When diving into No Rest for the Wicked, getting off on the right foot makes all the difference. The early stages are a critical period where preparation, smart resource gathering, and efficient stat investments can determine whether you’ll breeze through or struggle. This guide distills the most important early-game strategies to help you build momentum and thrive.

Tool Up: The Essential First Step

Your initial goal should be to secure the basic tools: axe, shovel, and pickaxe. These are absolutely necessary for harvesting key materials early on. They can be found while exploring or purchased from vendors. While the fishing rod is not essential right away, you can grab it easily from the beach near the left tower. Once you’ve got your tools, begin systematically cutting down trees, mining ore veins, and digging up every hole you find. These resources aren’t just for crafting—they’re also vital for upgrading vendors, which unlocks new gear and better tools as you go.

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The Blacksmith and Your First Weapon Choices

The blacksmith is the first major NPC you’ll encounter and plays a central role in arming yourself. He offers basic tools and more importantly, weapons. Your initial weapon doesn’t have to be your forever choice—if you’re not enjoying it, go back and buy a new one. The Blood Rusted Sword is a standout early option due to its versatility. If you’re leaning toward raw damage output, consider going with a two-handed sword instead.

Once you’ve defeated the first boss, you’ll be rewarded with plague iicors. These are used to unlock additional inventory, weapon, or hunger slots. Prioritize unlocking ring slots first—they provide the most impactful early-game boost, enhancing either your survivability or damage output depending on what rings you come across.

Gear Up and Cash In

Gear acquisition should be pragmatic: equip whatever common gear you find early just to fill your slots. Once those are filled, sell off any extras. This not only gives you more silver to invest but clears your bag of clutter. Common armor and weapons come with multiple gem slots, giving you early build flexibility that can shape your playstyle.

Speaking of inventory space, you should aim to accumulate eight silver as soon as possible to buy the first house near the cemetery. Use it as a base filled with storage boxes. Solid inventory management helps you preserve valuable items for later builds and is foundational to developing a sustainable economy.

The Power of the Bow Build

If you want an early-game meta build that balances offense and survivability, aim for the bow. After you upgrade Whitaker the woodcutter’s shop once, he sells the Yun Long Bow. This weapon comes equipped with the cone shot rune—arguably the best bow configuration in the game. It allows you to hit multiple enemies from a safe distance while maintaining agility and safety.

Stat Allocation That Sets You Up for Success

During your first three level-ups, put all your points into health. This gives you an enormous survival advantage—at this stage, nothing will be able to one-shot you. After that, tailor your stat investments to your weapon of choice. If you’re running the bow, pump points into dexterity. Other solid secondary stats include equip load (for better armor options) and focus (which boosts your ability usage).

Nameless Pass: Your First Major Wall

Once you reach the Nameless Pass, you’ll notice a spike in difficulty. Enemies here hit harder and require more thoughtful combat strategies. Before pushing forward, spend time farming materials and upgrading your weapon. Your survivability and effectiveness will depend greatly on whether you’ve kept your equipment upgraded.

Vendor Upgrades: Invest in Greenwich and Gordon

Don’t neglect Greenwich, the general goods merchant. While his wares might seem random at first—ranging from recipes and gems to upgrade materials—he’s the best source for good rings. Upgrading his shop expands his inventory and improves your chances of finding valuable gear. Also, backtrack to rescue Gordon, the cook, from the starting zone. After saving him, he’ll open up shop with cooking ingredients and, upon upgrading, offer the Saloin Platter recipe. This food grants a +45 max health buff for 10 minutes, one of the best temporary boosts in the game.

Daily and Weekly Rewards: Get Bounties from Captain Randolph

After you reach the city of Sacrament and clear a few introductory quests, look for Captain Randolph near the Whisper Fast Travel Point. He gives out bounties and challenges—tasks like hunting specific enemies or collecting materials. These offer silver coins, experience, and even high-quality gear as rewards. Better yet, you can preview the reward before accepting, letting you focus your grind where it counts. These challenges are a reliable way to keep leveling, earn rare items, and maintain progression.

Closing Thoughts

Starting strong in No Rest for the Wicked is all about preparation, adaptability, and knowing where to invest your time and resources. Follow these early-game strategies and you’ll build a solid foundation for the challenges ahead. Whether you’re leaning into a bow build or just trying to manage your inventory and vendors efficiently, the early game offers plenty of opportunities to get ahead—if you know where to look.