Watcher

*"A blind ascetic who has come to "Evaluate" the Spire. Master of the divine Stances."*

The Watcher is one of four playable characters in Slay the Spire. She is a monk that utilizes the effects of her different  to her advantage, boasts an arsenal oriented around deck control via , , and  generation, as well as a unique focus on mid-combat card generation. She starts with 72 HP.

The Watcher's starting Relic is , which adds a  to your hand at the start of each combat.

The Watcher was first added to the beta build in the Testing the Fourth Character update and released to the public on January 15th, 2020.

## Cards

### Starting Deck

* 4
* 4
* 1
* 1

## Relics

The Watcher has fewer class-specific relics than the other classes, having only two class-specific rare relics (rather than three like the Ironclad and Silent), and only two class-specific boss relics (rather than three, like those two and the Defect). The Defect has equally few overall, but is short two Rare relics instead of one Rare relic and one Boss relic.

Uncommon Relics: ,

Rare Relics: ,

Boss Relics:  (replaces ),

Shop Relic:

## Strategy

The Watcher's gameplay centers nearly entirely around stances. She is, on average, much more powerful than the original 3 classes, owing primarily to the  stance that allows her to double damage output and thus kill every enemy before they can retaliate. However, not every fight will present an immediate kill opportunity, and thus care needs to be taken so that the Watcher does not get stuck in Wrath on a bad turn and take large amounts of unnecessary damage in return. To this end, mechanics such as  and several cards that have  allow her to carefully choose turn actions, including even a turn or two ahead, to make sure she has a way to change stances at will to either escape danger or generate energy.

Most Watcher strategies will center around a small selection of key cards that she will want to play over and over again. Also notably, the Watcher's starter deck has significantly more power than other characters', allowing players to be much more picky with card selection even at higher Ascension levels. Because of this, consistent Watcher decks tend to be much smaller than average. However, it is not impossible (albeit more difficult) to succeed with a larger deck full of value cards.

### Build types

Listed below are the standard synergies that Watcher decks build towards, which may give you an idea of direction for your own runs. Unlike other characters, because Watcher's starter Deck is so powerful, you can get away with "forcing" a build more often, even at higher difficulties. However, you should still be open to taking cards that solve your immediate problems if they arise, as well as have the awareness to switch gears should key cards not be offered to you.

The following are the key to success in Stance Dancing decks:
* 1-cost, reusable  entries (+, , or );
* 1-cost, reusable  entries ( or ) or a  with ;
* At least 1 copy of .

Keep in mind that switching between Calm and Wrath with 1-cost entries is -neutral, as leaving Calm refunds 2 Energy. This is what makes the Watcher such a powerful class - she has almost complete control of her Energy flow, being able to extract as much value out of every point as possible by either bursting down enemies, or banking Energy for a future turn. Ensure that you are building and playing such that you can fully take advantage of the value the stances provide.
Also strongly consider taking some of the following:
* is one of the best cards in this Deck, allowing you to end the turn in Calm as well as set up your next turn perfectly by recycling key cards. It also pairs excellently with  synergies if you choose to run cards such as  and .
* is a good one-two punch with  and gives you massive setup potential, especially if you have  - you can basically fill up your entire hand for the next turn!
* keeps your offense going as you switch stances and can help quickly put an end to hallway fights.
* becomes almost mandatory in this Deck as the best  plan available. Many non-infinite stance Decks take multiples of this card to ensure they never have issues blocking in the late-game.

* is also excellent, especially with  and , but can struggle against foes with .
* is also an excellent Block supplement and even scales multiple times with  if you have a source of it.
* The "Empty" cards (, , and ) are excellent in this Deck, and count as stance changes to trigger  and .
* In larger Decks,  and  are decent picks for their , letting you enter either stance at will (and for free when upgraded) on critical turns where you can't dig towards your reusable changers.

The key components to the infinite are the following:
* A 1-cost, reusable  entry (+, , or );
* A 1-cost, reusable  entry ( or ) or a  with ;
* At least 1 copy of ;
* Card draw to put your entire Deck in your hand (most commonly with  or ).

