Playtest notes 20 Nov 2025
Internal playtest110 entries52 balance changes24 content additions14 bug fixes11 interface changes5 art updates4 wording fixes
This is a pre-release internal note from the closed playtest, quoted as it was written for testers. It describes a build that no longer exists; treat it as history, not as a description of the current game.
This week's patch brings a big balance pass as well as some reworked cards, relics, and enemies. The Defect also gets a few new cards this week!
Items in this note
43 cards
Relics, potions and powers
Chemical X
Fairy in a Bottle
Frozen Egg
Jewelry Box
Lee's Waffle
Mini Regent
Molten Egg
Pael's Wing
Regalite
Toxic Egg
Vitruvian Minion
Doom
Thorns
Strength
Artifact
Poison
VulnerableEnemies and events
Content
Defect
- Added new cards:
- Reworked the following cards:
Necrobinder
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Regent
- Reworked the following relics:
Potions & Relics
- Added a returning relic from StS1, Chemical X
Enemies
- Reworked Bowlbug (Egg)
- Reworked Bowlbug (Goop) and renamed to Bowlbug (Nectar)
- Reworked and nerfed Bowlbug (Rock)
- Reworked Ceremonial Beast
- Reworked The Kin
- Reworked Waterfall Giant
Ancients
- Reworked Pael's Friend relic
Balance
Ironclad
- Buffed Bully card: damage scaling increased from 1(2) -> 2(3)
- Buffed Cinder card: damage increased from 18(24) -> 17(22)
- Nerfed Dismantle card: upgrade damage decreased from 8(11) -> 8(10)
- Changed Dominate card:
- Energy cost decreased from 2(1) -> 1
- Upgrade changed to remove Exhaust
- Nerfed Howl From Beyond card: damage decreased from 21(27) -> 16(21)
- Changed Setup Strike card:
- Damage decreased from 8(11) -> 7(9)
- Strength gain increased from 1(2) -> 2(3)
Silent
- Changed Abrasive card: changed upgrade from +1 Dex and +2 Thorns -> +3 Thorns
- Changed Hidden Daggers card: upgrade changed from generating +1 Shiv -> Shivs+
- Changed Outbreak card:
- Every 10 applications of Poison -> every 3
- Damage decreased from 30(40) -> 15(20)
- Nerfed Ricochet card: damage decreased from 3(4) x 5 -> 3 x 4(5)
- Buffed Suppress card:
- Damage increased from 9(13) -> 11(17)
- Now has Innate
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Defect
- Changed Compactor card: changed from transforming Statuses in Hand -> Discard Pile
- Nerfed Ice Lance card: damage decreased from 22(28) -> 19(24)
- Buffed Momentum Strike card: damage increased from 9(12) -> 10(13)
- Nerfed Rocket Punch card: upgrade damage decreased from 15(20) -> 15(18)
- Nerfed Synthesis card: damage decreased from 13(18) -> 12(18)
- Nerfed Uproar card: damage decreased from 6(8) -> 5(7)
Necrobinder
- Buffed Blight Strike card: no longer requires the damage to be unblocked to apply Doom
- Buffed Bury card: upgrade damage inreased from 61 -> 63
- Buffed Negative Pulse card: Doom increased from 6(9) -> 7(11)
- Changed Reaper Form card: upgrade changed from reducing Energy cost -> gaining Retain
- Buffed Scourge card: Doom increased from 9(12) -> 11(14)
Regent
- Nerfed Celestial Might card: damage decreased from 7(9) -> 6(8)
- Nerfed Conqueror card: Forge decreased from 10(13) -> 6(9)
- Changed Mini Regent relic: changed from 1 Energy on trigger -> 1 Strength
- Buffed Stardust card: damage increased from 4(5) -> 6(8)
- Nerfed Supermassive card: scaling decreased from 4(5) -> 3(4)
- Changed Terraforming card: changed from end of turn -> start of turn
Colorless Cards
- Buffed Apotheosis card:
- Nerfed Rolling Boulder card: damage decreased from 10 + 5(8) -> 5(10) + 5
Potions & Relics
- Changed Frozen Egg relic: rarity increased from Uncommon -> Rare
- Changed Molten Egg relic: rarity increased from Uncommon -> Rare
- Changed Toxic Egg relic: rarity increased from Uncommon -> Rare
- Changed Lee's Waffle??? relic: healing decreased from 25% -> 10%
Enemies
- Nerfed Adversary: Artifact decreased from 1/2/3 -> 0/1/2
- Changed Mytes: all Status cards are now added to your Hand
Ancients
- Buffed Darv's Lost Art blessing: cards now come pre-upgraded
- Reworked Nonupeipe's Jewelry Box blessing: now adds Apotheosis to your Deck
- Buffed Neow's Remove 2 blessing: downside changed from lose 8 max HP -> take 13 damage
- Buffed Neow's Transform 2 blessing: HP cost decreased from 12 -> 10
- Buffed Pael's Wing blessing: Sacrifices needed decreased from 3 -> 2
- Changed Ironclad's Vulnerable Neow bundle: card content changed from Dominate -> Dismantle
Art
- Added Big Slash VFX
- Added portrait art for the following cards:
User interface & experience
General
- Modified the rewards you receive on your very first run
- Added Action list in Bestiary, allowing players to view a set of standard actions for each monster
- Added transition animations to Bestiary
- Adjusted position of text in Bestiary
- Added placeholder button logic for Bestiary move buttons
- Character Filters in Card Library are now toggles rather than radio buttons
- Upgraded starter relics earned from Orobas now show as starter relics in the relic compendium
- Hovertips are now displayed for relics in the inspect single relic popup
Multiplayer
- Added invite button to New Run lobbies
- Players can now cancel joining a multiplayer game
- Players can now unready themselves in a lobby
Writing
- Beacon of Hope card description now properly says "half that much" instead of "half than much"
- Blessed Antlers relic description now properly specifies that it only triggers on unblocked attack damage
- Improved Call of the Void card wording: "At the start of your turn, add 1 random card to your Hand. It gains Ethereal."
- Translated common action names for creatures in bestiary
Bug fixes
General
- An error is now displayed if Steam did not initialize properly
- Fixed broken scrolling in Potion Lab
- The ? room outcome odds are now properly reset between acts (Thanks @Cany0udance for catching this one!)
- Unlock all now displays Ancient names in the Relic Collection
- You can no longer draw on the map while it's animating
Defect
- Lidar relic description now properly ends with a period
Necrobinder
- Necro Mastery card's Summon hovertip now properly shows its Summon amount, and the word Summon is now properly keyworded in its description
Potions & Relics
- Fixed a softlock when Fairy in a Bottle potion is triggered outside of combat
Enemies
- Fixed a softlock when killing Doormaker boss with Thorns power
- Waterfall Giant no longer plays win audio stinger when it goes into its steam explosion mode
Ancients
- Fixed Neow's Shiny Monocle relic offering wrong card count and enabling upgrade rolling
Multiplayer
- Gluttony debuff no longer exhausts cards for all players in multiplayer
- Fixed Draft modifier option giving other players your draft
- Timeout overlay no longer briefly shows after joining a multiplayer game

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









































Waterfall Giant
Bowlbug (Egg)
Ceremonial Beast
The Lost