Evolution turns a handful of high-rarity units in Anime Expeditions into permanently stronger versions of themselves. An evolved unit keeps its identity but bumps every stat up one tier, gains new attacks, and unlocks a signature passive that changes how it plays in raids and late-wave defense. The catch is the cost, since each evolution demands a specific unit item, a pile of colored Sprites, at least one Rainbow Sprite, and Gold.
Quick answer: Go to the Upgrades room in the main lobby, walk to the Evolve station, press E, pick an eligible unit, and confirm once you own its unit-specific item, the required colored Sprites, a Rainbow Sprite, and enough Gold. Missing pieces can be made through Quick Craft on the same screen.
What evolving a unit actually changes
Only selected Mythic, Exclusive, and Secret units can evolve right now. When one does, the change is permanent and applies across four things at once.
- Every stat rises by one tier, so an A- grade becomes A+ and the ceiling after evolving is SSS.
- Upgraded attacks and, for some units, new active abilities that apply debuffs.
- A brand-new passive that is otherwise impossible to get on the base unit.
- A higher maximum upgrade level, which opens up extra abilities during a run.
Tip: Reroll for high stats before you evolve. Since every grade jumps one tier during the process, starting from a strong roll gives you the best possible end result.
Every evolvable unit and its materials
Each unit needs its own combination of a special item, colored Sprites, Rainbow Sprites, and Gold. The evolution menu lets you preview all of this before you spend anything, so you can check exactly what you are short on.
| Base → Evolved | Materials |
|---|---|
| Shadow → Shadow (Divine) | 20 Blue, 20 Green, 20 Red Sprites, 3 Rainbow Sprites, 10,000 Gold |
| Crimson → Crimson (Brother) | 20 Red, 20 Pink Sprites, 1 Rainbow Sprite, 5,000 Gold |
| True Saint → True Saint (Holy) | 1 Holy Pendant, 5 each of Red, Blue, Green, Purple, Yellow, Pink Sprites, 1 Rainbow Sprite, 5,000 Gold |
| Cursed Student → Cursed Student (True Love) | 1 Student ID, 20 Blue, 20 Purple Sprites, 1 Rainbow Sprite, 5,000 Gold |
| Salmon Sorcerer → Salmon Sorcerer (Grade 1) | 1 Salmon, 20 Green, 20 Blue Sprites, 1 Rainbow Sprite, 5,000 Gold |
| Flame Emperor → Flame Emperor (Reincarnate) | 1 Burning Fruit, 20 Red, 20 Yellow Sprites, 1 Rainbow Sprite, 5,000 Gold |
| Puppet → Puppet (Telekinetic) | 1 Puppet Heart, 20 Pink, 20 Purple Sprites, 1 Rainbow Sprite, 5,000 Gold |
| Elf Mage → Elf Mage (Unleashed) | 1 Cosmic Magic, 20 Blue, 20 Purple Sprites, 1 Rainbow Sprite, 5,000 Gold |
| String Demon → String Demon (Awakened) | 1 Joker of the Nonsensical Pirates, 20 Yellow, 20 Pink Sprites, 1 Rainbow Sprite, 5,000 Gold |
| Hollow → Hollow (Blaze) | 1 Elixir of Life, 20 Red, 20 Green Sprites, 1 Rainbow Sprite, 5,000 Gold |
| Lady Giant → Lady Giant (Envy) | 1 Giant Hammer, 20 Green, 20 Yellow Sprites, 1 Rainbow Sprite, 5,000 Gold |
| Reaper → Reaper (Released) | 1 Hollowed Visor, 20 Red, 20 Yellow Sprites, 1 Rainbow Sprite, 5,000 Gold |
| Crow → Crow (Black Fire) | 1 Crow’s Ring, 20 Red, 20 Yellow, 20 Purple Sprites, 3 Rainbow Sprites, 10,000 Gold |
| Cursed Immortal → Cursed Immortal (Black Sun) | 1 Cursed Book, 20 Purple, 20 Blue Sprites, 1 Rainbow Sprite, 10,000 Gold |
Passives you unlock on evolution
The passive is the real reason to evolve. Here is what the most-used evolutions add to their kit.
