I got an event that wanted me to have the Red Mask relic, or spend all my gold for a random relic. I GOT the Red Mask from the gold. x.x
If you were to have a computer that randomly plays through the game and compare it with a skilled player over 100 runs, the player would likely only be ahead by ~5 wins. Why? Because how you play is so insignificant compared to the RNG of the game. [...] It does not matter how you play, because you aren't even the one really playing the game. The computer is, you're just watching the random pictures it decides to show you, and clicking when you're ready to see the next random result it'll decide.I don't enjoy Hearthstone so I doubt I would enjoy this game.
So at first glance the card abilities seem oversimplistic. I checked some of the Steam reviews and agree with this one:Quote from: GallenIf you were to have a computer that randomly plays through the game and compare it with a skilled player over 100 runs, the player would likely only be ahead by ~5 wins. Why? Because how you play is so insignificant compared to the RNG of the game. [...] It does not matter how you play, because you aren't even the one really playing the game. The computer is, you're just watching the random pictures it decides to show you, and clicking when you're ready to see the next random result it'll decide.I don't enjoy Hearthstone so I doubt I would enjoy this game.
I'd have to disagree with that review. Yes, of course, you have hands that give you basically no choice in what to do. However, I've had many runs where specific decisions of what to play mattered a TON. That and, of course, what you add/remove/upgrade in your deck has a tremendous difference on how a given run goes. This is very much a strategy game.Ok. I suppose the negative review was very exaggerated or he had terrible RNG.
As for the cards being simple in effect...yes, no particular card is all that complex.I find Faeria and The Far Wilds quite challenging.
Taking boss relic is almost never worth it I find, what with cursed bell, tiny house, specimen, pandora's box and white beast being in that pool. Honestly the more I play the more I find myself just skipping boss relics that aren't sozu or the choker (when playing demon-dude).
Ok, they aren't bad but they are all worse than having your starting relic which is what we were talking about. I mean sure, pandora's box CAN be great or it can make it so you can do zero damage and have no chance of finishing the first floor. Cursed bell also CAN be great, but having 3/15 cards in your deck be curses immediately is no beuno.Taking boss relic is almost never worth it I find, what with cursed bell, tiny house, specimen, pandora's box and white beast being in that pool. Honestly the more I play the more I find myself just skipping boss relics that aren't sozu or the choker (when playing demon-dude).
Not sure why you think these are bad:
Specimen is amazing for Huntress, making poison builds very powerful and useful in all situations where there is one big boss mob with a bunch of smaller buddies.
Pandora's box is literally my favorite artifact in the game, removing all the strikes and blocks which otherwise I painstakingly remove manually at great expense, and replacing them with stuff that may or may not be useful, but won't be trash either.
Cursed Bell is three artifacts for the price of one, and sure you get curses, but numerous artifacts benefit from curses, and, honestly three artifacts in the store is waaay more than three card removals.
I missed one a day or two ago that sounded amazing - you can take a relic instead of a card when you beat a combat.I played that one. Ended up with both the kunai and shuriken, then just used Endless Agony and a bunch of card draw to kill things, ideally followed up by a Finisher. Had 31 total relics by the end.
I picked this game up a few days ago and I've been hitting it hard.I missed one a day or two ago that sounded amazing - you can take a relic instead of a card when you beat a combat.I played that one. Ended up with both the kunai and shuriken, then just used Endless Agony and a bunch of card draw to kill things, ideally followed up by a Finisher. Had 31 total relics by the end.
The other primary trick, mind, is basically to branch it (or other exhaust synergy artifacts). Not really as good as shivs for that, but it's passable.I've never seen dead branch in a Silent run... that is a good idea tho, I'll remember that.
I just had a ton of fun with the new custom mode - playing as silent, with drafting and diverse (all cards available) enabled. Ended up with a mostly claws deck, supported by backflips and shrug it off.It might be vaguely worth noting modding is apparently a thing that exists for slay the spire, now. There's a handful of classes, some content expansion, and a few utility things (custom mode actually had a mod doing the same thing a bit before this latest update, there's an always whale mod, etc.).
There's... only one boss that revives itself, and it only does it once, though? At least in the base game. The sleepy one with the cultists.jackasstime master or whatever it is has a heal mechanic, too, but it's not a straight revive and I'm fairly sure it either only does it once or is supposed to have a sizeable gap in between uses. Both (well, all three end bosses) have a strength scaling mechanic, too (though time jackass is probably the worst of them).
