I've only played for a few hours, but it's already clear how fun, polished, and well crafted it is. I love playing as the Regent, and the artwork is genuinely stunning. The mechanics are...
I've only played for a few hours, but it's already clear how fun, polished, and well crafted it is. I love playing as the Regent, and the artwork is genuinely stunning. The mechanics are surprisingly addictive (well maybe not that surprising) in the best way. I really hope this game helps pave the way for more great Godot releases.
Tried the co-op mode for a bit (didn't have time for a full game), and it looks interesting. You both have you own character, and you can make all your own choices for loot and events (except...
Tried the co-op mode for a bit (didn't have time for a full game), and it looks interesting. You both have you own character, and you can make all your own choices for loot and events (except routing, that's a shared choice). But in the battles there are 2 chars on the left (you and your friend), and you both do damage to the same group of enemies, but the damage from the enemies seems to be dealt to both of you equally. So if the bug attacks for 5, you both get 5 damage (without modifiers). That's a pretty simple way to do this, and it looks fun so far.
Can you synergize with the other players moves? Otherwise it doesn't seem like it would be any different than single player. I've never played the first game.
Can you synergize with the other players moves? Otherwise it doesn't seem like it would be any different than single player. I've never played the first game.
Just did a proper 2 player run. Cards which give other player block if you get block, and "everyone draws 2". You can't directly block other players with your normal block cards, but potions do...
Just did a proper 2 player run. Cards which give other player block if you get block, and "everyone draws 2". You can't directly block other players with your normal block cards, but potions do work on the others, iirc. When opening a chest there are 2 relics, and you can pick the one you want (if you both want the same it's random). Works all pretty nice! Seems hard to balance, since you can really help the other.
Steam was having some issues with processing payments after the game went live on their store. I woke up in the middle of the night locally and couldn't sleep, so I decided to go ahead and get the...
Steam was having some issues with processing payments after the game went live on their store. I woke up in the middle of the night locally and couldn't sleep, so I decided to go ahead and get the game purchased. Took an hour + to process my payment.
I was able to get in a bit over 1 run before work, and I'm excited to play more on my lunch break! There are so many new encounters, and I'm trying not to get too far in the weeds yet in terms of crafting my decks and just playing more for fun and to see what is new.
Finally managed to complete A0 on all 5 classes. I kinda suck at this game, but I still love it. I found the returning 3 quite easy, but found the new classes harder to get my head around. I was...
Finally managed to complete A0 on all 5 classes. I kinda suck at this game, but I still love it. I found the returning 3 quite easy, but found the new classes harder to get my head around. I was initially tempted ignore them, and stick with the others, but I kept at it, and I'm glad I did. I love Osty, and I love collecting stars.
The game runs passably well on a low spec machine. I've been playing it in the evenings on an 8-year-old refurb business laptop with a Intel Core i5-8350U. On Linux Mint, no less. It stutters from time to time, but it doesn't stop it from being a great time.
I've been testing my older hardware with it. I have a 2012 Macbook Pro with Debian that even runs it, like you described with some load delays, but once you're in it's solid.
I've been testing my older hardware with it. I have a 2012 Macbook Pro with Debian that even runs it, like you described with some load delays, but once you're in it's solid.
It's so good. I haven't beaten Act 1, but my struggles with STS1 have definitely made me familiar with mechanics, etc, and I really like how all the characters play. The old ones play more or less...
It's so good. I haven't beaten Act 1, but my struggles with STS1 have definitely made me familiar with mechanics, etc, and I really like how all the characters play. The old ones play more or less the same, and the new ones represent new directions and really show off the new mechanics and subsystems well. The new ones are amazing, and the old ones have neat little tweaks that freshen things up. It's nicely polished, as well.
I was running some stuff at work and couldn't buy the game until 10:15 AM PST, and played for a few hours before going back to the original just for a flavor comparison.
I really like that you can draw on the map to help visualize/remember the path through. It's a nice little QOL thing. And the quests have results that add a nice level of depth as well.
I'm having a BLAST! I really love the small details they added that kept the original theme of the game, but cranked it up a notch. Seeing Neow at the bottom of the spire in 3D glory really...
I'm having a BLAST! I really love the small details they added that kept the original theme of the game, but cranked it up a notch. Seeing Neow at the bottom of the spire in 3D glory really cements the lore in a visual way that I felt the first one didn't.
Seeing every Ancient throw a simple line of dialogue is so immersive.
I love the animations, the music is SO GOOD and the new stuff is simply adorable. I love the small changes in A1 for every character, like the Silent starting in a forest, but the Regent starts in the sewers. It adds so much to the experience, imo.
Finally, about the mechanics, I think the changes are all great. It feels like they want you to synergize more and every character has a mechanic that must be exploited if you want to go further.