For the infinite, it's important to keep your deck as small as possible. If leaving yourself open to this build, do not take too many cards early on; one or two good damage cards to beat the first few Elites is enough.
The game plan with the Stance Dance infinite is simply to put  into play, then put your entire Deck in your hand. Then, enter Calm, and immediately exit to Wrath. Rushdown will redraw both cards you just played, and you will have lost no , as Calm refunds 2 Energy while it took 2 to play both cards. Repeat this process until the fight is over.
While this infinite is incredibly powerful and solves almost every fight in the game once established, it's important to be prepared for the few fights that can put a stop to this strategy. You must also take care during the transitional period between getting all of the pieces and slimming your Deck down enough to execute the infinite on turn 1.
* should be an auto-include if you are going up against the Corrupt Heart or Time Eater. These are the only two fights that will force you to generate . With enough stance dancing, you will blank all of their attacks, even if you cannot kill them in one turn.  will also suffice, but will not generate as much Block per cycle, especially against the Time Eater.
* has several uses in this build, most notably to ensure that you can execute the infinite against the Heart or Time Eater every turn. It also aids greatly if your Deck is still slightly too large to execute the infinite on turn 1. If you must spend your first turn playing your Powers or cards that Exhaust to slim down the Deck, Runic Pyramid helps you keep everything in your hand so that you are ready to go infinite the next turn.
* can be an absolute godsend in this build, allowing you to be several card removals ahead of the curve. You will only need to upgrade a few key cards, so the opportunity cost of Toking once those upgrades are done will be essentially nonexistent. For similar reasons, finding  should also push you towards this build.

Upon entering Divinity through generating 10 , the Watcher gains 3  and tripled damage, but the stance only lasts until the end of the turn. A successful Mantra strategy will thus look for ways to accelerate both its active and passive generation to consistently enter Divinity at the right times without sustaining too much damage beforehand. Afterwards, it should strive to extend each Divinity turn as much as possible.
Key cards and considerations in this build:
* can be an nice inclusion to this build, though it must be upgraded. Devotion is unfortunately very slow, but in longer fights (such as boss fights), it can be very powerful. It stacks very well with itself, and if you can somehow put 3 of these into play, you can enter Divinity every turn with ease.
* is one of the best active Mantra generators, as getting the free block on cast can make this a fine pick in the early game. However, the low amount of Mantra given (2, or 3 when upgraded) means that it's very difficult to enter Divinity off of just Prostrate alone.
* , on the other hand, is rarely worth taking. The issue with Pray is that it does literally nothing on the turn you cast it, unless you're entering Divinity. Additionally, because you had to draw Pray, then draw the , just to draw 2 cards, the end result is that you didn't draw any cards. This makes Pray one of the worst cards in the game for a normal deck, unless you're incredibly committed to achieving Divinity. However, if you can assemble a small enough deck (less than 9 cards) that can somehow generate a lot of energy, a Pray+ can essentially re-draw itself and an insight over and over.
* costs 2 energy, and generates 5 Mantra without doing anything else. Unlike Prostrate and Pray+, Worship is energy negative. However, it can allow you to enter Divinity through just two cycles of your deck, meaning Worship can be great as your only mantra-generating card. However, having this card be upgraded (which gives it Retain) is critical, as it means that it can be cast on turns where you have the energy, while also allowing you to enter Divinity at the perfect moment. Finally, if you're running , choosing Worship allows you to instantly enter Divinity, and costs 0 energy if Omniscience is upgraded, which is an incredibly powerful combo.
* Before entering Divinity, the Watcher should ideally be in  - this will provide a massive surge of energy and allow you to achieve lethal much more easily. Thus, 1-cost reusable Calm entries such as  and  are strong inclusions.
* After entering Divinity, you will want to make the most use out of the massive surge of Energy - thus, having a large hand is paramount. Any source of card draw, including , , , and Insights generated from Pray, are very powerful, as are attacks that retain from previous turns such as . Inner Peace can also provide card draw before the entrance.
* is also a strong choice for this deck. Divinity solves your damage, but can struggle against fights that force you to defend, which Wallop fixes by providing a huge burst of  while barely easing up on the offense.
* is a mediocre boost to Mantra generation if you can find it.

