TindalosKeeper
Level: Roachling
Rank Points: 12
Registered: 03-06-2017
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Well, as the title says, I need a recommendation on holds that actually encourage the use of optimization and to use tricks to undertake certain situations in the game.

I'd appreciate it if you can actually tell me some good holds

Thank you.

Someone Else
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 1300
Registered: 06-14-2005
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Unfortunately, there's not a lot out there for RPG - Washed Ashore is fantastic, but not simple. I'd actually say the first half of Tendry's Tale is the best starting point. You could try Rock Island - as it's one room, it's relatively simple. Rock Candy Mines is not too hard, but it can be a little restrictive. Unless I'm mistaken, the only other easyish RPG hold is The Test of Mind.

superluminal
Level: Delver
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Registered: 05-26-2016
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If you don't mind unfinished, Rambunctious Romp might be a good choice. I thought it was a bit easier than Tendry's Tale but still of decent quality.

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spacelike

kieranmillar
Level: Smitemaster
Rank Points: 2670
Registered: 07-11-2014
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TindalosKeeper wrote:
Well, as the title says, I need a recommendation on holds that actually encourage the use of optimization and to use tricks to undertake certain situations in the game.

I'd appreciate it if you can actually tell me some good holds

Thank you.

The entry One in 2016 Year of RPG Compilation is a great test of your understanding of picking up stats in the right order, I highly recommend trying to get 100% at this, it's short but you'll learn some important fundamentals.

If you're looking for beginner holds that also encourage figuring out some tricks, I recommend trying to get 100% optimal at Judy's Mansion at the various scorepoints. The hold is really easy and not very interesting, but trying to optimise it can be a fun task, take a look at the high scores table and see if you can match them.

Similarly, 67th Grayman adventures is gimmicky but not too hard and specifically forces you to understand how to optimise around hot tiles.

Paycheck requires you to understand all sorts of door tricks to merely get past the second level, let alone beat it. This one is quite hard, and scoring 100% a serious challenge but you will learn a lot fast. Don't feel afraid to look at the H&S board for this one. I don't recommend trying to 100% this for now, but getting to the end can be fun.

For something more traditional, Ten-minutes distraction is short and easy but throws a curve ball right at the end that you'll need to figure out.

The final test at trying to improve: Try to get 100% at the very first score point of Tendry's Tale, Defeated Gray Man. Getting any old score is easy but getting 100% is quite hard, but I recommend at least giving it a try as there are some important route planning skills to learn here that it's hard to teach without just having a go at something like this. Note that for TT you definitely want to compare against the highscores in this forum, which are validated as actually possible, instead of the hacked Steam leaderboards, which are impossible to match.

If you need any hints with any of these, just ask in the RPG Hints and Solutions board, I'm happy to help!