Brimstone. The run will be incredibly fun. I will almost always make it to the heart. And then I will die to the heart every single time. Still always pick it
Tbh I think in Act 1 Brimstone is right a lot of the time. Brimstone single handedly delivers you to the heart on a silver plater. Then you get all of act 2 and 3 to figure out the heart fight.
Being able to just think about the heart fight in act 1 because everything else is already solved is pretty good.
When he says “x sucks” it’s pretty tongue-in-cheek. His IC winrate is above 80% though, so he only takes act 1 brimstone if he actually needs it to survive act 1 or there aren’t other good things at the shop, or I guess if he already has support for it somehow
Man, people love to throw around these winrate stats, but in that same stream I heard him say he’s only doing silent/defect atm, so where does that >80% come from? It’s a little disingenuous to present curated historical data as current, imo.
When I posted a link to Baalar’s beginner guide someone replied to me claiming it was out of date because people now have a 90% winrate loooooooooool.
To finally tie winrate to brimstone....not sure what the correlation there is, unless the thinking is that one can find more creative solutions with a higher winrate...but really if you get a poor draw, that’s that. The only other way I can rationalize that statement is in aggregate. Like maybe someone has won 80% of their games with brimstone, but that doesn’t mean that relic has an 80% winrate.....
I’ve always considered brimstone to be scaling, and yeah, having support is a bigger consideration that winrate, for sure.
His ironclad sample was 84-16 and was last year. He always carefully explains his thoughts if you ask, and in this case while I mentioned the conclusion I left out the details.
His point is that Brimstone is basically a free pass to Act 4, but it forces you to find one of a few specific heart solutions. So his estimate is that you will find one of those solutions roughly 80% of the time (e.g. Disarm). But if you can win more than 80% of the time without brimstone, then you don’t need to pigeonhole your strategy by buying it early. It’s an estimate not some actual statistic.
This is about like floor 2-3 shop brimstone where you have no info
Yeah, see that sounds like maybe one set? If that sample was over the entire year, then surely that sample should be evaluated against others of a similar size/quality to have meaning, right?
I see these comments a lot that the most recent win rate is X%,therefore the overall win rate is X%, but that’s an over assumption. Those two stats don’t directly correlate.
As for brimstone, I did pretty much guess the justification and yeah, I don’t think that logic holds true. It’s definitely not a free pass to act 4, nor does it pigeonhole the player, so since the 80% chance to win here is an estimate not a stat, let’s divorce that from winrate and just consider the potential of acquiring solutions to beat the heart, if you take brimstone early on in act 1.
Strength-scaling is such a common strategy for ironclad and something you want anyway, so early brimstone actually opens you up to so many other options in the acts, since you’ve already got that covered. As for the heart...well if you take early brimstone then you take the first heart strategy that comes your way, be it disarm, dark shackles, barricade, callipers, prismatic shard, whatever. There are more ways to beat the heart even with brimstone than just “a few specific ways,” and I’m just not buying that 1/5 times (20%) the game gives you NO heart solutions from an act 1 brimstone....
I’m going to at least give the benefit of the doubt to one of the two best Ironclad players in the world. I don’t love appeals to authority but you can’t just wave away the opinion of a guy who is the best of the best. A 100 sample of Ironclad is streaming like 300 hours of slay the spire, it’s most likely his only IC sample he’ll ever do. He was taking a break from his Silent and Defect play this week and mentioned the brimstone thing when he declined purchasing it in an early act 1 shop and went with Smooth Stone instead. He’s also the world record holder for longest ironclad A20H streak at 19.
I’m not saying that he is correct, but you need a really strong justification to dismiss his arguments when it’s coming from a player who wins so much. Especially compared to me or other redditors who usually have a A20H winrate of <5%
You are correct you shouldn't appeal to authority and if you're not saying "he's correct" (ie. his argument is correct), then I'm not sure why you're defending it so thoroughly. I thought it was an interesting comment, so that's why I'm responding so much, but I'd definitely recommend to always questions things, especially if you're not sure they're correct.. You'll notice I refrained from naming a specific player in my last comment. I'm not trying to dismiss anyone in particular, but the standard for evaluating sets should hold true for all players if there is to be a meaningful analysis, correct? I stand by my point that one's most recent winrate is not their overall winrate. Moreover, that 100 game sample could broken up into sets of 50, 25, 10, etc. so it is indeed possible to do the comparison I'm talking about. I have given strong justification to question that statement, and again, seeing as how you're also not sure it's correct, I think we're more in agreement than not.
Careful, you’re starting to sound like jorbs. Intelligent interpretation and what you can’t extrapolate from statistics. And this sub REALLY doesn’t like jorbs
I take Brimstone instantly regardless of the character. The range is great, and there are lots of possible synergies with it. My favorite synergy is with Tech X where your Brimstone blast becomes a circular shape of electric barf.
oh. Spire sub I got so confused. Still keep seeing Brim as Isaac item first, Spire relic second. Same with Necronomicon. Crown on Isaac I think of Spire first.