In StS1, it felt like you relied more on good relics to advance deeper, whereas in StS2 it's pure card management. I did beat A20 on every character and I felt like Ironclad was the most deck management heavy (with the exhaust synergies). Now, it feels like every character has deep synergies very early (like end of Act 1, start of Act 2). Anyways, it's just a feeling though. The game is absolutely fantastic.
I just wanted to get back and note that the starting act isn't character dependent (which would be awesome!) but there are currently two alternate acts for act 1 with more alternate acts (at least...
I love the animations, the music is SO GOOD and the new stuff is simply adorable. I love the small changes in A1 for every character, like the Silent starting in a forest, but the Regent starts in the sewers. It adds so much to the experience, imo.
I just wanted to get back and note that the starting act isn't character dependent (which would be awesome!) but there are currently two alternate acts for act 1 with more alternate acts (at least for act 2 and 3) coming later.
I'm loving the game so far, but after my initial string of wins I'm still getting used to the expanded card pool and balancing my deck.
I'm needing to get out of the mindset that Nemoder mentioned of always hunting elites.
Agreed, you really could win easily just hunting elites in sts1 with how strong some of the relics were. Sts2 you really gotta keep in mind how balanced your deck is between attack/defend and how...
Agreed, you really could win easily just hunting elites in sts1 with how strong some of the relics were. Sts2 you really gotta keep in mind how balanced your deck is between attack/defend and how well your cards synergize to get through the end of Act3.
I've been playing most of the day (thankful for the rain) and just beat A0 on all the characters, and A1 on silent! Not sure if the new characters are difficult or if my brain is just mush but the...
I've been playing most of the day (thankful for the rain) and just beat A0 on all the characters, and A1 on silent! Not sure if the new characters are difficult or if my brain is just mush but the Summoner character was the only one that hit 3 runs for me!
I managed to beat A0 on all but Ironclad as I haven't looped back to do another run with him. I'm loving this so far and looks forward to being able to play more
I managed to beat A0 on all but Ironclad as I haven't looped back to do another run with him.
I'm loving this so far and looks forward to being able to play more
I really love how familiar the game feels while being really fresh with all the new content. I hit A3 with Silent last night and some quick thoughts: They seem to have really tried to get rid of a...
I really love how familiar the game feels while being really fresh with all the new content. I hit A3 with Silent last night and some quick thoughts:
They seem to have really tried to get rid of a some infinite looping. (My second favorite card from 1 was nerfed pretty hard, Calculated Gamble)
Haven't found my favorite card yet (Grand Finale)
The XP thresholds are much higher, I remember starting fresh on StS1 on my phone and getting all the unlocks in a couple of runs.
What do you mean by this? That it "hit" as in felt good/comfortable to play? That it won each run (A0 3 times since you didn't mention it getting to A1 or 2?)
the only one that hit 3 runs for me!
What do you mean by this? That it "hit" as in felt good/comfortable to play? That it won each run (A0 3 times since you didn't mention it getting to A1 or 2?)
oh i died twice before beating the third a0 run! getting used to the mechanic of summoning and trying to play around with it got me killed twice pretty much. also noting that there seems to be...
oh i died twice before beating the third a0 run! getting used to the mechanic of summoning and trying to play around with it got me killed twice pretty much.
also noting that there seems to be less ascensions this early access? A5 is where we're starting to see Ascender's bane where that was a10 for StS1
Oh ok gotcha. Knee jerk reaction to fewer ascensions is it's probably a good change? There are more characters to balance around (who knows they may add more during the EA period), and not every...
Oh ok gotcha.
Knee jerk reaction to fewer ascensions is it's probably a good change? There are more characters to balance around (who knows they may add more during the EA period), and not every level in STS1 gave a radically different gameplay experience. I could see them thinking 20 levels might feel like too much of a slog. Maybe it will change anyways haha.
I played 6 runs on launch day. One with each character plus another with Ironclad. Both times I played Ironclad I died at the Act 2 boss. With all the other characters, I cleared Act 3. Very small...
I played 6 runs on launch day. One with each character plus another with Ironclad. Both times I played Ironclad I died at the Act 2 boss. With all the other characters, I cleared Act 3. Very small sample size, but surprising result. You'd think the default first character would be more likely to win.
Regent seemed very powerful with the Stars mechanic. Especially if you get the powers that interact with it.
Necrobinder I wanted to focus on summoning a Beeg Osty but they seem to be mostly at uncommon, and I would also keep losing it to combat damage from not having enough block. Doom didn't look that great but some of the cards I unlocked with the mechanic looked juicier.
Defect I didn't find any permanent Focus but lots of temporary sources, which is interesting.
The card enchantments were really fun! Yes I would like to replay my most powerful card for free!
I had the exact same experience with the characters! I played 7 runs, one with each and two more with ironclad. I cleared A0 on all the other characters but I just cannot make it very far on...
I had the exact same experience with the characters! I played 7 runs, one with each and two more with ironclad. I cleared A0 on all the other characters but I just cannot make it very far on Ironclad. Three runs with him and I only made it to Act 3 once. He seems like he struggles way more than the others.
