About Monster Blade
Seven creatures, each with a job
The game names each creature the first time it appears, and each name is attached to a specific problem. The Husk is fast and fragile. The Flitter sidesteps a swing thrown on reflex. The Wingling approaches on a curve rather than a line. The Platebearer bounces light hits off its front.
The Grinder is slow, tough, and its slam cannot be blocked at all. The Rune-speaker throws bolts from range and is the only creature that can reach you while you are busy. The Thornball cannot be attacked and exists to make part of the arena unusable.
None of them is a damage sponge for its own sake. Every one changes how you have to move, which is why a nine-creature wave feels different rather than merely busier.
What the charge is actually for
A charged strike is not a damage bonus dressed up as magic. It exists to answer two specific problems that ordinary attacks are bad at: a group that has formed into a line, and a Platebearer you cannot get behind.
It takes twelve landed hits to fill, and taking damage costs four. That means a full bar represents a genuinely clean stretch of fighting, and holding it through an easy wave so it is ready for a hard one is a real decision.
It also sweeps Rune-speaker bolts out of the air within its radius, which makes it a defensive tool as well as an offensive one.
Wave rhythm and healing
Waves clear completely before the next begins, and every third wave restores a heart. That fixed pattern is what makes long runs possible without making short ones trivial.
Wave clear bonuses scale with the wave number, so the last wave you reach is usually worth more than everything before it - which is a reason to take a risk on the final creature rather than playing out a wave you have already effectively won.
How to play
- Press Start. WASD or the arrow keys move; the mouse aims.
- Press Space for a light attack. Every hit that lands adds one point of charge.
- Press K for a heavy attack. With a full charge bar it becomes a charged strike.
- Hold Shift to guard, or press Z to dodge.
- A charged strike cuts through a line of creatures and ignores plate armour.
- Every third wave restores a heart. Taking damage costs four points of charge.
Controls
| Where | What to do |
|---|---|
| Move | WASD or arrow keys |
| Aim | Mouse position, or your direction of travel on touch |
| Light attack | Space, J, or click |
| Heavy / charged attack | K |
| Guard / parry | Hold Shift |
| Dodge | Z |
| Touch | Guard, Dodge and Attack buttons; drag to aim |
Scoring
These are the point values this game awards, before the combo multiplier is applied where it uses one. Hit quality changes the figure: a strike at the centre of the correct moment is worth substantially more than one at the edge of it.
Tips
- Save a full charge for a Platebearer or a formed-up line, not for the next thing you see.
- Rune-speakers first. They are the only creature that can hurt you across the arena.
- Thornballs cannot be attacked. Route around them rather than trying.
- Taking a hit costs four charge as well as a heart - a clean run charges twice as fast.
- The Grinder's slam is unblockable. Walk out of it rather than raising a guard.
- Wave clear bonuses scale, so the last wave you reach is worth more than all the early ones.
Common mistakes
- Spending the charge as soon as it fills, on whatever happens to be nearby.
- Light-attacking a Platebearer from the front, which just bounces.
- Attacking a Flitter on reflex - it sidesteps precisely that.
- Guarding a Grinder's slam, which is unblockable and costs you the stamina anyway.
- Ignoring the creature names when they appear. They tell you the answer.
Features
- Seven original creatures, each named and introduced on first appearance
- Blade charge earned only from landed hits and lost when you take damage
- Charged heavy strike that pierces a line and ignores plate armour
- Charged strike also sweeps incoming bolts out of the air
- Health restored every third wave
- Guard, parry and dodge all available from one shared stamina pool
