Adjacency Tactics: When to Cluster and When to Spread

Adjacency is one of the most important spatial relationships on a hex battlefield.

Standing beside an ally may enable support, protection, or a coordinated attack. But a tight cluster can also become vulnerable to effects that punish several nearby units or to movement that blocks the entire formation.

The correct formation depends on what you gain from adjacency and what the opponent can punish.

🖼️ IMAGE SPACE — Cluster versus spread

Direction: Split-screen board diagram. Left: three allied Spils in a compact triangle with overlapping support. Right: the same units spread across routes. Add a visible enemy area effect or movement threat to explain the tradeoff.

Recommended size: 1600 × 900 px.

Cluster When the Support Is Immediate

Group units when adjacency creates value now, not only potential value later.

Good reasons to cluster include:

Protecting a key attacker before combat
Combining abilities that affect nearby allies
Building a wall around a Hero or Portal
Preparing a coordinated push through one route

If the formation does not change the current turn, spreading may preserve more flexibility.

Spread When the Opponent Has Efficient Punishment

Avoid tight formations when the opponent can affect several nearby units with one card or action.

Also spread when:

One displaced unit would block the others
Multiple units need the same escape hex
You must defend two separate objectives
The opponent can bypass the front of the formation

Spreading reduces combined power but increases resilience.

Use the Triangle Formation

Three units placed so that each supports at least one other can create a flexible triangle.

A triangle is often stronger than a straight line because:

It controls more directions
One unit can move without breaking all support
The formation is less vulnerable to being blocked from one side
The rear unit can replace a front unit

Do not make the triangle so compact that one effect reaches every unit.

Avoid the Single Exit Problem

A cluster near terrain, a Portal, or the battlefield edge may have only one safe exit.

The opponent can threaten that hex and trap several units at once.

Before clustering, check:

How many units can leave next turn?
Do they compete for the same destination?
Can the opponent occupy the exit?
Can the Hero move through the formation?

A formation that cannot change shape is easy to predict.

Break Your Own Formation at the Right Time

Adjacency is a tool, not a permanent rule.

Once the support effect has created value, units may need to separate.

For example:

One unit stays to protect the Portal.
One moves toward the opposing Hero.
One controls the center.

Holding the cluster for too long allows the opponent to attack elsewhere.

Attack the Edge of Enemy Clusters

When facing a compact enemy formation, do not always attack the strongest central unit.

Removing or moving an outer unit may:

Break an adjacency bonus
Open a route around the formation
Force the center unit to move
Isolate the Hero or Portal

The structure of the formation may be more important than the Power of any one card.

Formation Checklist

Before ending your turn, ask:

Which adjacent relationship is producing real value?
Can one enemy effect reach multiple important units?
Does every unit have a useful next move?
Is one objective undefended because the formation is too compact?
Can I break the opponent’s formation by attacking its edge?

Strong formations are not simply close together.

They are close enough to support each other and far enough apart to remain flexible.