- Main article: Mining Caves
Welcome to the Mining Caves Stage Guide user!
[DISCLAIMER: This guide does not cover Item Degradation management, so it is only accurate until v1.7.3c, or the latest version with Legacy Mode enabled.]
Class Prep
Specific Sub-Class Rings:
- Gladiator - Haste & Evasion/Satiety (Perk & Combat synergy)
- Berserker - Mending & Accuracy/Thorns (Perk & Combat synergy)
- Freerunner - Satiety & Evasion (Perk synergy)
- Assassin - Shadows/Accuracy & Haste (Perk & Combat synergy)
- Battlemage - Power & Elements (Perk & Combat synergy)
- Warlock - Evasion & Accuracy (Combat synergy)
- Warden - Herbalism & Accuracy (Perk & Combat synergy)
- Sniper - Haste & Power (Perk & Combat synergy)
CONGRATULATIONS!
You've made it to the next stage!
Take a moment to relish your progress, cause you've got another stage & boss fight ahead of you.
Depth 11
- Main article: Depth 11
Now, before you head off to clear this depth, look for the Shop/Pixel Mart, so you can regroup & resupply. The Shop's door is sometimes hidden, but it's always one of the doors in the room you just descended to.
Shop:
- See also: In-Shop Tips
[Note: If you obtained a Lloyd's Beacon from Goo, it is highly advised to set the Lloyd's Beacon beside the door of the Shop. This way, you can return to the Shop at any time you're exploring this stage, in order to sell unneeded items & free up space in the Backpack.]
Sell all unneeded items you've amassed from the previous stage.
The items you should purchase in order of priority are as follows:
- 1.) Potion(s) of Healing
- 2.) Scroll Holder
- 3.) Any needed scrolls (Identify, Remove Curse, Magic Mapping, Teleportation, et c.)
- 4.) Other needed potions (Mind Vision, Experience, et c.)
- 5.) Weightstone (if you wish to change your mind, or haven't bought one yet)
- 6.) Ankh (if you previously died & need a new Ankh)
Don't bother buying the weapon, armor, and/or Overpriced Food Rations that the Shopkeeper sells, as they definitely are overpriced, and you'll find better alternatives as spawns/drops in the depths of this stage.
Only purchase Overpriced Food Rations if you've run out of food; or you're either low, or are out of, Potions of Healing, in your ascent to the surface, to exit the dungeon & achieve a true finish (since you won't be getting any more Food Rations from the dungeon, unless you plan on farming Scorpios for their Mystery Meat, or you're ascending with your Hero/ine at Lvl 23 & plan on farming Dwarf Monks for their Food Rations).
And it's only recommended when you're attempting to obtain the "X Pieces of Food Eaten" badges.
- Main article: Scroll of Wipe Out
If you managed to obtain this scroll in the previous stage, or at this stage, you could choose to read it at this depth if you so wish, in order to eliminate the Shopkeeper, loot his Shop, & claim his merchandise for free.
The trade-off here is that you'll no longer have a Shopkeeper to sell any excess/unneeded items you might later discover, for more gold, until you reach the next Shop (you'll have to lug all your items to the next Shop, which might mean multiple trips).
So, you'll have to determine when the right time to eliminate him is, or if you even need the majority of the items he's selling, that it would warrant reading the scroll at all.
Gauge each Shop on a case-by-case basis, and determine which Shop has the most of the items you need, and save this scroll for that Shop (especially if you only encounter one Sacrificial Chamber).
Vampire bat | Gnoll brute |
5/6
| 1/6
|
83.33 % | 16.67 % |
The Vampire Bat & the Gnoll Brute are introduced at this depth, with a 1/30th probability of spawning a mutated Shielded Brute.
- Vampire Bat
- Provides 7 XP (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 16)
- Has 1/8 chance of dropping a Potion of Healing (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 18)
- Gnoll/Shielded Brute
- Provides 8 XP (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 16)
- Has 1/2 chance of dropping 130-259g (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 18)
Be stalwart when encountering/fighting a Shielded Brute, as they have greater Armor & Dodge.
For tips on fighting the enemies at this stage, visit their respective pages & view the Tips section.
