STS2 Events Guide: All 56 Events & Best Choices by Act
~20 min read · Complete event decision guide, risk analysis, and per-character recommendations
How Events Work in STS2
Events appear as question mark (?) nodes on the map. Each event presents a scenario with choices that can grant cards, relics, gold, healing, potions, enchantments, or card removal — often at a cost (HP, gold, curses). Certain events are act-specific and some require specific conditions (holding the Lantern Key, having enough gold, etc.).
Act-Specific Events Overview
STS2 splits events across 4 act pools: Hive, Glory, Overgrowth, Underdocks. Each act has its own event pool with different reward types.
Act 1 — Hive Events (Early Game)
Act 1 events tend to offer foundational cards, small heals, and early game relics. Prioritize events that improve your deck's baseline quality.
🟢 Amalgamator — S-Tier Act 1
Choice: Remove 2 Defends → get Ultimate Defend or Remove 2 Strikes → get Ultimate Strike.
Best Pick: Remove 2 Strikes + get Ultimate Strike. Strikes are your worst damage cards; replacing 2 with one strong card improves deck density immediately. ✅ Always take this.
🟢 Populating — Relic Encounter
Act 1 relic events are generally worth the HP cost because early relics scale across the entire run.
Act 2 — Glory Events (Mid Game)
Act 2 events are where runs are made or broken. Many offer high-risk, high-reward choices that define your archetype.
🟡 Colossal Flower — Gold Scaling
Choices: Extract Nectar (35/75/135 Gold at each depth) or Enter Center (lose 7 HP, obtain Pollinous Core relic).
Best Pick: Enter the Center for Pollinous Core if your HP is above 30. The relic provides ongoing value vs. one-time gold. Extract at depth 2 (75 Gold) if low HP.
🟡 Doll Room — High-Impact Relics
Choice: Examine (lose 15 HP, choose 1 of 3) / Pick Random (free random Doll relic) / Take Time (lose 5 HP, choose 1 of 2).
Best Pick: Examine if HP > 30. The ability to choose means you avoid the weak Doll relics. Take Time if HP is 20-30. ⚠️ Skip entirely if below 20 HP.
🟡 Self-Help Book — Enchantment Engine
Choice: Read Entire Book (enchant Power with Swift 2) / Random Passage (enchant Skill with Nimble 2) / Read Back (enchant Attack with Sharp 2).
Best Pick: Depends on your deck. Swift 2 on Demon Form/Corruption is game-winning. Nimble 2 on key block skills for Silent/Defect. Sharp 2 on multi-hit attacks.
🟡 Grave of the Forgotten — Soul Relic
Choice: Accept Soul (get Forgotten Soul relic) / Confront Truth (add Decay curse, enchant exhaust card with Soul's Power).
Best Pick: Accept the Forgotten Soul — a free relic with no downside. Confront Truth is only worth it if you have strong exhaust synergy (Ironclad) and can handle the Decay.
Act 3 — Overgrowth Events (Late Game)
Act 3 events focus on deck refinement and final preparations. Card removal, transformation, and enchantments are the priority.
🟡 Aroma of Chaos — Transform/Upgrade
Choice: Let Go (Transform a card) / Maintain Control (Upgrade a card).
Best Pick: Transform if you still have Strikes/Defends. Upgrade if your key cards are unupgraded. Typically Transform > Upgrade by Act 3.
🔴 Wellspring — Card Removal with Cost
Choice: Bathe (Remove 1 card, add Guilty curse to deck).
Best Pick: Only if you have curse mitigation (exhaust, discard) or the removed card is truly terrible (Ascender's Bane at A5+). Guilty is painful in thin decks.
🟢 Wood Carvings — Flexible Transformation
Choice: Bird (Transform starter → Peck) / Snake (Enchant with Slither) / Torus (Transform starter → Toric Toughness).
Best Pick: Bird for Silent/Necrobinder (Peck is a solid 0-cost). Snake for Ironclad (Slither on key attack). Torus for Defect (Toric Toughness synergy).
Crucial Events in All Acts
🟢 Doors of Light and Dark — Free Value
Choice: Dark Door (Remove 1 card) / Light Door (Upgrade 2 random cards).
Best Pick: Dark Door almost always. Targeted card removal is the rarest resource in STS2. Light Door only if your deck is already lean and lacks upgrades. ✅ Top-5 event.
🟢 Spirit Grafter — Heal for Meta
Choice: Let It In (Heal 25 HP, add Metamorphosis) / Rejection (Lose 9 HP, upgrade a card).
Best Pick: Let It In if below 50% HP. Healing 25 HP is massive. Metamorphosis is playable in most decks. Rejection only if you're near full HP.
