FIELD GUIDE — v0.0.14
Everything the dark throws at you — every enemy and boss, every pickup and soul upgrade, every material, liquid, biome, and room archetype. Compiled from the game itself.
A run descends through four biomes in fixed order — Ash Fields → Frozen Hollow → Rotting Garden → Storm Foundry — each with 6–8 rooms. Every third room is a safe Sanctum, the last room of each segment is a Miniboss, and the final room holds the run's Boss. Death ends the run.
| Room | Chance | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Combat | 68% | The default room: enemies, pickups, and a route forward. |
| Treasure | 16% | Fewer threats, richer rewards — often with a hidden secret vault. |
| Challenge | 16% | Harder layouts (Bridge / Vertical / Tower / Gauntlet) and +1 enemy. |
| Sanctum | every 3rd room | No enemies. A soul altar offers permanent run upgrades for Essence. |
| Miniboss / Boss | segment ends | Open Arena layout. The final boss room adds two Bombers and a fixed 1.7× stat scale. |
Instability rises from 1 to 5 as you descend (min(5, 1 + depth/4)).
It increases enemy counts, room complexity, hazard count, and terrain erosion — and scales miniboss stats up to 2.0×.
| Level | Depth | Structures | Hazards | Secrets |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0–3 | 4 | 0 | 15% |
| 2 | 4–7 | 6 | 1 | 30% |
| 3 | 8–11 | 8 | 2 | 40% |
| 4 | 12–15 | 10 | 3 | 55% |
| 5 | 16+ | 12 | 4 | 70% |
ASH FIELDS
Colossus
FROZEN HOLLOW
Hollow Choir
ROTTING GARDEN
Wraith
STORM FOUNDRY
Random (1.7×) + 2 Bombers
Every enemy is a cluster of glowing particles. All melee hits deal a flat 12 damage (reducible with Bone Wall); only projectiles have their own damage values. Enemies standing on reactive materials take Burn, Poison, Frozen, or Shock over time.
The basic hopper. Squash-and-stretch hops toward you when it has line of sight. Giant → 2 Medium, Medium → 2 Small — killing the big ones feeds the swarm.
| Size | HP | Speed | Essence | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small | 45 | 108 px/s | 2 | Fastest, least HP. Does not split. |
| Medium | 120 | 74 px/s | 4 | Splits into 2 Small. |
| Giant | 300 | 48 px/s | 8 | Elite — bonus drops. Splits into 2 Medium. Forge content only. |
A charred husk that walks in from afar, then holds position and never retreats. Its core flares and a charge orb grows at the muzzle during the 0.5–0.7s windup — that's your dodge window. Fires a single EmberShot (10 dmg, 540 px/s) aimed at your chest.
| HP | Range band | Cycle | Essence |
|---|---|---|---|
| 55 | 340–560 px (holds once in band) | windup 0.5–0.7s → fire → cooldown 1.1–1.7s | 4 |
SPAWNS: ASH FIELDS · STORM FOUNDRY (15% of enemy rolls)
A swollen rot bulb at closer range. Lobs a three-way fan of SporeBursts (±15° spread; 7 dmg each, 300 px/s) with a longer windup (0.65–0.9s). Positioning sideways makes the middle spore miss you.
| HP | Range band | Cycle | Essence |
|---|---|---|---|
| 45 | 240–420 px | windup 0.65–0.9s → fan ×3 → cooldown 1.4–2.2s | 3 |
SPAWNS: FROZEN HOLLOW · ROTTING GARDEN (15% of enemy rolls)
Ember sludge that chases at 175 px/s once it sees you. Within 95 px it arms: stops, pulses white-hot for 0.75s (a translucent danger circle appears), then detonates — 12 damage in a 120 px blast and terrain destruction (85 px radius) that can collapse the floor under you. It only explodes if it arms first; kill it before the flash.
| HP | Arm range | Fuse | Blast | Essence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 45 | 95 px | 0.75 s | 120 px player / 85 px terrain | 3 |
A dormant cluster of stone particles that reads as a harmless outcrop — only a subtle warm pulse gives it away. Step within ~175 px and it wakes in a burst of dust, then hops aggressively (165 px/s). It can be destroyed while asleep, and its HP bar is purple — the only enemy with one. Once awake it never sleeps again.
| HP | Wake range | Speed (awake) | Essence |
|---|---|---|---|
| 35 | ~175 px horizontal / 100 px vertical | 165 px/s hopping | 3 |
Bosses ignore the pit rule — drop them off a ledge and they re-emerge. Each has a phase 2 at reduced HP.
