Stoneshard Beginner Guide: Arna Build, Peaceful Brewery Route & Mannshire Progression
This is a straightforward beginner route using Arna, a one-handed sword and a light shield. It covers early preparation, the peaceful brewery outcome, unlocking your caravan, and what to do when Mannshire feels too difficult.
My biggest advice: don’t move into harder contracts just because the story sends you to a new town. Your skills, equipment and preparation matter more than reaching a location.
Step 1 — Arna and your first Osbrook contracts
Finish the tutorial, choose Arna, keep her sword and equip a light shield.
Put your attribute points into Vitality until 15, then Agility until 20.
Follow this skill order, checking unlock requirements as you go:
Level 1: Setup + Keeping Distance
2: Cleaving Strike · 3: Raise Shield · 4: Breakthrough · 5: Disengage
6: Save the point · 7: Dash + Defensive Tactic
8: Moment of Retribution · 9: Blade Maintenance · 10: Fencer Stance.
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Before leaving town
Talk to Verren and Odar, the village elder.
Get the local map.
Buy food and fill your waterskin.
Carry healing salves, bandages and a splint.
Repair your chest armor when you can.
Help Frid collect fleawort, spearmint and agrimony for his healing-salve reward.
Take one contract at a time. Let enemies approach individually, use Keeping Distance and Cleaving Strike, and use Raise Shield when appropriate. Search for traps rather than blindly walking into rooms.
After each dungeon, return to town, claim your reward, sell loot, repair and restock.
Sleep before the next trip. Sleeping saves your game; resting in place does not.
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Step 2 — Gathering the Caravan → Mannshireàço
Prepare the peaceful brewery route
After completing your first contract for Odar:
Remind him about the cart.
Accept Fate of the Brewery.
Ask every available question about the brewery and carpenter.
Speak with Jurg.
Complete Forgotten Plane, then ask Jurg about Odar and the brewery.
Sleep at the inn before leaving.
Revon: fight or leave?
If Revon only offers “fight” or “leave,” choose leave. Don’t attack him to force progress.
Return after getting Jurg’s information, exhaust the peaceful/questioning dialogue options, and speak with Kromm. Accept his request to eliminate Odar’s thugs.
Then:
Go to the marked Lone Farmstead.
Kill the brigands.
Return to Kromm and collect the free Barrel of Beer.
Return to Osbrook and confront Odar.
Choose 500 crowns for your silence.
Refuse to attack the brewery.
Speak with Verren at the inn, then meet him at the brewery.
Before travelling to Brynn
I recommand you to bring:
3–4 healing salves
2 bandages and 1 splint
Food for two days
A full waterskin
Repaired equipment
Your Barrel of Beer
Around 1,000 crowns if possible
Sleep at the brewery, then tell Verren you’re ready.
Brynn: Gwynnel’s Answers
Enter Brynn and head to the southeastern docks quarter. In the evening, meet Verren outside the Close Harbor Tavern and follow him to Gwynnel’s house. Stay close when he reaches the door.
On the first floor, examine:
Empty flasks
Alchemical apparatus
Damp papers
The note
Follow Verren into the next room and enter the hidden passage.
In the laboratory, examine:
Bloodstained table
Blue-liquid apparatus
Both visible notes
The note hidden in the bookcase
Ask Verren all three questions, then head to the caravan camp northeast of Brynn.
Unlock your caravan
Speak with Verren, examine the schematics on his table, open the caravan-upgrade book and build the Caravan Banner/Flagpole. Finish his dialogue and sleep in the caravan bed.
Caravan travel uses Fodder, has a cooldown and requires explored destinations. Sleeping in its bed saves your game.
Old Contract and Mannshire
Speak with Verren until he gives you the Old Contract, and keep it in your inventory.
Travel to Mannshire and speak with Knud. Choose compensation through a new contract, rather than demanding 100 or 200 crowns.
Return to Verren and finish the conversation. Move your caravan to a suitable empty, explored tile near Mannshire when available.
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Step 3 — Build up before pushing Mannshire contracts
Don’t force two-skull dungeons at level 6
If entrance fights repeatedly push you into Second Wind, I would suggest returning to easier contracts.
Skulls indicate dungeon tier—not whether your character can handle it. Additional dungeon conditions can make things worse.
For this build, level 6 is an awkward point because you’re saving a skill point. Aim for level 7 and Dash + Defensive Tactic, provided you meet their unlock requirements.
Then improve your equipment and retry. If you’re still struggling, continue easier jobs toward level 8–10. There’s no need to commit to grinding until 15 before reassessing.
Equipment: what to upgrade
Your supporter items can remain useful, but “unique” doesn’t mean you can ignore the rest of your equipment.
Prioritize:
Sword: buy a meaningful damage upgrade.
Chest armor: improve protection without excessive energy or dodge penalties.
Light shield: check its classification; bigger isn’t automatically better for this build.
Gloves and boots: replace weak or empty slots.
A light shield does not require an entirely light-armor outfit. This build can use medium armor early on; a Soldier’s Cuirass is one suggested option.
In Mannshire, check:
Dietrich: weapons and metal armor
Dirk: shields
Meric: leather equipment
For a sword upgrade, check Brynn’s elven port vendor for a Nomad Sabre. The suggested budget is roughly 1,900 crowns, not a guaranteed price.
Completing easier contracts also builds money and reputation, which helps your equipment progression.
Prepare for each contract
Repair, empty unnecessary inventory space and pack:
4 healing salves
3 bandages
2 splints
1 painkiller
Food for two days
Full waterskin
Lockpicks
Sleep until morning, then eat and drink.
Choose the lowest-tier manageable contract. Prefer one-skull work while struggling; try two-skull jobs once your skills and equipment improve. If equally rated options exist, start with brigands/Bastion.
Ask about the objective, enemies, payment and deadline. Accept normal payment and don’t haggle, since haggling can shorten your deadline.
Inside the dungeon
Avoid unnecessary animal fights on the journey.
Recover health and energy before entering.
Use Examine Surroundings as you reveal rooms and corridors.
Inspect unfamiliar enemies.
Fight one enemy at a time from doorways or narrow corridors.
Treat injuries and recover before the boss.
Remember that Setup needs activation through waiting, switching loadouts, or using Stances/Maneuvers. It isn’t a permanent defensive bonus.
Retreat before you’re surrounded. Use Dash toward cleared ground when available; walking away beside an enemy can trigger a free attack.
Salves treat damaged body parts; splints stabilize injuries. Don’t ignore injuries that limit your recoverable health.
Finish the actual objective
Check your journal before leaving:
Kill the leader: defeat the boss.
Kill everyone: check remaining rooms.
Recover an item: collect the named quest item.
Rescue someone: free them and escort them outside.
Collect any remaining loot before turning in the contract. Handing it in closes the dungeon, making items left inside inaccessible.
Return to Knud, claim your reward, sell loot, repair, restock and sleep.
If no suitable contracts remain, check Osbrook or wait for a refresh—normally around 3–4 in-game days. Don’t spend those days waiting with an unfinished timed contract.
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Next stop — Rotten Willow Tavern
Around level 10, finish your current job, restock and select Caravan’s Journey: the Rotten Willow.
Travel to the tavern, speak with One-Eyed Wigmar and ask about contracts. Start with the lowest-tier manageable brigand job and repeat the same preparation → dungeon → reward → save routine.
Level 10 is a suggestion, not a deadline. If Rotten Willow feels too hard, keep doing easier Osbrook or Mannshire work. Leave Denbrie for roughly level 15.