The Guild of Mereward issues you a torch and a numbered tag for the recovery of your remains. Roll up an adventurer, sign the ledger and send them down the Maw. When Old Snik throws down his crown and grabs a second spear, you may want to stick around for the next roll.

I made a whole dungeon crawl fit in a Windows 98-style character sheet. Your fighter rolls their own d20s and walks back to town when their pack is full. You can watch the fight in the corner of your desktop or close the game and read the expedition report when you get back.

Build a fighter who hits back

Teach your fighter to counterattack after a block. Or build around the shield itself, so blocking a boss heals the fighter holding it. Each of the 14 classes has its own talent tree. The caravaner brings a wagon into battle and has a crossbowman shoot back from behind it.

The Long Charter is the big skill tree every class shares. If you like planning builds, there are 2,112 skills to pick your way through. If you'd rather watch your fighter land bigger crits, point the Guild at that branch and let it spend the points for you.

Look up the thing that just bit you

The Guild's field notes recommend testing a suspicious chest with a pole. If it turns out to be a mimic, the Guild will pay for the tip of its tongue. You'll have to dry it yourself. Every creature your adventurers meet adds another ink drawing to the book.

Put the rat tails towards a better sword

Back in town, even the rat tails fetch a price. Take the gold to the forge and see if the smith can turn a shortsword into a shortsword +1. The smith remembers that pattern for whoever carries the next one.

Take a chance on a letter

A letter arrives from a fork in the tunnels. One passage has dry footing. The dwarven markings might lead to a paychest, if your adventurer can read them. Take a chance on the Intelligence check and watch the die land. Leave the letter sealed and the expedition carries on.

Choose a patron

Three gods share the Guild chapel. Orna lends you a shield at the start of a fight. Wern gets you back from market sooner, and Dagr puts more bite into an upgraded weapon. Pick one to travel with. The bond you build carries over to the next adventurer who chooses that patron.

Features

• Three adventures. Brave the 30 floors of the Maw, choose the fate of the Mourning Vale and search for a lost Guild ship in the Last Anchorage.

• Hundreds of hours of idle play. The Vale alone can keep an adventurer busy that long. Expeditions carry on while the game is closed.

• Choose from 16 ancestries and 14 classes. Try a new class talent tree with your next recruit, or plan a critical-hit build on the shared Long Charter.

• Fill an illustrated bestiary with 207 creatures. Your next adventurer picks up where the last one left off.

• Hire a pack animal to haul your loot. You can also bring home pets, including a housebroken treasure chest.

• Retire to a village of your own. Build homes and buy gear for the next adventurer you send down.