Magic and combat

The staff

Wick's staff costs nothing. It is his melee attack and his tool. It breaks pots, rotten timbers and loose walls, cuts grass, strikes switches and crystal orbs, and lights torches and lantern posts.

Spells

Wick learns 111 spells. One is his from the start: Force Dart. The rest come two ways:

• Bosses. Every boss teaches one spell when it falls. Its signature attack is a giant version of that spell, so you see a spell before you earn it.
• Shrines. Old shrines hold the rest.

Four spells can be set at once, one per slot. Each spell has an element and a kind: ranged bolts, melee strikes, area blasts, traps, movement, shields, summons, beams and a few utilities.

Many spells do something in the world as well as in a fight: some freeze water to walk on, some pull things toward Wick, some lift and carry.

The magic meter

Spells cost magic, a share of the meter shown on each spell's page. Magic does not come back on its own and no potion restores it.

Auras

Every creature leaves an aura when it falls, a coloured cloud of its magic. Absorb it to refill the meter. Guardians, dragons and wizards leave bigger ones. Each wizard defeated also makes Wick's meter hold more magic.

Elements

Spells, creatures and bosses have elements. A hit with an element the target is weak to does double damage. A hit with one it is strong against does half.

Charged spells

Hold a spell's button through its wind-up and the cast waits and charges. A full charge hits far harder, with a bigger effect, and costs a lot more magic. A tap is still a normal cast. Mend and the utility spells do not charge.

Dodging

The dodge is a quick roll out of harm's way. Creatures and bosses telegraph their attacks with a glow, a marked lane on the ground or a wind-up. Watch for the tell, then dodge.