Slice & Dice is a tactical roguelike where your party of five heroes fights enemies using dice instead of traditional combat systems. Each hero has a custom six-sided die with faces showing attacks, shields, heals, and special abilities. The strategic depth comes from rerolling dice, choosing which faces to use, and upgrading die faces at level-ups. With 100+ hero classes, 20+ difficulty levels, and runs taking 30-60 minutes, Slice & Dice is the most elegant dice-based combat system in gaming — simple to learn, endlessly deep to master.
Picking the right build determines how your experience plays out. These builds are ranked by overall effectiveness — factoring in damage, survivability, gear requirements, and how well they scale into endgame.
Quick Rankings
| Build | Tier | Playstyle | Core Gear |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warrior | A | Deal consistent melee damage, use Shield faces defensively, upgrade toward cleave for AoE. | Damage-boosting items, cleave upgrades, attack power bonuses |
| Mage | S | Use spell faces for AoE damage, reroll for spell faces on critical turns, upgrade spells for stronger effects. | Spell damage items, AoE boost, mana-related upgrades |
| Healer | S | Heal damaged heroes each turn, use Shield when healing isn't needed, keep the party alive. | Healing boost items, group heal upgrades, defensive items |
| Ranger | A | Deal consistent ranged damage, mark high-priority targets for team bonus damage. | Ranged damage items, critical hit upgrades, marking abilities |
| Specialist | A | Leverage unique class mechanics for effects other classes can't replicate. | Class-specific items, combo enablers, unique face upgrades |
A-Tier: Warrior
Warriors have dice weighted toward Sword (damage) and Shield (block) faces. Their upgrades focus on increasing damage per hit and adding cleave (multi-target damage). Warriors are reliable damage dealers with defensive utility. The Berserker upgrade path sacrifices shields for massive damage.
Core Setup
| Slot | Choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Equipment | Flaming Sword Die | An upgraded Sword face that deals fire damage plus burning DoT. |
| Core Gear | Damage-boosting items, cleave upgrades, attack power bonuses | Maximizes build potential |
| Stat Priority | Sword face damage, cleave ability, attack frequency | Optimal scaling |
| Key Mechanic | dice combat | Each turn, your five heroes roll their six-sided dice simultaneously. |
How to Play Warrior
Deal consistent melee damage, use Shield faces defensively, upgrade toward cleave for AoE.
Warriors have dice weighted toward Sword (damage) and Shield (block) faces. Their upgrades focus on increasing damage per hit and adding cleave (multi-target damage). Warriors are reliable damage dealers with defensive utility. The Berserker upgrade path sacrifices shields for massive damage.
What makes this build work: The synergy between Flaming Sword Die and dice combat creates a gameplay loop that outperforms other options. Core gear like Damage-boosting items, cleave upgrades, attack power bonuses amplifies this further.
Pros:
- Highest overall performance
- Clear stat priority (Sword face damage, cleave ability, attack frequency) makes gearing straightforward
- Works in all content types
Cons:
- Popular pick, resources may be contested
- Needs specific gear to reach full potential
S-Tier: Mage
Mages have dice with spell faces dealing AoE damage, debuffs, or utility effects. Their upgrade paths include Fireball (AoE damage), Ice (freeze enemies), and Lightning (chain damage). Mages deal the highest AoE damage but have fewer defensive options. The best heroes for clearing multi-enemy encounters.
Core Setup
| Slot | Choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Equipment | Ice Staff Die | An upgraded Spell face that deals ice damage and freezes the target (skip their next turn). |
| Core Gear | Spell damage items, AoE boost, mana-related upgrades | Maximizes build potential |
| Stat Priority | Spell face damage, AoE coverage, special ability quality | Optimal scaling |
| Key Mechanic | hero rerolling | You get free rerolls each turn to change unfavorable die results. |
How to Play Mage
Use spell faces for AoE damage, reroll for spell faces on critical turns, upgrade spells for stronger effects.
Mages have dice with spell faces dealing AoE damage, debuffs, or utility effects. Their upgrade paths include Fireball (AoE damage), Ice (freeze enemies), and Lightning (chain damage). Mages deal the highest AoE damage but have fewer defensive options. The best heroes for clearing multi-enemy encounters.
What makes this build work: The synergy between Ice Staff Die and hero rerolling creates a gameplay loop that offers reliable performance. Core gear like Spell damage items, AoE boost, mana-related upgrades amplifies this further.
Pros:
- Most versatile option
- Clear stat priority (Spell face damage, AoE coverage, special ability quality) makes gearing straightforward
- Works in all content types
Cons:
- Lower peak damage than S-tier
- Needs specific gear to reach full potential
S-Tier: Healer
Healers have dice weighted toward Heart (heal) and Shield (protect) faces. Without a healer, your party dies to sustained damage in longer fights. Healer upgrades include group heal (heal all allies), cleanse (remove debuffs), and revive (restore dead heroes). At least one healer is mandatory for consistent runs.
