All 28 Balatro Boss Blinds, Ranked by Danger

Score and hand levels

Higher targets or weaker hand values

The Flint

Halves the played hand's base Chips and Mult, rounding each up (Ante 2+).

Counter: Bring Jokers that add Chips and Mult; their bonuses are not halved.

Tier A

The Wall

Requires 4 times the ante's base blind score (Ante 2+).

Counter: Level your main hand and add XMult before it arrives, or sell Luchador during the blind to disable it.

Tier B

The Arm

Permanently lowers each played hand type by 1 level before scoring, to a minimum of level 1 (Ante 2+).

Counter: Win in fewer hands to limit level loss, or use a backup hand if your Jokers can carry it.

Tier B

Card debuffs

Cards keep their hand type but lose scoring abilities

The Plant

Debuffs all face cards, including every card if you have Pareidolia (Ante 4+).

Counter: For a face-card build, reroll the boss if possible or bring Luchador to sell during the blind.

Tier A

The Pillar

Debuffs cards played in this ante's Small and Big Blinds.

Counter: Save your strongest cards during the Small and Big Blinds, then draw them for the boss.

Tier B

The Goad

Debuffs all Spade cards, including Wild cards and Clubs if you have Smeared Joker.

Counter: Score with Hearts or Diamonds; Smeared Joker also exposes Clubs to the debuff.

Tier C

The Head

Debuffs all Heart cards, including Wild cards and Diamonds if you have Smeared Joker.

Counter: Score with Spades or Clubs; Smeared Joker also exposes Diamonds to the debuff.

Tier C

The Club

Debuffs all Club cards, including Wild cards and Spades if you have Smeared Joker.

Counter: Score with Hearts or Diamonds; Smeared Joker also exposes Spades to the debuff.

Tier C

The Window

Debuffs all Diamond cards, including Wild cards and Hearts if you have Smeared Joker.

Counter: Score with Spades or Clubs; Smeared Joker also exposes Hearts to the debuff.

Tier C

Hand rules

Fewer options or restrictions on what scores

The Water

Sets your discards to 0 at the start of the round (Ante 2+).

Counter: Use spare hands to cycle unwanted cards; Burglar adds hands without costing usable discards here.

Tier A

The Needle

Sets your hands to 1 at the start of the round and requires 1 times the ante's base blind score (Ante 2+).

Counter: Use your discards to build your best hand before playing the only one you get.

Tier B

The Eye

Repeated hand types score nothing for the rest of the round (Ante 3+).

Counter: Keep a second hand type ready; a repeated hand type scores nothing.

Tier B

The Mouth

Only the hand type played first can score for the rest of the round (Ante 2+).

Counter: Discard into your main hand before playing; a throwaway High Card locks you into High Card.

Tier B

The Manacle

Reduces hand size by 1 for the round.

Counter: Add hand size with Juggler or Troubadour, or use a hand type that needs fewer cards.

Tier B

The Psychic

Hands score nothing unless you play exactly 5 cards, even if fewer cards score.

Counter: Add spare cards to reach five without changing your intended hand type.

Tier C

Hidden or random cards

Changed draws and cards you cannot count on keeping

The Hook

Discards 2 random cards held in hand whenever you play a hand.

Counter: Play your strongest hand first; held Steel cards and Kings can be discarded before they help.

Tier B

The Fish

Draws replacement cards face down after each hand played, but face up after discards (Ante 2+).

Counter: Discard face-down cards to draw visible replacements.

Tier B

The House

Draws your opening hand face down (Ante 2+).

Counter: Use discards to replace hidden cards with visible ones before committing a scoring hand.

Tier C

The Mark

Draws all face cards face down, including every card if you have Pareidolia (Ante 2+).

Counter: Build from visible Aces and number cards; sell Pareidolia if you need to see your draws.

Tier C

The Wheel

Each drawn card has a base 1 in 7 chance to be face down (Ante 2+).

Counter: Build around visible cards and discard hidden ones if they block your hand.

Tier C

The Serpent

Draws 3 cards after each play or discard, regardless of how many cards you used (Ante 5+).

Counter: Discard one card to draw three and grow your hand; this boss often helps.

Tier D

Money

Protect your cash while meeting the score target

The Ox

Sets money to $0 whenever you play the hand type that was most played at the start of this ante (Ante 6+).

Counter: Use another scoring hand, or spend cash before the boss if your main hand is unavoidable.

Tier B

The Tooth

Costs $1 per card played, including unscored cards, and can push you into debt (Ante 3+).

Counter: Play only the cards you need to win; extra cards also cost money.

Tier C

Finishers (Ante 8)

Also return every 8th ante in Endless Mode

Violet Vessel

Requires 6 times the ante's base blind score, only at Ante 8 and every 8th ante after.

Counter: Build scoring power before the final shop, or sell Luchador during the blind to lower the target.

Tier A

Crimson Heart

Disables 1 random Joker each hand, choosing a different one if possible, only at Ante 8 and every 8th ante after.

Counter: Keep spare active Jokers to spread the risk, and check which scoring Joker is disabled before playing.

Tier A

Cerulean Bell

Forces 1 random card to stay selected until played or discarded, then selects another, only at Ante 8 and every 8th ante after.

Counter: Fit the forced card around a small hand like Pair, or discard it and work with the next selection.

Tier B

Verdant Leaf

Debuffs all playing cards until you sell 1 Joker during the blind, only at Ante 8 and every 8th ante after.

Counter: Bring an expendable Joker without an Eternal sticker and sell it after entering the blind.

Tier B

Amber Acorn

Flips all Jokers face down and shuffles them, only at Ante 8 and every 8th ante after.

Counter: Slow the game, identify Jokers by their triggers, and move them back into scoring order.

Tier C