Inscryption beginner’s guide: Vendors, card upgrades, and combat tactics

Inscryption beginner’s guide – Map progression, vendors, and card upgrades

Let’s talk about exploring the map/board in Inscryption. We’ll encounter vendors and have opportunities to upgrade our cards.

Familiarize yourself with the map and its icons

The map in Inscryption has several icons and, in many cases, branching paths as well (though you can only move forward). From the initial zone, you’ll fight bosses to reach new areas. Ideally, you’ll want to familiarize yourself with the icons so that you’re aware of what you may encounter. The three icons representing battles are:

• Skull icon – A normal bout against Leshy.
• Bird with antlers icon – Leshy will activate a totem that buffs some of his cards.
• Giant skull icon – This is the boss battle for that particular zone.

Note: We discuss some of the tougher opponents you’ll face in our Cabin boss battles guide.

Vendors and card upgrades

As for the other icons on Inscryption‘s map, these represent encounters with vendors or altars, some of which will let you upgrade your cards further. Oh, and these vendor NPCs are actually just Leshy. He’s wearing different masks to change his identity (he’s an odd fella).

Item vendor

You can have a maximum of three consumable items on the table. The item vendor (a spot with a backpack icon) will let you pick additional ones whenever you visit. But, if you have more than three, you’ll automatically receive the Pack Rat card. The Pack Rat is a 2/2 (2 blood) card that gives you an item whenever it’s played (assuming you’re not at the limit yet).

Card selection

There are several straightforward ways to get new cards outside of encounters or other trials. These are their icons:

• Cards with a question mark – Turn over three cards and pick the one you want.
• Card with wolf icon – You’ll see three kinds of creatures (i.e., feral beasts, reptiles, insects, and more). Pick one to get a card with that type.
• Card with blood droplets – Select a card that’s face down (it has blood or bone icons). You’ll get a creature with that summoning cost.
• Boulder – Pick a boulder that gets smashed. You’ll receive the card that’s hidden underneath it.

Bonfire

A spot on the map with a bonfire icon allows you to boost a card’s stat (either its ATK or HP) based on the icon and value on the floor. You may also choose to boost it further, but this is extremely risky. There’s a high chance that the card will get destroyed in the process.

Cave Dweller trial

If you see a cave icon, that’s where the Cave Dweller NPC is. You’re presented with trials where three cards are randomly drawn from your deck and they need to pass the requirement. For instance, the three cards must have a total of +4 ATK or higher, +6 HP or higher, or have three or more sigils. If you pass the trial, the Cave Dweller will let you pick one new card (usually a rare variant).

Sacrificial Altar

The Sacrifice Altar is a spot marked with an “X.” If you plop down a card here, it’ll be destroyed. Depending on its value, you might be given a boon (i.e., additional bones when you start encounters). It’s also an important tidbit that’s part of one of the Cabin puzzles.

Sigil Altar

The Sigil Altar has an odd symbol. It looks like a Taurus rune with three vertical scratches protruding from it. The Sigil Altar has two slabs that let you place cards. The bottom card will be destroyed, but its sigil/perk will be transferred to the card at the top.

This is one of the best ways to upgrade your cards. Something that’s already strong by default (i.e., Grizzly), could gain a sigil that lets it annihilate a lot of enemies in a single turn.

Woodcarver’s Totems

The Woodcarver’s location is marked with yet another odd symbol: a bird with a knife. This is also a place that you’d want to visit if you want to buff your cards because of the unique mechanics. The Woodcarver presents you with two halves of a totem: the head and the body. The heads represent the types of creatures (i.e., flying, reptilian, feral beasts, insects, and more). The bodies, meanwhile, have sigils.

If you create a totem with a specific combination, your creatures of that type will gain the buff from the sigil. A good example is getting the Worthy Sacrifice sigil for the body, and obtaining the Squirrel totem head.

Mycologists

The Mycologists or Myconids Twins are found if you visit a spot with a mushroom icon. If you have two of the same card, you can place these on the slab. They’ll fuse the cards to combine their ATK and HP values.

Trapper

Remember what we talked about regarding “overkill” states and getting extra “teeth?” Well, these teeth are the currency used when you meet the Trapper who’s in a space with a beartrap icon. You can exchange teeth for pelts (the more valuable it is, the higher the cost).

Trader

Finally, there’s the Trader NPC, whose icon looks like a computer with a question mark (that’s the best way I could describe it). The pelts that you’ve obtained from the Trapper and other means can be exchanged here for cards. If you have Golden Pelts, you can procure some rarer creatures, too. Oh, and if you somehow fused two pelts thanks to the Myconid Twins, then the Trader will exchange cards that are already fused.

Note: For more about card mechanics, you can take a look at our best cards/sigils guide for Inscryption.

Inscryption is available on Steam. For more information, check out our guides and features hub.