Most players avoid Act 1 elites in Slay the Spire 2. I ran 50,000 simulated runs to show you why that's a mistake, and exactly how to beat every single one of them. Fighting elites isn't just survivable. It's one of the highest value things you can do in a run. Three elites in Act 1 alone gets you roughly double the rare cards, three extra relics, and around 70 more gold compared to skipping them entirely. Do that through Act 2 as well and you're looking at six relics, two extra rare cards, and 200 gold before the Act 2 boss. That's run defining. The other thing most people don't realize is that elites are actually more predictable than regular hard combat. You know exactly which three you're going to fight. You can plan for them, draft around them, and save potions specifically for them. That predictability makes them easier to prepare for than a random hard pool enemy. This video is in three parts: why you should be fighting elites, a complete breakdown of every act 1 Underdock elite, and a complete breakdown of every act 1 Overgrowth elite including move cycles, damage graphs, and exactly what to prioritize in each fight. If you haven't seen my videos on why you die in Slay the Spire 2 or why your decks fail, check those out too, this one builds on both. https://youtu.be/zCh7P7O6NqM?si=XLxySSrlLMPu4DZ1 https://youtu.be/tjd-cG-lqxY Go check out AZOTH, the game I'm developing! https://store.steampowered.com/app/3637620/Azoth/ 00:00 Why You Should Fight Elites 07:04 Phantasmal Gardener 11:16 Skulking Colony 14:03 Terror Eel 18:33 Phrog Parasite 23:17 Byrdonis 25:54 Bygone Effigy