I hate starting from scratch

[Crystal]

Can someone give me some tips for the start of slay the spire? I usually aim for question marks to try and build up on relics, but to be honest I should try and go for gold more? I just feel like with the starting cards I am much more likely to misplay than I am versus the later, more interesting enemies with better cards.

Like, by the time I reach gremlin nob, I sometimes have no good cards and I get screwed by not wanting to block so much but also not doing enough damage to finish him off quickly.

basically, I only really get past the early game if I get lucky. What are your strategies to handle early game when you aren't really getting the cards you enjoy using?

[Tray]

Originally posted by Crysikrend:

I usually aim for question marks to try and build up on relics, but to be honest I should try and go for gold more?

Like, by the time I reach gremlin nob, I sometimes have no good cards and I get screwed by not wanting to block so much but also not doing enough damage to finish him off quickly.

That's your problem right there, you are ignoring card opportunities to go for the early mystery rooms.

Maximize cards, until you have a solid foundation, focus camp fires to make these cards better, now you can fight elites more easily, then when your decks power level is satisfactory, or you would rather trim cards then add more focus the mystery spots.

[corbet]

phase 1 and 2, you should aim for monster rooms to gain more gold and cards. nothing wrong with skipping picking up a card, the more times you get the opportunity to pick cards the more likely you'll get the cards you need. don't just pick 1 card if 3 bad choices were presented. you should say no in those situations.

in phase 3 the strat inverts. you should aim for question mark rooms and shops and rest areas. not monster rooms. the final boss isn't that hard but in phase 3 you're more likely to beat the game if you run straight for the boss. if you do that in phase 1 and 2 you'll get too far behind by the time you get to phase 3.

[corbet]

i forgot to say i beat the game over half the time, and i use mainly ironclad as he is better when you know how to play him. his starting relic is really good allows you to breeze through phase 1 and staying full without the need to rest. and most enemies you shouldn't try to block every damage, u should kill them asap. they run away, they get stronger the longer it lasts, ect, you are block oriented it's easier to get overwhelmed as the fight goes on.

i do only play ascension 1 though. i'm not hardcore gamer, since i got a real life better than most people's real lives.

[paolo.bera]

Only one exception if you have a very trimmed deck don't go for too many ? in third act, potentially windng halls and falling can ruin your deck, a bad falling before last boss could be irreversible.

[Tray]

Originally posted by calvine:

i do only play ascension 1 though. i'm not hardcore gamer, since i got a real life better than most people's real lives.

I really doubt that if you're throwing it out there on an internet forum.

HAI GUYZ SUPER AWESOME LIFE HERE BTW

[Wurtz]

You really want to focus on building a deck. When you do so, you want to focus around some specific cards. If you get lucky and get something like Demon Form early - which happened to me yesterday - you can build around that strategy. Relics complement your deck, but the bulk of your power comes from your deck.

It's also important to remove cards from your deck. The basic Strike option the Ironclad gets is very, very lackluster - virtually every other Attack card you get outclasses this. I don't play Silent, but the same is true for Defect. You can remove Defends too, especially when you get access to some stronger defensive options like Shrug It Off (or True Grit+ in a deck with Power Through/Wild Strike/Evolve). A deck that's too big isn't useful, since you can't build combos reliably.

Also, don't neglect status conditions. A well-timed Vulnerable can make your damage output go from almost finishing off an enemy, to a kill. That's very useful when you're trying to maximize damage while not dying.

Getting good at the game involves being able to identify the best option at every turn - not only in combat.

[corbet]

Originally posted by Tray:

Originally posted by calvine:

i do only play ascension 1 though. i'm not hardcore gamer, since i got a real life better than most people's real lives.

I really doubt that if you're throwing it out there on an internet forum.

HAI GUYZ SUPER AWESOME LIFE HERE BTW

okay let me tell you about my life and you be the judge.

1. i got an LTL trucking job. which is not just any trucking job, LTL trucking jobs are the highest paying, we make more than fuel haulers and car haulers. i'm home nearly daily. i make more money than doctors take home. my net pay per year is over 70k a year(NET pay, going into the bank), doctors make 100k but taxed hard and take home like 60k a year. last month alone my net pay was 7k net pay into the bank. most people not even my father who is a manager of a successful business takes home half the net pay i'm taking home. he's in his 60s, and i'm 29 making double his pay.

2. i can still enjoy gaming non-hardcore. but overall it's wise if i avoid gaming entirely as i work many hours per week, and for every minute gaming is a minute lost i could of been doing chores or spending time with my woman and taking care of other things around the house and shopping for cars and houses, ect.

3. i'm happy. i can't say that for most people.

