The Watcher has been available on the beta branch for about 18 days now!

This patch continues balance and design work while also integrating new and polished artwork to various assets!

We're still tweaking cards to improve the overall flow and have increased the Watcher's base health as the low health made non-combat interactions unnecessarily punishing. Lots of great feedback from various communities! We encourage discussion and we're most active at our Discord server but we read all the feedback in our inboxes and sites like Reddit even when we aren't responding to everything.

While we know that our beta testers enjoy placeholder artwork, artwork is getting cleaned up and polished as we continuously get improved card portraits in.



Details!


Some relics get polished and others get shiny assets



Watcher by /u/NightmareRoach who also did the beta art for Sash Whip!


This pixel Snecko and Merchant by @BstojaGraphics


We can't really link to the source for the safety of the artist.

Patch Notes

• Beta art added to about 20 cards.
  
• Adding art for Horn Cleat relic.
  
• Adding asset for Captain's Wheel relic.
  
• Adding polished art for Tungsten Rod.
  
• Cleaning up the Watcher's corpse asset.
  
• Updating art for Watcher campfire asset.
  
• Updating Empty Fist, Mind, and Body cards to have more recognizable silhouettes.
  
• Remove GlowColor Enum to allow mods to have custom card glow easier.
  
• When a card is in Stasis by Bronze Automaton, the card name is now Gold color in the power tip.
  
• Added VFX for Just Lucky card.

• Adding Rare Watcher relic: Golden Eye.

• Watcher's Max HP Increased from 65 -> 72.
  
• Mantra in excess of 10 now rolls over when you enter Divinity instead of being lost.
  
• Adaptation card removed and replaced by Rushdown.
  
• Cleanse Evil card removed and replaced by Conjure Blade.
  
• Metaphysics removed and replaced by Indignation.
  
• Step and Strike card removed and replaced by Wheel Kick.
  
• Master Reality card reworked.
  
• Tantrum card reworked.
  
• Wave Of The Hand card reworked.
  
• Wish card's effects are now on Omniscience card.
  
• Wish card reworked.
  
• Conclude card damage increased 10 -> 12.
  
• Conclude+ card damage increased 14 -> 16.
  
• Establishment card rarity changed Uncommon -> Rare.
  
• Face Trader event can no longer appear past Act 2.
  
• Halt card additional Block increased from 7 -> 9.
  
• Halt+ card additional Block increased from 9 -> 14.
  
• Intangible nerfed for the player. Now only affects Attack damage.
  
• Melange relic rarity changed from Common -> Shop.
  
• Neow Colorless card choices now let the player choose 1 of 3 colorless cards.
  
• Omega card buff. Now deals its damage at end of turn.
  
• Pray now gives Insight instead of Miracle.
  
• Step and Strike unlock is now Foreign Influence card unlock.
  
• Windmill Strike card damage decreased from 8 -> 7.
  
• Windmill Strike card ramp increased from 2 -> 4.
  
• Windmill Strike+ card damage decreased from 12 -> 10.
  
• Windmill Strike+ card ramp increased from 3 -> 5.

• Centennial Puzzle and Tungsten Rod relics now interact correctly.
  
• Colorless card option at Neow will no longer contain duplicates.
  
• Fixed memory leak in Blight initialization. Thanks to Quincunx.
  
• Fixed memory leak in Merchant initialzation. Thanks to Quincunx.
  
• Fixed Rare Potion sparkles not occurring in some instances.
  
• Fixing Path to Victory beta art not showing up.
  
• Fixing typo in Master Reality power tip description.
  
• Plated Armor and Tungston Rod now correctly interact.
  
• Purple Cards custom/daily mod now actually adds purple cards.
  
• Runic Cube and Tungsten Rod relics now interact correctly.
  
• Rupture and Tungsten Rod relics now interact correctly.
  
• Self Forming Clay and Tungsten Rod relics now interact correctly.
  
• Storm of Steel+ card now shows upgrades Shivs for the card preview.
  
• True Grit card now Exhausts randomly again.
  
