Gems of War generally does a good job of onboarding new players and explaining the game. However one feature that I think could be introduced earlier is the Badges and Medals banner – if you’ve wondered what that row of three diamonds at the top of the screen is, that’s it!
What Are Tokens, Badges and Medals?
Badges and Medals provide global buffs to all your troops in all battles. The buffs aren’t huge, but together can make a big difference. That’s especially true if you can get a Badge/Medal of Nysha which buffs up Magic.
Tokens have no intrinsic value in themselves and cannot be used directly. Instead, you need to collect three tokens of the same type to level them up into a badge which you can equip. If you manage to get three identical badges then you can level them up into a medal which gives a stronger buff. So to get a Medal you need nine Tokens. More powerful tokens are rarer, so good luck getting that Mythic Medal of Nysha!
Here’s a list of the main badges and medals along with their effects:
| Name | Rarity | Badge | Medal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gaard | Common | +2 Armour | +8 Armour |
| Yasmine | Rare | +2 Life | +8 Life |
| Orpheus | Ultra-Rare | 2.5% chance Cleanse at turn start | 10% chance Cleanse at turn start |
| Aranaea | Epic | +1 Attack | +4 Attack |
| Anu | Legendary | +5% starting Mana | +20% starting Mana |
| Nysha | Mythic | +1 Magic | +4 Magic |
There is also a Badge/Medal of Seasons which gives +1 Attack, Life and Armour. Tokens of Seasons are special Tokens that can only be earned from special in-game events. Finally, there are Event-specific Tokens, Badges and medals that can be earned during specific in-game world events and are converted to Tokens/Badges/Medals of Seasons when the event ends.