Vampire Survivors Beginner's Guide: How to Clear the Base Game

A complete guide to clearing the base game of *Vampire Survivors*.

Despite its simple pixel art and incredibly addictive, satisfying gameplay, the sheer volume of DLCs and updates can leave new players wondering, "What am I actually supposed to do?"

So, I've put together a step-by-step guide on how to clear the stages of the $5 base game.

*Note: This information is current as of June 2026.*

Step-by-Step Chart to the Final Stage

It’s a bit ambiguous what actually constitutes "beating" this game, but whether your goal is to complete the Collection or unlock all the Characters, unlocking various game mechanics first makes everything much smoother.

Therefore, our first major goal is to clear the final stage.

Below, I'll break down the details and provide tips for each stage.

Mad Forest

At the start of the game, you can only choose Antonio, so use him to get a feel for the game.

Pick up gems and coins on the map, break light sources, and experiment with different items upon leveling up.

Early on, weapons like the King Bible and Garlic are great for covering your surroundings.

Once you've saved up some coins, unlock Imelda or Gennaro.

I highly recommend Imelda. Her weapon automatically targets the nearest enemy, which is super convenient, and her passive trait gives an experience bonus. Stick with Imelda until you start opening coffins.

The Inlaid Library is generally easier to play, so once you hit Level 20 in Mad Forest, move on to the next stage.

Inlaid Library

Find the Relic "Grim Grimoire" on the map. Just follow the green arrow.

After that, aim for Level 40 to unlock the next stage, Dairy Plant.

Pay Attention to Weapon Evolutions

Once you get the Grim Grimoire, you can check the evolution conditions for weapons you've previously evolved by accessing the "Grim Grimoire" button in the bottom right of the pause menu.

Evolved weapons are incredibly powerful.

From now on, when leveling up, try to select combinations of weapons and passive items that meet these evolution requirements.

In the early game, try to run through the following list to get a feel for their performance:

If you open a treasure chest when the conditions are met, the weapon will evolve.

Early on, King Bible and Garlic are very handy, and Runetracer is incredibly strong on stages with lots of walls.

Personally, I love Santa Water and the Lightning Ring, but if you want something that focuses damage on enemies right in front of you, the Magic Wand and Knife are solid choices.

The Pentagram can be annoying because it erases gems and chests until you level it up, but once it evolves, it becomes a massive leveling powerhouse.

...You might overthink it, but since you can't guarantee what you'll get from leveling up, you'll end up experimenting a lot anyway based on what synergizes with your starting weapon.

If you pick up too many different base weapons early in a run, your level-ups will be spread too thin. Unless you get exactly what you're aiming for, try not to grab too many random weapons, and focus on evolving 1 or 2 as quickly as possible.

PowerUp Your Characters with Coins

Once you've accumulated some coins, head to the "PowerUp" section on the start screen to boost stats that increase your survivability, such as Might, Armor, Max Health, and Recovery.

Once you're used to the game, upgrade stats like Growth.

You can easily refund your PowerUps and get all your coins back, so feel free to allocate stats however you like.

Save Greed and Curse for last.

Dairy Plant

Obtain the Relic "Milky Way Map".

After the stage starts, a green arrow will point downwards—just follow it.

From then on, you'll be able to view the stage map from the pause menu.

Next, obtain the Relic "Ars Gouda".

This unlocks the Bestiary on the start screen, where you can see how many enemies you've defeated.

Reach Level 60 to unlock Gallo Tower.

Getting the Milky Way Map allows you to see items and "?" marks scattered across the map.

You can pick up these map items even if your passive item slots are already full (6 items).

The "?" marks indicate coffins. Defeating the large ring of enemies surrounding them allows you to open them and unlock new characters.

Coffins are located in Mad Forest, Inlaid Library, Dairy Plant, Gallo Tower, and Cappella Magna.

Since Poppea's weapon is very useful in Gallo Tower, it's a good idea to open the Dairy Plant coffin before moving on.

Gallo Tower

Obtain the Relics "Sorceress' Tears" and "Randomazzo".

Sorceress' Tears unlocks "Hurry Mode," which makes the 30-minute stage pass at double speed and grants extra experience.

However, your character growth might not keep up at first, so you probably won't use it much until you unlock "Endless Mode" in the final stage.

The Randomazzo unlocks "Arcanas".

After that, reach Level 80 to unlock Cappella Magna.

