Tips and Strategies

[Sinister Stairs]

A running list of tips & strategies for playing Din's Curse.

[Sinister Stairs]

Tired of NPCs getting themselves killed on the Escort and Fight With quests?

After I pick up the NPC, I walk them somewhere safe (like town), then portal back into the dungeon since the NPC can't follow me through the Gate.

I'll clear the route to where they're trying to go, portal back, then safely walk them to their destination.

[Sinister Stairs]

I'm sure you already know this, but it might not be apparent to everyone:

When your town gets attacked, the townspeople will face the direction of where the invader is. You can use this cue to head in the general direction of where the threat is, then use your minimap radar to pinpoint them.

If you've killed the monster(s) and the alarm is still clanging, look for a Dimensional Portal that could be the source.

[udm]

My contribution:

Some skills are obviously more useful than others, and there are many which effectiveness don't scale well with each increasing level - the Trickster's Shuriken and Smokescreen skills, for example. Obviously you want to have a character that suits your playstyle the best, so pump points only into skills that you really need; specialize rather than being a jack of all trades.

For DPS classes, it is also a good idea to pump points into skills that deal more damage, preferably those that don't sacrifice defence. During mid to late game, you'll want to get rid of the Attack hotkey if it's possible, because doing so removes the attack delay i.e. delay caused by weapon speed. This is especially good for DPS classes, because if you have two or more special attack skills, you can easily clean out a room full of enemies, since there is no attack delay.

Have a ranged attack if possible, if not keep a good stock of Flaming Oil. I can't stress enough their usefulness, and how many times they've saved me from near imminent death.

(I'm allowed to post here right?)

[Sinister Stairs]

Originally Posted by udm

(I'm allowed to post here right?)

(Absolutely.)

Use your radar to find quest-givers & rewards:

Townspeople with quests or rewards can be difficult to spot because their houses can block the ? quest icon. Using your radar, people with available quests or quest rewards display as purplish rather than blue.

Pretty much any time I kill a named monster, I'll look for NPCs when I return to the town. Often you'll find an NPC holed up somewhere who wants to reward you for avenging his relative.

[Sinister Stairs]

Don'tcha hate it when you gate into the dungeon or take the stairs to another level, and you find the gate/entrance is camped by a boss and his posse? (Or subsequently you've been killed at a gate/entrance, and are having difficulty returning.)

Don't forget there are up to 3 entrances to a dungeon level: The entrance down, the exit up, and the gate. If the gate is swarmed and it's too difficult to clear without dying, go up or down a level and take the stairs. Likewise if the entrance to a level is swamped, gate to the level or go down a level and come up; so you can clear the blocked exit from another direction, or at the very least drag the mob away.

[Sinister Stairs]

Taken from a different thread:

You can be rewarded for completing quests that you didn't accept. As such, when choosing which 5 quests to accept, you can prioritize quests:

• Kill X, Destroy X and Uprisings: You never have to accept these quests; i.e. you will be rewarded for completing the quest whether you've accepted it or not. However, required Kill monsters/machines can cause trouble they longer they live/exist (build more machines, start uprisings, send assassins, etc.)
• Rescue X: You never have to accept these quests; i.e. you will be rewarded for rescuing even if you didn't accept. However, note what dungeon levels have NPCs because monsters can kill them.
• Collect X: Typically these are (optional) quests; i.e. there's no ramifications if you don't do it in a timely manner. However, I like accepting these quests because then it allows you to collect the items from any dungeon level, speeding things up.
• Deliver X: You must accept the quest in order to do the delivery, and if you don't deliver on time, monsters can kill the NPC or the NPC may just decide to take his ball and go home. (Typically I'll note what levels these NPCs are on but not accept the quest until I find the NPC.)
• Find plans/secret: I believe you have to accept these for the quest items to spawn, and these are good to complete quickly because often it will prevent a machine from being built or an uprising from starting.