Guide: Fastest Ways to Earn Crowns In Gigantic

Almost every free-to-play game is going to have its drawbacks when it comes to earning what other people are willing to just buy outright, and the MOBA/shooter hybrid Gigantic is no exception. But it's all about learning the best way to navigate that market and make it work for you, rather than against you.

Gigantic is possibly the most unique MOBA-style game I've ever encountered. While games are 5v5 with heroes who have four unique skills and an auto-attack, the structure and goal of each match is different from every MOBA out there. Basically, you're trying to earn points during the match for your team by doing things like killing the enemies, and enemies' creatures. Once you earn enough points, a large guardian will hold the other team's guardian down so you can try to wound it. First team to wound the other team's guardian three times wins.

But just like other free-to-play MOBAs I've played, not several things are hidden behind a paywall. In Gigantic, which this weekend is in Closed Beta (Alienware still has some keys to giveaway, if you're interested in joining), there are currently 16 heroes. At any given time, you can play eight heroes for free. These heroes are on a weekly rotation. The other heroes you can permatnent buy either with premium currency called Rubies or in-game currency called Crowns. Crowns and Rubies operate off a 40:3 ratio – 40 Crowns is the same as 3 Rubies, so Gems are obviously worth a lot more and are more difficult to come by.

The cheapest heroes will cost 4,000 Crowns or 300 Rubies, then the next tier up will be 8,000 Crowns or 600 Rubies, and the final tier is 12,000 Crowns or 900 Rubies. As you can see, the price for even one hero is pretty steep, but there are several ways to earn both Crowns and Rubies in game without paying any money.

Because of this ratio, there are a few bad buys you should avoid. Fortune Cards are one way to earn additional Crowns, but you may have to spend gems to get them. These cards present you with an in-game challenge and give you a reward in Crowns and Rubies upon completion. Buying a card will cost 25 Rubies and likely only yield 100-150 Crowns, even though 25 Rubies is effectively worth more than 300 crowns. You'd be better off buying a 1-Win Booster for 25 Rubies. Depending on how you do, this could make the deal a lot more favorable. You'll also get a daily drawing of Fortune Cards at no cost, so, if you're patient, you can earn a lot quickly.

The Fortune Cards you get at the start, though, will provide you with a huge boost to your initial Crown and Ruby stockpile. There are six tutorial Fortune Cards that task you with things like "play five matches," "win three matches" and other simple task like that that give huge payouts. The first time you level up on your account, you will also get a 300 Ruby boost, an an additional bonus every five levels after that. After you've burned through the tutorial cards, you should have enough Crowns and Rubies to buy two of the cheap heroes, buying one with Crowns and the Other with Rubies. You'll even have some left over.

After that, it becomes a lot more difficult. You get five Rubies every time you level up an individual hero (keep in mind that this level has no effect in-game), so you could, in theory, level each one you have unlocked to the first level and receive a 50 Ruby bonus, but that's clearly small potatoes. There are 160 character levels across the the board, so you'd only be able to collect 800 Ruby's total for this strategy.

However, there are 200 player medals that each give out a 5 Ruby Bonus. You can earn these medals through a variety of different in-game achievements, all of which are listed out in the game menu. Striving for these not only gets you the Ruby bonus, but it will also help power level your character, getting you closer to those Ruby and Crown awards.

The best strategy is to burn through the Tutorial Fortune Cards, buy one or two heroes that you know you're good with, then grind with those heroes, paying special attention to the Daily Fortune Draws and trying for the badges. Make sure you always pick the Fortune Card with the highest Crown payout and try to do the same card multiple times. Once you do the same card three times you'll get an even bigger bonus.

With the system of hero rotation, though, you will get the opportunity to play the heroes you like while you're waiting to unlock them permanently. Good luck!