Slay the Spire: Best preferences for Fast Animations

The primary goal for Slay the Spire optimization is Action-to-Result Speed. Standard settings include “Screen Shake” and “Wait Timers” that add seconds to every floor. This configuration focuses on enabling “Fast Mode” at the engine level and tweaking the frame-time settings to ensure that card plays feel instantaneous, which is crucial when trying to beat the “Heart” under a strict time limit.

Hardware Compatibility & Expectations

• Refresh Rate Independence: Slay the Spire’s logic is not tied to your frame rate, but running at 144Hz makes the card-drag animation feel significantly more responsive.
• Low-End Optimization: If you are playing on a laptop, disabling the “Post-Processor” in the config will prevent the game from heating up your CPU during heavy “Shiv” or “Poison” stacks.
• Touchscreen vs. Mouse: If using a mouse, these tweaks ensure the “Hover” and “Selection” lag is completely removed.

File Location

Slay the Spire stores its preferences in a folder named preferences within the game’s installation directory. Unlike other games, these are plain-text files organized by category:

[Steam Install Path]\steamapps\common\SlayTheSpire\preferences\STSDisplaySettings [Steam Install Path]\steamapps\common\SlayTheSpire\preferences\STSGameplaySettings

Technical Configuration (Code Block)

Open the STSGameplaySettings and STSDisplaySettings files with a text editor. Modify the following lines to maximize animation speed:

# STSGameplaySettings - Speeding up the logic
"FAST_MODE": "true"             # Mandatory for speed; skips card draw delays
"SUMMARIZE_STATS": "false"       # Prevents end-of-combat UI delay
"BLOCK_ANIMATION": "true"        # Set to true to bypass slow shield-gain effects

# STSDisplaySettings - Optimizing the render
"FPS_CAP": "144"                # Set to match your monitor Hz
"VSYNC": "false"                # Reduces input delay during card selection
"W_RES": "1920"
"H_RES": "1080"
"FULLSCREEN": "true"            # Use true for maximum GPU priority
"SCREEN_SHAKE": "false"         # Removes the impact delay after attacks

Strategy for Fast Animations

To ensure your gameplay is as fluid as possible:

• The “Fast Mode” Engine: While the in-game menu has a “Fast Mode” toggle, manually setting it in the config and ensuring SCREEN_SHAKE is off creates a “Turbo” effect. This removes the “waiting” period between a card being played and the enemy taking damage.
• Disabling Post-Processing: In the STSDisplaySettings, you can often find a POST_PROCESS toggle. Setting this to false removes the slight “glow” and “blur” effects, which speeds up the rendering of intent icons and status effects.
• Input Polling Fix: For competitive speedrunning, setting your mouse polling rate to 500Hz instead of 1000Hz can sometimes prevent “stuttering” in the Slay the Spire engine, which is built on Java and can occasionally struggle with ultra-high polling rates.

Key Performance Parameters

Parameter	Recommended Value	Impact
FAST_MODE	true	Dramatically shortens card-to-enemy interaction time.
SCREEN_SHAKE	false	Prevents the camera from “freezing” during heavy hits.
FPS_CAP	144 / 240	Ensures smooth card dragging and UI interaction.
VSYNC	false	Removes the “heavy” feeling of the mouse cursor.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Conclusion and Expected Results

By manually refining your preferences files to prioritize fast mode and zero screen shake, you are creating the most efficient deck-building environment possible. You can expect instant card resolutions, faster floor transitions, and a significantly more responsive UI for your high-level Ironclad, Silent, or Defect runs.