That said, if there's anything that will blow a mill deck to hell it's the jackass time jackass. You can conceptually outpace the bugger with a scaling block deck, but you basically need kunai and the ability to put out six to nine attacks in a turn while still being able to play some defense. Not at all easy, heh, and you'd probably just kill it in the process if you actually have a deck that could manage it.
... well, unless you happen to be playing with mods and running a mad scientist. Then you just get (a few) copies of power armor, stack up the fuel, and laugh and laugh and laugh after you're putting out passive triple digit block figures by like turn three. Legitimately unbalanced as all hell, but hilarious :P
No clue, but as is it's pretty damn solid for a deck building game of its ilk. I don't regret getting it for the current base price (didn't notice the sale was coming, heh), and wouldn't hesitate to say it has ten bucks worth of game already, never mind whatever comes in the future.Excellent!
That said, quick check says the devs are actually expecting full release, or at the absolute least leaving early access, this summer. So within a month or three, expectations holding.
This game actually looks extremely relevant to my interests.I don't know if *more* features are planned, but as is its a finished, complete game.
I generally have a policy of not buying/playing early access games, though, so... Does anyone know how close this is to being a completely finished product, and how close to its actual release?
Endless mode is intresting and the downsides you get after a while tend to avoid the "small deck = autowin" system, since they lay on the curses pretty heavy.Reddit memes got you covered
Yeah, the only thing early access about it is that some of the art has been changing, otherwise it is a finished, and surprisingly but free and incredibly addictive game
How am I supposed to beat that clock guy? I've tried hitting him with 6 shivs and then some finishers, tossing tons of poison on him, hitting him with eight 7 damage lightnings a turn and invoking 3 every turn, hitting him with +10 strength 32 damage double tapped perfected strikes... Everything I can think of, every time I run into it I die.The goal with the time slug is to hit him as hard - and in as few cards - as possible. Shivs are just about the worst thing you could possibly play against him (unless you're running massive accuracy), since they're a low damage card and you'll just end up buffing him massively.
Defect seems best, to me at least, with just 2-3 lightning and the rest ice, spamming as much focus as you can and using Leap and Glacier to hide. Melt is very nice against those monsters who hide behind tons of block.Every time you build a shiv or draw deck as silent add a malaise. That’s your insurance against time eater. If you put him down to -3 strength at the start of the fight and he’s at 1 when he purges debuffs, he won’t jump up to 4. He’ll stay at 1 strength.
I don’t remember how many times I died but I’ve finally finished act 3 with the silent (non ascension :-[ ). Double footwork + blur for the win
... isn't that just the dump-miracles-on-you card? *checks* Ah, apparently not. 25% current health for choice of gold (probably the only one worth that cost, eyeballing it), strength, or plated armor. Upgrade just increases the values. That. Does not seem at all worth, save maybe as some kind of low HP clutch thing. If you got reliable (and hefty) healing it might be an okay cash maker, though.
Won the fourth boss for the first time. Silent with dexterity, shivs and draw-discard. Finding both the Kunai and the Shuriken is probably what made that deck so powerful.
I 've finaly beat ascension 18 with the Ironclad. Bludgeon, whirlwind, brimstone and necronomicon are one hell of a combo, especially when you can get enough gold to keep that deck thin enough :DSpoiler (click to show/hide)
Won the fourth boss for the first time.Did it again. Ironclad with Corruption and Dead Branch. I don't think I need to say anything else about my deck after those two.
Sounds like they didn't really build the deck to leverage them, though. More a high energy instead of attack spam play. Would have been nice enough but probably not core to the deck.
Well yes, hence the "unexpected" part. Thing is, in the right deck it might be better than pairing rupture with either Combust or Bloodletting, since it allows the player to build up lots of strength in a single turn instead of having to wait for multiple turns like in the traditional combo.
As in playing 3 cards/turn or having a combo that relies on 3 cards?
Ascension 20, Ironcald vs Donu&Deca and then Time Eater. The deck turned out surprisingly tanky due to the power that gives defence every time a card is exhausted. Body slam was the main damage dealer along with the occasional fiend fire. Time Eater was the only real threat in this run and it would have finished me if it wasn't for the liazrd tail.
