What is Arcana?

Arcana are individual attribute runes that increase 1 to 3 different stats for each one slotted. You can have a total of 30 Arcana per page, 10 of each color; Red, Purple, and Green. Arcana slots unlock with each level your account gains.

They unlock from left to right, so red, purple and then green, then back to red until you hit level 30.  You can unlock a total of 10 Arcana Pages, giving you a variety of layouts for a specific hero or multiple heroes.

How to Set up Arcana Pages

Arcana pages will be different for each Hero since they don't all share the same item build paths, you don't want to use an attack speed or attack damage page for a mage, or an ability power based magic page for a marksman. So you will have to design each page, for each type of character you use, you may have a page that can be used across characters of the same class

So you will have to design each page, for each type of character you use, you may have a page that can be used across characters of the same class type.

The easiest way to do your Arcana pages are as a Beginner is to click the "Recommended" Tab under the Arcana Pool, this is designed to give you 3 Arcana specifically for the hero you have selected.

Once you've set up your Arcana page, you are good to go into any game, you can select your page type when you pick your hero. Make sure it has an easy to remember the name for quickly selecting it.

Do I need Arcana to win?

So you're probably wondering by now just how much do you need a full Arcana page. It becomes very important to have a filled out most of a page by the time you hit level 20, and especially when you've hit level 30 and you want to try out the competitive rank mode.

Don't even think about going into a ranked match without having your pages set up properly. Arcana gives you a major advantage, and not having them can be costly. It's not bad when you're low level but in the higher competitive end of game play, it is very important.

How to spend your gold when it comes to Arcana

There are 3 tiers of Arcana. The tier 3 Arcana cost the most at about 2k per Arcana. This is a lot of gold to fill out a page. Where as it's okay to fill out your pages with lower tier Arcana to make sure you don't fall behind, you will want to keep most of your gold until you can buy Tier 3 Arcana.

Then if you have followed the advice of only focusing on one or two heroes, the amount of gold required isn't too bad. More so if you play Heroes with a similar build path.

In the end, you will likely want 3 pages filled, 1 for each class/role type. AD, Mage, and Tank. More so important when it comes to competitive rank play, and if one of your primary choices gets banned, you have a back up available.

Competitive Vs. Early Game Arcana

A big thing to note, as stated earlier is that if you're going to play competitively in late game you absolutely need to have pages of Arcana filled up. It's not technically a requirement but it might as well be because with out having that you're playing at a major disadvantage.

Starting your Arcana build early is a good idea because it lets you learn how everything functions and how you need to go about building your pages. You can start small in the early game to get your bearings on the mechanics and learn what Arcana works for what hero you're playing.

In the early game, you can experiment which Arcana builds work for the hero you're playing. Mix and match in all the trees with different Arcana you have access to.

Or you can just follow the recommended for each hero and build them up that way. But starting in Arcana early rather than waiting is a smart idea in helping you get efficient at building up your pages.

Arcana Stat Distribution

The big note to focus on when using Arcana is what's important for the hero you're building on. You want to focus on the stats that make that hero excel and not stats that are gonna drag it down.

If you're focusing on an Assassin you wanna get as much damage output in your Arcana as possible. Filling out the Strength tree with anything that helps damage. Attack Damage, Ability Damage, etc.

Or say you're focusing on a Tank, you'll have no real need for putting too much focus in Attack Damage. You'll want to focus on the Life and Guard tree's

Build your page with as many HP boost and Armor boost as you can get. It's all about managing the heroes that you're going to be playing and knowing what role you're taking with them.

The stats that Arcana give are extremely helpful and become very apparent during competitive matches. So having the exact right setup for your heroes will be the difference between a win and a loss.

A big thing to pay attention to with the stats is exactly how much they're adding to the overall base line of your hero. On the right-hand side of the Arcana screen, it shows your Attribute Bonus.

A list of all the stat bonuses you're getting from your current equipped Arcana. Keeping an eye on this will let you know exactly what that Arcana page is focusing on for what hero.

If you see too much of one stat on a hero that won't be benefitting from it you know where exactly to change said stat. It's a helpful little addition that makes managing Arcana stats much easier.

So remember, manage how you spend your gold to maximize the usefulness of a heroes Arcana. And pay attention to the way you lay out your Arcana stats. Hero class and role are important so stick to what that hero is good at and you'll be golden.