The coffin in Gallo Tower is located close to the Randomazzo, but if you walk to the "?" mark, you won't see anything.

You actually have to step into a glowing mirror, and the coffin is inside that secret area.

Recommended Arcanas

Here are the best Arcanas to aim for initially, along with their unlock conditions:

Depending on your weapon, "Beginning" (which increases your amount of projectiles) is the easiest to use for a while.

If you're struggling to survive, "Awake" (which grants extra revivals) is highly recommended.

Pugnala is unlocked from the coffin in Mad Forest. She has strong weapons and is a character you can use all the way to the final stage.

Since Pugnala's weapon evolution requires Tiragisú, you should try to survive 20 minutes and reach Lv. 50 with Krochi (unlocked by defeating 100,000 enemies total) early on.

If you just want to quickly unlock Arcanas, running the Inlaid Library on Hurry Mode is perfectly fine.

Unlock Hyper Mode in the 4 Main Stages

Defeat the bosses that spawn at the 25-minute mark in Mad Forest, Inlaid Library, Dairy Plant, and Gallo Tower.

Even if you aren't sure which one the boss is, as long as you survive to the 30-minute mark, you will naturally unlock Hyper Mode.

Moongolow

At the start of the stage, buy the "Glass Vizard" from the Merchant nearby (10,000 coins).

This unlocks the Merchant permanently, causing them to spawn at the starting point of every stage.

If you survive for 15 minutes in Moongolow, you will be teleported to the hidden stage, Holy Forbidden.

Holy Forbidden is a straight path. Just keep heading right and pick up the Relic "Yellow Sign" to clear it.

If you get a Game Over, you can select Holy Forbidden from the stage selection screen. Once cleared, it disappears forever.

Apparently, you can only clear this with standard (legacy) characters. Using Imelda or Pugnala should be perfectly fine.

Once you obtain the Yellow Sign, Metaglio (Left/Right) and Ring (Gold/Silver) items will spawn on all stages. Evolving the Clock Lancet or Laurel with these items will allow you to defeat the Red Death.

Obtaining the Yellow Sign is also required to defeat the final boss in Cappella Magna.

Cappella Magna

A Death will appear at the 5, 10, and 15-minute marks. Use the Rosaries scattered around the map to defeat them. The Pentagram is also effective.

At the 30-minute mark, the screen will change and the boss will appear.

Defeat the boss to obtain the Relic "Great Gospel".

This unlocks "Limit Break," which removes the level cap on weapon upgrades.

The Bone Zone

Defeat the boss at the "?" mark on the map to obtain the Relic "Forbidden Scrolls of Morbane".

This "?" mark constantly moves left and right, so try to intercept it by moving along its horizontal path.

Once obtained, a "Secrets" menu will appear on the start screen, allowing you to view hidden elements in the game.

Green Acres

Obtain the Relic "Magic Banger".

This lets you change the music from the stage selection screen.

Collecting all standard Relics will unlock the final stage, "Eudaimonia M."

(There is one more Relic called the "Mindbender," but it unlocks naturally when you get 50 items in your Collection, so you should already have it).

Eudaimonia M.

Approach the dark, shadowy entity and choose one of the dialogue options to receive either the Relic "Gracia's Mirror" or the "Seventh Trumpet".

Enter Eudaimonia M. a second time to receive the Relic you didn't pick earlier.

This unlocks Inverse Mode and Endless Mode.

Inverse Mode heavily buffs enemies, while Endless Mode prevents Death from spawning at 30 minutes, letting you play as long as you want.

Enter Eudaimonia M. one more time, and the screen will distort, initiating a boss fight.

Survive for a little over 10 minutes to trigger a special sequence, unlocking the "Greatest Jubilee" weapon and rolling the end credits.

(The Greatest Jubilee will now appear as a level-up option. Once obtained during a run, it will be added to your Collection).

What to do after clearing?

Even after rolling the credits, there are still plenty of locked stages and characters, so there’s a massive amount of content left to explore.

Personally, my immediate goals are to fill out the Collection to unlock the ultimate character, Queen Sigma, and to defeat the Red Death. For now, I'm just focusing on unlocking the remaining characters and stages.

If you turn on Endless Mode, tasks that were previously difficult due to the time limit become a breeze.

With all the free updates included, the sheer volume of this game is absolutely staggering for a $5 price tag.