In terms of specific combos, I ‘m not too keen on full on defense. Entrenched is useless by itself and requires too much of a set up before it can be used effectively. Barricade/demon form are awesome powers but they cost a lot and effectively force you to “lose” a turn in order to play them, take them if you have the energy to spare but they aren’t a must have. I prefer inflame/some relic and limit break for strength generation.
For damage dealing I prefer a heavy hitter ( bludgeon, heavy blade, whirlwind, pummel) + vulnerable combo. Perfect strike is a nice card but requires specific deck builds, take 1-2 of them if you don’t have any of the heavy hitters. Searing blade/rampage require too much set up to become effective in higher ascensions. An upgraded bodyslam is always nice either for damage or for the play x number of cards relics. Most importantly you really need some AOE damage, for when you are outnumbered, whirlwind is probably the best of the bunch.
For defense, I really like metallicize, rage and flame barrier. The first two allow you to focus on taking out enemies quickly and the last one gives you plenty of bang for your buck. Upgraded armaments is a nice card but it will become a dead draw eventually, still it’s nice to have one if you haven’t had the chance to upgrade your key cards or if you can't upgrade your cards anymore.
- Preserved insect is a really strong relic to have, since it will help you get stronger. Pair it with the Black Star if possible.
- The bird cage relic (I'm not sure how it's called) is a valid option if you haven't had the chance to remove the cards you want to.
- Dreamcatcher, that pipe, and the shovel are mostly useless as relics.
- Upgraded Infernal Blade/exhume isn't a necessary addition in your deck but I find it quite a fun way to play, without sacrificing much in terms of efficiency.
- The smokescreen potion can save you from a bad fight, like that sphere that has the barricade ability and opens the fight with a ton of defense.
... wait, what? The shovel that gives you more relics over the course of a run is mostly useless? Card removal pipe is also serious mojo if you're going for a slim deck. I'd agree the dreamcatcher is mostly shite, but those other two are pretty golden.
... wait, what? The shovel that gives you more relics over the course of a run is mostly useless? Card removal pipe is also serious mojo if you're going for a slim deck. I'd agree the dreamcatcher is mostly shite, but those other two are pretty golden.
I've also seen rampage being a low-damage card a lot lately (although it kind of works in long fights like donu and deca, or if you have headbutt as well). I'll probably completely avoid them for a few runs to see how that works out for me.
I see rampage as an improved strike. It's almost always better to have rampage than a strike but I probably wouldn't base my deck around it. In the same vein, Iron wave is also a nice substitute.
My only problem with limit break is getting my strength above zero. Flex doesn't work, because it's hard to get them at the same time.
0 cost damage boost? Yes please! I like flex. Flex/limit break can work with lots of draw and/or the right bottle relics.
I'd consider adding Giryu to the list of relics that are bad because they require you to use campfire actions. I got it in the recent daily challenge with the ironclad, but never used it. Starting with 3 strength is great, though.
I wouldn't dismiss it if it means I can reliably start the strength engine. A one time use (especially early on) isn't that bad of a trade off, more uses depending on maps/luck.
I can't figure out how I feel about exhume/dark embrace/feel no pain, because I usually only see them early and I don't know that I'll get much use out of them. I'll usually take exhume, but not dark embrace.
Upgraded exhume is a nice card to have but not crucial. Feel no pain can be powerful in a corruption+dead branch deck. Dark embrace seems useless to me.
I like taking Evolve, because so many enemies throw statuses at you. It really shines against "dazed (https://slay-the-spire.fandom.com/wiki/Dazed)" spammers. Mostly ignoring statuses is also nice when you play with a thinner deck or a lot of power cards.
A nice but very situational relic is charon's ashes. I can't really recommend it but it's nice to see those dazes/slimes used against your enemies.
On my silent run I had the luck to use a potion based deck that is rather new to me. It relied on the sacred bark (x2 on potion effects), toy ornithocopter (heal 5hp when using a potion) and alchemize and was complemented with noxious fumes (x2), footwork, smooth stone, shuriken, pen nib for damage and tanking. On the last boss (donu and deca) I used the new ritual potion (+ strength every turn) and I found myself throwing 25/50 dmg shivs :D
Been enjoying the Watcher, but man is she easy to screw up with. Use Wrath at the wrong time and it is very easy to end up losing a fight that shouldn't be all that hard. Very satisfying to steamroll stuff with her, though.
What are your thoughts on those "synergy" ( does x if last card was Y) cards? I've made limited use of those, mostly the "crush joint" (apply vulnerable), but I'm not sure if it's worth it to try to set them up.
