Might & Magic: Duel of Champions - Forgotten Wars Achievement Guide & Road Map

Might & Magic: Duel of Champions - Forgotten Wars
Might & Magic: Duel of Champions - Forgotten Wars Achievement Guide

Overview:
- Estimated achievement difficulty: 1/10 if boosting, 10/10 without boosting due to "A Worthy Legend."
- Offline: 0/15 [0/400]
- Online: 15/15 [400/400 ]
- Approximate amount of time to 400: 60-80 hours using boosting, 500+ without boosting.
- Minimum number of playthroughs needed: 0
- Missable achievements: None
- Does difficulty affect achievements?: No difficulty.
- Unobtainable/glitched achievements: None
- Extra equipment needed?: Extra patience.

Introduction:
Might & Magic: Duel of Champions - Forgotten Wars is a strategy card game similar to the Magic the Gathering series. There is a tutorial, a single player campaign, and three types of multiplayer (pass the controller, ranked and friendly). Almost all of the achievements require ranked multiplayer to earn, and 100% of them require you to be connected to both Xbox Live and Ubisoft's servers. All of the achievements can be easily obtained with a boosting partner.

Abbreviated Walkthrough:
First thing is to run through the tutorial which teaches you how to play the game. It is pretty basic in concept, especially if you have played any of the Magic games. At the end of the tutorial you should unlock two achievements, "Took the Boot" and "The Stable Hand." You will be placed in Emilio's Deal (the in-game card store) and should purchase the two cards you have access to, and then it is time to grind. Play Hot Seat matches or Campaign missions until you have unlocked all the cards. At this point, move to ranked multiplayer and win three ranked matches in a row. You start at the Recruit rank which limits you to only playing others at the same rank. Once you have promoted to Squire, you can no longer play Recruits, so it may take three profiles to get both you and a partner up to the Squire rank. It takes 12 wins in a row to move from Recruit to Squire. At that point you can then play any rank except Recruit, although you are more likely to match up with someone who is close to you in overall level (not rank). Work on your wins, kills, and other deck related achievements as you rank up to unlock "A Worthy Legend."

The fastest approach to the ranked win achievements is to hold to pass (choose "No, don't ask me again" the first time) and then surrender as soon as the resources counter shows five. Surrendering before the end of turn four results in the game not counting. This will grind through the wins as quickly as possible.

Depending on the gold and XP you are getting, you may need to play some Hot Seat matches to finish unlocking cards and getting to level 35, but you can do them AFK for the most part.

Conclusion:
Overall, if you love the game and want to play it for fun, it is well done and has some incredibly diverse game play. If you are looking to get the quick and easy gamerscore...well, it isn't quick, but it is an easy 400 if you have a dedicated and patient boosting partner. If you have two Xbox 360s and two gold accounts, it can also be double boxed once you get past Recruit rank.

[XBA would like to thank Creech for this RoadMap]

The Stable Hand

20
Reach Level 2
This will unlock at the end of the tutorial.
The Scout

20
Reach Level 10
All game modes contribute to your experience, even when you lose. The primary factor that impacts how much experience you earn is time played. You can play Hot Seat multiplayer games with one controller controlling both sides of the board if you want to rank up simply by killing the second hero. Start the game up and walk away for half an hour or so, then win by killing the other player. The maximum experience you can get in one match is 6,250 XP, which takes just about 25 minutes to accrue.
The Field Marshal

20
Reach Level 35
All game modes contribute to your experience, even when you lose. The primary factor that impacts how much experience you earn is time played. You can play Hot Seat multiplayer games with one controller controlling both sides of the board if you want to rank up simply by killing the second hero. Start the game up and walk away for half an hour or so, then win by killing the other player. The maximum experience you can get in one match is 6,250 XP, which takes just about 25 minutes to accrue.
Crushing Victory

20
Over kill your opponent by at least 5 damage in a ranked duel
This achievement can only be unlocked in a ranked match.

