A bow or staff is also essential so that ranged enemies can be killed without any unwanted hassle. In a similar vein to your stats, try and make sure you are well equipped early on in order to gain the upper hand as quickly as possible. Enemies have the chance of dropping valuable equipment or vendors may crop up on one of the tiles, offering tantalising goodies in exchange for the gold you have been accruing on your travels. You have a little more choice in equipment due to the fact you are given two equipment loads to work with. Therefore it is advised that you try and stick to a specific playstyle so you have the best possible chance of progressing up floors without the risk of death. Strength, dexterity, intelligence, and stamina are your core stats, but only one can be levelled up by one point whenever you gain a new level. Like any RPG, Runestone Keeper allows you to level up and gain better equipment. The more of the grid you uncover, the more dangers you will find. These three aspects of character management help to add another layer of depth to what is a simple and accessible game. You will find many of these at regular intervals so it is worth deducing which item is better being left behind in place of a more useful item for your current situation. Up to three items can be equipped at a time and they have varying effects. Soul points are acquired as you naturally uncover more of the grid and these are consumed whenever an item is used. Mana sits in tandem with your abilities, one of which is always unlocked at the beginning of all playthroughs, so it's also important keep tabs on how much mana you currently have and grab any opportunity to unlock more abilities to hinder the power of enemies. Permadeath is a core aspect of Runestone Keeper, so one must always be on the lookout for the hearts of life scattered throughout each floor. For those who are unacquainted with the genre or are expecting something a little more riveting, it may prove difficult to enjoy at first, but as you progress further into a dungeon, more gameplay options start to open up.Īside from exploring the grid, your own character has health, mana and soul points to manage, with health obviously being the most important. This mechanic is incredibly simple as it amounts to essentially just clicking on squares to progress. All of these stand between you and the exit, and it is entirely up to you whether you escape straight to the next floor upon discovering the exit or continue your exploration for extra rewards and encounters. A tile may either possess an environmental trap, which is obviously detrimental to your health, a special item for you to save and use later, or an enemy to be defeated or potentially avoided. If you want to find the exit and escape, keep clicking on more tiles!Īs you begin on each floor, you must continue to reveal more of the grid until you reach specific scenarios.

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