Gauntleting: a free one-tap dungeon crawler
Dive the dungeon. Make your choice. ASCEND! Gauntleting is a first-person, 16-bit dungeon crawl where every screen is three cards and one tap decides what happens. Walk the endless hall toward TheWzrd, Lord of The Tpwer. There is no clock: think as long as you like, then commit. It is free in your browser on phone or PC, with no download and no signup.
How to play
- Pick a hero: Warrior (strength), Valkyrie (strength and dexterity), Wizard (intelligence) or Elf (dexterity). Each starts with its own weapon and art.
- Walk the hall. Most taps are steps: turn down a side hall, walk forward or search. Each step has a good chance of running into a foe, a trap, a barred door, a chest or a shrine: about every other step, and never more than three quiet steps in a row. Nothing is set in advance: the chance is rolled when you tap.
- Search to make something more likely to happen: more chests and shrines, but more traps too.
- Encounters: each card names the stat it tests (STR, DEX or INT) and shows your chance to pass as a %. Fights: stand and parry, press the attack, or bargain for passage. Traps: step past, disarm or bash. Doors: pick the lock, force it or study the runes. Chests: open, listen for a curse first, or smash. Shrines: pay blood, mind or steel for a boon.
- Fights end on the tap: land a blow and the foe flashes and reels under your weapon, then crumbles in the hall as your next cards slide straight in. When something hurts you, the screen flashes red. HP you gain or lose pops up as a big number.
- Earn XP from every card with a roll: more when you pass, a little when you fail, plus a bonus for each slay and boss kill. Fill the purple XP bar to level up and pick one of three: your prime stat, two other stats, or +6 max HP and a big heal. Every pick heals a little, and every 3rd level offers to hone one of your arts.
- Take the stairs down when they appear. They show up by chance, always within a few steps, and each new depth is harder. A boss waits every 10 depths: read its tell (an opening, a wind-up or a burning rune) and tap the card that beats it.
- Watch the HP bar at the top: it turns gold at 60% and red at 30%. Your run ends when your HP hits zero. The purple bar under it shows your level and XP.
Controls
| Tap / click a card | Choose it (a step, a search or an action) |
|---|---|
| 1, 2, 3 | Choose the left, middle or right card |
| 1 to 4 (title) | Pick Warrior, Valkyrie, Wizard or Elf |
| Enter or 1 (game over) | Descend again |
Scoring
Depth is the big one (100 per level), plus slays, bosses, rolls won, art evolutions and relics, plus the HP you had left, minus the HP the drip took. Empty steps score nothing. Your best score, depth and hero are saved on this device; submit your initials when you fall to post the score to the all-time leaderboard.
Tips
- Play to your hero's best stat: a Wizard should talk and read runes, a Warrior should force doors and press attacks.
- With enough INT (or the Torch-Eye, the Lantern or a Sigil) the walking cards also show how likely each way is to stir something up. The Hook relic marks one way SAFE: only loot or shrines.
- Running low? Take the max HP and heal card at your next level-up.
- Don't dawdle: once the stairs show up, more steps on the same depth only cost you.
- Two arts can evolve into something stronger, so taking a second art is often worth it.
- Replay a run exactly with ?seed= and a number in the address (the seed is shown when a run starts).
FAQ
Is Gauntleting free?
Yes. It is free to play in your browser, with no ads, no signup and nothing to buy.
Can I play it on iPhone or Android?
Yes. It works in Safari and Chrome on iPhone and Android, held upright or sideways, and in any desktop browser. Add it to your Home Screen for fullscreen play.
How do I go deeper?
Take the stairs down when they appear. They show up by chance and always within a few steps. Each new depth is harder, and every 10th depth is a boss.
How do I level up?
Every action with a roll gives XP: more when you pass, a little when you fail. Slays and boss kills add a bonus. Fill the purple XP bar and you level up: pick your prime stat, two other stats, or +6 max HP and a big heal. Every pick heals a little, and the choice waits until you tap. Every 3rd level offers to hone one of your arts, and shrines still teach and hone arts too.
How often will I run into something?
About every other step. You never get more than three quiet steps in a row, and searching makes an encounter more likely still.
What do the percentages on the cards mean?
On a card with a roll, the % is your chance to pass: a d100 roll plus your stat against the depth's difficulty. With enough INT, the walking cards also show how likely each way is to run into something.
Does searching help?
Searching makes something more likely to happen. That means more chests and shrines, and more traps.
Why am I losing HP between rooms?
That is the drip. From depth 9, each encounter or trip down the stairs costs 1 HP (2 HP after depth 20). Empty steps are free. If you linger more than 12 steps on one depth, the hall grows cold and each extra step costs 1 HP, but that alone never kills you.
Is there a time limit?
No. Nothing happens until you tap a card, and no choice ever runs out, so take your time.
Is there a leaderboard?
Yes, a global all-time board. When you fall, tap ENTER INITIALS, set your three letters with the up and down arrows (typing works too) and tap SUBMIT to post your score, or SKIP to leave it off. You then see your rank and the top 10 (# · NAME · DATE · SCORE, with dates in Chicago time, CT), plus a THIS DEVICE tab with your own best runs. Tap LEADERBOARD on the title screen to see the board any time. Each run can be posted once, and if you're offline the score is saved on your device and sent on a later tap.
Can I reach TheWzrd?
The hall is endless and TheWzrd waits atop The Tpwer. Nobody has reached him yet. See how deep you can go.