25 Lost Ark Tips and Strategies Guide For Beginners
When you first log into Lost Ark, you will easily drift off into the unknown while being bombarded with many tasks and activities. For an MMORPG game like Lost Ark, you can genuinely get, well… lost. This guide is for beginners who are just starting their journey in Arkesia to know some tips from the early to the late game.
Early Game:
1. Choosing a class best for you:
Now that you have decided to enter Arkesia, you will pick your first main character. This is where you must thoroughly consider which character class resonates with you and your play style. Do you want to face tank and engage in battles head-on? Pick a Warrior Tank class like Gunlancer. Do you want to be mobile and fast while dealing big critical hits to your enemies from behind? Pick an Assassin DPS class like Deathblade. Want to chill and heal your teammates? Play as a Bard.
How It Works:
- Create a character and design your look.
- Consider the type of class archetype you want to pick: Specialist, Warrior, Martial Artist, Gunner, Mage, or Assassin.
- Go through the tutorial area to test out the subclasses of your archetype.
- Once you pick your first character, it will automatically be designated as your “Main,” which means you won’t be able to delete that character.
- When you are ready, choose your subclass and begin your journey in Lost Ark.
2. Main Story Quests:
Main Story Quests are the focus of the game’s storyline, which introduces many regions, characters, and important events happen in the world of Arkesia. As a new player starting out, you should focus on MSQ to understand the game mechanics, unlock regions, and the lore. If you’re into that stuff, that is.
How It Works:
- You will accept main story quest lines from certain NPCs who will guide you.
- Follow the quest markers that help you find the next area or regions to go while they give you objectives to complete.
- Continue and repeat the process as you push through the main story content in the game.
3. Level Up Your Character:
Like any MMORPG, leveling up is one of the vital aspects of the game to progress and become a stronger player. Leveling up will unlock skills and skill points, equip higher-level gear, and access certain endgame content.
How It Works:
- Follow the MSQ as you will naturally gain a lot of EXP from doing it.
- Tackle any side quests and daily activities that will give you a lot of EXP.
- Run through dungeons, especially in a more challenging difficulty, to gain more EXP.
4. Join a guild:
Once you pass the tutorial and make it to the first town, Prideholme, you will gain access to the Guild tab. I recommend all players to join a guild as they give you many different perks to aid you in the game. You’ll have access to a unique shop, guild quests, skills, research, and content. Joining a guild or forming one yourself with some friends can be very valuable as you’ll have players to connect with and help guide you within the game.
How It Works:
- Open the guild menu and find a guild that aligns with your goals and time commitment.
- Apply to join the guild and wait for the guild master’s approval.
- Make sure to contribute and check in daily to allow your guild to increase its level.
- Socialize, and don’t be afraid to ask for help!
5. Study your skills & combos:
Play and fight in combat as you figure out your character's nuances and feel of your character. Different classes have their own unique abilities and combo synergy. So be sure to experiment and practice to be efficient in your battles!
How It Works:
- Open the skill tree menu and read over all of your skills’ descriptions and limitations.
- Play with different skills to determine what you enjoy and feel adequate.
- Set up your proper key binds to set up your skills and combos to your liking.
- Start steamrolling your enemies with your new skill setup!
6. Gear up through MSQ:
As you progress through the game, you will constantly get new gear from dungeons and main story quests. While you’re still in the game's early stages, don’t worry too much about trying to upgrade them. You will focus on finding the right gear AFTER completing the main story quest starting at Tier 1 content.
How It Works:
- Complete quests and dungeons as they will naturally give you free gear as rewards.
- Trade with NPCs in their shops with silver currency if needed in case you need them.
- Equip gear, and don’t worry too much about upgrading until you get to Tier 1 content.
- Once you equip new gear, sell or dismantle old gear to receive crafting resources.
7. Do dungeons on hard mode:
Don’t be intimidated by the word “hard”. It’s actually relatively easier than you think, even without party members during the beginning stages of the game. You’ll probably use 1 or 2 potions from mobs dealing slightly more damage. Doing Hard Mode dungeons will naturally give you higher reward boxes than Normal Mode.
