Grim Trials Combat Guide
Grim Trials combat: dual-wield scythe / axe / hammer with a crossbow, Fervor specials, hex-grid arenas, and a skill tree you pick before every run.
Combat is the dual-wield loop. Official store copy: master the scythe and crossbow to maximize damage with a system that rewards using both weapons at once. Glory Jam’s weapon devlog expands the melee hand to three weapons.
Dual-wield
You are not picking a class. You carry melee and ranged together.
| Hand | Weapons | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Melee | Scythe (default), axe, hammer | Main damage. Scythe is fast. Hammer is high burst and lets you reposition before the hit lands. Axe sits between. Movement speed is identical on all three — the heavier feel is animation, not a slow stat |
| Ranged | Crossbow (off-hand, always) | Grouping, explosions, run-and-gun. February 2026 demo: fire while moving. You can also manual-aim with the right stick |
Glory Jam’s design note: melee is the damage dealer; the crossbow is the tool (pull, clump, detonate). A scythe-only run is leaving half the kit on the floor.
See Scythe, axe, hammer, and crossbow.
Read the HUD
| Piece | Where | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Life symbols | Top-left red diamonds | Not a continuous bar. Each symbol = two hits in the demo. Start with six symbols (12 hits). Skill-tree HP nodes add more symbols |
| Fervor / special | Bar under the diamonds | Special-attack resource. Demo starts at two charges. Masks raise Fervor Charge Capacity and Fervor Gain |
| Blessing hexes | Left cluster, roman I–IV | Mid-run Blessings and their rank |
| Mini-map | Top-right hex | Current Trial Ground rooms |
| Consumables | Bottom-left radial | Crafted potions. 12 max per slot, per run |
| Boss bar | Bottom centre | Named. Acedia and Luxuria are on official screenshots |
You take damage from attacks, not from touching enemies. You can be hit while swinging. Close-range misses happen if the swing is directional and the target is on top of you.
Hex-grid arenas
Fights happen on endless hex-grid arenas with monsters, traps, and sinful souls. Rooms are hexagonal. Pathing around debris, soul-rivers, and breakable rocks matters more than an open field.
Quest tracker on the right: FACE YOUR SIN I–VII. Boss overview.
Skill tree at the start of every run
Spend Soul Runes on the circular Skills tree before you enter. Combo nodes (two levels, stackable in the demo):
- Berserker Path (Lv.1) — +13% Melee Damage
- Ranger Path (Lv.1) — shown on the combat overlay
- Charge
- Aftershock — II: radiate 35% Special Attack Damage/s to nearby enemies for 4s. Combo: Special → Special
- Finisher — I: 40% chance to instantly kill a non-boss. Combo: Special → Ranged. Also massive damage to Sinful Soul bosses
- Clash
- Momentum
- Shadowstep
Full node list and named Blessings: Blessings and builds.
Mid-run Blessings
After each room, pick 1 of 3 Blessings from the Gods of Death (Arawn, Manaan, Morigan, Thanatos confirmed). Repeats upgrade to level 4. Full breakdown: Blessings and builds.
Was this helpful?
Thanks for the feedback!