Low points, defeats and the dark point can be used to develop a surprising or twist climax by threatening and taking away (one by one) the things that the protagonist (their mentor/allies, their antagonist, and the reader) think of as "essential" to victory. Each permanent loss raises the stakes for every scene - not just the final showdown - and makes the climax and result harder to guess. The Dark Point comes when the protagonist thinks they have lost everything and haven't a chance in hell. Then give them a glimpse of hope; a glimpse of insight into the strengths they have been forced to develop as a consequence of the losses, or have alway had and never taken seriously/thought about; into the antagonist's weakness... and let them off the leash.
H.R.Filmore's Reminders To Self, February 2011
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