Das Defekte Card Tier List
More balanced and better-designed than in Spire 1. Frost + temporary focus is the strongest plan; with no Act 4 pressure, setup is much easier. Defect wants small decks, draw consistency, and orb scaling. Temp focus from Hot Fix, Focus Strike, and Synchronize loops in your second deck cycle for massive value. Considered the second or third strongest character overall. Orb slots + focus are multiplicative — more slots means exponentially more passive damage and block.
Core Engine & Scaling
13 cards
S-tier cards form Defect's frost/focus engine. The strategy is simple: channel frost orbs, gain focus (temporary or permanent), and let passive orb damage and block outscale every encounter. Orb slot cards multiply the value of every focus point.
Erhalte 10 Block.
0-cost innate 10 block, exhaust. Don't trade HP for setup — slam this in Act 1 for free safety every fight. Enables safe setup on turn 1 when you need to play powers or channel orbs.
Erhalte 2 Orb-Slots.
+2 orb slots. S tier because it's multiplicative with focus. More orb slots = exponentially more value from every focus point. One Capacitor with Hot Fix is often stronger than Defragment alone.
Erschaffe 1 Frost für jeden Gegner.
0-cost channel 1 frost per enemy, exhaust. Upgrade removes exhaust. In multi-enemy fights = block a million HP. AoE block generation at Common rarity is absurd value.
Erschaffe 1 Frost. Ziehe 1 Karte.
1 energy channel frost + draw 1 (draw 2 upgraded). The core frost card for consistency. Frost + draw in one card means it never falls off. Less punished than in Spire 1 for playing early.
Erschaffe 1 Schatten. Löse die passive Fähigkeit all deiner Schatten-Orbs aus.
1 energy channel 1 dark orb, trigger all dark orb passives. Insane single-target scaling for boss fights. Upgrade triggers passives twice. Solves endgame damage entirely with dark orb stacking.
Erhalte 1 Fokus.
+1 focus (+2 upgraded). Made Rare in Spire 2, making it harder to find. But one Defragment is enough to outscale most encounters. The king of permanent focus — only permanent source besides potions.
Erhalte 1 Block. Erhöhe den Block dieser Karte permanent um 3.
Gain block that permanently increases by 3 every fight. By late game it reads 'cannot take damage.' Combos incredibly with Echo Form to double the permanent scaling. S tier for long-run consistency.
Erhalte 6 Block. Erschaffe 2 Frost.
2 energy for 6 block + channel 2 frost. Nerfed by 1 block from Spire 1 — nobody cares. Still the premium defensive card. Two frost orbs provide ongoing block every turn.
Erhalte für diesen Zug 2 Fokus.
0-cost +2 focus (3 upgraded). The best temp focus card at Common rarity — absurdly strong tempo play. Loop in your second deck cycle with draw consistency. Don't need draw order since orbs are already deployed.
Erhalte 1 Orb-Slot. Ziehe 1 Karte. Erhöhe die Kosten dieser Karte um 1.
0-cost +1 orb slot, draw 1, +1 cost to self. Free orb slot that replaces itself in hand. No downside first play. S tier — always take it when offered.
Erhalte für jeden unterschiedlichen Orb 2 Fokus in diesem Zug.
1 energy gain 2 temp focus per unique orb type, exhaust (upgrade: doesn't exhaust). Can hit 4-8 focus in diverse orb builds. With frost + dark + lightning + glass = 8 focus per play. Makes orbs block everything.
In jedem Zug wird die erste Karte, die du spielst, ein weiteres Mal gespielt.
3 energy: first card each turn is played twice. Still THE best card in the class. Double powers for permanent scaling. Double frost for double block. Double everything. Carries scaling fights entirely.
Erhalte [energy:4].
Rare: 0 energy gain 4 energy, exhaust. Massive burst acceleration for setup turns. Play powers and frost in a single turn. Premium energy that costs nothing but a card slot.
Strong Performers
15 cards
A-tier cards provide excellent value through damage, defense, or utility. They complement the frost/focus engine with additional scaling options, energy generation, or AoE solutions. Many are strong early game picks that remain relevant throughout the run.
Füge 5 Schaden zu für jeden Erschaffenen Orb.
1 energy deal 5 damage per orb channeled (buffed from 4). Scales well with orb slot builds. As fights get longer and temp focus fills your orb bar, Barrage becomes a boss killer.
Verhindere deinen nächsten TP-Verlust.
