Shattered Pixel Dungeon @@html:<br/>@@ A Guidebook to Playing as the Huntress (2024)

All heroes regardless of class start with the same stats¹:

• Level 1
• Strength 10
• Health 20²

The Huntress starts with the Spirit Bow, Gloves for melee, and ClothArmor for defense. They can identify Scroll of Lullaby and Potion ofMind Vision and begin with a special ability: they do not tramplegrass.

The mystical bow is a secondary weapon that doesn't need to beequipped (but does need to be in your inventory) and generates its ownarrows. It upgrades slowly as you level up³ and does less damagethan thrown projectiles of a similar level⁴ but can be enhancedfor damage or speed and also enchanted to add an on-hit effect.

Unlimited arrows is a huge advantage over other classes that have toration their use of projectiles, which degrade with each throw, orapply a Scroll of Upgrade on one to get one that has greaterdurability (the Sniper, a Huntress subclass can also benefit from anupgraded projectile). It opens up opportunities to snipe and probe andto casually take pot shots from a distance without the risk of runningout of projectiles or needing to reclaim them.

Archery Tricks

Projectiles (and wands) wear down enemies, softening them up for aneasier melee.

In general, try to position yourself at a door or other angle that canbreak the line of sight. You can use grass for this, too.

If you end up with multiple enemies queued up near a door, go through,then step back from the door to force them into single file leaving agap. Shoot the first and they'll advance, giving you a meleeattack. When you kill the lead enemy, you'll usually have one round toshoot at the next enemy before they advance but fast moving enemies(Sewer Crabs, for example) will come in too quickly and you'll have tomelee.

You can attack enemies that are beyond your sight and they can't seeyou. If you scout an area and see a sleeping enemy, move until they'reout of sight and line up your shot. You can even create concealmentwith grass. You'll see an exclamation point where they're hit. A shoton an unaware enemy will only alert them if it hits and if there'sonly a single hit and either distance or concealment the enemy willbegin wandering. This can be used to move enemies that are clusteredtogether by prodding one to leave. If they approach keep firing and ifit misses, you know they moved away from you or to the side, fire tothe left or right of their position.

When entering a room with multiple enemies spread apart, attack theone that is the furthest away if they do not have a ranged attack(gnoll shaman, cave spiders, dwarf wizards, and evil eyes do and needa different strategy). The melee-based enemies have to travel to youwhich gives you time to get in a few more shots.

Giant Piranha are used to guard a chest in a room or occasionally theyare found in a pond on the floor to prevent your movement.

The bow makes light work of them, an enchanted bow does so even morequickly, and lightning of any sort will damage them together. Use thatto your advantage by getting them aggro and grouped in range.

On death Piranha always drop raw Mystery Meat which you can cook on afire trap, freeze on a chilling trap, or stew in an alchemy pot.

Enhancement and Enchantment

Your first Stone of Augmentation found randomly or purchased from theshop keeper on Level 6 should be used on the bow. Always buy the Stoneof Augmentation from each shop and hold onto it for later to enhancearmor and weapons.

A Stone of Enchantment, randomly placed but one will be spawned beforeLevel 14, should also be applied to the bow. A stone may appear out inthe open, behind crystal doors, or hidden behind a false wall. If youhaven't found a Stone of Enchantment early, upgrade the bow for damagesince that bonus is applied to every shot.

Damage bows work well with any enchantment but I prefer it withBlocking, Blooming, and Kinetic which proc on a hit, with Corruptingand Lucky, which proc on kill, and projecting because shooting throughwalls is awesome. Speed bows work well with the rare enchantments Grimand Vampiric, which you want to occur as often as possible, and withElastic, Shocking, and Unstable. Blazing and Chilling work with speedor damage bows, I prefer damage.

If you do apply an enchantment later that doesn't align with youraugmentation you can use another stone to change that.

Note that a Stone of Enchantment can be used on Armor resulting in arandom glyph the same as the inscription of an Arcane Stylus but theyare normally too rare to make this anything but an oddity. Don't wastethem. Save one for your end-game weapon if you have two or more.

Ring of Sharpshooting

The single most useful improvement for the Spirit Bow is the Ring ofSharpshooting. The Ring's buffs to the level and durability of thrownweapons are applied to the Spirit Bow. At +3 or higher the effect issignificant, at +6 or higher it's impressive. If you were upgradinganother ring, such as a Ring of Wealth for the below money strategy,and have reached end game consider using your Scrolls of Transmutationuntil your Huntress has a high-level Ring of Sharpshooting for thefinal level.

How sweet the smell. Grass is a not-so-secret weapon and sustenancefor the Huntress. The Huntress does not trample it like other heroesand ground-based enemies. If the Warden subclass is chosen, theirsteps will cause grass to grow behind them⁵ where it has beentrampled or burned. Grass produces seeds and dew drops. Seed effectscan hurt enemies or heal the Huntress, and with Restored Natureproduce more grass. Dew drops heal her, and with the Warden'sShielding Dew enhance her armor.

This extra grass provides concealment from enemies (very helpful withwraiths, snakes, shaman, wizards, eyes, and scorpios) and it can beset on fire burning enemies⁶. Grass is also useful as an indication that awalking enemy has passed through since they will trample it⁷.

