Strategies

This is the place for strategies, optimal builds, min-maxing, and all that good stuff. This page assumes you know how to play the game somewhat. As such, there may be abbreviations and terms that newer players may not understand. (Please note this is a purely opinionated page written by players.)

## Min-Maxing

### Blessings/Perks

This is specifically for the item you pick at the start, and not for any additional items you find from Coin Shops, Astronauts, or Mini-Bosses. Blessings (or Perks), have been split into 3 tiers, All-around, Situational, and Run Killers. All-around blessings are items you can pick that should generally give you a decent run, Situational blessings are items that can work, but will need extra care to get your run going, and Run Killer blessings will most likely make your run extremely hard.

* All-around: Debless, SShoes\*

* Situational: Gaxe, BDRing\*\*, DefDmg\*\*\*, BTrophy\*\*\*\*

* Run Killers: Chaos\*\*\*\*\*, Frenzy\*\*\*\*\*\*

(\*) : SShoes can be Situational on certain characters, due to requiring fights early on. They are easier to run on longer maps.

(\*\*) : BDRing becomes a Run Killer on Chef or C.A.R. who gain little to no benefit from Potions.

(\*\*\*) : DefDmg becomes more valuable on a character with Tough Hide and who can get higher armor values faster (such as Living Armor, Templar, and Peasant). Likewise, this loses value when a character has Sensitive Skin.

(\*\*\*\*) : BTrophy becomes a Run Killer on characters that cannot boost trap damage or do not have boosted traps early on; Peasant, Living Armor, Jester, Beastspeaker, Drifter, Witch and Skinny.

(\*\*\*\*\*) : Chaos is a top tier choice on Elf, because she relies on critical hits for her passive.

(\*\*\*\*\*\*) : Frenzy works best on characters who have pets.

#### Detailed Breakdown

Debless and SShoes are the best all around perk items meaning any class can run. Both rely on risk vs. reward tactics, but in their own way. Debless allows a character to do more damage the lower their health is, meaning this item does get a little more value when your character is hurt. SShoes on the other hand allow your character to get double the money from fights, meaning this item rewards an aggressive playstyle where you pick as many fights as you can to rack up money and buy out stores for more useful perks. Overall though, a safe approach to using these items is to scavenge/buy traps at the blood shop and once you're decked out in traps, go aggressive.

Gaxe, BDRing, DefDmg, and BTrophy are all much more situational, but can still be done. Obviously if you are seeking to min-max, Debless or SShoes will give you your best shot, but these four items can still be done. They simply work better on certain characters or require you to get certain items. For example, Gaxe require axes (ThraxeB, Thraxe, or Blaxe) to be used to gain the 5 atk increase. For a character like Lumberthraxe, or even the Vampire, Gaxe can be a very tempting reason perk to pick (in addition to Debless or SShoes).

Likewise BDRing requires potions to be consumed to get the 5 atk increase. While most classes can get their hands on potions, you will find that some classes will have a harder time acquiring potions. Undead Chef and Skinny for example transmute potions -- the Chef gets 0 use out of the BDRing and Skinny will get some value, but only if he gets more potions than camps. C.A.R. cannot use potions to heals, meaning the only thing the ring is good for is the extra attack, however since the potions have use in being turned into scrap, BDRing loses value.

DefDmg and BTrophy are a little more situational in their usage. DefDmg increases your bonus attack power so long as you have defense. The value is ~2.5 Def = 1 Atk. DefDmg is much more useful on tankier characters such as Living Armor and Templar, with potential on Peasant should he get his better armor. In the case of BTrophy, you gain 1 Defense for each boosted trap used. The boosted trap has to be from a character's class passive, meaning only Templar/Viking with Mantraps, Dragonkin with any fire traps or lances, or Vampire with Jagged Traps/ThraxeB will be able to benefit from the defense boost.

Lastly, Chaos and Frenzy are normally the weakest picks for a majority of the classes. This is due in part to the fact that Chaos simply makes your critical chance better and adds 1 bonus attack. Meanwhile, Frenzy gains its value from having companion pets; allowing them to attack faster. While the value is not fully known for how much better the crit chance is, it takes at least 3 Chaos Dice to see consistent crits, meaning Chaos will not produce noticeable changes until late game. On the same token, Frenzy will not produce noticeable changes until you have at least one companion, but having 2 companions make it all the more better. The one class that can benefit the most from a Chaos start is the Elf, due to the fact Chaos increases her attack speed. Classes that benefit from Frenzy include Witch and Beastspeaker, due to their companions they have at the start of the game. Dragonkin can also be a potential candidate because she gets her draconic familiar at some point in the game.

