1. Anywhere in the guide where there are references to "save scum" practice, that is no longer possible because the game doesn't reset to the "before encounter" state and instead puts you right at the moment you exited. Note: There are still some ways you can trick this a little bit at some decision points , but I won't mention it so devs don't close these tiny gameplay loopholes lol.

2. Some achievements may have their conditions changed but I've kept every initial guide information intact because it can still provide guidance and ideas to any potential player. It will require strategy adjustments but that's the fun of playing the game.

3. Shards can be recovered from spells and spell disenchantment is now done directly in the spell list without the need to be in a shop, so you can upgrade any spell without risk until you no longer need it.

4. You can reset your turn once, so you can test a daring all-in strategy with a sub-optimal build and then retry it, but next time it will really be an all-in scenario, so hopefully, you can adjust. I've had some runs saved by this by changing the order of spells ever so slightly or using a different dice at a crucial point.

Goal: Spend 20+ Dice to cast a single Countdown Spell.
Game version: 0.9.1b10

Character used: Azar (fire)

Spells used:

Fragmentize (uncommon) (preferably upgraded)


Flame Storm (rare)


Strategy:

Flame Storm is a countdown type spell with a "20" value. Filling this spell with only "1" value dice and using it on enemies will grant you the achievement at the end of your current run. The easiest way to consistently have "1" value dice is to use Fragmentize spell. Basic spell will split 2s and 3s into 1s, upgraded spell will split anything from 2 to 5 (included) into 1s. This achievement can be done at any difficulty, however, fighting the easiest encounter and having the least amount of enemies left on the screen will benefit you. Having an artifact that increases your chance to acquire rare spells is also beneficial. Rerolling spell choices or visiting shops can help you acquire both spells.

Note: Try not to have any artifacts that decrease countdown spells, do not use any potions that affect countdowns and do not use any countdown related rituals or special dice (ether, for example).

Game version: 0.9.3b26
Beat the game without losing any health
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Character: Hazel (Loadout B)

Start the game on the easiest difficulty and prioritize blockling in the early game to make sure you don't get damaged during the stage of the game when you have the least flexibility of spells and the least amount of dice to play with.

My strategy was to balance the defense/attack cards so I could make every battle quick while having a safety net in case enemies get to attack due to bad dice rolls. I also avoided elite battles early on because of lucky map generation that provided many free shards for spell upgrades. For the final boss I focused on building barrier stacks , so I wouldn't need to spend all the dice on defense and instead build power and attack.

Fortify from Natural Hardiness on the 1st turn helped build up block from other defensive spells and Stone Meld ensured that there would be enough block for the closing battles. Gaia's Wrath and Ultimate Power provided the power boost for my only source of damage - Force of Nature (which can also be used for building up block). Of course other spells were used in other stages of the game, where convenient. All spells used are from the Earth collection, so there's no need to get lucky with void rolls or events. But I used two rare spells in this strategy, which depends on getting somewhat lucky. There are other spells in this character's collection which don't require power to ramp up (Growing Blade).

If you're not confident in your defense pick rituals and artifacts that help with that, avoid artifacts and rituals that damage you and anything that applies poison to self, because block will not stop this kind of damage. Look out for any thorns on the enemies or any negative effects on your cards that increase damage against you or give retaliation damage (Ignite).

Game version: 0.9.3b26
Roll 50 dice in a single turn
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Character: Lapis (Loadout C), Waveshift signature spells helps with getting consistent high dice values.

At the start of the game prioritize defense and attack spells which will carry you through the first map. If you focus reroll cards you will not be able to sustain yourself against the boss or even some early enemies. You will probably not be able to roll 50 dice in one turn until the 3rd and final map anyway and by that time you are almost guaranteed to have proper artifacts, rituals, potions and cards to make it happen.

I was able to complete this achievement by using upgraded Invoke Mana (void spell, getting this depends on your RNG luck), Channel Azur, Cold Snap (very important due to Concoction upgrade) and Flowing Mana potion plus Realm Warp ritual. You can get away with using just one potion if you have the ritual. However, if you can get 2 or 3 potions that will make everything so much easier.

