Warborne Above Ashes is an ambitious, large-scale MMORPG that combines elements from two major titles: Albion Online and Foxhole. It offers a compelling mix of full-faction warfare, sandbox progression, and persistent world mechanics. If you've ever wanted a game with the open-world PvP and economy of Albion paired with the coordinated, large-scale logistics and warfare of Foxhole, Warborne delivers on that hybrid formula.

With the first month-long playtest kicking off, there's a wave of interest, particularly from the Albion Online community. If you're diving into Warborne for the first time, here's everything you need to know, including general tips, important mechanics, and what to focus on early to give yourself a strong foundation.

What is Warborne Above Ashes?

At its core, Warborne Above Ashes is a hybrid of Albion Online and Foxhole.

From Albion, Warborne borrows:

The Destiny Board-style progression system

Combat mechanics

Zone-based PvP

Resource gathering and crafting

A partial-loot death penalty

From Foxhole, it brings:

Persistent, month-long faction wars

Strategic map control

A greater emphasis on faction coordination

Logistics chains and front-line supply dynamics

While there is solo content and small group gameplay (such as solo dungeons or small skirmishes), much of the game revolves around faction warfare. Expect a lot of time spent fighting alongside others on the frontlines, coordinating with your team, and defending or capturing territory. It's less about the polished solo PvE content you might be used to from Albion, and more about strategic, long-term warfare.

Partial Loot Explained

When you die in Warborne, you drop:

Half of your inventory (materials, items, consumables)

One equipped item at random (could be your weapon, chest armor, boots, etc.)

This system strikes a middle ground between full loot (like Albion) and non-loot MMOs. It's punishing enough to make death matter, but forgiving enough to encourage taking risks and rejoining the fight. Therefore, Warborne Above Ashes Solarbite and items are important for players.

Unique Combat Mechanic: Drifters and Loadouts

One of the standout features of Warborne is the Drifter System.

A Drifter acts like your “class” – each comes with stat bonuses and preferred playstyles.

You can have up to three Drifters (loadouts), each with its own gear and stat allocation.

When you die in combat, you can respawn as a different Drifter with a different loadout, continuing the fight without a full reset.

This means that in a single battle, you can play three different roles if you've prepared loadouts for each. For example, you could start as a frontline tank, respawn as a ranged DPS, and finish off the battle as a support healer.

However, each loadout requires its own gear and stat allocation. You can't reuse the same equipment across Drifters, so it requires careful planning and resource investment.

Early Game Priorities: The Tutorial and Beyond

When you start Warborne, your first goal is to follow the tutorial on the right side of the screen. Even though the tutorial is located in a beginner area, you can leave early and continue completing tutorial quests from your new location. These quests provide early resources, currency, and direction.

Don't skip the tutorial—this is one of the fastest ways to get your first few upgrades and earn valuable items.

As you progress past the tutorial, your next priorities should be:

Unlocking new equipment

Choosing your first Drifters carefully

Leveling up your power through gear and stats

Choosing Drifters Wisely: Avoid Early Mistakes

Each Drifter has weighted stats that scale better with certain attributes:

Strength Drifters get bonuses to HP and crowd control resistance—ideal for tanks.

Agility Drifters scale best with physical DPS—good for bruisers and melee.

Intelligence Drifters are best for magic damage and support roles.

For example, a Drifter like Umbra gains 2.3 Agility per point allocated into Agility, but only 1.0 Intelligence per point. So, pairing her with a fire staff (an Intelligence-based weapon) would be a mistake. You'd get significantly less damage output than if you had matched her with a melee weapon.

It's important to plan your Drifter and weapon combinations carefully, because your unlocks slow down significantly after the first few days. If you waste early unlocks on bad pairings, you'll be stuck with underperforming builds until later in the playtest.

Is Warborne Pay-to-Win?

So far, the monetization system in Warborne resembles Albion's:

There's a premium subscription, purchasable via premium currency.

Solar Bites are the premium currency, and they exist alongside a silver-like currency called Star Tokens.

There are two markets—one that uses Star Tokens, and one that uses Solar Bites.

In the previous playtest, players could earn Solar Bites by doing activities or selling items on a market. As of now, it's unclear if or how you can acquire Solar Bites during this test, especially with no direct way to buy them.

That said, some powerful potions and boosts seem to be available through premium currency, which might raise balance concerns. But until we see how Solar Bites are distributed long-term, it's too early to fully evaluate if the game is pay-to-win or merely pay-for-convenience.

Gathering is More Important Than It Looks

Don't ignore gathering just because the game focuses heavily on PvP.

Resources are essential for crafting gear and potions.

Potions are very strong, and you'll need herbs and ingredients to make them.

You can't trade directly with other players, so you can't rely on others for your supplies.

You'll also need to gather to progress in your Research Center, which lets you upgrade various stats such as:

Mining efficiency

Gathering speed

Resource refinement bonuses

By the end of the first playtest, players who invested in gathering early had a significant edge in resource control and potion availability.

Spend Your Currency

Another common mistake is hoarding currency.

In Warborne, there are multiple currencies used for different systems, such as WAA Solarbite. You'll earn currency for:

Spawning Fire Traps

Opening Solo Rifts

Unlocking new gear and upgrades

Don't sit on it. If you hoard these currencies, you'll miss out on upgrades and progress. Many players in the first playtest ended up with hundreds of unused tokens because they didn't know what they were for or waited too long to spend them.

Long-Term Progression and Planning

Your Research Center is key to long-term progress. It lets you upgrade systems like:

Crafting efficiency

Drifter stat gains

Combat bonuses

Resource yields

Think of it as your tech tree. As the game goes on, these upgrades will define your specialization and contribute to your faction's strength.

A well-upgraded Research Center can be the difference between barely surviving and dominating in large-scale fights or economic competition.

Final Thoughts: What Kind of Game is Warborne?

Warborne Above Ashes isn't your traditional solo-friendly MMO. It's built around community, coordination, and long-term investment. The game demands that you:

Choose your Drifters wisely

Join up with factions and guilds for organized warfare

Invest time in both combat and gathering

Manage and upgrade your Research Center

Adapt to a persistent, ever-evolving world

If you're coming from Albion Online, the familiar systems will give you a leg up—but be prepared for deeper faction dynamics and strategic decisions that feel more like Foxhole. If you prefer solo PvE or tightly instanced dungeons, Warborne might feel underdeveloped in that department (at least for now). But if you enjoy open-world PvP, strategic warfare, and building your character over time within a persistent faction-based conflict, Warborne has a lot of promise.

Would you like a quick starter build recommendation or a visual Drifter/weapon pairing guide?

MMOexp Warborne Above Ashes Team