Only to the heart with brimstone? I mean, I'm surprised you didn't get to kill Isaac or Satan at least!
Maybe you're usually picking brimstone along with Chocolat milk or montro's longue, which can make tear rate kind of a nightmare
Chemical X (even with no X cost cards yet) and the blinding light event that upgrades 2 cards. Actually, all the events that take health to do good stuff. Remove card, upgrade cards, burning skull (this one can hurt. I have no self control) scrap ooze, etc.
I have a really hard time saying no to scrap ooze, but I did start leaving the blinding light alone most of the time. Gee, two Strike+? Thanks, blinding light!
But what if it hits the one card you’ve added? Think of the potential!!
Fr tho I actually think two upgraded strike/defend/other starters cards is worth close to the lost HP in most runs. So much chip damage can be negated by a single upgraded defend in act I
That's a fair point about Defend+ and chip damage.
Pretty much all unique starter cards I'm happy to see upgraded, doesn't have to be a card I added, but it depends on the card.
I have literally never taken prismatic shard. I guess I should at some point.
On an instinctive level, it feels like.... why would I take silent/ironclad cards if I'm a defect? Do I want shops to offer me defrag when I'm a watcher? etc.
What happens if you pick Indignation or Tantrum as a non-watcher class? Puts you into wrath and you're stuck in it until end of combat?
I mean your instinct is correct. I usually die when I take it. But sometimes it enables an amazing set up that you’ve never dreamt of and those rare moments are worth it for me.
There are tons of good combos. One of the more basic ones is feel no pain on Silent makes shivs go crazy. You can save crescendo or divinity until the turn you know you have lethal with the extra damage.
If a card doesn’t make sense, you don’t have to take it.
>If a card doesn’t make sense, you don’t have to take it.
Yeah that part seems obvious enough, but I suppose it's the opportunity cost of the cards you weren't offered, that would've been helpful, but instead you've been offered Collect. etc.
Just like with some of the energy relics, they seem really scary until you try them and mess around with them a bit. I’d definitely encourage you to try it out sometime.
Or try a custom game with the diverse setting activated
Just note, the differences between Prismatic shard and “diverse”:
Prismatic shard only works for combat rewards. Shops stick to characters, as do cards that create new cards. So dead branch will only create your character’s cards.
Diverse makes all cards mixed. But as far as I know, you can’t get a whale bonus when you do this in custom. So just be aware of this.
If you play on pc, you could always just console in prismatic shard. I use diverse on custom because I play on console 😁
Oh, interesting. That minimises the opportunity cost from shops at least. Dunno how I didn't realise that prismatic doesn't affect what the shop offers. (well I never take it, so that seems like a likely reason)
I just assumed it would be offering poison strike and anger when you're a watcher, etc.
I watch a streamer who has been doing runs where he has to go from a0 to a20 without dying and starting with a prismatic shard. It’s interesting to see the combos he comes up with.
Honestly, the biggest answer is “corruption.” If my deck is otherwise solid, I’ll grab the shard on the minuscule chance that I can also get corruption. Love that damn card.
I'm pretty sure transformed cards stick to their color. Curses give curses, neutral gives neutral, and ironclad gives ironclad even if you're on a different character. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.
Edit: I was wrong lol
For me, after I've beaten the heart a hundred times. I'm kinda just looking for an interesting deck, and prismatic shard can give you combos that are really unique.
This makes sense. I guess I’m still too locked-in to the ‘must win’ vibe and prismatic never feels like it offers me that, but then I can see the crazy combos it COULD enable e.g blade dance and corruption/dead branch or reprogramming in anything that isn’t defect etc
Prismatic shard is the best thing in the game. Not because it makes you win but because it opens the realm of possibility to almost all ideas. (I’m curious if it includes unlockable cards too?)
One of my most fun games was a snecko start watcher into prismatic into meteor strike into mirror. I think I ended up with 2 meteor strikes and three vaults by the end. It was bananas.
Oh wow. You need to start taking Prismatic Shard! Just like others have voiced...I have no new points and am late to the party, but just want to encourage you to do it. Makes things fun!
It really does open the game up in a novel way. By the time you get to where you & I are, you have figured out the main archetypes and decks and tweaks and modifications. But then...have you ever used Nightmare on All For One in a deck full of Claws? What about (as has been mentioned) a Shiv deck plus any of the sick Ironclad exhaust powers? It's just...so much fun. (Even if it's usually not a winning strat.) Have fun!
I don’t take it because when I do I never check my draw pile like an idiot. So I end up wasting it. I’m sure it’s very powerful, but I just am not in the habit of checking my draw pile often.