My strategy during the battle in which I completed the achievement was: set up initial dice rolls for the next round by using Channel Azur as many times as possible (at least 3 extra dice rolled next round). Then use the dice rolled in the next round to execute multiple Cold Snap -> Invoke Mana combos. Make sure you have at least one 6 value dice before you do that, in order not to waste the Concoction buff because it only affects the next spell cast. You will be able to get 9 more dice rolled.

When you're going for the achievement, don't forget to count how many dice you rolled so far. That way you will be sure that using your potion(s) or rituals can get you to 50 rolls and you won't have to restart the fight. For me it was easy because of the Riptide spell. All I had to do was just calculate the number based on current spell damage. In my case with 14 dice on the board I needed at least 22 prior dice rolled. Using the potion and the ritual provided another 14+14 (28) dice rolls. At that point if you have any Waveshift left or any other spell which can add rolls (like Arctic Point), use those.

Game version: 0.9.3b26
Beat the game under 45 minutes
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Character: Hazel (Loadout B)

Start the game on the easiest difficulty and focus damage while having just enough block build up to survive the initial and late game battles. Try to acquire damage increasing or pure damage rituals and highly attack oriented cards because damage is key to quickly going through map zones. Marked/Critical/Fury/Power spells and artifact will also help blast through every battle. Going through paths with the least amount of battle and going for shards/shops/events and sanctuaries instead is preferrable, even if you don't need to used them. Just skip to save time. If you can't pass the 1st map zone in 15 minutes or less and feel like you don't have enough of a foundation to speed up in the 2nd and 3rd zone - restart the run.

I was lucky to get the Giant's Pouch artifact, which allowed me to buy large quantity of artifacts that together made the 2nd half of the game extremely easy. I didn't have Darkwraith Scythe, but if you can afford to have 1 less dice roll every turn, extra damage from this artifact will easily defeat most enemies.

Card builds are not very restricted for this achievement, however, I benefited from upgraded Granite Guard which generates huge block numbers in the difficult moments. Main source of damage was Fixation , which applies marked status. I improved it's damage by using Rituals to create power stacks and add flat damage to the spell. You can also use your favorite attacking spell combos.

Achievement: Have 6 different types of enchanted Dice.

Character: Hazel

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3368539948

1. Sapling. Done with the starter spell upgraded to enchant any 1s with Sapling.
2. Vex. Enemy debuff.
3. Manifold. Ritual effect.
4. Energized. Ritual effect.
5. Glimmer. Gleaming Mana spell effect.
6. Ether. Ether Echo spell effect. Artifact that rolls Ether dice on turn 1 is also present but it takes more than 1 turn to roll Energized, so it wouldn't work in this situation.

Achievement goal: Win a Run with no more than 1 Artifact.

This means you can only pick your starter artifact and you have to skip boss rewards, shop bought artifact, event artifacts and any artifact at all.
This also restricts the total number of dice you will be able to roll in later maps , so preferably pick strong low cost spells and try to acquire as many shards early on as possible to upgrade your best spells. This challenge is best completed on the easiest difficulty.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3369062963

This build is just an example of a possible win condition and it required a few save scum resets, because it's not 100% reliable.

Regrowth spell upgraded with sapling allowed saving dice for future turns if RNG wasn't optimal.
Bulwark is just the best low cost block spell I was able to roll in this run. This can be optimized to your taste.
Spring to Action spell upgraded allowed low cost decent block build up.
Stone Meld allowed sharply increasing block value for survivability.
Proliferate upgraded with extra charge allowed dependable damage scaling for later levels where enemies are tanky.
Earthquake is my preferred damage spell in challenge situations because it hits all enemies. Damage rune for a small extra damage.
Thornlash was my choice for concentrated single target damage just in case.

Rituals: Sapling ritual for preparing next turn or getting extra usable dice. Manifold dice ritual for bonus block/damage when needed.

Goal: deal 2000 damage in one attack/hit

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3369105810

How this worked:
Hailstorm ritual provided most of the damage, supported by upgraded Glimpse of the Void spell and Prescience.

I focused Potency buff early on to increase the number of dice rolls with the least risk and potential enemy damage. Being able to tank a few hits helped ramp up the dice number and survivability to the point even maxed out enemy configuration couldn't damage my mage.

