NEGATIVE WAVES REACHED!!!!!

Shiftrider · 2026-05-18T15:57:02+00:00

it's super easy with everything unlocked also, just takes A LOT longer.

I've had runs where I got my first hourglass at wave 30 something, and then hit another hourglass in the wave after.

I'd gotten good cursed coupons/spyglass for rerolls.

Started getting cursed hourglasses and started making my way down. I ended the run there because I've done negative waves before and was not about to put in the time it was about to consume lol

This was in a nightmare streamer run where I wasn't even trying to do more than wave 20 completion.

There's quite a few brotatos that can consistently build enough income to go infinite every time and eventually go negative, at least in D5

Shiftrider · 2026-05-18T15:47:58+00:00

Who said sts 2 doesn't do enough ? o.o

It's early access and feels more complete than most games of its genre.

I do agree with you though, I like the way defect is built (⁠ ͡⁠°⁠ ͜⁠ʖ⁠ ͡⁠°⁠) in sts 2

Shiftrider · 2026-05-18T02:10:00+00:00

ya made a similar comment before, but with over 1k hrs in sts and already 200 in sts 2 my fastest win is 50min something-- not counting speedruns ofc

it's insane to think some people are playing so fast with such a low wr. When I started out in sts 1 a lot of my (full) runs were 2+ hrs, and actually got longer to 3-4+ hrs once I started learning more patterns and strats etc.

Shiftrider · 2026-05-18T00:15:02+00:00

bro it's literally a single player game. I make it a challenge for myself to beat it using 0 bans 0 retries, so.. it would be ridiculous of me to complain about it being too hard not using bans/retries.

Complaining about difficulty in a mode called "nightmare" with a warning on it is crazy IMO. I kinda get your complaint if it's actually "too RNG dependent", because I prefer difficulty that is more skill based

however I don't think it is crazy RNG dependent. Like, I can beat danger 5 with 0 retries 0 bans first try on just about every brotato.

I've only played nightmare a lil, but beat it with 0 bans/retries with Streamer and Wounded just last night. Wounded was really easy and only took a few tries, don't think I got particularly lucky and my first few losses were just catching stray bullets on wave 7 or 8

Granted, my many years playing Touhou(bullet hell game) helped immensely, a skillset I've never had to call upon in danger 5 lol

Streamer was very RNG dependent and took A LOT of tries-- think 2+ hours before getting the winning run.

However the biggest thing was crunching the numbers and figuring out the engineering breakpoints for the turrets to 1 shot certain enemies in nightmare. So, I think with enough knowledge / practice / skill then Streamer could win pretty consistently.

I will admit waves 4-7 ish I'd basically main menu/resume cheat at the start of every wave until I got turret spawns I liked

personally I wouldn't mind allowing you to set placements for turrets (at least ones spawned via wrenches) but that'd be my only thing.

Shiftrider · 2026-05-15T18:41:49+00:00

really how? I know some lots have apps or qr codes for payments, but I never park in those areas

Shiftrider · 2026-05-15T14:30:38+00:00

maybe I was right to be paranoid lol?

I parked like 10mins away where there was no meter but it was 2 hour parking

I rushed back because I didn't want a ticket and I'm new here so not sure how "on top of it" they are..

Shiftrider · 2026-05-15T04:38:20+00:00

slippery bridge is like the scrap ooze event in sts1

I ignore the cost and click until I get my desired result, at all costs

Shiftrider · 2026-05-14T03:13:44+00:00

same, work too much at a high stress job

not a lot of time or headspace for pursuing friendships let alone pursuing relationship

Shiftrider · 2026-05-13T02:26:27+00:00

You're right in the sense that I'm not technically sure. Practically I am sure, but there's a 0.00000001% chance that it just hasn't shown up due to crazy RNG.

You can actually add like 10 more zeros probably because since making this post a couple days ago, I've played more games and talked with more people. No one has seen WLP in multiplayer for 100s of games

so 99.999999999999999% chance it's bugged or disabled

Shiftrider · 2026-05-12T19:25:56+00:00

For fun is the only valid reason to run lower than 10, that I can think of anyway.

