Swampland Challenge: Bare Essentials

	Defeat the Swampland Hydra without any oils or edges

Strategy: See below

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Strategy

Defeating the Hydra without buffing your weapon is likely to take a number of attempts. Note that you can pass over the oil/edge tiles without accepting the buff.

You'll likely want to remove the Swampland Hydra Stun Head. If you can get through the Hydra's first head without losing your armor and without accumulating stacks of acid you're on the right track. The build below accomplishes this by stunning it.

Weapon

Thunderbound Sabre

Attack 6 is sufficient. Higher attack is inefficient because the Hydra does not heal between heads, and excess damage is wasted once a head is destroyed.

The two stacks of stun is passed to the enemy via a gold Clearspring Feather.

Equipment

Gold Clearspring Feather to redirect 2 stacks of stun (see above).

Petrified Statue combined with two additional stone items gives 3 stun (5 total).

Marble Mirror (stone) combined with ...

Plated Shield provides Armor 60. Don't remove the Acid Head; the second and third head do not have armor.

Gold Arcane Bell to accelerate tomes (Symphony unused here)

Gold Granite Tome primarily to provide the additional stack of stun above. The stone tag is more essential than the additional armor

Purelake Tome provides adequate healing by generating and redeeming Purity

Liferoot Beast was present, but not needed. Stoneborn Turtle or any other stone item would be better.

Donts

Acid debuffs are a poor choice against Hydra.

The four heads are ordered to maximize the effectiveness of their respective debuffs. They are applied "on hit" and thus build up quickly. A debuff removing build is a sensible approach, but I found it too difficult to implement well.

Fungal Cloak was not helpful. YMMV. The third head's position as last (or second) of the three results in Fungal Cloak's performance being either underwhelming or unnecessary.

Muscle Potion and/or Muscle Elixir, even when Gold or in multiple slots, is no guarantee of success. I failed repeatedly with double digit Attack stats.

Unlocks

Moonlight Cleaver is your reward for completing the Bare Essentials challenge.