This build can also complete Devastator achievement (200 damage in one hit), Obliterator (Deal 500 Damage in a single hit), Archmage (Roll 50 Dice in a single turn) with a bit of luck and patience/ a reroll potion, Dice Hoarder (Have 25 available Dice), Anger Issues (Have a stack of 100 Fury.), Ahead of the Heads (Kill the Hydra without cutting off any heads first.), if you do not do any damage and just focus your block and support spells all the way through.

Additional Comment:

For power stacking, Hazel's Proliferate gives you 1 grow on every cast, stacking your power growth every turn. Another Hazel spell - Ultimate Power doubles your power. It's unrestorable initially, but you can upgrade it to be a restorable spell to be able to keep doubling your power endlessly. Eventually you will have enough power to do thousands of damage with any attack spell. Power artifacts will speed up the process. Having enough defensive spells and ability to keep your block between rounds (Tenacity buff or any partial block retention artifacts or delayed block) will help you to last enough round against even a strong enemy to scale your power.

If you prefer Fury, stack as much Hailstorm buff as possible and as much dice rolling/re-re rolling as you can. Do not cast an attack, until you have a desired amount of damage, because Fury is only good for one attack, unlike power buff.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3370686085

Achievement goal: have 750 gold in hand
This can be done by prioritizing event nodes, fighting as many elite fights as possible for extra gold, not rerolling anything and not buying anything in shops and selling all your cards at the last shop in zone 3 for the final boost.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3375037539

Goal: Cast 5 spells with a single dice.

This one is quite straight forward. You need to start a run with Azar and acquire the rare Furnace spell. Once you have this, you need 4 other countdown spells to make it 5 total (because Furnace also counts). Calculate how many dice you need to put into Furnace to cast all your spells. In this case I need at least 5 dice to cast the most costly 10 value spell.

Goal: Win a battle without using dice

For this you will need potions.
Spike Seed will give you 5 thorns. That's 5 damage per enemy attack.
Toxic Vial applies poison to enemies but it's not as reliable as thorns , because it counts down every turn.
Blast Pot and Holy Water give raw 15 and 30 damage to any opponent.
Volatile Concoction gives damage equal to total value of your dice.

Collect as many of these potions as you can, preferably in the 1st zone and skip all your turns. Hopefully, you have enough HP to tank enemy attacks until they eliminate themselves by thorns/poison.

Goal : beat the final boss with a single active spell

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3377788361/

Should be done on the easiest game difficulty.
I preferred an attacking spell and attacking/defensive rituals while collecting as many artifacts as possible.

Make sure to ether sell or disenchant most of your spells before the final boss or you will not be able to reduce your active spell count to 1.

This can take a few savescum attempts to get right even if you have the necessary setup.

My final boss was the newer guy, so I had to focus him rather than his "hands" because that gave me more dps value and less incoming damage.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3497072988

Goal: Lose 50 Health by damaging yourself in one turn.

Can be done by any character

Look for the regular encounter with a spell shield giving enemy. (This is going to be available in the 3rd act , Void map).
Once you have set up your high damage spell and if you have 50+ health available to lose, attack the enemy which received the buff from the enemy support unit. It will return the damage to you.
Even if you're going to lose the run (like I did in the screenshot), the goal here is to get the achievement.

Goal: win a battle with 25 or more HP than you started with.

This does NOT mean finish any battle with extra max hp gained throughout the run.
It means you have to heal at least 25 HP and win a battle.
To do this, you have to enter a battle against a high HP opponent while you are missing at least 25 hp.

To be safe, it's better to have extra missing HP and a reliable blocking system, so you don't lose any more HP. The best way to recover HP is to use a Vampire Essence potion which gives you lifesteal.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3557452030
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3557452016

I managed to do this with Sefyra, while chasing a different achievement. I got Tenacity to keep block, Darkwraith Scythe to double my damage reliably, Thunderbird's Gift spell to get Grow buff and easy power scaling. Having a Static based build helped build my block through static conversion , and static was very easy to create with other artifacts and Absorb Potential/ Conjugate Static combo.

Goal: Kill both Shadowfire Twins (act 2 boss) with one spell cast.
Note: you have to use a spell and not other means.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3557452047

I managed to do this rather easily, by wearing down both twins at the same rate, so they both had same low HP at the later stage of the battle. Then I hit them with a spell which naturally hits both enemies at the same time. Having a Death Pact ritual also helps ensure the outcome.

