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Some things that were unintuitive at first as a new player:

- Flask: it says it's a consumable, so i thought that when i used it it would be gone and i would have to craft a new one with leather. Which would of course be too expensive for only 15 extra stamina, so the first time i used it was after probably dozens of runs.

- Mageflare Rune: I thought it disabled darkness for the rest of the run. I unlocked it very early, well before having to deal with darkness, so i found it very expensive. So maybe i thought that because the notion of an consumable this expensive that only creates light for a brief moment seemed implausible.

- Violetheart Pendant ("+2 Stamina Regen"): I expected it to affect the regen turn counter, just like regen upgrades. I crafted it specifically to use with Mistral (which has faster regen), found that equipping it didn't change the regen counter size, and thought it didn't do anything because i had hit a cap on regen.

Note that nowhere in the game there is a reference to "stamina regen" as a stat meaning the amount of stamina gained when the regen bar fills, except in the description of the violetheart pendant. While there is a stamina regen stat referring to the size of the regen counter. So i took for granted that you only gain 1 stamina when the bar fills, and that this is not a stat, and that the only "regen" stat is the size of the counter. It should say "regen gives 2 extra stamina" or something like that.

- When i first reached stone (or was it granite? i don't remember), i thought it was water, since the texture looked like water. I didn't know there was water in the game, so it wasn't because i was already expecting it.

Thanks so much for taking the time to lay out all of this. You bring up some really valid points about how new players interpret things, and it's a good reminder to myself that just because I know how everything works doesn't mean it's intuitive for someone encountering it for the first time.

I'll be updating the descriptions for both the Flask and the Violetheart Pendant in the next patch.

As for the Mageflare Rune, yeah that has been a tricky one. I've updated the description a couple of times now and it's still causing confusion. I'd definitely welcome any suggestions you or others have for a clearer way to explain it, ideally something that instantly signals it's a temporary darkness removing effect. So far I have tried "Reveals the whole map temporarily." which was too vague, then we have the current one which is "Removes darkness until the next dig." where the players might confuse "next dig" as the next trip down from the surface.

Regarding the Stone or Granite zones, It's interesting that the texture gave off that impression. The color seems fine to me as they are shades of gray, but maybe we could use some pattern update for the cells. A full graphics rework might be something to consider down the line, but for now the focus is still on getting new content and improvements out regularly.

Thanks again for such a detailed and constructive breakdown, it really helps. Do let me know if you find any other unintuitive or out-of-place descriptions.

As for the Mageflare Rune, yeah that has been a tricky one. I’ve updated the description a couple of times now and it’s still causing confusion. I’d definitely welcome any suggestions you or others have for a clearer way to explain it, ideally something that instantly signals it’s a temporary darkness removing effect.

Found my way here looking for this. Suggestions:

“Pierces the darkness for a few moments”

“Lights up the whole screen until you resume digging”

“Grants a moment of excellent vision”

Wow, you found a really old thread. Thanks for the suggestions! I personally like the 2nd one since it clearly communicates the duration of the Mageflare Rune's effect. But there's the issue of what we should use for the improved effect when equipping the Alchemist's Pouch, which allows two digs before the effect wears off. The first and third options might be unclear, since wording like "moments" could confuse players about the exact duration.