Ring of Pain

Starting items count. I completed this with the Glow Stone starting candle and just focused on building Def first and Atk second. Wasn't able to get the misting vessel for the winning run so I wouldn't worry if you don't get it.

I'd suggest Taurus candle, as it makes runs fairly consistent. Many early defense items are not valid in this run so getting guaranteed durability while dumping stats where you need them helps a bunch.

Tried Glow Stone, but after 20+ attempts I did not have one that came even close to a victory. Switched over to the Lantern of the Ox and had some better luck. This still took me plenty of attempts, so best advice is to stick with it. If you do choose to start with double candle, I recommend starting with the Poison book. If you encounter a tough enemy, simply cast and move away. One cast leads to 10 poison damage and can be a life saver. This solution is almost completely useless without the comments, but good luck with the chievo. I ended up with decent stats at boss choice, but only rapier as weapon so chose to fight dark boss.