There are multiple ways to do this, but I think that a high damage spell and Death Pact is more reliable than other methods.

Goal: Kill Umbraxis with 13 or more Prophecy

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3554085892

Umbraxis occasionally debuffs your spells with Predicted. When you use these spells, Umbraxis gets a stack of Prophecy which boosts his hands making a fight more difficult.

Just hit these debuffed spells at least 13 times and then defeat the boss.

In this particular battle I was chasing another achievement, 20 mutator victory, however, I couldn't get that many, so I tried to use my build to the fullest and tackle this achievement instead.

Any strong build can be used at any difficulty, just remember to boost Umbraxis to 13+ stacks of Prophecy. I ended up with 26, because I felt like I could easily boost at every opportunity and still win.

Descent 9 (pre-1.0)

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3370029160
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3370029174

Character: Hazel

Block mostly gained through retention with the help of Tenacity buff artifact and the Power Nexus spell ramp up (which also helped get the damage up). Convoke spell helped with this particular final boss and freed up a slot for a ritual other than life link. Growing blade also helped get single target damage up and served as the 2nd damage spell for this build.

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Descent 10 (1.0 version)

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3484867650

Pretty safe Lapis run prioritizing block and damage scaling through poison/ toxic skin. Tenacity for block retention is important.

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Descent 11 (1.0 version)

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3493631335

Character: Sefyra

This build scaled damage by using Grow buff from Thunderbird's gift, upgraded to only use 1 static for easier and reliable casting. Red Minerals artifacts added charges to spells and cascade allowed for increasing dice amount to cast as many spells as possible. To survive early game I focused on block spells and tried to do damage with only one spell until scaling became available later on and supplemented damage.

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Descent 12 (1.0 version)

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3493729384

Character: Sefyra

This run focused once again on generating extra charges on spells, multiplication of dice and extra block. However, the most important piece of the puzzle was Fateweaving ritual which let me save unused dice for next turn and plan future casts to ensure the spell engine worked. Damned Shield artifact also provided scaling damage at the small cost of 1 Sap.

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Descent 13 (1.0 version)

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3494532674
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3494532692
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3494532702

Character: Sefyra

Slightly improved build from the last run changed to take more advantage of cascade and manifold while still generating extra charges for spells. This time without power scaling

Proof of max victory / latest update

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3292822009
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3292822029

Mutation: Receive 10 damage at the end of every round (20 mutation points)

Max focus on block generation and synergy plus a single attack spell supplemented by damage increasing ritual and Toxic Skin.

Glaciate with 2x delayed block upgrade and manifold dice creates 16 delayed block on 4 value dice which is easy to get by using even valued reroll blocking spells.

Result: no damage final boss run

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3293999792
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3293999774

Same mutation curse on a different character
Spirit Arrow hits 5 times (artifact that counts all dice as +1) for big damage once power is high enough.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3297055112
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3297055099

Mutations (total 20 points):
1. enemies start with 3 power
2. player receives 5 damage at the end of every turn.

By far the hardest of the 3 mages to complete due to limited defensive options. Victory required spell countdown manipulation, additional dice through foresight and void spells and rerolls plus increased damage assisted by critical buff and a ritual providing additional block to offset final boss and elite enemy damage.

NOTE: These builds have been used pre 1.0 version and may not be viable or even possible anymore.


I started this run with the goal of building a whole void deck, however, after some consideration I decided that having two defensive water spells would really benefit the survivability, even on the easy difficulty. Rituals were chosen to counter possible unwanted low dice rolls and enemy/boss debuffs and the Mute effect of Grim Rite. Swapping a muted spell removes mute and makes the Spell usable faster than mute would naturally expire, especially if the same spell is used for Grim Rite multiple times. Cold Snap is a must have spell for any build, but with the Tenacity artifact it became a block generation machine (with the Concoction upgrade). Since this build focuses on creating many dice rolls and rerolls, Convoke becomes an extremely powerful attack. It even makes Gaze From Beyond not needed for this build, but I wanted to have as many Void spells in this deck as possible. Spell swapping ritual also allowed me to play with Water Vortex and Glaciate as needed, to generate extra block or build-up of Barrier/Power. Thanks to Tenacity, Cold Snap and block based artifacts the block value howered between 200-300 at later stages and Convoke produced 40-50 value hits without marked status and ~80 with Marked thanks to Darkheart.


