⚔️ Balatro: All 28 Boss Blinds and Counters
Boss Blinds are grouped by editorial risk, with their effects and practical responses. Check the specific boss against your current build before choosing purchases or playing a hand.
📑 Contents
🟢 Lower-risk bosses ★–★★ — often manageable with preparation
The House
(ザ・ハウス) ★★☆☆☆Effect: The first hand is drawn face down
Response: Less disruptive when Joker effects carry the scoring. Keep track of known card positions where possible.
The Wheel
(ザ・ウィール) ★★☆☆☆Effect: Cards have a 1 in 7 chance to be drawn face down
Response: Hands using fewer scoring cards, such as Pair or Three of a Kind, can reduce reliance on knowing every card.
The Mark
(ザ・マーク) ★★☆☆☆Effect: All face cards (J/Q/K) are drawn face down
Response: Less disruptive for builds that do not rely on face cards. Number-card Flushes and Straights are options.
The Fish
(ザ・フィッシュ) ★★☆☆☆Effect: Cards drawn after playing a hand are face down
Response: Favor scoring that is less dependent on identifying every card, and keep track of the cards already in hand.
The Water
(ザ・ウォーター) ★★☆☆☆Effect: Start with 0 discards
Response: A build that can score from the opening hand is less affected. Prepare a plan that does not depend on discarding.
🟡 Medium-risk bosses ★★★ — the threat depends on your build
The Hook
(ザ・フック) ★★★☆☆Effect: After each played hand, discard 2 random cards from the remaining hand
Response: Consider the cards that must stay in hand for your build. A larger hand can give more room to lose two cards, but it does not guarantee that key cards survive.
The Arm
(ザ・アーム) ★★★☆☆Effect: Playing a poker hand lowers that hand’s level by 1, to a minimum of level 1
Response: Compare how much scoring you lose from the level reduction. Level 1 hands cannot be reduced further; developing more than one hand gives alternatives.
The Club
(ザ・クラブ) ★★★☆☆Effect: All Clubs (♣) are debuffed
Response: Use scoring cards outside Clubs or change suits if your deck allows it. Wild Cards count as Clubs too, so they are not a general escape from this debuff.
The Head
(ザ・ヘッド) ★★★☆☆Effect: All Hearts (♥) are debuffed
Response: Use another suit or scoring that does not depend on the debuffed Hearts.
The Plant
(ザ・プラント) ★★★☆☆Effect: All face cards (J/Q/K) are debuffed
Response: Prepare scoring that does not depend on face-card effects or on face cards contributing Chips.
The Tooth
(ザ・トゥース) ★★★☆☆Effect: Lose $1 for every card played
Response: Consider the cash lost when choosing how many cards to play, and preserve the scoring needed to clear the Blind.
The Goad
(ザ・ゴード) ★★★☆☆Effect: All Spades (♠) are debuffed
Response: Use scoring outside Spades. Smeared Joker groups black suits and can widen the affected cards; it is not a universal counter.
The Window
(ザ・ウィンドウ) ★★★☆☆Effect: All Diamonds (♦) are debuffed
Response: Use scoring outside Diamonds. Wild Cards and Smeared Joker can still be affected, so check the actual debuffed cards.
The Manacle
(ザ・マナクル) ★★★☆☆Effect: Hand size is reduced by 1
Response: Hands that work with fewer cards, such as Pair or Three of a Kind, are options. Check whether hand-size effects can offset the loss.
The Pillar
(ザ・ピラー) ★★★☆☆Effect: Cards played in this Ante’s Small or Big Blind are debuffed
Response: Track which cards were played in the earlier Blinds of this Ante. Keep alternatives rather than relying on scoring those same cards again.
The Flint
(ザ・フリント) ★★★☆☆Effect: Base Chips and base Mult are halved
Response: Compensate with additive Mult and XMult Jokers. A leveled hand can still provide useful base values.
The Psychic
(ザ・サイキック) ★★★☆☆Effect: Must play 5 cards; they do not all need to score
Response: Select five cards even when scoring with a smaller hand such as Pair. Check that you have enough cards in hand before playing.
🔴 Higher-risk bosses ★★★★–★★★★★ — can expose a build’s main weakness
The Ox
(ザ・オックス) ★★★★☆Effect: Playing your most-played poker hand sets your money to $0
Response: Keep another hand available. Prepare a secondary scoring plan instead of depending only on your most-played hand.
The Wall
(ザ・ウォール) ★★★★☆Effect: The score target is 4 times the base Blind value
Response: Estimate your combined scoring before the fight. XMult is one way to raise output, but the actual requirement is enough total score.
The Eye
(ザ・アイ) ★★★★☆Effect: Repeated poker hand types do not score this round
Response: Prepare more than one playable hand type: Flush, Straight, Pair or another option your build can score with.
The Mouth
(ザ・マウス) ★★★★☆Effect: Only the first poker hand type played can score this round
Response: A build focused on one scoring hand can work well. Choose the first hand with the remaining round in mind.
The Serpent
(ザ・サーペント) ★★★★★Effect: After playing or discarding, draw exactly 3 cards
Response: Account for drawing three cards instead of refilling normally. It can alter hand size in either direction depending on how many cards you played or discarded.
The Needle
(ザ・ニードル) ★★★★★Effect: You can play only 1 hand
Response: Prepare enough scoring to win in a single hand, using your hand level, Joker effects and available consumables.
Violet Vessel
(ヴァイオレット・ヴェッセル) ★★★★★Effect: The score target is 6 times the base Blind value
Response: Check whether your full scoring sequence meets the enlarged target. Build Chips, Mult and XMult according to the part that is limiting output.
Amber Acorn
(アンバー・エイコーン) ★★★★☆Effect: All Jokers are turned face down and shuffled
Response: Builds less dependent on Joker order are less disrupted. Pay special attention to position-sensitive effects such as Blueprint.
Verdant Leaf
(ヴァーダント・リーフ) ★★★★☆Effect: All playing cards are debuffed until you sell 1 Joker
Response: If you need card effects or card Chips, plan which Joker you can sell to remove the debuff. Recheck the score after losing that Joker.
Crimson Heart
(クリムゾン・ハート) ★★★★☆Effect: One random Joker is disabled each hand
Response: Check which Joker is disabled before each play. A build relying on a single scoring Joker can vary greatly; estimate the current hand with that Joker inactive.
Cerulean Bell
(セルリアン・ベル) ★★★★☆Effect: Forces 1 card to always be selected
Response: Build a scoring hand that includes the forced card, or account for it when discarding. Check the forced selection again after drawing.
🛡️ General Boss Blind preparation
1. Check the boss before shopping
The next Boss Blind is visible at the start of an Ante. Read its effect before deciding which Jokers to buy or sell. Skipping a Small or Big Blind can offer a useful Tag, but it does not let you skip the Boss Blind.
2. Keep more than one scoring hand available
The Eye blocks repeat hand types, while The Ox penalizes your most-played hand. Having 1–2 secondary plans can help when one hand is restricted.
3. Check total scoring against the target
The Wall requires 4 times the base Blind value and Violet Vessel requires 6 times. Compare your full Chips × Mult output with the target; XMult is an important option, not a universal requirement for every build.
4. Check exactly which suit is debuffed
The Club, The Goad, The Window and The Head debuff Clubs, Spades, Diamonds and Hearts respectively. Smeared Joker groups red and black suits and can extend a suit debuff; Wild Cards count as every suit. Neither is a universal counter.
5. Prepare a one-hand scoring plan
The Needle allows only 1 hand. From Ante 6 onward, checking whether you could beat a boss in one hand helps identify a scoring shortfall early.
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