I see where this game is trying to go, and I feel like there is a space in which it can succeed. However, I feel like it would require a live demonstration for players to grokk the full mechanics. The design could use some simplification of the core gameplay loop, or a more robust rulebook to demonstrate the first playthrough.
I appreciate the use of narrative. However for a single player game, you might simply want to go with the theme: "Explore the dungeon, Defeat monsters for ingredients, Complete recipes to improve/evolve". Unless you are tying the game to some sort of IP, you don't need to add narrative about things that don't affect or inform the gameplay/mechanics.
Viewing post in Dungeon PicNic jam comments
This is a superb review and yes I should have made diagrams and screenshots to illustrate the first rounds of the gameplay.
I'm very happy that you understood where I wanted the game to go and that you found the exploration/cooking/improvement aspect fun.
The quantity of cards really limited me from exploiting the game to its full potential :D
Thank you for this great feedback :)