Vampire Crawlers offers that same “one more game” fun of its predecessor, and even uses a majority of the same characters, levels, and mechanics that fans have come to know and love. However, this turn-based dungeon crawler is a totally different type of experience from Vampire Survivors’ isometric action, so there are some unique features here that might trip up both new and returning players. Below, we’ve detailed a selection of tips for the opening hours of the game that we feel will help you make progress and adapt to the different types of strategy Vampire Crawlers requires.
Upgrade Greed and Might ASAP
With such limited gold available early in your adventure, it’s reasonable to feel a bit uncertain of where to put your upgrade points. While there’s not necessarily a wrong answer, the most efficient route is to prioritize Greed as soon as it’s unlocked. This will increase your coin acquisition by 25% per rank, so getting it to a minimum of Rank 2 or 3 will dramatically improve how quickly you can afford additional upgrades throughout the remainder of the game.
Also, make sure you’re getting points into Might very early. At least a couple of ranks in this upgrade will make a significant impact on how much damage you do. While other upgrades like Max Health can be important, too, you’ll have options for dealing with mitigating incoming damage through armor and cards like Pummarola, so dishing out more pain to your foes is usually going to be a better bet.
And don’t forget that you can reset your points at any time, so you should always feel free to move them around to different upgrades based on your current goals.
Combo, combo, combo
During the tutorial, you’ll unlock the Combo Stack relic, which will allow you to improve the power of cards when played in ascending mana cost order. While the game provides a little blurb about how this works, it’s easy to overlook it or forget how important this is in future encounters.
Basically, playing your cards in ascending order of how much mana they cost will allow you to power up the following card. For example, if you play a 0-cost card, you’ll immediately notice that any 1-cost cards in your hand will glow and receive improved stats for the next move. Then, if you play that 1-cost card, any 2-cost cards will receive improved stats, and so forth.
This doesn’t just apply to damage, either. Comboing into a Pummarola card, for instance, can provide a huge boon to how much healing you receive from it. You can even combo into a one-time use card like Hollow Hearts to get a boost to how much max health it grants you. This adds a lot of depth to building your character during a run, so take your time and plan your moves to get the most out of them, especially on lower levels when the challenge ramps up.
Bang into every light source
As you explore the map, you’ll commonly spot lit braziers, candles, and other light sources. Make sure you always bang into these, as they’ll frequently drop coins, one-time use cards, or consumable chicken that can be used to heal you a bit (more on that below).
After you find the Guiding Light relic in the Inlaid Library (only a few hours in at most), you’ll be able to spot light sources on your map in each dungeon, making it much easier to track which ones you’ve already given a smack to. Don’t leave any behind!
Save your chickens for when you really need them
Smacking all those light sources will sometimes reveal chickens you can eat to restore a small bit of health. These can make or break a run if consumed at the right time, so you don’t want to accidentally use them when they’re not needed.
Unless you’re extremely low on health and might easily die in an upcoming battle, it’s best to leave your chickens until you’ve cleared most of the map. This is because you’ll often have Pummarola cards or other healing methods that will top you off for regular battles. You don’t want to waste the chicken if other healing methods are currently available, in other words.
In many cases, it’s best to save the chicken for after you’ve beaten a boss (before shoveling down to the next level), giving you a small boost to your health right before heading into the next phase of the dungeon.
Use the Sharp Mind Arcana card
Your playstyle will certainly evolve as you reach the later parts of the game and decide what really works best for how you like to tackle things, but during the early hours, there’s no Arcana with a better modifier than Sharp Mind. This Arcana allows any unused mana in a turn to carry over to the next turn.
Most characters will start with a pretty low mana pool, often even making it impossible to use 3-cost cards until you’ve found some mana capacity upgrades in a run or get lucky and draw a Tome card in the same turn. With Sharp Mind equipped, you’ll be able to stockpile mana more easily by skipping the use of any unnecessary cards in a turn to prepare for the following turn.
Combined with the aforementioned capacity upgrades and proper use of Tomes, you can eventually end up with a staggering amount of mana in a turn, allowing you to unleash devastation on your foes.
Grind previous levels for gold
Dungeons in Vampire Crawlers get progressively harder, so it will be extremely challenging (if not impossible) to pass some of them without investing in more upgrades back in the village. During the first few hours, make a habit of running some of them multiple times with a heavy focus on coin acquisition so that you can start getting more powerful.
You can combine these coin runs with leveling a new character or trying to unlock a new evolution. Check the Unlocks menu to see what you should be working toward, as you may be surprised at how often you can make some pretty significant headway on your overall game progress even while simply grinding older levels.
Sometimes, it’s best to just cash out
When you open chests or interact with certain other upgrade stations, you’ll be prompted to choose from a list of gems or evolutions. It’s often a good idea to take one of these if they really match your build, but that won’t always be the case. Instead, note an option on the lower right that says “Cash Out.”
Cashing out allows you to pass on the gems or evolution and take some coins as a replacement. Doing this, especially while you’re still trying to save up for some of the most important upgrades, can be the best option. This is especially true if you’re already near the end of a run and feel very confident with your build, as there’s no reason to throw away the option to earn some extra coins for a minor upgrade that will disappear at the end of the dungeon anyway.
Check the Grim Grimoire for reminders on evolution combinations
Evolving your weapon cards by combining two specific cards will turn them into a vastly improved version capable of dealing more damage and often adding some additional bonuses. However, with so many cards to keep up with, it can be easy to forget which cards combine to create which evolution.
Once you can visit the Library West Wing fairly early on, however, you’ll be able to quickly obtain the Grim Grimoire relic. Having this unlocked and activated will let you pause the game and access the Grim Grimoire option at the bottom of the screen. Here, you can see a list of all evolution combinations, including those you haven’t discovered yet.
