Part of the fun of starting any new rogue-like game is the sense of discovery and experimentation. The random nature means you’ll never know what items, enemies, or upgrades you’ll get, and if the game is new that just means the content will be even more surprising. On the other hand, these games also tend to rely on somewhat steep difficulty curves. You’re not intended to win your first run at them, and they can sometimes be a little cryptic in explaining how things work to encourage you to keep playing to figure it all out. UnderMine can sometimes feel a little harsh for new players, especially in terms of how deep the combat mechanics are to get a grip on, but learning the basics will make your first few runs much more productive.
Master Your Dodge
The best defense in UnderMine is never getting hit at all, but rather than a traditional dodge you actually will jump to dodge. This naturally introduces a level of risk to dodging you may not be immediately used to thinking about. This jump still gives your that temporary invincibility you’d expect from something like a roll, and you can even reposition yourself while airborne, however you’ll need to be mindful about where you land. Jumping to avoid a hit only to land on spikes or a down a hole can put you in a worse situation than had you not jumped at all.
Be Smart With Your Gold
Gold is one of the resources you’ll be finding as you explore the caves in UnderMine. Its in treasure chests, vases, boxes, and stuck in boulders or veins. Be aware that whenever there is free gold on the ground Pilfers will come and attempt to carry away as much as they can so make sure you pick it up as soon as possible. You’ll need as much gold as you can to buy items and relics from shops, or upgrades at your base. The upgrades you can buy at your base are far more valuable in terms of permanent progress, so do your best to spend as little as possible on the shops during a run and save your gold for between runs.
Chose The Right Upgrades
Once you’ve found certain NPCs in the mines, more upgrades will become available at your base to buy with your gold. None of these upgrades are bad, obviously, but some should be taken first to speed up the process of getting the others. For example you’ll want to start spending your gold with Wayland the blacksmith. He offers to increase your melee and throw damage, max HP, range, and reduced the gold lost each time you die by 5% each time you upgrade it. That final one is incredibly valuable, and will make each run you do after more profitable. You should always do the sack upgrades when possible, otherwise alternating between damage and HP upgrades.
Keep An Eye Out For Secret Rooms
What kind of rogue-like wouldn’t have some kind of secret rooms? UnderMine has a few, and all of them are worth keeping a sharp eye out for. Before you rush out of a room when the last enemy is defeated, take a quick scan of all the walls first for a little glint. If you have bombs left, use them there to open up an entry into the secret room for some nice bonus treasures. Random boulders can also have a chance of revealing a secret room when destroyed as well, revealing a hidden stairway to either more treasure, a blessing, or even a shop.
These are just the basics of UnderMine, with plenty more you will learn and experiment with as you dive deeper and deeper into the mines. But, knowing these tips will help you reach those depths much faster, and with far less frustration.
