The Relic First Guardian beginner guide — confirmed basics

Read this before launch

The game is not out until July 31, 2026, so this guide only covers what official material and a published hands-on preview have shown. Anything from the preview build is flagged as such and may change at launch — we will replace this page with tested routes after release. For dates and editions, see release date and platforms.

The one rule that changes how you play: stamina

Most souls-likes train you to budget stamina across attacks and dodges. This game deliberately breaks that habit. The official description is explicit: stamina is never depleted when attacking; it is reserved for defense and dodging. Skills cost no resources at all and run on cooldowns.

What that means for your first hours:

1. Do not “save” stamina before committing to a combo — your attack string costs nothing.
2. Treat your stamina bar as a survival bar. If it is low, you cannot dodge or defend, which is the only time you are truly exposed.
3. Rotate cooldown skills into every fight. There is no mana or focus resource to hoard.

The developers describe the intent as pure offensive flow: aggression is the default, and vulnerability comes from misjudging defensive windows, not from running out of gas mid-combo.

Your first weapon choice matters, but is not permanent progress

You choose from five weapon types, and official material pairs them with twelve exclusive skill trees that can be mixed into hybrid builds. The hands-on preview build started with a sword and shield loadout, with more weapons coming from loot and a blacksmith NPC. Every weapon and armor piece is one-of-a-kind in the world — there are no “slightly better” duplicate swords.

Because no one outside the studio has tested all five types in the release build, we do not recommend a starting weapon. What is safe to say: pick for rhythm, not numbers, since each type is built around a distinct combat tempo. The full breakdown of what is confirmed per weapon lives in the weapons guide.

Magic and healing exist earlier than you might expect

From the hands-on preview (preview build, not yet verified at launch):

• Relic Magic is available early, with fire as the first element and more unlocking later. There is no heavy attack; magic fills that damage niche if you accept the risk of casting mid-fight.
• A healing spell is part of the early relic magic kit.
• Relic Stones — equippable, enhanceable buff items — unlock after an early boss via an NPC named Elisa, and the preview calls them essential for later bosses.
• Checkpoints are Tibelle’s Stones, the bonfire equivalent.

Treat the specifics (unlock order, NPC names) as preview-build information until we can verify them in the release version.

Progression without levels: route around bosses

There is no XP bar and nothing souls-like to lose on death in the preview build. Officially, your character grows through relics (runes) carrying one of 70+ passive effects, plus items, gear and crafting. The preview adds that more relics come from defeating bosses, and that boss order allows some player choice.

So the beginner loop is: explore the semi-open world, pick a boss, win, and convert that victory into relics and unique gear. Deep-dive on how the pieces connect in relics, runes and progression, and see who you will be fighting in the bosses overview.

What this guide deliberately does not tell you

The following do not exist in any official source yet, so we will not invent them: damage numbers, drop locations, best builds, boss weaknesses, map routes or crafting recipes. Any site listing those before July 31 is guessing. This page gets rewritten with first-hand tested content once the game is out.