My first Necrobinder win was with a Doom/block build. There's an uncommon that, when upgraded, does 26 doom and 1 weakness to all enemies. Admittedly, Doom waits until after they've acted to kill,...
My first Necrobinder win was with a Doom/block build. There's an uncommon that, when upgraded, does 26 doom and 1 weakness to all enemies. Admittedly, Doom waits until after they've acted to kill, but that one card alone can come close to wiping out groups of act 2 enemies. You've got to pair it with a good bit of defense because Doom lets them get off a turn, but it's remarkably fast to kill once you can survive a few rounds.
Lost to an Act 3 boss then an Act 1 boss, then finally got a win. I watched a video where Jorbs gave his thoughts on the game after day 1, and he brought up a couple cards that have potential to...
Lost to an Act 3 boss then an Act 1 boss, then finally got a win.
I watched a video where Jorbs gave his thoughts on the game after day 1, and he brought up a couple cards that have potential to go infinite. The game dumped one of them in my lap when I already had some synergistic pieces in my deck. Now I kinda feel like I cheated.....
A1 winning runs https://imgur.com/a/Lb2mClx No friction with Ironclad this time (just an act 1 death with necrobinder to an elite), found my own silly "combo" - Clone the shit out of Perfected...
No friction with Ironclad this time (just an act 1 death with necrobinder to an elite), found my own silly "combo" - Clone the shit out of Perfected Strike. I didn't realize at first that the cloned copies would also clone themselves if you did it again.
Just confirmed that Ascension spoilers. 1: More elites 2: 80% HP start 3: 25% less gold 4: 1 less potion slot 5: Ascendant's bane 6: Less Campfires 7: Less often Rare and Upgraded cards 8: Harder...
Just confirmed that
Ascension spoilers.
1: More elites
2: 80% HP start
3: 25% less gold
4: 1 less potion slot
5: Ascendant's bane
6: Less Campfires
7: Less often Rare and Upgraded cards
8: Harder enemies (all)
9: Deadlier enemies (all)
10: Double Boss
A10 seems to be the final ascension for this EA release! Time to try the new characters for A10!
Wow, congrats! I'm planning on cycling between characters as I ascend rather than going straight up with one. I feel like the game kind of nudges to this approach by showing the epoch unlocks for...
Wow, congrats!
I'm planning on cycling between characters as I ascend rather than going straight up with one. I feel like the game kind of nudges to this approach by showing the epoch unlocks for clearing A1 with each character, but it is my natural inclination as well.
Unfortunately not! As far as I know at least. My usual gameplay takes me through a lot of events and I didn't see anything that unlocks anything like the Heart in StS1. I'll try some more on the...
Unfortunately not! As far as I know at least. My usual gameplay takes me through a lot of events and I didn't see anything that unlocks anything like the Heart in StS1. I'll try some more on the other characters though!
honestly I probably should have cycled characters but I just really loved the Silent in StS1 so I figured I'd just go all the way! Context switching is kinda hard especially when you get into the flow state too, so I'd rather just stick with one and utilize the "Random Character" button when I get everything to A10
I think Act 4 is all but guaranteed to come out sometime during EA. The random button is actually a great and simple feature I wished they added to the original so many times haha. If you select...
I think Act 4 is all but guaranteed to come out sometime during EA.
The random button is actually a great and simple feature I wished they added to the original so many times haha. If you select A10 for it, and it rolls a character that you haven't gotten as high with, I assume it will just stick you on the highest you've unlocked for that character?
Sorta random question, is the Bestiary in the Compendium section unlocked for you? Wondering if I just need more XP or if it's going to be added in a later update.
Sorta random question, is the Bestiary in the Compendium section unlocked for you? Wondering if I just need more XP or if it's going to be added in a later update.
It seems like maybe it's not an early access thing, and there are just going to be 10 instead of 20 ascensions this time? Which honestly seems like a good change considering the increased amount...
It seems like maybe it's not an early access thing, and there are just going to be 10 instead of 20 ascensions this time? Which honestly seems like a good change considering the increased amount of characters, cuts down on the amount of runs required to reach the highest difficulty
I think it makes sense tbh, I remember some of the old ascensions in StS1 were too granular for the sake of being granular. The combined ones make the game a bit faster but also each jump feels...
I think it makes sense tbh, I remember some of the old ascensions in StS1 were too granular for the sake of being granular. The combined ones make the game a bit faster but also each jump feels more like a jump. I was pretty stuck on A8 and A10.
On one hand, I like getting to the highest difficulty faster. On the other hand, I enjoyed the slow climb with the difficulty gradually increasing. I'm excited to see what all they add, and I'm...
On one hand, I like getting to the highest difficulty faster. On the other hand, I enjoyed the slow climb with the difficulty gradually increasing.