- See also: Vampire Bat Tips
- See also: Gnoll/Shielded Brute Tips
Farming Healing potions:
- See also: Healing Potion Tips
- See also: Vampire Bat Tips
This is the best depth to farm Healing potions from Vampire Bats.
(Especially if you were unable to farm sufficient Healing potions from Swarm of Flies in the previous stage.)
However, depending on how well (or how poorly) you did in the previous stage, you might not be strong enough (damage inflict/damage absorb) at the moment to farm them.
You can return here later, when you're a bit stronger/have better equipment, after clearing the lower depths of this stage.
If you're strong enough, however, feel free to proceed in farming them; just don't farm for too long, as the Vampire Bats don't drop them very often, and you'll likely lose more health than you gain Healing potions.
Farming Gold:
- See also: Gold Tips
This is relatively the worst depth to farm Gold from Gnoll Brutes, so try not to go out of your way to fight them - only fight them if you're forced to.
Leveling up:
- Main article: Level
It is highly advised to be the same level as the next depth, before descending to it (e.g. Be Level 12 before descending to Depth 12).
To level up before descending to Depth 12, simply slay 9 Vampire Bats.
(Or any permutation that gives you 60 XP. e.g. 7 Gnoll Brutes & 1 Vampire Bat, et c.)
Once you've cleared this depth of its items & have leveled up to Level 12, proceed to Depth 12.
Depth 12
- Main article: Depth 12
Midway through clearing this depth (or the earliest you obtain one, if you haven't already), you'll need to trade up from whatever armor you currently have, to an upgraded Plate Armor, in order to continue effectively mitigating damage from enemies, from this point onward.
By the time you reach DM-300, you need your Plate Armor to be at least +3.
Vampire bat | Gnoll brute | Cave spinner |
5/11
| 5/11
| 1/11
|
45.45 % | 45.45 % | 9.09 % |
There's a 1/30th probability of a mutated Shielded Brute spawning.
This depth introduces the Cave Spinner.
- Vampire Bat
- Provides 7 XP (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 16)
- Has 1/8 chance of dropping a Potion of Healing (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 18)
- Gnoll/Shielded Brute
- Provides 8 XP (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 16)
- Has 1/2 chance of dropping 140-279g (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 18)
- Cave Spinner
- Provides 9 XP (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 17)
- Has 1/8 chance of dropping a Mystery Meat (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 19)
For tips on fighting the enemies at this stage, visit their respective pages & view the Tips section.
- See also: Vampire Bat Tips
- See also: Gnoll/Shielded Brute Tips
- See also: Cave Spinner Tips
Farming Healing potions:
- See also: Healing Potion Tips
- See also: Vampire Bat Tips
This is the second-best depth to continue farming Healing potions from Vampire bats, so proceed as normal.
Farming Gold:
- See also: Gold Tips
This is the second-best depth to start farming Gold from Gnoll Brutes, so don't avoid them anymore & start fighting them (but don't go out of your way to hunt them, either).
Farming Food:
- See also: Food Drop Probabilities
Cave Spinners are introduced at this depth, but spawn at a significantly low rate, so don't bother going out of your way to hunt them; in fact, it's highly advised to avoid them at this depth.
Troll Blacksmith Side-Quest:
- Main article: Troll Blacksmith
This is one of the three depths that the Troll Blacksmith can spawn in; he can spawn in Depths 12-14.
Once you've obtained either quest item & given it to the Troll Blacksmith, the Troll Blacksmith will present you with a reward of reforging two same items (identified, not degraded, not cursed) you've chosen from your Backpack, into one stronger item.
- Main article: Dark Gold Ore Quest
- See also: Dark Gold Ore Tips
If the Troll Blacksmith gives you this side-quest, you'll need to farm at least 15 Dark Gold Ore, which can be found in the walls of this stage (as shown in the image above). The Pickaxe doesn't need to be equipped for this side-quest; there'll be a "Mine" button when you tap on the Pickaxe. To mine faster, assign the Pickaxe to a Quickslot.
Warning: Mining takes turns & accelerates Hunger, so be mindful of your surroundings when mining, as it's likely you'd get attacked.
Note: A Vampire Bat can also be slain during this quest, but having a Blood-stained Pickaxe won't affect the outcome of the side-quest in any way, so doing this is optional & completely up to the player.
