Beginner Guide
Welcome to LLM Auto Chess — a TFT-style auto battler where every unit is a real large language model. Build a team of LLMs, activate synergies, and outlast 7 AI opponents!
What is LLM Auto Chess?
LLM Auto Chess is a single-player auto chess game that runs entirely in your browser. Instead of fantasy heroes, your units are real LLMs like GPT-5.4, Claude Opus 4.6, Gemini 3 Flash, and more. Each unit's stats are derived from actual benchmarks, API pricing, and context window sizes.
The Game Loop
Every round follows the same cycle:
- Planning Phase — Buy units from the shop, place them on your board, and manage your economy.
- Battle Phase — Your team automatically fights against an opponent. You cannot control units during battle.
- Round Result — See whether you won or lost. Losers take HP damage.
- Repeat — Continue until only one player remains or you are eliminated.
Round Types
- Rounds 1-3: PvE creep rounds. These are easy fights against weak enemies. Great for building up your economy. You get +2 bonus gold for winning.
- Rounds 5, 10, 15, 20, 25: Benchmark rounds (PvE). Fight themed waves of enemies and earn an item reward on victory.
- All other rounds: PvP against a random AI opponent.
Buying and Placing Units
During the Planning phase, a shop at the bottom of the screen shows 5 random units you can buy. Each unit has a gold cost (1 to 5).
- Click a unit in the shop to buy it. It goes to your bench (8 slots below the board).
- Drag a unit from the bench onto the board (rows 4-7 are yours) to place it.
- Drag a unit off the board back to the bench to remove it.
- Your level determines how many units you can field at once (e.g., level 5 = 5 units on board).
Star Upgrades
Collecting copies of the same unit triggers automatic upgrades:
- 3 copies of a 1-star unit merge into a 2-star version (x1.8 stats).
- 3 copies of a 2-star unit merge into a 3-star version (x3.2 stats).
- This means 9 total copies of a base unit will eventually make a 3-star powerhouse.
Merges happen automatically whenever you have 3 copies at the same star level.
Economy Basics
Gold management wins games. Here are the key concepts:
| Concept | Details |
|---|---|
| Base Income | You earn 5 gold per round. |
| Interest | Earn 1 bonus gold for every 10 gold saved, up to +5 gold at 50+ gold. |
| Reroll | Spend 2 gold to refresh the shop with new units. |
| Buy XP | Spend 4 gold for 4 XP toward your next level. |
| Streak Bonus | Win or lose multiple rounds in a row for bonus gold (up to +3). |
Economy Rule of Thumb
Try to save up to 50 gold early in the game to earn maximum interest (+5g per round). Only spend below 50 when you need to power up urgently or are about to lose.
Synergies
Each unit has a Faction (e.g., Google, OpenAI, Anthropic) and a Role (Tank, DPS, Assassin, Support, Mage). Placing multiple units of the same faction or role on the board activates synergy bonuses.
For example:
- 2 Google units: +15% ATK Speed for all your units
- 2 Tank units: +20% HP and +10 Armor for all Tanks
- 4 OpenAI units: +30% ATK for all your units
Check the Synergies page for all bonuses. The synergy panel on the left side of the screen shows your active bonuses.
Tips for Your First Game
- Buy aggressively in rounds 1-3. Creep rounds are easy, so focus on collecting units and finding pairs.
- Start saving for interest after round 4. Try to stay above 10, 20, or 30 gold thresholds.
- Build around 2 synergies. Pick a faction and a role to focus on, rather than spreading thin.
- Position matters. Put Tanks in front (row 4-5) and ranged units (Mages, Supports) in the back (row 6-7).
- Check the shop odds. Higher-cost units only appear at higher levels. Don't waste rerolls looking for 4-cost units at level 4.
- Grab item rewards. Benchmark rounds (5, 10, 15, 20, 25) offer items that significantly boost your units.
- Star upgrades are powerful. A 2-star cheap unit often outperforms a 1-star expensive one.
Next Steps
- Battle Mechanics — Learn how combat works in detail
- Economy Guide — Deep dive into gold, leveling, and shop odds
- Items Guide — All items and who to give them to
- Synergies — Complete faction and role bonus tables
- AI Opponents — Know your enemies