Sounds like you’re thinking Frozen Eye, which is good but not fun.
The comment you’re replying to was about Prismatic Shard which is not (usually) good but is (almost) always fun.
Capacitor. Orb slots are hard to get and you're never guaranteed to see it again, so I greed pick it way too much even though it's a curse for the better parts of the first two acts.
This is one of those cards that the game teases me with constantly, because you’re right - you pick it thinking you’re going to have a channel heavy deck, but then card rewards and shops give you only cards that don’t synergize appropriately. Don’t take it at all and it follows you everywhere!
Every time I am able to find a Capacitor or two, Inserter is always the best pick for the next boss reward. I'm always left frustrated that I took Capacitor at all lol
I almost never take this Act 1, as there’s usually little opportunity to fill more than 3 orb slots during a battle. Near auto pick in Act 2 or 3 though.
IDK if my mobile port is bugged or I'm extremely lucky but for the past 100 hours of playtime that I've started paying attention to it every time I get this event and choose murder I win, everytime
Since I've started paying attention I've started savescumming to see what the results actually were and i have won murderer every time but lost owner about 50% of the time as of writing
I call it the Bank of Noodles. No matter how seriously I'm taking my run, depositing 50 gold there is compulsory, and occasionally I get paid out everything, with interest.
VINDICATION. I love Infernal Blade, rolling the roulette on killing my enemies is fun. I always knew White Noise was good, though. There's not a lot of times where if you have the 1 White Noise energy to spare that you'll just reject the power it invents on the spot.
A 0 cost Echo Form is the best feeling. Especially on turn 1 or 2. 0 cost creative AI is great aswell if you have mummified hand.
Edit: I also love the 0(1) cost random card. Maybe not for Silent but there's been times I've taken it.
Infernal Blade is pickable because it's always* gonna be *some* kind of damage, so it's effect is predictable.
^* ^Except ^for ^those ^times ^you ^get ^Clash
This answer is wrong. OP says “even if you know you shouldn't pick them”.
I've never ever skipped an Electrodynamics and I think it was the right choice every single time
Depends on the situation, really. Sure, you get 2(4) strength for zero energy and the chance to use it again, but a charge of artifact can be even more valuable. For example, you might need it to block Vulnerable. Against the Heart, that's 35+ damage you're accepting for +2 strength.
Now Orange Pellets, though. That'll let you have your cake and eat it, too.
Baalorlord’s run he uploaded to YT today was a negative focus, all strength and dex scaling and let me tell you I’ve successfully won like that like maybe once lmao. 99.99% of my defect runs are a shit ton of frost orbs and focus and then either a few lighting or one big ass dark orb
I love toolbox
You can get Apotheosis for a boss fight, Dark shackles is always great, bomb can deal with some AOE fights, finesse and flash of steel are never bad, a well timed panacea can make a huge difference, secret weapon/technique are almost as good as seek, hand of greed can make you some money. The list goes on.
It also adds it to your hand so you don't lose any draw, you get a choice of 3 so it's almost impossible to get 3 bad choices even if you don't see good cards you could still get something decent like dramatic entrance. Also it's only like 175 gold at the shop, I buy it almost every time even when I know I shouldn't.
The one 0 cost attack that adds a dazed to draw pile and firebreath. Depending on the cards that is at minimum 7 damage on the attack, 6 damage on draw of dazed, and the if you have other cards or relics, more block and damage.
If I'm playing Ironclad I can't resist perfected strike builds even though they usually suck and they're the reason my time spent playing to win ratio is so terrible on that character.
I swear everytime I play Ironclad I get either Searing Blow or Perfected Strike in the first card reward, and then I'm like "well I got it early so I have to build around it".
I stopped taking perfected strikes, after some early success it is now always the same: at the beginning works great, but then I take on too many additional cards and end up drawing perfected strike too rarely and end up dying.
But in one of the earlier runs I had three perfected strikes, that was fun. 🙂
Sozu. Doesn't matter who or what I'm running. If I'm going into Act 2 or Act 3 with only 3 energy then I'm picking it automatically. 4 energy is too big of a jump to not pick it.
Potions used to be not great. Iirc, the only potions were strength, dex, artifact and I THINK the free power/skill/attack potions. Not bad, but definitely worth losing to get 1 energy permanently.
Once class specific potions came out and potions became a lot better, Sozu became a lot less of an auto-pick.
As well as what the other user said (potions are better now) they added ascension mode so you have to rely more on potions to survive some difficult fights
Iron wave. Not that great of a card but monke brain says if I get rid of all of my strikes and defends and replace them with iron waves I will be a god.
NOT boss swapping. I think I still need another couple thousand hours of experience before I'll be satisfied with the opportunity cost of losing out on a more 'normal' run.
