Shadowlight

SHADOWLIGHT is a stealth-focused ASCII roguelike where light and shadow are the only things between you and the blade at your back.

You are a thief. You came for gold, but the dungeon has other plans. Every torch a guard carries is a spotlight you must slip past; every patch of darkness is a doorway to strike from. You are not a warrior — in a fair fight you die. So never fight fair.

The core loop: stay in shadow, stalk the torch-bearers, and strike from the dark for triple damage. The moment you step into light, every monster that can see you comes for your throat.

Key Features

• Stealth as survival. You're invisible in shadow and exposed in light. Backstabs deal ×3 damage — but only when your target hasn't seen you coming.

• Turn-based, grid-based combat. Every move is a decision. Move with the numeric keypad (9 directions), wait to let the dark come to you, or close a door to cut the torchlight.

• Procedurally generated depths. No two runs are the same. Descend through dungeons, a green-lit temple, a torchlit manor heist, and deep crystal caves — each with its own palette, monsters, and light rules.

• Light is a weapon and a curse. Monsters and wall torches project real light with distance falloff. Close a door, snuff a torch-bearer, or shout to drag guards into the dark — or the light.

• A heist with consequences. Slip into a manor on the hill, dodge torch-carrying guards on patrol routes, lift a locked box, and escape unseen. Get spotted and you flee empty-handed.

• Shadowmeld, Shadowsight, Shout. Meld into shadow to vanish, see through monster stealth, or bellow to draw foes — and their light — toward the sound.

• Riposte. Drop into a parry stance; turn the next blow aside and answer with a doubled strike.

• Monster abilities that fight back. Shadelings melt into shadow; the High Priest locks your limbs with Paralyze. Learn their tells or die to them.

• Crafting from the dark. Every 50 kills yields materials to forge healing potions, smoke bombs, and trap kits — at a workbench, when no enemy is watching.

• Atmospheric ASCII rendering. Filled-tile walls, scrolling camera, and a banded warm palette that makes the dungeon feel alive — and the dark feel absolute.

In Shadowlight, the dark is not empty. It's where you live.