STS2 Ascension Guide: All 10 Levels & How to Climb

~15 min read · Difficulty scaling, per-character strategies, co-op rules, and the STS1 vs STS2 comparison

STS2 Ascension: What Changed from STS1?

The biggest surprise: STS2 compresses difficulty scaling into 10 levels instead of 20. Each level stacks a stronger modifier, and at A10 you face all of them simultaneously — roughly equivalent to STS1 A15-17 territory. But don't be fooled: some modifiers are harsher than their STS1 counterparts, especially at the major jump points.

Ascension progression is per-character: unlocking A5 on Ironclad doesn't give Silent access to A5. You must earn each tier separately. Co-op mode tracks its own ascension level based on the lowest player's level in the lobby.

⚡ Quick Reference: The four biggest difficulty spikes are A5 (curse added to deck), A6 (fewer rest sites), A7 (worse card rewards), and A10 (double boss). Plan your climb around these breakpoints.

All 10 Ascension Levels — Modifiers & Strategy

Lvl	Name	Effect	Impact
A1	Swarming Elites	Elite encounters appear more frequently	Medium — more relic opportunities but more HP pressure
A2	Tough Normals	Normal enemies have increased HP and attack damage	Low-Medium — hallway fights become slightly more expensive
A3	Poverty	Enemy gold drops and chest gold reduced by 25%	Medium — less shop flexibility, fewer relic purchases
A4	Tight Belt	Start with 1 fewer potion slot	Medium — potion management becomes critical earlier
A5	Ascender's Bane JUMP	Start with a Curse card (Ascender's Bane) in your deck	High — permanently clogs your deck; removal priority skyrockets
A6	Gloom JUMP	Fewer Rest Sites appear on the map	High — less healing, fewer upgrades; pathing becomes critical
A7	Scarcity JUMP	Rare cards and upgraded cards appear less frequently in rewards	High — your best cards are harder to find; adapt to what you get
A8	Tough Enemies	All enemies are harder to kill (more HP/Block)	Medium-High — damage thresholds increase across the board
A9	Deadly Enemies	All enemies deal more damage	Medium-High — block requirements scale; chip damage adds up fast
A10	Double Boss JUMP	Act 3 ends with TWO bosses fought back-to-back	Critical — your deck must handle two completely different movesets

STS1 vs STS2: What's Missing?

If you played STS1, you might be wondering where the rest of the modifiers went. Here's what STS2 skipped from the original A11-A20:

No "Unfavorable Events" modifier — events aren't strictly worse, just naturally harder due to stacked difficulty
No "Boss chest gives less gold" — boss rewards remain consistent
No "Bosses get tougher movesets" beyond A10 — the 10-tier compression means bosses hit hard enough
No "Lose Max HP after boss" — your Max HP only changes through events/relics

The compression means every ascension level matters more. A single level jump can noticeably change your win rate.

⚠️ Note: This guide covers the Early Access state. Mega Crit has stated they may expand Ascension to 20 levels before full release. We'll update this guide when changes land.

Per-Character Ascension Climbing Strategy

Ironclad — Easiest to Climb

Ironclad's built-in sustain (Burning Blood heals 6 HP per fight) makes him the most forgiving character for ascension climbing. At A5+, prioritize removing Ascender's Bane at the earliest possible shop. At A10, a Corruption + Feel No Pain engine trivializes the double boss fight.

Key builds for A5+: Strength scaling (Demon Form), Exhaust engine (Corruption + Dark Embrace), Block scaling (Barricade + Body Slam). Avoid self-damage archetypes unless you have strong healing.

👉 Full strategy: Ironclad Exhaust Build Guide

Silent — Steep Learning Curve

Silent struggles most at A7-A9 due to her reliance on specific rare cards (Catalyst, Wraith Form, Afterimage). At A7, when rare cards are scarcer, you must learn to win with Poison-light decks or Shiv-based builds that don't require Accuracy.

Key builds for A5+: Hybrid Poison/Shiv (flexible), pure Discard cycle (Calculated Gamble + Reflex + Tactician), Wraith Form Intangible stall.

👉 Full strategy: Silent Shiv & Discard Build Guide

Defect — Consistent But Grindy

Defect's orb system provides consistent block/damage regardless of card draw RNG. At A6 (fewer rest sites), Self-Repair becomes S-tier for sustain. At A10, a Frost-focused orb build with Blizzard or Barrage can handle both bosses without needing specific attack draws.

Key builds for A5+: Frost turtle (Glacier + Blizzard), Lightning spam (Storm + Tempest), 0-cost cycling (Claw + All for One), Plasma energy engine.

Necrobinder — New Character, Unique Playstyle

Necrobinder's summon mechanic scales differently than direct damage, making her stronger at higher ascension where enemies have more HP (Osty's damage isn't reduced by Tough Enemies modifiers in the same way). At A5+, prioritize removing Ascender's Bane using Forbidden Grimoire (post-combat card removal).

Key builds for A5+: Summon swarm (Legion of Bone + Reanimate), Doom stacking (End of Days + Reaper Form), Soul engine (Devour Life + Call of the Void).

Regent — High Ceiling, High Risk

Regent's Star [S] resource system and Forge mechanic are the hardest to consistently execute at high ascension. A7's Scarcity modifier hits particularly hard because key cards like The Sealed Throne and Genesis are Rare. At A10, Void Form's free plays become the most reliable path to beating the double boss.

Key builds for A5+: Star engine (The Sealed Throne + Genesis), Forge scaling (Furnace + Hammer Time), Sovereign Blade focus (Sword Sage + Seeking Edge).

👉 Full strategy: Regent Sly Build Guide

Co-op Ascension Rules

Co-op ascension works differently from solo:

Lobby level = lowest player's ascension: If you're A8 but your friend is A4, the lobby runs at A4
Progression tracked separately: Beating A4 co-op doesn't unlock A5 solo — they're independent tracks
Multiplayer modifiers stack: Enemies have more HP per additional player, and some ascension modifiers scale multiplicatively
Potion slots are shared: At A4, the potion slot reduction affects the entire team's available pool

Ascension Difficulty Tier List by Character

Character	A0-A4	A5-A7	A8-A9	A10
Ironclad	Easy	Medium	Medium	Medium
Silent	Medium	Hard	Hard	Hard
Defect	Easy	Medium	Medium	Medium
Necrobinder	Easy	Medium	Medium	Medium
Regent	Medium	Hard	Hard	Hard

General Ascension Tips

Path aggressively early (A1-A4): More elites = more relics before the difficulty spikes kick in
A5 is the first real filter: Start practicing with a Curse in your deck from day one. Visit shops early for removal
A6 forces pathing discipline: Without abundant rest sites, learn to estimate when you can Smith instead of Rest
A7 demands flexibility: You can't force your favorite archetype. Learn to win with Plan B and Plan C
Save potions for A8-A9 elites: The HP math gets tight; a Ghost in a Jar or Fairy in a Bottle can save a run
At A10, scout Act 3 bosses early: Knowing whether you face Time Eater + Awakened One vs. Donu + Deca completely changes your card picks

🔑 Pro Tip: If you're stuck at a specific ascension level, drop down one level and practice winning with a different archetype. The skill that breaks through plateaus is adaptability — not mastering one build.

📖 Keep climbing! Next reads:

Deck Building Guide · Boss Strategy Guide · Card Database & Tier List