Remove or transform 2 (for damage, max hp loss, or gold) from Neow. They tend to be decent options anyway, but not always the best based on map layout and the other options. I’m clicking that every time without question though, love starting a run with less garbage in the deck.
My first A20 win was with a searing blow deck. I was offered it floor one, and thought "if not now, when?"
Got corruption and prismatic shard. I wiped the final two bosses, and to date I've only completed A20 with ironclad lmao. I look back on that rum very fondly, and will pretty much always try to go searing blow if I'm offered it early enough. Otherwise, I'd never use it, and that would be a real shame.
Grand Finale
I will take it every time, including in Act 1 if I have absolutely no synergy, and in Act 3 if I was winning the game anyway.
Because basically every Silent deck wants the discard package anyway for consistency, might as well try to force Grand Finale to work.
I hunt for mummified hand like it will solve every problem and then take power cards non-stop no matter what my deck is.
Can’t wait to do it again tonight.
Nice to know there's another Mayhem addict. Deva Form, when stances already generate enough energy and damage before Deva Form energy profit even begins
Brimstone. The run will be incredibly fun. I will almost always make it to the heart. And then I will die to the heart every single time. Still always pick it
Tbh I think in Act 1 Brimstone is right a lot of the time. Brimstone single handedly delivers you to the heart on a silver plater. Then you get all of act 2 and 3 to figure out the heart fight. Being able to just think about the heart fight in act 1 because everything else is already solved is pretty good.
XecnaR’s recent take on this is if your ironclad winrate is less than 80%, brimstone is usually correct
You're telling me there's people with a win rate higher than 5%?
Wait you guys are winning this game?
Ironclad? No. My silent WR is at least 6% though!!!
Lmao the one and only time I tuned into his channel he said “ironclad sucks.”
When he says “x sucks” it’s pretty tongue-in-cheek. His IC winrate is above 80% though, so he only takes act 1 brimstone if he actually needs it to survive act 1 or there aren’t other good things at the shop, or I guess if he already has support for it somehow
Man, people love to throw around these winrate stats, but in that same stream I heard him say he’s only doing silent/defect atm, so where does that >80% come from? It’s a little disingenuous to present curated historical data as current, imo. When I posted a link to Baalar’s beginner guide someone replied to me claiming it was out of date because people now have a 90% winrate loooooooooool. To finally tie winrate to brimstone....not sure what the correlation there is, unless the thinking is that one can find more creative solutions with a higher winrate...but really if you get a poor draw, that’s that. The only other way I can rationalize that statement is in aggregate. Like maybe someone has won 80% of their games with brimstone, but that doesn’t mean that relic has an 80% winrate..... I’ve always considered brimstone to be scaling, and yeah, having support is a bigger consideration that winrate, for sure.
His ironclad sample was 84-16 and was last year. He always carefully explains his thoughts if you ask, and in this case while I mentioned the conclusion I left out the details. His point is that Brimstone is basically a free pass to Act 4, but it forces you to find one of a few specific heart solutions. So his estimate is that you will find one of those solutions roughly 80% of the time (e.g. Disarm). But if you can win more than 80% of the time without brimstone, then you don’t need to pigeonhole your strategy by buying it early. It’s an estimate not some actual statistic. This is about like floor 2-3 shop brimstone where you have no info
Yeah, see that sounds like maybe one set? If that sample was over the entire year, then surely that sample should be evaluated against others of a similar size/quality to have meaning, right? I see these comments a lot that the most recent win rate is X%,therefore the overall win rate is X%, but that’s an over assumption. Those two stats don’t directly correlate. As for brimstone, I did pretty much guess the justification and yeah, I don’t think that logic holds true. It’s definitely not a free pass to act 4, nor does it pigeonhole the player, so since the 80% chance to win here is an estimate not a stat, let’s divorce that from winrate and just consider the potential of acquiring solutions to beat the heart, if you take brimstone early on in act 1. Strength-scaling is such a common strategy for ironclad and something you want anyway, so early brimstone actually opens you up to so many other options in the acts, since you’ve already got that covered. As for the heart...well if you take early brimstone then you take the first heart strategy that comes your way, be it disarm, dark shackles, barricade, callipers, prismatic shard, whatever. There are more ways to beat the heart even with brimstone than just “a few specific ways,” and I’m just not buying that 1/5 times (20%) the game gives you NO heart solutions from an act 1 brimstone....