Other notes:
* Do not use , as it is counterproductive to what the deck is already doing.
* is a great option as it gives you a burst of  and . The latter is especially important as it will boost the blocking power of  and ensure you have no issues defending, especially against the Corrupt Heart. Once everything is set up, you will generate so much Energy that it offsets the loss from Fasting. However, it does make the early stages of the fight much more precarious, unless you have .
* is strong if you have a thin Deck with not a lot of attacks, as it can scale essentially unbounded and be a one-card damage solve. However, be wary of situations where Brilliance becomes a "win-more" card - Divinity offers plenty of damage already, so you may be set with what you already have.
* Ultimately, one of the best ways to consider Divinity cards is to consider how many cycles through your deck it takes to achieve Divinity. For example, a card that gives 3 mantra takes 4 deck cycles to reach Divinity, while a card that gives 4 mantra would take 3 deck cycles. Thus, you should ultimately achieve to have your mantra cards give a total of either 5 or 10 mantra each deck cycle.  and  can also help with this. As an example of a great Divinity deck, a deck with an upgraded , a , and a  can easily achieve 10 Mantra in just 2-3 turns.

* - This is your best card. If you find it early, grab it and upgrade it the first chance you can get. Upgrading gives it , meaning you will always draw it and only need one.
* - Your best attack card. With , it will be free in two turns. It is leagues more powerful than  in your average Watcher deck, as it can sit in your hand for a few turns, then be a free (or very cheap) 40 damage after casting Eruption. Picking up a Sands of Time early in Act 1 is often what gets you into the Retain build.
* - Your other attack card. This can sit in your hand and have its cost reduced thanks to , followed by a  change to Wrath, likely killing your target. However, it takes 4 turns to become better than Sands of Time, resulting in it usually being worse.
* - This card combos with  as well, since the two cards will be reduced as soon you pick them up. This will reduce the cost of any card you pick up, even if they don't have . As well, going into  can help end a big turn.
	+ You can set up a variety of infinites on small deck if you reduce cost of reusable cycling/draw cards, e.g. , .
* / - It is preferable to have at least one of each in your deck. No need to upgrade them if you have , since they will cost 0 one turn later.
* - It's rare, but the best defensive card for this build, especially because you will have many cards in your hand. Upgrade this if you can, though it is optional to do so.
* - This allows you to fill up your hand, picking up several  cards.
* - This is a great card regardless of your build. It is preferable to have one to help smooth out card draws.
* // - Your most simple cards. You'll likely want at least one of each defensive card, hopefully two  if you can find them.
* Of note, a couple of  cards can be useful. This helps filter out curses, and  can still be useful even if it isn't a  card.  alone isn't enough for this purpose.

* - The namesake of this deck, this card scales extremely well with the  stance as well as several other cards. Upgrading it is a must.
* - On an unupgraded , a single  will add an additional 25 damage to the attack. Stacking this card is very important for the burst attack.
* - This card is very powerful for any burst damage decks, triple damage and 2  with in practice no downsides if you can finish the fight that turn. The upgraded version lets you retain this card for the right moment when you'll draw .
* and/or  - Combining the vulnerable debuff on top of a wrath or divinity stance and  should kill most enemy or boss in one cast of ragnarok. An upgraded  is especially useful if using  as AOE on a group of enemies and to remove  stacks.
* - Saving the  given by this card will allow you to buff your  even more by allowing you to play more .
* - Gives you survivability while also allowing you to prune your draws just the way you like them.
* - Upgraded, this card lets you fill up your hand with potentially more  without losing any .
* - Gives your  more damage, however sacrifices some energy. Good if you get an early energy relic and can reliably draw .

* - Similar to , you will want as many of these as possible, as you can return them all to your hand multiple times per turn. When Scrying, these should always be discarded, since they will immediately return themselves to your hand.
* - Rewards you with  upon . Serves a similar function to  but for a  deck; if you have many of them, you can chain up large amounts of block effortlessly. Upgrade priority.
* - The best card to have at least 1 of for this deck. Every turn you trigger  and get to play every  again. Upgrading it/obtaining additional copies won't trigger this more than once, however it will allow you to fine tune your draw more carefully, and throw more  into the discard pile.
* - A distinctly powerful card that not only grants you a , but draws a card. The card draw is valuable for getting those Scry-curated cards from the top of your deck into your hand.
* - Brilliant utility card for this deck, since the scry amount matters far less than the act of scrying itself. Returning every Weave to your hand for free is the primary use of this coin.
* - Solid card with a scry effect. In case it isn't obvious, you want as many cards that scry as possible.
* - Just as with the Stance Dancer deck, attacking with numerous small attacks makes this card a fantastic addition to the deck, and can even enable you to safely remain in  if you so desire.

