How to Play Axie Infinity in 5 Easy Steps
Disclaimer
This article was published on June 29, 2021. Please keep in mind that some of the data in this article may be outdated as of today.
Before we get started, there are a few fundamentals you must know. If you already have a little knowledge, you can skip to the midway point of this article and find the 5 steps!
What is Axie Infinity?
Axie Infinity is a Pokémon-inspired universe where anyone can earn tokens through skilled gameplay and contributions to the ecosystem. It is a strategic card game, where players can battle, collect, breed, and trade fantasy creatures called Axies which are on the Polygon Layer 2 cryptocurrency blockchain.
Why Do People Play Axie?
Axie Infinity is more than just a game for the players. The play-to-earn mechanics of Axie Infinity has become a source of income for those who were (and many of whom still are) financially affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
There are many ways to earn real money inside Axie Infinity. The most common way is to collect and then sell Smooth Love Potion (SLP). SLP is earned by finishing daily quests and battling in Adventure and Arena game modes. These SLP tokens can be sold on cryptocurrency exchanges like UniSwap and Binance, and from there you can exchange them into Fiat currency (normal money).
Buying Axies vs Scholarships
Owning an Axie means first investing in some money. After all, “…you need to spend money to make money.” By buying your own Axie, you are entitled to 100% of your own earnings and have full control of your own account.
The price of an Axie is dependent on it’s breed and character strengths. They can only be purchased from the Axie Infinity Marketplace, through player-to-player transactions. To buy an Axie, you can expect to pay a minimum of $150USD. Others can go for several thousand dollars.
Fun fact: the highest price paid for an Axie was $701,484 in 2020.
For those who are unable to invest money into purchasing their own Axies in the beginning, the game offers alternate ways to play and earn an income through “Scholarships”. Scholarship programs allow players to essentially “rent” an Axie team from another player, play the game to earn SLP, and then split the profit share with the account holder. The owner of these Axies are typically referred to as “Managers”. Those that rent the Axies within this system are called “Scholars”.
Essentially, as a Manager, your job is to provide Axies to Scholars by renting them. Both the Manager and the Scholar then share in the profit of the account. An agreement between the parties is always made in regards to the profit split. For players who wish to start as Scholars, we’d recommend finding an agreement where at least 60% of the earnings go to you and the remaining 40% is given to the Manager (60/40 split). Some other common profit split percentages are 30/70, 40/60 and 50/50.
If you do not have enough money to buy your own Axies right away, then an Axie Scholarship is the perfect way to get started. However, if you have the ability to buy your own Axies, then we’d say go for it! You would have more control and freedom in the game. You can battle, breed, collect, and even trade them with other players. When you are a Scholar, the only thing you can do with the Axies is battle them to earn SLP.
If You Want to Buy Axies (Starting Guide for Aspiring Managers)
Axie game assets exist as NFT tokens. In order to store tokens, users must download a digital wallet to play the game. It is recommended to use MetaMask and load it with some Ethereum (ETH). Metamask can be used on both desktop and mobile. Download MetaMask here: https://metamask.io/.
MetaMask takes around 1 minute to download and set up. When creating your account, ensure you store your secret 12-word password (private key) in a safe place, because unlike your bank account, a digital wallet is owned 100% by you which makes it impossible to recover your password if ever you forget it. For mobile users, Trust Wallet can also be used on Android but it does not have a browser on iOS. You can acquire ETH from Coinbase, Binance, or other cryptocurrency exchanges depending on your country. Players in certain countries can buy using their debit card straight from Metamask using the “deposit” button. It may take a few hours for you to acquire your ETH.
Once you’ve acquired ETH, you’ll need to download the Ronin wallet and then deposit this ETH to Ronin Bridge which you can find here: https://bridge.axieinfinity.com/. You will need 3 Axies to play the game. Axies can be purchased on the official Axie Infinity marketplace which you can find at https://marketplace.axieinfinity.com/. Before you interact with the market, you must complete your Ronin wallet account set up.
