Most relics in Slay the Spire are small, positive and easy to take. The boss relic is different. You get one pick from three after the Act 1 boss and one after the Act 2 boss — the Act 3 and Act 4 bosses give nothing — and the most powerful options trade a permanent downside for +1 Energy every turn. Two choices per run, each able to make or break the climb, is why this is the decision worth studying.
So this guide starts with all 30 boss relics, then gives a take-or-skip rule for each, and only then covers the rest of the relic pool.
Boss relic tier list
The ranking assumes a typical deck at the Act 1 boss chest. "Situational" relics are excellent in one specific deck and poor or dangerous everywhere else. Character-only relics are marked.
S
Ectoplasm
+1 Energy every turn; you can no longer gain Gold. Only offered by the Act 1 boss chest (or Neow), so you keep the gold you have but earn nothing for the rest of the run. The Energy is worth more.
Sozu
+1 Energy every turn; you can no longer obtain potions. Potions you already hold still work. The mildest downside of any Energy relic.
Snecko Eye
Draw 2 extra cards every turn, but start each combat Confused: drawn cards cost a random 0 to 3. Seven cards a turn outweighs the randomness in most decks.
Runic Pyramid
You no longer discard your hand at end of turn. No downside on paper; the real cost is a hand clogged by Wounds, curses and other unplayables, with the 10-card hand limit.
A
Philosopher's Stone
+1 Energy; every enemy starts combat with 1 Strength. Dangerous against multi-hit enemies such as Book of Stabbing and Byrds.
Coffee Dripper
+1 Energy; you can no longer Rest at Rest Sites. You can still Smith. Strong if your deck sustains itself or heals another way.
Fusion Hammer
+1 Energy; you can no longer Smith at Rest Sites. Better after Act 2, when your key cards are already upgraded.
Cursed Key
+1 Energy; opening a non-boss chest gives a curse. You can skip chests, so the downside is partly under your control.
Velvet Choker
+1 Energy; you cannot play more than 6 cards per turn (copies from Double Tap or Havoc count). Fine for decks of expensive cards, crippling for Shiv or 0-cost decks.
Mark of Pain (Ironclad)
+1 Energy; 2 Wounds are added to your draw pile each combat. The Ironclad has many ways to exhaust them.
Frozen Core (Defect)
Replaces Cracked Core. If you end your turn with an empty orb slot, Channel 1 Frost. Steady free defence for most Defect decks.
Nuclear Battery (Defect)
Channel 1 Plasma at the start of each combat. In practice +1 Energy per turn while it stays in its slot, with no downside.
Violet Lotus (Watcher)
Exiting Calm gives 1 extra Energy. Turns the Watcher's basic stance dance into an Energy engine.
B
Busted Crown
+1 Energy; card reward screens offer 2 fewer cards, including boss rare rewards. Good once your deck is mostly built; bad in Act 1.
Black Star
Elites drop 2 relics instead of 1. Only pays off if your deck can keep fighting elites.
Empty Cage
Remove 2 cards from your deck on pickup. Clean and safe, but a one-time effect.
Astrolabe
Choose 3 cards, Transform them and upgrade the results. Turns Strikes and Defends into upgraded random cards.
Calling Bell
A common, an uncommon and a rare relic plus Curse of the Bell, which cannot be removed (Omamori can negate it). Three relics is a lot of value.
Sacred Bark
Potions are twice as effective (a few, such as Smoke Bomb and Elixir, are unaffected). Strong with Potion Belt or White Beast Statue.
Slaver's Collar
+1 Energy only in elite and boss combats. No downside, and those are the fights that matter.
Inserter (Defect)
Gain 1 orb slot every 2 turns. Slow; strongest in long fights and with Consume.
Runic Cube (Ironclad)
Draw 1 card whenever you lose HP. Good with self-damage cards such as Brutality, Hemokinesis and Bloodletting.
Ring of the Serpent (Silent)
Replaces Ring of the Snake: draw 1 extra card every turn instead of 2 on turn 1. You lose a card on turn 1, break even on turn 2 and gain from turn 3.
Holy Water (Watcher)
Replaces Pure Water: 3 Miracles at the start of each combat instead of 1. A strong first turn, nothing after.
C
Tiny House
1 potion, 50 Gold, +5 Max HP, 1 card and 1 random upgrade. Small bits of everything; rarely the best of three.
Black Blood (Ironclad)
Replaces Burning Blood: heal 12 HP after combat instead of 6. Safe, but the weakest use of a boss pick for most Ironclad decks.