- Main article: Vampire Bat Quest
If the Troll Blacksmith gives you this side-quest, you'll need to slay 1 Vampire Bat with the Pickaxe. The Pickaxe will need to be equipped for this side-quest, but not for the entire duration of the fight. The bat can be dropped to low health by your currently-equipped weapon, then finished off with the Pickaxe, in order to get it Blood-stained. This side-quest is the faster (& therefore easier) of the two, as there's only 1 bat to slay & it doesn't accelerate Hunger by as much, other than by the usual amount of turns it takes during normal combat, to reach Hungry/Starving.
Note: Dark Gold Ore can also be mined during this quest, but having 15 in your Backpack won't affect the outcome of the side-quest in any way & the Troll Blacksmith won't collect it, so doing this is optional & completely up to the player. You can, however, sell them for an equal amount of Gold, if you so wish.
Leveling up:
- Main article: Level
To level up before descending to Depth 13, slay 7 Vampire Bats, 1 Gnoll Brute, & 1 Cave Spinner.
(Or any permutation that gives you 65 XP. e.g. 7 Gnoll Brutes & 1 Cave Spinner, 5 Cave Spinners & 3 Vampire Bats, et c.)
Once you've cleared this depth of its items & have leveled up to Level 13, proceed to Depth 13.
Depth 13
- Main article: Depth 13
Also remember that if the Troll Blacksmith did not spawn at Depth 12 in your particular run, he has a 1/3 chance of spawning at this depth as well.
By the end of this depth, your melee weapon needs to be Tier-4; and by the time you reach DM-300, it needs to be at least +3. You should also have/trade up to a Tier-5 melee weapon at this point, if you don't already have one, as you'll need to be inflicting significantly more damage, in order to stay toe-to-toe & survive against the enemies in the next stage.
- See also: Depth Terrain Tips
WARNING: Be hyper-vigilant if any Depth Terrain gets generated for this depth; any Depth Terrain that generates will make the enemies that spawn at this depth even more deadly.
Gnoll brute | Vampire bat | Gnoll shaman | Cave spinner | Fire elemental |
150/301
| 50/301
| 50/301
| 50/301
| 1/301
|
49.83 % | 16.61 % | 16.61 % | 16.61 % | 0.33 % |
There's a 1/30th probability of a mutated Shielded Brute spawning.
The Gnoll Shaman is re-introduced at this depth.
- Gnoll/Shielded Brute
- Provides 8 XP (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 16)
- Has 1/2 chance of dropping 150-299g (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 18)
- Vampire Bat
- Provides 7 XP (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 16)
- Has 1/8 chance of dropping a Potion of Healing (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 18)
- Gnoll Shaman
- Provides 6 XP (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 15)
- Has 1/3 chance of dropping a random scroll (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 17)
- Cave Spinner
- Provides 9 XP (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 17)
- Has 1/8 chance of dropping a Mystery Meat (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 19)
For tips on fighting the enemies at this stage, visit their respective pages & view the Tips section.
- See also: Gnoll/Shielded Brute Tips
- See also: Vampire Bat Tips
- See also: Gnoll Shaman Tips
- See also: Cave Spinner Tips
Farming Gold:
- See also: Gold Tips
In terms of spawn frequency, this is the best depth to farm Gold from Gnoll Brutes. In terms of the amount of gold farmed from them, however, D-14 is the best depth to farm Gold from Gnoll Brutes, as they'll drop more gold (depth number increases gold amount).
Focus your farming efforts towards the Gnoll Brutes here; only fight Bats & Shamans when you encounter them/have to - don't go hunting them. And completely avoid Cave Spinners altogether; you'll see your fair share of them at the next depth.
Farming Healing potions:
- See also: Healing Potion Tips
- See also: Vampire Bat Tips
This is among the lesser depths for farming Healing potions from Bats, so don't go out of your way to farm them. Only engage Vampire Bats if you have to.
Farming Scrolls:
- See also: Scroll Drop Probabilities
This is the best depth in this stage to farm scrolls from Gnoll Shamans, so whenever you're not farming Gold from Gnoll Brutes, you should be farming scrolls from Gnoll Shamans.
