Noctiria

Noctiria is a horror roguelite deckbuilder set in a corroded, diseased 1990s city. You choose one of six heroes, build a deck during each run, read enemies’ intentions and combine cards, status effects and consumable relics to survive a seemingly endless night. Between runs, you unlock new possibilities, develop your characters and permanently upgrade their cards.

The six heroes

Shadow, Mist, Void, Parasite, Abyss and Reflection each have a starting deck, a selection of cards, archetypes and mechanics that change how you play. You can build around aggressive attacks, status effects, controlling fights, sacrificing resources, manipulating Mana, building defenses or setting up combinations that pay off several turns later.

Build your deck

You gain cards during each run and manage Mana, generate Shield, manipulate draws and combine effects to shape the pace of combat. You can add, remove, duplicate and upgrade cards, but a larger deck can be harder to control, and a single poorly timed draw can disrupt a combo. The choices you make can shape the rest of the run.

Battles use status effects that interact and can alter entire turns. Poison, Burn, Intoxication, Decay, Paralysis, Intrusion, Drowning, Rust and Sharpening can wear down targets, weaken defenses, alter attacks, limit options or set up later effects. Some strategies deal heavy damage quickly; others take time or turn new status effects into chain reactions. You decide when to stack, trigger or consume effects.

Rest and Corruption

After a battle, you can recover health cautiously, attempt a deeper recovery with possible consequences, or skip rest to upgrade a card. You can also sacrifice health to force an extreme upgrade. Card upgrades persist beyond a run, remain unlocked and can be brought into future descents with that hero, gradually changing the starting deck.

Corruption affects several systems, including the costs, risks and probabilities of certain encounters. A more effective rest can bring new consequences, merchants can demand higher prices, and psychiatric treatment may be necessary when you would rather spend your gold elsewhere. Corruption also affects how you rest, trade and move through the city.

Routes through the city

Each act takes place across a handcrafted map with branching paths and nodes for battles, Elite creatures, Bosses, rest sites, merchants, treasures and unknown events. You cannot face everything, so you choose which risks to take, which rewards to pursue and which resources to save. A safer route may leave you unprepared, while a dangerous detour may offer a card your deck needs.

Unknown events present disturbing decisions, suspicious offers and encounters whose consequences may not be immediately clear. At merchants, you can purchase and unlock cards, remove cards, duplicate key parts of your strategy or spend resources to manage your Sanity. Treasures can contain consumable relics for use in battle.

Enemies and relics

Enemies have readable intentions, patterns, abilities and distinct behaviors. You can see what an enemy is preparing, but may not be able to stop it. You choose when to attack, generate Shield, conserve Mana or accept damage in preparation for a later turn. Elite creatures test your deck, while Bosses call for specific strategies and adaptation over longer, more complex battles.

You can carry up to four relics at once. These consumables can heal you, generate Shield or Mana, draw cards, remove negative effects, attack all enemies or change battle rewards. Each relic takes up a slot and disappears after use.

Progress between runs

Every run ends, but progression continues. You unlock heroes and cards, earn experience, improve character abilities and permanently upgrade cards through three upgrade levels. These unlocks open up new strategies and can make a future run’s starting deck stronger.