Situational / avoid by default
Runic Dome
+1 Energy, but you can no longer see enemy intents. Only for players who know every enemy's pattern by heart.
Pandora's Box
Transforms every Strike and Defend into random cards. A coin flip that can wreck a working deck; most tempting in Act 1 with a thin plan.
Wrist Blade (Silent)
0-cost Attacks deal 4 extra damage. Excellent in a Shiv deck, near useless outside one.
Hovering Kite (Silent)
The first time you discard a card each turn, gain 1 Energy. Strong in a discard deck that discards every turn, dead weight otherwise.
Boss relic decision table
This is the table to open at the boss chest. Each row is the condition that makes the relic right or wrong for the deck you have now.
| Boss relic | Take it if… | Skip it if… |
|---|---|---|
| Ectoplasm | It is Act 1 and you are not planning a big shop run | You are holding a lot of gold you cannot spend soon |
| Sozu | Your deck wins without leaning on potions | You depend on potions for elites and bosses |
| Snecko Eye | Your deck has many 2–3 cost cards or wants more draw | Your deck is built on 0–1 cost cards and exact sequencing |
| Runic Pyramid | You can play or exhaust most cards you draw | You carry Wounds, curses or status cards you cannot remove |
| Philosopher's Stone | You can kill quickly or have Block to absorb the extra Strength | Your deck struggles with multi-hit attacks |
| Coffee Dripper | Your HP is healthy and you have other healing | You are low on HP or rely on Rest Sites to recover |
| Fusion Hammer | Your key cards are already upgraded | It is Act 1 and your deck still needs upgrades |
| Cursed Key | You can skip chests or have Omamori / Blue Candle | You need chest relics or have no way to deal with curses |
| Velvet Choker | Your deck plays few, expensive cards | Your deck plays many cheap cards, Shivs or copies |
| Busted Crown | Your deck is close to finished | It is Act 1 and you still need key cards |
| Runic Dome | You know every Act 2–3 enemy pattern | You are still learning the game |
| Mark of Pain (Ironclad) | You exhaust cards often | You also have Runic Pyramid |
| Black Star | Your deck can take on elites safely | You are already avoiding elites |
| Calling Bell | You want three relics and can live with one curse | Your deck cannot afford an unplayable card |
| Empty Cage | Your deck needs thinning and nothing better is offered | An Energy relic with a harmless downside is offered |
| Astrolabe | You still have several Strikes and Defends | Your deck is already lean |
| Pandora's Box | Your deck has no plan yet and you accept a gamble | Your deck already works |
| Sacred Bark | You carry many potion slots or get potions often | You have Sozu or rarely keep potions |
| Slaver's Collar | You want Energy without any downside | A stronger every-fight Energy relic is offered |
| Tiny House | The other two would hurt your deck | Almost any other option fits |
| Black Blood (Ironclad) | You lose a lot of HP every fight and nothing else fits | Any Energy or draw relic fits your deck |
| Runic Cube (Ironclad) | You play self-damage cards | You rarely lose HP |
| Ring of the Serpent (Silent) | Your fights last three turns or more | You need a strong first turn |
| Wrist Blade (Silent) | You play a Shiv deck | You do not |
| Hovering Kite (Silent) | You discard at least one card every turn | You discard only occasionally |
| Frozen Core (Defect) | You often end turns with an empty orb slot | You channel so fast your slots are always full |
| Inserter (Defect) | Your fights are long or you play Consume | You need orb slots immediately |
| Nuclear Battery (Defect) | Almost always | Another Defect relic fits your build better |
| Holy Water (Watcher) | You want a strong opening turn every combat | An Energy relic fits your deck |
| Violet Lotus (Watcher) | You enter and leave Calm regularly | You rarely use Calm |
Two boss relics stack badly with each other or with what you already own: Mark of Pain plus Runic Pyramid fills your hand with Wounds, and Sozu makes Sacred Bark pointless. Check your current relic bar before taking a second boss relic in Act 2.