### Positive Passives

The Positive Passives have been split into 3 tiers, Top, Middle, and Situational/Low. Top tier buffs are really good all around passives. Middle tier are passives that can be run and work fairly well, situational/low are usable and still good in most cases, but are simply outclasses by other passives.

* Top Tier: Adrenaline, Supercharged, Stoneskin

* Middle Tier: Thick Hide, Better Bandages\*, Preferred Potion\*

* Situational/Low Tier: Lucky\*\*, Outdoorsman, Tough

(\*) : Better Bandages and Preferred Potions become low tier on Chef and Car, due to not gaining benefits from Bandages or Potions. Can be a questionable choice on Vampire due to half healing from these items, but basically makes these items like regular bandages and potions.

(\*\*) : Can be a top tier choice for Elf, allowing her to take a different perk or just double-up on more crit.

#### Detailed Breakdown

Overall, Adrenaline and Supercharged are probably the best passives you can get should they come up. Stoneskin is probably quite high up there as well, considering most enemies do some type of physical damage and this can allow you cover elemental damage bases. Adrenaline and Supercharged are most likely the better picks in the long run, because most bosses are DPS checks. In the case of Supercharged as well, many bosses are weak to zap, allowing some great sustain in addition to the damage. You will be more reliant on finding a Zap gun or two, but the lifesteal will definitely show value.

Most of the other passives are honestly much more situational beyond the big three. There is really no weak Positive Passive, but mileage may vary on these passives from character to character. Thick Hide is generally good all around for a little extra armor when you do find some and it just adds that extra polish to already tanky characters.

Better Bandages and Preferred Potions are generally good all around if you want better heals. Bandages will get you better mileage however, because they are much more abundant than potions. Better Bandages will basically turn you into Chef and two bandages should negate any damage most early enemies can dish out. The only classes that cannot run these passives are Chef and Car. These passives should be avoided on them, because you're basically gimping yourself -- you may as well not have a good passive if you pick these on Chef or Car. Vampire is also a questionable choice for this passive. While still runnable, you should be relying more on JgdTrps and ThraxeB to get your heals. Using Better Bandages or Preferred Potions on Vampire basically just allows her to heal like a normal character and there are honestly better choices for passives vampire can pick.

The last three passives are probably the most situational of them all. Lucky is in an odd spot where it basically does what Chaos does. Critical hits are always nice and fun, but you are probably better off with another passive. However, because the Elf benefits from crits, this is a really good passive and probably a top-tier choice for her. It allows her to either double up on critical chance with Chaos, or take another perk.

Outdoorsman and Tough can be very small impacts on a run. While more healing at a camp with outdoorsman is great, it really only shines if you are consistently low on hp. It can work for low level characters who are struggling, but ideally your character begins to stronger/better where they aren't getting beaten to a pulp. The ideal scenario is that by end game, your camping is just an extra perk. Most geared characters that are ready to fight a boss shouldn't have to worry about healing at camps. Outdoorsman can however remedy the Jester's Chaos Touch should you not have a Scavenger's Keychain.

As for Tough, it only gives 20 health. Its nothing amazing, but does give extra health to play with. Really though 20 health is fairly negligible and you're better off with another passive.

### Negative Passives

The Negative Passives have been split into 3 tiers, Top, Middle, and Run Killers/Low. Top tier passives can usually be run without hindering your game too much. Middle tier can be run somewhat decently. Run Killers/Low tier will definitely turn your run into a death sentence and should be avoided.

* Top Tier: Fragile\*, Scared of the Dark\*\*, Bad Luck\*\*\*

* Middle Tier: Sensitive Skin, Radiation Sickness\*\*\*\*, Heat Sensitive\*\*\*\*\*

* Run killers/Low Tier: Sluggish, Overextended, Thin Skinned

(\*) : Fragile can be a little more dangerous on Low Level characters, but loses its bite as you get higher level (30+). This is always a good pick for Living Armor.

(\*\*) : Scared of the Dark works even better with Better Bandages, Potions, or playing Chef. Scavenge should be the priority pick for your better healing items.

(\*\*\*) : Should be avoided on Elf, due to her passive requiring her to crit.