You will need to purchase a creature that can do at least six damage to unlock this achievement, or be able to modify the creature's damage via spell or fortune cards. The general concept is to do enough damage to your opponent's hero to reduce him to low health, and then attack with your creature that does enough damage to reduce the hero to -5. You cannot stack multiple attacks to increase the overkill because as soon as the hero is at zero or below the game ends.

One approach with the Inferno deck is to use the Ravager which deals 6 damage. Another approach is with the Stronghold deck using Blood Caller which is a unique creature card that gets it's attack strength and retaliation values from the remaining health of two of your other creatures on the battlefield. There are multiple other approaches as well; simply pay attention to the cards you are able to purchase from Emilio's Deal and use whichever card you unlock.
A Worthy Legend

40
Reach the Champion class
This achievement can only be unlocked in a ranked match.

The classes are independent of your XP rank and influence who you can connect to in ranked matchmaking. If you are a Recruit, you can only play other Recruits. All other classes can play any of the other classes, but tend to match with players close in level when available. There also seems to be a mechanism in the matchmaking that tries to prevent players from matching with the same person over and over again by delaying the matchmaking to look for other players, but patience overcomes this. The various classes are below:
- Recruit
- Squire
- Knight
- Commander
- Lord Commander
- Champion I
- Presumably there is a Champion II (or more) but nobody has unlocked it and it is not needed for any achievement.
The class leveling is similar to ELO or TrueSkill, but since you can't go down in class it is possible to boost using two gold accounts once they are both at Squire class. Have one player win every match until they promote a class, and then swap who is winning. As with many ranked multiplayer achievements in other titles, you may have to find a time that few people are online to ensure you match up with your partner.

It is possible to earn legitimately, but note that if you win against an opponent who is more than one rank lower than you, it will not provide you any movement toward ranking up to the next level. For example, if a Lord Commander wins a duel against a Squire or Knight it will not progress the Lord Commander any toward ranking up to Champion. You only progress upward if you beat someone one rank below you or higher. A loss against any lower rank still contributes to losing progress, however, which can make playing against random people very frustrating if you are trying to level up. The more you play and rank up, the less likely it is you will be matched against an opponent who can contribute to you ranking up, because most players are low in rank. In addition, losses move you down in progress far more than a win moves you up, so it is important to maintain a winning streak if you are trying to rank up. It is this mechanism that earns this title a 10/10 for difficulty.
A Matter of Time

20
Destroy 250 creatures
This achievement can only be unlocked in a ranked match.

Creatures are the majority of the cards placed on the board by your opponent during a game. A fast approach is to have your partner put down creatures but not attack with them, while you use your creatures and spells to wipe out essentially their entire hand. Depending upon the decks used, this can be completed in 5-10 games.
The Collector

40
Own a copy of every card from the first Base Set
At the end of the tutorial you get placed in the in-game store to purchase cards, referred to as Emilio's Deal. You can re-enter this later from the main menu by pressing and after each match you will automatically open the store as well. You will need to purchase ALL of the cards from the base set, so don't worry about picking and choosing.

The cards display five at a time, and after a victory you can refresh the list of available cards without paying any in-game gold. The two left cards are from the first Base Set, while the other three are premium sets you would have to pay via micro-transaction to access. You do not need to purchase any DLC or micro-transactions for this achievement. Also, if you spin for new cards when you have less than 1500 gold, the cards that show up are often discounted up to 80%, making it faster to earn this achievement. (Thanks to kovenant for the tip!)

The fastest method is to play a multiplayer Hot Seat game where you use one controller to play both sides of the game. Start the game, go to bed, coming back to 100,000+ gold as long as the servers don't go down. For an eight hour match, you should earn roughly 120,000 gold.

