If you’re just getting started with Chainsoul, the game can feel a little confusing at first, especially because it’s still in alpha and some of its systems are being added or changed. You have to learn how the classes, talents, inventory, vehicles, and combat work before you can really get comfortable.
In this post, I’ll walk you through the basics you need to know when starting Chainsoul. We’ll look at the starting Mechanic class, how Links work, what the current classes do, and some of the enemies you’ll encounter during the campaign.
I’ll also go over some of the small quality-of-life features that make the game easier to play, including the improved enemy health bars, lobby settings, automatic skill equipment, and vehicle upgrades. If you’re completely new to Chainsoul, this should give you a good starting point before you begin grinding for the stronger classes.
Chainsoul Beginner Guide – Trello Links, Classes, Combat
Chainsoul is still in alpha, so you should expect some systems to change as development continues.
The game has received several quality-of-life improvements, including a proper inventory, a shop menu, improved UI, enemy health bars, and new class and currency systems.
When you first start playing, you don’t need to worry about unlocking everything immediately. Your main goal should be learning how the campaign works, getting comfortable with combat, and earning enough currency to start unlocking additional options.
Understanding the Inventory
The Inventory is where you can manage some of your character’s main options, including your class.
When you first start the game, you’ll have access to the Mechanic class by default.
Your inventory also includes your available talents and other information about your character.
One useful addition is the Logbook, which contains information about the different entities you encounter during your runs.
As you play through the game and encounter more enemies, the Logbook gives you a place to keep track of them.
Start With the Mechanic Class
The Mechanic is the default class you’ll have when starting Chainsoul.
This class gives you the Wrench as its weapon and also comes with the Moving Fortress talent.
The Moving Fortress talent reduces damage taken by your vehicle by 25% when running over entities.
The Mechanic also starts with 100 base health, giving you a solid starting point while you’re learning the game.
Since you receive this class automatically, I recommend using it for your first few runs rather than immediately worrying about grinding for another class.
It gives you a chance to learn the campaign, understand the enemies, and start earning Links.
How to Get Links
Links are a newer currency in Chainsoul.
You can earn Links by completing the required campaign content and defeating the final boss. The video demonstrates having Links after completing the boss, making them an important reward for progressing through the game.
You can then use your Links in the shop to unlock additional classes.
At the moment, the class prices can take some grinding, so don’t expect to unlock everything after only one or two runs.
For example, the Scavenger class costs 120 Links, while a successful game can give around 35 Links according to the current experience shown in the video.
That means you’ll need to complete several runs if you’re saving specifically for Scavenger.
Current Chainsoul Classes
There are currently three classes discussed in the game:
- Mechanic
- Medic
- Scavenger
The Mechanic is available by default, while Medic and Scavenger need to be unlocked through the shop.
Each class comes with its own weapon and talent, so changing classes can also change how you approach a run.
Medic Class
The Medic is one of the unlockable classes.
This class gives you the Medic Aid as its weapon and comes with the Constant Therapy talent.
The Medic has lower health compared to the starting Mechanic class, so you shouldn’t expect it to play exactly the same way.
If you’re planning to switch from Mechanic to Medic, keep the difference in health in mind when deciding how aggressively you want to approach enemies.
Scavenger Class
The Scavenger is another unlockable class and is currently much more expensive than the other class options.
It costs 120 Links.
The class gives you the Scrap Hammer as its weapon and comes with the Gear Dismantler talent.
The Scrap Hammer isn’t considered particularly strong in the current experience shown in the video, so you’ll need to decide whether the class is worth the Link investment for your playstyle.
If you’re a new player, I wouldn’t rush toward Scavenger before you understand the basic combat and campaign systems.
How Combat Works
Combat in Chainsoul becomes much easier once you understand what each enemy is capable of.
One of the newer quality-of-life improvements is the enemy health bar.
You can now see how much health an enemy has left while attacking it. This is useful because you no longer have to guess whether you’re actually making progress against an enemy.
When fighting, pay attention to enemy attacks rather than simply standing in front of them and attacking repeatedly.
Some enemies are much easier to avoid than others, and learning their attack patterns will help you survive longer.
Scrapling
The Scrapling is one of the weaker enemies you’ll encounter.
It resembles a spider and is very fast, but it doesn’t have particularly high strength.
Because of its speed, you should still pay attention to where it is moving. However, compared with some of the stronger enemies, Scraplings are relatively easy to deal with.
