Elin is the long-awaited sequel to Elona, the legendary Japanese freeware sandbox RPG known for its bizarre freedom and emergent gameplay. You start in a procedurally generated world where you can be a warrior, farmer, merchant, thief, or anything in between — simultaneously. The game features town building where you attract and manage citizens, a pet system with breeding and gene modification, and dungeons (called Nefia) that scale to your level. Elin inherits Elona's DNA of radical player freedom while adding modern polish and a town management layer.
This walkthrough takes you from your first session to endgame content. Each phase has specific goals, priorities, and milestones. Follow this path to avoid common traps that stall most players.
Quick Progression Summary
| Phase | Area | Focus | Build | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Start | Starter Town | sandbox RPG basics | Mage | 1-2 hours |
| 2. Early | Wilderness | town building mastery | Mage | 3-5 hours |
| 3. Mid | Dungeons | pet system + gear | Warrior or Mage | 5-10 hours |
| 4. Late | Nefia | Build optimization | Warrior | 5-10 hours |
| 5. Endgame | Player Town | Min-max | Warrior or Merchant | Ongoing |
Phase 1: Getting Started — Starter Town
Your initial settlement where you build your first buildings and attract citizens. The Starter Town location is chosen at game start and determines available resources. Early buildings include a farm, workshop, and basic housing.
Level/Difficulty: Starting area Key Rewards: Town building basics, citizen recruitment, initial economy setup
What to Do in Starter Town
- Learn sandbox RPG. Elin gives you total freedom — farm crops, explore dungeons, run a shop, fish, cook, craft, and fight in any combination. Spend your first session getting comfortable with this.
- Pick Mage as your starting build. It's the most forgiving option.
- Build your town gradually — resources are scarce early and overbuilding creates food shortages. Start with a farm, a bed, and a workbench.
- Acquire your first equipment upgrade — Staff or whatever's available.
- Clear all main content before moving on.
Phase 1 Checklist
- Understand sandbox RPG fundamentals
- Mage selected and functional
- Starter Town main content cleared
- Ready for Wilderness
Phase 2: Early Game — Wilderness
The overworld between towns and dungeons. The Wilderness contains resource nodes (trees, ore, herbs), random encounters, and hidden locations. Travel through the Wilderness connects all game areas.
Level/Difficulty: All levels Key Rewards: Resources, random encounters, travel between locations
What to Do in Wilderness
- Work on town building. You establish and grow a town by placing buildings, attracting citizens, and managing resources. This system becomes critical from here on.
- Farm for Staff if you haven't already. It's the key upgrade for this phase.
- Pets fight alongside you and can be bred for better stats — capture pets in dungeons, breed the best ones, and equip them with gear for combat support.
- Complete all objectives before pushing to Dungeons.
- Consider whether Warrior might suit your playstyle better than Mage.
Phase 2 Checklist
- town building integrated into gameplay
- Staff acquired
- Wilderness fully cleared
- Ready for Dungeons
Phase 3: Mid Game — Dungeons
Standard dungeon content with procedural floor layouts. Dungeons provide combat experience, loot, and crafting materials. Difficulty varies by dungeon and increases with floor depth.
Level/Difficulty: Scales with dungeon type Key Rewards: Equipment, crafting materials, combat experience, pet captures
What to Do in Dungeons
- Master pet system. Capture, breed, and gene-modify pets that fight alongside you. This unlocks a new layer of gameplay.
- Start working toward Long Sword. It's the best equipment and becomes accessible around now.
- Gene modification changes pet and character stats permanently — use bio-science materials from dungeons to improve your pets' base abilities.
- This area is the main skill check. If you can clear it, you're ready for late game.
- Start investing in crafting for the tactical depth you'll need going forward.
Phase 3 Checklist
- pet system mastered
- Long Sword acquired or in progress
- Dungeons fully cleared
- Ready for Nefia
Phase 4: Late Game — Nefia
Procedurally generated multi-level dungeons that scale to your character's level. Nefia are the primary endgame content — each run provides appropriate challenge and rewards. Deeper levels have better loot and tougher enemies.
Level/Difficulty: Scales to player level Key Rewards: Level-appropriate loot, skill training, rare items, gene modification materials
What to Do in Nefia
- Finalize your build. You should be running Warrior or Mage with optimized gear.
- Long Sword should be your primary. If you don't have it yet, prioritize getting it.
- Crafting improves with skill level — early crafted items are weak, but at high skill levels, crafted equipment matches or exceeds dungeon loot quality.
- gene modification optimization starts here. Small improvements compound into massive advantages.
- Farm this area for the resources needed to push into Player Town.
Phase 4 Checklist
- Build fully optimized
- Long Sword upgraded to max
- Nefia fully cleared
- Ready for Player Town
Phase 5: Endgame — Player Town
Your fully developed settlement with citizens, shops, farms, and defenses. The Player Town is the long-term project that generates passive income and serves as your home base. Town raids test your defenses periodically.
Level/Difficulty: Long-term development Key Rewards: Passive income, citizen services, home base, long-term progression
What to Do in Player Town
- Player Town tests everything. Come prepared with your best build and gear.
- Nefia dungeons scale to your level, providing appropriate challenge regardless of progression. They're always relevant content.
- The endgame loop: run Player Town, optimize gear, push harder content.
- Experiment with Merchant for a fresh take once you've mastered the standard builds.
- This is where gene modification mastery separates good players from great ones.
Phase 5 Checklist
- Endgame content on farm
- Best-in-slot gear acquired
- Player Town fully cleared
- Ready for challenge content
Common Progression Mistakes
- Overexpanding the town before having sustainable food production — citizens eat food daily, and a food shortage collapses the economy.
- Ignoring pet breeding — pets with bred traits significantly outperform wild-caught ones. Invest time in breeding for compound stat improvements.
- Spreading skill training too thin — focusing on 3-4 core skills creates a stronger character than dabbling in everything.
- Not crafting early — crafting skill needs extensive practice to become useful. Start crafting from day one even if early results are mediocre.
- Rushing into deep Nefia without preparation — scaling doesn't mean balanced. Bring potions, escape items, and well-equipped pets.
Key Tips for Smooth Progression
- Build your town gradually — resources are scarce early and overbuilding creates food shortages. Start with a farm, a bed, and a workbench.
- Pets fight alongside you and can be bred for better stats — capture pets in dungeons, breed the best ones, and equip them with gear for combat support.
- Gene modification changes pet and character stats permanently — use bio-science materials from dungeons to improve your pets' base abilities.
- Crafting improves with skill level — early crafted items are weak, but at high skill levels, crafted equipment matches or exceeds dungeon loot quality.
- Nefia dungeons scale to your level, providing appropriate challenge regardless of progression. They're always relevant content.
For detailed build optimization, see Elin builds. For quick wins, check tips & tricks.