A huge segmented stone brute. Damage lands on a random part — destroy the Torso to expose the Core (which then takes 4× damage weight). Breaking parts spawns Small sludges and drops essence wisps. It deliberately spares the ground under its own feet. Phase 2 below 45% part HP: faster, red-tinted.
| Attack | Tell | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Swipe | 0.4s windup, close range | 130×40 arc at foot level; also chips the floor ahead of it. |
| Slam | 0.55s lift (34 px) | Wide 350×55 zone + terrain damage at both feet; slow-mo on impact. |
| Lunge | 0.35s windup, long range | Dashes at 640 px/s (760 p2), scorching terrain along the path. |
| Blink | you stand still ≥2.5s | Reappears beside you, then slams — don't turtle. |
| Part | HP (× scale) | On break |
|---|---|---|
| Head | 90 | Spawns 1 Small sludge. |
| Arms (×2) | 70 each | Each spawns 1 Small sludge. |
| Torso | 150 | Spawns 2 Small sludges and exposes the Core. |
| Core | 170 | Kills the Colossus. Total: 550 × scale (935 at final-boss 1.7×). |
A hovering cluster of four hollow eyes that track you. It keeps its distance, wails piercing void shots, calls down rockfalls that chew up the floor under you, and summons adds every 7s so it can never be solo-focused. A landed Bellow also corrupts you. Phase 2 below 50%: five-shot wails, lobbed bellows, faster cycle.
| Attack | Tell | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Wail | core flares 0.5–0.7s | Fan of 3 WailShots (9 dmg, pierce 1; 5 in p2) across ±32°. |
| Bellow | growing orange disc at the target point | Destroys terrain in a 95 px circle (120 p2); 12 dmg zone + Corrupt if you're inside. |
| Summon | every 7s (4.5–6.5s p2) | Spawns a Small sludge or Bomber below itself, up to 3 adds (4 in p2). |
HP: 430 × scale (731 at final-boss 1.7×) · ESSENCE: 18
A sleek cyan blade of light that phases through stone. Most of the time it is veiled and takes only 15% damage — its one true window is the brief Recover (0.6s) after each strike, when it blazes white inside a shrinking ring. The whole fight is bait-and-punish: dodge, then unload. Phase 2 below 40%: faster everything.
| Attack | Tell | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Dash | 260 px blade-line telegraph, 0.3s | Swept strike at 820 px/s (980 p2). |
| Spin | faint circle r=120 (150 p2) | 360° burst when you're close (<150 px). |
| ShadowStep | 0.14s fade — you stood still ≥2s or it whiffed twice | Reappears beside you and immediately winds up a dash. |
HP: 300 × scale (510 at final-boss 1.7×) · ESSENCE: 15
Every kill drops essence worth round(EssenceValue × (1 + 0.5 × Soul Harvest stacks)) as a 40/60
EssenceWisp / SoulShard split. Elites (the three bosses, Giant sludge) roll a 45% chance of an extra SoulCore or SoulSurge;
other enemies have a 7% recovery drop. Enemies also emit harvestable matter on death — Sludge → Toxic, Bomber → Ember, all others → Spirit.
Pickups spiral into you inside their magnet radius. Essence is the run currency — spend it on soul upgrades at Sanctum altars. Temporary buffs refresh their timer when re-picked (they never stack durations) and all clear on death.
+1 Essence. The most common room pickup; also marks branch routes as a trail.
Essence crystal; enemy drops scale with the killer's harvest stacks. Guaranteed ×2 when you clear an encounter.
+1 Essence — worth +3 when found in branch or secret reward zones. Largest magnet pull.
Heals 15 HP. No magnet — walk over it. More likely to appear when you're hurt.
+4 Essence in one. From elite drops, encounter clears (8%), and secret zones.
+1 to one of six material counters (Ember, Frost, Toxic, Electric, Spirit, Void). Also released by smashing resource-cache structures in branch zones.
Lore collectible — secret zones only (3.5% roll).
Run counter from branch rewards. A reserved hook — no spend yet.