• Tungsten Rod and Emotion Chip relics now correctly interact.
  
• Typo fix in Golden Eye relic.

It's quite incredible that we have community translators that make the game available for so many people by keeping the beta branch translation updated daily in 11 languages.

• Updates for DEU, DUT, EPO, FRA, ITA, JPN, KOR, RUS, VIE, ZHS, ZHT.

Time for another progress report,

We're still working on compositionally and thematically adjusting the Watcher's cards but we also brought in a slew of new potions & sparkles!

Next week we'll probably still be changing a lot of cards, make some visual effects for cards, and maybe polish up some relic arts.


Shiny!

We're on the shortlist for Best Indie Game and PC Game of the Year!
Vote for Slay the Spire on the Golden Joystick Awards :)






The Silent looking really menacing by @xiaozhuo_wu



A short break from fan art to appreciate some hard work on these costumes by @MissMariaCos

Patch Notes

• New Defect Rare Potion - Essence of Darkness.
  
• New Defect Uncommon Potion - Potion of Capacity.
  
• New Ironclad Rare potion - Heart of Iron.
  
• New Ironclad Uncommon Potion - Elixir.
  
• New Silent Uncommon Potion - Cunning Potion.
  
• New Watcher Common potion - Bottled Miracle.
  
• New Watcher Rare potion - Ambrosia.

• Adaptation card is now rare.
  
• Adaptation nerfed. Cost increased by 1. No longer upgrades to Innate.
  
• Battle Hymn reworked.
  
• Block Actions now still occur post-combat, allowing Blocking of Beat of Death and others.
  
• Blood Potion is now Common.
  
• Blood potion nerfed from 25% -> 20%.
  
• Brilliance card is now Ethereal.
  
• Brilliance card reworked.
  
• Cloak Clasp relic Block lowered to 1.
  
• Collect card reworked. Now gives Miracle+ instead of energy.
  
• Crush Joints card damage lowered by 1.
  
• Deva Form card reworked.
  
• Empty Mind card is now Uncommon.
  
• Eruption+ no longer gets a damage buff. Costs 2 -> 1 instead.
  
• Flow State card is now Uncommon.
  
• Focus Potion is now Common.
  
• Ghost in a Jar is now Rare.
  
• Master Reality card reworked.
  
• Meditate card reworked.
  
• Mental Fortress card values nerfed from 4(6)->3(4).
  
• Nirvana card reworked.
  
• Poison Potion is now Silent only.
  
• Sash Whip card damage lowered by 1.
  
• Through Violence card now retains.

• Beta art added to 50+ cards.
  
• Polished art added to 20+ cards.
  
• Class-specific potions now render a colored outline in the Potion Lab screen.
  
• Outlines for both relics and potions in the compendium are now more visible.
  
• Potions hovered in Potion lab screen now have their tips displayed in a fixed position (rather than cursor).
  
• Updating Windmill Strike, Sands of Time and Perseverance card descriptions to be shorter.
  
• Uncommon and Rare potions now emit particles in card reward and shop screens.

• Enable manual and auto line breaking mode for ZHT.
  
• Fixed NL clashes with auto line breaks for ZHS, JPN font rendering.
  
• Implementing more logic to remove period-only lines from CJK languages.
  
• Scrawl only uses UPGRADE_DESC if it's not empty now.
  
• Updates for DEU, ITA, JPN, KOR, POL, RUS, VIE, ZHS, ZHT.

• Card Library screen no longer scrolls up on first open.
  
• Card Library screens cards were smaller for Purple, Colorless, Cursed. Fixed.
  
• Fix for Power tips being offset when there are a lot of Powers.
  
• Fixed Just Lucky card doing its effects out of order.
  
• Fixed Spirit Shield card applying wrong values when played in non-standard ways (eg Wish).
  
• Halt card's additional Block is now affected by Powers.
  
• Lesson Learned card can no longer spawn from card generating effects mid combat.
  
• Potential fix for stance potions + touchscreens not interacting correctly.
  
• Removing Truth and Wisdom cards from Card Library as they're deprecated.
  
