In this guide I will try to inform you of the mode's mechanics as well as discuss some strategies I use that may help you beat the Gilded Spire. All of the information I post will be regarding the Blinding difficulty but aside from some specific things like exact damage numbers the information should be relevant to the other difficulties. Some of what I discuss will be subjective and If you find it easier to play in a different way then by all means don't copy me and stick to what you know.

Goliath
HP: 500
Damage: 91
Behaviour: Constantly chases you and swings its hammer

Gale
HP: 250 HP
Damage: 34
Behaviour: Tries to keep its distance from you and shoots projectiles

Gamble
HP: 375
Damage: Varies; Strike: 9, Replicate: 34, Bashing: 39, Furious: 71, Artillery: 91, Blazing: [Unknown DPS]
Behaviour: Varies. Replicate, Furious and Artillery Gambles behave similarly to Gale, Bashing chases you similarly to Goliath but dashes every 2~ seconds and Strike chases you, shoots projectiles when close and then retreats while reloading

Luster Mite
HP: 25
Damage: 11
Behaviour: Constantly chases you and dashes at you when close

Dragon Edge
Damage: [Unknown DPS]
Behaviour: A single turret circles the perimeter of the arena in a counterclockwise manner while spewing flames that deal damage and light you on fire

Wall Cutters
Damage: Unknown for now but these will instantly kill you in most cases, if you have a high base HP and just get caught by the edge you can survive.
Behaviour: Four saws circle the perimeter of the arena in a counterclockwise manner dealing great damage to you if you touch them

Snail Pulse
Damage: 0
Behaviour: Two snails circle the perimeter of the arena in a counterclockwise manner that emit a pulse that drastically reduces your move speed and jump height if you get caught in their radius

Laser Sweeper
Damage: 26
Behaviour: A single turret circles the perimeter of the arena in a counterclockwise manner while occasionally shooting slow moving bullets in the four cardinal directions Does not appear in normal Gilded Spire runs and only shows up in the Origins Gilded Gauntlet.

Targeting
Prioritise killing one enemy first instead of splitting your damage between all of them first as this will reduce the amount of things you need to dodge. I prefer to take out Gale first as the bouncing bullets limit your movement the most. Gale also has the lowest health so it can be killed quickly and the speed boost powerup is fairly weak compared to the others. If I'm confident in how I'm playing I will kill Gamble last but if I've taken a considerable amount of damage or I don't have faith in a run I'll play it safe and kill Goliath last as not only does the health upgrade increase your max health but it also fully heals you. For some weapons the damage upgrade is noticeably better than for others but I'll cover this later. Something that some players may not know is that if you kill Goliath and Gale in quick succession on floor 1 you will get the damage upgrade as opposed to one of the other two upgrades.

Movement
Goliath is fairly easy to avoid and something as basic as jumping up or down a few platforms and moving away from it will allow you to kite it.

Gale is trickier as you have to keep focused to avoid the many bouncing bullets that can approach from any angle. Taking cover behind walls can be good to catch a breather from dodging the bullets but remember that they will bounce and may become annoying later on. If you are familiar with Shoot 'Em Up game terminology you may be familiar with streaming. For the uninitiated, moving in very small increments to avoid the bullets will make them take up less space on the map and because these bullets bounce this also has an added benefit of making them behave in a more predictable manner.

Replicate Gamble has the same weapon as Gale but it fires bullets at a slower rate, although it will increase its rate of fire should you kill Gale before it.

Artillery Gamble shoots fast projectiles but providing you keep moving and watch for splash damage its attacks can be easily evaded.

Furious Gamble can easily be avoided by staying on the move, since the projectile has no collision you can even move into it to close the gap between yourself and the Gamble.

Bashing Gamble will chase you just like Goliath but it also has a dash attack that you need to look out for, during the dash it cannot be knocked back so don't rely on that to dodge its attacks.

Strike Gamble chases after you and upon getting close will shoot a rapid fire gun until it runs out of ammo, it will then proceed to retreat while reloading. The bullets it fires are fairly slow moving and can easily be dodged by moving in a circle around the Gamble.

Blazing Gamble chases after you and upon getting close will shoot a flamethrower until it runs out of ammo, it will then proceed to retreat while reloading. The flames are much faster than the bullets of the Strike Gamble so dodging is much harder and you should keep your distance from Blazing Gambles. Does not appear in normal Gilded Spire runs and only shows up in the Tower of Hell Gilded Gauntlet.

When you get to floor 3 and the traps appear you should try to move in a counter-clockwise manner around the map to avoid situations where you are cornered between the enemies and an oncoming trap.