2 energy prevent next HP loss. Less critical without Heart's 67 damage turn, but still blocks Act 1 statue (27 damage). Excellent survivability power.
Erhalte 7 Block. Erhalte im nächsten Zug [energy:1].
7 block, gain 1 energy next turn. Premium block at Common rarity. Stops hallway chip damage. The delayed energy helps setup turns. Never falls off.
Füge 6 Schaden zu. Erschaffe 1 Frost.
1 energy deal 6 damage + channel 1 frost. Deal 6 now, block 2 for the rest of the fight. Solid dual-purpose Common that's always worth playing.
Füge 5 Schaden zu. Falls du in diesem Zug weniger als 3 Karten gespielt hast, ziehe 1 Karte.
0 energy deal 5 damage, draw 1 if fewer than 3 cards played. Solid tempo card. Don't double it with Echo Form — double something better. Good for early turns.
Erhalte 5 Block. Erschaffe 1 Glas.
1 energy gain 5 block + channel 1 glass orb. Glass is a new orb type for AoE damage. Evoked glass deals massive AoE. Decent scaling option for multi-enemy encounters.
Füge immer am Ende deines Zuges ALLEN Gegnern 6 Schaden zu, falls du Frost hast.
1 energy: end of turn, if you have a frost orb, deal 6 to all enemies. Condition is always met in frost builds. 6 AoE from turn 1 with zero effort.
Erhalte 3 Block. Nimm eine Karte aus deinem Abwurfstapel auf deine Hand.
3 block + retrieve a card from discard pile. Pull Boot Sequence, powers, Turbo, or Go for the Eyes. Flexible utility that adapts to any situation.
Füge 19 Schaden zu. Erschaffe 3 Frost.
3 energy deal 19 damage + channel 3 frost. Early game slam for big damage. Three frost orbs provide ongoing block. Solid for both offense and defense.
Löse zu Beginn deines Zuges die passive Fähigkeit deines ersten Orbs aus.
Start of turn trigger rightmost orb passive. Temp focus isn't active at start of turn, so output is slightly lower. One Loop is enough. Top of A tier for dark orb combos.
Ziehe immer zu Beginn deines Zuges 1 weitere Karte.
1 energy draw +1 card per turn. Line up Hot Fix and other temp focus cards more consistently. Draw engine power that smooths every turn.
Füge 10 Schaden zu. Wende 2 Schwach an. Erschaffe 1 Schatten.
2 energy deal 10, apply 2 Weak + channel 1 dark orb. Weakness is good for damage prevention. Dark orb kills bosses. Multi-purpose card.
Entlade deinen vordersten Orb 4 Mal.
Ancient: trigger rightmost orb passive 4 times. Insane with dark orbs for burst damage. Block 20+ with frost orbs. One of the strongest Ancient boons.
Füge ALLEN Gegnern 11 Schaden zu. Entlade alle deine Orbs.
1 energy deal 11 to all, evoke all orbs. Evoke frost for burst block + glass for AoE damage. Depends on focus level but incredibly powerful with setup.
Füge 24 Schaden zu. Falls der Gegner dadurch stirbt, erhalte [energy:3].
Deal 24 damage, gain 3 energy if enemy dies. Pseudo-AoE through kill + energy refund. Kill one enemy and use the refunded energy on the next. Great Act 1 pickup.
Viable Support
18 cards
B-tier cards have clear niches or serve as Act 1 bridges. They aren't core to the frost/focus strategy but can provide value in specific situations or deck configurations.
Füge 18 Schaden zu. Erhalte eine 0[energy:1]-Kopie dieser Karte auf deinen Abwurfstapel.
2 energy deal 18 damage, add a 0-cost copy to discard. Slow boss scaling but big early numbers. The 0-cost copy provides ongoing value.
Füge 7 Schaden zu. Erschaffe 1 Blitz.
1 energy deal 7 + channel 1 lightning. Worse than Spire 1 since there's less rush damage needed. Hallways don't kill as hard. Low A or B.
Verliere 1 Orb-Slot. Erhalte 2 Stärke. Erhalte 2 Geschicklichkeit.
2 energy: -1 orb slot, +2 strength, +2 dexterity. Reprogram rework. Losing an orb slot is negligible or sometimes positive. Early game stat boost.
Erhalte 6 Block. Transformiere alle Status-Karten auf deiner Hand zu Treibstoff.
1 energy 6 block, transform a status card into Fuel (energy/draw). Status cards exist in the game. Top of B for status management.
