Strategy guide

Steps are your only input, so the game is about getting the most damage out of every one. This guide covers what to buy, which hero to walk with, when to ascend and how to use the trial. All numbers are the current provisional values (rules v3).

Spending gold

Gold has no other use than making future steps hit harder, so spend it. Unspent gold earns nothing. A good rule: buy whatever adds the most damage per gold right now.

Option	Price	When it is the best buy
Hero levels	10, 11, 13, 15, … (+10% per level). Levels 1–25 cost 1,327 gold in total.	Almost always early on: the Wanderer gains +2 damage for 10 gold.
Level milestones	Every 25th level	Each one doubles that hero's base damage. When a milestone is a few levels away, push for it before anything else.
Upgrade tiers	20 up to 12,000	A one-off flat bonus. Cheap tiers are great early; the expensive ones lose to levels once those are doubled a few times.
Outfits	100–500	Never for power. Outfits are looks only.

Tip

The Heroes page offers a +N button that buys as many levels as your gold covers, and it shows the exact damage before and after the next level.

Choosing a hero

Levels and tiers belong to one hero and only work while that hero is selected, so put most of your gold into one main hero.

Hero	Strength	Best for
Wanderer	+2 damage per level, the biggest flat growth.	Pushing the wall: the reliable choice for your main hero.
Trail Ranger	Every 5th attack is a power kick for 3× damage, upgradeable to 5×. That averages 1.4×, or 1.8× with both rhythm upgrades, on +1 per level.	Close to the Wanderer once fully upgraded. It is a matter of taste rather than a clear winner.
Pathfinder Mage	Overflow: damage beyond a foe's remaining HP carries into the next foe. Its surge doubles every 10th attack.	Re-climbing after an ascension, when your damage is far above early foes' HP and one step can clear several foes.

Saving steps for a better moment

Damage is decided when a step resolves, not when you walk it. If you pause auto-attack, new steps are saved instead of fired. That lets you buy levels first and fire afterwards, so every saved step hits with the stronger damage.

Before a long walk, pause auto-attack under Steps & status.
When you are back, spend your gold first.
Fire your saved steps with All, or turn auto-attack back on.

The gain is largest early, when a single purchase can double your damage. Saved steps never expire and are never lost.

When to ascend

Ascension trades your run (area, gold, levels and tiers) for renown. Each renown point adds +25% base damage, forever. Since rules v3, renown is banked from your deepest run, so the timing matters:

Not before you hit the wall. Ascension opens at Area 50, but the right moment is when a full day of walking gains you only about one area. That is when your damage has stopped keeping up with enemy health.
Deeper is worth much more. A run's renown is ⌊(area − 10)² ÷ 10⌋: area 50 is worth 160 (×41 damage), area 60 250 (×63.5), area 90 640 (×161).
Never repeat a shallow run. An ascension pays only for depth beyond your best banked run. The Ascension page tells you the area to beat, and repeating a run that is not deeper earns nothing.
After ascending, early areas fly by. That is a good moment for the Pathfinder Mage's overflow.

Simulated at 8,000 steps/day: first ascension around day 7 near area 82, then ~91 after two weeks and ~100 after two months. Daily resets stall below area 81.

Is the trial worth it?

Yes, as a one-time project. Clearing 25 depths takes 1,750 taps in total and gives the maximum +5% walking damage, permanently. The bonus survives ascension. After the cap, play the trial only for fun, because further depths add nothing.

A typical journey

Phase	Focus
Day 1 (areas 1–40)	Buy levels and cheap tiers whenever you can. Recruit the Ranger (Area 2) and Mage (Area 3), but keep one main hero. Clear the trial cap in spare moments.
Days 2–6 (areas 40–60)	Push level milestones. Save steps and spend first after each walk. Each biome boss pays 10× a normal reward.
The wall (~1 area/day)	Ascend once you are past Area 50 and the page shows a meaningful renown gain.
Later runs	Re-climb fast (Mage), then switch to your main hero for the wall. Ascend again only when you beat your deepest run.