I'm excited to see what all they add, and I'm curious if they'd add additional ascensions down the line or if modders will open that up. Either way I see this gamer being one that I'm going to play for years. I came in later on StS1 so it'll be interesting watching them balance and add new things this time around.
Games like StS and Balatro only really work as mobile games for me so I'll probably dig into it there. Its either a single run in 5min breaks over a few days or I play near non-stop over an 8 hour...
Games like StS and Balatro only really work as mobile games for me so I'll probably dig into it there. Its either a single run in 5min breaks over a few days or I play near non-stop over an 8 hour transit. And I've also been burnt by playing way too much Hades 2 in EA and it sort of ruined the 1.0.
Completely unrelated, my wife has now declared the Steam Deck as her Slay the Spire 2 machine. So from my view over her shoulder, its hitting that same feeling I got from Silksong. Looks like more of the same, until I realized just how small the original was. And i might just be overexposed to the original, but this game is just dripping with detail and color.
Cant speak to gameplay, but she insists Necro and Pimp Hand is the best character.
Certain grey area websites have already been playing with a decomp of the EA build so I could see that happening if enough people want it on console early.
Certain grey area websites have already been playing with a decomp of the EA build so I could see that happening if enough people want it on console early.
I didn't think co-op would really work in a game like spire, but... It actually does quite well. There are also some multiplayer exclusive cards that add ways to interact with others, overall it's...
I didn't think co-op would really work in a game like spire, but... It actually does quite well. There are also some multiplayer exclusive cards that add ways to interact with others, overall it's a great experience. We did run into a pretty consistent desync with a specific ironclad card setup, but it's still really stable for early access. Seems like it was a pretty rare edge case.
I'm really excited for all the other things they are going to add! I also like that it doesn't feel like just spire 1 with more stuff - I still want to go back to playing the first game in the future for what it has to offer. Though I guess it is going to feel a bit sad without all the amazing animations...
There's some notable changes to some characters in spire 2 (defect in particular feels really different to me), and there's other thing that stand out and affect how you build your deck: boss...
There's some notable changes to some characters in spire 2 (defect in particular feels really different to me), and there's other thing that stand out and affect how you build your deck:
boss relics: you can pretty reliably have 4 energy per turn in spire 1 by act 3 (and often by act 2), which significantly affects what decks can work
as far as I know so far, there is no ways to remove debuffs/apply artifact in spire 2. There's quite a bit of silliness you could do with them in spire 1, further enabling some decks that aren't possible in spire 2
other bosses and enemies also affect how you're going to shape the deck
gremlin nob
So basically it boils down to the fact that it has enough different things that even if there's less stuff overall, I still think it can offer unique enough experience to be worth playing from time to time
I've been blown away by this game so far. The storytelling (hell, the existence of the story) and how lore is gradually exposed is a really nice touch; reminds me of Hades, which I also love....
I've been blown away by this game so far. The storytelling (hell, the existence of the story) and how lore is gradually exposed is a really nice touch; reminds me of Hades, which I also love. Graphics and performance updates are nice to have. Of the OG characters, the deck reworks for Ironclad and Silent I think are in the right direction (I'll write more about this in a spoiler tag). Of the new characters I've only played Regent so far; I'm liking his kit and sound/vfx.
Overall can't wait for full release. I also bought Hades II in early access and had a similarly positive reaction, and was pleased to find that it didn't take away from my experience on full release. Hoping for the same here!
Spoilers
As far as Ironclad and Silent, I think their deck identities are a lot more pleasant and a bit more intuitive to pull off in this game. I've found it quite a bit easier to look at card options during Acts 1 and 2 and, without being familiar with a lot of the new cards yet, gravitate towards a theme that kind of just makes sense. (Though I've played StS 1 a _lot_... so, sorry if I'm just biased here)
The new rares on Ironclad especially I've found have made it a bit easier to play around exhaust/"hurt yourself to win" decks. Crimson Mantle in particular is pretty forgiving compared to cards from StS 1, which IIRC mostly involve hurting yourself to do damage (and therefore foregoing block). Stoke feels like a lower risk exhaust card as well compared to things like Fiend Fire and Second Wind.
For Silent, I really like what they did with Sly. Previously unplayable cards from the first game, as far as I've encountered, are all Sly with variable costs now, which, on a similar note as Ironclad, makes it more intuitive to play around those cards and think about building into a discard deck. Flick Flack and Untouchable are already pretty high value even with your starting Survivor, so it's easy to justify taking them along with already good "blank slate" discards like Dagger Throw and Prepared, so it's not hard to wind up with 3-4 discards just from happening to take value cards early.
I've played exactly 2 runs of Regent... on my first hallway fight I could immediately tell he was a burst character, which I think points to good design. My impression of him so far is that he's like Watcher, but if Watcher was better designed lol. In fact I beat A0 on my second run because I had Shining Strike and Unceasing Top by Act 1, randomly got Touch of Insanity in my first Act 3 hallway fight, and just beat the boss with that infinite. (... maybe they might want to patch that one out. I think they've been trying to nerf infinites in this game, and a one card + one potion infinite is a little busted.)