How It Works:
- As you complete quest lines throughout the areas outside of town, you will likely encounter a dungeon towards the end of the area.
- Choose Hard Mode (if you are uncomfortable with it, Normal is still acceptable.)
- Complete the objectives and fight the last boss at the end of the dungeon.
8. Save your % Potions:
Completing certain quests at the game's beginning will reward you with % Potions or even HP selection boxes. These HP potions are different from Healing potions, where in high-level content, you can only use HP pots rather than Healing potions. You also cannot buy these in-game; you can only craft them, buy them with premium currency, or buy them in the auction house. So be sure to save these potion types, and only use healing potions during the main story quests.
How It Works:
- Complete quests to reward you with % Potions and HP potion chests throughout the game.
- Save and accumulate them over time to horde them for endgame content.
- Continue to use Healing potions for the main story quests.
9. Learn trade skills and gather resources:
Trade skills are one of the most crucial elements in the game once you manage your first stronghold. You’ll first gain access to trade skills like mining and even line fishing in the game's early stages. By utilizing these trade skills to gather resources, you can use them to craft certain items in the game, such as better trade skill equipment, hp potions, gear enhancement materials, etc.
How It Works:
- After reaching Lakebar Village from progressing in MSQ, you’ll learn the mining trade skill.
- Continue with the MSQ, as you’ll gain access to more trade skills.
- Pay attention to the map and see if there are mining locations, fishing locations, and foraging spots, where you can utilize your trade skills.
- Gather resources along the way once you gain access to your first stronghold to craft materials with them.
10. Your first Stronghold:
Once you reach level 25, you will gain access to the stronghold, which will be your personal home base for your main character and Alts. In your base, you can decorate the look and aesthetic to your liking. Throughout time, you can level up your stronghold by crafting items and completing stronghold quests to gain more access to researching new tools, gain more resources, and even more crafting options for battle and survivability items.
How It Works:
- Reach level 25 by progressing through the MSQ and completing “Clerk Theo’s Invitation” quest.
- Go through the tutorial stages within your stronghold to understand the essence of using your base of operations.
- Complete daily activities and gather resources in your farm to craft items and research tools to level up your stronghold.
- Don’t forget to check in and complete your timed quests and start new ones daily.
Mid Game:
11. Focus on your Adventurer’s Tome:
The idea of an Adventurer’s Tome is a way to track your progress throughout the lands and areas you are doing content in. By focusing on completing objectives in your Tome, you can unlock certain items such as skill potions or even collectibles.
How It Works:
- As you start from Prideholme, you will do plenty of content in the Rethramis region.
- Complete objectives stated within the tome, such as doing dungeons, crafting collectibles, fighting certain unique mobs, and even cooking recipes.
- Work your way through each region and try to get them to 100% completion.
12. Build Rapport with NPCs:
Building rapport with NPCs in Lost Ark is a way to build a relationship with some key characters within the game. The more you interact with these NPCs with the Heart icon, the more rewards you can obtain from them and learn more about their storylines.
How It Works:
- As you find these NPCs with rapport icons, you can give gifts, play instruments, show emotes, and complete their quests.
- You can only build a certain amount of rapport daily, so be sure to add this to your daily task.
- Level up your rapport higher to gain rare items like runes, cards, or even gold currency.
13. Una’s Tasks:
Una’s Tasks are one of the primary forms of daily and weekly content in the game. As you continue to do these quests throughout the week, you’ll gather exp, reputation points, rapport currency, and other rare items in the game.
How It Works:
- Login to the game and accept quests, you would want to choose from.
- You are only allowed 3 daily quests and 3 weeklies per week.
- If you forget to do these quests, you’ll have a rest bonus, doubling your rewards.
- Complete these quests repeatedly, especially the chained quests, as they can reward you with rare items.
- Completing these quests on any character in your roster will give you Una’s Tokens, which you can exchange for gold chests.