(\*\*\*\*) : Top Tier in Ch. 1, Run Killer in Ch. 2, Middle Tier, but possibly Run Killer in Ch. 3.

(\*\*\*\*\*) : Should be avoided on Dragonkin, who relies on fire damage to deal damage. Should be avoided if you need to use fire. This will most likely cause runs to die if you are relying on a lot of fire.

#### Detailed Breakdown

In the irony of ironies, the best Negative Passives you can get are Scared of the Dark, Fragile, and Bad Luck. Scared of the Dark and Fragile can still be risky to run, but most of this stems from low level characters. In a very similar case to Outdoorsman, in an ideal run you won't be relying on camping that much for healing. And as a case for Fragile, while 30 hp sounds like a big amount to lose, it does lose its bite as you level. Remember with Afraid of the Dark, you will need to rely on Scavenging for healing. 20 heal from a treat is not going to matter when you get 30 from potions or bandages. If you have better bandages, preferred potions, or are playing chef, then you get even more healing from these items than the measly 20 at camp.

Bad Luck is in a very similar boat. While crit calculation is not fully understood, critical hits will not necessarily make or break a run. The only character that shouldn't run Bad Luck is Elf, who relies of criticals to get attack speed.

The next set of passives that should be considered are Radiation Sickness, Heat Sensitivity, and Sensitive Skin. Each of these are extremely situational. For Radiation Sickness for example: it's top tier in Chapter 1, because there is no nuke damage, but will kill your run in Chapter 2. Chapter 3 depends on character level, but your mileage may vary because the mutant rats and birds do nuke. Heat Sensitivity should be considered depending on the fire damage you expect to be using. Any fire damage you deal will hurt you, so if you don't expect to need much fire, this is your pick. Dragonkin should avoid this passive though, if she can get it, because fire damage is her bread and butter.

Lastly, we have Sensitive Skin for middle tier. Sensitive Skin gets a lot of flack, but is in this odd spot where its not necessarily a run killer, but not necessarily middle tier. You will definitely feel the armor loss on a very armored character, but on a character that can't necessarily get much armor (defense below 10) it will only lose you about 2 defense. This is more of a Chapter 1 pick for shorter runs, but is a little tougher on Chapter 2 due to how tough enemies are there. It's also not bad if you need an armored character to take damage for an objective. It's just really niche at its job.

The final three passives should never. ever. EVER. be picked. If you want to watch your character die the instant you start your run, these passives will happily oblige. If you want to see your character slowly kill themselves, consider picking up Overextended where 7-8% of your damage dealt is dealt back to you. Character can already have a tough time at the start of the run from the damage enemies deal, there is no reason to punish yourself with an extra 10-20 damage from your own. It will only get more punishing when you deal big damage, saying your character survives to end game. Vitality Snare may be able to cancel the damage out, but you'd need at least two of them.

Next we have Thin Skinned. Almost every enemy or boss has a physical attack. If you thought the damage enemies dished out was rough already, imagine them doing twice that much. Those weak bandits who were doing 15 physical? Ready to take 30?

Did the last two passive scare you yet? If not get ready for perhaps the worst one: Sluggish. Sluggish reduces your attack speed by a whopping 30%. If you ever played the first game, it was already bad, but it got worse in Aftermath. A normal character not affected by Adrenaline or Sluggish can usually get 1 item and 1-2 attacks in. A Sluggish character will be lucky to get an attack off after using 1 item. Sluggish can mean the difference between killing an enemy, to being a sliver away from killing an enemy before they kill you. Sluggish can mean the difference between getting a free heal and finishing off a foe, to getting a free heal and then taking a beating from an enemy who was a sliver away from dying. In a game where the difference between your character living and dying is from who has the faster draw, you're basically setting yourself up for disappointment.

## General Boss Killing Builds

Builds listed below include the best in slot, and alternative gear that any class should be able to fulfill in a run with good RNG.

### Chapter 1

#### (Level 1-4) Wastelander Buggy

* Best in slot gear: At least 1 Fire Pistol, Reinforced Armor, A combination of Metal Mask, Toughguy Helmet or Goggles, Renegade Mystic, At least 1 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, 1-2 Fire/Nuke traps (or Fire lance) and some emergency healing.

* Alternative gear: At least 1 Zap Gun, Body Armor, A combination of Metal Mask, Toughguy Helmet or Goggles, Any pet, At least 1 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, 1-2 Fire/Nuke traps (or Fire lance) and some emegency healing.

