Slay the Spire Guide#
Slay the Spire is a single-player roguelike deckbuilding game developed by Mega Crit (Mega Crit Games), an independent studio in the United States. This section was written against online verification carried out in October 2026; all game data follows the official figures.
Game Overview#
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Game | Slay the Spire |
| Genre | Roguelike deckbuilding, single-player |
| Developer | Mega Crit (Mega Crit Games, US indie studio) |
| Publisher | Self-published by Mega Crit on PC; Humble Bundle on console and mobile |
| Designers | Anthony Giovannetti, Casey Yano |
| Music | Clark Aboud |
| Engine | libGDX |
| Early Access | November 14–15, 2017 (Steam; two dates recorded due to time-zone differences), launching with only Ironclad and Silent |
| Version 1.0 | January 23, 2019 (Windows/macOS/Linux) |
| Platforms | PC (Steam/GOG/Microsoft Store, Win/Mac/Linux), PS4, Xbox One (incl. Game Pass), Switch, iOS (incl. Apple Arcade), Android |
| Price | $24.99 standard US price on Steam; $9.99 on iOS |
| Characters | 4: Ironclad, Silent, Defect, Watcher |
| Card Count | 350+ (official figure) |
| Relics and Items | 200+ items (official figure); the community relic database lists 183 relics |
| Combats and Events | 50+ combat encounters and 50+ events (official figures) |
| Ascension Mode | 20 Ascension levels, each stacking a penalty and adding 5% to the score |
| Average Run Length | Roughly 45–90 minutes (community statistic, not official data) |
| Official Chinese | Simplified and Traditional Chinese supported; the Early Access fan translation by Mi Zhi Sheng was later adopted officially |
| Awards | Multiple nominations including the 2019 BAFTA Best Debut Game nomination |
Release Timeline by Platform#
| Platform | Date |
|---|---|
| Steam Early Access | November 14–15, 2017 |
| Version 1.0 (Win/Mac/Linux) | January 23, 2019 |
| PS4 | May 21, 2019 |
| Switch | June 6, 2019 |
| Xbox One (day one on Game Pass) | August 14, 2019 |
| iOS | June 13, 2020 (the Chinese wiki lists June 14, a time-zone difference) |
| Android | February 3, 2021 |
| Apple Arcade | Added July 7, 2023 |
Core Gameplay Loop#
- Every run starts at the bottom of the Spire and climbs upward through a randomly generated branching map. Node types include normal fights, elite fights, events, treasure chests, shops, campfires and bosses.
- Combat is turn-based card play: cards cost energy to play, and the intent icon above each enemy telegraphs its next action.
- Winning a fight grants a card reward; elites and bosses drop relics, and chests grant relics as well.
- At a campfire you can rest (heal 30% of max HP) or upgrade a card.
- Shops sell cards, relics and potions, and offer card removal.
- Potions persist across floors. You have 3 potion slots by default (2 from Ascension 11 onward), and using a potion costs no energy and does not count as playing a card.
Act Structure and Boss Rotation#
| Act | Boss Pool | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Act 1 | Slime Boss, The Guardian, Hexaghost | The Act 1 boss sits on floor 16 |
| Act 2 | Bronze Automaton, The Collector, The Champ | The Act 2 boss sits on floor 33 |
| Act 3 | The Awakened One, Donu and Deca, Time Eater | The end of a standard run |
| Act 4 “The Ending” | Elite: Spire Shield and Spire Spear; final boss: Corrupt Heart | Hidden act, requires all three keys |
Each act’s boss is drawn at random from a fixed pool. Act 4 is hidden content; see the hidden content section for its unlock conditions.
The Four Characters and Their Starting Relics#
| Character | Starting Relic | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Ironclad | Burning Blood | Heal 6 HP at the end of combat |
| Silent | Ring of the Snake | Draw 2 additional cards at the start of each combat |
| Defect | Cracked Core | Channel 1 Lightning Orb at the start of each combat |
| Watcher | Pure Water | Add 1 Miracle to your hand at the start of each combat |
Mechanical identity per character: Ironclad revolves around Strength and Burns, Silent around poison and discard, Defect around Orbs and Focus, and Watcher around stance switching.