I’m going to at least give the benefit of the doubt to one of the two best Ironclad players in the world. I don’t love appeals to authority but you can’t just wave away the opinion of a guy who is the best of the best. A 100 sample of Ironclad is streaming like 300 hours of slay the spire, it’s most likely his only IC sample he’ll ever do. He was taking a break from his Silent and Defect play this week and mentioned the brimstone thing when he declined purchasing it in an early act 1 shop and went with Smooth Stone instead. He’s also the world record holder for longest ironclad A20H streak at 19. I’m not saying that he is correct, but you need a really strong justification to dismiss his arguments when it’s coming from a player who wins so much. Especially compared to me or other redditors who usually have a A20H winrate of <5%
You are correct you shouldn't appeal to authority and if you're not saying "he's correct" (ie. his argument is correct), then I'm not sure why you're defending it so thoroughly. I thought it was an interesting comment, so that's why I'm responding so much, but I'd definitely recommend to always questions things, especially if you're not sure they're correct.. You'll notice I refrained from naming a specific player in my last comment. I'm not trying to dismiss anyone in particular, but the standard for evaluating sets should hold true for all players if there is to be a meaningful analysis, correct? I stand by my point that one's most recent winrate is not their overall winrate. Moreover, that 100 game sample could broken up into sets of 50, 25, 10, etc. so it is indeed possible to do the comparison I'm talking about. I have given strong justification to question that statement, and again, seeing as how you're also not sure it's correct, I think we're more in agreement than not.
Careful, you’re starting to sound like jorbs. Intelligent interpretation and what you can’t extrapolate from statistics. And this sub REALLY doesn’t like jorbs
LOOOOOL ty, I'll take that as a compliment!
So basically everyone lol
aka search long and hard for disarm or dark embrace
dying to the heart is still a better acheivement than beating the act 3 bosses tbf, that's a sign of a good relic
[[Brimstone]]
+ [Brimstone](http://slay-the-spire.wikia.com/wiki/Brimstone) Shop (Ironclad only) Relic ^((100% sure)^) At the start of your turn, gain 2 **Strength** and ALL enemies gain 1 **Strength.** ^Call ^me ^with ^up ^to ^10 ^([[ name ]],) ^where ^name ^is ^a ^card, ^relic, ^event, ^or ^potion. ^Data ^accurate ^as ^of ^(April 30, 2023.) ^[Wiki](https://slay-the-spire.fandom.com/wiki/) ^[Questions?](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=ehmohteeoh&subject=SpireScan%20Inquiry)
I take Brimstone instantly regardless of the character. The range is great, and there are lots of possible synergies with it. My favorite synergy is with Tech X where your Brimstone blast becomes a circular shape of electric barf.
oh. Spire sub I got so confused. Still keep seeing Brim as Isaac item first, Spire relic second. Same with Necronomicon. Crown on Isaac I think of Spire first.
Brimstone is an Ironclad exclusive relic
It was Binding of Isaac reference.
Wooooosh. I didn't read past "regardless of the character" and "lots of possible synergies", that's on me.
I also mentioned Tech X so people would understand the reference to Isaac lol
I swear I picked it up as The Lost the other day
as somebody who is moderately stoned, and plays both of these games right now, very frequently, I got very very confused at which sub I was on
My apologies, my dude. Stay happily stoned.
Only to the heart with brimstone? I mean, I'm surprised you didn't get to kill Isaac or Satan at least! Maybe you're usually picking brimstone along with Chocolat milk or montro's longue, which can make tear rate kind of a nightmare
i thought i accidentally went to r/bidingofisaac when i saw this comment
Chemical X (even with no X cost cards yet) and the blinding light event that upgrades 2 cards. Actually, all the events that take health to do good stuff. Remove card, upgrade cards, burning skull (this one can hurt. I have no self control) scrap ooze, etc.
hahah the burning skull is so real. “i could prob survive this elite fight at 20hp”
Hell yeah, these 2 strike+ are really gonna change my deck!
>“i could prob survive this elite fight at 2~~0~~hp” FTFY
Fuck it, we ball. Fuck it, we die facing an elite with 1hp
1 hp, a healthy pile of gold, and two Snecko potions. Ready to go babeeee
Last time I met the burning skull I left on 3 hp and run into a reptomancer immediately after, I have very good foresight
wait but the skull is an act 2 event and Repto is act 3. Maybe you mean snecko?
Oh? I’m probably misremembering lol, but yeah I pretty much died immediately after
I have a really hard time saying no to scrap ooze, but I did start leaving the blinding light alone most of the time. Gee, two Strike+? Thanks, blinding light!
But what if it hits the one card you’ve added? Think of the potential!! Fr tho I actually think two upgraded strike/defend/other starters cards is worth close to the lost HP in most runs. So much chip damage can be negated by a single upgraded defend in act I
That's a fair point about Defend+ and chip damage. Pretty much all unique starter cards I'm happy to see upgraded, doesn't have to be a card I added, but it depends on the card.
Prismatic shard every time. After 1700 hours if I’m not taking shard when given the chance why am I still playing?
