Reaching UL 40 grants access to higher Data Bank levels 18+, enabling you to farm 5-star echoes and finally start the real grind.
If you are starting out in Wuthering Waves, pushing to 40 immediately would be the best thing to do.
Why Union Level 40?
Character Ascension: Enables leveling characters beyond 60, crucial for beating harder contents.
Improved Farming Efficiency: Higher Union Levels unlock better Tacet Field rewards for echo and material farming.
Step-by-Step Guide to Reach Union Level 40
Complete all daily activities to earn 300 Union EXP per 20 Activity Points, totaling 1500 EXP daily. This is the most consistent and significant source of Union EXP.
Never skip dailies, as they provide a reliable, time-gated EXP source. Log in daily to claim these rewards, even if you have limited playtime.
Main Quests offer the highest Union EXP rewards per activity. Focus on progressing through the main storyline, including the Rinnascita story quests, as they provide substantial EXP.
Companion Quests and certain Side Quests (especially those granting 500 Union EXP) are excellent for boosting EXP. Check your quest log for any uncompleted Companion Quests or high-EXP Side Quests.
Use the map’s quest tracker to locate remaining quests. The Rinnascita region has quests that are relatively quick to complete.
Exploration provides non-time-gated Union EXP through chests, tidal heritage, and exploration tasks. The Rinnascita region is particularly efficient for exploration due to its concentrated chest locations.
Chests yield 10–60 Union EXP each, depending on type (e.g., tidal heritage gives 30 EXP for 5 astrites, 50 EXP for 10 astrites).
Aim for 100% exploration in Rinnascita first, as it’s less time-consuming than older areas like Jinzhou.
Check the map’s left corner for exploration tasks (e.g., beacons, caskets) to ensure you’ve completed all available objectives.
Use the Guidebook to track exploration progress and claim additional EXP rewards (up to 15,000 EXP per rank post-UL 40).
Every world boss, including new nightmare echoes, grants 500 Union EXP for the first-time clear, even without claiming rewards. This can yield around 10,000 EXP total if you haven’t defeated all bosses yet.
Focus on bosses you haven’t fought yet. You don’t need to collect rewards, so this is a quick way to rack up EXP without spending waveplates.
During Bountiful Crescendo events, always prioritize spending waveplates on the event, as it grants double Union EXP (e.g., 180 waveplates on three daily runs). This is highly efficient for UL grinding but requires balancing with other resource needs (e.g., ascension materials for characters like Changli).
Avoid letting waveplates cap (max 240 daily). If you’re saving waveplates for specific materials, use them on Tacet Fields that align with your character’s element to farm echoes and EXP simultaneously.
Solvents (used for waveplate refills) are valuable, but it’s better to save them for higher SOL3 phases (e.g., UL 50) where rewards are more efficient. However, if you’re in a rush, using 4–5 solvents daily can speed up progress.
The Guidebook’s new phases (introduced in recent updates) offer decent Union EXP rewards. Check your Guidebook for unclaimed tasks, as they can provide a significant EXP boost.