Every journey into Axie Infinity begins with a starter team. The three cute, little Axies that will field your team will be your first heroes in navigating the world of Lunacia and will determine your chances of winning in those early battles.   

That’s why it is important to immediately start strong and have a robust, well-balanced starter team in Axie Infinity from the get-go. Not only does it get you through those first few battles much easier, as a result, it also means you can get (and exceed past) your return of investment much faster. 

The question is, how do you make an effective, synergistic starter team? What differentiates a good starter team from a bad one? Let’s find out.

Overview of Axie Stats and Classes

Finding the best Axies to field your starter teams must begin with a basic understanding of the Axies’ traits and characteristics. 

Stats

Each Axie is attributed with 4 different stats: 

HP — This is your Axie’s health. This dictates how much damage your Axie can take before it gets knocked out of the game. 

Speed — This determines which Axie gets to attack first. The Axie with higher speed gets to go first. Higher speed also decreases the chances of receiving a Critical Strike (i.e. double damage).  

Skill — This impacts how much damage is added when the Axie does a combo (plays multiple cards at once). 

Morale — This determines the chances to get a Critical Strike. High Morale also makes it more likely to enter a “Last Stand”. 

These stats are determined by two factors: the Axie’s Class, and its Body Parts. 

Axie-Infinity-Classes

Classes

Each Axie belongs to one of the following Classes: 

  • Aquatic 
  • Beast 
  • Bird 
  • Bug 
  • Plant 
  • Reptile 
  • Dawn 
  • Dusk 
  • Mech 

The Class of the Axie determines its base stats. For example, a Plant Axie will have base stats of 61 HP, 31 Speed, 31 Skill, and 35 Morale. 

Body Parts

Each Axie possesses six different body parts: Eyes, Ears, Back, Mouth, Horn, and Tail. 

These body parts (except the Eyes and Ears) determine the cards that the Axie can play in battle. Each card has a corresponding Damage and Shield number, as well as a special ability.   

Depending on its Class, the body part also adds to the base stats of the Axie:

  • Aquatic — +1 HP, +3 Speed
  • Beast — +1 Speed, +3 Morale
  • Bird — +3 Speed, +1 Morale
  • Bug — +1 HP, +3 Morale
  • Plant — +3 HP, +1 Morale
  • Reptile — +3 HP, +1 Speed

A pure-bred Plant Axie (a Plant Axie with body parts all from the Plant Class) will therefore have final stats of 61 HP, 31 Speed, 31 Skill, and 31 Morale. 

Axie Roles for Starter Teams

Every team is made up of three Axies, each serving their roles in the battle to win the game. Axies usually fall under one of the following roles: 

Defender/Tank

The Defender Axie is the one dedicated to taking up and absorbing most of the damage inflicted by the opponent.  A good Defender Axie has: 

  • A high HP stat (ideally 50+); and 
  • At least two high Shield cards (ideally 70+). 

Attacker/Damage Dealer

The Attacker Axie is the one that inflicts damage to your opponent. A good Attacker Axie has:

  • High Speed and Morale stats; and
  • At least two to three high Damage cards (ideally 100+). 

Beginner players usually build their starter team with 1 Defender and 2 Attacker Axies. This arrangement allows the player to deal the most damage and win many of their early games.  

Support/Utility

As you advance within the game and gain more experience, you may prefer to start getting creative and substitute one of your Attackers with a support and utility Axie. 

Support/Utility Axies do not necessarily fit the bill as a good Defender or Attacker, but instead they have cards that improve your strategy and give your team more synergy. Depending on your strategy, Support Axies can serve a variety of roles, some of which are: 

  • Heal their teammates; 
  • Apply debuffs to enemy (e.g. Stun, Poison, etc.); 
  • Draw more cards to your hand; 
  • Generate more Energy; and 
  • Steal or destroy your enemy’s Energy. 
Axie-Infinity-Classes-Pros-Cons

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How should I look for the best starter Axies?

All of that knowledge in mind will aid you in looking for the best Axies to furnish your starter team. The two things you have to consider for choosing an Axie to fit a specific role are: its overall stats, and its body parts/cards. 

Defender

For Defender Axies, prioritize HP and cards with high Shield. Axies of a Plant Class and/or have many Plantbody parts tend to be good Defenders with high HP. Reptile and Aquatic cards are also great for Defenders depending on their card sets. 

You can also look for cards with self-healing abilities, such as Healing Aroma (Plant) and Swallow (Aquatic), which make your Defender Axie more resilient.

Attacker

For Attacker Axies, what matters most is attack power and high Damage. A good Attacker Axie has at least 2-3 high-damage cards, preferably with over 100 Damage. Cards from Beast and Bird classes work suitably with Attacker Axies. Several Bug cards are also strong damage dealers. 

You should also look for Axies with high Morale and, to some extent, high Skill. Higher Morale stats means higher odds for the Axie to deal a Critical Strike, which doubles the damage inflicted by the card. High Skill further increases the impact of your turn when you do combo moves.

Sometimes, high Speed also makes for a good Attacker Axie. Because Speed determines the turn order of attack, having high-Speed Axies means that they can inflict damage first, which may help you turn the game over in your favor. 

Axie-Infinity-Gameplay

What team setups work best for beginners?

While there are over a hundred combinations of Axie cards to build your team with, there are some popular team setups, especially amongst starter teams. Following the simple strategy of fielding your team with 1 Defender and 2 Attackers, many beginner players choose to make a team with the following Axies: 

  • Plant, Bird, Beast
  • Plant, Beast, Beast
  • Plant, Aquatic, Beast
  • Plant, Aquatic, Aquatic 

However, remember that it is the overall composition of the Axie that matters, not just its Class. A Plant Axie with no Plant body parts or no high-Shield cards will not make a good Defender at all. Conversely, a Beast Axie but with several Plant body parts will end up with considerably high HP and can act as a suitable Defender.  

At the end of the day, the synergy between your three Axies and between each individual Axie’s body parts ultimately trump their base classes. Potentially, you can create a team with any combination of Axie Classes, as long as the Axies have fitting stats and ability cards to fulfill their respective roles. 

Creating the perfect Axie teams in Axie Infinity is always a learning experience. The more you play the game and understand the underlying mechanisms and synergies of what makes a good team, the easier it will be for you to field an Axie team that works best with your chosen strategies. Research, learn from other players, do some trial-and-error, and don’t forget to get creative.

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