Guide
Aether and energy in Cromon Quest
Aether is the main energy of Cromon Quest, the creature-collection RPG on Cronos. Every Keeper starts with a cap of 10 Aether that refills one point every 60 minutes, and spends it on Arena attacks (one point each) and on expeditions, which cost from 0 Aether for a Common run to 3 for a Legendary one. Two camp buildings change those numbers: the Aether Conduit raises the cap up to 20, the Aether Reactor cuts the refill down to 35 minutes. Four modes keep their own pool instead of drawing on Aether: the Shadow Run maze, World Boss raids, The Pit and the weekly maze. None of these pools can be bought with CRO; they refill with time, and the buildings that speed them up are paid in Shards and CroCoin earned by playing.
What is Aether, exactly?
A counter on your account, not on a Cromon, that refills by itself and caps at a number your camp decides. It exists so that the two modes where a Keeper fights or sends other Keepers' rivals, the Arena and Expeditions, are paced by time rather than by a wallet. With the base cap of 10 and one point every 60 minutes, a Keeper who checks in twice a day never wastes regen and gets 24 points a day to spend.
What does each action cost?
| Action | Aether | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Arena attack | 1 | Defending costs nothing: only the attacker spends |
| Common expedition | 0 | Free: the entry loop never costs Aether |
| Uncommon expedition | 1 | Rarer offers pay more and cost more |
| Rare expedition | 2 | Rarer offers pay more and cost more |
| Epic expedition | 2 | Rarer offers pay more and cost more |
| Legendary expedition | 3 | The richest haul, and the one to save for |
The practical rule: a Common expedition is always worth sending because it is free, and Aether should go where a point buys the most. Early on that is the Arena, where a win moves your rating; later it is the Legendary expedition you finally rolled.
Which buildings raise Aether, and what do they cost?
Two, both in the camp, both paid in the in-game currencies rather than in CRO:
- Aether Conduit: +1 to the cap per level, from 10 at level 0 to 20 at level 10. Level 1 costs 1,000 Shards and no CroCoin; the top level is the single most expensive upgrade in the game, a multi-month goal by design.
- Aether Reactor: a faster refill per level, from one point every 60 minutes down to one every 35 at level 5. Level 1 also costs 1,000 Shards, so the two share the same first-week gate.
Which first? The Reactor. A higher cap only helps a Keeper who lets the bar sit full; a faster refill helps every Keeper, every day. Take the Conduit once you find yourself logging in with a full bar and points to spare.
Which modes use their own energy instead?
Four, and they never touch your Aether:
- Shadow Run: maze energy, 500 at the cap, 40 back every hour, and a daily reset that hands you 300 to start the day's run with.
- World Boss: 3 raid attacks per boss, one back every 6 hours, a full bar the moment you join. A Cromon that just raided fights tired for a while, so the pool rewards a deep roster more than a single star.
- The Pit: 10 energy, one point back every 1 hour, one point per wave attempted, win or lose. A full bar refills in 10 hours, so a daily check-in wastes little.
- Weekly Shadow Run: the same maze energy as the daily, spent over seven days on one shared map.
The idle modes have no pool at all. The Deeps dig around the clock and expeditions return on their own, which is why a Keeper out of every energy still has something to collect.
Can I buy Aether?
Not with CRO. The shop sells Aether potions for CroCoin, the in-game currency that Uncommon and higher expeditions pay out, and that is the only shortcut. It is a deliberate line: a fight between Cinderwing and Hydrake should be decided by their stats and the type chart, not by who topped up the most that morning. Time refills Aether for everyone at the same rate; the buildings are where a Keeper's investment shows.
Your first Aether bar is already full
Free to start: connect your wallet, receive three starter Cromons and spend your first point in the Arena.