14. Participate in PvP:
Challenge other players in PvP in Lost Ark by 1v1s, 3v3s, or join elimination deathmatches. If you’re tired of pushing main story quests, or PvE content, this game mode can be a refreshing way to play and master your character class. As you play PvP, you’ll gain PvP coin currency which you can exchange for materials and other unique items.
How It Works:
- Go to the PvP NPC and pick which game mode you want to play (3v3s are the most popular)
- Play ranked mode often to climb the ranking ladder.
- Gain Coins of courage by winning PvP battles.
- Exchange these coins for items you can purchase in the PvP shop.
15. Event Quests:
One of the best things about Lost Ark are the seasonal event quests and games the developers implement within the game. Depending on the season, you may be playing different mini games like Naruni racing, a “Mario Kart” style game mode where you can compete with other players. Completing these daily will give you event coins, soyou can purchase plenty of useful items such as enhancement materials for your gear, or even rare cards.
How It Works:
- Start the event quest by locating the NPC in a pink exclamation icon.
- Complete the chain quest, and they will give you access to the event mini-game.
- During certain hours of the day, the event NPC will spawn a portal to the mini-game.
- Complete the event and receive a fair share of event coins.
- Go to the event shop near the NPC and purchase items from the store that are useful to you.
16. Use your pets:
Pets are given to you during the early stages of the game, yet are a vital quality-of-life investment for playing Lost Ark. One of the main benefits of having a pet is its pet storage, auto-loot systems, pet effects, and also pet functions which are used in Lost Ark’s crystalline aura effect.
How It Works:
- Equip any pet once you access it.
- Throughout the game, they will give you pets with different rarities with better effects.
- Move items from your personal storage into your pet storage once you run out of space.
- If you want to purchase the crystalline aura effect in conjunction with the pet effects, you can remotely access your roster storage and gear repair.
17. Chaos Dungeons:
By this time, you should be reaching the end of the MSQ stage and reaching Tier 1 content. Chaos dungeons are one of the first activities you will do repeatedly once you reach Tier 1. The dungeon will shower you with materials and gear equipment for your character needed, which will be used for the honing process.
How It Works:
- Go to the designated chaos dungeon NPC and pick the dungeon level appropriate to your item level.
- Run through the dungeon by defeating mobs and bosses in 3 stages.
- Repeat the dungeon 1 more time, as you will only have 2 per character per day.
- Wait another day to gain access to these dungeons.
18. Guardian Raids:
Beware of the mighty guardians, which are one of the more brutal boss fights in Lost Ark. The feeling of these raids is in the form of a “Monster Hunter” style format where you can defeat them and scavenge their guardian soles for items and honing materials.
How It Works:
- Go to the Guardian Raid billboard and pick the appropriate rate according to your item level.
- Playing with party members during these raids is recommended as they can be very challenging.
- Study the guardian’s mechanics, especially those with a wipe mechanic.
- Prepare any battle items like stagger grenades, flares, or weak point bombs to dismantle the guardian.
- Defeat the guardian and extract the soul.
- Rerun it 1 more time, as you will only be able to extract two souls per day.
19. Abyssal Dungeons:
Feel like revisiting some old MSQ dungeons, but being more challenging? These are what abyssal dungeons are. These are rehashed dungeons done once per week, which are a lot harder than the MSQ dungeons. In higher abyssal dungeons, players will struggle to push past thresholds or gates where they will fight difficult bosses.
How It Works:
- Go to the Abyssal dungeon portal in town and pick which dungeon to do.
- You can run these dungeons once per character per week with limited access to 6 gold rewards on your roster account.
- Collaborate and work with your party members to complete the dungeon as efficiently as possible.
- Complete the dungeon and gain rewards such as accessories, random card packs, and gold.
20. Sail the Seas:
This is your best chance to become a pirate king!… sort of. The world of Arkesia is much vaster than you think once you complete the MSQs in North Vern. Once you find one of the Arks, you will gain access to your first ship to sail the seas and travel to different regions with around a hundred islands to discover.
