Spelunky is © 2008, 2009 Derek Yu and Mossmouth, LLC, and is used under the [Spelunky User License v1.1b](https://spelunky.ai/LICENSE.txt). spelunky.ai is an unofficial fan project, not affiliated with or endorsed by Mossmouth. The game and its assets may not be sold. Music by George Buzinkai and Jonathan Perry; sound effects made in SFXR. From Spelunky Classic 1.1, © 2008, 2009 Derek Yu and Mossmouth, LLC. # Kali's Altar From the spelunky.ai wiki: . Verified against the spelunky.ai port [v0.1.10](https://github.com/851-labs/spelunky/releases/tag/v0.1.10) on 28 October 2026. This page describes a secret. *For the stone the Golden Idol rests on in the Mines, see [Golden Idol](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/golden-idol).* Kali's Altar is a stone altar in Spelunky Classic, in a side room of some levels, where sacrifices earn Kali's gifts and destroying it angers her. ![A dark grey stone altar with a carved front, its top stained red with blood](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/media/1d3f433106e37ef1/sprites/sSacAltar/frames/0%404x.png) | Kali's Altar | | | ------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Levels | 2–15, not the City of Gold's[^1] | | Chance | 1 in 16 for each side room in the Mines, 1 in 12 elsewhere; one a level at most[^2] | | Objects | `oSacAltarLeft`, `oSacAltarRight` | | Part of | [The Mines](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/mines), [The Jungle](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/jungle), [The Ice Caves](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/ice-caves), [The Temple](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/temple) | | Drops | [Cape](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/cape), [Climbing Gloves](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/climbing-gloves), [Spectacles](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/spectacles), [Pitcher's Mitt](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/pitchers-mitt), [Spring Shoes](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/spring-shoes), [Spike Shoes](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/spike-shoes), [Paste](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/paste), [Compass](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/compass), [Jetpack](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/jetpack), Bomb Box, [Kapala](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/kapala), [Ball and Chain](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/ball-and-chain), [Ghost](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/ghost), [Spider](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/spider) (From Kali's head)[^3] | The altar is two blocks of stone under a statue of [Kali](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/kali), in a side room of the level. A body left on it is a [Sacrifice](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/sacrifice), which raises [Kali's favour](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/kalis-favour), and her gifts, the [Kapala](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/kapala) among them, appear on it. Destroying it, by anything, defiles it: the favour falls and Kali punishes the player. A level has one at most, and many have none. ## Generation **Clip: Kali's altar defiled.** In the Mines, the player drops a bomb beside Kali's altar and jumps clear over it. The blast destroys the altar: "YOU DARE DEFILE MY ALTAR? I WILL PUNISH YOU!", and six spiders spill out of the statue's head. ([video](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/media/1d3f433106e37ef1/clips/kalis-altar/defile/clip.mp4)) Each area's room script rolls for the altar first when it lays out a side room, before the idol room or any other layout, and stops rolling once the level has one[^4]: | Area | Side rooms that roll | Chance | | | --------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------- | ------- | ---- | | [The Mines](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/mines), from level 2 | Every side room | 1 in 16 | [^5] | | [The Jungle](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/jungle) | Two in three | 1 in 12 | [^6] | | [The Ice Caves](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/ice-caves) | One in two | 1 in 12 | [^7] | | [The Temple](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/temple) | Three in four | 1 in 12 | [^8] | The [City of Gold](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/city-of-gold)'s side rooms draw from other layouts and never get an altar[^9]. The [Black Market](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/black-market) and the [Yeti lair](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/yeti-lair) are built by room scripts of their own, which have no altar, and [Olmec's Lair](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/olmecs-lair) is a room of its own[^10]. The other special levels are built by their area's script and keep its side rooms, so they can have one: a [sacrifice pit](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/sacrifice-pit) has