmel and Bell) first by getting them to level 75, then invest in your main DPS legendary.
For talents, DPS heroes like Lumina, Necro, and Rosie should go up the top path for +20 starting mana. It makes a massive difference in fights.
As for equipment, staff, and gloves are non-negotiable for your main DPS. If you can only equip one legendary, pick the staff. Over time, build out the rest of your set: legendary staff, legendary gloves, purple staff, and purple bow/bow alt. Don’t stress about perfect rolls on charms yet. Just focus on getting the right ones equipped.
Tip #7 - Play the long game
With this Idle Horizons guide, you might feel like there's a lot going on, but what you need to keep in mind is that you're here to play the long game. Let me explain a little better.
Charms can be confusing at first, but here’s the quick version: Bloom charms go on tanks, Fury charms on DPS, and Storm charms are tailor-made for Lumina (if you get that far).
Ignore sub-stats early on. The base effect is what matters most. The first charms you want to buy are two Blooms (for Himmel and Bell), one Fury (for Prince or Lumina), and one Lucidity (for Druid). After that, switch to buying the daily special x10 for better value.
Once you unlock Siege Mode, you’ll start earning red gems to power up your evolution talents. Level them in this order: Sentinel> Conqueror> Oracle. Sentinel boosts tank durability, Conqueror helps your main DPS thrive, and Oracle adds crucial support scaling. This is where long-term strength comes from, so don’t skip it - your team’s survival literally depends on it.