Finally the Warden is the only hero subclass that can activate a seedeffect on themselves and gain a temporary ability or spell-likeaction:

Seeds with negative effects can be tossed like caltrops to stymieenemies but the Warden effects can be used creatively. PlantingBlindweed, Fadeleaf, or Swiftthistle will get them out of a tight spotwhile Stormvine lets the hero fly over traps and chasms to escape orreach a location. Firebloom, Icecap, and Sorrowmoss give them a shortoffensive buff and protection from the same. Mageroyal cures effectslike poisoning and bleeding.

Wand of Regrowth

Seeing that grass is good, the Wand of Regrowth has great synergy withthe Huntress.

If you have a Wand of Regrowth you should convert other low levelwands (those at level zero or +1, upgraded wands are useful in theirown right and you might keep wands of Fireblast, Warding, orDisintegration) to Arcane Resin and apply it to upgrade the Wand ofRegrowth. If you have more than one Wand of Regrowth keep both,upgrade the lesser one, and avoid depleting your wands.

Combined with a Wand of Regrowth and level and subclass abilitiesgrass is even more useful as you'll be able to produce considerableamounts of fresh grass (and dew, and seeds).

Sandals of Nature

An artifact with good synergy is the Sandals of Nature which increasethe likelihood of finding dew drops and seeds⁹. The magic footwear canabsorb seeds, increasing in level and power. On upgrade the footwearwill grow in size and get a new name. The below table shows thelevels, names, and number of seeds that must be consumed. The finalform, Greaves of Nature, are fixed at level 10.

When sufficient charge has built up, the footwear can be rooted intothe ground, sprouting nearby a bloom of the last seed fed to them. Itwill trigger subclass talents that grow grass as well. You shouldspend some time thinking about what bloom you want the Sandals togenerate, particularly when upgrading them to their final form fromBoots of Nature to Greaves of Nature. The most useful blooms are:Sungrass (healing), Starflower (blessing), and Earthroot (damagereduction) and one of those should be the last seed fed to the Boots.

You can continue feeding seeds after completing the upgrades and theywill both increase the charge on the Greaves and change the effect tothat seed.

Sod Farming

It ain't much but it's honest work. The strategy here, and it's anincidental one, is to produce as much grass as possible, whenever andwherever possible. The more grass you produce, the more cover you'llget, the more seeds you'll have, and the more dew drops you'll collect.

Your hero's tools are:

• Rejuvenating Steps talent
• Wand of Regrowth
• Blooming weapon
• Sandals of Nature
• Seeds and Restored Nature

Use any and all of them in any combination. Rings of Wealth will helpby boosting the chances for drops. Obviously, dungeon levels coveredmostly with water are not useful for sod farming.

Played well and early, you'll have so much dew that that you won't beable to carry it all and will leave it behind as you descend. If youbought an Ankh from the Shopkeeper, now is a good time bless it with afull waterskin and refill your waterskin.

This strategy is helpful against the DM300 and Dwarf King's minionsbecause you'll disable and delay them while creating grass that buffsyour hero.

There are two subclasses for the Huntress: Warden, with a strongerconnection to Nature, and the Sniper, who specialized inprojectile-based combat. When you defeat the second boss you get theoption of choosing a subclass and unlocking those talents (describedbelow).

I prefer the Warden because you'll have extra healing dew, seeds thatcan be used for their effect or turned into potions or extraalchemical energy, and get better concealment from the grass. It isthe easiest to play and win.

At each level you gain a point to apply to talents. After defeating aboss or gaining a particular level, you'll unlock the next set oftalents. If you use alchemy to convert a Potion of Experience to aPotion of Divine Inspiration, you'll get two additional talent points.

Which talents to choose is going to be highly subjective. I preferthe Warden subclass and emphasize using grass to my advantage.

Tier 1

The Tier-1 talents are:

• Nature's Bounty, you find a small number of berries in grass that feed you and can drop a seed.
• Survivalist's Intuition, faster identification of equipment.
• Follow-up Strike, extra melee damage after a hit with a bow or thrown weapon.
• Nature's Aid, a little barkskin shielding for a small number of turns when you witness a plant's effect.

The order you should select them is:

1. Follow-up Strike. It gains you +2 bonus damage on melee after aprojectile hit. Since you'll be softening up most enemies with thebow this is the best early game choice. There's diminishingreturns, though, putting a second point only raises the damage to +3.
2. Survivalist's Intuition. In the early game you need to identify equipment and 1.75x helps.
3. Nature's Bounty. Save the berries for deeper in the dungeon.
4. Survivalist's Intuition #2. The second point raises the rate to 2.5x faster.
5. Nature's Bounty #2. Again save the berries for later.

If you spend a Potion of Divine Inspiration on Tier 1 talents, it'sprobably late in the game so just put those two points into Nature'sAid. It's likely you've stockpiled seeds or acquired a Wand ofRegrowth and can benefit.

Tier 2

Tier-2 talents are unlocked at Level 7, potentially before you meet the first boss:

• Invigorating Meal, you gain a short burst of haste from eating.
• Restored Nature, drinking a healing potion spawns fresh grass around you and roots enemies.
• Rejuvenating Steps, stepping on grass or embers causes fresh grass to sprout.
• Heightened Senses, you gain mind vision for nearby enemies.
• Durable Projectiles.

I recommend selecting these, which synergize with the Warden subclass:

1. Rejuvenating Steps. Possibly the best talent in the game. The sprouted grass can drop dew or seeds and covers your tracks.
2. Rejuvenating Steps #2. Put your second point here to reduce the cooldown between sprouts.
3. Heightened Senses. Knowing enemies are nearby before they find you is an obvious advantage.
4. Heightened Senses #2. Increase the range of your mind vision.
5. Restored Nature. Less useful than the first two but spawns more grass, so put your point here next.
6. Restored Nature #2. Grass encircles you completely which is handy.