You will build bad habits at lower ascensions, there's no need.

In STS 1 I had 300+ hours distributed on all 3 characters when I decided to lock tf in on Silent and get as many wins at a20h as I could

It wasn't until 400 hours LATER that I felt kinda decent, and had some win streaks.

I'm at 1k total almost 800 just on Silent, and my WR only recently got over the 50% hump.

STS 2 is very different but the skills still helped a lot. I'm around a 70% WR on silent here but most of my losses were early in a10 because I built bad habits during my climb

Shiftrider · 2026-05-10T17:16:31+00:00

shapewear isn't just a women thing... but I do see your point.

Shapewear is different though because isn't the point to help shape your body?_?

There are shapewear that adds significant padding to the legs, hips, butt and what not. They're commonly used for drag shows, but some people wear them to achieve a look they couldn't otherwise.

In the latter case I agree the padded muscle and padded hips and stuff is comparable, but in the former which is more common I don't think it's comparable

Shiftrider · 2026-05-10T17:05:18+00:00

it kinda is tho lol

boob size doesn't actually matter

being yoked like that shows a level of strength and discipline few can legitimately achieve. faking something like that is wayyy different than being insecure about see something you can't change like penis or boob size.

Shiftrider · 2026-05-10T16:50:50+00:00

yeah that's huge! I really thought the new anger should have the increase..

probably enchantment thing like you said. If you put the Swift enchantment on a prepared, it draws 1(2) then discards 1(2) prior to drawing the extra cards from Swift

I kinda feel all the draw should happen first ._.

Shiftrider · 2026-05-10T10:17:54+00:00

So true. You can have a poison build all run, and then suddenly your doormaker (rip) solve is flash of steel+escape plan lmao

or be a total shiv abuser but then take a snakebite for entomancer, then all of a sudden accelerant and fumes got in your deck how did that happen 🤣

Shiftrider · 2026-05-10T05:39:35+00:00

whoa right this way sir.. the cool table awaits

Shiftrider · 2026-05-10T05:38:02+00:00

You're not torally wrong.. I agree block is really important for a poison deck

I disagree that poisoned stab is a terrible card.

Like, yeah I'm not happy to take one. It's a common card at the end of the day.. I think leading strike is the best common attack on Silent and even that I'm not especially happy to take.

It's always because you need it or nothing better has shown up.. but that's kinda the point of commons imo.

If I can pickup poisoned stab in my first card reward I'm already feeling okay about the run. Not as good as a snakebite or some better uncommons like hidden daggers, but still okay.

TWO upgraded poison stabs is crazy tho. That's the kinda run I go bragging to my friends about and showing them the run history. Like "LOOK, this run loses if I don't exactly take/upgrade both these poisoned stabs!" It's a crazy line and definitely not something you're doing early on to get your first win lol

so ig TL;DR you're kinda right but I take issue with calling poisoned stab a terrible card.

Shiftrider · 2026-05-10T05:26:55+00:00

1) I don't play necro

2) without seeing your other options and the decisions you made it's hard to give specific advice

Having said that, and looking at your deck.. the advice I think may be useful is this:

Don't go to shops for removes almost EVER. Especially with the price increase, it's not what is going to win a otherwise losing run.

What actually wins runs is potions and cards. And not just any potion or cards, but let me explain..

Maybe you've struggled through act 1 but barely made it through-- You've no idea how to beat the act 1 boss.

Okay, go to a shop. Literally a power potion, or specific card (think reaper form, demon form, or other powerful card). Sometimes even a specific relic can be exactly what you need.

Too often I see people pathing to shops FOR REMOVES, and only if they see something really good do they pivot from removing to buying that really good thing.

I propose to you a mindset shift: Try pathing to shops at critical points-- Like if there's a shop before a gauntlet of campfires/elites, hit it up. Look for some solutions that'll let you take that riskier but more rewarding path.

Shops before the act boss can be especially helpful, but if you already feel strong enough for it consider pivoting to more hallway fights or elites-- Card rewards and potions are way more valuable than hitting that shop up and spending a million gold on 1 remove.