Best common, uncommon, rare and shop relics
Outside boss relics you usually take what you are given, so the useful question is which ones to fight an elite for, or buy at the merchant. These fit almost any deck.
| Rarity | Best picks | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Common | Anchor, Lantern, Bag of Preparation, Vajra, Oddly Smooth Stone, Orichalcum | Anchor (10 Block), Lantern (+1 Energy turn 1) and Bag of Preparation (+2 cards turn 1) make every first turn stronger; Vajra and Oddly Smooth Stone give 1 Strength or 1 Dexterity each combat |
| Common | Preserved Insect, Pen Nib, Bag of Marbles | Elites have 25% less HP; every 10th Attack deals double damage; all enemies start with 1 Vulnerable |
| Uncommon | Shuriken, Kunai, Ornamental Fan | Every 3 Attacks in a turn gives 1 Strength, 1 Dexterity or 4 Block. The best scaling for attack-heavy decks |
| Uncommon | Horn Cleat, Mercury Hourglass, Letter Opener, Gremlin Horn | 14 Block on turn 2; 3 damage to all enemies every turn; 5 damage to all on every 3 Skills; Energy and a card whenever an enemy dies |
| Uncommon | Question Card, Pantograph | One more card on every card reward; heal 25 HP at the start of boss fights |
| Rare | Tungsten Rod, Torii, Incense Burner, Fossilized Helix | Lose 1 less HP every time; unblocked hits of 5 or less become 1; Intangible every 6 turns; the first HP loss each combat is prevented |
| Rare | Ice Cream, Gambling Chip, Unceasing Top, Dead Branch | Unspent Energy carries over; redraw your opening hand; draw whenever your hand is empty; a random card whenever you Exhaust (outstanding with exhaust decks) |
| Rare | Peace Pipe, Girya, Lizard Tail | Remove cards or gain Strength (up to 3 times) at Rest Sites; survive one death at 50% HP |
| Shop | Membership Card, Clockwork Souvenir, Orange Pellets, Toolbox | 50% off everything; 1 Artifact each combat; clear all debuffs after playing a Power, Attack and Skill in one turn; a colorless card each combat |
| Shop | Chemical X, Medical Kit, Strange Spoon | X-cost cards gain +2; status cards become playable; Exhaust cards are discarded instead 50% of the time |
Character relics
Each character has its own relics: 11 for the Ironclad and the Silent, 9 for the Defect and the Watcher. Their boss relics are covered above; these are the rest. For how each character's builds work, see the character guide.
Ironclad
| Relic | Rarity | Effect | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Burning Blood | Starter | Heal 6 HP at the end of combat | Why the Ironclad can take risky fights; think hard before swapping it at Neow |
| Red Skull | Common | +3 Strength while at or below 50% HP | Good with self-damage decks |
| Paper Phrog | Uncommon | Vulnerable enemies take 75% more damage instead of 50% | Strong with Bash, Thunderclap and other Vulnerable sources |
| Self-Forming Clay | Uncommon | Whenever you lose HP in combat, gain 3 Block next turn | Solid defence, best with self-damage |
| Champion Belt | Rare | Whenever you apply Vulnerable, also apply 1 Weak | Free damage reduction in Vulnerable decks |
| Charon's Ashes | Rare | Whenever you Exhaust a card, deal 3 damage to all enemies | Excellent in exhaust decks |
| Magic Flower | Rare | Healing in combat is 50% more effective | Burning Blood becomes 9, Black Blood 18 |
| Brimstone | Shop | +2 Strength each turn for you, +1 Strength for all enemies | Wins long fights fast; dangerous against many enemies |
Silent
| Relic | Rarity | Effect | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ring of the Snake | Starter | Draw 2 extra cards at the start of each combat | Smooths every first turn |
| Snecko Skull | Common | Applying Poison applies 1 extra | Core for poison decks |
| Ninja Scroll | Uncommon | Start each combat with 3 Shivs in hand | Strong in Shiv decks, decent anywhere |
| Paper Krane | Uncommon | Weak enemies deal 40% less damage instead of 25% | Big defensive gain; the Silent applies Weak easily |
| The Specimen | Rare | When an enemy dies, its Poison moves to a random enemy | Excellent in multi-enemy fights for poison decks |
| Tingsha | Rare | Each card you discard on your turn deals 3 damage to a random enemy | Pair with discard decks |
| Tough Bandages | Rare | Each card you discard on your turn gives 3 Block | Pair with discard decks |
| Twisted Funnel | Shop | Apply 4 Poison to all enemies at the start of each combat | Free damage in every fight, best in poison decks |
Defect
| Relic | Rarity | Effect | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cracked Core | Starter | Channel 1 Lightning at the start of each combat | Small but free |
| Data Disk | Common | Start each combat with 1 Focus | Every orb gets stronger; always good |
| Gold-Plated Cables | Uncommon | Your rightmost orb triggers its passive one more time | Strong with Frost or Dark orbs |
| Symbiotic Virus | Uncommon | Channel 1 Dark at the start of each combat | Free damage that builds through the fight |
