Defend

NecrobinderSkillBasic
Gain 5 Block.

One energy for 5 Block, 8 when upgraded. A Skill with the Defend tag, scaled by Dexterity and cut by Frail. It is a common target for Drain Power's random upgrades because it starts out unupgraded and sits in the discard pile early.

Character
Necrobinder
Type
Skill
Rarity
Basic
Cost
1 Energy
Target
Yourself
Starting deck
4 copies

When to take Defend

Keep a couple of starting Defends through Act 1 elites, then cut them as Osty, Doom and Ethereal payoffs start covering your Block instead.

Cards that synergize with Defend

Spirit of Ash
Power
1
Whenever you play an Ethereal card, gain 4 Block.
Ghost Seed makes Strikes and Defends Ethereal, which turns every Defend into an Ethereal card played for Spirit of Ash, Pull from Below and the cost of Banshee's Cry.Whenever you play an Ethereal card, gain 4 Block.
Pull from Below
Attack
1
Deal 5 damage for each Ethereal card played this combat.
Ghost Seed makes Strikes and Defends Ethereal, which turns every Defend into an Ethereal card played for Spirit of Ash, Pull from Below and the cost of Banshee's Cry.Deal 5 damage for each Ethereal card played this combat.
Banshee's Cry
Attack
9
Deal 33 damage to ALL enemies.
Costs less for each Ethereal card played this combat.
Ghost Seed makes Strikes and Defends Ethereal, which turns every Defend into an Ethereal card played for Spirit of Ash, Pull from Below and the cost of Banshee's Cry.Deal 33 damage to ALL enemies.
Costs less for each Ethereal card played this combat.
Drain Power
Attack
1
Deal 10 damage.
Upgrade 2 random cards in your Discard Pile.
Drain Power upgrades them from the discard pile for the combat.Deal 10 damage.
Upgrade 2 random cards in your Discard Pile.
Fasten
Power
1
Gain an additional 4 Block from Defend cards.
Fasten adds 4 to each.Gain an additional 4 Block from Defend cards.
Undeath
Skill
0
Gain 7 Block.
Add a copy of this card into your Discard Pile.
Undeath is the 0-cost replacement that copies itself.Gain 7 Block.
Add a copy of this card into your Discard Pile.
Beacon of Hope
Power
1
Whenever you gain Block on your turn, other players gain half that much Block.
Beacon of Hope makes Block count for more, and Defend gains itWhenever you gain Block on your turn, other players gain half that much Block.
Entrench
Skill
2
Double your Block.
Entrench makes Block count for more, and Defend gains itDouble your Block.
Prolong
Skill
0
Next turn, gain Block equal to your current Block.
Exhaust.
Prolong makes Block count for more, and Defend gains itNext turn, gain Block equal to your current Block.
Exhaust.

Relics that synergize with Defend

Ghost Seed
Ghost Seed makes Strikes and Defends Ethereal, which turns every Defend into an Ethereal card played for Spirit of Ash, Pull from Below and the cost of Banshee's Cry.Strikes and Defends gain Ethereal.
Parrying Shield
Parrying Shield makes Block count for more, and Defend gains itIf you end a turn with at least 10 Block, deal 6 damage to a random enemy.
Sturdy Clamp
Sturdy Clamp makes Block count for more, and Defend gains itUp to 10 Block persists across turns.
Pael's Legion
Pael's Legion makes Block count for more, and Defend gains itDoubles Block gained from a card, then goes to sleep for 2 turns.
Vambrace
Vambrace makes Block count for more, and Defend gains itThe first time you gain Block from a card each combat, double the amount gained.
✦
Bodyguard
Skill
1
Summon 5.
Afterlife
Skill
1
Summon 6.
Exhaust.
Borrowed Time
Skill
1
Gain 4.
Cards cost an additional this turn.
Capture Spirit
Skill
1
Enemy loses 3 HP.
Add 3 Souls into your Draw Pile.
Cleanse
Skill
1
Summon 3.
Exhaust 1 card from your Draw Pile.
Death's Door
Skill
1
Gain 6 Block.
If you applied Doom this turn, gain Block 2 additional times.
Defy
Skill
1
Ethereal.
Gain 6 Block.
Apply 1 Weak.
Dredge
Skill
1
Put 3 cards from your Discard Pile into your Hand.
Exhaust.

Changes by version

  1. 10 May 2024ChangeStrikeInternal playtest
    Now starts with a 10 card deck! (Losing 1 Strike and 1 Defend)

Internal playtest notes are from before the Early Access release. Names and numbers in them can differ from the game today.

Purchase today
If you haven't bought Slay The Spire 2 yet, it's time. Support the devs, they made an amazing game.Get it on Steam