A mind-bending collectible card game that constantly redefines itself and challenges the player in new ways, Inscryption is broken into three main acts, each with its own distinct mechanics and style. Act 1 is the longest and most complicated for a variety of reasons, with the challenge of the card game itself only compounded by the challenge of the various puzzles within.
Act 1 of Inscryption is a journey to four bosses, collecting and upgrading cards, gathering items, and solving puzzles along the way. Before ever stepping foot in the whirlwind of deckbuilding strategy that is Kaycee's Mod, the player must best this quest to Leshy and the moon. While its challenges are numerous, there are a number of useful tips that players can use to reach the climax of Act 1.
Build Around Chance
Most players will have a number of failed runs before finally beating Act 1. As these unsuccessful runs accumulate, the player gets a better sense of the game, its interlocking mechanics, and its strategies. As a result, many players try to commit themselves to a single strategy, bringing it to run after run, regardless of what the game's RNG throws at them. Whether one is fond of the Insect Tribe, cards with the Airborne Sigil, or elusive rares like Ouroboros, it's all too easy to develop tunnel vision with one's deckbuilding.
Whether creatures, items, or boons, it's always uncertain what cards the player will get and how late into the run they might appear. It is almost always a better idea to adapt one's strategy based on what the game's random offerings provide than it is to go out of one's way in pursuit of a certain build. If the player gets their hands on a couple of Wolves and a Canine totem early in the run when they don't have a single Insect, for example, it's more efficient to work with the available resources than waste time chasing an Insect deck that might never come to fruition.
Plot Your Course
There are various routes to take across the map, and while the player could move aimlessly from one event to the next, wise players know the importance of planning the path ahead. Whenever Leshy sets a new map on the table, the player should take their time studying it. It's not enough to think one battle at a time; everything the player does needs to be in the name of preparing themselves for victory against the final boss.
A variety of factors should influence the player's pathing: what kind of deck they are trying to build, what cards and consumable items they have available, how many lit candles they have, and what boss is coming up next. Splurging on pelts might bog the deck down on the road to the Prospector, but if the Trapper is just down the road, doing so might be the key to victory. The player can't do everything or be everywhere at once, so difficult choices will have to be made.
Experiment With Builds
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In Inscryption, losing is just another opportunity to learn. One of the best things about the game is the wealth of strategic and tactical decisions that there are when it comes to building a deck. Early on, it's impossible to know what combinations will produce the best results. The best advice is therefore to experiment with as many different combinations as possible. Take risks. Try dumb ideas. There's no way of knowing what will work until it's attempted.
Build a deck using a single Tribe, using the strength of the perfect totem Sigil to bust through every obstacle. Build a two-Tribe deck, using one group of creatures to make up for the weaknesses of the other. Build a deck containing creatures of every Tribe, ignoring totems altogether. Experiment with a champion deck, buffing a single creature through repeated sacrifices, boosting its Power and Health, and granting it an overpowered combination of Sigils. Try a minion deck that emphasizes the swarming capabilities of Bees or Rabbits, using Sigils like Fecundity and Unkillable to grow exponentially in number. What happens if the entire deck revolves around Bifurcated and Trifurcated Strike? What happens if players only use cards with bone costs? Try and see.
Study The Bosses
Between the player and the conclusion of Act 1 stand four bosses: the Prospector, the Angler, the Trapper, and Leshy himself. Each boss brings unique mechanics to the table, challenging the player in new ways, and in each of these battles the player only has a single lit candle keeping them alive. The most important point to remember is that it's not enough to thoughtlessly meander through the map without giving any thought to the boss until the battle begins. Every action must be taken in the name of striking down the bosses, one after another. Learning the quirks of each and optimal counter-strategies can take multiple runs, but here are some quick tips to make the struggle a little easier.
The Prospector's Pack Mule carries a number of helpful cards that will be passed to the player when the Pack Mule is destroyed, making that a top priority. Minimizing the number of creatures the player has on the board when the Prospector's first candle is extinguished matters too, since the Prospector will turn all those that remain to Gold Nuggets. The Angler always tries to steal the player's newest card, so better creatures can be protected by playing expendable Squirrels. Using Airborne creatures can avoid hitting Bait Buckets and turning them into Great Whites. The Trapper's Leaping Trap turns the player's creatures into pelts, which can be traded for the Trapper's own creatures during the second phase of the fight. Leshy uses the special powers of all three previous bosses, so the player can use the same strategies that worked against those bosses against Leshy. In the final phase of the fight, Leshy summons the moon, a massive card with 40 Health and Omni Strike, forcing the player to do as much damage to it as fast as possible in order to win. With these tips and more than a little tenacity, players should triumph over Act One in no time.
Inscryption is currently available on PC.