Philna Fantasy is a charming pixel art indie RPG from developer Sailike Game that throws you onto the continent of Votland with very little explanation and a whole lot of systems to figure out.
Between four classes, crafting, pets, Magic Cards, and nine hand-crafted dungeons, there’s a lot going on under the hood.
The game doesn’t always explain its mechanics well, which can make those early hours feel overwhelming.
If you’re just starting out, these Philna Fantasy beginner tips will help you avoid common mistakes and get the most out of your time in Votland.
Pick the Right Class for Your Playstyle
Right at the start, you’ll choose one of four classes: Berserker, Ranger, Chrono Mage, or Assassin. This is a permanent choice for your playthrough, so think about it before you commit.
The Berserker is a melee powerhouse and a great beginner pick.
The Ranger attacks from a distance with a bow, giving you breathing room in tough fights.
The Chrono Mage uses time-based abilities for a more tactical approach.
The Assassin focuses on speed and burst damage but requires a more aggressive, high-risk playstyle.
Each class has its own skill tree that lets you mix and match abilities. All four classes are viable, so just go with whatever sounds the most fun to you.
Choose Your Difficulty Setting Wisely
Philna Fantasy offers four difficulty settings, and this is one decision you should take seriously.
The game has notable difficulty spikes, especially in the later dungeons, and many players get caught off guard.
For most first-time players, Normal is the sweet spot. It offers a fair challenge without being punishing.
If you’re an experienced action RPG player, the higher settings are there for you, but know that the final dungeon cranks things up considerably regardless.
The good news is that you can adjust the difficulty if things get too rough. There’s no shame in dropping it down a notch if a boss is giving you trouble.
Don’t Skip the Crafting System
This is arguably the most important tip on this list. Philna Fantasy has a crafting system that includes forging weapons and armor, brewing potions, and cooking food. It’s tempting to ignore it early on, but that’s a trap.
Here’s why: new crafting recipes unlock by repeatedly making old ones.
If you skip crafting early, you won’t have the recipes you need when late-game materials start dropping. You’ll end up with resources you literally can’t use.
Upgrades apply to entire equipment categories, not individual items.
When you upgrade weapons at the blacksmith, every weapon in that tier gets the same power boost. This means new loot always benefits from your existing upgrades.
Start crafting as soon as the blacksmith becomes available, and make it a habit after each dungeon run.
Dismantle Gear You Can’t Use
Since you can only play one class per playthrough, you’re going to find a ton of class-exclusive equipment that you can’t equip.
Ranger gear when you’re playing Chrono Mage, daggers when you’re running Berserker. It happens constantly.
Don’t just sell all of it.
Instead, break down unused gear for crafting materials.
This turns every drop into something useful, feeding directly into the crafting system you’ll want to keep progressing throughout the game.
Get the Most Out of the Magic Belt
The Magic Belt is one of Philna Fantasy’s most unique systems, and it’s easy to overlook. You receive it from the Adventurer’s Guild, and it works as a customizable passive buff system.
Here’s how it works: defeating monsters drops unique materials that unlock Magic Cards.
You slot these cards into your Magic Belt to activate effects like damage boosts, resource bonuses, health buffs, and exploration perks.
The more enemy types you defeat and the more of each you kill, the more card slots and card types you unlock.
It rewards you for fighting a wide variety of enemies rather than farming one type over and over.
There’s also a heat system that limits certain card combinations, so you can’t just stack every powerful card at once. Experiment with different setups and find combos that complement your class and playstyle.
Take Care of Your Pets
Pets in Philna Fantasy aren’t just cute companions that follow you around.
They’re genuinely useful allies that can assist in combat, help you find treasure, and provide passive stat bonuses that make a real difference.
You can purchase pets from the pet merchant and equip them with accessories for additional perks.
As you raise your affinity with a pet, it unlocks unique support skills. Some pets excel in combat, while others specialize in finding hidden loot.
The most important thing to remember is to feed your pets regularly.