What are everyone's thoughts on the 'mantra' line of skills? The Watcher's enlightened form is crazy (3x damage, no penalty when taking damage) but most of the cards that give mantra don't actually do anything that affects the board.
I find Pray to be decent - enough mantra that you might actually trigger it during a hallway fight, while the insights it generates guarantee that you'll have plenty of attacks to play when you trigger the form. Worship, on the other hand, just doesn't seem worthwhile - sure, you only need two for the trigger, but it costs an unupgradeable two energy. Prostrate is free and gives (a little) block, but needing 4 or 5 pretty much assures that you'll never get the trigger in hallway fights.
Haven't played around with Blasphemy yet - definitely a card you want to triple-check your damage numbers before you play, and avoid anything that auto-plays your cards.
What are your thoughts on those "synergy" ( does x if last card was Y) cards? I've made limited use of those, mostly the "crush joint" (apply vulnerable), but I'm not sure if it's worth it to try to set them up.
Gotta' love it when the RNG gets cheeky.
On the bright side, though, then you had bites which are probably better than even upgraded strike dummy strikes. Now you can stall your way to a full heal a bunch and be happy :P
Tried the Daily Challenge yesterday, I thought I'd just play it for a bit to unlock the custom mode (just got the game).
I started out with 50 cards, and not being able to remove any of them at the shop. Every time I got a new card, I received two extra copies as well. My thought was that this was just a recipe for deck pollution/dilution. Then after beating the first few enemies by simply drawing some decent cards I got a card called Mind Blast. I read the description and starting laughing like a madman immediately.
"Innate - Deal damage equal to the cards in your draw pile". This meant that from that point on I started with three cards each dealing about 70 damage. The only downside was that I couldn't play all three due to their energy cost. It didn't matter though, I started adding cards like a madman and was soon dealing 150+ damage per card. This became even more OP when I got a relic which made my first attack each combat happen twice.
I oneshotted every single Elite Enemy and boss. The only combats which lasted more than one turn were those with three enemies. It was just glorious.
Hello there! I also play Slay The Spire, but I do wonder what's a good deck to win as The Watcher. She's the only character with whom I didn't score a single win so far.
I reached the fourth boss with a Watcher cycling deck, but lost due not getting it up to speed quickly enough.
Empty Body, Empty Mind, Evaluate, Fear No Evil, Flurry of Blows, Inner Peace, Study. I had other cards, of course, but these were the core of my strategy.
Once you have a good supply of Insights, these cards should make an indefinite loop for energy, damage, block and card draws. I didn't draw the right cards to get the loop going, so I failed. Did I miss a rare card or maybe a relic to make it actually viable? I had about 25 cards, which might have been too many.
Hello there! I also play Slay The Spire, but I do wonder what's a good deck to win as The Watcher. She's the only character with whom I didn't score a single win so far.If you're up for youtube vids, you might check out jorbs. Guy posts ascension 20 runs (most heart kills) more or less daily, and does watcher fairly often. Can see some examples of winning decks, some parts of the thought process/decision making involved in building and using them.
From what I've picked up, it mostly boils down to how many turns left you think you'll be taking damage? Or... something like that. Basically run the math and see if you're satisfied with how much longer the whatever is going to stay alive. If yes, catalyze. If no, hold off. That could be early, it could be later for bigger effect, just... depends.
Alternatively get more catalyst. Or more other poison cards. Fumes is pretty good, but one upgraded crippling poison is 2-3 turns of it, basically the same for the base poison card or even more with flask. It's not super sexy with catalyst, more or less. Better for holding a poison count steady while you draw your catalyst(s) than actually pumping the count for the kill.
I just discovered this game, and i quite enjoyed it.If you know what you're doing, it's not an unfairly difficult game.
But I found it quite easy. First ascend at the third game, and >50% WR since.
Is it me or is it easy for everyone ?
The ascension mechanic is built specifically to make the game easy to get into. If you're good at deck builders you shouldn't have too much difficulty winning on lower ascensions. The difficulty does ramp up a lot though, and once you're on Asc 20 heart runs the game gets very difficult. Though most people say the current patch is quite a bit easier than it has been in the past.
I gave up on ascensions when I realized that I have more fun playing the game without a serious challenge (except for the Heart, which is kinda tough no matter what). Lets me try weird builds and stuff without caring too much if it might ruin the run.