Card Category
Power Cards
Complete guide to Power cards in Slay the Spire 2 — all persistent buff cards that define deck archetypes and win conditions.
Power cards in Slay the Spire 2 are a special subcategory of skill cards that provide persistent effects lasting the entire combat. Visually distinguished by their unique border and icon, powers are often the cornerstone of winning strategies, defining entire deck archetypes and enabling late-game scaling that makes boss fights manageable.
The most powerful powers create build-around effects that reward committed strategies. Corruption turns all skills into zero-cost cards at the expense of exhaustion, enabling incredibly fast and efficient turns. Demon Form provides enormous Strength gains each turn, turning every attack into a devastating weapon. Wraith Form grants intangible for multiple turns, providing near-invincibility during crucial moments. Each of these cards demands a deck built to support its specific playstyle.
Scaling powers like Defragment (Focus), Footwork (Dexterity), and Inflame (Strength) provide linear stat increases that compound over time. These are reliable, low-risk investments that strengthen every relevant card in your deck. The Defect relies especially heavily on scaling powers due to the Focus mechanic that amplifies orb effectiveness throughout every fight.
Draw and energy powers like Tools of the Trade, Machine Learning, and Berserk provide the engine that makes efficient decks possible. These powers improve your ability to access key cards and play more cards each turn, creating a snowball effect that grows stronger as fights progress.
When evaluating powers, consider the opportunity cost. Playing a power uses an entire turn's energy and does nothing immediate for board state. Powers are best taken when you have enough defensive tools to survive the turn spent playing them. In shorter hallway fights, cheaper powers or no powers at all may be preferable.
Abrasive
Rare · Power · Silent
Gain 1 Dexterity. Gain 4 Thorns.
Accelerant
Rare · Power · Silent
Poison is triggered 1 additional time.
Accuracy
Uncommon · Power · Silent
Shivs deal 4 additional damage.
Afterimage
Rare · Power · Silent
Whenever you play a card, gain 1 Block.
Aggression
Rare · Power · Ironclad
At the start of your turn, put a random Attack from your Discard Pile into your Hand and Upgrade it.
Arsenal
Rare · Power · Regent
Whenever you play a Colorless card, gain 1 Strength.
Automation
Uncommon · Power · Colorless
Every 10 cards you draw, gain .
Barricade
Rare · Power · Ironclad
Block is not removed at the start of your turn.
Beacon of Hope
Rare · Power · Colorless
Whenever you gain Block on your turn, other players gain half that much Block.
Biased Cognition
Ancient · Power · Defect
Gain 4 Focus. At the start of your turn, lose 1 Focus.
Black Hole
Uncommon · Power · Regent
Whenever you spend or gain , deal 3 damage to ALL enemies.
Buffer
Rare · Power · Defect
Prevent the next time you would lose HP.
Bulk Up
Uncommon · Power · Defect
Lose 1 Orb Slot. Gain 2 Strength. Gain 2 Dexterity.
Calamity
Rare · Power · Colorless
Whenever you play an Attack, add a random Attack into your Hand.
Calcify
Uncommon · Power · Necrobinder
Osty's attacks deal 4 additional damage.
Call of the Void
Rare · Power · Necrobinder
At the start of your turn, add 1 random card into your Hand. It gains Ethereal.
Caltrops
Event · Power · event
Whenever you are attacked, deal 3 damage back.
Capacitor
Uncommon · Power · Defect
Gain 2 Orb Slots.
Child of the Stars
Uncommon · Power · Regent
Whenever you spend , gain 2 Block for each spent.
Consuming Shadow
Rare · Power · Defect
Channel 2 Dark. At the end of your turn, Evoke your leftmost Orb.
Coolant
Rare · Power · Defect
At the start of your turn, gain 2 Block for each unique Orb you have.
Corruption
Ancient · Power · Ironclad
Skills cost 0 . Whenever you play a Skill, Exhaust it.
Countdown
Uncommon · Power · Necrobinder
At the start of your turn, apply 6 Doom to a random enemy.
Creative AI
Rare · Power · Defect
At the start of your turn, add a random Power into your Hand.
Crimson Mantle
Rare · Power · Ironclad
At the start of your turn, lose 1 HP and gain 8 Block.
Cruelty
Rare · Power · Ironclad
Vulnerable enemies take an additional 25% damage.
Danse Macabre
Uncommon · Power · Necrobinder
Whenever you play a card that costs or more, gain 3 Block.
Dark Embrace
Rare · Power · Ironclad
Whenever a card is Exhausted, draw 1 card.
Defragment
Rare · Power · Defect
Gain 1 Focus.
Demesne
Rare · Power · Necrobinder
At the start of your turn, gain and draw 1 additional card.
Demon Form
Rare · Power · Ironclad
At the start of your turn, gain 2 Strength.
Devour Life
Rare · Power · Necrobinder
Whenever you play a Soul, Summon 1.
Drum of Battle
Uncommon · Power · Ironclad
Draw 2 cards. At the start of your turn, Exhaust the top card of your Draw Pile.
