The Ultimate Barony Guide: Survival Tips for Beginners

New to Barony? This Barony guide covers essential survival tips, class choices, game flags, and strategies to help you conquer the dungeon.

Introduction: Why You Need This Barony Guide

Welcome to the brutal, unforgiving world of Barony. If you’ve just descended into its first-person roguelike dungeon, you’ve likely already met a swift end—perhaps squashed by a boulder, impaled by a trap, or mauled by the infamous Minotaur. This is the norm, not the exception. Death is a core mechanic, and learning from it is the only path forward.

This Barony guide is designed to change that. We’re distilling hundreds of hours of player experience and community knowledge into actionable steps. Whether you’re struggling to survive your first floor or looking to finally beat Baron Herx, this guide provides the framework you need. We’ll cover everything from choosing your first class to mastering the art of item appraisal. Let’s turn those frustrating deaths into valuable lessons.

Mastering the Basics: Your First Steps in the Dungeon

Before you even think about fighting Baphomet, you need to master the fundamentals. Many new players skip the most critical step, which leads to early and repeated failure.

Play the Hall of Trials

The single best piece of advice for any newcomer is to play the Hall of Trials. This isn’t a suggestion; it’s a necessity. Accessible from the main menu, this tutorial mode features 10 stages that teach you core mechanics like combat, trap evasion, and alchemy. Completing even the first five stages will dramatically reduce the number of "foolish deaths" you’ll experience.

Understanding Game Flags

Barony is highly customizable. Before starting a run, you can adjust Game Flags to tailor the difficulty. For beginners, disabling certain features is not cheating—it’s smart learning.

Game Flag	Effect When Disabled	Recommended For
Minotaurs	Removes the roaming Minotaur from random floors.	Beginners who want to explore without a constant threat.
Traps	Disables boulder, arrow, and spike traps.	Players struggling with sudden, unavoidable damage.
Hunger	Removes the hunger mechanic.	Those who want to focus on combat and exploration.
Friendly Fire	Prevents damage to allies from your attacks.	Players using summons or playing co-op.

Utilizing Assist Items

If you’re still struggling, the Shrine at the start allows you to purchase Assist Items using Assist Points. While these reduce your score multiplier and can disable achievements, they are excellent training wheels. Items like the Cloak of the Guardian provide a significant safety net for new players.

Choosing Your Class: A Beginner-Friendly Breakdown

Barony offers a vast array of classes, each with a unique starting loadout and skill set. Making the right choice is crucial for your first successful runs. Below is a breakdown of the best classes for new players, based on community recommendations.

Class	Playstyle	Strengths	Weaknesses
Warrior	Melee Tank	High starting armor, good HP, simple to play.	Low magic potential, can fall off late game.
Cleric	Combat Medic	Versatile, starts with healing, good with maces.	Slow movement, lacks early mobility.
Arcanist	Hybrid Caster	Decent armor, starts with a crossbow and two spells.	Jack of all trades, master of none.
Barbarian	Pure Melee	Very high strength and damage, easy to use.	Low starting armor, relies on finding gear.
Monk	Unarmed Fighter	High natural AC, powerful unarmed attacks, ring of slow digestion.	Poor starting gear, requires specific playstyle.

DLC Races and Classes

If you own the Myths and Outcasts or Legends and Pariahs DLC, you gain access to powerful new races and classes. Some are surprisingly beginner-friendly.

Automaton Mechanist: The Automaton race uses Heat instead of food, and the Mechanist class excels at building turrets and traps. This is a fantastic choice for players who prefer a defensive, tactical approach.
Goblin Shaman: Goblins cannot learn spells permanently but can use spellbooks in their off-hand. The Shaman’s ability to shapeshift into powerful forms (like a Troll) provides a great safety net.

Core Survival Mechanics: Combat, Skills, and Loot

Survival in Barony hinges on understanding its deep mechanics. This isn't a game where you can just swing a sword and hope for the best.

Combat Styles

Barony features three primary combat styles. Mastering at least one is essential.

Combat Style	Core Mechanic	Best For
Melee	Timing and positioning for backstabs and blocking.	Warriors, Barbarians, Monks.
Ranged	Kiting enemies and managing ammunition.	Rogues, Hunters, Arcanists.
Magic	Managing mana and learning powerful spells.	Wizards, Healers, Conjurers.

