Playtest notes 22 Jan 2026
Internal playtest75 entries29 balance changes15 interface changes13 bug fixes7 art updates4 content additions3 audio updates3 wording fixes1 performance fix
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 is a smaller one due to MLK day this past Monday, but the highlights include a few balance changes, new card art, and various UI improvements!
Items in this note
18 cards
Relics, potions and powers
Golden Compass
Golden Pearl
Parrying Shield
Pendulum
Ripple Basin
Skill Potion
White Beast Statue
Intangible
Poison
Doom
Smoggy
Strength
Tangled
VulnerableEnemies and events
Test Subject
Calcified Cultist
Infested Prism
Osty
SeapunkContent
General
- Temporarily removed some achievements as they will be disabled for early access
Defect
- Reworked Junk Ball card back into Barrage from StS1
Regent
- Reworked The Sealed Throne card
Events
- Reworked Reflections event
Balance
Silent
- Changed Murder card: upgrade changed from increased damage -> Energy cost reduced by 1
- Changed Poison Neow Bundle: replaced Haze card -> Deadly Poison
Defect
- Nerfed Flak Cannon card: Energy cost increased from 1 -> 2
Necrobinder
- Changed Bodyguard card:
- Energy cost increased from 1 -> 2
- Summon increased from 4 -> 8(12)
- Nerfed Spirit of Ash card: Block gain decreased from 5(7) -> 4(6)
Regent
- Changed Glow card:
- Card draw increased from 1(2) -> 2(2)
- Star gain decreased from 2(2) -> 1(2)
- Buffed Heirloom Hammer card: damage increased from 15(20) -> 17(22)
Potions & Relics
- Changed Hourglass relic: rarity increased from Common -> Uncommon
- Changed Pendulum relic: rarity decreased from Uncommon -> Common
- Buffed Parrying Shield relic: Block requirement decreased from 15 -> 10
- Buffed Ripple Basin relic: Block gain increased from 3 -> 4
- Changed White Beast Statue relic: added to the list of relics that can not spawn at the last treasure chest or later
Keep reading168 more words
Enemies
- Buffed Corpse Slugs: HP increased from 21(23)-23(25) -> 25(27)-27(29)
- Buffed Infested Prism:
- Now also gains 12 Block on its Strength gain turn
- Radiate move damage and Block gain increased from 12(13) -> 14(16)
- Changed Test Subject:
- Phase 1's Skull Bash move damage decreased from 16(18) -> 14(16) and Vulnerable applied decreased from 2 -> 1
- Phase 2 now starts with Multi Claw move instead of Pounce
- Phase 3 now applies Intangible at end of turn instead of start
- Changed normal Toadpoles encounter: replaced Seapunk -> Calcified Cultist
Ancients
- Buffed Tezcatara's Brightest Flame card: Energy gain increased from 1(2) -> 2(3)
- Buffed Tezcatara's Golden Compass relic: added ? rooms before the first Treasure Chest and after the second Treasure Chest, making it 2 nodes longer than the typical Act 2 length
- Changed Neow's Golden Pearl relic: changed back from gaining 50 Gold upon entering Shop rooms -> immediately obtain 150 Gold
Events
- Changed Waterlogged Scriptorium event: now has a 65 Gold spawn requirement
Art
- Added portrait art for the following cards:
- Believe in You
- Huddle Up
- Intercept
- Tag Team
- Energy Surge
- Updated the portrait art for Necrobinder and Silent's Defend cards and Silent's Strike card
User interface + experience
- Added new asset for locked relics and cards in Compendium
- Updated a handful of Run History icons
- Updated all Ancient and boss icons to make their asset size and outline consistent (not final)
- Updated character icon asset size to 85x85
- Necrobinder's character icon no longer has flaming VFX, sorry
- Added a header to Daily leaderboards + updated score UI
- Updated Custom Run and Daily Run screen text and UI elements
- Added a nicer scrollbar to the patch notes screen
- Added scrolling via mouse drag + mouse wheel for Bestiary monster list
- Patch notes screen now uses the same scrolling behavior as the other screens
- Added mulitplayer card filter to Card Library
- The speaker icon for Ancient dialogues now has an outline for better contrast
- Updated achievement screen border and lock assets
- Updated modifiers list in custom runs screen to be more compact
- Updated patch notes button icon in main menu
Audio
Writing
- Updated Nonupeipe's epithet
- Updated dialogue for all Ancients
- Fixed some title casing errors
Bug fixes
General
- Fixed crash when entering Overgrowth rest site
- Fixed crash when accessing disposed UI controls in relic navigation
- Fixed "elites killed" filed in Game Over including the elite that killed you
- Fixed being able to grab cards as they were animating from your draw pile to your hand
- Fixed Card Library showing the cards from your previous filter settings when reopening
- Fixed controller navigation not working on inspect Epoch screen
- Fixed Timeline having a "back" button when you have not yet revealed Neow
Ironclad
- Fixed Grapple power not showing on player when applied
Silent
Enemies
- Test Subject's Phase 3 now takes full Poison damage on non-Intangible turns
Events
- Fixed Wongos Mystery Ticket relic count not matching its description in the Welcome to Wongo's event
Multiplayer
- Fixed Smoggy power affecting Skill cards generated by Skill Potion if another player already played a Skill
- Fixed Tangled power making Attacks cost an extra Energy for each player
Performance
- Reduced memory usage from crash reporting
Purchase today
If you haven't bought Slay The Spire 2 yet, it's time. Support the devs, they made an amazing game.
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