Lootbound Beginner Guide

Which class should I take first?

Confirmed roster: Warrior, Paladin, Witch, and Bard. Some writeups call Bard Jester — this wiki uses Bard and notes the alias. Per-class numbers stay TBA; first-run leanings that show up consistently:

Leave the hub before you over-spend

Barracks stats help the first nodes. Game Room dice and Laboratory unlocks can wait until you have died once and know what you lack. The next screen is the fight — and you only get to click one character.

What do I click on turn one?

On trash nodes, a basic attack is often enough. Save Mana for elites, support enemies, and the biome gate. On those harder fights, use the opening turns to stack party bonuses, then spend the big hero ability when the damage preview says it actually finishes something. Leaving a mob on a sliver because you split damage is a first-run habit that snowballs.

Which damage type am I even dealing?

Slash cuts Health once armor is gone. Crush breaks armor. Acid skips armor and hits Health. Chaos strengthens debuffs. Base is the untyped leftover that always applies. A first run that only stacks Slash will stall on plated enemies; keep one Crush or Acid answer on the hero or the first recruit. Full matchups live on damage types.

Once the fight pays out, the run is decided on the grid — not on the next node.

Rarity is not a pack order

Community 1.0 play uses labels such as legendary and divine for high-rarity drops. Treat the full rarity ladder and every named piece as TBA. What is already true: a smaller high-rarity piece that preserves contacts is often stronger than a 3×3 slab that forces three useful items off the board. Read the special effect before you rotate it in — some pieces scale after every battle, some only buff what they touch, some care about orientation. Hover again before a boss.

Auras are adjacency, not a buff list

Some items project an aura into neighboring cells and strengthen weapons or armor that sit there. Slide one cell and Slash can become Crush, or a Paladin plate can stop receiving Order. Read the activation line: adjacent only, weapons only, instruments only — exact names stay TBA. One well-placed aura that touches several compact pieces outperforms a prettier pack that isolates it. Deep adjacency rules: auras.

You will want a second grid the moment a companion room appears. That is the next decision, not another solo upgrade.

Pack the recruit for their job, not yours

Warrior wants damage, Slash, and crit-style offense. Paladin wants Armor, Health, Resistance, and Order. Witch wants Acid, Chaos, and Mana. Bard wants Order and whatever makes the rest of the party hit or live — judge Bard by the team, not personal damage. Full roles: classes.

Consumables stay on the hero

When a consumable rule is confirmed in 1.0, it is hero-only. Do not park the only heal on a companion grid and wait for the AI to drink it. Names and exact potion list stay TBA.

With two boards in play, the map stops being “whatever node is closest.” Route for the kit you still lack.

When is a hard D20 worth it?

Take the hard line when the reward completes the kit you are already packing, when it is the only option that helps, or when you have an extra die. Otherwise take the safer upgrade. Gambling every room is how a healthy first run walks out with nothing. Route catalog: map.

Early acts build the board, later acts tighten it

Community 1.0 routing: chests and biome-end loot early (the gate list is a short pick of high-rarity pieces — exact offer size TBA), trainers and blacksmiths later once the shapes are stable. Act / biome naming in the UI may differ; the three confirmed biomes are still Dungeon, Forest, Desert.

The biome does not end on a random elite. It ends on a two-choice part that you will fight later as a Guardian.

Pick for the party on the board

Community 1.0 notes: a high-armor party can live with a reflect / thorns-style modifier because armor soaks the bounce, while Acid ignores that armor. A single tanky body can accept a “focus one member” modifier. A fragile party should avoid wide damage. The one rule that keeps showing up: do not hand the final boss crit if you can see that option. Part names (Blood Hand, Head, and the rest) stay TBA until the 1.0 roster is logged. Catalog: bosses.

Sell what you will not wear

Once the grids are locked for the Guardian, leftover stash pieces cannot help in the fight. Turn them into hub currency for Barracks / Game Room / Laboratory. Exact conversion rates stay TBA.

If the first expedition still dies, it is usually one of the process errors below — not a missing legendary name.

One habit that fixes most of them

After every drop, lift the new shape, read the pane, and ask whether it adds an aura contact or only occupies a cell. Two seconds there prevents most wasted first runs.

When the loop is automatic, the next page is the grid itself — rotate, rim vs center, and why a pretty pack can still be empty.