If you're considering a Sniper subclass, don't use the last two points right away.Hold them until you select a subclass and if you go with Sniper then apply thepoints to Durable Projectiles.

Tier 3

Tier-3 talents are unlocked after you beat the second boss, Tengu, and select a subclass.Warden has the following talents and as they gain levels will unlock eight points:

• Point Blank, reduces the penalty for using the bow at melee distance.
• Seer Shot, fires an arrow at the ground and grants the Warden vision around it.
• Durable Tips, tipped darts have extra durability.
• Barkskin, when stepping on grass the Warden gains armor that fades over time.
• Shielding Dew, at full health the Warden can consume dewdrops to shield herself.

I recommend choosing these talents in the following order which emphasizes defense:

1. Barkskin, gain 0-50% of her level in armor which fades every turn.
2. Barkskin #2, gain 0-100% armor.
3. Barkskin #3, gain 0-150% armor.
4. Shielding Dew #1, up to 20% additional shielding.
5. Point Blank #1, reduce the penalty for using the bow at melee range to -30% from -50%.
6. Shielding Dew #2, up to 40% additional shielding.
7. Point Blank #2, reduce the penalty to -10%
8. Shielding Dew #3, up to 60% additional shielding.

If you have multiple Potions of Experience or two Starfruits, converta potion to a Potion of Divine Inspiration and gain two more talentpoints. Apply these extra points to:

• Point Blank #3, +10% accuracy at melee range.
• Seer Shot #1, I find this occasionally useful but minor compared toother talents. A Wand of Warding is better.

Tier 4

Tier-4 talents are unlocked after defeating the third boss, The DwarfKing, and wearing his crown. The crown permanently applies to theHuntress's armor so if you haven't found your end-game armor or intendyou use the Troll Blacksmith's upgrade don't use it yet. You canremove it from armor and apply it to another but that destroys thefirst armor in the process.

You'll have a choice of three collections, each with three talents. Allcollections share a fourth talent, Heroic Energy, which reduces the costof using the other talents:

• Nature's Power
  • Growing Power
  • Nature's Wrath
  • Wild Momentum
• Spectral Blades
  • Fan of Blades
  • Projecting Blades
  • Spirit Blades
• Spirit Hawk
  • Eagle Eye
  • Go For The Eyes
  • Swift Spirit

By the time you reach end-game none of these talents are necessary oreven particularly useful for clearing the Demon Halls and beating thefinal boss. I'll explain why: They're slow to charge making themexpensive to use and their effects are situational. None of them willreliably clear or evade end-game enemies and prevent their follow-upstrike. With the exception of the Spirit Hawk, which is handy forscouting ahead and slowing enemies (but dies quickly if it actuallyfights), the Tier-4 talents are all last ditch, Hail Mary, attemptsto recover from having failed to apply spells and effects, managedefense, reduce damage, preserve health, maintain distance, andexploit terrain. You're better off having a Prismatic Image, a Potionof Invisibility, or a Scroll of Terror in reserve than using them.

I usually chose Spectral Blades because in a pinch it will damageswarming enemies and apply the Spirit Bow enchantment to them. Irecommend this order:

1. Fan of Blades, +1 target for 50% damage, 30 degree AOE.
2. Spirit Blades, 30% chance to use the Spirit Bow enchantment.
3. Spirit Blades #2, 60% chance to use the Bow's enchantment.
4. Spirit Blades #3, 90% chance to use the Bow's enchantment.
5. Projecting Blades, +25 accuracy and penetrate 2 solid tiles.
6. Fan of Blades #2, +2 targets and 60 degree AOE.
7. Spirit Blades #4, 100% chance to use the Bow's enchantment and +10% power.
8. Projecting Blades #2, +50 accuracy and penetrate 4 solid tiles.
9. Fan of Blades #3, +3 targets and 90 degree AOE.
10. Fan of Blades #4, +4 targets and 120 degree AOE.

If you prefer the Spirit Hawk familiar as a scout, choose thefollowing:

1. Eagle Eye, increase Hawk's vision to 7 tiles.
2. Swift Spirit, increase Hawk's movement to 2.5 and dodge 2 attacks.
3. Eagle Eye #2, vision extends to 8 tiles.
4. Swift Spirit #2, movement increased to 3 and dodge 4 attacks.
5. Heroic Energy, reduce the cost by 12%.
6. Swift Spirit #3, movement increased to 3.5 and dodge 6 attacks.
7. Eagle Eye #3, vision extends to 9 tiles and 2 tiles of mind vision.
8. Swift Spirit #4, movement increased to 4 and dodge 8 attacks.
9. Eagle Eye #4, vision extends to 10 tiles and 3 tiles of mind vision.
10. Heroic Energy, reduce the cost by 23%.

Regardless of which set of final talents you chose, you should havemultiple Potions of Experience by now. If you have Blandfruit,alchemize them to Starfruit to free up the potions. Convert a Potionof Experience to a Potion of Divine Inspiration and gain the last twotalent points. Apply these to Heroic Energy.

(Or don't, because if you need the Tier-4 talents to save your hero,you've probably already lost)

Get on board the loot train! If you live long enough.