* - the focal point of the deck, get as many as possible and upgrade where possible.
* - Due to  not gaining a buff from being in , there's not much motivation to exit . Considers picking cards that help entering, or capitalize on remaining in
	+ - Helps you draw more  and cycle your deck faster while in .
	+ - Grants quite potent  while you remains in . Get as many as you can find to bolster this deck defensive nature.
	+ - Apart from entering , it can return one or two  that you have played to your hand. If you have this card, consider picking  to help reduce the cost of cards that  returns from discard pile.
* Exiting  may also be used to gain resources in a pinch. To avoid doubling enemy attack damage, consider cards such as , , and . The last two are especially effective in this deck as it grants  and card draw, respectively.
* - As you rely on , a Skill card, to deal damage,  will almost always help you draw additional cards and cycle your deck faster.
* - Can help stripping  off from enemies so that  can apply its debuff and deal damage.
* - Due to  costing 1, resources will continuously be your limiting factor. Anything that allows you to gain extra resources is a blessing.
* - Because , this deck's primary offense, is counted as a Skill, you will be able to play this card far more often.

* - The cornerstone of this deck, Master Reality makes every created card much more useful. Once upgraded, it costs zero energy to use.
* /  - Aggro powers that create useful cards every turn that crucially retain, enabling you to keep them until the perfect moment.
* /  - Defensive skills that create useful, self-retaining cards.
* - Insight and retain cards can quickly and reliably max out your hand, greatly augmenting the potential of this block.
* - This is a potential game winner, if connected to enough energy. This entire deck can be focused down to defending until you can produce a powerful enough Expunger, and then wiping the floor with that.
* /  /  - Aside from  and various relics, these cards are your best bets for generating the energy necessary to make the most of this deck.
* - Since most created cards retain, this card give you much more value from them.

* - The backbone of this deck. Alpha shuffles a Beta into your deck.
* - Beta shuffles Omega into your deck. This isn't a card you can pick up (unfortunately) but is rather something that is generated during fights.
* - Omega is a Power that, once played, will deal 50 damage to all enemies at the end of your turn. It is worth noting that it will deal the 50 damage EVERY turn. The damage is not affected by  stance or . Omega quickly clears hallway fights and elites - however, you may need to continue blocking for a few turns to finish bosses off.
* - Omniscience really shines in this deck. For 3 (or 4) mana you can essentially rip Omega right out of your deck and play it twice. That is 100 damage **per turn.** If you are in a really sticky situation it can sometimes be worth playing Omniscience on Beta to ensure that you will draw Omega next turn, but this is generally not advised.
* - This card gives you both block and scry, things that this deck really needs. Block is so you can live long enough to play Omega and scry so you can make sure that you draw it.
* /  - Whilst these aren't quite as good as third eye, they both work towards the blocking/surviving objective.
* - You need to be careful playing this card. It gives you block and draws cards at the same time which in theory are very good things for this deck. Also, your deck should be full of mainly skills cards so you shouldn't have any trouble triggering its secondary effect. However, if you play sanctity without enough mana to play the next stage of your alpha combo, you could be doing yourself a major disservice. *For example: you start the game with 3 mana. If you play alpha, then sanctity you only have 1 mana left. If sanctity draws Beta it then gets stuck in your discard pile.*
* - Omega's best friend. Similar to Omniscience but in potion form.
* sources such as  and  can be used to lessen the cost of Omega on the turn you cast it.

## Unlocks

The Watcher is unlocked by completing an unseeded run with any character (defeating Act 3 boss) while having the Defect unlocked.

## Gallery

The Character Select Screen for the WatcherThe Watcher update splash artThe Watcher in The Watcher in The Watcher in