🔴 Crystal Sphere — Gold Gamble
Choice: Payment Plan (gain Debt, Divine 6 times) / Uncover Future (pay 50 Gold, Divine 3 times).
Best Pick: Uncover Future if you have 80+ gold. Divining 3 times at 50 gold is efficient. Payment Plan is risky — Debt can ruin a run if you don't find a shop soon.
🟢 Tinker Time — Custom Card
Choice: Accept → Choose Attack/Skill/Power → Choose 1 of 2 rider effects.
Best Pick: Skill + Energized + Wisdom (gain 2 Energy, draw 3 cards) is the most universally powerful combination. Attack + Violence + Sapping for damage. Power + Expertise if you have key Powers unplayed. ✅ Always take Tinker Time.
🟢 Ranwid the Elder — Relic Trading
Choice: Give 100 Gold / Give a Potion / Give a Relic (get 2 random relics).
Best Pick: Give a Potion if you have a common one. Give a Relic if you have a low-value relic — 2-for-1 is excellent value. Pay 100 Gold only if you're loaded and the shop is far away.
Event Tier Ranking — Top 10 Most Impactful
| Rank | Event | Category | Why It's S-Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| ⭐1 | Doors of Light and Dark | Card Removal | Free, targeted removal — the rarest resource |
| ⭐2 | Amalgamator | Card Upgrade | Removes 2 Strikes, adds 1 strong card — early deck fixing |
| ⭐3 | Tinker Time | Custom Card | Creates a card tailored to your build — always good |
| ⭐4 | Doll Room | Relic | Up to 3 relic choices — can define your run |
| ⭐5 | Spirit Grafter | Heal | 25 HP heal is the biggest single heal in the game |
| ⭐6 | Self-Help Book | Enchantment | Enchantments are permanent power boosts |
| ⭐7 | Colossal Flower | Relic+Gold | Flexible: take gold now or risk for a relic |
| ⭐8 | Grave of the Forgotten | Relic | Free relic (Forgotten Soul) or strong enchant |
| ⭐9 | Wood Carvings | Transform | 3 different good outcomes — can't miss |
| ⭐10 | Zen Weaver | Card Removal | Paid removal at 125/250 Gold — worth it if loaded |
Per-Character Event Priority
Ironclad — Prioritize: HP Trades → Relics → Enchantments
Ironclad's sustain (Burning Blood) lets him afford HP-cost events others can't. Always take Colossal Flower to the Center, Doll Room Examine, and Symbiote (Corrupted enchant). Spirit Grafter is lower priority since he already has healing.
Silent — Prioritize: Card Transformation → Enchantments → Relics
Silent needs card quality over quantity. Amalgamator and Aroma of Chaos are top priority. Self-Help Book (Nimble 2 on key Skills) is excellent. Avoid HP-cost events if below 30 HP.
Defect — Prioritize: Power Support → Enchantments → Card Removal
Self-Help Book (Swift on Echo Form/Biased Cognition) is game-winning. Tinker Time for free energy or draw. Wood Carvings for Toric Toughness.
Necrobinder — Prioritize: Summon Support → Soul Generation → Enchantments
Grave of the Forgotten synergizes with her exhaust mechanics. Luminous Choir (remove 2 cards, get Spore Mind) is excellent for deck thinning. Avoid gold-cost events — Necrobinder is gold-hungry for card removal.
Regent — Prioritize: Star Generation → Colorless Cards → Transform
Colorful Philosophers (obtain 3 Regent cards) and Bundle of Joy (random Colorless) feed her card-creation engine. Aroma of Chaos to clean up starter cards.
Events to AVOID (Unless Desperate)
- Slippery Bridge — Losing 3 HP or a random card for nothing meaningful. Almost always skip.
- Field of Man-Sized Holes (Resist) — Normality curse is one of the worst curses. Only "Enter Your Hole" (enchant) is safe.
- Wellspring — Guilty is painful. Only take with curse mitigation or if removing Ascender's Bane.
- Crystal Sphere (Payment Plan) — Debt can end a run if you don't find a shop before the boss.
- Wongo's Leave — NEVER leave Wongo's. Downgrading a random card is terrible.
General Event Strategy Rules
- If your HP is below 20, choose the safest option — even if the reward is mediocre. Living to fight is better than dying for a relic.
- Free card removal is always S-tier — Doors of Light and Dark, Amalgamator, Zen Weaver (paid) are must-takes.
- Enchantments are permanent and stack — Self-Help Book, Field of Man-Sized Holes, Symbiote. Don't pass these up.
- Know your act — Act 1: build foundation. Act 2: take risks for relics. Act 3: refine and prepare for bosses.
- Gold events are better early — Spend gold on removal/shops. Gold earned in Act 3 is often useless if no shop remains.
📖 Plan your next run: