1. Pick from fiveEvery room deals five cards. Choose four; the fifth is left behind.
2. Spend resourcesFight, evade, equip weapons, and arm potions to keep HP above zero.
3. Make poker handsPairs, straights, flushes, and bigger hands multiply room points.
4. Score the runHand bonuses join base score, then deck depth multiplies it. Clear all 44 cards for 2x.
MonstersFight for gold, or evade for half damage rounded up and no gold.
WeaponsAfter a weapon hits, its next attack must be below the previous monster value.
PotionsBank hearts in your Potion Bag, then arm one before a monster pick.
Goal
Gold, room picks, cleared rooms, remaining HP, and flawless play build your base score. Poker hand bonuses join that base before the deck-depth multiplier.
Your base score is multiplied by how deep you get into the 44-card deck. If you survive and clear the entire deck, your final score is doubled (2x).
For detailed scoring rules, open the scoring guide.
Card Types
- Monsters can be fought for gold or evaded for half damage, rounded up. Evading earns no gold.
- Weapons help you fight monsters without taking the full hit.
- Potions are banked, then armed before a monster pick. Unused potions add their value to your final score.
Weapons
A fresh weapon can hit any monster. After it hits, it degrades: the next weapon attack must be against a monster with a lower value than the previous monster you fought.
Equip a new weapon to reset that limit.
Potions
Taking a potion stores it in your bag. Arm a stored potion before a monster pick to heal during that fight.
Only one potion can be used per room. Unused banked potions quietly cash in for score when the run ends.
Poker Hand Bonuses
Each room checks all shown cards for poker-style patterns. Points earned in that room are multiplied immediately.
- Pair 2x, Two Pair 3x, Three of a Kind 4x.
- Straight 5x, Flush 6x, Full House 8x.
- Four of a Kind 12x, Straight Flush 20x.
Rough Start can only happen in the first room. It means the room starts without a weapon or potion, and it adds a 5x multiplier. Rough Start alone is 5x; Rough Start with Pair is 10x.
- In the final room, only Pair, Two Pair, and Three of a Kind bonuses apply.
Pressure Potions
- Base rule: unused potions in your bag convert to bonus points when the run ends.
- Paid run bonus: in competitive paid runs, those potion points can multiply up to 10x based on how long the current high score has been standing.
Used potions and unpicked potions do not count. For the exact pressure math, open the scoring guide.
Prize Payouts
Paid runs can win up to 70% of the pot when your final score beats the score to beat. Prize payouts are score-based, so stronger winning runs claim a larger share of the pot.
Low reset-round wins leave more ALPH behind. Big scores claim more of the jackpot, up to the 70% max.
If you die but your final score still beats the score to beat, you can still win the prize.
Paid Entry
- Guest Practice is free and local.
- Paid Entry signs a wallet run and can compete for the prize pool.
- Submit after the run to record the verified result.
Quick Tips
- Grab a weapon early if the room offers one.
- Do not fight every monster bare-handed.
- More cards played improves the deck-depth multiplier; clearing all 44 cards doubles the multiplied score.
- For detailed scoring rules, open the scoring guide.
- For additional examples and visual tutorials, open Tutorial Runs.