History Videogame / SaltAndSanctuary

* DropTheHammer: Hammers and Greathammers are some of the weapon types that you can wield.

It was initially released for the UsefulNotes/{{PS4}} on March 15, 2016. The Steam version was released on May 18, 2016 and the UsefulNotes/PSVita port on March 28, 2017. The game was later ported to the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch on August 2, 2018.

A sequel title, ''VideoGame/SaltAndSacrifice'', was released for the [=PS4=] and UsefulNotes/Playstation5 in May 2022.

* BonusBoss:
** While certain bosses can be skipped by finding an alternate path around them (for example, if you kill the Kraekan Cyclops, you get a key that allows you to bypass the False Jester), the Queen of Smiles, Murdiella Mal, Carsejaw the Cruel, Ronin Cran, and [[spoiler:The Three]] are completely optional and not required to beat the game. The Queen of Smiles is notable in that she is the ''second'' boss in the game, but you are not required to kill her at all to access the next area, the Watching Woods.
** Some other bosses are skippable, though it's [[SequenceBreaking probably not intended for them to be]]. For example, the Sodden Knight (the ''first'' boss) can be skipped if you make a very precise LeapOfFaith from the correct ledge, landing on a platform ''just'' high enough that the fall damage doesn't kill you. The Mad Alchemist can be skipped by plummeting down an elevator shaft that you're supposed to activate after killing him, which ''also'' nearly kills you with fall damage... and puts you right in front of the Kraekan Cyclops.

*** Ronin Cran is one for Knight Artorias -- an [[BonusBoss optional]] disgraced knight who buffs himself up with darkness and has very persistent combos including a somersault attack.

* BladderOfSteel: This game doesn't have a true pause mechanic like ''Dark Souls''. Sure, you can open your inventory, read the bestiary, and adjust your settings, but you can still be attacked by nearby enemies.

* BossInMookClothing: The Crypt Keepers are one of (if not the) toughest and strongest mooks that you encounter in the game. These are black gigantic armors that dual-wield axes, can run and jump towards you, and can deal a large amount of damage capable of instantly killing unprepared players. In other words, they are very aggressive. Fortunately, there are only two spawn points for them in the early-to-mid dungeons – one in Mal's Floating Castle and the other is in an optional pitch-black area guarding the Divine Will Prayer item. They also appear in the Salt Alkamancery and the Crypt of the Dead Gods, the two end-game dungeons before the final one. ''Unfortunately'' in all areas, the surrounding is almost devoid of light that they seem to perfectly [[NothingIsScarier blend with the darkness]].

* AnachronismStew: InUniverse. The island seems to contain weapons, clothes, armor, architecture, and locations cut wholesale from all over the world and across multiple time periods, with a Ziggurat from a southern desert kingdom built on top of a temple from a northern kingdom. The lore has a justification on why this happens. [[spoiler:It's because everything on the island was made by the Nameless God based on the memories of those sacrificed to him.]]

* BeefGate: Each of the early-game bosses serves this role to make sure you've gotten a good grasp of the game mechanics.
** The Sodden Knight checks to see if you've gotten a good grasp of rolling, jumping, and blocking, as well as a demonstration that bosses [[TurnsRed get much nastier midway through a fight]].
** The Queen of Smiles, though [[OptionalBoss skippable]], serves as a test of the player's ability to read a boss' tells and predict their projectiles.
** The Mad Alchemist is a check for your ability to withstand elemental attacks, either by evading them or having proper resistance gear.
** The False Jester and Kraekan Cyclops check to make sure you've gotten skilled at rolling, dodging, and blocking attacks, both the quick and vicious and the huge and powerful. If you've learned how to block and evade, they should present no challenge, but if you haven't, they'll ruin you in seconds.

* AnnoyingArrows: Archer enemies such as the Vilehawks can re-adjust their aim until they let go of the arrow. This means that regardless of how many times you jump, roll, and run when the archer hasn't fired its bow yet, the arrow will then target your current location unless you block it, or dodge it at the right time.

* ContinuingIsPainful:
** Wounding and Focus are two systems that decrease your stats. Wounding decreases your max Health as you take damage, and the more damage you take, the more max HP you lose; while Focus gradually decreases your max Stamina as you attack, dodge, and cast spells. The cap for how low Wounding leaves your max HP is unknown, but Focus is always equal to half your max Stamina. That said, there are rings that mitigate the effects.
** Dying causes you to lose all of your salt, and 10% of your gold. You can get your salt back if you killed the enemy that killed you, but that monster will be powered up significantly. Mercifully, if it's a boss, you don't need to kill it to get your salt back, just deplete 1/4 of its health bar. If you died from an environmental hazard or fell down a BottomlessPit, then your salt will become a Saltbat enemy that must be killed.

* DoesNotLikeShoes: The bottoms of most dress/robe-style armour lack shoes. In some cases, the thumbnail on the equip screen will clearly show shoes, but your character will still be barefoot when wearing it.

* BladeOnAStick: You can equip Spears and Halberds, which mostly scale in damage with the Dexterity parameter.

* WhipItGood: Whips are available in this game as well, and they scale primarily with Dexterity.

** Implied to be the fate of [[spoiler: ''every God ever'' because of the Nameless God, it somehow traps gods in the Crypt of the Dead Gods, redirecting their prayers to itself, slowly starving the trapped Gods to death, which is implied to be a very, very slow process.]]

