QUICK FIELD CHECK
Know which Gloom Worm problem is on screen.
The numbers below are current Demo records, not an Early Access promise. Reactions and statuses can still replace the next displayed action.
- Form 1 · 66 HP
- Read firstEvolving 1; its recorded turn is two 8-damage hits.
- Best current responseSet up the scaling attack and carry unused multi-hits through the evolution when lethal.
- Form 2 · 666 HP
- Read firstEvolving 1, Spellshield 1, Regrowth, and Psychic Scream in the five-action record.
- Best current responseSpend one cheap effect on the shield, then use the limb Vulnerable window for real damage.
- Cosmic Horror
- Read firstUnplayable, Replenish, and Inescapable; playing an Attack or Skill increases that card type's cost by 1.
- Best current responseFood and Curse plays do not trigger it in 0.4.71. Exhaust is a player-reported counter only when available.
- Form 3 · 999 HP
- Read firstStarts with Evolving 1, Thorns 1, and Spellshield 1; its record includes double and triple attacks.
- Best current responseOpen the shield cheaply, avoid wasteful low-damage hits into Thorns, then burst the Vulnerable body.
BOSS DAMAGE WINDOW
Break a limb, then punish the body.
Before entering the den, keep one heavily upgraded scaling or multi-hit attack and enough energy or draw to use it repeatedly. Healing and max-health growth can keep you alive, but the developer identifies low damage as the pattern that makes the boss drag on.
Use the 66 HP first form to establish the rhythm. When one hit will finish the form, multi-hit attacks carry remaining hits into the evolution; statuses do not carry over the same way.
Read the limbs as damage-window switches. Each limb applies Vulnerable to the main body when it dies, so finish a limb before committing the attack you built the run around.
On the 666 HP second form, remove the starting Spellshield 1 with a cheap effect. Watch its five-action record for Regrowth and Psychic Scream, but react to the intent actually shown rather than assuming a fixed turn number.
If Cosmic Horror enters the Combat deck, separate the proven rule from the workaround. Attack and Skill plays increase those card types' costs; Food and Curse plays no longer trigger the increase. Inescapable returns a discarded copy to the top of the draw pile. One current player thread reports Exhaust as a counter, but this route is not guaranteed to appear in every run.
On the 999 HP third form, account for both Spellshield 1 and Thorns 1. Do not spend repeated low-damage attacks merely to discover the retaliation; open the shield cheaply, create Vulnerable through a limb, and concentrate damage on the body.
Use food to stabilize only when it preserves the damage plan. The fight has multiple viable player-reported wins; this page does not require Limber Escape, Foul Breath, or one exact weapon.
WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE
You identify all three forms, spend expendable effects on Spellshield, use a limb death to expose the body, and preserve enough scaling damage to finish each evolution. Cosmic Horror no longer traps every turn in rising Attack and Skill costs because you read its trigger and use only a counter your run actually provides.
VERSION BOUNDARY
The three HP totals and starting statuses are tied to Steam Demo build 23718635; the carry-over, limb Vulnerable, and Cosmic Horror trigger changes come from official Demo notes. Enemy reactions can change the displayed action, and Exhaust or Limber Escape counters come only from player reports. No fixed attack, limb order, damage threshold, turn script, or Early Access behavior is guaranteed. This is not yet a seed-proof launch-build walkthrough and remains noindex.
CARDS IN THIS ANSWER
Know the effect before you build around it.
Ability text is tied to the recorded Demo build. “How you get it” stays cautious where a packaged shop value does not prove a guaranteed reward.
Combat / Curse
Cosmic Horror
- What it does
- Inescapable, Replenish, and Unplayable. In Demo build 23718635, playing an Attack or Skill increases that card type's cost by 1 through Leach Cost.
- How you get it
- The official 0.4.70 notes add Cosmic Horror to the Gloom Worm fight. It is a boss-inflicted Curse, not a normal reward this guide promises you can obtain.
- How to clear / avoid
- Food and Curse plays no longer trigger its cost increase in Demo 0.4.71. A player reports Exhausting the card as a counter when that route is available; treat that as a field tactic, not a guaranteed draw or universal solution.
Combat / Attack
Hot Poker
- What it does
- Hits three times for 1 damage each. A Fatal hit creates one Toasty Kebab.
- How you get it
- The packaged Demo record lists a shop cost of 1; it does not establish a guaranteed shop or reward appearance.
- Use it with
- Its record contains three separate damage actions, while a food/eat payoff can use the Toasty Kebab created by a finishing blow. How a particular damage upgrade changes all three hits still needs a current-build comparison.