| Emotion Chip | Rare | If you lost HP last turn, trigger all orb passives at the start of your turn | Good, but rewards taking damage |
| Runic Capacitor | Shop | Start each combat with 3 extra orb slots | One of the best Defect buys in the shop |
Watcher
| Relic | Rarity | Effect | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pure Water | Starter | Add a Miracle to your hand at the start of each combat | Free Energy on turn 1 |
| Damaru | Common | Gain 1 Mantra at the start of your turn | Free Divinity progress every fight |
| Duality | Uncommon | Whenever you play an Attack, gain 1 temporary Dexterity | Quiet defence for attack-heavy turns |
| Teardrop Locket | Uncommon | Start each combat in Calm | Pairs well with Violet Lotus |
| Cloak Clasp | Rare | At end of turn, gain 1 Block per card in your hand | Good with Retain and big hands |
| Golden Eye | Rare | Whenever you Scry, Scry 2 more | Only matters in Scry decks |
| Melange | Shop | Scry 3 whenever you shuffle your draw pile | Good in small decks |
How relics are obtained
| Source | What you get |
|---|---|
| Elites | 1 random relic every time (2 with Black Star). The main way to add relics |
| Treasure chests | 1 relic. Small chests lean common, large chests lean uncommon and rare |
| Merchant | 3 relics; the rightmost is always a Shop relic. Roughly 150 Gold for common and Shop relics, 250 for uncommon and 300 for rare |
| Act 1 and Act 2 bosses | Choose 1 of 3 boss relics. The Act 3 and Act 4 bosses give no relic |
| Events | Event-only relics from specific outcomes |
| Neow | A common relic, a rare relic (with a drawback) or a random boss relic in place of your starter |
Outside chests, the usual rarity odds for a random relic are about 50% common, 33% uncommon and 17% rare. The relics that boost elite fights — Preserved Insect, Sling of Courage, Slaver's Collar and Black Star — make elite hunting the fastest way to build a relic bar, but only once your deck can win those fights; the beginner guide covers when to path into elites.
Neow's options at the start
If you reached the Act 1 boss in your previous run, Neow offers four blessings and you choose one. If you did not, you only get Max HP or Neow's Lament.
| Slot | Possible options |
|---|---|
| 1st (card) | Remove a card, transform a card, upgrade a card, choose a class card, choose an uncommon colorless card, or a random rare card |
| 2nd (non-card) | Max HP (+8 Ironclad / +6 Silent / +7 Defect and Watcher), Neow's Lament (enemies in your first 3 combats have 1 HP), a random common relic, 100 Gold, or 3 potions |
| 3rd (trade-off) | A drawback (lose Max HP, take damage, gain a curse, or lose all Gold) paired with a bigger reward such as removing 2 cards, transforming 2 cards, 250 Gold, a rare card or a random rare relic |
| 4th (always) | Replace your starter relic with a random boss relic |
The 4th option is a blind pull from the boss relic pool, so you may get Runic Dome or Pandora's Box. It also removes the starter relic, which means Black Blood, Ring of the Serpent, Frozen Core and Holy Water cannot appear at later boss chests that run.
Common mistakes
- Taking every Energy relic on reflex. +1 Energy does not help a deck that cannot see enemy intents (Runic Dome), draws one card reward in Act 1 (Busted Crown), or plays seven Shivs a turn (Velvet Choker).
- Taking Coffee Dripper on low HP. You lose the Rest option for the rest of the run. If you arrive at the boss chest hurt and without other healing, it can end the run within the next act.
- Taking Fusion Hammer in Act 1. Most of your upgrades still lie ahead after the Act 1 boss. After the Act 2 boss, with key cards already upgraded, the same relic is much safer.
- Ignoring how two relics interact. Mark of Pain with Runic Pyramid, or Sacred Bark with Sozu, wastes one of your two boss picks.
- Taking Pandora's Box into a deck that already works. It removes your Strikes and Defends, but what you get back is random, and every Defend goes with them.
- Hoarding gold before Ectoplasm. Gold you hold when you take it is kept, so spend it at the next shop.
Boss fights are where these choices pay off; the Ascension guide covers boss patterns and the stacking penalties that make relic choice matter more at higher levels. Our overall view of the game is in the review.
★Honest Take: the boss chest is a deck check, not a shopping list
The boss relic pick is where Slay the Spire is most honest about its design. Almost every strong option asks what your deck can live without — potions, rest, gold, intents, card choices — and the right answer changes from run to run. That is also its weak point for newer players: tier lists, including this one, make Runic Dome or Busted Crown look like free Energy when they are not. Use the tiers to narrow the three choices, and the decision table to make the final call. When you are unsure, the relic with the smaller downside is usually the better pick.
