Shakes and Fidget: Complete Guide

A practical guide to Playa Games' free-to-play comic RPG: picking a class and server, the daily routine (Tavern, Arena, Dungeons), attributes, the scrapbook, gear upgrades, guilds, mushroom spending, and the newest endgame content.

Researched September 2026 — current as of Update 31.000 (16 September 2026, Class World launch). Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Quick Start

• Pick a fresh server if you want to compete. New worlds launch regularly (EU29 on 3 July 2026, EU30 on 21 August 2026). Starting early on a new world gives the best shot at the Hall of Fame.
• Link an S&F Account. Linking your character gets free mushrooms for pre-registration on new worlds, and webshop purchases now require an S&F account (Update 31.000).
• Spend Thirst every day in the Tavern. Quests (Tavern expeditions) are your main XP and gold source. Pick quests by XP/gold per minute.
• Fight in the Arena often. Free arena fights on a cooldown give honor and extra rewards. The Arena now shows your win streak (Update 30.800).
• Fill your scrapbook. Every new item and enemy you see adds a scrapbook entry, and a fuller scrapbook boosts rewards. Class World enemies count too.
• Focus your class's main attribute and Constitution. Everything else is secondary for most of the game.
• Never waste mushrooms on small things. Save them for beer, account upgrades and high-value purchases (see below).
• Join an active guild ASAP. Guild bonuses, raids and fights accelerate progression massively.
• Spin the Wheel of Fortune daily and check the Black Market and Witch.

Classes

Shakes & Fidget has twelve playable classes, each with a main attribute and a unique ability. A thirteenth, the Blood Weaver, finished a public beta in August 2026.

Class | Main attribute | Signature ability

Warrior | Strength | Blocks attacks with a shield

Berserker | Strength | Frenzy: can attack several times in a row

Battle Mage | Strength | Unleashes an arcane comet at the start of each battle

Paladin | Strength | Shield stance: can block, heal or deal more damage

Scout | Dexterity | Can dodge enemy attacks

Assassin | Dexterity | Wields two weapons and strikes with both

Demon Hunter | Dexterity | Has an elixir that can revive

Plague Doctor | Dexterity | Poisons enemies with a toxic tincture for several rounds

Mage | Intelligence | Attacks can't be evaded; negates most other classes' specials

Druid | Intelligence | Takes the form of an eagle or a bear

Bard | Intelligence | Strengthens in battle by playing the harp

Necromancer | Intelligence | Summons undead minions that sacrifice themselves in battle

Blood Weaver (beta, August 2026)

From the official beta announcement: main attribute Strength, heavy armor, no shield. Its two abilities are Blood Pact (30% chance to sacrifice 10% of current HP for an extra attack) and Death Seal (on the first fatal blow, revive with 50% HP; afterwards attacks have a 20% chance to apply a damage-over-time effect). Numbers came from the beta and may change at release.

Choosing a class

• Warrior, Scout, Mage: The original three, simple and strong for beginners.
• Assassin and Berserker: High damage, popular for PvP.
• Druid, Bard, Necromancer, Plague Doctor, Paladin: More complex, reward knowledge of matchups.
• Mage is a strong counter to evasive and blocking classes because its attacks can't be dodged or blocked.

Attributes

Attribute | Effect

Strength | Damage for Strength classes; for everyone else, it reduces damage taken from Strength-class opponents

Dexterity | Damage for Dexterity classes; otherwise reduces damage from Dexterity-class opponents

Intelligence | Damage for Intelligence classes; otherwise reduces damage from Intelligence-class opponents

Constitution | Hit points

Luck | Critical hit chance

Rule of thumb: Pour gold into your main attribute and Constitution. Buy Luck later for crits. Attribute cost scales up, so spread spending to keep up with level.

Permanent attribute sources:

• Achievements: Each completed achievement in the Library of Meticulousness permanently grants 5 points to all five attributes. Update 30.800 added 18 new ones.
• Potions: The Black Market now guarantees a Constitution potion and main-stat potions for your class (Update 31.000).
• Gems, pets, and other late-game systems add more.

The Daily Loop

Tavern (quests)

• Your daily Thirst for Adventure limits how many quests you can do.
• Beer refills thirst (bought with mushrooms, limited per day).
• Pick the quest with the best reward per minute; watch for item rewards that fill scrapbook slots.

Arena

• Fight a player close to your rank. Wins give honor and climb the Hall of Fame.
• There's a free fight on a cooldown; you can skip the timer with mushrooms, but usually shouldn't.

Dungeons

• Unlocked from level 10.
• Each dungeon has a series of bosses. Defeat one to progress; there's a cooldown between tries unless you skip it.
• Dungeon rewards include strong items and XP.
• The Tower is a 100-floor challenge with three companions.
• The Continuous Loop of Idols (a shadow dungeon) needs level 222, the Tower unlocked, and the USB stick found in the Gem Mine.

