Out of the five playable characters in Slay the Spire 2, the Ironclad is easily the best character to use for new players, though the Silent comes very close. Both characters have cards that combine offense and defense, making them very hard to take down while still being able to hit hard. The three other characters are by no means terrible, but considering the complexity of their playstyles, they are harder to recommend than either the Ironclad or Silent.
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Why Pick Ironclad in Slay the Spire 2?
The biggest reason why we chose Ironclad as our best Slay the Spire 2 character is because of his many Block skills, notably:
- Iron Wave: A 1-cost card that simultaneously deals damage and generates Block.
- Taunt: Apply Block to yourself, then apply Vulnerable to a target enemy.
- Flame Barrier: Generate Block. Any damage you take during this turn will deal a small amount of damage back to your attacker.
- Armaments: Gain Block, then upgrade a card in your hand.
- Juggernaut: Deal damage to a random enemy whenever you apply Block to yourself.
- Crimson Mantle: At the start of your turn, lose 1 HP then generate 8 Block.
- Barricade: Your Block is not removed at the end of your turn.
- Body Slam: Deal damage to an enemy based on your total Block.
Ironclad's Block skills fit into his different playstyles. If you want to make a deck that revolves around self-damage, Crimson Mantle is an excellent pick. Meanwhile, if you want a Perfect Strike deck, then Taunt and Iron Wave will fit nicely. A full Block build for Ironclad is completely viable, and it's ironically one of his hardest-hitting ones too.
If you're new to the game, we recommend sticking with one or two card archetypes/playstyles per run. Mix in too many, and you'll have a hard time getting the right cards in your hand.
Why Play the Silent in Slay the Spire 2?
The Silent also has Block-based builds using cards like Cloak and Dagger, Dash, and Abrasive, but if you're looking for a non-Block build that's simple and easy to use, go with Poison cards. This status effect can be stacked indefinitely, and each point of Poison deals 1 damage at the start of the enemy's turn. Poison cards include:
- Poison Stab: Deal damage and inflict Poison.
- Deadly Poison: Inflict 5 Poison.
- Bouncing Flask: Apply 3 Poison to a random enemy 3 times.
- Envenom: Whenever an attack deals unblocked damage, apply 1 Poison.
Like Ironclad's Block cards, Silent's Poison cards can fit in well with other card archetypes like Shiv and Discard decks. You can't go wrong with Poison cards, and you don't necessarily need to invest heavily into it in order to get tangible benefits.
What About the Other Characters?
The rest of the Slay the Spire 2 cast are just as strong as Ironclad and Silent, but they also have more complicated mechanics that may cause newer players some trouble.
- The Regent needs to manage a secondary resource called Stars to use Star cards. They can also build around their unique Sovereign Blade card to deal massive damage, but it requires players to carefully manage the Regent's Forge mechanic while juggling everything else.
- The Necrobinder has the lowest HP of all characters. She's not as mechanically demanding as the Regent, but her Soul and Ethereal cards can be tricky to use.
- The Defect is easy to use, but building decks with them can be quite complex given the character's reliance on Power cards.
Don't be too intimidated by these descriptions. All characters require a certain degree of mastery before they can be played properly. At the end of the day, the best character in the game is the one you like the most. Try each of them out, and once you find someone you like, focus on learning one playstyle/card archetype at a time so you don't get overwhelmed.
- Developer(s)
- Mega Crit
- Publisher(s)
- Mega Crit
- Prequel(s)
- Slay the Spire
- Number of Players
- 1-4 players
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- Verified
- Early Access Release
- March 5, 2026
- Genre(s)
- Strategy, Roguelike, Digital Card Game
- Platform(s)
- PC