Füge 7 Schaden zu. Ziehe 1 Karte für jeden unterschiedlichen Orb.
1 energy deal 7, draw 1 per unique orb type. With glass orbs now available, drawing 3-4 is more realistic.
Erhalte immer zu Beginn deines Zuges eine zufällige Macht auf deine Hand.
3 energy: add a random power each turn. Boss scaling that solo-solves long fights. More time to setup in Spire 2 makes this more viable. Top of A in some metas.
Erhalte 13 Block. Erhalte 2 Wunden in deinen Abwurfstapel.
1 energy 13 block + add 2 Wounds to discard. Power Through from Ironclad. Status package enabler. Care about redrawing Wounds later.
Füge ALLEN Gegnern 26 Schaden zu. Verliere 3 Fokus.
Deal 26 to all, lose 3 focus. Better in Spire 2 since more fights are killed by it outright. Skip if you can — it breaks boss fights if your focus can't recover.
Immer wenn du die erste Status-Karte in einem Zug ziehst, ziehe 2 Karten.
1 energy: first status drawn this turn, draw 2 extra. Works with Fight Through and Turbo. Status generation enabler.
Erhalte 9 Block.
1 energy 9 block. Big number for a simple card. Full block in hallway fights. Top B for pure defense.
Erhalte 4 Block. Erschaffe zu Beginn der nächsten 2 Züge 1 Blitz.
1 energy 4 block + channel 1 lightning. Slow block with passive damage. Lightning for chip damage over time.
Füge 24 Schaden zu. Erschaffe 3 Plasma.
5 energy deal 24 + channel 3 plasma. Unplayable for a long time, but when you can play it, the plasma orbs generate massive energy. Less necessary than Spire 1. Top B.
Füge 10 Schaden zu. Senke die Kosten dieser Karte auf 0 [energy:1].
1 energy deal 10, reduce cost to 0. Loopable 0-cost damage card after first play. Decent for builds that need repeatable damage.
Mische ALLE deine Karten in deinen Nachziehstapel. Ziehe 4 Karten.
0 energy shuffle discard into draw, draw 4, exhaust. Don't play if you want Echo Form — it pushes it further away. Can reset a bad hand. Bottom B.
Füge 13 Schaden zu. Ziehe 1 Karte. Wenn eine Status-Karte erzeugt wird, senke die Kosten dieser Karte für diesen Zug auf 0 [energy:1].
2 energy deal 13 + draw 1. Costs 0 when a status is created. With Turbo combo for free damage + draw. Can contribute to infinite loops.
Die nächste Macht, die du spielst, wird ein weiteres Mal gespielt.
Next power you play is played twice, exhaust. Situational but insanely powerful with Echo Form, Defragment, or Creative AI.
Immer wenn du eine Macht spielst, erhalte [energy:1].
When you play a power, gain 1 energy. Cheats energy for power-heavy turns. No Heat Sinks equivalent but still valuable. Top B.
Füge ALLEN Gegnern 6 Schaden zu. Ziehe 1 Karte.
1 energy deal 6 to all + draw 1. Weak AoE in Spire 1 but AoE is more needed now. Damage + draw is always welcome.
Situational Picks
15 cards
C-tier cards are generally skippable. They belong to weaker archetypes (zero-cost spam, status package) or have conditions too clunky to reliably trigger. Only take these in desperation or very specific builds.
Füge 10 Schaden zu. Nimm ALLE 0[energy:1]-Karten aus deinem Abwurfstapel auf deine Hand.
2 energy: retrieve all 0-cost cards from discard. The 'zero-cost paradox' — you need 0-cost cards in your discard BEFORE playing this. Draw order dependent and requires heavy deck building commitment.
Erhalte 4 Fokus. Verliere immer zu Beginn deines Zuges 1 Fokus.
Ancient: +4 focus, -1 focus per turn. Temp focus is already plentiful from Hot Fix and Synchronize. No Artifact to negate the downside. Trade boss relic if this is offered.
Erschaffe 1 zufälligen Orb.
1 energy channel 1 random orb. Random is bad — you want specific orbs. Could channel 2 orbs instead for the same energy.
Erschaffe 2 Schatten. Entlade immer am Ende deines Zuges deinen letzten Orb.
2 energy channel 2 dark, evoke leftmost orb. Eats your existing orbs. Weird anti-synergy with orb-stacking strategies.
Erschöpfe ALLE deine Status-Karten. Füge für jede Erschöpfte Karte einem zufälligen Gegner 8 Schaden zu.
