Overview
About the Game
Slay the Spire is a deck-builder roguelike game developed by Mega Crit and officially released in 2019. The player uses one of four characters to ascend a multi-floor spire, battling enemies and enountering strange people. As you go through these battles and encounters, you gain new cards and items that can help with the climb. Combat is turn-based, with every attack, skill, and power being a card. The main focus of the game is to construct a deck that allows you to make it farther up. Since it is a roguelike, every time you die or win, you restart, with luck often being a major reason for the outcome of a playthrough.
The Characters
The four different characters each have their own playstyles. While there are cards and items that are universal, most of them are unique to the character you are playing. The Ironclad posesses great strength and defense, with many cards that boost his damage and blocking capabilities. The Silent uses many small attacks to chip away at the enemy, and she can use poison to passively defeat foes. The Defect is capable of controlling the elements. Lightning, ice, darkness, and plasma can be manipulated to protect itself and defeat enemies. Finally, there is the Watcher, who can utilize stances. These stances lead to a high-risk, high-reward playstyle.
| Character | Starting Relic | Starting HP | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Ironclad | Burning Blood | 80 | Easy/Medium |
| The Silent | Ring of the Snake | 70 | Hard |
| The Defect | Cracked Core | 75 | Medium |
| The Watcher | Pure Water | 72 | Easy/Hard |
The Combat
As you ascend the spire, combat encounters will occur. While there are shops, rest spots, and other events, encounters are the main focus of the game. Combat is turn-based, meaning the player takes a turn, followed up by the enemies. At the beginning of each turn, you draw 6 cards from the draw pile. These cards are part of one of three categories. Attacks are cards that deal damage to enemies. Skills are cards that give block, debuff enemies, draw extra cards, discard other cards, provide temporary buffs, and other miscellaneous actions. Powers are cards that grant buffs and status effects to your character for the duration of combat. Each card has a cost from 0 to 5 energy. The expensive cards are generally more risky to play but are more impactful. When you draw the initial 6 cards at the start of the turn, you only get 3 energy. This requires you to be smart with what you spend your energy on. There are means to increase your starting energy, and with certain cards you can temporarily increase your energy.
The Enemies
There are numerous enemies and bosses that inhabit each of the three floors of the spire. Each enemy has its own actions, from attacks to healing. Most combats will have normal enemies, and they can appear by themselves or in large groups. They are generally weaker, and defeating them offers limited rewards. Elites are a type of enemy that are much rarer and much more difficult. They are often alone, and bringing one down will offer rare cards and relics, which grant passive bonuses. Bosses only appear at the end of each floor, and defeating one grants you the best cards and relics in the game. All these creatures are tough, but there is a way to beat them. During your turn, enemies will show you what they plan to do once it's their turn. You can use this to prepare for and counter the action they will take.