• Swapping action orders for Empty Mind so it follows the card's description.

Hey everyone,

It's been a week since the 4th character came to the beta branch. Things are still pretty chaotic in terms of design and balance work and we thank you for your continuous support and feedback.

We'll be continuing work on core design and balance this week and we'll also be accepting beta art (see below) so that players can more easily differentiate cards! Please see the patch notes section at the bottom to see a list of all the changes since the last report.

We're now accepting beta art submissions for new cards implemented for this set of content!
However, please keep in mind that we're undergoing many changes and this may result in cards being cut or reworked.

Please see our initial Beta Art submission guidelines post for templates and general information regarding beta art submissions

We're getting Watcher fan art!!! Very exciting.


The Watcher by /u/AzoryKeron


The Watcher in action by /u/MaltyCrab

Patch Notes

EDIT: A hotfix was also pushed out to fix a crashing issue.

• Adding Captain's Wheel relic. Rare.
  
• Adding Sash Whip card. Common attack.
  
• Adding Horn Cleat relic. Uncommon.
  
• Reworked Brilliance card.
  
• Reworked Flurry of Blows card.
  
• Reworked Inner Peace card.
  
• Reworked Prostrate card.
  
• Reworked Vengeance card -> Simmering Fury.
  
• Reworked Vigilance card.
  
• Reworked Tungsten Rod relic.

• Akabeko damage buffed from 3 -> 9.
  
• Carve Reality card gets slightly reworked.
  
• Clarity card Deprecated.
  
• Consecrate deals +1 damage.
  
• Consecrate+ deals +2 damage.
  
• Deceive Reality card gets slightly reworked.
  
• Follow Up card damage increased from 6 -> 7.
  
• Follow Up+ card damage increased from 8 -> 10.
  
• Horn Cleat block increased to 14.
  
• Sancitity card gains 2 less Block but draws 1 additional card.
  
• Slight rework of Path To Victory.
  
• Smite card buffed from 10 -> 12 damage.
  
• Snecko Oil reworked.
  
• Tranquility (Previously Clear The Mind) buffed to Retain.
  
• Tungsten Rod is now a rare relic.
  
• Wallop card is now Uncommon, costs 2, and deals 2 less damage.
  
• Wireheading now triggers at start of turn to better interact with Weave.
  
• Worship upgrade changed from giving Innate to Retain.

• Beta, Omega, and other new cards now appear in the Card Library.
  
• Brilliance card no longer gets stuck when played with 0 cards.
  
• Curse removal shrine will no longer incorrectly appear when you have Curse of The Bell.
  
• Fix for Attack/Skill/Power potion extras not having its cost set to 0.
  
• Fixed Discovery card giving two cards.
  
• Mental Fortress power now displays the correct name.
  
• Re-adding a font that caused some text to not appear in some languages.
  
• Smite card now appears in Card Library.
  
• Snecko Oil potion no longer displays the confused keyword.
  
• Tantrum's Cannot Change Stance power now correctly flagged as a debuff.
  
• Tungesten Rod no longer stops Blasphemy from killing you.

• Removed double initialization of card descriptions on game load.
  
• Wireheading card renamed to Foresight.
  
• Cards which have Mantra now show the Divinity tip as well.
  
• Talk To The Hand card wording updates.
  
• Watcher leaderboards should now be working.
  
• Wording improvements for 10+ cards.
  
• Worship card now also contains Divinity keyword tip.
  
• Adding a VFX for Judgement card.
  
• Lightning strikes down the Blasphemer.
  
• Clear the Mind renamed to Tranquility to better differentiate from Empty Mind.
  
• Fixed spelling error in Judgments name.
  
• Typo Fix for Watcher's memory in the Sensory Stone event.
  
• Wireheading power now states start of turn.

• Credits for VIE updated (not in-game yet).
  
• Manual and auto line break mode for card descriptions enabled for JPN/ZHS languages.
  
• Updates for DEU, DUT, ITA, JPN, KOR, RUS, SPA, THA, VIE, ZHS, and ZHT.

Hey everyone!

