Clicker Heroes is packed with layers of progression, and one of the most important systems you’ll encounter is Transcension.
Unlike a normal Ascension, a Transcension resets your progress on a much deeper level but rewards you with something powerful: Ancient Souls.
Ancient Souls are the key currency that fuels long-term growth in this idle RPG, giving you access to Outsiders who shape your playstyle and efficiency.
Because of their importance, players naturally ask: How many Ancient Souls per Transcension, and when is the best time to reset?
This Clicker Heroes guide explores exactly that, starting with the basics of what Ancient Souls are and why they matter.
What Are Ancient Souls?
In Clicker Heroes, Ancient Souls are a rare resource earned only through Transcension.
They act as a higher-tier progression currency compared to Hero Souls, allowing you to invest in Outsiders, which provide powerful global bonuses that shape how fast you grow.
Here’s how they differ from other key currencies:
- Hero Souls: Gained after defeating Primal Bosses or by Ascending, mainly used to upgrade Ancients and gain DPS and click boosts.
- Ancients: Unique characters you spend Hero Souls on, each offering specific buffs like gold gain, boss timers, or click damage.
- Ancient Souls: Only gained through Transcension, spent exclusively on Outsiders, and reset much more rarely.
This makes Ancient Souls crucial for long-term efficiency. Each one you collect moves you closer to stronger multipliers, faster farming, and a smoother climb through the endless zones of the game.
Read More: How to Get Hero Souls in Clicker Heroes: Complete Guide
When Transcension Becomes Available
Transcension is unlocked once you push past zone 300.
At this point, the game introduces a new layer of progression in the gameplay, allowing you to start fresh on a deeper level than a normal Ascension.
When you Transcend, here’s what happens:
- Resets: All your Heroes, Ancients, Gilds, Hero Souls, and progress are wiped away.
- Keeps: You retain Rubies, Achievements, Relics, and Outsider bonuses purchased with Ancient Souls.
This reset is more dramatic than Ascension, but the trade-off is the ability to earn Ancient Souls, which power up Outsiders and set the stage for faster, stronger runs in the future.
Read More: Clicker Heroes: When to Trancend?
Formula for Ancient Souls Per Transcension
The number of Ancient Souls you gain from a Transcension is based on how many total Hero Souls you’ve sacrificed across all runs.
The formula is: Ancient Souls = floor(5 × log₁₀(total Hero Souls sacrificed))
Total Hero Souls sacrificed includes:
- Hero Souls spent on Ancients
- Hero Souls still unspent in your inventory
- All sacrifices carried over from every Ascension and Transcension
Examples:
- If you’ve sacrificed 10,000 (1e4) Hero Souls, Ancient Souls = floor(5 × log₁₀(10,000)) = 20
- If you’ve sacrificed 100,000 (1e5) Hero Souls, Ancient Souls = floor(5 × 5) = 25
- If you’ve sacrificed 1,000,000 (1e6) Hero Souls, Ancient Souls = floor(5 × 6) = 30
This means your Ancient Soul gains grow slowly but steadily, encouraging you to push further before resetting for maximizing Ancient Souls per reset.
Read More: How to Get Ancient Souls in Clicker Heroes
How Many Ancient Souls Should You Aim to Get Before Transcending?
Because Ancient Souls are tied to the logarithm of total Hero Souls sacrificed, the rate of gain naturally slows down as you progress.
In other words, the first few Transcensions can feel rewarding, but squeezing out an extra Ancient Soul later on requires a much larger pool of Hero Souls.
A good rule of thumb is to Transcend after three to four strong Ascensions. Each of those runs should net you new Hero Souls and ideally increase your total Ancient Soul count.
You’ll also know it’s time when:
- The Outsiders tab shows a projected +AS gain for your next Transcension Clicker Heroes.
- Your Ascensions are consistently earning more Hero Souls than before, signaling that you’ve hit a natural checkpoint.
This approach balances efficiency and progression, keeping you from stalling too long in diminishing returns while ensuring steady growth in your Outsider power.
Diminishing Returns & Transcendent Power
Ancient Souls don’t just unlock Outsiders but they also contribute to a metric called Transcendent Power.
This mechanic increases the Hero Souls from primal bosses, making your runs faster and smoother as you accumulate more AS.
However, Transcendent Power scales in a way that reflects diminishing returns. Each Ancient Soul still makes you stronger, but the marginal boost gets smaller as your total AS climbs higher.
For example, going from 10 to 20 Ancient Souls might feel impactful, while going from 200 to 210 offers a much subtler bump.
This design encourages players to strike a balance: grab enough Ancient Souls to meaningfully improve Outsiders and Transcendent Power, but avoid waiting endlessly for just one more AS.
In practice, efficient players keep pushing until gains slow, then Transcend to reset and unlock a fresh wave of growth.
Practical Examples of Ancient Souls Per Transcension
Sometimes the formula makes more sense when you see it in action.
Here are a few snapshots of what different levels of Hero Souls sacrificed look like in terms of Ancient Souls gained:
- Early Transcension: If you’ve only managed to sacrifice around 100 Hero Souls, the formula works out to roughly 10 Ancient Souls. It’s a modest start, but enough to invest in a key Outsider.
- Mid-Game Run: With about 10,000 Hero Souls sacrificed, you’ll come away with around 20 Ancient Souls. At this point, your Outsider choices can seriously shape your build.
- Late Game Push: Sacrificing 1,000,000 or more Hero Souls translates into 30+ Ancient Souls. The returns are slower, but each one still nudges up your Transcendent Power.
These examples highlight how Ancient Souls stack up over time: early gains come quickly, while later boosts demand much larger Hero Soul sacrifices.
Best Practices to Maximize AS per Transcension
To maximize Ancient Souls, the biggest mistake to avoid is transcending too early.
If you reset with only a small pool of Hero Souls sacrificed, the formula will reward you with very few Ancient Souls, which can feel disappointing and stall your progress.
Instead, it’s generally better to go through several ascensions first.
Most players find that three to four strong ascensions is the sweet spot in transcendence Clicker Heroes runs, since each one builds up more Hero Souls and increases the eventual payout of Ancient Souls once you transcend.
When you do earn Ancient Souls, make sure to spend them wisely.
Outsiders provide incredibly powerful bonuses, but not all investments will be equally efficient for your stage of the game.
Using Outsider calculators can help you determine the best distribution and prevent wasted resources. It also helps to plan your thresholds.
Chasing every possible Ancient Soul can be slow and frustrating, so it’s more practical to aim for a solid gain, transcend, and then carry that momentum into your next cycle.
Ultimately, good Clicker Heroes transcendence habits are about balance and follow gaming tips: push hard enough to get meaningful Ancient Soul rewards, but don’t drag out a run so long that progress slows to a crawl.
Read More: Best Idle Hero Clicker Games to Play in 2025
Conclusion
Clicker Heroes Ancient Souls are at the heart of long-term progression. They tie directly into Outsiders and Transcendent Power, shaping how fast and far you can push with each new cycle.
By mastering transcending Clicker Heroes, understanding the formula, planning your ascensions, and investing AS carefully, you’ll keep your growth both efficient and rewarding.
The key takeaway? Patience pays off.
Build up enough Hero Souls before transcending, then let those Ancient Souls work for you in the next round. Over time, that cycle creates the steady climb that defines the transcension system.
