You’ve been grinding through Esperia, leveling up your resonance, and suddenly you hit a wall. It happens to everyone. But then you see it: the Tower of Unearthed Discoveries. Honestly, it’s one of those features in AFK Journey that people either ignore because they’re overwhelmed or obsess over because the rewards are just too good to pass up. It isn't just another mindless floor-climber. It’s a tactical puzzle box.
The Tower of Unearthed Discoveries is basically a seasonal progression system. It shows up within the Seasonal Legend Trial, specifically tied to the Song of Strife or subsequent seasonal updates like Waves of Intrigue. If you’re looking for those rare resources to push your exclusive weapons or just want to see how your specific faction teams stack up, this is where you live.
What Most Players Get Wrong About the Tower
Most people think you can just "over-level" the Tower of Unearthed Discoveries. You can't. Not really. Because it's gated by seasonal progression, your power is capped by your seasonal resonance level. This makes it a pure test of synergy. If you're trying to brute force a Mauler floor with just a high-level Brutus, you're gonna have a bad time.
The Tower is split. You’ve got the individual faction towers—Lightbearer, Mauler, Wilder, and Graveborn. Each one demands a deep roster. You can't just rely on your "main" team of five. You need depth. You need those niche A-Level heroes you've been ignoring.
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The faction crunch is real
Take the Wilder tower, for example. Everyone loves Cecia for general carry work, but she won't help you here. You need to understand how Eironn’s crowd control interacts with Granny Dahnie’s tanking. If you haven't invested in Hewynn’s ultimate timing, you’ll hit a floor where the burst damage just deletes your backline in four seconds. Literally four seconds. It's brutal.
Navigating the Seasonal Mechanics
The Tower of Unearthed Discoveries isn't static. It breathes with the season. This means the buffs you get—and the debuffs the enemies pack—change. One week you might have a massive haste buff for agility heroes, and the next, your mages are getting silenced every time they breathe.
Lilith Games designed this to rotate. It keeps the meta from getting stale. If you look at the top clears on your server, you'll notice a pattern. The whales aren't always at the top. Sometimes it’s the players who actually read the seasonal manual and adjusted their artifacts. Speaking of artifacts, the Confining Spell is often a trap in these high-floor scenarios. Sometimes you actually need the Ironwall Spell just to survive the first ten seconds of a Vala jump.
Why the rewards actually matter
Let’s talk loot. Why do this?
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- Twilight Essence: This is the big one. You need this for those +10 and +15 weapon upgrades.
- Seasonal Training Manuals: To keep your resonance level moving when you hit the soft cap.
- Soul Sigils: Occasionally, you’ll snag these for harder milestones.
It's a slow burn. You won't clear 50 floors in a day unless you've been sandbagging. Most players find a rhythm of 2-3 floors per faction per day. That’s the sweet spot.
Specific Team Comps That Actually Work
If you're stuck on the Tower of Unearthed Discoveries, stop using the "Auto-Battle" button. It’s lying to you. The AI doesn't know how to position against a Silvina.
In the Mauler tower, Odie is your god. If you don't have Odie at Mythic+ with his exclusive weapon unlocked, you're playing on hard mode. His execute mechanic ignores the massive health pools enemies get at higher floors. Pair him with Antandra to buy time. Koko is also non-negotiable for the damage reduction. Without her, Smokey just gets interrupted and dies.
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For Graveborn floors, it’s all about the Thoran cheese, but with a twist. Since you're limited to one faction, you lose out on some of the cross-faction resonance buffs. You have to rely on Niru or Igor to stall. Igor is annoying to play against, but when he’s on your team in the Tower, he’s a literal lifesaver. He just bounces around his little gravestones while the timer ticks down, often securing a win by outlasting the enemy.
The Strategy Nobody Talks About: Record Replays
There is a small button in the interface. It looks like a little video camera. Use it.
The Tower of Unearthed Discoveries allows you to watch how other players with lower power levels cleared the floor. This is the ultimate cheat code. Often, it’s not about having more stats; it’s about moving your tank one square to the left so the enemy's initial rush targets a summoned unit instead of your healer.
I’ve seen players clear Floor 90 with 20% less power than the "recommended" setting just by mimicking a specific placement. It’s sort of like a chess match where the opponent always makes the same opening move. Once you solve the "opener," the rest of the floor falls into place.
Common Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them
Don't spend all your diamonds pulling for one specific hero just for a tower floor. That’s a trap. The Tower of Unearthed Discoveries is a marathon. If you're stuck today, wait three days. Your seasonal level will go up, you'll get a few more equipment pieces, and suddenly that "Impossible" floor is "Challenging."
Also, check your faction bonuses. Running a full team of five from the same faction gives you massive stat boosts. Sometimes, swapping out a "stronger" hero for a "weaker" one of the correct faction actually makes your whole team perform better because of that percentage-based stat bump.
- Don't ignore the artifacts: Some floors have heavy backline pressure. Use the artifact that protects your highest attack power hero.
- Check the enemy lineup: If there’s a Carolina on the other side, don’t bunch your units up. She will freeze your entire team in one go.
- Timing is everything: Manual ult casting can win a losing fight. Holding Rowan’s energy pot or Smokey’s heal for the exact moment a boss telegraphs a big move is the difference between a win and a wipe.
Actionable Steps for Your Next Session
- Audit your factions: Identify your weakest faction tower. Usually, it's the one where you lack a solid tank. Focus your next few A-level soulstone choices on filling that gap.
- Copy the low-power clears: Spend ten minutes watching replays for the floor you’re stuck on. Look at the positioning, not just the heroes.
- Sync your gear: Ensure your class-specific gear (Marksman, Tank, etc.) is upgraded evenly. A level 10 gap in gear can be the reason your Carry is getting one-shot.
- Wait for the Daily Reset: If you're tilted, stop. The seasonal resonance levels you get from daily AFK rewards are often enough to bridge the gap without the stress.
The Tower of Unearthed Discoveries is ultimately a rewards engine. It’s there to fuel your progression in the rest of the game. Treat it as a weekly checklist rather than a daily stressor, and you'll find your account progressing much faster than those who just spam the main quest.