| Evolved unit | New passive |
|---|---|
| Shadow (Divine) | Divine Spirit: summons an invulnerable spirit that attacks enemies for its full damage while Shadow stays still for 15 seconds. The spirit cannot be stunned, killed, or despawned. |
| Crimson (Brother) | Piercing Crimson: fires a piercing beam at a chosen point for 10 seconds, damaging enemies each second and applying Crimson Mark. |
| True Saint (Holy) | Seize: steals 20% of the damage from the three strongest units in range for 60 seconds. |
| Cursed Student (True Love) | Cursed Mimicry adds a follow-up hit every few attacks; Spirit Bats spawns a Bat Spirit for every 20 Bleed stacks in range. |
| Salmon Sorcerer (Grade 1) | Crumble Away applies 20% Slow on upgrades; Plummet Staggers enemies for 2 seconds when they enter close range. |
| Flame Emperor (Reincarnate) | Wall of Fire: creates a burning wall on a path that inflicts Burn on anything passing through. |
| Puppet (Telekinetic) | Complete Control: rewinds every enemy in range by 2 seconds of movement. |
| Elf Mage (Unleashed) | Arcane Magic builds charge on attacks; Overcharge raises Arcane Spell damage on each reset, boosting Old Magic, Eruption, and Storm. |
| String Demon (Awakened) | String Sync: links to the nearest ally so it performs a follow-up strike when that ally attacks, then breaks the link. |
Where to farm Sprites and evolution items
Colored Sprites and Gold come from general play. Spread your farming across modes rather than grinding one thing, since Daily and Weekly Challenges, Raids, Trials, Mastery Stages, and Story Mode all feed into the pile. Units parked in the AFK Chamber also pull in selected materials while you are away.
| Resource | How to get it |
|---|---|
| Colored Sprites (Blue, Green, Red, Purple, Yellow, Pink) | Challenges or crafted at the Crafting Station |
| Rainbow Sprite | Daily Challenges, Weekly Challenges, and Crafting |
| Holy Pendant | Crafted with 10,000 Gold, 3 Pink Sprite, 3 Red Sprite |
| Gold | Story Mode and general farming |
Note: If you are short on a specific Sprite, break down unwanted equipment through the dismantle option in the crafting menu to recover base materials for crafting.
Unit-specific items come from Unit Trials
The single item each unit needs is locked behind its own Unit Trial. You can only run a trial for a unit you already own, and you reach the stages through Quests > Unit. Clearing the trial both hands over the item and unlocks the ability to evolve that unit.
| Trial | Reward | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Love & Loss | Student ID | Cursed Student |
| The Last Great Elven Mage | Cosmic Magic | Elf Mage |
| Fire that Spreads | Burning Fruit | Flame Emperor |
| Elixir of Life | Elixir of Life | Hollow |
| Giant’s Resolve | Giant Hammer | Lady Giant |
| A Puppet’s Heart | Puppet Heart | Puppet |
| Tuna Tuna | Salmon | Salmon Sorcerer |
| Strings of Captivity | Joker of the Nonsensical Pirates | String Demon |
| Mirror of the False Moonblade | Hollowed Visor | Reaper |
How to evolve a unit
E to open the Evolution machine.
Confirming it worked and common blockers
A successful evolution swaps the unit for its named form (Shadow becomes Shadow (Divine), for example), resets its level, raises every stat by a tier, and adds the new passive to its kit. If the Evolve button stays greyed out, the reason is almost always one of three things. You are missing a colored or Rainbow Sprite, you do not have enough Gold, or you have not cleared the Unit Trial that provides that unit’s special item. Clear the blocker, then reopen the menu to confirm.
Gathering the materials is the slow part; the evolution itself takes seconds. Given that evolved units gain stats, higher upgrade caps, and passives you cannot obtain any other way, the investment pays off directly in harder Story stages, raids, and late-wave defense.