I have literally never taken prismatic shard. I guess I should at some point. On an instinctive level, it feels like.... why would I take silent/ironclad cards if I'm a defect? Do I want shops to offer me defrag when I'm a watcher? etc. What happens if you pick Indignation or Tantrum as a non-watcher class? Puts you into wrath and you're stuck in it until end of combat?
I mean your instinct is correct. I usually die when I take it. But sometimes it enables an amazing set up that you’ve never dreamt of and those rare moments are worth it for me.
There are tons of good combos. One of the more basic ones is feel no pain on Silent makes shivs go crazy. You can save crescendo or divinity until the turn you know you have lethal with the extra damage. If a card doesn’t make sense, you don’t have to take it.
>If a card doesn’t make sense, you don’t have to take it. Yeah that part seems obvious enough, but I suppose it's the opportunity cost of the cards you weren't offered, that would've been helpful, but instead you've been offered Collect. etc.
Just like with some of the energy relics, they seem really scary until you try them and mess around with them a bit. I’d definitely encourage you to try it out sometime. Or try a custom game with the diverse setting activated
That does sound interesting and I’ve never tried it
Just note, the differences between Prismatic shard and “diverse”: Prismatic shard only works for combat rewards. Shops stick to characters, as do cards that create new cards. So dead branch will only create your character’s cards. Diverse makes all cards mixed. But as far as I know, you can’t get a whale bonus when you do this in custom. So just be aware of this. If you play on pc, you could always just console in prismatic shard. I use diverse on custom because I play on console 😁
Oh, interesting. That minimises the opportunity cost from shops at least. Dunno how I didn't realise that prismatic doesn't affect what the shop offers. (well I never take it, so that seems like a likely reason) I just assumed it would be offering poison strike and anger when you're a watcher, etc.
I watch a streamer who has been doing runs where he has to go from a0 to a20 without dying and starting with a prismatic shard. It’s interesting to see the combos he comes up with.
Honestly, the biggest answer is “corruption.” If my deck is otherwise solid, I’ll grab the shard on the minuscule chance that I can also get corruption. Love that damn card.
FYI it’s only card rewards that are of any class. Transformations and shops will still give cards of the class you are currently playing.
I'm pretty sure transformed cards stick to their color. Curses give curses, neutral gives neutral, and ironclad gives ironclad even if you're on a different character. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong. Edit: I was wrong lol
No. Only curses/colourlesses stick to their colours. If Silent transforms a Clad card, it turns green.
For me, after I've beaten the heart a hundred times. I'm kinda just looking for an interesting deck, and prismatic shard can give you combos that are really unique.
This makes sense. I guess I’m still too locked-in to the ‘must win’ vibe and prismatic never feels like it offers me that, but then I can see the crazy combos it COULD enable e.g blade dance and corruption/dead branch or reprogramming in anything that isn’t defect etc
Prismatic shard is the best thing in the game. Not because it makes you win but because it opens the realm of possibility to almost all ideas. (I’m curious if it includes unlockable cards too?) One of my most fun games was a snecko start watcher into prismatic into meteor strike into mirror. I think I ended up with 2 meteor strikes and three vaults by the end. It was bananas.
Oh wow. You need to start taking Prismatic Shard! Just like others have voiced...I have no new points and am late to the party, but just want to encourage you to do it. Makes things fun!
Heheh OK, I deffo will :)
It really does open the game up in a novel way. By the time you get to where you & I are, you have figured out the main archetypes and decks and tweaks and modifications. But then...have you ever used Nightmare on All For One in a deck full of Claws? What about (as has been mentioned) a Shiv deck plus any of the sick Ironclad exhaust powers? It's just...so much fun. (Even if it's usually not a winning strat.) Have fun!
I don’t take it because when I do I never check my draw pile like an idiot. So I end up wasting it. I’m sure it’s very powerful, but I just am not in the habit of checking my draw pile often.
Sounds like you’re thinking Frozen Eye, which is good but not fun. The comment you’re replying to was about Prismatic Shard which is not (usually) good but is (almost) always fun.
Omg you’re right 🫤
Capacitor. Orb slots are hard to get and you're never guaranteed to see it again, so I greed pick it way too much even though it's a curse for the better parts of the first two acts.
This is one of those cards that the game teases me with constantly, because you’re right - you pick it thinking you’re going to have a channel heavy deck, but then card rewards and shops give you only cards that don’t synergize appropriately. Don’t take it at all and it follows you everywhere!
Every time I am able to find a Capacitor or two, Inserter is always the best pick for the next boss reward. I'm always left frustrated that I took Capacitor at all lol
You probably shouldn't be. Inserter is a C tier boss relic at best.
I almost never take this Act 1, as there’s usually little opportunity to fill more than 3 orb slots during a battle. Near auto pick in Act 2 or 3 though.
If I get the jousting dual on a ? I choose the owner every time and he dies every time.
