There are more than 300 cards currently available in Riot Games’ Legends of Runeterra, and keeping track of them all can be a bit daunting. With less than a month before the official release, now is the perfect time for players to maximize their rewards to get ready for the release. Let’s explore the best ways for new and early access players to fill out their card collections before the next set releases. We also have a Google Sheet to help get you set up, which we explain in detail below!
Pick your Legends of Runeterra regions wisely
The first thing every player should do is pick a region for their rewards. Each region has 20 rewards that unlock as players earn XP. Players earn XP for just about everything, from winning or losing games and playing in the Expedition draft format to completing daily quests. The amount of XP has been adjusted slightly since the 0.9.3 patch, so it’s easier than ever to earn it.
As players progress through a region’s rewards they can earn wildcards of all rarities, cards and champions from that region, and lots of shards. Shards can be used to craft cards or to pay for Expeditions.
In Legends of Runeterra, there are currently six regions to choose from: Demacia, Freljord, Ionia, Noxus, Piltover & Zaun, and the Shadow Isles. Ultimately players will want to complete every region’s pathway, but there are three regions that new players should start with if they want to be competitive as quickly as possible.
The Shadow Isles and Piltover & Zaun have consistently been dominant throughout the Legends of Runeterra meta. With both powerful units and champions, these two regions have a lot going for them. Closely following these two regions in power is Ionia. Choosing one of these three regions to start will give new players access to the best spells and units. The easier the deck building, the easier the grind.
Before picking a region to start in, players should have a general idea of what type of deck they want to work towards. If you are more of an aggro player, an Ezreal/Draven list would be right up your alley. For control players, Karma might be a better way to go.
Play your games! Get that vault!
Once you have picked a region and found a deck you like, play games! Play lots of games! If you’re just starting out, don’t worry about winning so much as getting familiar with a deck or two. You can play Ranked or Normal, versus a player or against an AI. Just make sure you get enough games in to complete your daily quests. Your daily quests will be your main contributor to the vault and region progression. They range from playing decks of certain regions to attacking with a certain number of units. For the most part, they are pretty easy to complete, though there may be times where players will have to put together a bad deck just for a quest.
Legends of Runeterra recently had a huge overhaul of the in-game economy, which included allowing players to buy as many wildcards as they like. If you have the funds to do so, stocking up on wildcards for when the game releases might not be a terrible idea.
Generally speaking, if you are going to craft cards, use your wildcards until the official release. There are more than 100 cards coming to Legends of Runeterra, and shards have more versatility in their use. Wildcards can only be used on their individual rarity, but shards can be used to craft anything. Once you get a sizable collection, shards will come quickly as extra copies of a card get turned into shards. The shards can also be used for Expeditions later on, so they have that added bit of versatility.
Maximizing Expeditions for your collection
Expeditions are Legends of Runeterra’s draft format, and with it comes two opportunities to earn more cards. Every time a person purchases a draft, they get two chances to get hit the max of seven wins. Players don’t get to keep the cards they draft, but progression in both drafts is extremely generous. Depending on how far players can get in an Expedition, it can greatly help fill out your collection. Here’s a full list of what players can earn through an Expedition:
- 0 wins – Epic Capsule, 50XP
- 1 win – Epic Capsule, 100 shards, 150XP
- 2 wins – Epic Capsule, 200 shards, 250XP
- 3 wins – Epic Capsule, Common Wildcard, 200 shards, 400XP
- 4 wins – Epic Capsule, 2x Common Wildcard, 300 shards, 600XP
- 5 wins – Epic Capsule, Rare Wildcard, Common Wildcard, 500 shards, 800XP
- 6 wins – Epic Capsule, Rare Wildcard, Common Wildcard, 1000 shards, 1000XP
- 7 wins – Epic Capsule, 2x Rare Wildcard, 2000 shards, 1500XP
Keeping track of what you own
Legends of Runeterra has its own built-in collections tab to keep track of what you own, but it can be difficult to visualize what a player might need still. Here is a nifty little Google Sheet that anyone can copy that will help keep track of how many cards they might need still. Once players “Make a Copy,” they can fill out whatever they need. At the bottom, there is a running tally of how many shards they will need to complete their collection.
With the official release just on the horizon, filling out your collection turns any extra multiples you earn into shards. Those shards can be used to craft the cards you really want once the game officially launches on April 30.
