Why Formation Order Matters for Advance in Princess Connect

In Princess Connect! Re:Dive, a party can appear correctly built on the preparation screen and still behave differently once a Main Story battle begins. The reason is often formation order. Each slot influences starting distance, target selection, damage exposure and the timing of movement-based abilities such as Advance.

That matters most when a character steps forward, pulls an ally into range, or changes which unit receives the next attack. A tank placed one position too far back can leave a fragile damage dealer exposed, while a support character placed too far forward may trigger enemy attacks before the team is ready.

For Australian players fitting a few battles into a Sydney train ride, a Melbourne lunch break or an arvo in Brisbane, a reliable formation saves time and stamina. It also makes auto battles more predictable when you cannot keep adjusting the team every few seconds.

How Party Slots Shape the Opening

The game reads your party from the front position towards the rear. The first character usually starts closest to the enemy, while later positions begin farther away. This affects who enters attack range first and which unit enemy skills are likely to recognise as a target.

Advance can alter that opening pattern. When the skill moves its user or another character ahead, the new position may change the next attack received, the distance to an enemy, or whether a short-range skill connects. Formation order therefore controls the conditions in which Advance activates, rather than simply deciding who stands in front.

Why Timing Can Change After Movement

An advancing character may reach the enemy before the rest of the party has established its normal rhythm. That can be useful for a durable frontliner, but risky for a support or damage dealer. Early contact may draw area attacks, interrupt a planned sequence or cause the character to spend time repositioning.

Think of the ability as part of a movement cycle. A rotation guide such as Magicka Dragonknight rotation can illustrate the broader principle: an ability is judged by when it occurs and what follows it, not by its description alone. In Princess Connect, the relevant sequence is formation, Advance, enemy response and the next skill window.

Building Around Main Story Enemies

Main Story stages often contain enemies that punish a predictable front line. A boss may strike the nearest target, hit several characters in a cone, or attack the rear row with magic. If Advance moves a unit into a dangerous lane, the skill can turn a comfortable battle into a sudden wipe.

Before changing equipment or character levels, test the order itself. Move the likely Advance user one slot at a time and watch whether the opening hit lands on the tank, whether the healer remains safe and whether the damage dealer can keep attacking. This is especially valuable on older stages where a small positional change can matter more than a modest stat increase.

Reading Auto Battle Behaviour

Auto battle hides the cause of many failures. A character may appear to “randomly” fall over, when the real issue is that Advance has placed them ahead of the intended tank. Record the first ten or fifteen seconds of the fight, then compare the initial positions with the moment the skill fires.

Also check whether a character’s Union Burst changes the situation. A defensive burst used before Advance may make an aggressive order safe, while a delayed heal may leave the moved unit without protection. Treat the formation and skill queue as one system rather than separate settings.

A Practical Formation Checklist

Use these checks when a Main Story stage repeatedly fails:

• Put the most durable unit in the foremost slot unless Advance is deliberately meant to redirect pressure.
• Keep healers and fragile support characters behind the unit most likely to move forward.
• Test the same team with adjacent characters swapped, then compare the first enemy target.
• Watch the opening seconds on auto before spending more mana potions, gear or stamina.

Australian players dealing with variable mobile reception can make this process easier by saving a short screen recording while connected to stable home Wi-Fi. It avoids guessing during a rushed commute and gives you a clear reference for the exact moment the formation breaks.

Separating Useful Guides From Risky Pages

Fan-curated game sites can collect excellent strategy videos alongside outdated or unrelated material. If a supposed rank-up reference opens a medication page instead of a Princess Connect resource, do not enter personal details or download anything. Close it and rely on in-game descriptions, trusted community channels and established guide creators.

The same caution applies to pages that abruptly switch from party advice to treatment products, such as unexpected health content. That mismatch can indicate compromised or poorly moderated content. It has nothing to do with formation order, Advance timing or character progression, so it should not be treated as part of the game guide.

Try the slot swaps above on the next difficult Main Story node, watch who Advance places in danger and keep the safest order as your default team. A few deliberate tests can turn an unreliable auto battle into a repeatable clear.