This guide is written having in mind unlocking All Journal Entries from a new save file in the shortest amount of time possible (as a speedrun), however, it can be useful to anyone who wants to unlock all the Journal entries.

This guide was written by BumCommando with images made by saturnin55. For use in this guide, AJE will refer to "All Journal Entries".

General Information

AJE can be pretty intimidating. There are 114 total Journal entries, but don't worry because you only need to go for a few at any given time per stage and most items can be farmed from the Black Market shops or from crates. One of the most important things you'll need to keep in mind, is to utilize every opportunity you can, especially when it comes to rarer entries. There are also enemies that spawn throughout multiple areas so if you miss an opportunity, it's not always the end of the world.

Basic route information: This will serve only as a basic guideline for how to approach the run optimally. Because of the nature of RNG, there isn't any one set approach that's optimal 100% of the time. The routing information provided is based of experience set across many attempts as well as no reset runs and is useful for roughly 4/5 runs. (note: not based on a real statistic)

Hell run + First Bomb delivery for shortcut Rope delivery -> Worm or run to Temple and grabbing everything you can Make sure you have all Mines uniques + 10k delivery Begin to mop-up remaining journal entries using the Jungle shortcut

All Journal Entries Leaderboards

There is an autosplitter available through LiveSplit made by user Sashavol. It has a lot of convenient features and is a near must if you want to run the category. It's activated through LiveSplit settings and no external download is required.

Auto splitting enabled: You need this for the splits to trigger automatically.

Force game to use alternative save file: This separates your normal save from the new save file required to start an AJE run.

Auto-load save file: This automatically loads your pre-selected save file for each run. In order to trigger the auto load, you need to back out to the "splash screen" (the screen with the Spelunker holding the torch) and save file will load as soon as you press a button to continue.

Journal tracker: Here you can change the window size of the journal tracker and make it visible / invisible.

Save file: Here's where you drop your save file. There are many advantages to creating one before your run. You can change settings (like volume, graphics, damsel, custom controls) and even have the character cursor pre-select your main character of choice (Red = optimal) to optimize and personalize the auto loading save file. All that is required is to start a new save file through the stats screen from the main menu (recommended you back up your original spelunky_save.sav first), change all settings as desired, close Spelunky and make a copy of the spelunky_save.sav and drop that in a separate directory. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED***

Color coding for images:

Red = Area Unique (means you cannot obtain the entry in any other area)

Green = Non Area Unique (this means you can obtain the entry across multiple areas)

Note: Some technicalities are not covered based off extremely low odds. Example include finding Alien in pots, Plasma Cannon from a crate and even finding Scarabs in dark levels. The guide tries to make as many notes about such situations as deemed reasonable. If you are able to obtain some entries alternatively to what the guide suggest, consider yourself lucky!

Note: Max% (Worm + Mothership) on the Hell run is slow and the whip holds some advantages over the Crysknife. You can choose to go this route for your run, but it is not advised.

The Mines

5 Unique Entries:

Giant Spider - You need to deliver the death blow. 10 Health.

Udjat Eye - Chest + Key is almost necessary for Hell run.

Powder Box - Only needs to be detonated. Sometimes this will happen on it's own for free entry.

Boulder - Idol must be moved to trigger trap. Trap will not unlock until the boulder is released.

Tunnel Man - You unlock him after first delivery upon loading 2-1

The Jungle

13 Unique Entries:

Tiki Man: Kill for entry.

Frog: The true final boss. Good luck. Kill for entry.

Fire Frog: No, it's not called "orange frog". Damage one for the entry.

Giant Frog: Kill for entry.

Mantrap: Kill for entry.

Piranha: Kill for entry. (technically found in Ice Caves as well, skeleton fish count for entry)

Old Bitey: Old Bitey can be complicated. You can get the entry by either killing or dying to Old Bitey will grant the entry. Old Bitey has 40 Health so 4 sticky bombs from above is the easiest / safest method. Old Bitey will start to aggro on the player when they are submerged more than 1 tile deep in the water. On the first run, killing is the optimal method but on successive runs it can be much faster to tank the death and reset. Just make sure Old Bitey delivers the death blow and not a regular Piranha.

Killer Bee: Kill one for the entry. Very common and very unlikely to miss on beehive stage.

Queen Bee: You need to deliver the death blow. Make sure to avoid having Tiki Traps deliver the fatal blow.

Snail: Kill for entry.

Monkey: Spawns on vines, kill for entry and player satisfaction.

The Ghost: Best method by far is to pick up the crystal idol on dead are restless or by killing old bitey on dead are restless (will drop crystal skull and ghost will spawn immediately after Bitey death). Can otherwise be obtained by having the current level timer cross 2:30 in any single stage.

