Few games match the addictive "just one more run" mentality of Slay the Spire. Fusing the best elements of roguelikes and CCGs, the game challenges players to climb to the top of a monster-filled tower, collecting new cards, making difficult choices, and developing new strategies along the way.
RELATED: Beginner Tips For Slay The Spire You Need To Know
Each of the game's classes brings unique strengths, weaknesses, and mechanics into play. The Ironclad is a straightforward character with its combination of high health and powerful damage-dealing potential. Even so, it takes the right relics to bring the most out of the character. Here are some of the best options for the Ironclad.
8 Vajra
Vajra is a common relic that allows the character to start each combat with +1 Strength. Ironclad arguably makes better use of Strength than any other character, so even a small Strength bonus like the one afforded by Vajra can quickly escalate to a battle-winning position.
The combination of an upgraded Limit Break and Headbutt on turn one could raise the Ironclad's Strength to 4 by turn two. That's helpful in later acts, but can be game-changing in Act 1, and because Vajra is a common relic, there's a good chance of actually attaining it that early.
7 Pen Nib
The Pen Nib is a powerful relic, but unlike some that can be used almost mindlessly, the Pen Nib requires foresight and strategic planning. The Pen Nib doubles the damage of every 10th attack. This feature means that it's easy for careless players to waste its power on a weak card, forgetting about the relic altogether.
RELATED:
The more strategic playstyle that the Pen Nib forces the player into to reap its benefits is more than worth it, though. It's even worth it to skip attacks sometimes in order to increase the odds that a much stronger attack card can be drawn, allowing the player to get maximum value from their relic. Best of all, the relic's effects stack with other attack-multiplying cards, making it a combo beast.
6 Gremlin Horn
With the Gremlin Horn, whenever an enemy dies, the Ironclad gains 1 Energy and draws 1 card. It's a potent effect, even for an uncommon relic. The Gremlin Horn effectively allows the player to solve one of the biggest problems in Act 1, which is having only 3 Energy per turn.
Though it's only valuable in battles against multiple enemies, the benefit of being able to draw a card and gain energy following a kill is hard to overstate. It allows the Ironclad to set up powerful combos, chaining one kill into the next, and with a bit of luck and the right cards, it can enable the player to wipe the entire enemy force in a single turn. The Gremlin Horn also helps the player to cycle through their deck faster, which powerfully enhances certain strategies.
5 Fossilized Helix
The Fossilized Helix allows the player to prevent the first time they would lose HP each combat. This relic is rare for a reason, with one of the most potent defensive powers in the game. Fossilized Helix has a powerful strategic element that is often overlooked by new players: the relic allows the player to choose when to take damage, because small attacks can be defended against so the relic has a chance to absorb a large attack later.
RELATED: Best Recent Deck-Builder Games, Ranked
The protective effect of the Fossilized Helix can buy the Ironclad time to set attack combos into motion, stalling long enough for the player to find the cards or build up the Strength to deliver a massive killing blow. The player must be careful, however, as self-damaging cards can trigger and waste this relic's effect.
4 Incense Burner
The Incense Burner grants the player 1 Intangible every 6 turns. Intangible reduces all damage taken during the player's turn to 1, making it an overwhelmingly powerful effect. It's possible to create some of the most powerful defense-oriented builds around this one effect, and, given the Ironclad's already high survivability, the Incense Burner can work wonders.
The Incense Burner is one of the best relics in the game, and whether the player finds it in a chest, receives it as a reward, or has the opportunity to purchase it from the Merchant, the Incense Burner is almost always worth the expense. There are a number of relics that can single-handledly save runs in Slay the Spire, and this is one of them.
3 Fusion Hammer
The Fusion Hammer grants the player 1 additional Energy at the start of the turn, with the drawback that the player can no longer Smith at Rest Sites. The Fusion Hammer is a boss relic and can therefore only be received as a reward at the end of each act. Relics that afford the player extra Energy are always powerful, but the drawbacks make using some of them difficult to swallow.
RELATED: Games To Try If You Enjoyed Slay The Spire
Though Smithing is useful, the player can easily get by without it, and giving it up in exchange for Energy is a worthwhile tradeoff for the Ironclad. 1 Energy can make a huge difference if the player is trying to build combos, and the Ironclad can use this relic in a variety of different deck builds.
2 Singing Bowl
The Singing Bowl offers the player a choice when adding cards to their deck, letting them choose to increase their Max HP by 2 instead of taking a card. It isn't always advantageous to pack one's deck with cards in Slay the Spire, since card bloat can make it hard to find the needed ingredients for combos. The Singing Bowl incentivizes the character to turn down cards, making more strategic picks when deck building.
The Ironclad's already-high health and survivability can only be improved with this relic, making the character extremely hard to kill in certain instances. As a side benefit, the healing the character receives at Resting Sites depends upon maximum HP, so the Singing Bowl leads to more healing.
1 Snecko Eye
The Snecko Eye grants the player two additional draws at the start of each turn at the cost of being Confused, which randomizes the cost of drawn cards. Though Confusion may seem like a negative, it can actually be a massive perk. With Snecko Eye the player can pack their deck with whatever expensive cards they want, knowing there's a chance this relic will let even the priciest cards be played cheaply.
Yes, this puts the player's strategy at the mercy of RNG, but nothing kicks the Ironclad's aggressive machine into high gear quite like a string of staggeringly powerful cards played for next to nothing.
MORE: Best Indie RPGs Of The Last Five Years (According To Metacritic)