no altar in the pit, but with seed 43, level 15 is a sacrifice pit with an altar in a side room[^11]. ### The altar room The altar room is open, with the altar on a low step of blocks in the middle of its floor, and in the Mines, the Jungle and the Temple, but not the Ice Caves, blocks in its top corners, each one time in 2[^12][^13][^14][^15]. The altar is two solid blocks, a left half and a right half, which the player can stand on[^16]. Behind it the room draws Kali's stone body, and above it puts her head, one of three faces at random[^17][^18]. Level generation puts no treasure on the altar, and in the Temple no [Spear Trap](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/spear-trap) in it[^19][^20][^21][^22][^23]. The main clip shows a Mines altar room: the player drops a [Bomb](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/bomb) beside the altar and jumps clear, and the blast destroys it ([Hazards](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/kalis-altar#hazards))[^24]. ## Hazards The altar's halves are solid blocks, so what breaks blocks breaks them, but for a half the City of Gold's door stands on ([Trivia](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/kalis-altar#trivia))[^16][^25]: - **An explosion**, a Bomb's or any other, within 16 pixels of the view[^26]. - **A [Mattock](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/mattock)'s swing**[^27]. - **A [UFO](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/ufo)'s laser**[^28]. - **A [Boulder](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/boulder)** rolling into it at speed[^29]. - **The floor under it taken away**: a half with no block under it crumbles as soon as it's within 20 pixels of the view's left and top and 4 of its right and bottom[^30]. Destroying either half destroys both, and defiles the altar, whatever destroyed it: "YOU DARE DEFILE MY ALTAR?" and "I WILL PUNISH YOU!" show, the screen shakes, and the favour falls by 16[^31]. Kali's punishment grows with each altar the player has defiled in the game[^32]: | Altar defiled | Punishment | | | ------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----- | | The first | 6 [Spiders](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/spider) spill out of her head | [^3] | | The second | A [ball and chain](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/ball-and-chain) on the player's ankle, to the end of the game | [^33] | | Any after | The level goes dark and a [Ghost](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/ghost) comes, unless there's one already, or, on a level dark with a Ghost already, six more Spiders | [^34] | [Kali's favour](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/kalis-favour#her-anger) has the punishments in full, and [Kali](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/kali#her-anger) a clip of each. In the main clip, the first altar the player defiles lets the Spiders out[^24]. Below, a Bomb takes the floor from under a fourth altar, which crumbles, and six more Spiders come out[^35]. **Clip: Six more spiders.** On a dark level with a ghost already in it, a bomb the player throws takes the floor from under Kali's altar, which crumbles: her fourth punishment. Six spiders spill out of her head, and one drops onto the player and kills him. ([video](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/media/1d3f433106e37ef1/clips/kali/spiders/clip.mp4)) ## Items and shops A stunned or dead monster, or a thrown or dead [Damsel](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/damsel), left lying still on either half for 20 steps is a sacrifice: it bursts into flame, and its worth is added to the favour[^36][^37]. [Sacrifice](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/sacrifice) has the rules and what each body is worth. The first time a sacrifice brings the favour to each of three marks, Kali gives a gift, which appears on the altar's right half, free to take[^38]: | Favour | Gift | | | ------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ----- | | 8 | A piece of equipment the player hasn't got, with two puffs of smoke: the [Cape](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/cape), [Climbing Gloves](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/climbing-gloves), [Spectacles](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/spectacles), [Pitcher's Mitt](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/pitchers-mitt), [Spring Shoes](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/spring-shoes), [Spike Shoes](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/spike-shoes), [Paste](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/paste) or [Compass](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/compass); with all of them, a [Jetpack](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/jetpack), then a Bomb Box | [^39] | | 16 | The [Kapala](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/kapala) | [^40] | | 32 | 99 bombs, or 4–8 hearts for a player with 80 or more; then hearts again every 16 more | [^41] | Each is given once a game, and one a sacrifice jumps past is never given ([Kali's favour](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/kalis-favour#her-gifts)). In the clip, a Damsel thrown down on an Ice Caves altar burns, and Kali gives a Compass[^42]. **Clip: Damsel sacrificed to Kali.