Cauldron is an incremental minigame RPG from SleepyDad Games, published by Caketown Interactive and released on Steam on 21 May 2025 for 14.99 euro, with a Nintendo Switch version following on 29 October 2025. You play Nyx, a young witch with a snarky pink ghost named Blinkie, clearing a map covered in Darkness one square at a time. Every square hides either a resource minigame or a monster fight, and the resources feed upgrade trees for more than 20 heroes.
Your choice of equipment defines your damage output and playstyle. This guide ranks every major option, explains what makes each one strong, and tells you which builds they pair best with.
Equipment Rankings
| Equipment | Tier | Best For | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apple Picking | S | Early resource income, and for learning that the upgrade trees change mechanics rather than only multiplying yields | The first minigame you meet, where you catch falling apples. |
| Fishing | A | Early permanent buffs such as extra damage, defence, stamina regeneration and status duration | A timing-based minigame producing fish. |
| Rock Digging | A | Steady mid-game income once the yield multipliers start compounding | The mining minigame, producing rocks. |
| Cart for Crystals | B | Crystal income, and for players who want their party build to matter outside combat | An obstacle run producing crystals, and the minigame that leans most on your party's abilities rather than pure reflexes. |
| Ice Collecting | B | Automating early, since manual play is the least time-efficient of the five | The icon-matching puzzle minigame producing ice. |
S-Tier: Apple Picking
The first minigame you meet, where you catch falling apples. Its upgrade tree eventually changes the game itself into a shooting variant rather than just raising the numbers, which is the clearest example of how deep these trees go.
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Tier | S |
| Best For | Early resource income, and for learning that the upgrade trees change mechanics rather than only multiplying yields |
| Key Mechanic | Clearing the Darkness square by square |
| Recommended Build | Nyx |
How to get it: Available from mid-game onward. See our walkthrough for the exact progression point.
Best builds using Apple Picking: Pairs naturally with Nyx thanks to how their stat scaling lines up.
A-Tier: Fishing
A timing-based minigame producing fish. Community guides also point to spirit fishing as the efficient early route to the permanent party-wide buffs sold in the Spirit menu.
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Tier | A |
| Best For | Early permanent buffs such as extra damage, defence, stamina regeneration and status duration |
| Key Mechanic | Minigame resource loops |
| Recommended Build | Froggy |
How to get it: Accessible in the early-to-mid game. Check our maps guide for the location.
Best builds using Fishing: Pairs naturally with Froggy thanks to how their stat scaling lines up.
A-Tier: Rock Digging
The mining minigame, producing rocks. It is one of the more mechanical of the five, and its tree is where a lot of early Talent Point value ends up for players who like an active loop.
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Tier | A |
| Best For | Steady mid-game income once the yield multipliers start compounding |
| Key Mechanic | Cauldron upgrade trees |
| Recommended Build | Ticktock |
How to get it: Accessible in the early-to-mid game. Check our maps guide for the location.
Best builds using Rock Digging: Pairs naturally with Ticktock thanks to how their stat scaling lines up.
B-Tier: Cart for Crystals
An obstacle run producing crystals, and the minigame that leans most on your party's abilities rather than pure reflexes. It is the one most players either love or skip entirely.
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Tier | B |
| Best For | Crystal income, and for players who want their party build to matter outside combat |
| Key Mechanic | Turn-based combat and the autobattler |
| Recommended Build | Huntress |
How to get it: Found in later areas. Our walkthrough covers when you can access this.
Best builds using Cart for Crystals: Pairs naturally with Huntress thanks to how their stat scaling lines up.
B-Tier: Ice Collecting
The icon-matching puzzle minigame producing ice. Slower per attempt than the others, which makes its automation and yield upgrades unusually valuable relative to their cost.
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Tier | B |
| Best For | Automating early, since manual play is the least time-efficient of the five |
| Key Mechanic | Talent Points and hero skill trees |
| Recommended Build | Copy Cat-Bird |
How to get it: Found in later areas. Our walkthrough covers when you can access this.
Best builds using Ice Collecting: Pairs naturally with Copy Cat-Bird thanks to how their stat scaling lines up.
Equipment Progression Path
The order you should acquire equipment as you progress:
- Starting gear → Enough to clear Standard
- Fishing → Your first real upgrade, available early
- Rock Digging → Mid-game upgrade with good scaling
- Apple Picking → Best-in-slot, aim for this by late game
- Upgrade to max → The power spike from max upgrades is enormous
Equipment Tips
- Always upgrade your primary equipment before diversifying. One strong option beats three mediocre ones.
- Match your equipment to your build's stat priorities for maximum scaling.
- Put your first upgrades into resource yield rather than hero power. Everything in Cauldron is funded by the five minigames, and a doubled yield compounds into every later purchase while a damage upgrade only helps the next fight.
- Check our tier list for how equipment rankings affect overall build effectiveness.
More Cauldron Guides
- Cauldron Cauldron Overview
- Cauldron Best Builds
- Cauldron Tier List
- Cauldron Walkthrough
- Cauldron Beginner's Guide
- Cauldron Tips & Tricks
- Cauldron Combat Guide
- Cauldron Boss Guide
- Cauldron Maps & Locations
- Cauldron Crafting Guide
- Cauldron Classes & Characters
Similar Games
If you enjoy Cauldron, check out these related guides:
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- Baldur's Gate 3 Weapons Guide: rpg game with similar mechanics
- Cyberpunk 2077 Weapons Guide: rpg game with similar mechanics