Run counter from rare branch rewards. A reserved hook — no spend yet.
| Pickup | Rarity | Duration | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| SoulSurge | Uncommon | 25 s | All damage dealt ×1.3. |
| SoulMagnet | Uncommon | 25 s | Pickup magnet radius ×2.4. |
| SpiritShield | Uncommon | 30 s | Absorbs up to 25 shield HP (refresh caps at 40). DoTs drain the shield. |
| ReaperHaste | Uncommon | 20 s | Dash cooldown −25% (movement speed unchanged). |
| DeathWard | Rare | 45 s | The next direct hit is fully negated. DoTs don't consume it. |
| ScytheCharge | Rare | 40 s | Your next Heavy or Special attack deals ×1.8 damage — consumed on use. |
Main-path pickups are 75% SoulMote / 25% SoulShard, with recovery slots (12% LifeFragment, else EssenceWisp) and optional branches/secret vaults rolling the reward table — rare odds rise from 10% (branch) to 65% (secret), +1% per depth level. Treasure rooms without a secret roll the high-risk table instead.
In every Sanctum, commune with the altar to be offered three distinct upgrades (at least one affordable when possible). Pay in Essence; stacks persist for the run and reset on death. Left/Right to browse, Jump or Attack to take.
| Upgrade | Cost | Max | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| SHATTER SOUL | 4 | 3 | Structural damage +60% per stack — the world breaks faster. |
| REAPER'S EDGE | 3 | 3 | Scythe and special damage +25% per stack. |
| EMBER SOUL | 4 | 2 | Your hits ignite enemies: Burn for 2.5 + 1.5×stacks s at 4 dmg/tick. |
| GRAVITY SOUL | 4 | 2 | Special blast radius +35% per stack. |
| SOUL HARVEST | 3 | 2 | Enemy essence drops +50% per stack. |
| BONE VITALITY | 3 | 3 | +25 max HP and heal 25 now, per stack (base 100 HP). |
| SWIFT SOUL | 3 | 2 | Dash cooldown ×0.7 per stack (×0.49 at max — multiplicative). |
| VOID TOUCH | 5 | 2 | Your hits corrupt enemies: 2 s at 3 + stacks dmg/tick. |
| SWARM SEED | 5 | 2 | Kills burst into a shockwave — all enemies within 85 px take 15 + 5×stacks damage. |
| BONE WALL | 4 | 2 | Contact damage taken ×0.7 per stack (multiplicative). |
A full build is 21 stacks ≈ 78 Essence — a long-run investment. Early-game value: Bone Vitality (survival), Reaper's Edge (dps), Shatter Soul (mobility through terrain). Ember/Void Touch turn your melee into a status applier, and Swarm Seed snowballs in sludge rooms.
DoTs tick every 0.8 s; re-applying refreshes the duration but keeps the original damage per tick.
| Effect | Type | On enemies | On player | Common sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burn | DoT | 3 s @ 6/tick | 3 s @ 5/tick | Ember terrain, Ember soul bolts, Ember Soul upgrade, ember+toxic reactions. |
| Poison | DoT | 4 s @ 4/tick | 4 s @ 3/tick | Toxic terrain, Toxic soul bolts, Acid immersion (8 DPS + 1.2 s tail), ember+toxic explosions. |
| Frozen | Slow | 2.5 s, speed ×0.45 | 2.2 s, speed ×0.45 | Frost terrain, Frost soul bolts. No damage. |
| Shock | DoT + slow | 1.8 s @ 3/tick, speed ×0.72 | — | Voltaic terrain, destroyed Voltaic cells (discharge r=130 px), Voltaic soul bolts. |
| Corrupt | DoT | 2 s @ 3+stacks/tick (Void Touch) | 1.5 s @ 4/tick (Void terrain) · 3 s @ 2/tick (Hollow Choir bellow) | Void terrain, Void soul bolts, Hollow Choir. |
| Surge | Buff | — | 2.5 s, speed ×1.38 | Voltaic terrain — a hazard for enemies, a boost for you. |
| Blessed | Buff | — | 8 s, damage ×1.4 | Celestial terrain (rare — prototype rooms and creator content). |
The world is a grid of 12 px cells. Every cell is solid and breakable (except indestructible portal pedestals). A cell cracks below 50% integrity and breaks at zero — then anything not connected to the floor falls away, so undermining collapses platforms. Broken cells release harvestable matter for your soul bolts.