Farming Food:
- See also: Food Drop Probabilities
This isn't the best depth to farm Mystery Meat from the spiders, so it's best to avoid them here as well. The next depth will have plenty of them.
Leveling up:
- Main article: Level
To level up before descending to Depth 14, slay 7 Gnoll Brutes & 2 Vampire Bats, or 8 Gnoll Brutes & 1 Gnoll Shaman.
(Or any permutation that gives you 70 XP. e.g. 10 Vampire Bats, 12 Gnoll Shamans, 7 Cave Spinners & 1 Vampire Bat, et c.)
Once you've cleared this depth of its items & have leveled up to Level 14, proceed to Depth 14.
Depth 14
- Main article: Depth 14
This depth is the determining depth for your Hero/ine - if you've made it this far & still haven't found a Plate Armor (or even Scale Armor) by the time you finish exploring this depth, then your chances of defeating DM-300 & surviving the rest of the dungeon are slim-to-none.
You'll need to either start a New Game, or let your Hero/ine die at a selected depth, so your next Hero/ine can retrieve whatever previously equipped item/gold will be in the Hero's Remains.
Remember that if the Troll Blacksmith did not spawn at Depth 13 in your particular run, he has a 1/3 (33.33%) chance of spawning at this depth too.
- See also: Depth Terrain Tips
WARNING: Be hyper-vigilant if any Depth Terrain gets generated for this depth; any Depth Terrain that generates will make the enemies that spawn at this depth even more deadly.
Cave spinner | Gnoll brute | Vampire bat | Gnoll shaman | Fire elemental | Dwarf monk |
400/903
| 100/301
| 100/903
| 100/903
| 2/903
| 1/903
|
44.3 % | 33.22 % | 11.07 % | 11.07 % | 0.22 % | 0.11 % |
There's a 1/30th probability of a mutated Shielded Brute spawning.
- Cave Spinner
- Provides 9 XP (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 17)
- Has 1/8 chance of dropping a Mystery Meat (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 19)
- Gnoll/Shielded Brute
- Provides 8 XP (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 16)
- Has 1/2 chance of dropping 160-319g (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 18)
- Vampire Bat
- Provides 7 XP (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 16)
- Has 1/8 chance of dropping a Potion of Healing (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 18)
- Gnoll Shaman
- Provides 6 XP (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 15)
- Has 1/3 chance of dropping a random scroll (until Hero/ine reaches Lvl 17)
For tips on fighting the enemies at this stage, visit their respective pages & view the Tips section.
- See also: Cave Spinner Tips
- See also: Gnoll/Shielded Brute Tips
- See also: Vampire Bat Tips
- See also: Gnoll Shaman Tips
Farming Food:
- See also: Food Drop Probabilities
If you intend on acquiring more Mystery Meat, this is the best depth to farm them from the spiders. But since they don't drop it often, it's highly advised not to farm them for too long. Next to the Gnoll Brute's Enraged attack, the Cave Spinner's poisonous bite is the most annoying damage source to deal with, as it's a drain on your healing resources, helping you lose the war on attrition.
You're honestly better off farming full Food Rations from the Dwarf Monks, in the next stage.
Farming Gold:
- See also: Gold Tips
Though not as frequently spawning as at D-13, the Gnoll Brutes at this depth do drop larger quantities of Gold for you to farm, so, in that sense, this is the best depth to farm Gold from Gnoll Brutes, so farm as much as you can - you'll need more gold for the next Shop.
Farming Healing potions:
- See also: Healing Potion Tips
- See also: Vampire Bat Tips
This is the worst depth to farm Healing potions from Vampire Bats, but doing so is a better alternative to fighting Cave Spinners for their Mystery Meat. Unless you're trying to level up & need more food to sustain yourself, try to farm Healing potions from Vampire Bats, over farming Mystery Meat from spiders.
Farming Scrolls:
- See also: Scroll Drop Probabilities
This is the last depth to farm scrolls from Gnoll Shamans, so it's best you focus your farming efforts towards scroll farming, when you're not farming Gold from Gnoll Brutes.
Again, avoid Cave Spinners altogether, unless you need to level up, and you need the extra Mystery Meat to be turned into Frozen Carpaccio.
Leveling up:
- Main article: Level
To level up before descending to Depth 15, slay 6 Gnoll Brutes & 3 Cave Spinners.