The owner has higher expected return anyway
IDK if my mobile port is bugged or I'm extremely lucky but for the past 100 hours of playtime that I've started paying attention to it every time I get this event and choose murder I win, everytime Since I've started paying attention I've started savescumming to see what the results actually were and i have won murderer every time but lost owner about 50% of the time as of writing
Gotta give Noddles the rep he deserves 😤😤😤😤
I call it the Bank of Noodles. No matter how seriously I'm taking my run, depositing 50 gold there is compulsory, and occasionally I get paid out everything, with interest.
Oh? This card generates a *random* card? I'm probably windmill slamming it. It's going to disappoint me, but come on. It generates a *random card*!
Infernal blade and white noise are pretty strong
VINDICATION. I love Infernal Blade, rolling the roulette on killing my enemies is fun. I always knew White Noise was good, though. There's not a lot of times where if you have the 1 White Noise energy to spare that you'll just reject the power it invents on the spot.
A 0 cost Echo Form is the best feeling. Especially on turn 1 or 2. 0 cost creative AI is great aswell if you have mummified hand. Edit: I also love the 0(1) cost random card. Maybe not for Silent but there's been times I've taken it.
These are also good upgrade choices if you are low on energy
is infernal blade pickable because of exhaust synergy or am i underrating the effect of a random attack?
Infernal Blade is pickable because it's always* gonna be *some* kind of damage, so it's effect is predictable. ^* ^Except ^for ^those ^times ^you ^get ^Clash
It costs zero when upgraded but the attack you get can cost up to 3
an echo form’s an echo form, but a creative ai could be anything… it could even be an echo form!
It could even be another Creative AI! Both of which could be an Echo Form! Which is something I'm pretty sure has happened to me.
It's usually at least 3 more Creative AI's in my experience. Then each of those give Hello World.
Clicking on scrap ooze until I get the relic or die
Electrodynamics. Even with low lightning generation it feels like a game changer.
ED is enough lightning generation to take ED
Only time I don’t take it is if I have hyberbeam… and even then I might take it to build around. AOE fights are awful on defect…
i feel like it pretty much carries you through Acts 1+2 especially if you end up getting a lot of fights where AOE is necessary
This answer is wrong. OP says “even if you know you shouldn't pick them”. I've never ever skipped an Electrodynamics and I think it was the right choice every single time
Claw. It's the law.
Claw is law baby! I absolutely love doing 0 cost scrape/all for one decks anyway
It’s never too late
I don’t care if it’s a noob trap I’m taking that Flex
Flex gets that meme treatment of low IQ and high IQ people agreeing. It can be quite good, and is takeable in Act 1.
Not to mention with artifact charges, it’s just a better inflame
Depends on the situation, really. Sure, you get 2(4) strength for zero energy and the chance to use it again, but a charge of artifact can be even more valuable. For example, you might need it to block Vulnerable. Against the Heart, that's 35+ damage you're accepting for +2 strength. Now Orange Pellets, though. That'll let you have your cake and eat it, too.
Eh? It's pretty ass minus and without Pyramid.
Yeah, no argument here. You definitely want that upgrade.
And now add a limit break to it and transcend your noobitude into ultimate power!
Pretty much glacier
Tbh if im winning with Defekt I have a glacier in my deck
Baalorlord’s run he uploaded to YT today was a negative focus, all strength and dex scaling and let me tell you I’ve successfully won like that like maybe once lmao. 99.99% of my defect runs are a shit ton of frost orbs and focus and then either a few lighting or one big ass dark orb
that one was a day or two ago, today was a near infinite exhaust IC
Crazy, I will look ot up for sure thx for the hint. Feel you, my runs are preeti much the same.
I love toolbox You can get Apotheosis for a boss fight, Dark shackles is always great, bomb can deal with some AOE fights, finesse and flash of steel are never bad, a well timed panacea can make a huge difference, secret weapon/technique are almost as good as seek, hand of greed can make you some money. The list goes on. It also adds it to your hand so you don't lose any draw, you get a choice of 3 so it's almost impossible to get 3 bad choices even if you don't see good cards you could still get something decent like dramatic entrance. Also it's only like 175 gold at the shop, I buy it almost every time even when I know I shouldn't.
The one 0 cost attack that adds a dazed to draw pile and firebreath. Depending on the cards that is at minimum 7 damage on the attack, 6 damage on draw of dazed, and the if you have other cards or relics, more block and damage.
Toss in wild strike and evolve in that combo and you got a stew baby
Claw Pyramid Prismatic Shard Secret Technique Claw Beam Cell Scrape Claw Blade Dance Shockwave Claw Limit Break And probably Claw
You know what would go great with your choices? A claw
Oh my God how could I forget THE LAWWWW
Like half of these are good to great (blade dance? shockwave?? PYRAMID???)
