Aion 2 · Guides
Aion 2 free-to-play progression: what you miss without a subscription
NCSOFT / AION 2 official Steam screenshots
TL;DR
- Odyle Energy, the limit on dungeon rewards, recharges at the same rate with or without a subscription: 15 every 3 hours. The subscription raises how much you can store, from 560 to 840.
- A free player has to log in a little more often so energy does not cap. A free character fills in a little under five days.
- Creators reached 1400 gear score without a battle pass and 2200 without growth support.
- Free players get the most from alts, the weekly Odyle Energy crafts and the free battle pass track.
What the subscription changes
These are the differences the game data records. Prices and what the store sells change, so they are left out here.
| Limit | Free | Subscription |
|---|---|---|
| Odyle Energy recharge | 15 every 3 hours | 15 every 3 hours |
| Odyle Energy storage | 560 | 840 |
| Shugo Festival reward keys | 3 a day, store 12 | 3 a day, store 21 |
TheWhelps noted the same energy rule in the global test. On Korean servers free players recharged more slowly, so older advice that the subscription is required for energy does not apply to global.
Creator tip
The energy recharges 15 every 3 hours for both free to play and sub. The only difference is that sub gets a higher cap.
The subscriber shop is the other difference. Grobs buys extra Odyle Energy, extra daily dungeon tickets and Soul Crystals there each week, so subscribers get more cube openings in total.
What creators reached without paying
| Creator | Reached | Without |
|---|---|---|
| NoBS | 1400 item level on day one | The premium battle pass |
| FRESHY | 2200 gear score in about a week, on a fresh character | Any growth support |
| Madsin | A month and a half on Taiwan; says the game rewards steady play more than spending | The subscription and alts |
Creator tip
I'm going to show you exactly what I did on a completely fresh character to go from level 1 to 2,200 gear score in just 7 days without using any form of growth support.
TheWhelps also expects global to be less pay-to-win than Korea at launch, because NCSOFT said on a global stream that there would be no Heroic gear at launch. That lowers the ceiling paying players can reach.
How to make up the difference
| Do this | Why |
|---|---|
| Log in before energy caps | With 560 storage you have under five days from empty. TheWhelps: if you cannot reach your target dungeon in time, run a lower Conquest rather than waste energy |
| Craft Odyle Energy every week | The Substance Morph recipe is open to everyone: 4 per character and 16 per account each week, each worth one 40-energy cube |
| Make alts | Every character recharges its own energy, and the game gives you 4 character slots. FRESHY, Aragon and Madsin farm Kina and crafting materials on alts for their main |
| Use the free battle pass track | Aragon got five extra Nightmare tickets from its free rewards |
| Spend energy only where it counts | The gear score guide covers which cubes are worth opening |
Madsin's advice on buying Kina with real money early on is that it is poor value: a large purchase covers only a small part of an upgrade. Players who do not pay can instead sell Kina boxes to those who do. He does not do it himself, because it slows your own progression.
Next steps
- Daily and weekly checklist: the free weekly resources not to miss.
- Leveling guide: starting energy early on every character.
- What to do at level 45: reaching 1400 without spending energy.
Explore the encyclopedia
Sources
- TheWhelps: Big changes for global Aion 2, better progression and less P2W
- FRESHY: The fastest and most efficient way to reach 2200 gear score in AION 2
- NoBS Game Guides: How I reached 1400 iLvL on day 1 in Aion 2
- Madsin: My progression plans for global
- Aragon: Hit 1,400+ item level without wasting energy and materials
- Grobs: AION 2 daily and weekly checklist plus perfect week 1 plan
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