This build is practically unkillable and scales both defence and damage greatly to make every battle easy. It can work on higher difficulties as well, depending on the mutators you pick.

Sap Lifeforce provides massive heals, supported by Dark Arts. Luminance and Blood Vortex increase amount of dice rolled and give you extra flexibility for spell casting (almost guaranteed to have a dice of any value).

Having artifact that reduces health loss by 1 is a nice way to counter Wounded dice.
The block giving ritual is readily available 20 block with the amount of Wounded dice and health loss every turn.


This build focuses on rolling low value dice and using spells that benefit from that. The M'olly artifact converts any 1 value dice to barrier which can snowball in just a few turns to give you unbeatable block values. Of course you need to roll enough dice to be able to afford losing all the 1s and still cast your other spells. Critical and Power containing spells allow you to get away with having any attack spell and still do massive damage. Some block for safety. Gathering Flames does not synergize.. but I didn't have any other spells left to replace. Fickle Barrier and Charcoal Dagger are both replaceable if you need better heals/attacks or utility/void.


Easy boss killer build
Transfigure and Terraform ( or any 3+ charge card) to build some block. Granite Guard for emergency block. 20 Block ritual for extra safety. Thorns to help clear pre-boss battles. Proliferate to seed your Power (power artifacts etc.. help as well). Ultimate Power upgraded to have restorable charges. Spell Echo source (ritual in my case) to speed up Power building ( double + double on a single cast). VIne Grip to have active damage source and another way to reduce enemy damage. You can theoretically build Power until crazy numbers if you can sustain enemy atacks.

Earth based dice manipulation build. I was actually trying to have a Glimmer based run, but RNG refused to give me any Glimmer based cards, so I ran some artifacts with no synergy cards, but ended up creating a very flexible build which manipulates any dice rolls to player's advantage and quite an easy run.
I picked the damage ritual because I lacked attack card options in the first 2 zones, prioritizing defence and dice manipulation. Power build-up ritual seemed like a logical choice in the 3rd zone, when I managed to get two solid attacking cards.
The Beast Within + Blossom + Invoke Mana with upgrades and artifacts focusing on +1 dice roll guaranteed enough high value dice and dice quantity in general to comfortably build defence and setup hich countdown attacks for the next turn. I also liked Bastion because it could easily be built up to a high defensive number in a few turns, given dice flexibility provided by dice manipulation spells. By turn 9, bothe defence and attack/power levels grew enough to trivialize the final boss. Everguard (tenacity artifact) was a nice touch to preserve block during non-damage boss phases. And my recent favourite M'olly artifact provided significant Barrier for any unlucky 1 value dice rolls.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3303944376
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3304526262

Hailstorm (Fury) is extremely powerful at the moment, because it adds massive amount of damage to any build focused on rolling and rerolling dice (Water mage). Bonus damage applies to every hit of the multi-hit attacking spell, so Multi Jet becomes massively damaging. If you can also get Spirit Arrows, you are potentially able to do 8 hits (with manifold enchanted dice).. and each hit receives bonus damage from Fury buff. Spending a couple turns building up this buff can easily destroy any enemy. Submerge spell is quite common despite its rarity and it allows you to double any block spell (combines well with Ablution). On lower difficulties this combination of attacking/defensive spells is unbeatable.

This is done on the lowest difficulty for easier achievement unlock and true ending game completion.

Character: Hazel

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3482621394
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3482621357

The idea here was to roll a Tenacity artifact and scale block as much as possible as early as possible to negate any incoming damage and then go on the offensive in later turns.

Basically, runaway doubling of block and Tenacity to retain the block makes you unkillable and immune to anything any enemy can do leaving you with a multitude of attacking option to beat the game, however it takes luck to roll the artifact and correct spell to make this possible. As an added bonus I also managed to duplicate Stone Meld for a quadruple block effect, even further boosted by potion added charges.

Important: spoiler alert, but the final boss resets all your stats and buffs when he/she/it appears, so you will need to restart your block machine but it's just a matter of going through the sequence.