You will use QR code login for Axie Infinity mobile apps. Using the apps directly, the QR code can be scanned on your profile dashboard in the Marketplace: https://marketplace.axieinfinity.com/profile/dashboard, or your Mavis Hub. You can download Mavis Hub in the https://axieinfinity.com website. The same process for downloading applies to Scholars. Currently, the Axie Infinity game is in an “Alpha” stage, meaning very early development. The test mobile app is available to everyone on Android, however currently is limited to 10,000 people on iOS. It is completely open to anyone on desktop.
To download Axie Infinity for iPhone, you need the TestFlight app. Visit this website for your guide: https://testflight.apple.com/join/5tEPyIU2.
If you Want to be a Scholar
There are plenty of Managers looking for potential Scholars! To find these Managers, we’d recommend turning to social media like Facebook and Twitter, and applying for the program through our Scholarship tab here at P2E News! Some Managers prefer to choose from aspiring players in the comment section of their posts, while others will choose from their Facebook Page Top Fans and Supporters. They will go on a live stream and raffle the names of their followers with Top Fan Badge and Supporter Badge.
There are many other ways to find a scholarship, however the best way is to stay connected with these Managers on their social media accounts, so you can get updated when and how they will accept applications. Another great way to gain a Scholarship is if a relative already has one, ask for a referral!
5 Steps to Playing Axie Infinity
1. After the account set up, sync your Axies.
For this step, you simply need to click the “Axies” button in the bottom left of the home screen. Up the top you will find a “Sync” button, click that and it will load up your Axies!
2. Familiarize yourself with the stats of your Axies as well as their cards.
– Each body part corresponds with a certain ability. It’s important to know your abilities and to also recognize an enemy’s ability when playing.
– Each card / ability played will cost energy. The energy cost of that ability can be found in the orange circle on the top left of the card. Each player starts with 3 energy in the first round and will gain 2 more energy per round.
– The red-colored hexagon determines the amount of damage that the card may inflict when it attacks the opponent.
– The green-colored hexagon determines the amount of shield applied to the Axie using the card.
– The description at the bottom shows any buffs or de-buffs that the card provides to the Axie or enemy.
3. Create a Team of 3 Axies.
In the bottom left on the home page, you will find a button called “Teams” – click this button. From there, you can create a team but clicking “New Team” in the top right. You can create more than one team if you have 6 or more Axies, however 1 Axie cannot be in 2 two teams.
4. Check and complete your daily quests.
The daily quests guarantee you 50 SLP once completed. The quest requires you to (1) Daily check in, (2) Win 5 Arena matches, and (3) Complete 10 Adventure mode levels.
In Adventure or Player vs Environment (PvE), you will battle against game-controlled Axies. You need to complete the quest so you can level up your Axies and earn SLP.
You gain EXP from PvE rounds as long as you have energy. EXP can be used either to level up an Axie’s base stats, breed, or evolve body parts to a higher level. It is recommended that beginners should focus on Adventure first before spending their energy on Arena matches.
Note: you can still play PvE without energy, however you will not gain any EXP from won battles – only a smaller amount of SLP than usual.
In Arena or Player vs Player (PvP), you will battle against other players with their own team of Axies. You need to familiarize yourself with not just the cards of your Axies but also the cards of your opponent. This will help you better strategize on how to use your cards to ensure victory.
Note: you also get more SLP per win the more times you win in PvP.
5. To battle, drag your cards to your Axies.
Your goal is to eliminate all enemy Axies. Every turn, you need to strategically use your cards and energy. The way you use your cards will determine whether you win or lose.
Simply drag up the cards you wish to use into the battle arena. Once you have played all of the cards you wish, click “End Turn” on the right-hand side. If your opponent is also done with their turn, both teams of Axies will start to attack based on the cards used.
You must win the match to earn SLP, if you lose, you do not earn anything and can even de-rank in PvP.
Start your Play-to-Earn journey and download Axie Infinity now! Visit their website to start grinding: https://axieinfinity.com.
