Throne of Bone is a popular roguelike card-battler with lots of different strategies involved. You get to start as a skeleton necromancer and make your way through rooms of the castle till you conquer the throne room and become its ruler.
With multiple characters to play as, each having their own pros, cons and dedicated playstyle, it can be quite confusing to play as a beginner. So, here’s a comprehensive Throne of Bone beginner’s guide with the best tips and tricks to help you become an expert. From card combinations to deck synergies, we’ve got everything covered for you.
Choose Your Character Carefully
During your first playthrough of Throne of Bone, you’ll have to play as the ‘Bone Collector.’ After you complete the initial tutorial, you’ll have the option to choose from various characters, each having their own unique abilities.
You should choose your character carefully as their abilities and artifacts will heavily affect your overall playstyle and your preferred deck choices. For example, the ‘Skeleton Necromancer’ has an affinity for undead decks which include Skeletons and Zombies.
Learn To Manage Your Skulls
Once you start playing the game, you’ll get a certain number of ‘Skulls’ every round which you can spend to buy various cards for your deck. Spending these skulls correctly is essential the key to victory in every playthrough.
The number of skulls you get per round increases after every round. You can also spend skulls to reroll your card choice from the shop.
NOTE
Always Choose The Best Activity Combination
After completing a few rounds, you’ll get the choice to choose certain activities whose outcome will affect your overall gameplay. Choose these activities very carefully, and prioritize the valuable ones first.
| Activity | Priority |
|---|---|
| Train | Highest |
| Forge | High |
| Gamble | Above Average |
| Reclaim | Average |
| Study | Low |
| Exhume | Lowest |
At times, you might also encounter ‘Bonus Perks’ as activities which provide certain stat boosts based on faction, class or even card placement. Be sure to grab them first!
NOTE
Prioritize Upgrading Your Cards
Getting your minions isn’t all you need to do. You can also upgrade your minions by buying a total of two copies and fusing them. Buying two tier-one cards (basic) will provide you with an ‘Improved’ tier-one card (silver) along with a bonus perk.
You can even collect two upgraded cards of a single minion and fuse them to create a ‘Perfected’ card (gold) along with the option to choose a single top-tier card from a selection of three cards.
Know Which Deck You’ll Build
Now that you know about the basic mechanics, the next thing that you should learn about is the decks in Throne of Bone. There are multiple factions and classes in the game, and each card belongs to one faction and one class.
You can leverage these factions or classes to create deck syngerizes which provide bonuses to all cards with similar factions or classes. Even among these factions, there are certain groups of factions that can synergize together in the late game.
| Faction | Details | Synergy Faction |
|---|---|---|
| Skeletons | Consists of Skeleton cards that can synergize well in early-game as well as in late-game. A beginner-friendly option. | Zombies |
| Zombies | Consists of undead zombie cards and is a great standalone deck. Does not carry fights in late-game though. | Skeletons |
| Horrors | Consists of peculiar cards which can be labeled as ‘Monsters’, each with unique abilities. A bit more complicated than Skeletons and Zombies. | Spirits |
| Spirits | Consists of ghosts and spectral cards that can create underrated combos. A great option for experienced players. | Horrors |
| Blights | Consists of plants and fungi cards that can create good synergy among each other. Hard to carry in late-game with top-tier cards. | Reapers |
| Reapers | Similar to Blights, but consists of pumpkins and unique creatures that can boost themselves quite well. Great in the early game, but not so much in the late game. | Blights |
Learn The Combat Mechanics Properly
The combat mechanics in Throne of Bone is unlike any other roguelike card-battler. Here, you can place a certain number of minions which starts from a minimum of four cards in the early game to a maximum of ten cards in the late game.
Apart from the cards, you also need to be careful about the placements since some bonuses and combinations are heavily reliant on the card’s placement. So, be sure to read the card description before placing them.
Choose Your Relics And Spells Carefully
Apart from choosing cards, you’ll also get the option to choose ‘Relics’ and ‘Spells’ from time to time. Both of these provide significant advantages in combat and can truly change the outcome of a battle if used correctly.
Both relics as well as spells have tiers, and the higher the tier you get the better bonuses and perks they provide. Some spells are even locked behind quests that you need to complete in-game before unlocking them.
Be Extra Mindful When Engaging In Boss Fights
Winning most battles in Throne of Bone is simple if you have somewhat of an idea about your deck and what you’re building. But, the true challenge is clearing Boss battles which are much higher in difficulty than standard matches.
Most bosses in this game have exclusive minions and spells that can change the battle in their favor within a few turns. Be sure to build a strong deck and understand the boss’s weakness before engaging them in battle.
