The 10 Best Ironclad Cards to Use in Slay the Spire 2

What does it mean to be the best? Well, the thing about Slay the Spire 2 is that no one card is ever really going to be the best. It all really depends upon the context in which you play them, and of course, the cards you're able to use them synergistically with. No point using Primal Force when you have a bunch of skills in your deck, right?

The thing is, you’re going to be playing with these cards, trying to climb the spire over and over again, with difficulty ramping up as you increase your Ascension levels. So what’s more important is not individual power, but overall consistency. Which cards can you pick that will reliably give you a power spike?

Let’s take a look at some of the most powerful Ironclad cards in Slay the Spire 2. Don’t worry, they aren't all rare!

10 Pommel Strike

A True Classic

Let’s begin with the humble Pommel Strike. This 1-cost card deals a good chunk of damage for 1 energy, and draws you a card. When upgraded, this scales to 2 cards, all for a single energy, which is ridiculously good for a common card.

This is a great early Act 1 pick for dishing out some consistent damage, while scaling nicely into the endgame when you require more card draw. This also has the added benefit of being a Strike card, working in conjunction with cards like Perfected Strike and Hellraiser. Overall, no frills, just a solid pick.

9 Second Wind

An Exhausting Process!

Moving on to an extremely strong Ironclad Archetype with Exhaust. While it can be easy to see Exhaust as a negative thing when you’re first starting out, with enough support, it becomes super powerful.

Second Wind can save your skin when you find yourself about to take a lot of damage. Not only will this exhaust all of your non-attack cards, triggering your other exhaust engines like Dark Embrace and Feel No Pain, but you’ll also get 5 block per card exhausted.

Remember this also works with status cards and curse cards, meaning you can get rid of all that fluff that ends up clogging your deck in certain fights.

8 Feed

This is really one of those rares that, when you see it, you might as well just grab it, unless something else really gels with your build.

Feed does a solid 10 damage for 1 energy, while increasing your max HP by 3(4) if you manage to kill whatever you use it on. I mean, the damage is nice, but the max HP is ridiculously good. Every time you increase your max HP, you’re going to be healing more when you rest, giving you a bigger buffer against more difficult foes.

Every single build wants more HP, so you can’t go wrong here.

7 Inferno

Go Out in a Blaze of Glory

In the first Slay the Spire, the self-damage archetype was a bit of a meme, to be honest. You could make it work, but it wasn’t very consistent.

Now, in Slay the Spire 2, we have enough support for this build that it’s actually very reliable in practice. Inferno plays a big part in making this work.

Inferno is a rework of Combust. Now this card procs at the beginning of your turn, dealing 6 damage to all enemies. However, it also procs every time you take self-damage, which is a huge improvement. It’s super easy to get multiple triggers every single turn, which is excellent against multiple enemies, or over the course of a long fight.

6 Fiend Fire

Cards for Kindling

Fiend Fire is one of those cards that, at the beginning, you might not realize why it’s so powerful. I mean, if you’re using it without the proper synergies, it’s a fairly mediocre card.

Now, as your deck starts becoming more complete over the course of the match, and you gain your combo pieces, this is where Fiend Fire begins to shine. Not only will you be doing 7(10) damage per card exhausted, but this triggers every single one of your other exhaust pieces.

Running this with cards like Dark Embrace and Forgotten Ritual can allow you to have massive turns, exhausting your hand while drawing a whole new one! Not only does this thin our deck, allowing us to be more consistent, but it also deals huge damage while doing it! Win-win!

5 Bloodletting

For the Greater Good

Even if you’re not running a self-damage build, this card is still really powerful in pretty much every single deck.

Bloodletting damages you for 3hp, which is a bit of a steep price, but you also get 2 energy in return. When upgraded, this turns into 3 energy.

The thing is, by extending your turns, you are able to draw and play more cards, giving you a chance to block incoming damage, which may have damaged you for more than 3hp. The self-damage is almost always going to outweigh the alternative, especially when you consider that you auto-heal 6 HP each combat with your starting relic.

Long turns where you play more than 3 energy are pretty much required when getting into those high-ascension level runs. Plus, if you want to play an expensive Power, this is your go-to.

4 Rupture

Whatever Doesn't Kill You...

Speaking of Self-Damage builds, here’s another tool that basically needs to be in every single one of your decks. People are pretty mixed on Demon Form, which gives you 2 Strength every turn. The thing is, why on earth do you need an expensive 3-cost Power, when you can get an even better version for 1 energy?

Rupture, when upgraded, will give you 2 strength every single time you inflict self-damage, which can often be multiple times per turn, when running common cards like Bloodletting, Blood Wall, or Breakthrough.

This allows you to scale ridiculously fast, with even more control, without spending too much energy. Add an extra Rupture for even more spice!

3 Impervious

Shields Up

Impervious is a very simple card. Gain 30 block! Nice! Does what it says on the tin.

Again, its simplicity is what makes it so strong. It doesn’t really matter what cards you’re running; every single deck needs a way to mitigate damage. And of course, when upgraded, Impervious grants a massive 40 block for just 2 energy.

If you’re playing self-damage, you can play more recklessly. If you’re playing Barricade, this often lasts for multiple turns. Even in exhaust decks, this can trigger your other exhaust cards. It’s good every time you use it, making it stellar in every deck.

2 Tear Asunder

Rip and Tear, Until it is Done

Honestly, this is one of my favourite cards of all time. I do love a card that can scale, so this is perfect for me.

Tear Asunder deals 5 damage for 2 energy and hits an extra time every single time you’ve been damaged. And no, that’s not just self-damage, but enemy damage too!

You can put this quite happily in a normal Ironclad deck, and it’ll still be good, but when used in a self-damage deck, it gets ridiculous. Not only are you getting damaged constantly with stuff like Inferno, but you also get that bonus strength from Rupture, which applies to every hit with this card. This damage can easily scale into the hundreds over the course of a fight.

1 Offering

Blood is the Currency of the Soul. Spend it Wisely

This isn’t exactly a huge surprise, is it? Offering was exceptional in Slay The Spire 1, and it’s ridiculously good here too! Who would have guessed right?

Every character has that card that they always want to pick, no matter the build type. Silenthas Adrenaline, Necrobinderhas Neurosurge, Regenthas Big Bang, etc. These cards all cost 0 and give you free resources, allowing you to extend your turns, play bigger cards or block more damage.

Offering is arguably better than all of these, especially when upgraded. Here, you get 2 free energy and 3 (5) cards drawn from your deck. The caveat here is that you take 6 HP. But, of course, for the Ironclad, that’s hardly a downside, is it? In fact, when paired with self-damage builds, suddenly the downside turns into a benefit. Plus, it exhausts too, giving us more fuel for our exhaust decks.

Whenever you see an Offering, just pick it up. It’s almost never a bad decision, and will benefit basically every deck and allow for some absolutely crazy turns. Cards like these always brighten up my day!