If you've taken your chances and worn that random ring and had nocurse applied, you'll discover the effect when a sparkling flashappears when an enemy dies. The Ring of Wealth increases the drop rateand the quality of the drops from enemies and opening chests. Thecolor of the flash indicates the quality:

Depending on your strategy you'll want to upgrade it a little (to +3at least) or a lot (+7 or +8, my preference). Investing in a Ring ofWealth is worthwhile until you have end-game quality armor and weaponor your hero reaches level 29, at which point drops from enemies stop. A +7ring can drop +4 or higher equipment making up for the Scrolls ofUpgrade you put into it.

When you reach end-game, have +6 or better equipment, or get bored,use Scrolls of Transformation to change it.

The ring complements the effect of the Lucky enchantment on weaponsbut doesn't change the drop rate of seeds.

This nifty artifact doesn't have the game changing impact that otheritems do but it's useful because:

• items stolen from shops preserve your hero's hard earn gold.
• stealing from enemies gets loot and has a secondary effect ofapplying blindness. The blindness debuff has a chance to apply evenif the stealing attempt failed.

Level it up by using it, the loot chance and the debuff durationincrease with level¹⁹. I recommend hiding behind doors when enemiesapproach and stealing from them just for the blindness effect, thenstep back and fire at them with the bow before a melee.

The huntress can take a Tier-1 talent and find berries in tall grass,up to a maximum of 8. Each berry grants 33% energy, is consumed in asingle turn, and has a chance to drop a random seed. I tend to hoardthese as long as I can since they're good in emergencies.

The rare Phantom Piranha drops magical translucent meat. It requiresno preparation unlike other meats and in addition to 100% satiety itmakes the hero invisible and acts like a healing potion. Save thesefor late in the game, they're like a hyperspace button thatmomentarily rescues your hero.

There is an "Easter egg" where the Pasty will appear as a differentfood at certain times of year and in addition to satiety has an extraproperty:

• Candy Cane, during the third week of December through the first weekof January. This will also briefly recharge your wands andartifacts.
• Pumpkin Pie, during the second week of October through the first dayof November. This will grant up to 10% healing.

A Candy Cane or Pumpkin Pie can be used in place of a Pasty in the Meat Pie recipe.

The Horn of Plenty produces food over time. Effects that recharge yourartifacts will speed that up. Storing your valuable food in the Hornlevels it up, increasing the rate at which it fills. The contributionto leveling is similar to the energy value of the food:

Adding food to the horn takes the same number of turns as it would ifthe hero consumed the food themselves and gains the same time bonusfor talents.

The Horn has two actions: "Snack" and "Eat". "Eat" consumes multiplecharges filling the hero completely while "Snack" consumes a singlecharge.

The Horn of Plenty is handy for a second reason. Early in the game youwant to keep more inventory items than you have slots. By relievingyour hero of most of their food items additional capacity is availableand you can get back to Worshipping Mammon and maximizing gold.

The easiest way to clear traps is with the Stone of Disarming whichremoves up to 9 traps in an area at most 8x8 around where it lands. Ifyou don't have one you'll need to get clever.

Rockfall traps damage any creature in the room. You can trigger the trapfrom outside by blocking the door with an item and throwing items atthe traps. Once cleared you can pick up the gold protected by that trap.

If you have a Stone of Flock, which temporarily produces a flock ofmagical sheep, you can throw it near the center of the room triggeringmultiple traps at once. When the sheep dematerialize, collect thegold.

Disintegration traps are evil. They do heavy damage that scales withthe dungeon depth²⁵ and target the nearest character. In an openarea you might be able to use one to kill a mob but in the confines ofa treasure room they're annoying because they also destroy gold. Youcan't use the Stone of Flock because you don't want to destroy thegold so your options are Levitation or a Stone of Disarming.

A slightly different Treasure Room trap is poison gas. This statictrap fills the room with toxic gas that never dissipates. Use a Potionof Purity to protect your hero while they empty the chests.

A Treasure Room with teleport or poison dart traps can be circumventedwith a Potion of Levitation, flying over them, or a Stone of Flock,triggering them all. You could at a cost of time or hitpoints, try towalk through them but it's not recommended.

Finally, a Treasure Room with gripping traps can only be looted witha Potion of Levitation or cleared with the Stone of Disarming.

If you find an explosive trap, you can use it to test if anunidentified item has a +1 or greater upgrade on it. Throw the item atthe trap or pile multiple items around a trap and then trigger it.The explosion will destroy ordinary items but not upgradedones. Explosive traps will also not damage Potions of Strength andScrolls of Upgrade but it's better to try scrolls and potions ratherthan waste them.

Pitfall traps are great for disposing of ground-based enemies bydropping them to their death (flying enemies will not fall). Triggerit by using a Wand of Warding, Wand of Blastwave, or throwing an itemonto the trap. Avoid being within two tiles of them yourself when they trigger.

The Sad Ghost randomly spawns on Floors 2-4. The depth determines the quest they give:

1. Fetid Rat
2. Gnoll Trickster
3. Great Crab

These mini-bosses and the strategy for each is described below.

At the completion of the quest the Sad Ghost will offer your hero achoice of either armor or a weapon. These have independent chances fortheir level with a 50% chance of being Tier-2, 30% chance for Tier-3,15% chance Tier-4, and 5% Tier-5.

Both items share the same chance to be Upgraded. 50% will have noupgrades, 30% have a single upgrade to +1, 15% are +2, and 5% are+3. There is a flat 10% chance that both items will be enchanted orhave a glyph.