Neglecting them means they won’t perform well, and you’ll miss out on valuable bonuses.
A recent update also added the ability to preview pet skills at the merchant, so use that to pick companions that fit your build.
Explore Every Corner of Every Dungeon
Philna Fantasy features nine hand-crafted dungeons, each packed with hidden chests, secret passages, clever puzzles, and branching paths.
If you’re just rushing through to the boss, you’re leaving valuable loot on the table.
Take your time and check every dead end and side room. Many of the best rewards come from optional areas that are easy to miss.
Hidden rooms can contain rare gear, crafting materials, and museum collectibles.
As you progress, you’ll unlock traversal abilities from an elder NPC that let you manipulate plants to build bridges and create platforms.
This adds a Metroidvania-like layer to exploration, so revisit older dungeons with your new powers to find secrets you couldn’t reach before.
Complete Side Quests and NPC Requests Early
The Adventurer’s Guild is your hub for side quests, and you should check in regularly.
Completing quests and NPC requests doesn’t just give you experience and gold. It also gradually unlocks hidden features that you won’t get access to otherwise.
There’s also a museum where you can donate artifacts for rewards.
If you find anything labeled as a collectible during dungeon runs, hold onto it and bring it to the museum when you get the chance.
Doing side quests as they become available keeps you from having to backtrack later and ensures you’re always progressing multiple systems at once.
Stock Up on Potions and Food Before Boss Fights
Boss fights in Philna Fantasy are no joke.
Even on Normal difficulty, they can punish you if you come in unprepared.
Every boss has distinct attack patterns, and many use area-of-effect attacks that require precise dodging.
Before heading into a boss encounter, make sure you’ve got a solid stock of healing potions and cooked food.
Both are made through the crafting system, so this is another reason keeping up with your recipes matters.
Dodging is your best friend in these fights.
Learn the timing of each boss’s attack patterns, and don’t get greedy with your attacks. Wait for safe windows to deal damage, and you’ll come out on top.
Don’t Ignore Puzzles (But Know You Can Skip Some)
Dungeons in Philna Fantasy are full of puzzles, and they’re surprisingly varied.
You’ll encounter everything from pushing barrels across water using fans to stepping on every tile in a grid exactly once to unlock a treasure chest.
Some of these puzzles can be genuinely tricky, and the game’s localization occasionally makes instructions a bit vague. But the rewards for solving them are often worth the effort.
If you’re stuck on something blocking your progress, a launch-day patch made all plot-critical puzzles skippable.
Optional puzzles can’t be skipped, but those are purely for bonus rewards. Give every puzzle a fair shot, because solving them is one of the game’s highlights.
Replay Dungeons to Stay Geared Up
Philna Fantasy is designed around replaying dungeons.
Monsters drop gear of varying rarity, and the materials you collect fuel the entire crafting loop. Running each dungeon only once will leave you falling behind on gear.
This is especially important as you approach the final dungeon, which is a major difficulty spike.
Many players report needing multiple runs through earlier dungeons just to get their equipment up to par.
Dungeon layouts, enemy placements, and material locations are fixed, not procedurally generated.
So once you’ve memorized a dungeon, repeat runs go quickly. Focus on farming the highest-tier dungeon you can comfortably clear for the best returns.
Save Your Money for What Matters
Gold might seem plentiful early on, but it disappears fast once you start engaging with all of the game’s systems.
Crafting costs gold in addition to materials, and those costs add up when you’re upgrading weapons, brewing potions, and expanding your inventory.
Be strategic about your spending.
Prioritize crafting upgrades and inventory expansion over buying gear from shops, since dungeon drops will often give you better equipment for free.
Pets and their accessories also cost money, so factor that into your budget.
Pick one or two pets to invest in rather than spreading your gold across the whole roster.
A well-upgraded pet with high affinity is worth way more than three neglected ones.
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Images in this article are from the Philna Fantasy page on Steam and used under Fair Use.