Slay the Spire 2 Relic Guide 2026: Every Relic Ranked, Best Synergies & Boss Relic Choices

I swapped my starter relic for a boss relic on Ironclad and got Busted Crown (gain 1 Energy, -2 card rewards). I had 5 cards. I died to the Act 1 boss with a deck of 9 cards because I literally couldn't get enough cards. Boss relic choices win or lose runs. Here's which to pick.

Boss relic tier list (end of Act 1 — most impactful choice)

S-Tier boss relics (pick these over anything else 95% of the time): Runic Pyramid (don't discard hand — Runic Pyramid is the single strongest relic in Slay the Spire 2. Holding cards means you always have block on attack turns, always have damage on block turns, never waste energy), Snecko Eye (draw 2 extra cards per turn, all cards have randomized cost — draw +2 is one of the best effects in the game; randomized cost is net-neutral or positive with 2+ cost cards), Pandora's Box (transform all Strikes and Defends into random cards — removes your worst cards AND gives you actual good cards).

A-Tier: Cursed Key (gain 1 Energy — skip chests to avoid curses, 1 extra energy is always good), Coffee Dripper (gain 1 Energy, can't rest at campfires — if your deck has sustain like Reaper/Self Repair, this is S-Tier), Velvet Choker (gain 1 Energy, can't play more than 6 cards per turn — cripples Shiv/Infinite decks, free energy otherwise), Runic Dome (gain 1 Energy, can't see enemy intents — if you've memorized attack patterns, this is S-Tier; if you haven't, this kills you).

B-Tier: Fusion Hammer (gain 1 Energy, can't upgrade at campfires — manageable if you have Apotheosis or already upgraded key cards), Ectoplasm (gain 1 Energy, can't earn gold — you lose 300-500 gold per act, painful but survivable), Philosopher's Stone (gain 1 Energy, enemies gain +1 Strength — +1 Strength to all enemies adds up over 50 turns, worse than it looks).

C-Tier (rarely pick): Tiny House (upgrade 1 card, +5 max HP, +1 potion slot, +1 card, +50 gold — jack of all trades, master of none. Only pick if other options are catastrophic), Calling Bell (gain 3 relics, gain 3 curses — you're replacing deck slots with 3 dead cards, rarely worth it).

Never pick: Busted Crown (gain 1 Energy, -2 card rewards — kills your run. Card rewards are how you build a deck. -2 means you get 1 card choice per fight. You will not have enough cards to beat Act 2), Sozu (gain 1 Energy, can't gain potions — potions save runs, especially Ghost in a Jar and Fairy in a Bottle).

Common relic tier list

S-Tier: Bag of Preparation (draw 2 extra cards turn 1 — sets up your entire combat for free), Preserved Insect (elites have 25% less HP — makes every elite fight easier, adds up over a run), Orichalcum (gain 6 block if you end turn without block — free block every turn you don't play block cards), Anchor (start combat with 10 block — blocks first hit for free, saves 5-10 HP every combat).

A-Tier: Kunai (+1 Dexterity per 3 attacks — free Dexterity for Shiv decks / Silent), Shuriken (+1 Strength per 3 attacks — free Strength), Vajra (+1 Strength at combat start — small number, every attack adds 1 damage permanently), Oddly Smooth Stone (+1 Dexterity — permanent +1 block per Defend).

B-Tier: Happy Flower (gain 1 energy every 3 turns — slow but adds up over long fights), Lantern (gain 1 energy on turn 1 — good but turn 1 only), Pen Nib (every 10th attack deals double damage — line it up with your biggest attack).

C-Tier: The Boot (attacks dealing <5 damage deal 5 instead — helps vs Nemesis, mediocre otherwise), Dream Catcher (add random card on rest — don't rest often enough for this to matter).

Broken relic synergies (if you see these pairs, pivot your build)

Dead Branch + Corruption (Ironclad): Corruption makes skills cost 0 and exhaust. Dead Branch replaces exhausted cards with random cards. Every 0-cost skill becomes a random card. Infinite cards. This combo wins runs by itself.

Mummified Hand + Creative AI (Defect): Creative AI generates a random power per turn. Mummified Hand makes a random card cost 0 when you play a power. Every turn = free power + free card. Stack 10+ powers per fight.

Tingsha + Calculated Gamble (Silent): Calculated Gamble discards your hand. Tingsha deals 3 damage per discard. Discard 8 cards = 24 AoE damage for 0 energy. Repeatable.

Kunai + Shuriken + Shivs (Silent): Each Shiv attack counts toward both relic counters. Play 3 Shivs in one turn = permanent +1 Dex AND +1 Str. At 9 Shivs per turn: +3 Dex/+3 Str per turn. Block and damage become infinite.

Relic purchase priority at shops: Membership Card (50% shop discount — pays for itself 5x over) > Courier (5 new relics when you buy one — relic value machine) > Orange Pellets (cleanse debuffs when you play attack+skill+power in one turn — counters Snecko Eye downside, Heart debuffs, and self-debuffs) > Orrery (add 5 random cards — choose 1, skip 4, floor your deck's weak points).

Delete relic if you could remove one (least useful): Spirit Poop (literally does nothing — it's a joke item), Juzu Bracelet (fewer ? encounters — ? rooms are usually good), Tiny Chest (chests appear more often — but no longer hold relics, just gold/cards).