The Gilded Spire decides what you will face with threat logic and it tries to pick something it deems you are weak against. Depending on how you play in a run the upgrades enemies receive, the traps and also the Gamble that appears will be different from those you see in other runs.


As for countering this you can play in a way that "tricks" the Gilded Spire into thinking you're weak against something you're actually strong against.

For example if you have a long range weapon but intentionally fight up close you may get a preferable Gamble like a Strike Gamble. Unfortunately it's hard to do the inverse as short range weapons have no way to fight at long range.

Before we look at all of the weapons I should mention that for most healing weapons (Shiniko and Halo are excluded) try to limit your healing to prevent fatigue from affecting you too much later into the run. When you get to floor 4 you can disregard this and should use any healing you have left.

I've also made a video showcasing how I play, it's one thing trying to tell people how to use each weapon but I think some people may get a better idea if they saw how I play the game.

Shiniko

Scythe
Find an opening between enemy shots and dash through them, you can hold down the primary attack as it has a high rate of fire. Dashing just as the Goliath swings its hammer can allow you to negate all damage it would deal though the timing is pretty precise (This works for all of Shiniko's weapons).

Soul Crusher
Due to the knockback dealt by your dash you may want to hold off on spamming your primary fire and use it just as you're dashing into the enemies. The knockback can be used to push threats like Goliath far away which gives you an opening to take down the other foes.

Lifeguard
Dash into the Goliath's attacks to gain a huge overheal. With the insane HP buffer you can get you can afford to be rather reckless when taking on the other enemies. When you do dash into Goliath's attacks try to push them downwards as doing it to the side or upwards can cause them to be pushed into the same place where you will end your dash which can result in you taking a lot of damage.

Graverobber
This weapon has the same self inflicted knockback that the Soul Crusher has so be careful with dashing into the enemies as you will be unable to avoid their attacks. On floor 1 dig up a damage treasure and if you run into trouble later on dig up a regen treasure. If you really need health fast you can dig up multiple regen treasures as they give you a small instant heal when picked up. The speed treasure doesn't seem too useful in the Gilded Spire but it could help combat the chaos that comes with overtime on later floors.

Voyager

Space Gun
Keep your distance as this will not only make it easier to avoid enemies but also increase the damage you deal with your rockets. Use the bullets to pick off low HP foes.

Orbital Support
Use the alt-fire first then shoot with the primary to increase your DPS. The mobility that the heal rocket provides can be used to get out of bad positions, if used at full HP this also does not induce fatigue so can be used with little consequence.

Liftoff
While you may increase your DPS by being right next to the enemy it will make it harder to dodge their attacks so try to put a bit of a gap between yourself and them. Use the alt-fire to quickly close the gap on ranged enemies and to get out of sticky situations.

Supernova
The knockback from the grenades can be used to push foes into the mine's blast radius. Be careful with the mine as not only can it deal huge damage to yourself but it can also launch enemies into you. While explosive jumping with the Supernova is not free like with the Orbital Support/Liftoff it doesn't do too much damage so remember that the option is there.

SYS.TR

Laser Cannon
Deals great damage but lacks range, combined with your slow move speed this makes chasing Gale a pain. Push it into a corner which will force it to move back towards you. For this weapon I actually consider taking the speed boost on floor 1. The Rerouted Power can be used liberally if you plan on taking health upgrades.

Firewall
Light all of the enemies on fire and then focus on one of them to maximise afterburn damage. The Rerouted Power is great for quickly destroying one enemy, get them into one of the corners of the map and push them into it to lock them in place. Remember that the Power Surge also reduces incoming damage so switching it on just before you think you're going to take damage can allow you to make more mistakes.

Power Surge
With longer range than the Laser Cannon and a speed boosting Rerouted Power you won't need to chase after ranged enemies so hard. The Power Surge boosts your damage as well so try to use it when you both need healing and also when you know you're about to deal a lot of damage to get the most out of it.

System Restore
Very good at knocking back enemies but deals poor damage. Try to get all of the enemies into the same spot to hit them all at the same time, while that applies to all explosive weapons I think it is most important on this weapon due to its poor DPS.

Iris

Offence Wardens
Build your Warden on the middle platform on the edge of the map. Proceed to push ranged enemies into your Warden's range while kiting any close ranged enemies. With the Eye Blaster try to keep your Warden alive as long as possible as it will be the one dealing the most damage and it can be difficult to set it up again if it is destroyed.

Defence Wardens
If you play well these Wardens won't get to use their powers on you but if you do need support then place them in an area where they're unlikely to be targeted. You can also put these underneath a wall and they can distract Gale and ranged Gambles who will fruitlessly shoot at them.