Royal Jelly: Pick up from Queen Bee.

The Black Market

1 Unique Entry (carries over some unique Jungle attributes):

Ankh: You need this for the Hell run so it needs to be stolen/bought. Always in same shop in Black market.

Important Note: Ankh can be used to unlock Spikes or Lava entry on death and revival. The same is not true for monsters. If you die to a monster with the Ankh you will not receive the entry.

Important Note: This is the best place to grab items if you're resetting at the end for them. Jungle Shortcut Shop plus random Black Market is more efficient than looking for those items in the Mines.

The Haunted Castle

3 Unique Entries (carries over some unique Jungle attributes):

Green Knight: Contains a caveman but you only need to break the armor for the entry. Cannon be whipped or bounced on without spike shoes. Can be rare and sometimes is eaten whole by man trap so don't hesitate.

Black Knight: Black Knight has 3 health so the most efficient and safe method is to whip the black knight through his shield to make him stun and drop it and then finish him off. Use other methods at own risk.

Shield: Pick it up for the entry.

Important Note: Black Knight doesn't seem to consistently grant the entry if you bomb him while he's holding his shield. Make sure he drops if before you attempt to bomb or you risk losing the entry and having to backtrack.

The Worm

5 Unique Entries:

Bacterium: This entry is usually faster to grab with with the Crysknife because they are one shot to kill. They can also be bombed but its slow and a bit wasteful. Tanking damage to pop them doesn't unlock the entry.

Worm Egg: Only 1 health so whip one before it pops. The timer for them to open only started when you are on level or below them so try to find one before Crysknife acid pit.

Worm Baby: You need to kill one after it's hatched from the egg.

Acid: You need to take at least 1 damage from staying inside a pool of acid. Bubbles don't count.

Crysknife: Always found submerged in the large pool of acid at the mid point of the stage. Pick up for the entry. Replaces your whip

Note: The Worm will take the properties of the area in which it is entered (Ice Caves worm will cause Ice Caves enemies to spawn in Worm). Generally a strategy is to run to the Crysknife and grab entries along the way and reset. The Crysknife doesn't do much good for other entries, so it's faster to just deal with half Worm level.

The Ice Caves

8 Unique Entries:

Yeti: Kill for entry.

Yeti King: Because of the nature of level generation, it's possible that the Yeti King will die to environmental hazard before you can reach him. There is a little urgency to this entry so make sure you are ready. 1 Bomb, shotgun or spike shoes (yeti king cannot stun you bouncing off his head but watch for falling icicles) are best options.

Mammoth: Spike shoes, bomb or shotgun for entry.

Alien: Spawns from UFO, kill for entry.

UFO: Hit for entry.

Hedjet: Found in Moai statue after using Ankh on same stage. Found on 3-2 or 3-3.

Mine: Trigger for entry.

Spring: Bounce on for entry.

The Mothership

6 Unique Entries (carries over some unique Ice Caves attributes, technically, the Alien Lord, the Turret and the Force Field can be unlocked in any Ice Caves level with the Psychic Presence Level Feeling):

Alien Tank: Only 1 health. Kill for entry.

Alien Lord: 10 Health, one bomb does the trick.

Alien Queen: 20 health, two bombs or a direct shot with the Plasma Cannon work.

Plasma Cannon: Pick it for entry.

Turret: Needs to be knocked down and blown up. Shotgun or sticky bomb is usually the most effective. At least two always spawn near the exit if you have a hard time locating any.

Force Field: Needs to be bombed or broken. Tanking a hit will also grant entry but it's ill advised.

The Temple

11 Unique Entries:

Hawk Man: Kill for the entry.

Croc Man: One of the trickiest entries in the game. The most efficient and consistent methods used are with the Freeze Ray and the Scepter. For Freeze Ray, you'll want to freeze the Croc Man and have him fall and shatter for the entry. If the Scepter is used, the psychic blast needs to be traveling very fast and make contact with the Croc Man. It is ideal that the Croc Man is positioned so he cannot teleport into a wall on its first teleport. It's possible to get the entry this way, but it is very inconsistent.

Magma Man: You either need to die to the Magma Man or use the Freeze Ray and break it. Technically, you can get this in the Jungle (Tiki Village without random character, the Coffin room makes the room with the Cauldron not spawn most of the time, so it's advised to unlock the Round Boy character to increase odds) and in Hell if you can find a freeze ray there. Freeze ray is one of the least common Crate drops, so it's more than likely to unlock this entry in the Temple.

Scorpion Fly: Kill for entry.

Mummy: Kill for entry.

Anubis: You need to deal the death blow. Do NOT use freeze ray on Anubis, it will not grant the entry.

Olmec: As soon as Olmec hits the lava, the entry is yours.

