🧱 Full Playthrough Summary – Slay the Spire: The Board Game (Ironclad, Ascension 1 – Solo)

This is my full 3-hour solo playthrough of Slay the Spire: The Board Game, playing as the Ironclad on Ascension Level 1. I walk through card picks, deck evolution, event outcomes, elite fights, and boss battles. I also share my thought process as I adapt strategies from the digital version of the game to the tabletop format.

Throughout the run, I shift my build in response to damage taken, relics acquired, and the enemies I face. From a near-death elite encounter in Act 1 to a tense final showdown with the Chronomancer in Act 3, this was a satisfying and challenging solo session that ended in a win.

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🃏 About this session of Slay The Spire:

This is a full solo playthrough of Slay the Spire: The Board Game where I take on the Ironclad at Ascension Level 1. I go through all three acts, talking through my card picks, path choices, relic grabs, and just kind of figuring things out as I go. If you’re curious how this plays solo or want to see what a full run looks like with real-time decisions, this is that.

📘 Three Act Summary:

Act 1 starts off pretty rough with some early hits and a brutal elite that nearly ends it. Act 2 has me scrambling for better energy and damage control, trying to pull the deck into something usable. By Act 3 I’ve trimmed things down and focused the build, but the enemies scale fast and the boss has some weird mechanics that really force me to play carefully.

🔧 Relic / Deck Synergies for this run with Ironclad:

The deck ends up leaning hard into strength gain and burst damage, with Double Tap and Bludgeon doing a lot of the heavy lifting. I’ve got support from things like Shrug It Off, Battle Trance, and Impervious to keep me alive when things get sketchy. Relics like Anchor, Ink Bottle, Golden Idol, and Blue Candle show up at the right times and honestly make the whole thing work better than it probably should’ve.

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⏳ Verified Timestamps

ACT 1 – Ironclad Setup and Early Scramble
0:00:00 – Act 1 Begins: Ironclad Setup (Ascension 1)
0:13:30 – First Shop and Route Planning
0:24:45 – Elite Fight vs. Gremlin Nob (barely survive)

ACT 2 – Recovery and Refinement
1:01:08 – Act 2 Begins: The Champ Revealed
1:27:34 – Elite Fight: Taskmaster
1:37:32 – Boss Fight: The Champ

ACT 3 – Final Push and Focused Deck
2:01:05 – Act 3 Begins: Chronomancer Incoming
2:22:18 – Elite Fight: Nemesis
2:43:54 – Final Boss Fight: Chronomancer

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🧩 Session Highlights by Act

ACT 1:

I started with a flexible build but quickly realized my damage was outpacing my ability to block. A close call with the Gremlin Nob forced me to rework my approach, adding more defense and shifting priorities. I spent time planning routes carefully, balancing rest sites, card upgrades, and avoiding further early damage.

ACT 2:

I rolled The Champ as the boss and picked a central path with access to merchants and campfires. I added Impervious for block and experimented with some upgrades, but energy issues started to hurt. I got punished hard in a mid-act elite fight, which made me rethink a few of my earlier card choices. Despite the setback, I pulled things back together and used some lucky relic synergies and campfire healing to get through the boss.

ACT 3:

I took on the Chronomancer, knowing it would challenge my card pacing and burst timing. I chose a path that gave me two elites but also let me double up on campfires for upgrades and healing. I used the Golden Idol to stock up on potions and grabbed a relic before the final boss. The elites were rough, but I managed to survive thanks to some well-timed blocks and thinned-out cards. The final boss fight was tight, but my deck came together at the right time and I won.

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🃏 Important Deck Synergies

This run leaned into a strength-scaling attack build with a focus on exhaust mechanics and efficient draw. I adapted the deck across all three acts based on what the game gave me, especially after some early close calls.

• Double Tap Core: One of the most important pickups was Double Tap, which allowed me to duplicate high-damage attacks like Bludgeon. This became the core of my burst turns, especially after picking up some strength gain and thinning out my deck.
• Bludgeon as Finisher: Bludgeon gave me a reliable, heavy-hitting option that synergized perfectly with Double Tap and made elite and boss fights more manageable when drawn at the right time.
• Strength Scaling: I picked up Spot Weakness, which helped me build strength consistently in longer fights. This worked well with Strike variants and Bludgeon, especially by Act 3.
• Draw Support: I relied on cards like Battle Trance and Shrug It Off to maintain hand size and cycle into my key damage pieces. These also helped me dig for Double Tap or Spot Weakness at the right moments.
• Deck Thinning and Exhaust: Exhausting weaker cards helped tighten the deck over time. While I didn’t lean all the way into an exhaust archetype, being able to remove or exhaust low-impact cards helped make my stronger plays more consistent.
• Survivability Tools: I added Impervious, which became my go-to emergency block. Between that and some smart relic use, I was able to stabilize after tough turns without overcommitting to defense.
• Late Game Refinement: By Act 3, I had removed many of the starting Strikes and Defends, which let me hit more consistently. With fewer dead turns and the ability to line up strength and burst attacks, I was able to control the final boss fight effectively.

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💎 Key Relics Used

• Double Tap + Bludgeon worked best when paired with relics that let me cycle faster or manage energy. The synergy often hinged on having enough energy to pull it off.
• Anchor: Gave me 6 block at the start of each combat. This was especially useful early on or in fights where I couldn’t set up quickly.
• Golden Idol: This helped me access extra gold, which I used to pick up potions or relics. It was key to staying adaptable, especially in Act 3.
• Black Blood: Stacked with the Ironclad’s default healing to give me 3 HP per turn. This added long-term sustain and made a big difference in elite and boss fights.
• Courier: Let me preview relics and gave some merchant flexibility. Not always game-changing, but came in handy for resource smoothing.
• Ink Bottle (inferred from card draw at 5): Provided card draw on a rhythm, helping me hit important combo turns more reliably.
• Mutagenic Strength: Gave me an early burst of damage on turn one. This helped stabilize aggressive fights and clear early enemies before they could scale.
• Blue Candle: Extremely helpful for exhausting Confuse cards during the Chronomancer fight. Let me clear negative status without energy cost and keep my deck lean.

These relics didn’t create a single core engine on their own, but they supported my combos, improved consistency, and gave me more control over an otherwise very reactive run.

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