Overview
Warena is a real-time, head-to-head tactical card battler. Two players deploy units, build structures, and cast spells, all racing to destroy the opponent's base Castle. The first Castle to fall loses.
Match Flow
Every match moves through a few phases before the real action begins:
- Intro - a short countdown while the arena sets up.
- Deck Shuffle - your starting deck is shown to you, and you have the choice to reroll cards.
- Hero Skill Selection - each player picks one skill from a random rotation.
- Gameplay - the match itself, played until one base falls.
- End - results, trophies, and a short recap.
Your Deck
Your deck is randomly generated from the pool of cards available this match.
The deck is shuffled, a few cards go straight into your hand, and the rest are queued up to be drawn over time during the match as your hand has space.
Rerolls
During Deck Shuffle you have a handful of rerolls. Reroll any card you don't want and you'll get a different one from a separate reroll pool. Use them to shape your opening before the match starts. Rerolls lock in once the phase ends.
Hero Skills
Before the match starts you pick a hero skill from a random rotation. That skill stays with you for the entire match - it's your unique trick on top of your deck. Skills cost mana to activate and have a cooldown, so they're not spammable; pick your moments.
Runes
You gain Gems during the match that you can use to activate Runes. They range from "add a specific card to your pool" to passive effects like extra mana regen or cheaper cards.
Playing Cards
Drag a card from your hand to a spot on the map to play it, or press the number key that matches its slot. Each card costs mana - if you're short, you have to wait for more to regenerate. Troops and structures can only go down in your own territory; spells and hero skills can reach anywhere on the battlefield.
Card Types
- Troops - units that march across the battlefield. Ground troops follow paths; air units fly over everything.
- Buildings - stationary structures that defend your side, generate resources, or spawn troops over time.
- Spells - one-shot magical effects (damage, buffs, debuffs, summons) targeted at an area of the map.
Match Events
At scheduled points during a match, events fire for both players: increased mana regeneration, handful of rune gems and so on. These are global and symmetric - both players get the same thing at the same time. They keep the pace ramping up and hand you the resources you need to reach the bigger, more expensive cards.
Resources
- Mana - your primary in-match currency. Regenerates passively up to a cap, and pays for every card and skill.
- Gems - earned through match events.
- Trophies - your account-wide rating. Goes up when you win, down when you lose. The amount depends on your opponent's rating.
Targeting
Units attack whatever enemy wanders into their aggro range. Some units only hit ground; others can hit air units too. Structures work the same way, shooting at things in their range. Once a unit commits to a target, it sticks to it until the target dies - switching mid-fight is not a thing. Spells and hero skills bypass this entirely and just hit the area you aimed at.
Status Effects
A bunch of buffs and debuffs drive combat flavor: On Fire deals damage over time, Freeze locks a unit in place, Rage boosts damage, Haste speeds everything up, Stealth hides a unit until it attacks, and so on. They're applied by spells, hero skills, buildings, and some units' passives. Check the individual card pages for exact effects.