The Wasteland Buggy is the first boss fight new classes fight. A horde fight consisting of 2 Wastelander Bandits and a Wasteland Buggy, that will mow you down if you don't know the rules of fighting 3 enemies at a time. All enemies are weak to fire, the Bandits are weak to nuke as well, but you most likely won't find nukes this early in the game. The best gear listed is most likely overkill and should be an easy victory. Regardless of the gear you have and your health, you should start with a fire trap to kill one bandit, this way you aren't getting shot at/run over by 3 enemies. If you need health badly after 1 bandit is dead, at this point you should probably heal. Otherwise, you should continue dishing damage through fire traps or auto attacks.

#### (Level 5-9) Corrupted Screenbot

* Best in slot gear: At least 1 Zap Gun, Zap Armor, A combination of Metal Mask, Toughguy Helmet or Goggles, Any pet, At least 1 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, 1-2 Shock Traps (or Shock lance) and some emergency healing.

* Alternative gear: Any type of gun, Some type of Armor, A combination of Metal Mask, Toughguy Helmet or Goggles, Any pet, At least 1 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, 1-2 Shock Traps (or Shock lance) and some emergency healing.

If you were terrified by the Glitched Screenbots wandering the wastes, you might be more inclined to scratch your head at this 2nd boss. The Corrupted Screenbot is a little less scary than his cousins, but don't let that get your head when the battle is still tough. If you manage to find shock lances this early in the game, he will go down like a rusty tin can. Likewise, if you miraculously find Zap Armor, his damage becomes a joke. If your damage is still not high enough from your debless or you are using a pistol, make sure to use some shock to soften him up. Other than that, the fight is pretty straightforward.

#### (Level 10-14) Entranced Mystic

* Best in slot gear: At least 1 Zap Gun, Flameproof Armor, A combination of Metal Mask, Toughguy Helmet or Goggles, Any pet, At least 1-2 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, 1-2 Jagged Traps or Thraxes and some emergency healing.

* Alternative gear: A pistol, Some type of Armor, A combination of Metal Mask, Toughguy Helmet or Goggles, Any pet, At least 1-2 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, 1-2 Jagged Traps or Thraxes and some emergency healing.

If you thought the mystics were a joke, you won't be laughing when you fight this guy. When you start seeing his sway in place, he's ready to nuke you with a massive fireball. It definitely hurts, but isn't so bad if you have some Flameproof Armor. If you have Jagged Traps, use them to get some damage in. Otherwise you'll want to use thraxes when you're under half health to reall chunk him. Make sure your health is topped off in preparation for when he sways and you'll be able to beat the heat.

#### (Level 15-19) Mega-Mutant

* Best in slot gear: At least 1 Fire Pistol and a Zap Gun, Reinforced Armor, Metal Masks, Renegade Mystic, At least 2-3 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, 1-2 Fire Lances, Shield Generator or Second Breath and a lot of emergency healing.

* Alternative gear: 2 Zap Guns, Some type of Armor, A combination of Metal Mask or Toughguy Helmet, Any pet, At least 2-3 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, 1-2 Fire Lances, Shield Generator or Second Breath and a lot of emergency healing.

Before his nerfs, he was an extremely tough boss. After his nerfs? Well, still pretty tough. The Mega-Mutant resists Blood and Physical, so if you're running around with a pistol still you can most likely kiss that class goodbye. The Mega-Mutant is a dps race in which its kill or be killed... by a bus. Between rounds 3-5 (but most commonly at round 5), the Mutant will toss a bus that does 130 damage to non-physical armored characters (around 60 to physical resist armored characters). If you manage to find fire lances, you'd best use them. Likewise, if you find an SHGen, make sure to time it for the bus throw so you can breathe for a few more rounds.

#### (Level 20-24) Wasteland Bruiser Tank

* Best in slot gear: At least 2 Zap Guns, Flameproof Armor or Reinforced Armor, Metal Masks, Renegade Mystic, At least 2-3 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, 1-2 Shock Lances and Fire, Shield Generator or Second Breath and a lot of emergency healing.

* Alternative gear: 1 Zap Gun and Fire Pistol, Flameproof Armor or Body Armor, A combination of Metal Mask or Toughguy Helmet, Renegade Mystic, At least 2-3 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, 1-2 Shock Lances and Fire, Shield Generator or Second Breath and a lot of emergency healing.