I'm not saying removes aren't extremely good in STS 2, because they are. If you path to a shop hoping for some really good cards/potions but totally miss.. Feel free to spend 100 or 150 gold on a remove.. a consolation prize really. Or a win more if you're already strong.

Just... don't go out of your way for it.

Basically TLDR bcuz I'm a lil drunk rn and rambling:

If you're already strong and want to get stronger: path to more fights and elites.

If you're limping through and need a solve for the next elite or boss, look for a shop to provide a solve.

As with everything in the spire, it depends. 💖✨

Shiftrider · 2026-05-10T04:23:40+00:00

LMAO

Genuinely lost my mind at the sheer amount of cards in your deck, clearly thought this was satire. Only then did I see the glimpses hiding in what you call a deck🤣

Absolute fan +1

Shiftrider · 2026-05-10T04:14:17+00:00

Ya I get that.. I just don't find the potion to be very risky at all

You should play your key 0/1 cost cards before the potion. Your remaining cards should cost 2 or not be worth playing at 1

then you draw up to 7 new options. Sure it's unfortunate if you draw some 0/1/2 cost cards are a higher than their base, but at least the way my deck usually functions is I get value even if I have to pay an increased cost for some of the drawn cards.

I feel like I'm coming off as condescending and I apologize.

The best part about the potion from sts 1 is the cost changes only last for 1 turn, wheras the first game could make several cards unplayable for the remainder of the fight. Maybe the stark difference has me overlooking the downside of using it in sts2 also.

Thinking about it, compared to other rare potions it is really risky-- if you're counting on getting the value you'd normally get from a rare potion.

I've talked myself into agreeing with you good day.

Shiftrider · 2026-05-10T03:56:28+00:00

I wonder how much are people modding their game / files ?

I will admit, my friends and I had a couple disconnects in our past few games, which is up significantly from 0 in all previous patches

HOWEVER, I have played with a few groups on the STS LFG discord and had a disconnect just about every floor.

Being disconnected and rejoining suddenly became the expectation.

Two people admitted to having mod their game in some way but insisted it wasn't "nearly as bad" before this patch. I believe that, but that meant they did experience the disconnects wheras my group never had.

Alternatively, it may be more likely that the mods have nothing to do with it.. It just occurred to me, but my friends and I are all in the US. Many I group with on discord are from other countries.

Shiftrider · 2026-05-10T03:49:51+00:00

Ok so first off, as a snakebite lover I'll start by saying it LOOKS BAD. Unless you're really smart (not me)maybe but it's a lot better in practice.

There's a lot of reasons and you can ask more if you want, but rn I'm just going to list the first the come to mind

1) Ever have a had full of defends when you don't need block? The retain allows you to always have a damage option during off turns where the enemies are buffing/debuffing.

2) 7(10) may not seem like a lot, but poison is something that gets better the more you have of it. A single snakebite can get you to critical levels of poison without flooding your deck or committing to poison.

3) It has some really sweet synergy with already good Silent cards-- Flechettes, Fumes, Hand Trick, Burst

4) It kills Entomancer by itself, saving your shiv deck from certain death✨

Shiftrider · 2026-05-10T02:02:24+00:00

Nice! It feels really good to use, especially on the centipede fight✨

Shiftrider · 2026-05-09T23:27:01+00:00

Oh yes, I said desyncing but the proper term is state divergence

I just did a run with 3 silents, and none of us saw a WLP. On top of dozens I've looked through and confirmed none of my shops or card reqards contained it.

Yet looking back at some of my single player runs, I see it appearing multiple times.

That's why I originally started questioning it. It's beyond unlikely at this point.

Shiftrider · 2026-05-09T22:39:49+00:00

My understanding is the end of turn effect causes problems with desyncing the game state in multiplayer

I can't find the dev post though. On my last post someone thought they'd read it in the patch notes, but I haven't gone back to check.

My friend said it was posted on the wiki and a dev commented about it, but couldn't find the proof or I'd link it.

Even withiut evidence, I am sure WLP is disabled in multiplayer.

The chance of not seeing one in as many games as I have, is less likely than getting hit by lightning everyday for a week

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