I recommend exploring and completing the entire floor and possibly thefloor below it if the Ghost spawns on floors two or three beforeinteracting with them to receive the quest. The mini-bosses arepotentially challenging so being up-leveled and having equipment iswise.

After your hero accepts the quest, the Sad Ghost will give you awarning on how to defeat the mini-boss.

TODO: Description

Hidden somewhere on the same level as Goo is the Rat King's secretroom. It's never in the same room you entered via the stairs. The roomis always ringed with chests, 8-16 in all depending on the size of theroom, and each chest contains 10-25 gold. In the center of the room isthe sleeping Rat King. If you wake him, he'll endlessly run around thelevel but it's better to leave him be and know where to find him laterin the game. You can trade him the Dwarf King's crown for his crowngaining the Ratmogrify talent set.

TODO

TODO: Description of battle

TODO: Describe how sparks point the direction of active pylon

FIXME: collect and edit video #2

TODO

TODO: final boss check list

• reach hero level 28. If you're not there yet, kill enemies andtrigger alarm traps to generate animated statues.
• save your Potion of Strength and create an Elixir of Might but do NOT drink it
• convert haste potions to potions of endurance
• convert two toxic gas potions to potions of toxicity
• convert scroll of upgrade to upgrade infusion and apply to armor andweapons without losing enchantment.
• Have two (2) Potions of Experience or Blandfruit converted toStarfruit, you'll use these to reach hero level 30
• convert extra potions of experience to potions of elixir of enlightenment(FIXME)and apply the talent points.

This is a great seed for learning because it's fairly generous in theearly game. In some of my play-throughs I've acquired an upgraded Ringof Wealth or Evasion from a random loot drop along with the Ring ofArcana before reaching the Dwarven Halls making for easy runs.

You normally discover items, potions, and scrolls by trial and error,or by using a Stone of Intuition or Scroll of Identity. Later in thegame you may get a Scroll of Divination (or the Unstable Spellbook maycast it for you) which will identify four random types of rings,scrolls, or potions. However, since this run is for learning I'vedecoded them below.

Remember these are unique to every seed. If you start a different gameyou'll need to discover them for yourself!

The Sewers

• L1: Scroll of Upgrade. Potion of Strength. drink itimmediately. Potion of Toxic Gas. Fishing Spear x3. Chest containsan uncursed spear; Stone of Intuition. Pasty. A locked room containschests with gold.

  A locked room contains a grave with Cursed Mail of Multiplicity +1guarded by Wraiths. Open the grave and run to the door. When you'rein the doorway, throw the jade potion at the Wraiths. You'll learnthat it is a Potion of Toxic Gas and all the Wraiths die. Run downthe hallway and wait until the gas dissipates. Return and take thearmor.

• L2: There is an Alchemy Pot behind a locked door, the room containsa Potion of Liquid Flame. Scroll of Remove Curse. Scroll ofUpgrade. Ration.

  Apply a scroll of upgrade to the cursed armor you picked up onLevel-1. It probably will not remove the curse³² but you also don'thave the strength to wear it yet.

• L3: This floor has traps, be careful exploring.

  Potion of Invisibility. Scroll of Rage. A chest contains gold. TheTreasure Room has Poison Dart traps, check each pile and take onlythe ones that don't have a trap (yes, you'll leave some behind, itwon't matter). A Piranha Room chest contains Mail armor. The Swarmof Flies will drop a Potion of Healing. Ration. Scroll ofRecharging. Scroll of Mirror Image (???).

  You'll find a Scroll of Upgrade, apply it to the armor from Level-1.If you're lucky, the curse will weaken or dissipate. If not use theScroll of Remove Curse to clean it. Don't put on the armor yet,wearing armor you aren't strong enough for slows you down and burnsenergy so you'll need food more quickly. If you're one point ofstrength off and need to tank in a doorway, it'll work but don't runaround with it.

  The chest behind Crystal Door contains Ring of Force, wear it.There are also three scrolls but the ring is better.

• L4: This level spawns a number of Sewer Crabs and Green Slimes. Becareful as you can easily die.

  You'll find a Scroll of Remove Curse, Leather Armor, Potion ofHaste, and Potion of Liquid Flame. There is a Stone of Clairvoyanceand a Stone of Intuition behind a locked door. You'll also find anArcane Stylus, use it to write a glyph onto the Mail armor youupgraded (in my runs it enchanted Viscosity or Brimstone).

  You'll find your second Potion of Strength. Run back up to Level-2to the Alchemy Pot. Create an Alchemical Catalyst using either aPotion of Toxic gas with a less useful seed (blindweed, for example)or start by combining three seeds, discovering a potion if they'reall the same, and a random seed or stone. Use the catalyst toconvert the Potion of Strength into an Elixir of Might. Drink it,gaining strength and hit points. You now have the strength to wearthe upgraded Mail. Equip either the spear or the another non-cursedweapon that matches your strength and return to Level-4. You havesome butt-kicking to do.

  The Sad Ghost offers the Great Crab quest. The trick for defeatingthe Great Crab is to hit it at a distance with the bow then hidebehind doors and corners. Repeat a few times and you'll get aMystery Meat and the ghost's eternal gratitude. The reward howeverwill be a Short Sword or Mail, take either of them since neither oneis upgraded.

  There is a room with a crystal Red Sentry guarding the chest. Usethe Potion of Haste to run past the crystal guardian and take theBattleaxe +1 from the chest. Run back out before your speed returnsto normal. You can't use this yet but hold on to it for later.