Scepter: Pick up after destroying Anubis.

Crush Trap: Needs to be triggered and move at least 1 square for the entry. Bombing or destroying will not grant the entry.

Ceiling Trap: Only the idol needs to be moved to start the trap trigger. This doesn't have to be triggered by you and will unlock as soon as the ceiling trap releases. Look for the telling line of gravity defying push blocks at the top of trap room for easy identification.

Lava: Because you can't get in Hell on first run. You need to die in lava for the entry, which can be done with or without the ankh.

The City of Gold

3 Unique Entries (carries over some unique Temple attributes):

Anubis II: 20 health so 2 bombs or shotgun is most effective. Can be taken to Olmec for simpler kill, just make sure that you deal the death blow for the entry.

Book of the Dead: Pick it up.

Scarab: Make sure you either kill it or grab it before it dies to something else. Make sure you're careful the gold from the terrain doesn't drop and kill it because that will not gain you the entry. Can also be obtained from any Dark Level but you want to rely on getting it in City of Gold unless you have an opportunity beforehand.

Hell

10 Unique Entries:

Vlad: Bombing Vlad before he leaves his perch seems to be the most efficient way to get the entry. If you let him down he often finds his way into a tiki trap or all the way to the bottom or his tower and his own demise.

Vlad's Cape: Don't forget to pick it up.

Vlad's Amulet: Sometimes you can get this with the same bomb as Vlad. Just don't forget to pick it up. Unfortunately, Vlad's amulet means you cannot obtain Lava on the first run.

Succubus: You only get three chances at this entry and the succubus only has 1 health which often results in the environment taking them out, sometimes immediately. This is one you definitely want to secure as early as possible. There is always one real damsel and one fake damsel. The tell tale sign of a Succubus is that it will cry for help twice as often as a regular Damsel to lure you in.

Imp: Only 1 health but survivability rate is a bit higher than succubus because they can move. Best to get out of the way as early as possible. Can spawn on Yama's stage.

Devil: This is what Tiki Men turn into when they die. 3 health means they survive a spike ball hit but it's best to get as early as possible. Best taken care of with a bomb or a straight shotgun blast to the bum or face. Can spawn on Yama's stage.

Spike Ball: You can either tank the hit for 2 damage and gain the entry or destroy the base block of the chain for the entry. Can spawn on Yama's stage.

Horse Head + Ox Face: They are essentially the same entry and are often obtained the same way. A few shotgun blast or a single bomb each is enough to take care of them.

King Yama: You need to kill the face for the entry. Generally bombing is the most optimal approach for the entry. Finish the stage landing on spikes if you haven't obtained them or end adventure. Exiting through Yama's door only yields and unskippable cutscene that drops you back into the main menu. This also gives you a unique opportunity to troll the audience with a fake accidental death on spikes.

Note: You may also want to consider checking the three crates opposite to the Hell exit. Freeze ray for Magma Man is probably the best opportunity available but they potentially could hold missing items for minimal time loss.

Other Entries

Multi-Area Items

23 Entries:

Note: 21/23 Items are available via Crate odds

Multi-Area Enemies

13 Entries:

Snake: Kill for entry. Found in the mines and the jungle.

Cobra: Kill for entry. Found in the mines, the jungle, the haunted castle and the temple.

Bat: Kill for entry. Found in the mines, the jungle, the haunted castle and hell.

Spider: Kill for entry. Found in the mines, dead are restless level and the haunted castle.

Spinner Spider: Kill for entry. Found in the mines, dead are restless and the haunted castle.

Skeleton: Kill for entry. Found in the mines, dead are restless, ice caves, castle, temple, hell.

Scorpion: Kill for entry. Found in the mines, the jungle and the temple.

Caveman: Kill for entry. Found in the mines, the jungle, the ice caves (frozen in ice), the mothership and the temple.

Damsel: Unlocks after kill or rescue. Every Area.

Shopkeeper: Unlocks after first kill. Every Area except Hell unless the shopkeepers are aggressive.

Golden Monkey: Can be either Gold or Crystal monkey for the entry. The game doesn't differentiate. Found in mines, jungle, ice caves, temple, hell.

Jiang Shi: Kill for entry, found on dead are restless, haunted castle or in hell.

Vampire: Kill for entry, found on dead are restless, haunted castle or in hell.

Note: Snake, Cobra, Spider, and Scorpion spawn from pots. That means that they are technically available in every single area but The Mothership and Skin is Crawling Level Feeling.

Multi-Area Traps

3 Entries:

Spikes: Need to die on spikes for entry. Cannot be destroyed for entry.

Arrow Trap: You need to destroy the arrow trap itself for entry.

Tiki Trap: Need to destroy at least 1 tile of trap for entry or tank a hit for 4 health.