4. i don't post on gaming foruums often, my account most of the posting was done over 5 years ago before i became a trucker and back when i was making 200 a month and back when my life sucked alot because i was indeed posting on these forums alot. i didn't even go way into debt like doctors would do, and it took 3 weeks to learn, starting out was only 4k net pay a month, but now i'm making more than that while living a better life style home nearly daily. i get 54 cents per mile plus i'm paid 23 an hour for non driving work, 34.5 an hour after 8, and 46 an hour after 12, and i typically work 12 to 16 hour days. i also in addition to that have 15k dollar life insurance given to my family if i die for free, amazing health care, i get discount for my cell phone service, and we get PAID breaks 3 times a day on top of our pay mentioned there. and 1.5k dollar bonuses here and there on top of that pay mentioned.

5. you are right about one thing, posting on gaming forums does reduce the quality of my life a smidge if i do it a little, this is why most of you are complete losers and i'm not. i don't post here often, and if i posted 0, then that's even better.

[corbet]

btw i'm about the same age as pewdiepie, markiplier, the most popular and best nba stars are about 29 years old. shaq was 30 when he won his first championship with lakers, pau gasol similar. eminem was about 30 when he was first getting main stream popular and stayed popular into his mid 40s in which he fell off. i could give 100s more examples.

my life is indeed better than most peoples. jesus christ was about my age when he was performing magic, and all the jealous people wanted him killed and eventually killed him.

[corbet]

one last comment before i go. it doesn't matter what your reply is. no matter what you say as a reply it won't chane reality that i have a great life, and your own life probably sucks is probablly why you are butt-hurt. haha.

[roach]

is it just me or is this dude a complete and utter ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ prick?

[Tray]

Haha, I had forgotten you were that trucker dude trying to brag even though the numbers aren't anywhere near brag worthy when you factor in how much time you invest.

Seriously, you are a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ trucker. It's a fine enough job, but talking about it how you do is just kinda sad.

Edit: Checked your last post on this topic, seems your numbers have changed. Now what is one to think when someones story changes?

[Tray]

Originally posted by roach:

is it just me or is this dude a complete and utter ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ prick?

Chea, but he also definatly lacks ALOT of life experience to be thinking he has this much self worth.

[SimplyGnome]

Originally posted by calvine:

jesus christ was about my age when he was performing magic,

That killed me. Im dead.

[Wurtz]

lol this is some copypasta worthy ♥♥♥♥.

[burningmime]

My main goal in Act 1 is to fight 3 elites, although often I can only manage 2. Elites give relics (which can totally shape your deck, especially on Silent and sometimes Defect; Ironclad usually less so), gold, and good card choices. Ending Act 1 with 300 gold, 6 relics, and some decent cards makes the rest of the game *much* smoother. Greed is good, and playing safe in Act 1 can bite you in the ass later (especially on Ascension). The most reliable start, IMO, is to be greedy in act 1, and conservative later on.

So first, I plot a path that takes me through 2-3 elites as well as several campfires. Ideally, the path will allow me to "peel off" after the 2nd elite if my HP is too low to get the 3rd, or to skip the 1st if I'm not ready yet. I also want to get lots of monster fights in the first half of the act (first 3 floors are easy monsters, and middle of the act is OK), but avoid monsters towards the end of Act 1 (5 slimes, 5 gremlins, or thief+1 are often harder than elites without any of the rewards).

In the first few fights, I will try to take the best attacks I can, and not be too picky about it. That's because all-out agression is very important in Act 1. It's required against Gremlin Nob, to burst down one of the side dudes in 3xSentinel, and against Slime Boss and Hexaghost. Defensive decks have a better time against Guardian (but he's the easiest boss anyway), and sometimes against Lagavulin (but having a lot of damage can also be good here). So I just try to get my alpha damage output as high as I can in the first few fights and avoid slower cards unless they're really good. Think of Act 1 elites as a "DPS check" -- if you can't do a lot of damage very quickly, you're gonna have a bad time.

In the latter half of Act 1, I start trying to take a bit of defense, since Act 2 can hit you hard (ie Snake Plant's 21 damage per turn is worse than what the Act 1 bosses pump out). Here's where I start to think about synergies or my endgame deck, but it's generally just in the back of my mind. IMO, it's *much* harder to survive Act 2 (especially the beginning of Act 2) than it is to survive Act 3, so I want to take stuff that will help me in the immediate future. Only once I'm actually in Act 2 do I start thinking "where is this deck going?"

Hope that helps a bit.

Originally posted by calvine:

btw i'm about the same age as pewdiepie, markiplier, the most popular and best nba stars are about 29 years old. shaq was 30 when he won his first championship with lakers, pau gasol similar. eminem was about 30 when he was first getting main stream popular and stayed popular into his mid 40s in which he fell off. i could give 100s more examples.

my life is indeed better than most peoples. jesus christ was about my age when he was performing magic, and all the jealous people wanted him killed and eventually killed him.

This dude is hillarious. Thanks for making my day just a little brighter.