  Depending on how much food you have, you can do a little crab andloot farming before going down the stairs to face the first boss.

• L5: Boss Level: Goo.

  Scout around but don't trigger the fight. If your hit points arelow, drink a Potion of Healing before entering. The Rat King's roomis hidden in the top left corner of the room to the right of thestairs, so loot that first.

  Enter from the top and position yourself near the corner. Wait forGoo to approach and when they exit the water attack them, if youhave the spear equipped you may get a shot before they get next toyou but there won't be time to use the bow. Move to the left and hitGoo again. If you see them start to form a buzzing black cloud ofparticles, move away until they stop. Take another shot, thenmove.

  If Goo touches you they'll inflict Caustic Ooze which causes damageuntil you wash it off in water. Ignore it, you should have plenty ofhit points to continue kiting Goo along and striking until you reachthe bottom where they'll die. If you still have the ooze status,duck into the water to remove it. Collect the black drops and thekey to the exit.

  Video: Kiting Sewer Boss Goo

Dungeon

• L6: Shop has Scroll of Magic Mapping, Scroll of Identify x2, Scrollof Remove Curse. Ration. Bolas. Room with four Crystal Doors holdgold, Potion of Paralytic Gas, Scroll of Lullaby, and Scroll ofTransmutation. Potion of Strength. Wand of Disintegration in GoldChest. Transmuting the Ring of Force produces a Ring of Arcana.Potion of Toxic Gas.

  There a numerous wandering Skeletons. Be careful when you're in theshop to not engage in combat. Do not fight a Skeleton or useanything with an area of effect (ex. Potion of Toxic Gas or Scrollof Terror) as that will cause the shopkeeper to immediatelydisappear with any wares you had not yet bought.

• L7: You'll find a Scroll of Recharging, Scroll of Terror, Scroll ofUpgrade, Potion of Healing, a Ration, and a Stone ofEnchantment. Locked room contains Alchemy Pot and Potion of ToxicGas and Stone of Deep Sleep.

  Animated Statue has Elastic Weapon.

  Well of Health is hidden.

• L8: Scroll of Upgrade; Spear in a chest, Potion of Healing in achest, Scroll of Recharging. Potion of Purity.

  You'll find a cursed Unstable Spellbook. Equip it, use a Scroll ofRemove Curse to clean it up, and add the scrolls you can to increaseits level. You should have it to +5. Have fun with it, it casts arandom spell and sometimes these are exactly what you need.

  There is a Treasure Room filled with Poison Gas. Use the ivorypotion and collect the loot. Don't stay too long.

  There is a Garden Room but nothing special in it.

  Old Wandmaker offers Wand of Blast Wave +1 and Wand of Corruption+1. I prefer the Wand of Blast Wave.

• L9: You'll find a Ration, a Scroll of Remove Curse, a Potion of MindVision, Scroll of Recharging, a Potion of Frost, a Potion ofStrength, and a Scroll of Upgrade. A chest holds a Potion ofPurity.

  The Spectral Necromancer always drops a Scroll of Remove Curse.

  There is a Treasure Room with Magical Fire containing gold, a HoneyPot, and an Arcane Stylus.

  Treasure Room with Crystal Chests containing a cursed Ring of Forceand a Wand(???). Potion of Frost. Cursed Mail Armor +1 ofMultiplicity.

• L10: Boss: Tengu

  This fight is in four areas in three stages:

  1. Stage-1, Area-1: A long hallway with four rooms and a locked doorat the South. Preparation, heal yourself and eat some food. Iffor some reason you don't have a scroll holder purchased from theshop, drop all your scrolls except Upgrade, the only one whichdoesn't burn. If you have no open inventory slots drop somethingyou haven't identified yet. You'll find the key to Tengu's cellin the bottom right room.
  2. Stage-1, Area-2: Fighting Tengu in his cell. Tengu will spawnpoison dart traps that become invisible. Stay in one spot andfire arrows at him. If the bow is enchanted, with Fire, Grim, orUnstable, all the better and you might be done in two or threeshots. If you have a Prismatic Image, it will attack him toowithout setting off the traps. As he takes damage, he will spawna new layout of disappearing traps, don't move. When he's reducedto half hit points he will disappear. Any debuffs you applied tohim will be gone. Any status you acquired in this round,ex. poison, will remain until they are cured or timed out.
  3. Stage-2, Area-1: A long hallway with two rooms and a door at theend. If you need to heal or have anything to unload, now is thetime to do it.

  4. Stage-2, Area-2: Fighting Tengu again in an open arena. He'llstart near the top with you near the center left. If you have aPrismatic Image, it will attack. If you have a Honey Pot, throwit two or three positions to Tengu's right. The bee will attackand Tengu will spend most of his attention on it. Strike with thebow.

     Tengu will attack with Shuriken, electric sparks that causedamage when you're in their area of effect, bombs that explodeafter a three count, and walls of smoke and fire that move towardyou. If you have a Glyph of Brimstone on your armor, you'll beimmune to the fire but not to the others. Avoid them and keepattacking with the bow, don't bother trying to get close tohim. When his hit points reach zero, the fight it over and youteleport back to cell where you fought him. You'll find any itemsyou dropped, items that remained or you spawned in the arena, andTengu's Mask.

