Basics:
- qweadzxc or hjklyubn to move.
- @ to view character info.
- i to view inventory.
- v to examine the map.
- ' to swap weapons.
- , to pickup an item.
- s or . to wait a turn.
- Number keys 0123456789 to activate movement patterns.
Other keybindings:
- A to activate something you're standing on.
- M to view the message log.
- t to toggle Auto-wait (which is quite buggy and annoying at present).
Sneak around and stay out of sight. Stealth is 100% deterministic in Oathbreaker, no kludgy "You have 23% chance to be detected." You'll either be detected or not. Red tiles == seen by an enemy == bad!
Move without making noise to avoid being detected. To move quietly, you'll have to rest every few turns. Keep an eye on the green bar on the HUD. When the green bar fills up, you're making noise.
If you make noise, guards become suspicious. They'll come to investigate and leave only when they're satisfied that there was nothing there. Must've been rats!
Stab unaware enemies. Stabs deal 10x more damage and daze the victim. Enemies can only be stabbed if they're (a) unaware of you and (b) aren't investigating a noise.
You can't attack aware enemies. Instead, you'll swap places with them.
You automatically attack nearby enemies if you stay still. "Staying still" is any action that isn't a movement. Enemies are attacked in clockwise order, starting with the northmost enemy.
Release prisoners for maximum commotion! Or just to distract a mob of angry guards.
Use traps and gas vents to your advantage. Traps (the pointy ^ things)
release poisonous gas through the gas vents (+) when stepped on.
Just remember not to get trapped between pockets of expanding gas yourself!
Use your environment to your advantage.
- Traps, already mentioned.
- Fountains (
¶) replenish a portion of your health. - Drains (
∩) can be crawled into to speedily escape pursuit. (Beware: sometimes the drain will turn out to be a dead end.) - Capacitor arrays discharge a blast of electricity, instantly vaporizing all enemies in view that don't have electricity resistance (rElec). The downside is that enemies with rElec won't be harmed.
- Stalker stations do... something secret :^)
Use your movement patterns! Movement patterns are your only way of utilising magic and spellcasting in this game. Together with evocables and consumables, they are your only reliable way to fight against enemies that you failed to stab.
By default, you are given a number of movement patterns that appear next to a number on the HUD. Press the number to activate the pattern, then follow the instructions in the log.
Check out the pattern reference for information on the movement patterns initially given to you.
Seek out rings to get more movement patterns. This is akin to finding a spellbook. Rings are always found in gold enclosures. Each level will have a single ring.
Head for the stairs as fast as possible! Only escape matters -- don't try wandering around the levels or looking for loot if you don't know where the stairs are, or can't make a safe retreat to it if you're pursued. If you can escape to the stairs without fighting enemies, do so.
The only reason to stay on a level and explore the map is to find some guaranteed loot that you're missing out on, such as rings.
When you ascend a staircase:
- Enemies lose track of you
- You may gain 2 extra HP
- You may also gain a random talent
If you wish, you can also enter optional stairs. These are entirely optional, and lead to more dangerous levels with stronger foes.
