Quick verdict: Neow's Abundance is worth pursuing when five question rooms fit a survivable route. Neow's Sacrifice is the steadier emergency option when Ambergris has a named job. Pick the cost your first act can absorb, not the flashier payoff.
These relics arrived in v0.109 and remain relevant in the current v0.110 beta. The important decision is still made on the map: Dowsing Rod trades route freedom for a delayed Power reward, while Neow's Sacrifice trades draw quality and a potion slot for immediate safety.
Is Neow's Abundance good?
Yes, when the route completes Dowsing without skipping the fights, shop, campfire, or card rewards your deck needs. Abundance offers three upgraded Powers, adds one to hand, and lets you play that choice for free during the turn. That can create an excellent setup turn, but the exact Power is not guaranteed.
The clean test is simple: trace a route to the fifth question room, then check HP, early damage, and the last campfire before the boss. If that path only works when every event is favorable, Dowsing Rod is asking too much.
What the two relics actually offer
The v0.109.0 beta introduced two Neow relics with visible upside and explicit friction. That is important: neither should be evaluated as free starting power in v0.110.
| Relic | Immediate effect | Delayed payoff | Real cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dowsing Rod | Adds Dowsing to the deck | After five ? rooms, Dowsing becomes Abundance | Route pressure and a dead quest card until completion |
| Neow's Sacrifice | Gives Ambergris | 50% max-HP healing plus an immediate extra turn | Guilty is added to the deck; potion slot is occupied until used |
Abundance costs one Energy, presents three upgraded Powers, adds your choice to hand, and allows it to be played for free that turn. That is a major late-Act payoff, but it is not a guarantee of the exact Power your deck wants.
Ambergris is easier to understand. Half your maximum HP plus another turn can reverse a boss fight, rescue an elite route, or let a slow engine finish setting up. Its value depends on whether you keep it for the fight that justifies Guilty.
Dowsing Rod: route without tunnel vision
The common mistake is counting question marks before checking what the route gives up. A good Dowsing route still needs early card rewards, at least one recovery or upgrade option, and enough flexibility to avoid a lethal elite.
Take the fast quest route when
- the first question rooms do not replace all early hallway fights;
- two route branches reconnect before the act becomes dangerous;
- your starting deck can beat normal fights without an urgent shop;
- a late campfire remains available before the boss;
- you can finish the fifth room without entering a forced elite at low HP.
Slow down when
- the quest path skips the only shop that can remove a weak starter card;
- your deck still lacks front-loaded damage;
- the map demands two early elites;
- question-room variance could leave you without card rewards;
- the fifth room arrives so late that Abundance barely affects the act.
The Act 1 pathing checklist still applies. Dowsing Rod adds another objective; it does not delete health, upgrades, or elite rewards from the route equation.
How to use Abundance
Abundance is strongest when the offered Power solves an immediate fight and can be played without consuming the rest of the turn. The free play matters as much as the upgrade. A three-Energy Power that would normally expose you becomes possible alongside block or setup.
Do not plan around one named Power appearing. Plan around categories:
| Deck need | Power type to prefer |
|---|---|
| Long boss scaling | Strength, Poison, Orb, Stars, or summon growth |
| Bad opening turns | Immediate block, draw, or setup acceleration |
| Inconsistent hands | Retain, draw, or card-order control |
| Multi-enemy pressure | Repeatable area damage or passive output |
If all three offers are merely decent, choose the one that improves the next hard fight. Abundance is a strong reward, not permission to pivot into a new archetype on the final floors.
Neow's Sacrifice: give Ambergris a job
Ambergris should have a target before the route is locked. "I will use it when low" is too vague. Better plans are: save it for the first elite, use it to survive the Act 1 boss setup turn, or spend it before a forced high-damage hallway sequence.
The extra turn can be more valuable than the heal. It gives scaling another trigger, refreshes Energy and draw, and may prevent the enemy from acting at a lethal breakpoint. That makes Ambergris especially attractive to decks with a slow but decisive setup.
The downside is twofold. Guilty reduces draw quality, and Ambergris occupies a potion slot. Passing useful common potions for several floors is a real opportunity cost. Read the potion guide before treating the slot as free storage.
Which relic fits each run?
| Starting situation | Better first look | Why |
|---|---|---|
Flexible map with clustered ? rooms | Dowsing Rod | The quest can finish without sacrificing core route value |
| Weak early deck facing a hard elite line | Neow's Sacrifice | Ambergris converts risk into a planned resource |
| Character needs card rewards quickly | Neow's Sacrifice | Dowsing routing may delay necessary drafting |
| Strong starter that can tolerate variance | Dowsing Rod | The deck can carry the quest card until Abundance appears |
| Potion slots already strategically important | Dowsing Rod | Ambergris could crowd out several useful pickups |
This is not a fixed tier list. The same relic can be excellent on one seed and awkward on the next because the map is part of its text.
Branch and source note
These relics were introduced on the v0.109 beta branch and this guide was rechecked for v0.110 on August 5, 2026. Mechanics above come from Mega Crit's official v0.109.0 notes; branch status was checked against the official v0.110.0 notes. Beta values can change before reaching main, so use the patch notes hub if your in-game text differs.
FAQ
Is Abundance guaranteed to offer my character's best Power?
No. It offers a choice of three upgraded Powers. Build a plan that can benefit from several categories of Power instead of relying on one exact hit.
Should Ambergris be saved for the boss?
Not always. Spending it to win an elite cleanly can earn a relic and preserve enough HP to improve at campfires. Give it a planned fight, then revise if the route changes.
Does Dowsing Rod make every question room better?
It makes each visited room advance the quest. The room outcome and the route opportunity cost still matter.