** The player carries a damsel onto Kali's altar and throws her down on it. She lies still on the altar for a moment, then bursts into flame: Kali accepts the sacrifice and gives a compass, which the player picks up. ([video](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/media/1d3f433106e37ef1/clips/damsel/sacrifice/clip.mp4)) ## Secrets - **The [Kapala](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/kapala)** comes from nowhere else: the altar is the only way to it[^25]. In the clip below, a stunned [Yeti](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/yeti)'s sacrifice brings the favour to 16 and the Kapala appears; then a UFO's laser destroys the altar and the Spiders come out[^43][^44]. **Clip: Kali's gift and anger.** The player drops a stunned yeti on Kali's altar. It burns, and Kali gives a kapala, which he picks up. Then a UFO's laser destroys the altar, Kali promises to punish him, and six spiders spill out of her statue's head. ([video](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/media/1d3f433106e37ef1/clips/kalis-favour/kapala/clip.mp4)) ## Trivia - A Damsel's sacrifice has a branch that would make a stunned one worth half as much again, but she's never in the state it tests for, so she's always worth 8[^45][^25][^46]. - On level 14, the roll that places the [City of Gold](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/city-of-gold)'s door goes over every block with room above it, and doesn't skip the altar, as the Spear Traps' roll beside it does, so the door can stand on the altar. The block under the door is made indestructible, so that half of the altar survives explosions, the Mattock, lasers and Boulders; the other half doesn't, and takes both with it, and the floor's going still crumbles it[^47][^48][^49][^30]. ## FAQ ### Where do you find Kali's altar in Spelunky Classic? In a side room off the path, one a level at most: in [the Mines](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/mines) from level 2, where each side room is the altar's one time in 16, and in the [Jungle](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/jungle), the [Ice Caves](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/ice-caves) and the [Temple](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/temple), one time in 12. Never in the [City of Gold](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/city-of-gold), the [Black Market](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/black-market), a [Yeti lair](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/yeti-lair) or [Olmec's Lair](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/olmecs-lair). ### What does Kali's altar give you in Spelunky Classic? Gifts from [Kali](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/kali), for [sacrifices](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/sacrifice) left on it: at 8 favour a piece of equipment, at 16 the [Kapala](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/kapala), and at 32 a full bag of bombs or hearts. Each appears on the altar's right half. ### What happens if you destroy Kali's altar in Spelunky Classic? Kali takes it as defiling her altar, whatever destroyed it: "YOU DARE DEFILE MY ALTAR? I WILL PUNISH YOU!" Her favour falls by 16, and she punishes the player, with six Spiders the first time, a ball and chain the second, and darkness and a Ghost after that. ### Can a level have two of Kali's altars in Spelunky Classic? No. Once a side room has been given the altar, the level's other side rooms no longer roll for one. ## See also - **Related:** [Kali](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/kali), [Kali's favour](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/kalis-favour), [Sacrifice](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/sacrifice), [Sacrifice pit](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/sacrifice-pit) ## References [^1]: [`scripts/scrRoomGen.gml:87`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen#L87) [^2]: [`scripts/scrRoomGen.gml:87-91`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen#L87-L91) [^3]: [`objects/oKaliHead/alarm_0.gml:1-8`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oKaliHead/alarm_0#L1-L8) [^4]: [`objects/oGame/create.gml:9-11`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oGame/create#L9-L11) [^5]: [`scripts/scrRoomGen.gml:85-91`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen#L85-L91) [^6]: [`scripts/scrRoomGen2.gml:79-85`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen2#L79-L85) [^7]: [`scripts/scrRoomGen3.gml:68-74`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen3#L68-L74) [^8]: [`scripts/scrRoomGen4.gml:68-79`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen4#L68-L79) [^9]: [`scripts/scrRoomGen4.gml:70-74`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen4#L70-L74) [^10]: [`scripts/scrInitLevel.gml:150-165`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrInitLevel#L150-L165) [^11]: Replay `fidelity/replays/temple-seed-43.txt` [^12]: [`scripts/scrRoomGen.gml:118-119`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen#L118-L119) [^13]: [`scripts/scrRoomGen2.gml:115-116`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen2#L115-L116) [^14]: [`scripts/scrRoomGen3.gml:100-101`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen3#L100-L101) [^15]: [`scripts/scrRoomGen4.gml:116-117`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen4#L116-L117) [^16]: [`objects/oSacAltarLeft/create.gml:1-4`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oSacAltarLeft/create#L1-L4) [^17]: [`scripts/scrRoomGen.gml:363-369`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen#L363-L369) [^18]: [`objects/oKaliHead/create.gml:1-6`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oKaliHead/create#L1-L6) [^19]: [`scripts/scrEntityGen.gml:39-42`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrEntityGen#L39-L42) [^20]: [`scripts/scrEntityGen.gml:255-258`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrEntityGen#L255-L258) [^21]: [`scripts/scrEntityGen.gml:373-376`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrEntityGen#L373-L376) [^22]: [`scripts/scrEntityGen.gml:475-478`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrEntityGen#L475-L478) [^23]: [`scripts/scrEntityGen.gml:410`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrEntityGen#L410) [^24]: Clip kalis-altar/defile [^25]: Quirk 1 (docs/quirks.md) [^26]: [`objects/oExplosion/collision_oSolid.gml:1-15`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oExplosion/collision_oSolid#L1-L15) [^27]: [`objects/oMattockHit/other_animation_end.gml:1-23`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oMattockHit/other_animation_end#L1-L23) [^28]: [`objects/oLaser/collision_oSolid.gml:1-16`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oLaser/collision_oSolid#L1-L16) [^29]: [`objects/oBoulder/collision_oSolid.gml:1-25`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oBoulder/collision_oSolid#L1-L25) [^30]: [`objects/oSacAltarLeft/step.gml:1-5`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oSacAltarLeft/step#L1-L5) [^31]: [`objects/oSacAltarLeft/destroy.gml:11-66`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oSacAltarLeft/destroy#L11-L66) [^32]: [`objects/oSacAltarLeft/destroy.gml:20-60`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oSacAltarLeft/destroy#L20-L60) [^33]: [`objects/oSacAltarLeft/destroy.gml:27-38`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oSacAltarLeft/destroy#L27-L38) [^34]: [`objects/oSacAltarLeft/destroy.gml:39-58`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oSacAltarLeft/destroy#L39-L58) [^35]: Clip kali/spiders [^36]: [`objects/oEnemy/step.gml:130-166`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oEnemy/step#L130-L166) [^37]: [`objects/oDamsel/step.gml:311-348`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oDamsel/step#L311-L348) [^38]: [`scripts/scrGetFavorMsg.gml:27-110`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrGetFavorMsg#L27-L110) [^39]: [`scripts/scrGetFavorMsg.gml:67-105`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrGetFavorMsg#L67-L105) [^40]: [`scripts/scrGetFavorMsg.gml:52-64`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrGetFavorMsg#L52-L64) [^41]: [`scripts/scrGetFavorMsg.gml:27-50`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrGetFavorMsg#L27-L50) [^42]: Clip damsel/sacrifice [^43]: Clip kalis-favour/kapala [^44]: Replay `fidelity/replays/item-seed-11-kapala.txt` [^45]: [`objects/oDamsel/step.gml:331-338`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oDamsel/step#L331-L338) [^46]: Replay `fidelity/replays/terrain-kali-sacrifice.txt` [^47]: [`scripts/scrEntityGen.gml:400-418`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrEntityGen#L400-L418) [^48]: [`scripts/scrEntityGen.gml:483-494`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrEntityGen#L483-L494) [^49]: [`objects/oSacAltarLeft/destroy.gml:62-66`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oSacAltarLeft/destroy#L62-L66) ### Source code - [`objects/oSacAltarLeft/create.gml`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oSacAltarLeft/create) - [`objects/oSacAltarLeft/step.gml`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oSacAltarLeft/step) - [`objects/oSacAltarLeft/destroy.gml`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oSacAltarLeft/destroy) - [`objects/oKaliHead/create.gml`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/objects/oKaliHead/create) - [`scripts/scrRoomGen.gml`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen) - [`scripts/scrRoomGen2.gml`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen2) - [`scripts/scrRoomGen3.gml`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen3) - [`scripts/scrRoomGen4.gml`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrRoomGen4) - [`scripts/scrGetFavorMsg.gml`](https://spelunky.ai/wiki/source/scripts/scrGetFavorMsg)