Challenges
Special constraints and clear strategies for every challenge deck
What are Challenge Decks
Challenge Decks are Balatro's special modes, played under unusual constraints. Each challenge changes the rules, so the usual strategies often don't apply. Clearing every challenge unlocks an achievement.
Unlock requirements: Winning on 5 different decks unlocks the first 5 challenges. After that, clearing each new challenge unlocks the next one. You need to clear 15 challenges to unlock all 20.
All Challenges and Strategies
1. The Omelette
Constraint: Only egg-themed jokers available, with a special starting deck.
How to clear:
- Squeeze maximum efficiency out of the limited joker pool
- Lean hard on The Egg for economy
- Planet card hand leveling is especially important
2. 15 Minute City
Constraint: A real-time countdown timer.
How to clear:
- Know your joker effects in advance so decisions are fast
- Prefer simple, powerful jokers over intricate synergies
- Minimise time deliberating in the shop
3. Rich Get Richer
Constraint: Economy rules are changed — the interest system is altered.
How to clear:
- Adapt cash management to the new interest rules
- The value of economy jokers shifts dramatically
- More aggressive joker picks may be called for
4. On a Knife's Edge
Constraint: Hands and discards are severely limited.
How to clear:
- Each hand must produce big points; XMult jokers are essential
- Aggressive deck thinning is mandatory — set up to always draw Full House or Four of a Kind
- Every hand counts, so your starting deck composition is critical
5. Golden Needle
Constraint: Gold-related effects are enhanced or altered.
How to clear:
- Gold Cards, Gold Seals, and related jokers shine
- Midas Mask converting face cards to Gold Cards is extremely powerful
- Maximise the Golden Joker's economy payoff
6. Non-Perishable
Constraint: All jokers become Eternal (cannot be sold or destroyed). Food items are unavailable.
How to clear:
- Joker selection is critical — once you pick it, you're stuck with it
- Consider resetting early until you find a joker that can solo-carry to Ante 5
- Scaling jokers (Red Card, Hologram) far outperform static-value ones
- Hologram (+×0.25 per random card upgrade) and Vampire are strong long-term scalers
- Invest heavily in Celestial packs and Tarots to strengthen your cards directly
7. Medusa
Constraint: Starting deck has 12 Stone cards; Marble Joker (adds a Stone card each round) is permanent.
How to clear:
- Stone cards generate high Chips, so Chip-based strategies thrive here
- Burnt Joker to scale High Card or Pair works well alongside the Stone cards
- Vampire or Driver's License quickly snowball when you have so many Enhanced cards
- Stone Joker provides additional Chips that scale as Stone cards accumulate
8. Typecast
Constraint: After Ante 4's boss is defeated, all jokers in hand become Eternal and joker slots drop to 0 — no more joker purchases.
How to clear:
- Complete your ideal 5-joker set before Ante 4
- Pick long-term scaling jokers from the start, since you can't sell after Ante 4
- Your Ante 4 setup is your final configuration
9. Locked In
Constraint: Jokers cannot be sold.
How to clear:
- Choose jokers carefully — they'll be with you for the full run
- Avoid niche jokers that may become dead weight later
- Prioritise versatile jokers that stay relevant throughout the run
10. Inflation
Constraint: Every purchase raises all shop prices by $1 permanently.
How to clear:
- Economy jokers are more important than ever
- Prioritise purchases carefully — every non-essential buy accelerates price inflation
- Maximise interest income to stay solvent
11. Penny Pincher
Constraint: Shop items are very cheap, but there is a coin cap.
How to clear:
- Manage the coin cap carefully
- Take advantage of cheap items before the cap cuts off your income
12. Bram Poker
Constraint: All scoring cards become Vampire Enhanced (removes Enhancement after each round they score).
How to clear:
- Multiplier-scaling jokers are essential since Enhancements get wiped
- Avoid relying on specific Enhancements for your primary scoring
13. What a Bunch of Jokers
Constraint: Joker slots are greatly expanded; scoring from non-Joker sources is limited.
How to clear:
- Focus on joker synergies and joker-to-joker interactions
- Baron, The Duo, and similar joker-chain cards excel here
14. Jokerless
Constraint: No jokers can be acquired.
How to clear:
- Straight is the most consistent strategy — playable early without deck fixing, and Saturn scales well late
- Stack card Enhancements via Tarot and Spectral cards
- Planet card hand leveling decides the win
- Vouchers are critical for boosting damage output
15. Fragile
Constraint: Very small hand size.
How to clear:
- Build for high scoring with few cards
- Flushes and other compact hands are more viable than hands requiring many cards
16. Monolith
Constraint: No Tarot cards or Spectral cards available.
How to clear:
- Card Enhancements come only from shop packs
- Pure joker and scoring strategy is the entire game
17. Blast Off
Constraint: Required scores scale extremely rapidly.
How to clear:
- XMult jokers are top priority
- Start scaling your build early or you'll fall behind
18. Five-Card Draw
Constraint: Hand size is permanently fixed at 5 cards.
How to clear:
- Target hands that use exactly 5 cards (Full House, Flush, etc.)
- Flush and Straight Flush with all 5 cards are especially powerful
19. I Love High Card
Constraint: Penalties or restrictions on non-High Card hand types.
How to clear:
- Use Steel Cards to massively amplify High Card multiplier
- Baron, Mime, and Bull can produce explosive multipliers in specific setups
20. Golden Needle (variant)
A harder version of the gold-themed constraints — see challenge 5 strategies above but applied to a later stage.
Universal Challenge Strategy
Read the constraints first
Read every challenge's rules carefully and know exactly what's allowed and what isn't. Finding the gaps in the constraints is the key.
Prioritise scaling jokers
In challenges, static-value jokers lag far behind scaling ones. Red Card, Hologram, Vampire, and Brainstorm are almost always worth considering.
Invest in Planets and Tarots
Since many challenges restrict jokers, Celestial and Tarot packs deliver more value per dollar than in a standard run.
Learn from failure
Challenges are usually cleared after several attempts. After each run, identify what was missing and apply the lesson next time.