The Kingdoms mode inDarkest Dungeon 2offers a lot of upgrades to your Inns which are pivotal to your success. A total of five trees and a couple of handfuls of options per tree are available, allowing for a ton of gameplay customization. That said, given how challenging and punishing this mode is, you’re somewhat restricted in your choices at thebeginning ofDarkest Dungeon 2Kingdoms, whether you know it or not.
Some of the trick is knowing you can only dip into one Advanced tree per Inn, so you’ll want to specialize Inns. For example, a Physician Inn that heals Fatigue will prove imperative at keeping combat a smooth experience in your favor. Choosing where to specialize is important, too: Physician and Mastery Trainer specialized Inns will do best at a central location and/or near the final boss.
Best Inn Upgrades To Take And When In Darkest Dungeon 2
Barracks And Mastery Trainer Upgrades Are Pivotal Early
Early on you’ll need toset up various Inns with Barracks unitsso you can defend Inns from Sieges as they come up. Lose enough Inns and the campaign ends, but even if you just lose a few, that can be enough to make life a lot more difficult than it should be, since Inns are valuable resources. Focus on grabbingPartisan Trainingfor as many Inns as you canas soon as possible; this will wipe the floor with enemies in Escalation 1 (i.e. the first 15 days about).
Once you reach Escalation 2, Partisan Training can still hold up, but you may want to advance to Veteran Specialization to ensure victory.Veteran Specialization will be critical in Escalation 3for making it to the final boss.
Next isMastery Training. It’s just 10 Inn materials totake Specialist Instructor or Gymnasium, so do this aggressively early on before you pick up Mastery points from encounters. If you’ve built your team comp inDarkest Dungeon 2Kingdoms correctly, it shouldn’t be necessary to spend many points on new skills. As such,attempt to focus on Gymnasium for a bit, making exceptions for critical new skills that give yourteam a huge power boost.
In the midgame (Escalation 2), you shouldset up a Physician Inn in a centralized locationthat takes Journeyman Physician and possibly goes all the way to Physician’s Stipend. This will take the edge off Fatigue to ensure your team remains comfortable in combat. Meanwhile, the Trainer’s Text node in the Mastery Training tree will serve nicely around this point.
At higher difficulties, the Apprentice Wainwright node is respectable, but you shouldn’t need it on lower ones.Take Journeyman Wainwright after your first Trophy(if you get one), which tends to be in Escalation 3, but can happen earlier. The Cage Mounts node can be worthwhile if you pick up a free pet, but consider it low priority.
Darkest Dungeon 2: How to Find (& Use) Combat Items
Combat items are a new addition to the franchise in Darkest Dungeon 2, and they offer a variety of useful skills once they are found and equipped.
TheProvisioner tree becomes more appealing at midgameas you have more currency to throw around. However, make sure to leave it until most of your Inns have been defended. I favor permanent, long-term rewards liketrinkets inDarkest Dungeon 2as well as Stagecoach items, but combat, inn, and food items are fine choices, too. Meanwhile, Whiskey is there if you’re in a bind relationship-wise.
Once you reach the late game (Escalation 3), apart from the aforementioned Veteran Specialization and Physician’s Stipend, you shouldlook into the entire Physician tree. Make sure not to sleep on Sterile Storage, as healing items are a huge boon in Kingdoms, especially on high difficulty. Again, make sure the Inn you have this set up for is positioned near the final boss and/or Alpha den, and preferably near the center of the map as well.
Best Capstone Upgrades In Darkest Dungeon 2
Time These Wisely And You’ll Be Handsomely Rewarded
Capstone upgrades are ones on the middle-right side of the Inn Upgrades menu, as marked by a lock. They are pretty expensive at 40 Inn materials each, so you won’t want to take them early. However, choosing the right one later on can be a major boon.
Now you’re well-equipped to take on Kingdoms inDarkest Dungeon 2. Just remember: Barracks and Mastery Trainer are the important nodes to take early; the rest should somewhat take care of itself.
