Slay the Spire 2 Sly Tricks Build — Master Planner Zero-Cost Loop

Published 2026-03-09Updated 2026-09-196 min read

The Silent Sly loop in Slay the Spire 2: Master Planner makes every Skill you play permanently free this combat, and Acrobatics plus Prepared plus Burst turns that into an endless draw chain.

Sly is the Silent's quietest mechanic and the loudest once it starts: cards with Sly go free when triggered, and the Power Master Planner ("When you play a Skill, it gains Sly") turns every Skill you play this combat into a permanently free card. The Sly loop deck weaponizes that: skills that cast for free, draw that never runs out, and a Burst-closed cycle that empties your deck into the enemy's face in a single turn.

The Silent among the cards in Slay the Spire 2
Every Skill you play is the last Skill you ever pay for.

The engine

  • Master Planner (Power) — when you play a Skill, it gains Sly. One copy is the whole build's ignition: Acrobatics cast once is free forever after.
  • Acrobatics ×2–3 (1) — draw 3 (4), discard 1. Once Sly, a draw-4 engine that costs nothing.
  • Prepared ×2 (0) — draw 1 (2), discard 1 (2). Free fuel with discard synergy attached.
  • Burst (Rare) — your next 1 (2) Skills this turn are played an extra time. The loop lock: a Bursted Acrobatics draws eight and leaves two free copies in hand.
  • Tactician (Uncommon) — energy when discarded. Funds the first turn before Master Planner comes online.

The payload while the loop spins

  • Dagger Throw (Common) — 9 (12) damage, draw 1, discard 1. An attack that keeps cycling.
  • Up My Sleeve — add 3 (4) Shivs, cost drops by 1 each play. Eventually free damage every loop pass.
  • Cloak and Dagger — 6 Block, add 1 (2) Shivs. Turns the loop into defense automatically.
  • Afterimage (Power, Rare) — 1 Block per card played. In a full loop this is a fortress you never bought.

Deck plan (18–22 cards)

The deck must be pure: Master Planner, the Acrobatics/Prepared cycle package, Burst, payload skills, and almost nothing else. Basic Strikes and high-cost attacks are dead weight — a non-Skill card in hand is a loop-breaker, not a resource. Delete aggressively; every removal raises the loop's stability. (See deck thinning.)

How the turn plays

  1. Ignite: cast Master Planner. From now on, every Skill you play gains Sly — free for the rest of the combat.
  2. Cycle: Acrobatics draws, Prepared filters, discards pay Tactician. The hand refills faster than it empties.
  3. Lock: Burst duplicates the loop cards — two Acrobatics for the price of one is where the chain stops ending.
  4. Cash: free Dagger Throws and Shivs hammer the board while Afterimage quietly walls you to full block.

The failure mode is simply not finding Master Planner: the deck without its Power is a mediocre draw deck. Tutors don't exist, so take two cycle density cards early, shop deliberately, and remember the loop only needs to start once — Sly never expires.

Keep reading:

Related Guides

Slay the Spire 2 Rocket Fist Infinite — The Status-Fed Zero-Cost LoopSlay the Spire 2 Overclock Status Engine — Burn Recycling with Rocket PunchSlay the Spire 2 Ironclad Pommel Strike Rush — Fast Draw Engine BuildSlay the Spire 2 Ironclad Infinite Strike — Perfected Strike Scaling BuildSlay the Spire 2 Poison Kill Build — Accelerant and Corrosive Wave SetupsSlay the Spire 2 Infinite Poison — The Corrosive Wave Draw LoopSlay the Spire 2 Silent Fan of Knives — Shiv AOE Build with AccuracySlay the Spire 2 Blade-Poison Hybrid — Knife Trap Burst with EnvenomSlay the Spire 2 Blade Bandit — The Classic Pure Shiv BuildSlay the Spire 2 Assassinate Build — Backstab Openers and Burst WindowsSlay the Spire 2 Starlight Engine — Balanced Star Deck and Route PlanningSlay the Spire 2 Radiate Burst Engine — Star Banking for One-Turn KillsSlay the Spire 2 Regent Particle Wall Loop — The Safest Infinite BuildSlay the Spire 2 Regent Infinite Chain — The Minimal Deck LoopSlay the Spire 2 Ten-Thousand HP Osty — The Hand Wall BuildSlay the Spire 2 Soul Drain Engine — Capture Spirit and Haunt LoopSlay the Spire 2 Ethereal Perpetual Motion — The Banshee's Cry LoopSlay the Spire 2 Doom Burst Build — Necrobinder Execution DeckSlay the Spire 2 Ironclad Vulnerable Engine — Dominate Wheelchair BuildSlay the Spire 2 Ironclad Vulnerable Stack — Bash, Tremble and Squash SetupsSlay the Spire 2 Perfected Strike Stack — The Upgrade-Heavy Ironclad DeckSlay the Spire 2 Ironclad Hellraiser Flow — Auto-Playing Strikes BuildSlay the Spire 2 Ironclad Exhaust Enchant Engine — Burn for StrengthSlay the Spire 2 Focus Lightning Build — Frost Defense, Thunder BurstSlay the Spire 2 Claw Deck — The Zero-Cost Swarm Build