* AnAxToGrind:
** Axes are a weapon class in the game falling under the "Berzerker" skill tree and exist both as hand-axes and greataxes (which also include an [[AnchorsAway anchor on a stick]]). On the enemy side, many drowned wield them (notably the axe-throwing Drowned Raiders). The Kraekan Cyclops also uses a massive axe you can transmute from his horn for yourself to use.
** The Coveted is a special example -- the boss fight ''is'' the axe, as you cannot damage the ghosts that wield it. You can later transmute and use the axe yourself, albeit in a smaller, more adequate size.

** From various descriptions around the area, it would seem Hager's Cavern wasn't a hideout for the titular Dread Pirate, but a prison designed to torment him at every turn. The skeletons and Armor Mites may have arrived there later, but the witch in charge put several vicious wraiths as both wardens and torturers for Hager, specifically made to be "eternal wardens to his suffering". The description for his crafted Cutlass mentions that AFateWorseThanDeath may be often mentioned, but Hager's sorry state and the similarly warped blade's own state prove it true. [[spoiler:Of course, when you find Hager himself, he turns out to be nothing but a hollowed-out husk [[PuppeteerParasite controlled like a puppet by some tiny doll-like being]]. Which makes one think the pirate himself is ''still alive'' in that mangled, cored, putrid state, with absolutely no control of what he does and forced to watch some little parasite use his body for its own purposes. Whoever that witch was, she was clearly ''not'' messing around]].

* BlackAndGreyMorality: The war between Askaria and Tristin is either this or outright EvilVersusEvil since neither side can be even considered remotely good. The former is a warmongering expansionist empire that's been warring with its neighbors and persecuting adherents of other creeds in order to make the Three the dominant religion ([[spoiler:and is in effect unknowingly doing the bidding of the Nameless God]]). If the Red Hall of Cages is anything to go by, the country is also no stranger to committing torture on a massive scale. Meanwhile, Tristin's history is rife with its own fair share of atrocities, subjecting elemental mages to genocide, and being home to the [[ReligionOfEvil Order of the Betrayer]].

* BottomlessPits: If you try jumping at the lowest points of an outdoor dungeon, you may sometimes be treated with a Game Over screen even before your character hits the ground.

* BrutalBonusLevel: The Pitchwoods, especially if you want to get everything [[spoiler:and join the Fire and Sky Creed]]. It's a challenging platforming section, in stark contrast to most of the other areas in the game. Dying of fall damage is highly probable here. Furthermore, the first part of the area is home to the [[GlassCannon Spindlebeasts]] -- these things will almost certainly kill you with one hit if you don't kill them first (which thankfully isn't too hard since they have low health). Oddly enough, [[HardLevelsEasyBosses the boss of the area isn't too bad in comparison]], especially if you have a reliable means of dealing [[KillItWithFire fire damage]].

* DemBones: Mostly present in Hager's Cavern as Angsty Bones, Hunting Bones and Primitive Bones.

* OneHandedZweihander: Once you learn the proper nodes from the Skill Tree, you can one-hand previously two-handed greatswords, greataxes, greathammers and polearms without any major drawbacks. These can help you carry a shield or torch on one hand and strike using a powerful weapon on the other.

* TrialAndErrorGameplay: Encouraged. One does not simply rely on a single loadout for defeating every single enemy and boss in the game, you'll eventually run into bosses that force you to learn how to read attack patterns and adjust equipment accordingly. The Witch of the Lake serves as a warning to players who simply think that Greatswords are enough, you'll need Arcane-resistant shields and armor if you even want to get past her.

* ArmorIsUseless: Armor does not reduce fall damage, so it matters not when you fall from a great height. However, you can increase your chance of surviving by increasing your health through leveling.

In June 2021, a sequel title, ''VideoGame/SaltAndSacrifice'', was released for the [=PS4=] and UsefulNotes/Playstation5 in May 2022.

In June 2021, a sequel title, ''Salt and Sacrifice'', was announced for release on the [=PS4=] and UsefulNotes/Playstation5 in 2022.

* {{Oculothorax}}: A rather disfigured case. The Heartseekers are abonimations made from human experiments wherein their hearts (and consequently, chests) are replaced by a very large encompassing eyeball that takes up a majority of their body.

* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: Present in the Iron Pot's description.
--> A cast-iron pot used for reducing stocks, simmering stews and, in a pinch, cracking skulls.

** Also seems to be the fate of [[spoiler:The Third Lamb. While the first two Lambs, respectively the Congregation and the Lady of the Dome, were sacrificed by the Untouched Inquisitor and seemingly have died, the Third Lamb, despite having been "sacrificed" as well, is very much alive. The nature of the ominous sacrifice is never explained, but the Lamb in its current shape is described as "the bound and broken thrall of the Untouched Inquisitor", and it is said that "was made to sacrifice her will in service of the Inquisitor", along with "pride, the praise of her master, and a name".]] The general picture seems downright terrifying and makes killing the boss look like an act of mercy.

''Salt and Sanctuary'' is an ActionRPG made by Creator/SkaStudios, the creators of ''VideoGame/TheDishwasher'' series and ''VideoGame/CharlieMurder''. The game takes cues from Creator/FromSoftware's ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'' trilogy, ''VideoGame/DemonsSouls'', and ''VideoGame/{{Bloodborne}}''; you have a stamina bar, which depletes as you perform attacks, sanctuaries act as your bonfires, dying has you drop your salt which enemies can pick up to become stronger. It also takes a lot of cues from the ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' series -- not only is there a lot of platforming involved -- you get mobility upgrades that allow you to reach new areas and go through previously unavailable paths in revisited ones.