Don’t let their speed make you panic. Keep track of their position and attack when you have an opening.
Stone Golem
The Stone Golem is more of a middle-ground enemy.
It isn’t particularly fast, which makes its attacks easier to anticipate.
Compared with the faster enemies, you should have plenty of opportunities to move away from its attacks.
If you’re just learning the combat system, the Stone Golem is a good enemy to practice positioning against because you can usually see its attacks coming.
Void Spawn
The Void Spawn is an enemy you need to pay more attention to.
It essentially works like a stationary turret. It doesn’t move around the battlefield and instead stays in one location while firing at you.
Its attacks are relatively slow, and on its own it isn’t necessarily one of the strongest threats.
The problem starts when you’re fighting several other enemies at the same time.
You might be focused on dodging a melee enemy while the Void Spawn continues firing at you from somewhere else. This can make its attacks much harder to notice.
Whenever you see one, keep its location in mind and avoid letting yourself get trapped between it and other enemies.
Void Rook
The Void Rook is more dangerous than the Void Spawn.
Its main threat is its powerful dash attack, which can be difficult to dodge.
Because of this, blocking can often be safer than trying to dodge every attack.
If you see a Void Rook preparing to attack, pay close attention to its movement and be ready to block.
These enemies become especially dangerous when you’re already dealing with several other enemies, so don’t ignore them just because another enemy is closer to you.
Moon Sin Boss
The current boss shown in the game is Moon Sin.
Moon Sin is significantly stronger than the regular enemies you’ll encounter during the campaign.
Defeating the boss is important because completing the required boss content is tied to earning Links, which you need to unlock additional classes.
If you’re still learning Chainsoul, don’t worry about trying to rush through the boss immediately. Take some time to understand the regular enemies first and learn how blocking, positioning, and your abilities work.
Understanding Talents
Talents are another part of your character setup.
Your starting Mechanic has the Moving Fortress talent, which reduces vehicle damage by 25% when running over entities.
The game also gives you a random talent during the starting portion of the campaign.
One change in the current version is that your skills can now be automatically equipped when you wake up in your backpack. Previously, you needed to manually equip them.
This makes the beginning of a run a little smoother because you don’t have to spend as much time checking your equipment before getting started.
Campaign and Lobby Settings
The campaign system also has several useful lobby options.
When creating a lobby, you can choose how other players are allowed to join.
The available options include:
- Friends Only
- Invite Only
- Password
- Public
Friends Only allows your friends to join, while Invite Only requires you to specifically invite players.
You can also use a password if you want to control who enters the lobby.
A Public lobby allows other players to join normally.
The current maximum lobby size is five players.
Another useful feature is that you can see the classes of other players in the lobby. This makes it easier to understand what kind of setup your team is bringing before starting the campaign.
Automatic Skill Equipment
At the start of a campaign, you’ll go through the normal startup sequence and receive a random talent.
In the current version, skills can automatically equip when you wake up in your backpack.
This is a small change, but it makes the early part of a run more convenient.
You can get into the campaign without having to stop and manually equip everything before continuing.
Vehicle Direction Indicator
There is also a small vehicle quality-of-life feature that indicates the direction your car is turning.
This isn’t a huge gameplay mechanic, but it makes driving a little easier to understand, especially when you’re still getting used to the vehicle controls.
Since vehicles are an important part of Chainsoul, these small improvements can make a difference during longer runs.
Afterburner Vehicle Upgrade
The Afterburner is a vehicle upgrade that acts like a small jet engine.
It increases your vehicle’s speed, but it also uses a little more fuel.
This makes it useful when you want to travel faster during a campaign, although you should keep the additional fuel usage in mind.
The exact timing of when this feature was added isn’t completely clear from the current information, but it is available as part of the game’s vehicle systems.
Chainsoul is still in its alpha stage, but the newer inventory, shop, class, currency, and quality-of-life systems give the game a much stronger foundation.
As a beginner, you don’t need to understand every system immediately. Start with the Mechanic, learn how the campaign works, and get familiar with enemies like Scraplings, Stone Golems, Void Spawns, and Void Rooks.
Once you’re comfortable, start saving your Links for another class. Medic gives you a different setup with the Medic Aid, while Scavenger requires a much larger investment of 120 Links.
Most importantly, take your time learning the combat. Chainsoul becomes much easier once you understand which enemies you can safely attack, which ones you need to block, and which ranged threats you should deal with first.