Strategies

Sacrifice items or characters at Kali's Altar to gain favor. Every 8 favor points grants a reward: 8 points for a piece of equipment you don't have, 16 points for Cursed status removal, 16 points for the Kapala if you don't have it, or 16 points for Royal Jelly otherwise.

Sacrifices are worth varying points: Monty is worth 8 points, Hired Hands or NPCs are worth 6 points, and Mounts and most enemies are worth 2 points. Dead sacrifices are worth half as much.

Carry bodies across levels to sacrifice at Kali's Altar for early Kapala acquisition. Use a whip or stomp attack to carry live bodies without stunning them for too long.

Scour levels for Monty, who may be in a backroom or found dead. His bark indicates his location. Open Coffins to sacrifice Hired Hands.

Once you have the Kapala, walk over blood droplets to fill it. Every eight blood droplets grant +1 HP. Enemies like Mosquitoes drop more blood. Equip Vlad's Cape to double enemy blood drops.

Deal weaker attacks to enemies to yield more blood per kill. Even Monty and mounts are worth damaging for blood. Small creatures like snails and butterflies also contain blood.

Destroying Kali's Altar immediately loses 16 favor points and usually spawns random enemies, potentially including Vampires, which can provide a Cape.

After destroying one Altar, an NPC (non-player character — anyone the game controls, not you) named Beg appears at the next Altar, offering a message about chaos and dropping a Bomb Bag before disappearing.

If you become Cursed, Beg reappears at the next Altar and gives you the True Crown, which grants 22 Bombs and teleports you every 22 seconds. Internalize the teleport timer and aim yourself safely before each jump.

After destroying a second Altar, Kali attaches a ball and chain to you, limiting movement. You can pick up and carry the ball, which can be destroyed by hazards like lava or crushing attacks.

After destroying a third Altar, Kali gives you another ball and chain, Curses you, and summons the Ghost on every subsequent level.

To rob shops, stand in the same space as the Shopkeeper and hit them with a Rope to stun them long enough to steal their Shotgun and kill them, or escape. If a shop has a locked room, the Shopkeeper drops a key on their Shotgun; quickly pick up and put down the Shotgun to grab it from under the key.

Alternatively, steal a Teleporter from a shop and teleport away to trigger the "Stop, thief!" text without being in immediate danger.

Rearrange shop inventory before acting. Move items like Bomb Bags and backpacks out of the line of fire. Hold a backpack or cape before angering the Shopkeeper to equip it instantly. Position a Mystery Box in the same space as the Shopkeeper to open it with a Rope simultaneously.

The Shopkeeper has 10 HP, equivalent to one Bomb or three Shotgun blasts. Their Shotgun deals 4 damage. Close-range punches or throws can stunlock you. They do not take damage from whips. Thrown objects deal damage but don't stun. Stomping them from above briefly stuns them.

The Shopkeeper's AI attempts to match your vertical position; they jump and climb if you are above them, and run forward if you are level or below. Use this to lure them off ledges or to create openings. Luring them into a spiderweb can trap them.

The Shopkeeper is limited by their Shotgun's firerate. You can rush past them between shots. They will not fire their Shotgun from more than 8 tiles away.

Killing everyone at the Black Market is feasible by shooting from outside the Shopkeepers' attack range. They will climb ladders, allowing you to hang on a ladder and let them climb into your feet. Proximity to multiple Shopkeepers can cause them to shoot each other. Try to draw fights away from explosive items.

Once angered, a Shopkeeper remains aggressive in future encounters and ambushes you at level exits. The duration of their aggression depends on the severity of your crimes. You can eventually be forgiven if you manage to get by them without causing further harm.