Beginner roadmap: your first 10 hours

Hour 0–1: pick your starter

Knight is the safest starter — highest HP, blocks for the party, and his passive tree mostly improves survivability so wasted points are minimal. Avoid Slayer as a first pick; he's a DLC unlock and his passive tree assumes you have AD investment from gear you won't have for hours.

Hour 1–3: unlock the Cube

The Cube unlocks at character Lv 5. The first function you'll use is Synthesis — 5 common items in, 1 random Uncommon out. Save your rare drops for Enhance (Lv 10 unlock).

Hour 3–6: rune priority

Runes are permanent global upgrades. Your first ~50,000 gold should go into Drop Chance Normal Chest and Inventory Slot Max — both compound for every farm session. Skip combat runes until your gear is plateauing.

Hour 6+: Act 2 and beyond

Stage 2-1 ("Oasis Road") jumps the EXP curve — your characters will gain levels noticeably faster from this point. Run it on Normal until you can clear it consistently in under 60 seconds, then push to 2-5 for the Watcher unlock (bat-build prep).