The Wasteland Bruiser Tank is the second horde boss battle you'll face. Do you hate the 3x Wasteland Bruiser fight? Well now you're face to face with the harder version of their fight... The Wasteland Bruiser Tank consists of 2 Wasteland Bruiser and 1 Wasteland Tank. As with any horde fight, you need the first guy down ASAP. Use fire if you have it and heal when you really need it. If you have a SHGen, try and save it for the tank. Whatever you do, don't try going into this fight with physical damage, because the tank is immune to it (1 damage). If your zap pistols or fire gun don't do over 200 damage, toss some shock lances in for good measure.

#### (Level 25-29) The Archivist

* Best in slot gear: At least 2 Zap Guns, Zap Armor, Metal Masks, Renegade Mystic, At 3 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, Shock Lances, Shield Generator or Second Breath and a lot of emergency healing.

* Alternative gear: 1 Zap Gun and another gun, Flameproof Armor, A combination of Metal Mask or Toughguy Helmet, Renegade Mystic, At least 3 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, Shock Lances, Shield Generator or Second Breath and a lot of emergency healing.

Your goal is in sight for Chapter 1, The Archivist awaits you. This guy is pretty much a dps race -- kill or be killed type boss like the mega-mutant. Zap Armor is a godsend for this fight, but it's a miracle if you'll even get it due to how rare the event is. Otherwise try and find Flameproof Armor because you will be fighting a lot of mystics... Ideally you'll get one or two zap guns along the way as well. The Archivist will shock you and leech health from the damage he does, along with delivering a massive zap that just hits really hard. If you have Shock Lances, make sure to use them (unless your weapons do more).

#### (Level 30-34) The Archivist

* Best in slot gear: At least 2 Zap Guns, Zap Armor, Metal Masks, Renegade Mystic, At 3 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, Shock Lances, Shield Generator or Second Breath and a lot of emergency healing.

* Alternative gear: 1 Zap Gun and another gun, Flameproof Armor, A combination of Metal Mask or Toughguy Helmet, Renegade Mystic, At least 3 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, Shock Lances, Shield Generator or Second Breath and a lot of emergency healing.

Did you think he was defeated? Surprise, this isn't even his final form! This boss now has added resistances from the last fight (Fire and Blood) and does more damage. Treat this fight just like the last one and do a big chunk of damage before he zaps you to death.

#### (Level 35-39) The Archivist

* Best in slot gear: At least 2 Zap Guns, Zap Armor, Metal Masks, Renegade Mystic, At 3 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, Shock Lances, Shield Generator or Second Breath and a lot of emergency healing.

* Alternative gear: 1 Zap Gun and another gun, Flameproof Armor, A combination of Metal Mask or Toughguy Helmet, Renegade Mystic, At least 3 debless or a pair of Shiny Shoes, Shock Lances, Shield Generator or Second Breath and a lot of emergency healing.

His final form. Now with blood and fire immunity, meaning these will only do 1 damage each.

### Chapter 2

#### (Level 40-44) Glowing Horde

* Best in slot gear: 1 Zap Gun, Nuke Armor, Any combination of Metal Mask, Toughguy Helmet or Goggles, Any pet, 1-2 Debless, Shock Lances, Shield Generator or Second Breath and some healing.

* Alternative gear: Some type of gun, Any Armor, A combination of Metal Mask or Toughguy Helmet, Any pet, 1-2 Debless, Shock Lances, Shield Generator or Second Breath and some healing.

A new chapter and you're back at square one again. The Glowing Horde, despite its name, is actually a single enemy that does physical and nuke damage. His nuke damage can on occasion heal him for 250 health. Any shock you can get will make the fight even easier, but due to the map being small again, you may not find a lot of good items.

#### (Level 45-49) Moto-gang

* Best in slot gear: 1 Fire Gun, Reinforced Armor, Any combination of Metal Mask, Toughguy Helmet or Goggles, Any pet, 1-2 Debless, Fire Lances, Shield Generator or Second Breath and some healing.

* Alternative gear: Some type of gun, Any Armor, A combination of Metal Mask or Toughguy Helmet, Any pet, 1-2 Debless, Fire Lances, Shield Generator or Second Breath and some healing.

Do you like cars? Well maybe you'll like these. The Moto-gang is a horde battle consisting of 3x Moto-Gang Bikers. As with the buggy, these vehicles are weak to fire. As with any 3x fight, you want the first guy down ASAP.