Anyway, about to play a Necrobinder run before I head to bed. Stoked to play this on a 6 hour flight on Wednesday 😆
Are there any useful guides on combos or tactics for StS1? In the first game I struggled even with A4, while so many people finished A20. With current game, I feel the same. I think I understand...
Are there any useful guides on combos or tactics for StS1? In the first game I struggled even with A4, while so many people finished A20. With current game, I feel the same. I think I understand some of mechanics, but seems that also missing a lot. I cannot beat Act 2 boss with the Regent, with more success with other characters. Didn't try A1 yet. I will appreciate if you have any tips or could share your thoughts.
Watching baalorlord's videos on youtube really helped clear ascension 20 for me. He has some card breakdown videos, but I think simply watching his runs helps a lot as he explains the reasoning...
Watching baalorlord's videos on youtube really helped clear ascension 20 for me. He has some card breakdown videos, but I think simply watching his runs helps a lot as he explains the reasoning behind his decisions.
I just hit A10 on Silent in StS2 (might be the last one? not sure yet, going to hopefully finish an A10 run today. Baalarlord is always a good channel to watch on Youtube, he plays all different...
I just hit A10 on Silent in StS2 (might be the last one? not sure yet, going to hopefully finish an A10 run today. Baalarlord is always a good channel to watch on Youtube, he plays all different styles and explains himself every time. I think he already has some StS2 uploads too.
The biggest thing that helped me improve my game is slowing down, a lot. Think about the turns after and always consider what's going into your deck before actually committing to the card. Not all cards are good. I'd stick with Ironclad or Silent tbh, they're way less complicated than the Regent and straightforwards in deckbuilding!
While they are long watches, I found when I first wanted to start climbing ascensions in StS1 that watching some of the Jorbs over explained videos was a great way to up my game knowledge and how...
While they are long watches, I found when I first wanted to start climbing ascensions in StS1 that watching some of the Jorbs over explained videos was a great way to up my game knowledge and how I was approaching the game.
I also found the Subreddit daily card discussion threads to be interesting when I wasn't sure about a card or a relic and how they would fit in to decks. I still personally don't like playing Wraith form builds on Silent even though I know they're good on paper. Just doesn't feel as fun to me.
I'm enjoying coming into StS2 with the knowledge I have from the first game and I'm trying to puzzle more things out myself and I'm planning to not look up other people's opinions on things for awhile.
Looks like it's topping the steam charts, awesome to finally see such a successful Godot Engine game.
I just finished my first act1 victory, fun game!
I've only played for a few hours, but it's already clear how fun, polished, and well crafted it is. I love playing as the Regent, and the artwork is genuinely stunning. The mechanics are surprisingly addictive (well maybe not that surprising) in the best way. I really hope this game helps pave the way for more great Godot releases.
The sound effect for The Regent’s strike is so good.
Tried the co-op mode for a bit (didn't have time for a full game), and it looks interesting. You both have you own character, and you can make all your own choices for loot and events (except routing, that's a shared choice). But in the battles there are 2 chars on the left (you and your friend), and you both do damage to the same group of enemies, but the damage from the enemies seems to be dealt to both of you equally. So if the bug attacks for 5, you both get 5 damage (without modifiers). That's a pretty simple way to do this, and it looks fun so far.
Can you synergize with the other players moves? Otherwise it doesn't seem like it would be any different than single player. I've never played the first game.
Yep! Things like poison effects stack, and there are cards which seem specifically designed for multiplayer.
Just did a proper 2 player run. Cards which give other player block if you get block, and "everyone draws 2". You can't directly block other players with your normal block cards, but potions do work on the others, iirc. When opening a chest there are 2 relics, and you can pick the one you want (if you both want the same it's random). Works all pretty nice! Seems hard to balance, since you can really help the other.
Steam deck has been solid for this so far! I’m really liking the new characters!
Steam was having some issues with processing payments after the game went live on their store. I woke up in the middle of the night locally and couldn't sleep, so I decided to go ahead and get the game purchased. Took an hour + to process my payment.
I was able to get in a bit over 1 run before work, and I'm excited to play more on my lunch break! There are so many new encounters, and I'm trying not to get too far in the weeds yet in terms of crafting my decks and just playing more for fun and to see what is new.
Finally managed to complete A0 on all 5 classes. I kinda suck at this game, but I still love it. I found the returning 3 quite easy, but found the new classes harder to get my head around. I was initially tempted ignore them, and stick with the others, but I kept at it, and I'm glad I did. I love Osty, and I love collecting stars.
The game runs passably well on a low spec machine. I've been playing it in the evenings on an 8-year-old refurb business laptop with a Intel Core i5-8350U. On Linux Mint, no less. It stutters from time to time, but it doesn't stop it from being a great time.
