Crusade map symbols in Cult of the Lamb, explained

Cult of the Lamb’s Crusades are a way to head out into the world to collect resources, find new followers, and take on those annoying opposing cults. Crusades are also the roguelike aspect of Cult of the Lamb — each Crusade is randomly generated and has a number of nodes along a flow-chart you’ll have to navigate to your goal.

In this Cult of the Lamb Crusade map symbol guide, we’ll explain what the symbols on those nodes mean so you can chart the best course for your run.

Crusade map symbols

Graphic: Jeffrey Parkin | Sources: Massive Monster/Devolver Digital via Polygon

Each Crusade run is randomized, but once you make it through the first set of rooms, you’ll see a map of the rest of the Crusade. You’ll need to make choices pretty early on that set you on a path (most of the way) to the final fight, so knowing what you’ll encounter is important.

• Normal fight: There’s nothing special here — you just wander through a series of rooms, slaying enemies.
• Miniboss: At the end of Crusades, you’ll run into a boss fight. For the first three runs in a region, you’ll fight a servant of that area’s bishop (and then recruit them when you defeat them).
• Bishop fight: This is the final fight for each region, which you’ll need to defeat to progress the story.
• Event: Event nodes can host a variety of different encounters. One might allow you to increase the loyalty of a follower, while another might make enemies in your current run slightly more powerful.
• New Follower: At this node, you’ll fight several waves of enemies and then free a new (potential) recruit.
• Shop: These nodes include a shop where you can spend your gold coins to buy things like resources or followers.
• Tarot: These nodes are a visit to Clauneck’s tent where you can select a new tarot card and buy extra cards for gold coins.
• Pray: This node looks like the Red Crown. You’ll pray at an altar and receive a boon from the One Who Waits.
• Hearts: At these nodes, you’ll visit someone named Ratoo, who will be able to refill your health (and then some).
• Currency and resources: The rest of the symbols represent the various currencies and resources you’ll need to grow your cult. These include things like coins, food, lumber, stone, and bones.

Choosing your path

You’ll encounter the Crusade map after you fully complete each node — some nodes are a single room, while combat nodes span multiple rooms before taking you back to the map.

The first node of each Crusade starts you at the bottom, and you’ll need to work your way up through a web. Each node offers a choice for what path you want to take, but this will also lock you out of future nodes. For example, if you take a left path to get a new follower for your second node, you may not be able to work your way back over to the right side of the map to get a resource node you want later in your run.

Before selecting your first node in a Crusade, make sure to look ahead to see which other nodes you’ll have access to.

Crusade map modifiers and bonuses

Some nodes have a little ribbon below them. These ribbons and their symbols represent a modifier to that part of the Crusade. For shops, the ribbon will tell you what’s for sale there. For the rest, these modifiers include things like double gold, chests drop food not gold, or lose a red heart but gain a tarot card.