The achievement will unlock when you purchase card #254, presuming you don't purchase any DLC. Progress is displayed in the upper right corner of any menu screen where it shows ###/672, where ### is the number of cards you currently have, and 672 is the number of total cards available including the DLC sets.
Took the Boot

20
Complete the Tutorial
This is mandatory upon starting the game and will teach you the basics. It also gives you enough experience to rank up to level two (unlocking "The Stable Hand") and about 30,000 gold to start purchasing cards.
Turkey

20
Win 3 Ranked duels in a row
This achievement can only be unlocked in a ranked match.

The easiest way to do this is find a partner and have them let you win three in a row, and then return the favor. See "A Worthy Legend" for notes on the ranked multiplayer system. Your online rank is displayed directly under your gamertag on the main menu as well as on the profile screen. This is independent of your XP and level, which displays on the next row down.
Friends or Foes?

40
Win 30 Practice duels against your Friends
In the multiplayer menu, the second choice is to compete against someone on your friend's list. You will need to win 30 duels against a friend to unlock this achievement. While the games are unranked, you do still earn gold and experience in the games. Other than the achievements for ranking up and collecting all cards, progress toward achievements cannot be made during these practice duels.

**Note**
As of release, this currently also unlocks if you win 30 ranked duels against someone on your friend's list. Clearly this is an unintended bug and may be patched in the future.
Neophyte

20
Win 50 Ranked duels
This achievement can only be unlocked in a ranked match.

The easiest way to do this is find a partner and swap wins. See "A Worthy Legend" for notes on the ranked multiplayer system. Your online rank is displayed directly under your gamertag on the main menu as well as on the profile screen. This is independent of your XP and level, which displays on the next row down.

You can see your progress from the main menu by choosing the Profile option.
Veteran

40
Win 250 Ranked duels
This achievement can only be unlocked in a ranked match.

The easiest way to do this is find a partner and swap wins. See "A Worthy Legend" for notes on the ranked multiplayer system. Your online rank is displayed directly under your gamertag on the main menu as well as on the profile screen. This is independent of your XP and level, which displays on the next row down.

You can see your progress from the main menu by choosing the Profile option.
Mastering Diversity

40
Win 10 ranked duels using a deck with no more than 1 copy of any card
This achievement can only be unlocked in a ranked match.

You will need to create a custom deck where you have no repeat cards. This will not be possible until after you have played 50-100 games so that you have earned enough money to purchase more cards. You will need to have 59 different card types that can be in a deck simultaneously. There are neutral cards that can be in any deck, and themed cards that can only be in a deck where the hero card matches the theme on that particular card.

Once you have the necessary deck created, you will need to win ten ranked matches. Obviously, this will be much easier with a boosting partner as they can quit after the fourth turn without penalty, or simply let you kill their hero without defending.

Special Note: There are foil editions of some cards that count as the same card. When creating your deck, make sure that you don't have any foils or it can create a frustrating experience. The spell card Cyclone is an example of this.
Not the End of the World

20
Cast Armageddon and have at least 1 surviving creature left on your side in a ranked duel
This achievement can only be unlocked in a ranked match.

Armageddon is a spell card that must be purchased in Emilio's Deal and then placed in an Inferno-themed deck prior to use. Once you have Armageddon in your deck, you then also need a creature that is either immune to magic (such as Moonsilk Spider) or has sufficient health to withstand the 10 damage from Armageddon. There are also a variety of ways to avoid being hit by the effects of Armageddon, such as playing a spell or fortune card that blocks magical damage.

Note that this achievement unlocks at the end of the match, not when Armageddon is played.
Unrelenting Horde

20
Win 10 ranked duels playing no spells or fortunes
This achievement can only be unlocked in a ranked match.

This does not have to be done with all ten wins in a row. If you have a boosting partner, they can resign after four turns without either of you playing a card and it will count towards this.

If you are playing a random person, you will need to beat them without the use of either spells or fortune cards. In this case, I would suggest making a custom deck with a hero, the eight mandatory event cards and 50 creatures. This will help you avoid accidentally playing a spell or fortune card and also avoid filling your hand with cards you can't use.