I've been testing my older hardware with it. I have a 2012 Macbook Pro with Debian that even runs it, like you described with some load delays, but once you're in it's solid.
It's so good. I haven't beaten Act 1, but my struggles with STS1 have definitely made me familiar with mechanics, etc, and I really like how all the characters play. The old ones play more or less the same, and the new ones represent new directions and really show off the new mechanics and subsystems well. The new ones are amazing, and the old ones have neat little tweaks that freshen things up. It's nicely polished, as well.
I was running some stuff at work and couldn't buy the game until 10:15 AM PST, and played for a few hours before going back to the original just for a flavor comparison.
I really like that you can draw on the map to help visualize/remember the path through. It's a nice little QOL thing. And the quests have results that add a nice level of depth as well.
I'm having a BLAST! I really love the small details they added that kept the original theme of the game, but cranked it up a notch. Seeing Neow at the bottom of the spire in 3D glory really cements the lore in a visual way that I felt the first one didn't.
Seeing every Ancient throw a simple line of dialogue is so immersive.
I love the animations, the music is SO GOOD and the new stuff is simply adorable. I love the small changes in A1 for every character, like the Silent starting in a forest, but the Regent starts in the sewers. It adds so much to the experience, imo.
Finally, about the mechanics, I think the changes are all great. It feels like they want you to synergize more and every character has a mechanic that must be exploited if you want to go further.
In StS1, it felt like you relied more on good relics to advance deeper, whereas in StS2 it's pure card management. I did beat A20 on every character and I felt like Ironclad was the most deck management heavy (with the exhaust synergies). Now, it feels like every character has deep synergies very early (like end of Act 1, start of Act 2). Anyways, it's just a feeling though. The game is absolutely fantastic.
I just wanted to get back and note that the starting act isn't character dependent (which would be awesome!) but there are currently two alternate acts for act 1 with more alternate acts (at least for act 2 and 3) coming later.
I'm loving the game so far, but after my initial string of wins I'm still getting used to the expanded card pool and balancing my deck.
I'm needing to get out of the mindset that Nemoder mentioned of always hunting elites.
Agreed, you really could win easily just hunting elites in sts1 with how strong some of the relics were. Sts2 you really gotta keep in mind how balanced your deck is between attack/defend and how well your cards synergize to get through the end of Act3.
I've been playing most of the day (thankful for the rain) and just beat A0 on all the characters, and A1 on silent! Not sure if the new characters are difficult or if my brain is just mush but the Summoner character was the only one that hit 3 runs for me!
I managed to beat A0 on all but Ironclad as I haven't looped back to do another run with him.
I'm loving this so far and looks forward to being able to play more
I really love how familiar the game feels while being really fresh with all the new content. I hit A3 with Silent last night and some quick thoughts:
They seem to have really tried to get rid of a some infinite looping. (My second favorite card from 1 was nerfed pretty hard, Calculated Gamble)
Haven't found my favorite card yet (Grand Finale)
The XP thresholds are much higher, I remember starting fresh on StS1 on my phone and getting all the unlocks in a couple of runs.
What do you mean by this? That it "hit" as in felt good/comfortable to play? That it won each run (A0 3 times since you didn't mention it getting to A1 or 2?)
oh i died twice before beating the third a0 run! getting used to the mechanic of summoning and trying to play around with it got me killed twice pretty much.
also noting that there seems to be less ascensions this early access? A5 is where we're starting to see Ascender's bane where that was a10 for StS1
Oh ok gotcha.
Knee jerk reaction to fewer ascensions is it's probably a good change? There are more characters to balance around (who knows they may add more during the EA period), and not every level in STS1 gave a radically different gameplay experience. I could see them thinking 20 levels might feel like too much of a slog. Maybe it will change anyways haha.
I played 6 runs on launch day. One with each character plus another with Ironclad. Both times I played Ironclad I died at the Act 2 boss. With all the other characters, I cleared Act 3. Very small sample size, but surprising result. You'd think the default first character would be more likely to win.
Regent seemed very powerful with the Stars mechanic. Especially if you get the powers that interact with it.
Necrobinder I wanted to focus on summoning a Beeg Osty but they seem to be mostly at uncommon, and I would also keep losing it to combat damage from not having enough block. Doom didn't look that great but some of the cards I unlocked with the mechanic looked juicier.
Defect I didn't find any permanent Focus but lots of temporary sources, which is interesting.
The card enchantments were really fun! Yes I would like to replay my most powerful card for free!
I had the exact same experience with the characters! I played 7 runs, one with each and two more with ironclad. I cleared A0 on all the other characters but I just cannot make it very far on Ironclad. Three runs with him and I only made it to Act 3 once. He seems like he struggles way more than the others.