(Or any permutation that gives you 75 XP. e.g. 7 Cave Spinners & 2 Gnoll Shamans, 9 Vampire Bats & 2 Gnoll Shamans, 11 Gnoll Shamans & 1 Cave Spinner, et c.)
Once you've cleared this depth of its items & have leveled up to Level 15, proceed to Depth 15.
Depth 15
- Main article: Depth 15
Make sure that you're at least Level 15 before you descend to this depth.
Once you descend here, sweep the inner chamber for any hidden traps before stepping out into DM-300's room.
And take a moment to review the items in your Backpack, before initiating the boss fight with DM-300.
[NOTE: The doorway behind you will cave in as soon as you step forward from the doorway & into its room, so be sure you're ready to fight before entering.]
DM-300
- See also: DM-300 Tips
DM-300 (boss) |
1
|
100 % |
SEE: DM-300 Boss Guide
Classes & Sub-Classes:
- Warrior
Fighting DM-300 as the Warrior is pretty straight-up, as you'll have to brute force + tank your way to defeating it. Follow the Melee Method that's explained in the DM-300 Boss Guide, so that you can effectively defeat it & come out relatively unscathed.- Berserker
Fighting DM-300 as a Berserker-Warrior will be even easier, especially if DM-300 manages to lower your health to, or below, 40%, since that will trigger your increased damage Fury buff perk, which will expedite the fight.
- Berserker
- Rogue
Fighting DM-300 as the Rogue will take a little more finesse, but should be a bit easier overall, especially if your armor is considerably lighter/stronger; light/strong enough, so that you're able to dodge many of DM-300's attacks. Follow the Melee Method that's explained in the DM-300 Boss Guide, so that you can effectively defeat it & come out relatively unscathed.- Assassin
Fighting DM-300 as an Assassin-Rogue won't be any different, unless you have plenty of Lullaby scrolls, or a Paralyzed-inflicting item, in order to take full advantage of your perk against DM-300.
- Assassin
- Mage
Fighting DM-300 as the Mage will be a bit more complex, especially if you don't have the necessary items to defeat it at range. Follow the Ranged Method that's explained in the DM-300 Boss Guide, so that you can effectively defeat it & come out relatively unscathed.- Warlock
Fighting DM-300 as a Warlock-Mage won't be any different, since he can't take advantage of his perks. He'll also have to be very reliant on the items you've managed to accumulate for this fight.
- Warlock
- Huntress
Fighting DM-300 as the Huntress will be just as complex as the Mage, depending on which route you've chosen to take (Ranged, or Melee). You'll be significantly item-dependent with her. Follow the Ranged (or Melee) Method that's explained in the DM-300 Boss Guide, so that you can effectively defeat it & come out relatively unscathed.- Warden
Fighting DM-300 as a Warden-Huntress will actually be slightly easier, especially if you have extra seeds to proc her Barkskin buff perk. As a Warden, however, you'll need to follow the Melee Method that's explained on the DM-300 Boss Guide.
- Warden
Leveling up:
- Main article: Level
To level up before descending to Depth 16, ascend back up to Depth 14, and slay 10 Gnoll Brutes.
(Or any permutation that gives you 80 XP. e.g. ''9 Cave Spinners; ''12 Gnoll Shamans & 1 Gnoll Brute; 9 Vampire Bats, 1 Gnoll Brute, & 1 Cave Spinner, et c.)
This will make exploring Depth 16 slightly easier (particularly on your healing resources) as well, once you descend to it.
If you're low on healing resources after the boss fight, you can always return to Depth 14 to level up further, after you've purchased Potions of Healing at Depth 16.
Though, in those cases, you might be better off simply spending extra time at Depth 16, in order to reach Level 17, before descending to Depth 17. (Unless you left an item at a previous depth in the Mining Caves stage, or wish to return to a room you didn't get around to exploring/using.)
Each case/unique run must be assessed as such individually, so it's ultimately your call on how comfortable you are with proceeding/descending to the next stage.
I hope you've found this Stage Guide helpful user! =)
(And if it was, please don't hesitate to give it a Kudos/thumb-up at the top-right corner of this post, so I know if it was helpful for you.) {^_^}
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