Fhuuu

Halo
While it doesn't deal great damage you can sustain yourself for a long time with the Spirit, unless you already have a lot of overheal use it as soon as you get it.

Recourse
Unlike with the Halo, the Recourse's Spirit is not immune to fatigue which means you have limited use of it, try to save it for moments when you really need it.

Unfathomable Fury
The higher damage allows you to be aggressive which can get Gale out of the way quickly, the bomb can deal huge damage to all 3 enemies if you kite them well or it can be used as a movement tool to escape sticky situations. Try to avoid taking any damage on floor 1 as this will cause you to heal from attacking which can cause napalm to appear.

Intervention
The Spirit charges very quickly and once used makes you temporarily invincible while also healing you, great for recovering from mistakes. Like the Firewall's Power you can lock enemies into a corner with the Spirit.

Loie

All Weapons
These all have a similar playstyle. Keep your distance and ink up an enemy (or yourself in the case of the E-Laminator) and snipe away. While reloading you can sneak a few ink shots in so you don't have to do it when you would want to be charging your shots.

Shazia

Hypnotic Chain & Bounty Hunter
Once you have chained an enemy it's a game of finding the perfect distance to stay at between the other enemies without breaking the chain. Make full use of the walls to take cover and to kite Goliath and close range Gambles. Pulling the chain when an enemy jumps to a higher platform will prevent it from escaping you.

Back Alley Invitation
Chain an enemy and once charged up use your improved speed to weave between projectiles, swipe at the target and get out of range before they can shoot you at close range which may be hard to dodge. If things go awry remember you can go invisible to chip enemies down.

Killing Lights
Similar to the Back Alley Invitation you want to get charged up then get in close. The charge not only limits the damage you will take but it will deal retaliation damage to nearby enemies, try to get the enemies clumped up around you and then take hits that would deal high damage to turn that damage back on the enemy.

Gilded Gauntlets are a challenge for those who want to test themselves, they are even tougher than the Blinding difficulty as enemies will have the same stats as they do on Blinding but there will be additional challenges to overcome. To even attempt a Gilded Gauntlet you must first beat Blinding with at least one weapon.

The prize for beating a Gilded Gauntlet is the standard Gilded variant of the weapon you used to beat the Spire as well as an Essence Remnant. Essence Remnants are the currency used to roll the Gilded Gashapon and you will get one regardless of which weapon you use (although you can only get one Essence Remnant per weapon each week in each of the different gauntlets).

Impatience is a Virtue
You start each floor in overtime meaning traps & enemies will move faster and deal an increasing amount of damage as time passes on each floor. Quite similar to Blinding.
Recommended weapons: Space Gun, Power Surge, Launcher Pen, Quick Draw

Fumigation
You will take damage over time, the amount you take increases as you progress to new floors. You're on the clock in this Gauntlet so either bring Healing or a weapon that can deal a lot of damage so you can beat the floor before dying. Healing should be used sparingly until you get to floor 4 to prevent Napalm from showing up.
Recommended weapons: Lifeguard, Power Surge, Intervention

Closing In
The spire spawns wall cutters on floor 1 and they get faster and grow larger as you progress through the floors. Due to the large area the saws cover I like to use weapons that allow me to control the movement of enemies as this means I don't have to move around as much and I'm less likely to get put into a position where I would have to move into the path of the saws. It's worth noting that you can hug the walls on the left and right sides of the map and the saws won't kill you but this can put you in a position that's hard to escape from. If you do hug the walls avoid doing it near the corners of the map as the saws will kill you when they turn the corners.
Recommended weapons: Quick Draw, Killing Lights

Tower of Hell
The spire spawns a Dragon Edge on floor 1 and each floor you progress it moves faster and shoots flames farther. Enemies also receive a boost to their speed and Blazing Gamble will always spawn in this Gauntlet.
Recommended weapons: Space Gun, Power Surge, Launcher Pen, Quick Draw

Origins
Only Gale spawns on floor 1 but every floor a new Gale appears. Bullets move very slowly but they have a much longer life so the screen can become very cluttered with bullets, especially on later floors when you have 4 Gales and a Laser Sweeper. The Gales will have an upgrade that buffs their abilities and if you defeat them last you can pick up the upgrade they had. Making slow, small movements can help prevent the entire screen from filling up with bullets as the bullets that have been shot will clump up giving you a lot of space elsewhere to move. Moving slowly in small increments is also advised as it will lead to fewer situations where you hit one bullet and get knocked around into a bunch of other bullets.
Recommended weapons: Space Gun, Eye Blaster, Launcher Pen, Quick Draw, Work In Progress