My first Necrobinder win was with a Doom/block build. There's an uncommon that, when upgraded, does 26 doom and 1 weakness to all enemies. Admittedly, Doom waits until after they've acted to kill, but that one card alone can come close to wiping out groups of act 2 enemies. You've got to pair it with a good bit of defense because Doom lets them get off a turn, but it's remarkably fast to kill once you can survive a few rounds.
There's one doom card that kills when played, provided their doom is high enough.
Yeah, that's super helpful once you can get it.
Lost to an Act 3 boss then an Act 1 boss, then finally got a win.
I watched a video where Jorbs gave his thoughts on the game after day 1, and he brought up a couple cards that have potential to go infinite. The game dumped one of them in my lap when I already had some synergistic pieces in my deck. Now I kinda feel like I cheated.....
Run history screens for the winning runs: https://imgur.com/a/30LMX4z
A1 winning runs https://imgur.com/a/Lb2mClx
No friction with Ironclad this time (just an act 1 death with necrobinder to an elite), found my own silly "combo" - Clone the shit out of Perfected Strike. I didn't realize at first that the cloned copies would also clone themselves if you did it again.
Just confirmed that
Ascension spoilers.
1: More elites
2: 80% HP start
3: 25% less gold
4: 1 less potion slot
5: Ascendant's bane
6: Less Campfires
7: Less often Rare and Upgraded cards
8: Harder enemies (all)
9: Deadlier enemies (all)
10: Double Boss
A10 seems to be the final ascension for this EA release! Time to try the new characters for A10!
Wow, congrats!
I'm planning on cycling between characters as I ascend rather than going straight up with one. I feel like the game kind of nudges to this approach by showing the epoch unlocks for clearing A1 with each character, but it is my natural inclination as well.
Anything cool at the top? :)
Unfortunately not! As far as I know at least. My usual gameplay takes me through a lot of events and I didn't see anything that unlocks anything like the Heart in StS1. I'll try some more on the other characters though!
honestly I probably should have cycled characters but I just really loved the Silent in StS1 so I figured I'd just go all the way! Context switching is kinda hard especially when you get into the flow state too, so I'd rather just stick with one and utilize the "Random Character" button when I get everything to A10
I think Act 4 is all but guaranteed to come out sometime during EA.
The random button is actually a great and simple feature I wished they added to the original so many times haha. If you select A10 for it, and it rolls a character that you haven't gotten as high with, I assume it will just stick you on the highest you've unlocked for that character?
I agree!
Yes, I just tested it, I selected Random Ascension 10 and it rolled my Regent which is now on Ascension 2.
Sorta random question, is the Bestiary in the Compendium section unlocked for you? Wondering if I just need more XP or if it's going to be added in a later update.
Later update it seems, I don't have it unlocked either!
K thanks
It seems like maybe it's not an early access thing, and there are just going to be 10 instead of 20 ascensions this time? Which honestly seems like a good change considering the increased amount of characters, cuts down on the amount of runs required to reach the highest difficulty
I think it makes sense tbh, I remember some of the old ascensions in StS1 were too granular for the sake of being granular. The combined ones make the game a bit faster but also each jump feels more like a jump. I was pretty stuck on A8 and A10.
On one hand, I like getting to the highest difficulty faster. On the other hand, I enjoyed the slow climb with the difficulty gradually increasing.
I'm excited to see what all they add, and I'm curious if they'd add additional ascensions down the line or if modders will open that up. Either way I see this gamer being one that I'm going to play for years. I came in later on StS1 so it'll be interesting watching them balance and add new things this time around.
Did you verify this by clearing to A10?
yup! i cleared A10 with Silent today :)
You absolute legend, that's awesome.
I may or may not have 21 hours in the game already, my brain is super mushy right now
Games like StS and Balatro only really work as mobile games for me so I'll probably dig into it there. Its either a single run in 5min breaks over a few days or I play near non-stop over an 8 hour transit. And I've also been burnt by playing way too much Hades 2 in EA and it sort of ruined the 1.0.
Completely unrelated, my wife has now declared the Steam Deck as her Slay the Spire 2 machine. So from my view over her shoulder, its hitting that same feeling I got from Silksong. Looks like more of the same, until I realized just how small the original was. And i might just be overexposed to the original, but this game is just dripping with detail and color.
Cant speak to gameplay, but she insists Necro and Pimp Hand is the best character.
Unfortunately they've said it's not coming to other platforms until the EA period is over, so 1-2 years. That's a long wait!
It is based on Godot, and the devs are very mod friendly, so recompilation might be an option between now and then.
Certain grey area websites have already been playing with a decomp of the EA build so I could see that happening if enough people want it on console early.
cc: @Slomomonday
Someone already has an Android launcher going:
https://github.com/Ekyso/StS2-Launcher
I think the console verification process can be quite painful, so it makes sense they want to wait until updates are less frequent.
I didn't think co-op would really work in a game like spire, but... It actually does quite well. There are also some multiplayer exclusive cards that add ways to interact with others, overall it's a great experience. We did run into a pretty consistent desync with a specific ironclad card setup, but it's still really stable for early access. Seems like it was a pretty rare edge case.