How It Works:
- Complete the North Vern MSQ line and gain access to your first ship.
- Sail the seas and explore the islands appropriate to your level or continue to traverse through the MSQ locations.
- Complete objectives within these islands to reward you with rare items such as collectibles, skill points, and an Island Soul.
- Exchange these Island Souls to the statue in Opher, the Lonely Island, to receive items.
Late Game:
21. Legion Raids:
Legion Raids are the spirit of the endgame content and perhaps what appeals to most players in Lost Ark in general. These are the most challenging raid content in the game, yet one of the most satisfying and fun types of content to do in Lost Ark. Remember the Legion Commanders introduced in the Main Story Quests? These raids are all about defeating their final forms.
How It Works:
- Once you get to Tier 3 at a 1415 item level, you will gain access to the first Legion Raid against Valtan.
- Go to the Legion Raid portal or press Alt+Q to access the integrated dungeons to enter the raid there.
- Be thoughtful about who will be in your raid team, and be sure to study the raid's mechanics.
- Complete the raid to earn a plentiful amount of gold, rare accessory gear, and enhancement materials for honing.
- Only one character can complete up to a maximum of 3 different Legion Raids per week.
22. Farm Card Sets:
Collecting cards is one of the last things to worry about in this game, as it will take time for you to build a proper card set. Specifically, players are given card packs, often randomly, where you can level up a card up to five times. Certain cards belong in sets that can provide you with certain buffs such as damage % increase, HP % increase, damage resistance, etc.
How It Works:
- Continue progressing the game at your own pace as you slowly accumulate cards into your card deck.
- Pay close attention to the “Lostwind Cliff” set and the “Light of Salvation” set as they will be your main focus to build towards.
- Save any legendary select card packs and only open them if you need certain legendary cards for the sets you need, especially from the ones mentioned above.
- Equip these cards into your deck for certain buffs to aid you in battle.
23. Make an Alt class:
What do you do when you finish all your dailies, weeklies, and check-ins on your main character? That’s right. You make an Alt. An alt character’s purpose is not only for you to try new character classes but also to complete dailies and other weekly objectives to receive rewards to potentially feed to your main character. This is where the actual grind starts, and you’ll find yourself repeating this process many times. Beware of possible time sinking!
How It Works:
- Complete all your dailies on your Main, then make a new character.
- Use a Powerpass if you have one to catch up your Alt to endgame content, or level it up by speedrunning through the MSQ again.
- Continue to run chaos dungeons, guardian raids, and whatever endgame dailies you need to do.
- Feed your honing materials to your Main or your Alt if you want to progress higher.
- Enjoy the process! It’s a new character, so why not have a refreshing start playing a different one.
24. Hone, Hone, Hone:
The only way to progress through the game is to raise your item levels by honing your current gear. This gear enhancement system will make you bleed, sweat, and give tears at the sight of the many failures you will have to face.
How It Works:
- Once you gain access to Tier 1 gear and honing materials from doing dailies, talk to the honing NPC to start the honing process.
- Honing each piece of gear requires shards, stones, leapstones, and silver.
- Continue accumulating honing materials and getting your gear to its maximum level.
- Progress to the following MSQ content into the next tier and repeat the process with a new gear set.
25. 100% all collectibles:
Note: Only for the hardcore completionists. Whether you are here to play the game casually, know there is so much to do in Lost Ark, such as finding all these collectibles and completing them to 100%. You will spend months and months to complete this, especially when certain world events are time-locked. This will be your true endgame in Lost Ark.
How It Works:
- Collect all Island Souls, Giant Hearts, Omnium Stars, Masterpieces, Sea Bounties, World Tree Leaves, Ignea Tokens, and the famous… Mokoko Seeds.
- Focus on them individually and at your own pace to avoid burnout.
- Completing these objectives will grant you some of the rarest items in the game, such as receiving a rare mount.
- Flex on other players by showing off your Mokoko seed costume to let them know you collected all 1266 of them in the game.