In these reports we will be writing up what we've changed, what's going to be changing and probably what we're working on every week or so.
The main focus of this week is fixing all of the new issues and interactions.

Second of all, we'd like to thank our community members and /u/ForgottenArbiter for making a post with all that's changed in the game outside of the 4th character!
It's formatted beautifully on the reddit post.

This summary is posted here:

• Fire Breathing: New effect: Cost 1, "Whenever you draw a Status or Curse card, deal 6 (10) damage to ALL enemies."
  
• Sever Soul: Now deals 22 damage when upgraded (was 20)
  
• Fiend Fire: New wording (same effect): "Exhaust your hand. Deal 7 (10) damage for each card Exhausted. Exhaust."
  
• Reprogram: New wording (same effect): "Scry 4 (6)."
  
• Curse of the Bell (new card): "Unplayable. Cannot be removed from your deck.
  
• Various Cards: "upgraded" has been capitalized
  
• Various Cards: Tooltips for temporary cards created in combat have been added to existing cards like Immolate and Blade Dance

Shop Relics now cost 150 gold (down from 200)

• Pure Water (Starter, Watcher): At the start of each combat, add a Miracle into your hand.
  
• Akabeko (Common, all classes): Your first attack each combat deals 3 additional damage.
  
• Ceramic Fish (Common, all classes): Whenever you add a card to your deck, gain 7 gold.
  
• Ink Bottle (Common, all classes): Whenever you play 10 cards, draw 1 card.
  
• Melange (Common, Watcher): Whenever you shuffle your draw pile, Scry 3.
  
• Tungsten Rod (Common, all classes): At the start of your turn, if it is before turn 6, gain Block equal to the current turn.
  
• Strike Dummy (Uncommon, all classes): Cards containing "Strike" deal 3 additional damage.
  
• Teardrop Locket (Uncommon, Watcher): Start each combat in Calm.
  
• Yang (Uncommon, Watcher): Whenever you play an Attack, gain 1 temporary Dexterity.
  
• Cloak Clasp (Rare, all classes): At the end of your turn, gain 2 block for each card in your hand.
  
• Holy Water (Boss, Watcher): Replaces Pure Water. At the start of each combat, add 3 Miracles into your hand.
  
• Sacred Bark (Boss, all classes): Double the effectiveness of potions.
  
• Slaver's Collar (Boss, all classes): During Boss and Elite combats, gain [E] at the start of your turn.
  
• Violet Lotus (Boss, Watcher): Whenever you exit Calm, gain an additional [E].

The Abacus: "Whenever you shuffle your draw pile, gain 6 block."

• Meal Ticket: Now Common (was Shop)
  
• Toy Ornithopter: Now Common (was Shop)
  
• Eternal Feather: Now Uncommon (was Boss)
  
• White Beast Statue: Now Uncommon (was Boss)
  
• Lizard Tail: Now Rare (was Boss)
  
• Black Blood: Now heals for 12 HP (was 10)
  
• Calling Bell: New effect: "Upon pickup, obtain a unique Curse and 3 relics." (see Curse of the Bell, above)
  
• Hovering Kite: New effect: "The first time you discard a card each turn, gain [E].
  
• Wrist Blade: Now adds 4 additional damage (was 3)
  
• Orrery: Now Shop (was Boss)

• New Character: The Watcher
  
• New Mod: Purple Cards
  
• New Potion: Stance Potion (Watcher Only)
  
• New Potion: Duplication Potion
  
• Fairy in the Bottle: 10% HP -> 30% HP
  
• New Achievement: Amethyst (This achievement is currently bugged, though, and you get Sapphire instead)
  
• New Achievement: Amethyst+

That's quite a lot of changes!
/u/baefeather made the first fan art of the Watcher! Here it is in all its glory.


Since release we've made a couple of changes already- and we're pushing out a patch today, too!

Patch Notes 09-10-2019

• Consecrate and Consecrate+ deal 1 more damage.
  
• Exiting a stance via cards like Empty Mind now count as stance change for cards like Adaptation and Controlled Change.
  
