How to Get Hero XP Fast in Kingshot: Best F2P Farming Methods

The fastest way to get Hero XP in Kingshot is not one repeatable farm. It is a routine: collect Conquest income, clear every Intel Mission cycle, spend stamina on beasts and terrors, claim daily and event rewards, then concentrate the XP on five Drill Camp instructors. Once Drill Camp unlocks at Town Center 13, most of your roster should stop consuming Hero XP directly.

Quick answer: Before Town Center 13, level only the heroes needed for your strongest march and Conquest progress. After Drill Camp unlocks, invest Hero XP in five instructors and place other heroes into Drill Slots, where they copy the lowest instructor's level. Intel Missions, beasts, terrors, Conquest income and limited events form the best F2P loop. Do not spread XP evenly across every hero.

Where Hero XP is used

Hero XP raises a hero's level, which improves base power and troop capacity. It does not raise hero stars, expedition skills, Conquest skills or hero gear. Those systems use different materials, so do not mistake a shortage of shards or manuals for a Hero XP problem.

Kingshot Quinn hero upgrade screen with Hero XP balance and level cost

Kingshot official in-game screen showing the Hero XP balance and the cost of the next level.

Resource	What it improves	Common confusion
Hero XP	Hero level and troop capacity	Does not increase star level
Hero shards	Ascension/star progress	Not a substitute for XP
Expedition Skill Manuals	Expedition combat skills	Separate from Conquest skills
Conquest Skill Tomes	Conquest-only skills	Do not improve normal expedition skills

Best F2P Hero XP sources, ranked

Source	Cost or limit	Why it matters	Priority
Conquest income and stages	Time and progression	Steady XP while pushing a mode that also unlocks rewards	Very high
Intel Missions	Refresh cycles; some stamina use	Efficient bundle of hero resources, shards and account progress	Very high
Beasts and terrors	Governor stamina and march time	Repeatable when the map is active; useful between Intel cycles	High
Daily missions and events	Daily or event limits	Good value because XP arrives with other progression rewards	High
Alliance and activity rewards	Participation	Small amounts add up without direct spending	Medium
Gem shop or paid packs	Gems or money	Fast but usually worse than fixing Drill Camp allocation	Situational

The daily Hero XP farming loop

Collect Conquest income first. Spend enough time progressing stages so the passive rate does not remain stuck below your account's power.
Clear Intel Missions each refresh. Prioritize missions with hero resources, then finish the remaining useful missions before the next cycle.
Use stamina deliberately. Hunt beasts or join terror rallies when your marches are free. Do not let stamina sit at cap.
Finish daily objectives. Hero XP hidden inside chests and milestone rewards is easy to miss when players focus only on direct drops.
Check the event calendar. Save speedups or other resources if an upcoming event awards Hero XP alongside useful ranking or milestone rewards.
Level instructors last. After collecting the day's XP, bring the lowest Drill Instructor up first so every hero in a Drill Slot gains the level.

Kingshot backpack resources tab with EXP items and basic resources

Kingshot official in-game screen showing EXP items stored with account resources.

How Drill Camp saves most of your Hero XP

Drill Camp unlocks at Town Center 13. Five heroes become Drill Instructors, and heroes placed in Drill Slots copy the level of the lowest instructor. If four instructors are level 60 and one is level 57, every Drill Slot hero is treated as level 57.

This creates a simple rule: spend Hero XP only on the five instructors. Reset heroes that will live in Drill Slots, recover their XP, and put that XP into the instructor who is falling behind. Keep a balanced instructor floor instead of pushing one favorite far above the other four.

Kingshot hero roster with unlocked and locked heroes

Kingshot official in-game roster showing why early accounts should focus XP on a small core.

Which five heroes should be Drill Instructors?

Choose heroes you expect to use outside Drill Slots for a long time. A practical five normally includes your main three-hero expedition march plus two strong Arena or secondary-march heroes. Avoid using a temporary low-rarity hero only because it is currently a few levels ahead; the reset feature exists so you can pivot when stronger generations arrive.

Keep all five within one level whenever possible.
Prioritize heroes that remain in active marches and cannot stay in a Drill Slot.
Do not confuse hero level with star or skill investment; Drill Camp copies level only.
When replacing an instructor, reset and reallocate XP instead of accepting a lower camp floor.

When buying Hero XP is worth it

Buying raw Hero XP is rarely the first fix for a F2P or low-spend account. Check whether XP is trapped in heroes that should be reset, whether an instructor is unnecessarily overleveled, and whether Intel or Conquest income is being missed. A paid XP offer makes more sense only when it closes an immediate level breakpoint for all Drill Slot heroes or comes inside a pack you already value for other scarce materials.

Kingshot Gem Shop with Hero EXP and other resource items

Kingshot official in-game shop showing Hero EXP as one of several Gem purchases.

Hero XP mistakes that slow the account

Leveling every unlocked hero manually before Drill Camp.
Leaving one instructor several levels behind the other four.
Buying XP while recoverable XP is still invested in bench heroes.
Letting stamina and Intel refreshes expire.
Stopping Conquest progress and losing higher passive income.
Using Hero XP logic to decide where to spend skill manuals or shards.

Early-game and mid-game XP priorities

Account stage	Main XP target	What to avoid
Before Drill Camp	One reliable three-hero march, then two likely future instructors	Keeping every unlocked hero at the same level
Just after TC13	Five balanced instructors	Leaving invested XP on heroes moved into Drill Slots
Growing roster	Raise the lowest instructor whenever possible	Overleveling one damage hero while the camp floor stalls
New hero generation	Reset and replace instructors only when the new hero has a long-term role	Changing instructors for every new unlock

Hero XP is most valuable when one level benefits several marches through Drill Camp. A small XP item that raises the lowest instructor can improve every slotted hero; the same item spent on a bench hero improves only that hero.

How to spend stamina for more XP value

Do not judge a hunt only by the Hero XP line. Intel, beasts and terrors also differ in rally time, alliance rewards, shards and manuals. Clear scheduled Intel first because missed refreshes cannot be recovered, then use remaining stamina on the best beast or terror your account can complete reliably. Joining active alliance rallies reduces downtime and adds shared rewards. Keep enough stamina items for event days that reward hunting, because the combined event score can be worth more than farming on an ordinary day.

Kingshot Hero XP questions

What is the fastest way to get Hero XP in Kingshot?

Combine Conquest income, every Intel refresh, stamina-based beast and terror hunts, daily rewards and events. The biggest efficiency gain comes from Drill Camp allocation, not one farm.

When does Drill Camp unlock?

Drill Camp unlocks at Town Center 13.

Should every hero be levelled manually?

No. After Drill Camp, level five instructors directly and use Drill Slots for the rest of the roster.

Can I recover Hero XP from the wrong hero?

Use the level-reset function when it is available, then reassign that XP to your instructor core.

Do beasts or Intel Missions give more XP?

Intel Missions are usually the better scheduled priority because they bundle several reward types. Beasts and terrors are the repeatable stamina sink between Intel cycles.

More Kingshot guides

Bottom line

Farm consistently, but allocate intelligently. Five balanced instructors turn every Hero XP item into roster-wide progress; spreading XP across the full roster turns the same income into permanently weak marches.