Balance Pass & Scene Immersion — Design Spec
Balance Pass & Scene Immersion — Design Spec
Date: 2026-04-06 Status: Implementing autonomously per user request
Research Sources
- GDC 2019: Slay the Spire Metrics-Driven Design
- Balatro scaling analysis (mattgreer.dev, balatrowiki.org)
- RogueBasin power curve principles
- Hades/Darkest Dungeon/Inscryption scene design patterns
Part 1: Balance Retuning
1A. Gold Economy (target: afford 25-35% of shop per visit)
| Source | Current | New | Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic combat | 8 | 5 | ~40% reduction |
| Elite combat | 20 | 12 | Elites still rewarding but not windfall |
| Boss combat | 40 | 25 | Big reward but not run-breaking |
| Skill tree gold/combat | +1 per node | unchanged | Keep as meaningful small bonus |
| Merchant Prince elite/boss | +10 | +8 | Slight trim |
Interest mechanic: +1 gold per 15 gold held after each combat, capped at +3. Creates Balatro-style "hold vs spend" tension.
1B. Shop Prices (raised ~60-80%)
| Item | Current | New |
|---|---|---|
| Common relic | 50 | 80 |
| Uncommon relic | 90 | 150 |
| Rare relic | 140 | 250 |
| Common consumable | 15 | 25 |
| Uncommon consumable | 30 | 50 |
| Rare consumable | 50 | 80 |
| Heal (20 HP) | 30 | 40 |
1C. Relic Slot Cap: 8 maximum
- Inspired by Balatro's 5-joker slot limit (scaled up for our 50+ relic pool)
- When at 8 relics and offered a new one, player must swap (discard one to take new)
- Forces build identity: can't just stack everything
- Reward screen and shop both enforce the cap with a swap UI
1D. Base Scoring Nerf (~15-20% chip reduction)
Reduce hand chips so early game isn't trivially high damage. Keep multipliers — relics should be where scaling comes from.
| Hand | Current Chips | New Chips |
|---|---|---|
| High Die | 2 | 2 |
| Pair | 5 | 4 |
| Two Pair | 8 | 6 |
| Three of a Kind | 10 | 8 |
| Straight | 12 | 10 |
| Full House | 14 | 12 |
| Three Pair | 16 | 13 |
| Long Straight | 18 | 15 |
| Two Trips | 20 | 16 |
| Four of a Kind | 18 | 15 |
| Full Keep | 22 | 18 |
| Four Pair | 24 | 20 |
| Five of a Kind | 25 | 22 |
| Royal Keep | 30 | 25 |
| Double Quad | 35 | 30 |
| Royal House | 38 | 32 |
| Six of a Kind | 40 | 35 |
| Seven of a Kind | 55 | 48 |
| Eight of a Kind | 75 | 65 |
1E. Enemy Scaling Per Act
Enemies should get tougher each act without needing separate monster pools.
| Stat | Act 1 | Act 2 | Act 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| HP multiplier | 1.0x | 1.4x | 1.8x |
| Damage bonus | +0 | +2 | +4 |
| Shield bonus | +0 | +3 | +6 |
Applied at combat start via dice_combat_manager.gd using SoloGameManager.current_act.
Part 2: Boss Rework
Per-Act Boss Assignment
| Act | Boss | HP | Identity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Beholder (lich) | 190 | Disruptor — snipes + chaos + steal rerolls |
| 2 | Shadow Kraken (hydra) | 220 | Bruiser — heavy attacks + flip + lock + defend |
| 3 | Arch Demon (dragon) | 250 | Full toolkit — burn + chaos + flip + heavy attacks |
Kraken Lord (serpent_rider) reserved for post-game/endless mode.
Boss Passive Abilities (unique per boss)
Each boss gets a passive that invalidates one common strategy:
- Beholder — "All-Seeing Eye": immune to Freeze. Can't be cheesed with ice combos.
- Shadow Kraken — "Thick Hide": absorbs first 5 damage per scoring turn (minimum 1 through). Punishes chip damage, rewards burst.
- Arch Demon — "Enrage": gains +2 attack damage each turn. Creates urgency — kill fast or die.
Boss Add Policy
- Act 1: No adds (solo boss, learning experience)
- Act 2: 50% chance of 1 basic add
- Act 3: Always 1 elite add
Part 3: Scene Immersion Redesign
Design Principles (from research)
- Background scene per screen (not generic panel)
- Items arranged spatially in the scene
- Character/object anchor with minimal animation
- Ambient particles (embers, dust, sparkles)
- Brief transition ritual between screens
Shop Scene
- Dark background with merchant table/stall feel
- Items laid out on a surface (spatial, not list)
- Shopkeeper character area at top
- Candle/torch particle effects
- Gold pouch visual for economy
Shrine Scene
- Altar centerpiece with mystical glow
- Blessing options arranged around altar
- Sparkle/magical particles
- Dark vignette framing
Rest Scene
- Campfire background (reuse hub campfire concept)
- Heal option as "rest by the fire"
- Ember particles rising
- Warm color palette
Trap Scene
- Dungeon corridor feel
- Trap mechanism visible
- Tension-building dark atmosphere
- Danger particles (sparks, dust)
Implementation Order
- Balance numbers (gold, prices, chips, enemy scaling)
- Boss rework (per-act assignment + passives)
- Relic slot cap with swap UI
- Scene redesigns (shop → shrine → rest → trap)
