Status Effects — Bleed, Poison, Stun & Slow

The game shows you status effect icons. It doesn't explain the rules. Bleed stacks are multiplicative. Poison has a burst threshold. Stun has diminishing returns. Slow has a hard cap. If you're building Venom Bow without knowing why 5 stacks matters, you're not playing the item correctly.

Bleed — Multiplicative Stacking

The key fact about bleed: each additional stack multiplies total bleed damage, it doesn't add to it. This is the most commonly misunderstood mechanic in the game.

Approximate DPS multipliers per stack (relative to 1-stack baseline):

• 1 stack → 1× (baseline)
• 2 stacks → 2.2×
• 3 stacks → 5×
• 4 stacks → 11×
• 5 stacks → 25×

This exponential curve is why Bleed Stack builds are considered S-tier in Endless Mode: the time investment to reach 5 stacks is high, but the payoff is substantial.

Poison — The 5-Stack Burst

Poison works fundamentally differently from bleed. Rather than scaling continuously, poison saves up to a burst at 5 stacks. The 5th application triggers an instant damage burst equal to 15% of the target's current HP, then clears all stacks.

This means the application rate matters enormously for Venom Bow. A slow Archer reaching 5 stacks over 10 seconds deals the same burst as a fast Archer reaching it in 3 seconds — but the fast Archer cycles the burst 3× as often. Attack speed is the primary damage lever for poison builds, not raw damage.

Poison vs Armoured enemies

The 5-stack burst is calculated against current HP, then reduced by armour. Against the Iron Warden (maximum armour), burst damage can be reduced by up to 60%. Bleed builds outperform poison builds against high-armour bosses — consider armour pen items to restore effectiveness.

Stun — Diminishing Returns

Stun doesn't stack multiple instances — re-applying stun to an already-stunned enemy just extends the timer (up to the base duration). However, applying stun multiple times in a short window triggers diminishing returns:

• 1st stun: 1.5s full duration
• 2nd stun (within 10s): 0.75s (50%)
• 3rd stun (within 10s): 0.375s (25%)
• Minimum floor: 0.2s — stun never becomes zero

Stun value in wave content

Stun shines against wave enemies, not bosses. A single Ban Hammer on a Defender creates a cycle: hit → stun → 25% damage amp on the stunned enemy → next hit before DR kicks in. Against dense normal waves, this is one of the highest-efficiency setups in the game.

Slow — The 70% Floor Cap

Unlike bleed (multiplicative) or poison (burst), slow is simply additive. Two 30% slow sources give 60% slow. Three 30% sources give 70% — you hit the cap, and the third source adds nothing.

The 70% cap means stacking slow sources past two is usually wasteful. The strategic value of slow comes from:

• Extending contact time with AoE effects (more Chain Lightning bounces before enemies exit range)
• Giving Defenders more time to generate threat before enemies reach key choke points
• Reducing the speed of airborne enemies that bypass ground formations

Cross-Effect Interactions

Status effects interact in specific ways that build theory depends on:

• Bleed + Slow — Slow extends the window for bleed ticks to apply, effectively increasing total bleed damage on targets that would otherwise exit range. Core interaction for the Bleed Stack build against fast enemies.
• Poison + Stun — A stunned enemy receiving the 5-stack burst also takes the +25% Ban Hammer amplification on the burst damage. The amplification applies to all damage, including burst damage.
• Stun + Bleed — A stunned enemy continues taking bleed ticks. The +25% damage amplification applies to all damage types while the target is stunned, including ongoing bleed ticks.
• Slow + Chain Lightning — Slowed enemies stay in Lightning chain range longer, increasing the average number of bounces per activation. The interaction is indirect but meaningful in clustered wave scenarios.

Best Items per Effect

• Bleed: Bleed Stack build items → Emerald Bow for application speed
• Poison: Venom Bow (primary), Emerald Bow (secondary for pierce-apply)
• Stun: Ban Hammer (8-hit proc, +25% amp bonus)
• Slow: Ivy Bow (root on hit), Venom Bow slow component as secondary

Boss Status Resistance