Core Setup
| Slot | Choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Equipment | Holy Shield Die | An upgraded Shield face that blocks damage AND heals the hero for the blocked amount. |
| Core Gear | Healing boost items, group heal upgrades, defensive items | Maximizes build potential |
| Stat Priority | Heart face healing amount, group heal ability, defensive utility | Optimal scaling |
| Key Mechanic | item shop | Between fights, a shop offers items that modify gameplay: extra rerolls, passive bonuses (all Sword faces deal +1), hero-specific upgrades, and new heroes to recruit. |
How to Play Healer
Heal damaged heroes each turn, use Shield when healing isn't needed, keep the party alive.
Healers have dice weighted toward Heart (heal) and Shield (protect) faces. Without a healer, your party dies to sustained damage in longer fights. Healer upgrades include group heal (heal all allies), cleanse (remove debuffs), and revive (restore dead heroes). At least one healer is mandatory for consistent runs.
What makes this build work: The synergy between Holy Shield Die and item shop creates a gameplay loop that offers reliable performance. Core gear like Healing boost items, group heal upgrades, defensive items amplifies this further.
Pros:
- Best survivability
- Clear stat priority (Heart face healing amount, group heal ability, defensive utility) makes gearing straightforward
- Works in all content types
Cons:
- Slower clear speeds
- Needs specific gear to reach full potential
A-Tier: Ranger
Rangers have dice with ranged attack faces and utility abilities (mark target for bonus damage, evade). Rangers deal reliable single-target damage from safety. Their upgrade paths include Sniper (high single-target damage) and Hunter (mark + bonus damage combo).
Core Setup
| Slot | Choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Equipment | Poison Arrow Die | An upgraded Ranged face that deals damage plus poison (stacking DoT). |
| Core Gear | Ranged damage items, critical hit upgrades, marking abilities | Maximizes build potential |
| Stat Priority | Ranged face damage, critical chance, marking utility | Optimal scaling |
| Key Mechanic | boss encounters | Every few fights features a boss with high HP, unique abilities, and powerful attacks. |
How to Play Ranger
Deal consistent ranged damage, mark high-priority targets for team bonus damage.
Rangers have dice with ranged attack faces and utility abilities (mark target for bonus damage, evade). Rangers deal reliable single-target damage from safety. Their upgrade paths include Sniper (high single-target damage) and Hunter (mark + bonus damage combo).
What makes this build work: The synergy between Poison Arrow Die and boss encounters creates a gameplay loop that provides a unique approach. Core gear like Ranged damage items, critical hit upgrades, marking abilities amplifies this further.
Pros:
- Strong in group/team content
- Clear stat priority (Ranged face damage, critical chance, marking utility) makes gearing straightforward
- Excels in its niche
Cons:
- Weaker solo performance
- Requires deep game knowledge
A-Tier: Specialist
Specialist classes (Bard, Monk, Alchemist) have unique die faces not found on standard classes. Bards buff the party, Monks have combo faces, Alchemists create potions. Specialists add variety and combo potential but require understanding their unique mechanics.
Core Setup
| Slot | Choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Equipment | Lightning Die | An upgraded Spell face that chains damage to 2-3 adjacent enemies. |
| Core Gear | Class-specific items, combo enablers, unique face upgrades | Maximizes build potential |
| Stat Priority | Varies by specialist type — Bard: buffs, Monk: combos, Alchemist: potions | Optimal scaling |
| Key Mechanic | class upgrades | At level-ups, you choose to upgrade one die face for one hero — changing a basic Sword (2 damage) to a better Sword (4 damage) or a special ability (3 damage + poison). |
How to Play Specialist
Leverage unique class mechanics for effects other classes can't replicate.
Specialist classes (Bard, Monk, Alchemist) have unique die faces not found on standard classes. Bards buff the party, Monks have combo faces, Alchemists create potions. Specialists add variety and combo potential but require understanding their unique mechanics.
What makes this build work: The synergy between Lightning Die and class upgrades creates a gameplay loop that provides a unique approach. Core gear like Class-specific items, combo enablers, unique face upgrades amplifies this further.
Pros:
- Unique, rewarding playstyle
- Clear stat priority (Varies by specialist type — Bard: buffs, Monk: combos, Alchemist: potions) makes gearing straightforward
- Excels in its niche
Cons:
- High skill floor, punishing when misplayed
- Requires deep game knowledge
Build Progression Path
- Start with Mage — the most forgiving option for learning the game
- Transition to Warrior once you understand core mechanics and have access to Flaming Sword Die
- Keep a Healer setup for content that keeps killing you
- Try Specialist for a fresh experience once you've mastered the basics
Gearing Tips
- Invest in your primary equipment first — it gives the biggest power spike
- Rerolling dice is free (up to your reroll limit) — use rerolls every turn. A bad face on your healer when healing is needed should always be rerolled. Don't accept suboptimal faces passively.
- Healing prevents more damage than extra offense in most situations — keeping your heroes alive for more turns generates more total damage than killing one enemy slightly faster.
- Don't spread upgrade resources across multiple builds until endgame
See our tier list for current meta rankings, or the beginner's guide if you're just getting started.