Pro Tip: Even if you’re a mage, learning basic melee blocking can save your life when an enemy gets too close.

Skills and Leveling

Your character has 18 skills, from Sword to Appraise to Casting. Every time a skill increases (indicated by yellow text), you gain 2 XP toward your next level. This means you should actively use all your skills to level up faster.

Skill	Function	Legendary Reward
Appraise	Identifies items over time.	Instant item identification.
Stealth	Increases sneak attack damage.	Crouching grants invisibility.
Casting	Speeds up spell preparation.	Free, no-mana Forcebolt spell.
Magic	Increases spell damage and unlocks complex spells.	Grants the Dominate spell.
Swimming	Increases movement speed in water.	Walk on water and lava.

The Golden Rule of Loot: Never Equip Unidentified Items

This is the most common cause of death for new players. Equipping a cursed item (like a -5 ring of invisibility) can cripple your run. You cannot remove it without a scroll of Remove Curse or by destroying it.

Safe Appraisal Strategy:

Start with food: Cheese and apples have a very low appraisal threshold and are great for building skill.
Use potions: Potions are also relatively easy to identify.
Wait for your skill to rise: As your Appraise skill increases, items will identify faster. Be patient.

Advanced Strategies: Priorities for a Winning Run

Once you’ve survived the first few floors, you need to set long-term priorities. These tips, gathered from veteran players, will guide you toward your first victory.

Priority 1: Find a Ring of Levitation

Levitation is arguably the most important item in the game. It allows you to:

Cross lava and bottomless pits.
Access secret areas and treasure.
Negate Baphomet’s boulder attack in his lair.
Avoid many floor-based traps.

Priority 2: Stack Magic Resistance

From the Gnome Mines to the final boss, magical attacks are everywhere. Prioritize gear with Magic Resistance or Reflection.

Item Type	Effect
Mirror Shield	Reflects all magic spells.
Amulet of Magic Reflection	Provides a chance to reflect spells.
Steel Shield of Magic Resistance	Reduces magic damage taken.

Priority 3: Boost Your Armor Class (AC)

High AC makes you nearly immune to physical attacks. Aim for an AC of 80 or higher by the mid-game. This can be achieved through:

Blessed gear: Finding or creating blessed armor (+1, +2, etc.).
High Shield skill: A high shield skill provides a passive AC bonus.
Fountains: Drinking from a blessed fountain can enchant all your worn equipment.

FAQ: Common Questions from New Players

Q: What is the best class in this Barony guide for a first win? A: The Warrior is widely considered the best class for a first win. Its high starting armor and HP allow you to make mistakes and learn the game's mechanics without being instantly killed. The Cleric is a close second due to its self-healing capabilities.

Q: How do I deal with the Minotaur? A: In the early game, you run. The Minotaur is a guaranteed death sentence. Listen for its roar and its heavy footsteps. If you are forced to fight, use high ground, traps, and ranged attacks. Later, with high AC and a good weapon, you can stand your ground. You can also disable Minotaurs in the Game Flags.

Q: What should I spend my gold on? A: Prioritize buying Scrolls of Identify and Scrolls of Remove Curse from shops. After that, invest in a Ring of Levitation if you haven't found one. Potions of Healing are also a good investment for early-game survival.

Q: Is it worth drinking from fountains? A: Yes, but with caution. Fountains can bless your gear, heal you, or give you stat boosts. However, they can also curse you, summon a Succubus, or turn you into a chicken. The potential rewards outweigh the risks, especially if you have a way to remove curses.

Conclusion: Embrace the Death, Learn the Game

Barony is a game that rewards patience, knowledge, and persistence. Your first 10, 20, or even 50 runs will likely end in failure. That is by design. Each death teaches you something new: a trap to avoid, a monster’s weakness, a better way to manage your inventory.

This Barony guide has given you the tools to start your journey. You now know the importance of the Hall of Trials, how to choose a class, and the critical priorities for a winning run. The rest is up to you. For further reading and the most up-to-date information, check out the official Barony page on Steam.

Now, go forth, die often, and eventually, conquer the dungeon. Good luck, adventurer.