Echo Form
Rare · Power · Defect
The first card you play each turn is played an extra time.
Entropy
Rare · Power · Colorless
At the start of your turn, Transform 1 card in your Hand.
Envenom
Rare · Power · Silent
Whenever an Attack deals unblocked damage, apply 1 Poison.
Eternal Armor
Rare · Power · Colorless
Gain 7 Plating.
Fan of Knives
Rare · Power · Silent
Shivs now hit ALL enemies. Add 4 Shivs into your Hand.
Fasten
Uncommon · Power · Colorless
Gain an additional 5 Block from Defend cards.
Feel No Pain
Uncommon · Power · Ironclad
Whenever a card is Exhausted, gain 3 Block.
Feral
Uncommon · Power · Defect
The first time you play a 0 Attack each turn, return it to your Hand.
Footwork
Uncommon · Power · Silent
Gain 2 Dexterity.
Forbidden Grimoire
Ancient · Power · Necrobinder
At the end of combat, you may remove a card from your Deck.
Friendship
Uncommon · Power · Necrobinder
Lose 2 Strength. Gain at the start of each turn.
Furnace
Uncommon · Power · Regent
At the start of your turn, Forge 4.
Genesis
Rare · Power · Regent
At the start of your turn, gain .
Hailstorm
Uncommon · Power · Defect
At the end of your turn, if you have Frost, deal 6 damage to ALL enemies.
Hammer Time
Rare · Power · Regent
Whenever you Forge, all allies Forge as well.
Haunt
Uncommon · Power · Necrobinder
Whenever you play a Soul, a random enemy loses 6 HP.
Hello World
Event · Power · event
At the start of your turn, add a random Common card into your Hand.
Hellraiser
Rare · Power · Ironclad
Whenever you draw a card containing “Strike”, it is played against a random enemy.
Inferno
Uncommon · Power · Ironclad
At the start of your turn, lose 1 HP. Whenever you lose HP on your turn, deal 6 damage to ALL enemies.
Infinite Blades
Uncommon · Power · Silent
At the start of your turn, add 1 Shiv into your Hand.
Inflame
Uncommon · Power · Ironclad
Gain 2 Strength.
Iteration
Uncommon · Power · Defect
The first time you draw a Status card each turn, draw 2 cards.
Juggernaut
Rare · Power · Ironclad
Whenever you gain Block, deal 5 damage to a random enemy.
Juggling
Uncommon · Power · Ironclad
Add a copy of the third Attack you play each turn into your Hand.
Lethality
Uncommon · Power · Necrobinder
The first Attack each turn deals 50% additional damage.
Loop
Uncommon · Power · Defect
At the start of your turn, trigger the passive ability of your rightmost Orb.
Machine Learning
Rare · Power · Defect
At the start of your turn, draw 1 additional card.
Master Planner
Rare · Power · Silent
When you play a Skill, it gains Sly.
Mayhem
Rare · Power · Colorless
At the start of your turn, play the top card of your Draw Pile.
Monarch's Gaze
Rare · Power · Regent
Whenever you attack an enemy, it loses 1 Strength this turn.
Necro Mastery
Rare · Power · Necrobinder
Summon 5. Whenever Osty loses HP, ALL enemies lose that much HP as well.
Neurosurge
Rare · Power · Necrobinder
Gain . Draw 2 cards. At the start of your turn, apply 3 Doom to yourself.
Neutron Aegis
Rare · Power · Regent
Gain 8 Plating.
Nostalgia
Rare · Power · Colorless
The first Attack or Skill you play each turn is placed on top of your Draw Pile.
Noxious Fumes
Uncommon · Power · Silent
At the start of your turn, apply 2 Poison to ALL enemies.
Orbit
Uncommon · Power · Regent
Every you spend, gain .
Outbreak
Uncommon · Power · Silent
Every 3 times you apply Poison, deal 11 damage to ALL enemies.
Pagestorm
Uncommon · Power · Necrobinder
Whenever you draw an Ethereal card, draw 1 card.
Pale Blue Dot
Uncommon · Power · Regent
If you play 5 or more cards in a turn, draw 1 card at the start of your next turn.
Panache
Uncommon · Power · Colorless
Every time you play 5 cards in a single turn, deal 10 damage to ALL enemies.
Parry
Uncommon · Power · Regent
Whenever you play Sovereign Blade, gain 6 Block.
Phantom Blades
Uncommon · Power · Silent
Shivs gain Retain. The first Shiv you play each turn deals 9 additional damage.
Pillar of Creation
Uncommon · Power · Regent
Whenever you create a card, gain 3 Block.
Prep Time
Uncommon · Power · Colorless
At the start of your turn, gain 4 Vigor.
Prowess
Uncommon · Power · Colorless
Gain 1 Strength. Gain 1 Dexterity.
Pyre
Rare · Power · Ironclad
Gain at the start of each turn.
Reaper Form
Rare · Power · Necrobinder
Whenever Attacks deal damage, they also apply that much Doom.
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