Exhaust all status cards, deal 8 per exhausted. Need a bridge card for status generation. Turbo alone isn't enough. Too many setup pieces needed.
Erschaffe 1 Plasma.
1 energy channel 1 plasma. Recursion is gone and Recycle is nerfed. Less potential for infinite energy loops.
Entlade deinen vordersten Orb X Mal.
X energy: evoke rightmost orb X times. Less mega dark orb potential. ChemX helps but the card is situational.
Ziehe 2 Karten. Erhalte ein Brennen in deinen Abwurfstapel.
0 energy draw 2, add Burn to discard. Burns brick future turns. Need Hot Fix consistency to offset the downside.
Erschaffe 1 Blitz. Erschaffe 1 Frost. Erschaffe 1 Schatten.
2 energy channel 1 lightning + 1 frost + 1 dark, exhaust. Jack of all trades, master of none. Triggers Synchronize well but expensive.
Füge zweimal 9 Schaden zu. Erschaffe 2 Glas.
3 energy deal 9x2 + channel 2 glass. Clunky cost for mediocre output. Bottom of C.
Erschöpfe eine Karte. Erhalte im nächsten Zug [energy:2].
1 energy exhaust, gain +2 energy next turn. Worse than Recycle. Delayed energy is often too slow when you need it now.
Füge 7 Schaden zu. Ziehe 4 Karten. Wirf alle so gezogenen Karten ab, die nicht 0 [energy:1] kosten.
Deal 7 + draw 4, discard non-zero-cost cards. Can discard Defragment or Echo Form. The zero-cost paradox strikes again.
Immer wenn du einen Status erschaffst, füge ALLEN Gegnern 5 Schaden zu.
When you create a status card, deal 5 to all. How do you reliably generate status cards in your deck? Too conditional.
Erschaffe zu Beginn jedes Zuges 1 Glas.
1 energy: start of turn channel 1 glass orb. Delayed AoE that builds over time. Top of C for glass orb builds.
Immer wenn du eine Macht spielst, Erschaffe 1 Blitz.
When you play a power, channel 1 lightning. No Heat Sinks equivalent for card draw. Lightning alone isn't enough scaling.
Generally Avoid
4 cards
D-tier cards provide negligible value or actively harm your deck. Skip these unless you have literally no other option.
Füge 3 Schaden zu. Erhöhe den Schaden ALLER Krallen-Karten für diesen Kampf um 2.
Deal 3 damage, +2 to all Claws played. The eternal meme card. Desperation pick only — the damage scaling is too slow and requires too many copies to function.
Das erste Mal in jedem Zug, wenn du einen 0[energy:1]-Angriff spielst, nimm ihn zurück auf deine Hand.
2 energy: first 0-cost attack played returns to hand. Echo Form except bad — only works with 0-cost attacks. Too narrow to build around.
Füge 3 Mal 4 Schaden zu. Erhalte ein Verschleimt in deinen Abwurfstapel.
Deal 4 damage 3x, add Slime to draw pile. Status bridge card with embarrassingly low damage numbers. D tier.
Füge einem zufälligen Gegner zweimal 7 Schaden zu.
Deal 7 damage 2x to random enemies. Inconsistent with random targeting. When you need AoE, you need it to hit everything reliably.
Das Defekte Card Strategy Notes
- 1Frost-first: Best block engine in the game. Evoke frost orbs for burst block when needed. Each frost orb blocks for focus value passively — with 4-5 focus and 4 slots, you passively block 16-20 per turn.
- 2Temp focus: Hot Fix (0-cost +2 focus, Common!), Focus Strike, and Synchronize provide massive temporary focus. Loop them in your second deck cycle for value that exceeds permanent focus.
- 3Orb slots: Capacitor and Modded synergize multiplicatively with focus. More slots = more passive damage/block. One Capacitor can be worth more than a Defragment.
- 4Echo Form remains the best card: First card each turn plays twice. Double your powers, double your frost, double everything.
- 5Glass orbs: New orb type providing AoE damage. They tick down if not evoked, giving consistent spread damage. Good option for multi-enemy encounters.
- 6Avoid: Zero-cost spam (All for One) unless very committed — the 'zero-cost paradox' means you need 0-cost cards before playing All for One. Status package (Fight Through, Turbo) is harder to enter in Spire 2.
- 7Dark orbs solve single-target damage: Loop, Quadcast, and Darkness provide massive boss kill potential. Don't need infinite when orbs outscale everything.
Das Defekte Guide
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