Clash of Critters Beginner Progression Guide 1.0

The core loop and the author

The author, 一瓶矿泉水oO (Xiaoshui), creates Clash of Critters guides under the same name across social platforms. The core loop is to play marbles, earn candy and event items, and turn those resources into Tatari progression.

Permanent modes：Story stages, Badge Dojo, Boss Challenge, and Zobo Horde.

Team events：They rotate every three days. A regular teammate is recommended. Usually the final day forms teams for the next event; Camp Treasure Hunt teams up on the same day.

Gold Rush：Island and Grand Gold Rush are the main auto-battle PVP modes. Grand League Gold Rush follows every three Island rounds.

Common terms

These terms recur in guides, team discussions, and event chat.

Starter trio：Fire Lizard, Cat Ice, and Firefruit Frog.

T3：A Tatari’s third form/stage, shown as red quality.

Generalist：A pick that works in almost every mode.

D1 / D2 / D3 / D4：Difficulty levels 1–4 in the updated Zobo Horde.

All-out assault：A Gold Rush rally: repeated personal attacks plus a team attack, spending substantial energy for a stronger offensive buff.

Boss / Dojo / Horde / Push：Short for Boss Challenge, Badge Dojo, Zobo Horde, and story-stage pushing.

Energy / Rainbow energy：Attack consumables for Island and Grand Gold Rush, respectively.

How the main items work

Separate permanent progression resources from event consumables and temporary items that expire.

Candy：Level-up experience earned from marbles and events.

Marbles：The main game item, used to obtain event consumables.

Wish boxes：Essential selectable boxes earned from events or purchases.

Shining fruit：Universal food worth +15 satiety, with a 0.4% chance to make a Tatari shiny.

Cookies：Universal food worth +1 satiety. It can be processed into lunch boxes; the author recommends crafting them daily.

Regular energy：Attack energy for Island Gold Rush; it resets each cycle.

Rainbow energy：Attack energy for Grand Gold Rush. It can be accumulated beforehand and resets when the event ends.

Double XP：When the icon appears, save marbles and use them during the short double-candy window.

T2 priorities by element

This order mainly supports Dojo progress; you do not need exactly 25 T2 units before starting T3. Prioritize the starter trio and Star Egg Rabbit. Review the T2/T3 entries in the TataDex Tatari database alongside this editorial guidance.

Water

Prioritize the first two：Upgrade the first two first; the remaining three prepare for T3.

Fire

Fire Lizard first：If resources are tight, choose Matchstick or Tadpole. Tadpole leans Horde, Fox leans stages, and Lobster leans Boss. Be cautious with Tadpole T3.

Grass

Mantis first：For Horde and Boss, build Seed for damage and Panda for support. Keep Sunflower and Mushroom at T2 first.

Rock

Rock Lizard and Monkey first：If boxes are scarce, Turtle can help open Dojo. Many Rock units are late-game; the new Tatari was untested, so keep a slot for support unit Crispy Noodles.

Electric

Star Egg Rabbit first：Electric Horse needs T3. Electric Lion is an important low-box frontline, while Electric Deer is the preferred damage option.

Water T3 strength and roles

For free-to-play accounts, the starter trio still offers the best value. Main picks cover multiple modes; niche picks are better left to natural progression.

Core jobs

Support：Two support picks cover Story, Boss, Dojo, and Horde; one also works in Gold Rush.

Damage：Both damage picks cover Story, Boss, and Dojo; one also covers Horde and Gold Rush.

Frontline：The main frontline covers all modes; the third leans Horde, with other modes unproven.

Niche and natural growth

Be conservative with boxes：A T2 option can work in Horde D2 but has better alternatives. The Drunkard-boss counter and Dojo unit should grow naturally.

Grass T3 strength and roles

Grass has broad coverage, but niche picks and Owl call for conservative box investment.

Core jobs

Frontline：The core frontline covers Story, Boss, Dojo, Horde, and Gold Rush.

Damage：The main damage picks cover several modes; Poison Flower is a rising Horde pick.

Support：Support covers Story, Boss, Dojo, and Horde. Owl is not complete until T4.

Niche and natural growth

Prefer natural growth：Some frontliners are sufficient at T2 for Story and are not worth boxes; other niche picks are low priority.

Fire T3 strength and roles

Fire combines reliable generalists, functional support, and version-risk picks.

Core jobs

Support：One unit is labeled damage but functions more as support across Story, Boss, Dojo, and Horde.

Damage：Three main damage picks cover different combinations of the five major modes.

Frontline：The core frontline works across all modes; one carries a possible nerf risk next season.

Niche and natural growth

Wait for balance：Some picks await a post-nerf comeback or have narrow Boss/Horde jobs; an early Story/Dojo frontline can stay at T2.

Electric T3 strength and roles

Electric has all-mode support, damage, and frontline picks, plus narrow Boss and damage-fill options.

Core jobs

Support：The core support covers all modes; the other covers Story, Boss, Dojo, and Horde.

Damage：The main damage options cover Story, Boss, Dojo, Horde, and Gold Rush.

Frontline：The core frontline covers all major modes.

Niche and natural growth

Natural growth：Lucky Cat will not make you rich. Other niche slots include early-Story damage, a Boss attachment, and a possible S2 comeback.

Rock T3 strength and roles

Rock includes a former generalist but trends late-game and mode-specific. Check the team gap before investing.

Core jobs

Damage：Damage picks cover different combinations of Story, Boss, Dojo, Horde, and Gold Rush; one was once a generalist.

Frontline：Two core frontliners cover Story, Boss, Dojo, and Gold Rush.

Support：Some support picks are mainly used for Boss.

Niche and natural growth

Use for specific jobs：Some units appear only in Boss or occasional Dojo play; Horde experiments were limited and the new Tatari remained unproven.

A practical stage-pushing formula

Build the skeleton first, then swap around counters and stage mechanics. Rarity is not the only answer—blue cards can perform reliable jobs.

1 · Place the core：Place the early three-core or late six-core units first, then add frontline and damage around counters.

2 · Swap flexibly：Mushroom can sometimes be replaced by Bat, for example against Bucket and Fish monsters.

3 · Hold the lanes：Bonefish + Cat Ice can usually hold one lane. Use Mantis + Sunflower, or a T3 Snake/Monkey plus a frontline, for the other.

4 · Do not ignore blue cards：Chicken, Capybara, Squirrel, and Electric Doodle Dog can all be useful.

Early three-core formation：The early formation from the revised PDF.

Late six-core formation：The late formation from the revised PDF.

TataDex mini program

A free companion for players: look up data, read guides, build teams, and manage card exchanges in one place.

Tatari index：Full action sets and skill video animations.

Guides and teams：Player guides and stage formations that make clear strategies easier to find.

Practical tools：Card exchange, team builder, treasure calculator, redeem codes, and more.

Original features：Tatari eggs, official-Tatari pairing, and the fusion of new wild Tataris.

一瓶矿泉水oO

一瓶矿泉水oO uses the same name across platforms.