| Material | Integrity | Standing on it | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stone | 100 | Nothing — the neutral base. | Every biome's safe floor base, bridges, arches, walls. The first 320 px of any floor is forced to Stone so you never spawn on a hazard. |
| Ember | 80 | Burn 3 s @ 5/tick | Self-illuminating with a flame flicker. Random accent strips on Ash Fields floors. |
| Frost | 90 | Frozen 2.2 s (speed ×0.45, no damage) | Strong until cracked, then shatters. Frozen Hollow ground is also globally slippery. |
| Toxic | 70 | Poison 4 s @ 3/tick | Rotting Garden's organic material — broken cells can regrow. |
| Voltaic | 85 | Surge 2.5 s — speed ×1.38 (a buff for you) | Enemies get Shock instead. Destroyed cells discharge: Shock + 8 dmg to enemies within 130 px. |
| Void | 60 | Corrupt 1.5 s @ 4/tick (instant trigger) | Weakest material and the most dangerous: corrodes adjacent cells (−35 integrity) when destroyed, annihilates Spirit. |
| Spirit | 65 | Instant heal of 6 HP (sparkle burst) | The blessing material — default imbue for soul bolts. Annihilates Void when one is destroyed. |
| Death | 95 | Nothing — inert and dim. | Tough but dormant. Not placed by generated biomes today; Death-imbued soul bolts hit with ×1.6 knockback. |
| Celestial | 120 (toughest) | Blessed 8 s — damage ×1.4 | The hardest material and brightest glow. Rare: prototype rooms and creator content; Celestial bolts deal ×1.5 damage. |
When a destroyed cell's neighbor is a different material:
Broken cells and killed enemies emit harvestable matter (capacity 100, the thin cyan HUD bar). Soul Pull gathers it; your soul bolt is imbued with the last absorbed material — taking its color, hit status, and physical traits.
Rooms can contain flowing liquids fed by sources, steered by currents, and removed by drains. Full effect kicks in at about 24 px of depth. Boss and miniboss rooms never get liquids.
| Liquid | Immersion | Movement | Where it appears |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water | No damage. Extinguishes Burn. | Run speed ×0.82 at full depth. | Ash Fields, Frozen Hollow (70–80% of rooms get a pool). |
| Acid | 8 DPS while immersed, with a 1.2 s tail after you leave. | Run speed ×0.85 at full depth. | Storm Foundry. |
| Sludge | No damage — it's a trap of mobility. | Run ×0.55, jump ×0.72, dash ×0.60 at full depth. Very viscous (flows slow). | Rotting Garden. |
Fountains and jets emit volume per second (rate × pressure). Waterfalls dry up if you break the pool floor — emission pauses unless liquid exists below.
Invisible push zones (24–48 px/s² in generated rooms) that steer you across pools — "steers rather than traps." Bosses resist at 25% strength.
Suck liquid out of a region per second; can be filtered to specific kinds. Pairs with waterfalls to keep pools stable.
LAVA · ESSENCE · VOID LIQUIDS ARE RESERVED FOR FUTURE CONTENT
A biome is the material language of a region: which materials appear, how tough structures are, and its passive behavior.
Fire and weak stone — the lowest integrity (×0.80) and most collapsing terrain. Only small ember strips burn; never a full fire floor.
Ice. Strong until cracked, then it shatters — and the ground is slippery (ground acceleration drops from 2600 to 700). The brightest biome.
Poison. Organic structures slowly grow back — broken cells with enough solid neighbors reappear at 60% integrity. Spores drift upward.
Metal and electricity — the densest structures (integrity ×1.30) and the most enemies per room. Voltaic floors boost your speed but shock enemies.
Late-game region: structures continually mutate — a random cell changes material (Void, Toxic, Ember, Frost, Spirit) over time. Heaviest enemy load (3–5).
Nine layout families, weighted by room role and biome preference. Boss rooms are always Arena; Sanctums are always Traversal.
The default room: full floor, a zigzag slab climb into the upper half, walls and side islands, plus a bonus silhouette (arch, mound, stalactite, or tray).
A narrow shaft — a full-height zigzag climb from floor to near the ceiling with scattered islands.
Open boss arena: flat floor with a few low cover walls and double-jump-reachable slabs. Always used for Miniboss/Boss rooms.
Raised banks around a central chasm crossed by a stone bridge with an arch beneath and a high gallery above. The chasm is a liquid basin.
Raised floor with a mid-room pit bridged by stone, a hollow pocket carved high in the wall, and a liquid basin below.
Up to 7 stacked tier floors at 300 px spacing, each with a gap and a two-slab staircase; islands drift between tiers.
Raised banks over a low valley crossed by chains of floating islands, occasionally wadeable liquid trays, and a second higher chain.
The longest, narrowest rooms: a raised floor with a bridged pit, then walls and an obelisk to weave through.
A stone vault pocket near the room top, reached by a slab ladder. Inside: a fragile Spirit shelf and the treasure cache. Treasure rooms only.