Ascension Mode, Level by Level#
Ascension has 20 levels, each stacking an additional penalty and adding 5% to the score (+100% total at level 20). The table below lists the levels from the official per-level definitions that this guide has recorded.
| Level | New Effect |
|---|---|
| Ascension 1 | Elites appear more frequently |
| Ascension 2 | Normal enemies deal more damage |
| Ascension 3 | Debuffs are harsher |
| Ascension 4 | Elites deal more damage |
| Ascension 6 | Elites have more HP |
| Ascension 7 | Normal enemies have more HP |
| Ascension 9 | Bosses are stronger |
| Ascension 10 | Start the run with the Ascender’s Bane curse |
| Ascension 11 | Potion slots reduced to 2 |
| Ascension 12 | Upgraded cards appear half as often |
| Ascension 16 | Shop prices increased by 10% |
| Ascension 20 | Fight two bosses back to back at the end of Act 3 |
The Three Keys and the Hidden Fourth Act#
| Key | How to Get It |
|---|---|
| Ruby Key | Choose “Recall” at a campfire instead of resting or upgrading |
| Sapphire Key | Take the key on the chest reward screen, giving up the relic inside |
| Emerald Key | Defeat the burning-flame-marked enhanced elite on the map |
All three keys only appear after you have cleared a run once with each of the first three characters, and they are disabled in Daily Climb and Custom mode. With all three collected, you enter the hidden Act 4 “The Ending” after Act 3 and face the final boss, the Corrupt Heart.
Potion Mechanics at a Glance#
- Potions persist across floors and are not lost when you move to the next floor.
- 3 potion slots by default, 2 from Ascension 11 onward; the Potion Belt relic adds 2 more slots.
- Using a potion costs no energy and does not count as playing a card.
- The base potion drop chance after combat is 40% (swinging ±10% per fight), with a rarity split of 65/25/10.
Opening Tips (Editor Experience, Not Official Data)#
| Tip | Detail |
|---|---|
| Prioritize card removal | The leaner the deck, the more reliably you draw your key cards — shop removal is worth spending on early |
| Picking your elites | Elites drop relics but cost HP; whether to fight depends on your current health and how close your build is to coming online |
| Campfire choices | Resting heals 30% of max HP while upgrading strengthens one card; only rest when you are genuinely in danger |
| Route planning | Check where elites and campfires sit when the map opens and route around what your build needs |
| Potion usage | Potions carry across floors, so you can comfortably save them for elite and boss fights |
The above is subjective editorial advice. Character difficulty is likewise a subjective judgement: Ironclad and Silent first, Watcher last, is the order the community generally recommends.
Version Timeline (Verified Checkpoints Only)#
| Date | Milestone |
|---|---|
| November 14–15, 2017 | Steam Early Access begins with Ironclad and Silent |
| January 23, 2019 | Version 1.0 released (Windows/macOS/Linux) |
| July 17, 2019 | V1.1 “The Dealer” |
| January 14, 2020 | V2.0 adds the fourth character, Watcher, as a free update (Chinese media reported it on January 15) |
| July 31, 2020 | V2.1 “The Language Patch” |
| February 3, 2021 | Android version released |
| Official announcement | Mega Crit’s official FAQ states that no further content updates are planned for the first game, with full effort going into the sequel |
| March 5, 2026 | Slay the Spire 2 enters Steam Early Access |
Sales and Reception#
- Roughly 2,000 copies sold in the first two weeks of Early Access; reached No. 2 on the Steam weekly sales chart in January 2018; around 700,000 copies by April 2018 (estimate); passed 1 million in June 2018; passed 1.5 million in March 2019.
- The China region accounts for roughly 30% of sales.
- Media scores: the Steam store page lists a PC Metacritic score of 89/100 (the Chinese Wikipedia records 92/100 — the two disagree, and we recommend verifying against Metacritic itself); IGN gave 90/100, Game Informer 9.25/10, and PC Gamer US 92/100 (as cited by the Chinese Wikipedia).
Related Games#
- Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice — a Japanese Sengoku-era action adventure built around its one-of-a-kind deflection system
- Hades — a roguelike where every run reshapes the build through god-given boons
- The Binding of Isaac — a roguelike twin-stick shooter driven by wild item synergies
- Stardew Valley — a farming simulation RPG
- Minecraft — the classic sandbox survival building game
Related Rankings#
Best Roguelike Games · Best Indie Games of All Time: Top 10 · Best Indie Games of 2026
Full Guides#
In-depth sub-guides — beginner basics, boss data for all four acts, items and relics, hidden content and the three keys, the 46 Steam achievements, story and world-building, the full card database, challenge modes, controls and settings, gallery, strategy and tips, patch history, walkthrough, and FAQ — are available in Chinese on NTGame’s Slay the Spire section.