Every Palmon Survival server runs on its own clock. A new server opens with a short pre-season, then moves through Season 1, Season 2 and the Conquest Season, so two players on different servers can be months apart. Your first priority is to work out which season your server is in; everything below is ordered by it, and skipping ahead to another season's advice is a common mistake.
Before Season 1: set up the account
The opening days are about getting the camp working, not about perfect Palmon. Keep a construction queue and a research queue running at all times, and keep the catcher workshop crafting around the clock, because catchers are what raise your first Palmon to 4 stars. Upgrade the camp and the squad buildings early: manual team selection is locked behind them, and until it opens the game places your squad for you.
Squads start small and grow to seven Palmon, so the first team you build is a stopgap. The Early Water starter on our Best Teams page is built from what these days hand out, with Ninjump as the Palmon to pour everything into.
NinjumpWater BacklinerPour everything in
Season 1: the roster opens up
Season 1 is where the Hatchery pool expands to every Palmon and the pre-season Palmon become catchable on the map. On day 1 you can set a target in the Hatchery, so decide your element before that day arrives. Lucidina joins the Hatchery on day 1, and Regalion can be caught on the map on days 1 to 3, which makes the first week the moment to lock in a Water core.
Not everything is catchable yet. Statchew, Blazeal, Magmolin, Surveilynx and Fingenue cannot be captured in Season 1, and some wild Palmon disappear from the map when a season ends, so catch what you need while it is there.
The Aurora Altar opens in Season 1 with the first Mythics and Mega forms. Glacewing, Thundertooth, Mammolith and Embergeist are the Season 1 Mythics, with Mammolith and Embergeist opening later in the season. Our investment guide covers which one to pull for.
LucidinaWater BacklinerHatchery from day one
RegalionWater FrontlinerCatch in the first days
Season 2: Mega Evolution and a second wave of Mythics
Season 2 adds Mega Evolution and four more Mythics: Zapantis, Hexkit, Rootwarden and Plunderjaw. It also brings Kungpaw, whose passive protects your back row even from the bench, and Oleana, whose passive adds HP to every Palmon you own.
Spookaboo can only be caught during Season 2. Its passive adds 2000 Attack to every Palmon on the account whether it is deployed or not, so missing it is a permanent loss. Catch it before the season ends even if Fire is not your element.
The big decision of Season 2 is whether to stay on Water or move to Electric. Electric beats Water on the element wheel, and Zapantis gives it a Mythic that can stop an enemy back row cold, which is why some Water players reset and switch as Season 2 starts. Others stay on Water and add Mammolith at the front. Both work. Switch only if your Water core is still thin; a finished Water squad is worth more than a half-built Electric one.
Between seasons, Donation Week runs during the off-season. Donate surplus items for coins you can spend in the bazaar.
SpookabooFire BacklinerSeason 2 only: catch it
KungpawWater FrontlinerGuards the back row
Conquest Season: the desert
The Conquest Season moves much of the game to Desert Wonderland. Before it starts, bring your camp and your Field Lab to level 30, since Desert Mastery technology needs both. In the tech tree, push Desert Resistance down the middle and max your element's talent; Desert Resistance is what lets you beat the higher-level Bullymon and Bullybosses that give desert experience. Spend Field Lab points on Desert Territory and element skills first.
For crystal mines, capture only the highest-level mine you can actually beat, then use the upgrade button to raise every lower mine to match it. That costs far less than fighting for each one.
The desert map alternates week by week with Clash of Pallantis, a server-against-server event where each side must take the other's temple while defending its own. Agree inside your guild who attacks and who defends before it opens.
New Palmon arrive too: Sylphira, Gryndarr, Rapheni, Scorphelia and Dialuna as Mythics, Sunplume as a UR you can only catch this season, and Mega forms for Gnashley, Statchew, Revontulet and Abuzzinian. The Conquest Megas build power as a fight goes on, which suits long boss battles.
SunplumeFire BacklinerCatchable this season only
DialunaEarth BacklinerDesert territory
Boss Palmon and boss fights
Boss Palmon such as Flapnir and Oinkohm are camp leaders, not squad members, and an equipped Boss Palmon only buffs squad members of its own element. Upgrade the one that matches your main squad and leave the rest: Bloomstones and Titan Seals are too scarce to split. Ascend a Boss Palmon first to open all its skill slots, then spend Bloomstones on skills. On a Fire squad that means Flapnir.
Oinkohm's skill hits the lowest-HP enemy and deals double damage to Water Palmon, which makes it a strong pick against Water teams in Peak Palosseum. Some boss skills slow your Palmon's attack speed, and a slower attack means a slower Rage bar, so bring your fastest Rage casters to those fights.
Peak Palosseum and Valor Trials
Peak Palosseum opens early on Monday (1 a.m. server time) and closes at the Sunday reset, and everyone starts the week on 1,000 points. Climbing is about picking fights: check each opponent's power and squad before attacking, take the ones you can beat, and use refreshes when the list is bad. The top of every bracket is dominated by pure-element squads, with Thundertooth hunting enemy carries and Zapantis paralyzing back rows.
In Valor Trials, auto-battle through every open stage you can. When a stage beats you, change the formation before changing the team: moving a Palmon costs nothing, while a replacement costs weeks of upgrades. Rewards reset with major updates, so push as far as you can before one lands.
ThundertoothElectric BacklinerHunts enemy carries
ZapantisElectric FrontlinerParalyzes back rows