  5. Stage-3, Area-1: This is like the long hallway of S2:A1but with stairs going down to the next level.

Caverns

• L11: Shop has a Potion Bandolier, Scroll of Magic Mapping, Scroll ofRemove Curse, Scroll of Identity, Potion of Liquid Flame, Potion ofHealing, Potion of Toxic Gas, Potion of Haste, and Potion of MindVision.

  You'll find a Potion of Experience, Potion of Levitation, Potion ofStrength, and a Ration.

  Potion of Mind Vision, Potion of Toxic Gas in Alchemy Room.

  Mimic Chest holds Potion of Frost and Scale Armor +1.

  A Scroll of Upgrade is in a chest in a Chasm Room.

  There is a Chasm Room with a Well. Drop down to it.

• L12: Chasm Room with Well holds Potion of Healing and a Flail +1.

  Room with four graves. There is a Scroll of Transmutation. Use thescroll on the Ring of Force then open the graves.

  You'll find a Scroll of Mirror Image. Torch. Scroll of Upgrade. Wandof Warding +1 and a Pasty.

  Stone of Aggression in Alchemy Room.

  Altar drops a Cursed War Scythe, +1 or +2.

• L13: You'll find a Potion of Liquid Flame, Scroll of Upgrade, Potionof Purity, Scroll of Rage, and Stone of Disarming.

  Mimic Chest near the Piranha holds gold and Ring of Wealth. Use yourScrolls of Upgrade to raise it to Level 4.

  Hidden room contains bombs, Kunai, and Cursed SacrificialCrossbow.

  Barricaded room holds Ration, Potion of Liquid Flame, and Scroll ofRemove Curse.

  Locked room has a chest with gold and a Mimic with a Topaz Ring

• L14: There is a secret room with a maze north of the entryladder. Watch out for traps. The chest has a Crossbow +1.

  Troll Blacksmith quest Bat Blood. Don't use the offer to combineitems yet. Hold off until you've descended and fought the Dwarf Kingso you can decide whether to use it on rings, armor, orweapons. Choose wisely.

  You'll find Javelin x2, Kunai x4, an Arcane Stylus, a Potion ofLevitation, Potion of Strength, a Scroll of Identify, Potion ofHaste, and a Ration.

  Chest contains Scroll of Mirror Image.

  There is a Well of Health if you need it.

  Alarm Trap summons Guardian, defeat it and the enemies drawn toit. Throw anything you can't immediately use or intend to sell overthe chasms to free inventory slots.

  The locked room has a grave with 4 Wraiths, there is a good chancethat one will be a Tormented Spirit, use a Scroll of Remove Curseagainst it and collect the random loot. The grave contains a cursedMail of Stench.

  Return to Level-12 for the Alchemy Pot. Brew the Potion of Strengthinto an Elixir of Might, you probably have to level up one more timebefore you'll get the full benefit so just hold it. If you found aWand of Fire +1 or Disintegration +1 or higher, convert the levelzero Wand of Disintegration found at the beginning to Magic Resin.If you found other low-level wands convert them too. If you're shorton energy, convert any Potions of Liquid Flame to Alchemical energy(you have a wand that will do the job of clearing barricades andwebs).

  Return down and get ready for the next boss fight.

• L15: Boss: DM300

Dwarven Halls

• L16: Shop has Magical Holster, Scroll of Magic Mapping, Scroll ofRemove Curse, Scroll of Identity x2, Scroll of Mirror Image. Buy theHolster completing your set of bags and expanding your hero'sinventory. If it has a Wand of Regrowth and Honey Pot buy them. Ifyou've been following my suggestions around a loot run, make a tripback up to L15 to pick up what you couldn't carry and sell what youdon't need.

  Be very careful on this and the next few levels. If you've beenfollowing my advice, you've put your upgrades into rings for theireffect (and spent two on the Mail) leaving your weapons and armorunder-leveled. Heal frequently.

  When you level up, drink the Elixir of Might to get another point ofstrength and boost your hit points again.

  You'll find a Ration, a Potion of Haste. Skeletal Remains hold arandom item.

  The room with a Piranha in a pond has a Scroll of Teleportation,this is probably what you need to finish leveling the UnstableSpellbook.

  The locked room has a Scroll of Upgrade and Scroll of Identity.Apply the upgrade to the Ring of Wealth.

  The treasure room with two Crystal Doors makes you choose betweenScrolls of Teleportation, Recharging, and Identify x2 or a randomitem in the chest (I found a cursed Ring of Arcana +1).

• L17: You'll find a Scroll of Upgrade, a Potion of Haste, Apply theUpgrade to the Ring of Wealth, with the +3 Ring of Arcana you shouldstart getting some very nice drops.

  A chest has a Potion of Mind Vision.

  A Treasure Room with a Red Sentinel has a chest with a key. Use thePotion of Haste to avoid the sentinel and exit the room.

  Use the key to unlock the Alchemy room, pick up a Potion of Healingand a Potion of Strength. Drink the Potion of Strength attaining 17and hopefully allowing you to use better armor and weapons you'vebeen holding on to.

  You'll meet the Ambitious Imp. He offers the Monk Quest.

• L18: You'll find a Kunai, Scroll of Upgrade, Potion of Healing,Scroll of Remove Curse, and Scroll of Transmutation.

  A Piranha guards a key.

  A hidden room has Scrolls of Rage and Lullaby.