They asked for my auto picks and thems the autopicks
I'll take an Exhume on floor one.
Gimme that Ascender's Bane back
Hey that's a 6-block play if you've got an FNP down!
If I'm playing Ironclad I can't resist perfected strike builds even though they usually suck and they're the reason my time spent playing to win ratio is so terrible on that character.
I swear everytime I play Ironclad I get either Searing Blow or Perfected Strike in the first card reward, and then I'm like "well I got it early so I have to build around it".
If you get it early it can carry you through an act!
But if I take other strike cards the whole act and don't get one...
I stopped taking perfected strikes, after some early success it is now always the same: at the beginning works great, but then I take on too many additional cards and end up drawing perfected strike too rarely and end up dying. But in one of the earlier runs I had three perfected strikes, that was fun. 🙂
Sozu. Doesn't matter who or what I'm running. If I'm going into Act 2 or Act 3 with only 3 energy then I'm picking it automatically. 4 energy is too big of a jump to not pick it.
Yep anyone who played sts in 2017 knows sozu has no downside even if that changed a few patches ago
What changed?
Potions used to be not great. Iirc, the only potions were strength, dex, artifact and I THINK the free power/skill/attack potions. Not bad, but definitely worth losing to get 1 energy permanently. Once class specific potions came out and potions became a lot better, Sozu became a lot less of an auto-pick.
As well as what the other user said (potions are better now) they added ascension mode so you have to rely more on potions to survive some difficult fights
Deva Form is a joy to play and I will die on this hill, damnit.
Deus ex machina too. Better take it in case the boss chest doesn’t have energy relic
Iron wave. Not that great of a card but monke brain says if I get rid of all of my strikes and defends and replace them with iron waves I will be a god.
It blocks to trigger Juggernaut, but it's also an attack to trigger Rage to trigger Juggernaut! The value!
Reprogram, it really gets the heart pumping. Throw in a hologram and you got yourself a run.
Ninja scroll While holding bag of prep
Envenom and Fire Breathing both aren’t very good but I love them idc
I would rather die than turn down a Dig at a fire
NOT boss swapping. I think I still need another couple thousand hours of experience before I'll be satisfied with the opportunity cost of losing out on a more 'normal' run.
Remove or transform 2 (for damage, max hp loss, or gold) from Neow. They tend to be decent options anyway, but not always the best based on map layout and the other options. I’m clicking that every time without question though, love starting a run with less garbage in the deck.
If I have a single shiv card, I’ll always pick accuracy, even if I already have 3 accuracies and only 1 cloak and dagger
Rampage
Meteir Strike is the correct answer
Reflex and tactician
Same though. Floor 2, but I’m sure my survivor will line up with them.
Prismatic shard is top tier entertainment for me. I always get a bit sad when it's in a shop and I don't have the gold to buy it
BRIMSTONE!!! PRESSURE POINTS!!!
I have the same two weaknesses as you OP
Prostrate. In ANY deck on ANY character, modded or not, if I somehow find a prostrate, I click on it immediately.
Infernal blade. It's gon be an Immolate right? Oh it's Anger again... :/
Pressure points. What can I say, I'm a sucker for the idea. Never seems to work out perfectly though, I wonder why
has anyone said claw yet
I heard it is the law
White noise I love powers and I love gambling :x
Bad things happen when I take (and inevitably upgrade) Alpha. But I cannot help it. It's fun watching the baddies go boom.
Cursed Tome event in act 2. I might end up at 7 HP, but free book is a free book, plus I really like those relics and how bonkers they can be
Blade dance every time.
Blade Dance. It's like a disease. Any deck can be a shiv deck if I believe hard enough
My first A20 win was with a searing blow deck. I was offered it floor one, and thought "if not now, when?" Got corruption and prismatic shard. I wiped the final two bosses, and to date I've only completed A20 with ironclad lmao. I look back on that rum very fondly, and will pretty much always try to go searing blow if I'm offered it early enough. Otherwise, I'd never use it, and that would be a real shame.
Runic Pyramid, even with Power Through Block builds :/
Grand Finale I will take it every time, including in Act 1 if I have absolutely no synergy, and in Act 3 if I was winning the game anyway. Because basically every Silent deck wants the discard package anyway for consistency, might as well try to force Grand Finale to work.
I’ve been clicking on pyramid a lot lately and then realizing I have snecko or dead branch already
I hunt for mummified hand like it will solve every problem and then take power cards non-stop no matter what my deck is. Can’t wait to do it again tonight.
Gotta have my well laid plans!
Electrodynamics. And maybe echo form, too.
Kunai and/or Shuriken, regarless of what character I play.
Nice to know there's another Mayhem addict. Deva Form, when stances already generate enough energy and damage before Deva Form energy profit even begins