Castle of the Winds

Gold: 0

Long ago, a mad archmage hollowed the mountain beneath Thornwall into a labyrinth of shifting stone and unspeakable peril. He disappeared. His gold did not. You are an adventurer of modest means and questionable judgement who has decided this is a splendid career opportunity.

The town above is your lifeline. The caves below are your office. The boss at the bottom of each level is your performance review. Good luck.

Descend the dungeon, defeat bosses, and survive ever-deeper levels of increasingly annoyed monsters. Each floor has a boss guarding the Stairs Down. Kill the boss (or die trying), take the stairs, repeat. Stairs Up is always near your entry point — retreat is always an option. Cowardly, but an option.

WASD / Arrows	Move in 4 directions
Q E Z C	Move diagonally
I	Open Inventory
M	Toggle map view (explored tiles only)
ESC	Main menu (rest, restart, quit to title)
~	Debug console
Right-click	Examine tile, enemy, item, or yourself

Walk into an enemy to attack. They will immediately hit you back. Equip a weapon before fighting — bare fists deal 1 damage and make enemies feel sad for you. Armor, shields, and helms reduce incoming damage. Strength improves your attack. Constitution improves your survivability. Pick your poison.

STR	Strength — +1 ATK per 2 points above 10. If you want to hit things harder, this is your stat.
DEX	Dexterity — Improves your reaction time and evasion. The quick shall inherit the loot.
INT	Intelligence — +1 max MP per 2 points above 10. Governs arcane potential. Currently theoretical.
CON	Constitution — +2 max HP per point above 10. More HP = more mistakes you can afford.

Kill enemies to earn XP. Fill the bar to level up. Each level grants 3 stat points. A level-up screen appears — assign all points before confirming. Use Reset to undo allocations and start over. Right-click any stat label for a description of what it does.

Blacksmith Hrolf (east wing, north) — sells weapons and armor. An iron sword will carry you far. A steel sword will carry you farther. Chain mail is worth every coin.

Merchant Lyra (east wing, south) — sells potions and scrolls. Healing Potions restore HP instantly from your inventory. Strength Scrolls permanently raise your STR. Buy several of everything. Regret nothing.

Walk over items to pick them up automatically. Open inventory with I to equip weapons and armor, drink potions, or use scrolls. Sell unwanted gear at the Merchant for 50% of its value. Hoard nothing — dead adventurers have excellent inventories.

• Always equip a weapon before entering a cave. Fists are embarrassing.
• Rest at the inn (Menu → Rest) to fully restore HP and MP. Town only.
• Use the map (M) to spot unexplored rooms and find the boss.
• Portals on the map: ■ cyan = exit/stairs up, ■ orange = stairs down.
• Enemies only chase you once they see you. Doorways make excellent chokepoints.
• Supply crates around town may contain free gear. Investigate everything.
• Right-click yourself for encouragement. Results may vary.