Guild

• Guild fights vs other guilds; guild raids against dungeon-like enemies.
• The guild treasury and instructor upgrades boost gold and XP for all members.
• Donate gold/mushrooms if your guild asks; it helps everyone.

Wheel of Fortune, Witch, Black Market

• Spin the wheel each day for items, gold, mushrooms or resources.
• The Black Market now always stocks two potions (including a guaranteed Constitution potion) and two random resource packs per reset.

Mid and Late-Game Systems

System | Notes

Fortress | Base-building for resources, gems and XP

Underworld | Lure heroes to your underworld for rewards; has its own buildings like the Gold Pit

Hellevator | Floor-climbing challenge (milestone achievements require level 10+)

Legendary Dungeon | Gear-focused dungeon with Fate Gems and containers (level 50+ achievements)

Pets | Collectible pets that add stat bonuses

Blacksmith | Upgrade items with metal and arcane splinters

Scrapbook | Collection album; fuller album boosts rewards

Achievement milestones worth knowing (Update 30.800): Upgrade the Mine to level 100 (Fortress), upgrade the Gold Pit to level 100 (Underworld), be fully equipped with Legendary items, and defeat floor 600 in the Hellevator.

New: Class World (Update 31.000)

The Class World is a new dungeon world open to all players level 250 and up.

• The first part has four dungeons, one each for Warriors, Mages, Scouts and Necromancers. Every enemy in a dungeon uses that class.
• "Wizard Police" enemies occasionally appear as blockers.
• Clear all four to unlock a portal of four enemies you can challenge once a day, similar to the Demon Portal; beating it unlocks the next zone once that is released. The level range is planned to scale up to 750 in later parts.
• Rewards are Gold, Fruits, Metal and Arcane Splinters. The first release gives no XP.
• Enemies count for your scrapbook.
• New achievements: Block Buster, Witch Hunter, Arrow Catcher, Undead Undertaker, Portal Purger.

Playa's Producer's Note #42 (1 September 2026) also lists a new endgame dungeon feature and the Monster Hunt as in planning or development.

Mushroom Spending Guide

Mushrooms are the premium currency (also earned in small amounts in-game).

Good uses:

• Beer for extra quests (the best mushroom-to-XP rate for most players).
• Permanent account upgrades and unlocks.
• Specific high-value items from the shop when you need a big gear jump.

Poor uses:

• Skipping arena or dungeon timers regularly.
• Rerolling shops constantly.
• Cosmetic spending before your character is established.

F2P tip: New world pre-registration with an S&F account gives free mushrooms (25 for EU29 and EU30).

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Spreading gold across all attributes. Main stat and Constitution come first.
• Skipping the scrapbook. It's a quiet but big power source.
• Doing quests without comparing rewards. Check XP/gold per minute.
• Staying guildless. Guild bonuses and raids are too important.
• Spending mushrooms on timer skips.
• Not upgrading gear with the Blacksmith.
• Starting on an old server if you want to rank. New worlds are the best time to compete.

Advanced Tips

• Time your quests so you finish thirst before the daily reset.
• Use the Community Portal stats, now filterable by base attribute (Update 31.000), to see what strong players in your class are running.
• Balance PvE and PvP gear. Some classes perform differently in arena vs dungeons.
• Plan achievement unlocks since each gives permanent stats.
• Watch for events. Double-XP, gold, or item events are the best time to spend beer and mushrooms.
• Legendary items also count toward the new Legendary Dungeon achievements.

FAQ

Is Shakes & Fidget pay-to-win? Mushrooms speed things up and give advantages, but consistent daily play, a good guild and smart gold spending let free players do well.

What's the best class? It depends on your goals. Mage counters Scouts and shield classes; Assassin and Berserker are strong damage dealers; Warrior is the easiest start.

When is the Blood Weaver coming? The beta ran 5 to 12 August 2026 in the browser beta. No live release date has been announced as of this writing.

How do I unlock the Class World? Reach level 250. It launched with Update 31.000 on 16 September 2026.

Does Steam progress sync with browser/mobile? Yes, with an S&F Account you can play the same character across platforms.

What's the fastest way to level? Use all thirst daily on the best XP-per-minute quests, buy beer with mushrooms, clear dungeons and use XP events.

Sources

• Shakes and Fidget on Steam
• Update 31.000 changelog (Steam news)
• New dungeon world: Class World (official dev blog)
• Shakes & Fidget official site
• Shakes & Fidget (Wikipedia)
• Continuous Loop of Idols requirements (Playa help center)