I'm really excited for all the other things they are going to add! I also like that it doesn't feel like just spire 1 with more stuff - I still want to go back to playing the first game in the future for what it has to offer. Though I guess it is going to feel a bit sad without all the amazing animations...
What do you feel like 1 has over 2? I can't think of why I'd want to go back to 1 at this point.
There's some notable changes to some characters in spire 2 (defect in particular feels really different to me), and there's other thing that stand out and affect how you build your deck:
So basically it boils down to the fact that it has enough different things that even if there's less stuff overall, I still think it can offer unique enough experience to be worth playing from time to time
I've been blown away by this game so far. The storytelling (hell, the existence of the story) and how lore is gradually exposed is a really nice touch; reminds me of Hades, which I also love. Graphics and performance updates are nice to have. Of the OG characters, the deck reworks for Ironclad and Silent I think are in the right direction (I'll write more about this in a spoiler tag). Of the new characters I've only played Regent so far; I'm liking his kit and sound/vfx.
Overall can't wait for full release. I also bought Hades II in early access and had a similarly positive reaction, and was pleased to find that it didn't take away from my experience on full release. Hoping for the same here!
Spoilers
As far as Ironclad and Silent, I think their deck identities are a lot more pleasant and a bit more intuitive to pull off in this game. I've found it quite a bit easier to look at card options during Acts 1 and 2 and, without being familiar with a lot of the new cards yet, gravitate towards a theme that kind of just makes sense. (Though I've played StS 1 a _lot_... so, sorry if I'm just biased here)The new rares on Ironclad especially I've found have made it a bit easier to play around exhaust/"hurt yourself to win" decks. Crimson Mantle in particular is pretty forgiving compared to cards from StS 1, which IIRC mostly involve hurting yourself to do damage (and therefore foregoing block). Stoke feels like a lower risk exhaust card as well compared to things like Fiend Fire and Second Wind.
For Silent, I really like what they did with Sly. Previously unplayable cards from the first game, as far as I've encountered, are all Sly with variable costs now, which, on a similar note as Ironclad, makes it more intuitive to play around those cards and think about building into a discard deck. Flick Flack and Untouchable are already pretty high value even with your starting Survivor, so it's easy to justify taking them along with already good "blank slate" discards like Dagger Throw and Prepared, so it's not hard to wind up with 3-4 discards just from happening to take value cards early.
I've played exactly 2 runs of Regent... on my first hallway fight I could immediately tell he was a burst character, which I think points to good design. My impression of him so far is that he's like Watcher, but if Watcher was better designed lol. In fact I beat A0 on my second run because I had Shining Strike and Unceasing Top by Act 1, randomly got Touch of Insanity in my first Act 3 hallway fight, and just beat the boss with that infinite. (... maybe they might want to patch that one out. I think they've been trying to nerf infinites in this game, and a one card + one potion infinite is a little busted.)
Anyway, about to play a Necrobinder run before I head to bed. Stoked to play this on a 6 hour flight on Wednesday 😆
Are there any useful guides on combos or tactics for StS1? In the first game I struggled even with A4, while so many people finished A20. With current game, I feel the same. I think I understand some of mechanics, but seems that also missing a lot. I cannot beat Act 2 boss with the Regent, with more success with other characters. Didn't try A1 yet. I will appreciate if you have any tips or could share your thoughts.
Watching baalorlord's videos on youtube really helped clear ascension 20 for me. He has some card breakdown videos, but I think simply watching his runs helps a lot as he explains the reasoning behind his decisions.
I just hit A10 on Silent in StS2 (might be the last one? not sure yet, going to hopefully finish an A10 run today. Baalarlord is always a good channel to watch on Youtube, he plays all different styles and explains himself every time. I think he already has some StS2 uploads too.
The biggest thing that helped me improve my game is slowing down, a lot. Think about the turns after and always consider what's going into your deck before actually committing to the card. Not all cards are good. I'd stick with Ironclad or Silent tbh, they're way less complicated than the Regent and straightforwards in deckbuilding!
While they are long watches, I found when I first wanted to start climbing ascensions in StS1 that watching some of the Jorbs over explained videos was a great way to up my game knowledge and how I was approaching the game.
I also found the Subreddit daily card discussion threads to be interesting when I wasn't sure about a card or a relic and how they would fit in to decks. I still personally don't like playing Wraith form builds on Silent even though I know they're good on paper. Just doesn't feel as fun to me.
I'm enjoying coming into StS2 with the knowledge I have from the first game and I'm trying to puzzle more things out myself and I'm planning to not look up other people's opinions on things for awhile.
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https://www.megacrit.com/news/2026-3-13-neowsletter-issue-20/
The multiplayer experience is so good that my partner and I are looking for the board game.
We have the board game and it's so amazing. Some of the mechanics from the multiplayer now are taken from there. We love it