• Followup and Folloup+ card deal 1 more damage.
  
• Halt card's Wrath bonus increased by 1.
  
• Halt+ card's Wrath bonus increased by 2.
  
• Lesson Learned card deals 2 less damage.
  
• Lesson Learned+ card deals 3 less damage.
  
• Path to Victory+ now exhausts.
  
• Protect card gains 2 less Block.
  
• Protect+ card gains 3 less Block.
  
• Sacred Bark now works with Attack, Skill, and Power potions.
  
• Sacred Bark relic now works with Duplication potion.
  
• Weave card deals 1 more damage.
  
• Weave+ card deals 2 more damage.

• Fix for banner text not showing up for JPN/KOR/ZHS/ZHT.
  
• Fixed 10+ Devotion power not entering Divinity every turn.
  
• Fixed issue where stance related idle sounds weren't stopped if you abandoned a run.
  
• On grid card select screens. Picking the maximum anount of cards you can choose no longer auto confirms your selection.
  
• Scrying Weave with a full hand now discards the extra Weave cards.

• Empty Mind now draws cards before exiting stance to be consistent with other Empty cards.
  
• Scrollable dropdowns now supports scroll wheel and arrow keys.
  
• Completing a run -> Winning a run for Watcher unlock.
  
• Tantrum description updated wording.

• Applying the Mantra power now has a unique SFX.
  
• Updating all Watcher-related SFX (pitch/volume/etc).

• Updates for DEU, DUT, ITA, KOR, RUS, ZHT.

Hello!

The 4th character is now available in the beta branch. Beating the game and having the Defect unlocked will unlock this character. If these requirements are already met, the character will be available as soon as you start the game!



This update comes with one new character, new relics, new potions, balance changes, and other unnamed goodies will be added during this test period. Also, the Fire Breathing card was reworked.

Participating in the beta is easy! Opt into the beta through the BETAS tab for Slay the Spire. For more info, see here.


Yep. Open the game properties and under the LOCAL FILES tab select BROWSE LOCAL FILES... and create a copy of your preferences folder and rename it betaPreferences (case sensitive).
If you run into issues, we recommend asking the nice folks at the Slay the Spire Discord server or reach us at support@megacrit.com.


We worked with our publisher, Humble Bundle, to release on other platforms and now physical editions are available for pre-order! Physical editions are available for PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.


Our composer Clark Aboud is releasing a special vinyl edition of the Slay the Spire soundtrack! The cover also features unique artwork by our illustrator Anailis Dorta.

It's up for pre-order now! Check it out at Ghost Ramp.

Sometimes I think about posting all the memes. However, we must remain professional.
Take a look at some art!


The Ironclad looking pretty JAXXed by @arkalpha


This great rendition of all the characters in cubism by /u/MochaSNotsosweet


Hexa-Ghost by /u/NightmareRoach

That's all for now, we'll be using Steam's new Event system to push out minor patch announcements so be sure to Follow us on Steam or our twitter (@megacrit) if you want to stay on top of updates.

Hey everyone,

We've got a few things to share!

Testing and balancing for the 4th character will be available on the Steam Beta branch on September 9, 2019.
As much as we would love to test it out on all the platforms, the logistics and patching process is only possible through Steam.

Once testing and polishing is complete, this free DLC will be available on Steam and all the other platforms!

Speaking of platforms, we're now available on Xbox One through either the Xbox Game Pass or the Microsoft Store!

We're pushing out a special build of Slay the Spire with a game engine update.
This build upgrades our game from LibGDX 1.9.2 -> LibGDX 1.9.9. This update gives multi-monitor support, DPI scaling fixes, improved performance, updated controller support, and allows screenshake to perform correctly in 16:10 aspect ratios.

Due to a few backwards compatibility issues we're pushing this build out in a separate branch titled LibGDX199 and this build will be updated alongside the beta branch until we confirm it's safe to merge into the beta branch. This can be found in the game's BETA tab in the same way you would access the beta branch.

Note: Save files for the beta branch are shared with the saves in the LibGDX199 branch.