How the world works
Guides
Short articles on the systems of Almirath, from your first bonfire to the cold of the north.
Basics
Survival
Health, Stamina and ManaHow your three vitals work, what drains and restores them, and how to read the HUD columns, the status row and the souls counter.Bonfires, Resting and SleepSoul Bonfires restore you and let you level up, but each wild one burns only once. Beds, not bonfires, decide where you wake.Death and Your SoulsWhen you die, everything you carry and every soul you hold waits in a bag where you fell. Nothing burns away, but you have to go back for it.Food and the StomachYou have a stomach with three slots. Good meals raise your maximum health and stamina while they digest; hot meals also keep out the cold.Carry WeightEverything you carry has weight. Near your limit you slow down; past it you cannot move. Strength and the Porter's Medallion raise the limit.Cold in the Cold MarchesIn the snows of the Cold Marches the cold builds up over time. Warm clothes, hot food and fire hold it back; at full chill you start freezing.Your Home: Comfort and RaidsA real home makes you stronger: furnish it for comfort and you rise Rested. But a rich, busy homestead draws attention, and raiders come for it.
Combat
Combat BasicsEvery swing costs stamina. Light and heavy attacks, shields, blocking and parrying, the dash, armour, damage types, bows and starred enemies.Souls and Leveling UpSouls are earned from your kills and spent at Soul Bonfires on six attributes and on arts. Weapons and armour demand attribute ranks to be used.Magic and StaffsStaffs cast with right-click and spend mana, which does not come back on its own. Book staffs carry three spells chosen with Z, X and C.The Three Great BossesGreenwood Warden, Wraith Knight and Necromancer King: where they wait, what wakes them, what happens if you die or flee, and how their fall changes the world.
Crafting
Gathering, Mining and Tool TiersWhat your hands can break, what needs stone or iron tools, where flint, resin and ore come from, and how to get your first iron.Crafting, Stations and RecipesCraft a few basics by hand, everything else at stations. Recipes unlock as you pick things up, and blueprints teach a recipe and burn away.Upgrading and Repairing GearWeapons and tools grow stronger with Whetstones numbered 1 to 10 and a price in souls. How far you can go depends on the bosses you have felled.BuildingPlacing and shaping blocks, doors, beds and storage, how light behaves, and how damaged blocks keep their scars until mended.
World
The Map, Regions and TravelReading and marking the world map, the compass ribbon, the lands and their danger, and getting around by portal, horse, rope and zip line.Water, Swimming and SailingSwimming costs stamina and the deep is dangerous. Boats are built block by block, driven by hand-built sails, and storms on the open ocean can sink them.Fishing, Farming and BeesCatch fish with a rod, grow wheat and vegetables in watered soil, and keep bees for honey.Villages, Trade and QuestsFree the villages from the Mossbacks, then trade with villagers, take their requests and earn their trust. Far traders wait in the snows of the Cold Marches.