• L19: Immediately to the South of the stairs up is a hidden door with aroom filled with Summoning Traps. Open the door but don't enter,search to reveal the first row of traps. Equip the upgraded Rings ofWealth and Arcana and get ready with two Potions: Toxic and ParalyticGas. Throw the first into the middle of the room, causing all theenemies to spawn. Throw the second into the middle of the roomfreezing them in place. Run away from the door and, if possible, hidebehind grass in case any of the enemies survive. Wait until the toxicgas dissipates and collect your loot. Open the pile of bones for arandom drop. Beware that when you enter the room Golems that werewandering around may teleport in and you'll have to fight them.

  You'll find a Scroll of Terror, a torch, Potion of Invisibility,Ration x2, a Potion of Frost, a Potion of Toxic Gas, and a Potion ofStrength.

  The Piranha room chest holds a Great Shield.

  Behind the locked door are two Crystal Chests: A Horn of Plenty anda Wand (???).

  The second locked door has an Animated Statue with a Great Shield +1.

  Prepare yourself for the next boss fight: The Dwarf King. Using theAlchemy Pot on Level 17 create at least two Potions of Earthen Armorfrom a Potion of Paralytic Gas and a stone or seed. You may alsowant a Potion of Shielding (from a Potion of Health) or Elixir ofArcane Armor (Shielding combined with a black drop from Goo).

• L20: Boss Fight: Dwarf King and his Minions.

  This is a very tough fight if you do not have upgraded armor andweapons. If you're lucky your hero will have one or even both thanksto the Ring of Wealth. If not, you'll need Seeds and Potions tosurvive. If you have a Wand of Fireblast or Corrosion this may be easiersince you can kite and let the area effect wear the enemies down.

  This fight is in three stages:

  1. Wave 1, you fight the Dwarf King. He'll start one on one and whenhe takes damage will summon a dwarf Ghoul. He will draw healthfrom it to keep himself alive. Keep fighting and he'll teleportaway, summoning and leaving you to fight his minions. When fourhave been defeated he'll return to his throne and become invulnerable.
  2. In Wave 2, the Dwarf King will roar and summon multiple dwarfGhouls who swarm you aggressively. You'll have a turn to throwseeds out to welcome them, I recommend Seeds of Icebloom orSorrowmoss because they'll delay the Ghouls and give you a chanceto move. Position yourself near the furrowed grass and a pillar.Fight and move, throwing additional seeds if needed. The DwarfKing will summon at least one Dwarf Wizard. Pay attention to lineof sight for the Wizard as their bolts do more damage than otherenemies and debuff your armor and weapons. Defeat all the minionsand he'll leave his throne with another roar.
  3. Wave 3, you fight the Dwarf King and masses of his minions whichinclude Monks and more Wizards. Again position yourself and tossout seeds to hamper them. Use your potions to protect yourselfand do your best to not get trapped against a wall or on allsides by the aggressive minions. The King takes damage over timeso focus first on the Wizards, then on him, then the Monks, andlast the Ghouls. Pay attention to your health and make yourselfinvisible with a potion or Seed of Blindweed if you need relief.

  When the Dwarf King finally dies, he'll drop his crown. Do not wearit yet! It will transform your armor. First, you want to make sureyou have end-game armor, probably Plate Mail +3 or higher. If youdon't just hold onto it or if you still have the Troll Blacksmith'soffer consider ascending to get the extra upgrade.

  When you pass through the Dwarf King's hall you'll find a shop,tended by the Ambitious Imp. Buy what you need and descend.

Demon Halls

• L21:

This is another good seed for learning and experimenting. I'm going tospot you just the discoveries and some hints so you can get a solidgrasp on the game.

Hints and spoilers:

• L1 has an uncursed Ring of Sharpshooting.
• The Sad Ghost is on L2 and offers the Fetid Rat quest. Beforeaccepting it, descend to L4 and collect your Scrolls of Upgrade,apply those to the ring. One or two shots from the bow will kill it.Take the Mail Armor, it's +3.
• The artifact in the crystal chest on L2 is an uncursed Horn ofPlenty. Take it and upgrade it.
• The Altar on L3 drops a cursed +1 Round Shield.
• The Wandmaker on L8 offers the Rotberry Quest.
• The Piranha Room on L8 includes a Phantom Piranha. The Runic Bladeis +1 uncursed.
• One Crystal Chest on L11 is a Mimic.
• The Chest protected by a Red Sentry on L14 contains a uncursed +2Scale Mail.
• There's a hidden Stone of Enchantment on L14.
• The Piranha Room on L17 has another Phantom Piranha.

This is a great one for learning because it starts you off with a fullcomplement of armor and weapon. I'm going to provide only a fewspoilers for the Sewers:

• The Potion of Strength is Charcoal.
• The Potion of Healing is Bistre.
• The Leather Armor behind the locked door on L1 is +2 uncursed. Putan upgrade on it for +3 and with a lucky glyph you're good until theCaverns.
• The blocking shortsword in the Golden Chest on L2 is +1 uncursed.
• There's a hidden room above the Mimic on L2 full of Summoningtraps. You know what to do (hint, use Toxic Gas then mop up in meleewith your fancy upgraded armor and shortsword).
• The Amethyst Ring in the chest behind the Crystal Door on L4 is aRing of Sharpshooting +1. Upgrade it as soon as you can.

You've got this one!

And some invisible attributes including:

• Attack Skill 10
• Defense 5

that, respectively, have minor influence on attacks and defensivemaneuvers including evasion, blocking, parry, and the Duelist's Feintand Defensive Stance. You'll only notice the base Attack Skill if youmistakenly attack enemies barehanded without equipping a Ring of Force.