Slay the Spire 2: Why Players Are Avoiding Elite Fights

Slay the Spire 2, the highly anticipated sequel to the popular roguelike deckbuilder, launched in early access on March 5, 2026. While the game retains many of the core mechanics that made its predecessor a success, players are discovering that one particular element – Elite encounters – can be frustratingly unbalanced. Many are opting to avoid these challenging fights altogether.

What are Elite Encounters?

Elite encounters are a returning mechanic from the original Slay the Spire.¹ These encounters pit players against tougher enemies, offering potentially greater rewards such as Relics, increased gold, and upgraded cards. The map in Slay the Spire 2 presents branching pathways, and Elite encounters are visible, allowing players to choose whether to engage or attempt to circumvent them.

The Problem with Rewards

Despite the promise of better rewards, players are finding that the risk often doesn’t outweigh the benefit. The rewards from Elite fights, particularly Relics, can be underwhelming. Some Relics offer minimal advantages, making the difficult battles feel like a waste of resources. As one Redditor noted, cards in the game tend to be stronger on average than the Relics acquired through these encounters.¹

A Punishing Difficulty Curve

The difficulty of Elite fights is also a significant concern. Players report that even a single misstep can quickly lead to a loss of health and valuable items. This can leave them vulnerable in subsequent encounters and significantly reduce their chances of completing a run. A common sentiment expressed on Steam is that the fights often devolve into a “DPS race,” requiring players to focus solely on maximizing damage output rather than employing strategic deckbuilding.¹

Current Strategies: Avoidance is Key

As a result of these issues, many players are actively avoiding Elite encounters whenever possible. Unless forced into a fight by the map layout, they are prioritizing normal battles, and events. This strategy appears to be more effective for consistently progressing through the game, especially in the early Acts.

What Mega Crit Has Said

Mega Crit, the developers of Slay the Spire 2, are aware of the feedback regarding Elite encounters. As the game is currently in early access, they are expected to continue tuning and balancing the experience.² They have previously demonstrated a willingness to adjust mechanics based on player input.

Ascension Levels and Difficulty

Slay the Spire 2 also features Ascension levels, which add modifiers to increase the game’s difficulty. Currently, there are 10 Ascension levels, with each level introducing new challenges.⁴ These modifiers are stacked with each run, meaning the game becomes progressively harder as players climb the Ascension ladder.

Looking Ahead

While the current state of Elite encounters in Slay the Spire 2 is causing frustration for some players, it’s important to remember that the game is still under development. Mega Crit has a track record of responding to community feedback, and it’s likely that Elite encounters will be rebalanced in future updates. For now, many players are finding more success by strategically avoiding these challenging fights.

You can find more information about Slay the Spire 2 encounters, including a detailed look at Elites, on Mobalytics.³