Vampire Crawlers offers that same “one more game” fun of its predecessor, and even uses a majority of the same characters, levels, and mechanics that fans have come to know and love. However, this turn-based dungeon crawler is a totally different type of experience from Vampire Survivors’ isometric action, so there are some unique features here that might trip up both new and returning players. Below, we’ve detailed a selection of tips for the opening hours of the game that we feel will help you make progress and adapt to the different types of strategy Vampire Crawlers requires. Upgrade Greed and Might ASAPWith such limited gold available early in your adventure, it’s reasonable to feel a bit uncertain of where to put your upgrade points. While there’s not necessarily a wrong answer, the most efficient route is to prioritize Greed as soon as it’s unlocked. This will increase your coin acquisition by 25% per rank, so getting it to a minimum of Rank 2 or 3 will dramatically improve how quickly you can afford additional upgrades throughout the remainder of the game.Also, make sure you’re getting points into Might very early. At least a couple of ranks in this upgrade will make a significant impact on how much damage you do. While other upgrades like Max Health can be important, too, you’ll have options for dealing with mitigating incoming damage through armor and cards like Pummarola, so dishing out more pain to your foes is usually going to be a better bet.And don’t forget that you can reset your points at any time, so you should always feel free to move them around to different upgrades based on your current goals. Combo, combo, comboDuring the tutorial, you’ll unlock the Combo Stack relic, which will allow you to improve the power of cards when played in ascending mana cost order. While the game provides a little blurb about how this works, it’s easy to overlook it or forget how important this is in future encounters.Basically, playing your cards in ascending order of how much mana they cost will allow you to power up the following card. For example, if you play a 0-cost card, you’ll immediately notice that any 1-cost cards in your hand will glow and receive improved stats for the next move. Then, if you play that 1-cost card, any 2-cost cards will receive improved stats, and so forth.This doesn’t just apply to damage, either. Comboing into a Pummarola card, for instance, can provide a huge boon to how much healing you receive from it. You can even combo into a one-time use card like Hollow Hearts to get a boost to how much max health it grants you. This adds a lot of depth to building your character during a run, so take your time and plan your moves to get the most out of them, especially on lower levels when the challenge ramps up. Bang into every light sourceAs you explore the map, you’ll commonly spot lit braziers, candles, and other light sources. Make sure you always bang into these, as they’ll frequently drop coins, one-time use cards, or consumable chicken that can be used to heal you a bit (more on that below).After you find the Guiding Light relic in the Inlaid Library (only a few hours in at most), you’ll be able to spot light sources on your map in each dungeon, making it much easier to track which ones you’ve already given a smack to. Don’t leave any behind! Save your chickens for when you really need themSmacking all those light sources will sometimes reveal chickens you can eat to restore a small bit of health. These can make or break a run if consumed at the right time, so you don’t want to accidentally use them when they’re not needed.Unless you’re extremely low on health and might easily die in an upcoming battle, it’s best to leave your chickens until you’ve cleared most of the map. This is because you’ll often have Pummarola cards or other healing methods that will top you off for regular battles. You don’t want to waste the chicken if other healing methods are currently available, in other words.In many cases, it’s best to save the chicken for after you’ve beaten a boss (before shoveling down to the next level), giving you a small boost to your health right before heading into the next phase of the dungeon. Use the Sharp Mind Arcana cardYour playstyle will certainly evolve as you reach the later parts of the game and decide what really works best for how you like to tackle things, but during the early hours, there’s no Arcana with a better modifier than Sharp Mind. This Arcana allows any unused mana in a turn to carry over to the next turn.Most characters will start with a pretty low mana pool, often even making it impossible to use 3-cost cards until you’ve found some mana capacity upgrades in a run or get lucky and draw a Tome card in the same turn. With Sharp Mind equipped, you’ll be able to stockpile mana more easily by skipping the use of any unnecessary cards in a turn to prepare for the following turn. Combined with the aforementioned capacity upgrades and proper use of Tomes, you can eventually end up with a staggering amount of mana in a turn, allowing you to unleash devastation on your foes. Grind previous levels for goldDungeons in Vampire Crawlers get progressively harder, so it will be extremely challenging (if not impossible) to pass some of them without investing in more upgrades back in the village. During the first few hours, make a habit of running some of them multiple times with a heavy focus on coin acquisition so that you can start getting more powerful.You can combine these coin runs with leveling a new character or trying to unlock a new evolution. Check the Unlocks menu to see what you should be working toward, as you may be surprised at how often you can make some pretty significant headway on your overall game progress even while simply grinding older levels. Sometimes, it’s best to just cash outWhen you open chests or interact with certain other upgrade stations, you’ll be prompted to choose from a list of gems or evolutions. It’s often a good idea to take one of these if they really match your build, but that won’t always be the case. Instead, note an option on the lower right that says “Cash Out.”Cashing out allows you to pass on the gems or evolution and take some coins as a replacement. Doing this, especially while you’re still trying to save up for some of the most important upgrades, can be the best option. This is especially true if you’re already near the end of a run and feel very confident with your build, as there’s no reason to throw away the option to earn some extra coins for a minor upgrade that will disappear at the end of the dungeon anyway. Check the Grim Grimoire for reminders on evolution combinationsEvolving your weapon cards by combining two specific cards will turn them into a vastly improved version capable of dealing more damage and often adding some additional bonuses. However, with so many cards to keep up with, it can be easy to forget which cards combine to create which evolution.Once you can visit the Library West Wing fairly early on, however, you’ll be able to quickly obtain the Grim Grimoire relic. Having this unlocked and activated will let you pause the game and access the Grim Grimoire option at the bottom of the screen. Here, you can see a list of all evolution combinations, including those you haven’t discovered yet. Read More GameSpot – All Content
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