Ramen

Ramen

Effect

X2 Mult, loses X0.01 Mult per card discarded

Rarity

Uncommon

Unlock Requirement

Available from start.

Stats

Buy Price

6

Sell Price

3

Type

Multiplicative Mult

Activation

Mixed

Compatibility

Copyable

✓ Yes

Perishable

✓ Yes

Eternal

✗ No

Ramen is an Uncommon Joker that provides Multiplicative Mult to all hands played. When first acquired, it serves as a middling but unconditional X2 Mult. However, as luck favors the user less and the rounds drag on, this Joker decreases in power, decreasing by X0.01 Mult per card discarded. Ramen cannot maintain or go below X1 Mult; once 100 cards are discarded, it will automatically destroy itself, with the text "Eaten!" flashing on the screen when it does.

The Mult decrease triggers both on the player's per-round discards and cards discarded by other sources - the latter currently only being The Hook ( Boss The Hook.png). Ramen will not trigger if the played hand in a round contains a card(s) that did not score, as they are not considered to have been discarded. This Joker's sell value is also never decreased regardless of its current Mult value, so it is advised to sell it once it reaches or goes below around X1.25 Mult, at which point its scoring assistance will be minimal.

Ramen has extremely limited utility past Ante 8 due to its middling base power and reverse power scaling. However, in the absence of another Multiplicative Mult Joker, it can still serve most builds very well.

• Green Deck ( At end of each Round: <br> {{Money|2}} per remaining {{hl|blue|Hand}} <br> {{Money|1}} per remaining {{hl|red|Discard}} <br> Earn no {{hl|orange|Interest}} Discover at least {{hl|orange|75}} items from your [[collection]] Green Deck.png): Perhaps the most obvious synergy exists with this Deck; conserving discards for money gives a mild source of income to compensate for the extra hands required to capitalize on Ramen's power.
• Blue Deck ( {{hl|blue|+1}} hand every round Discover at least {{hl|orange|20}} items from your [[collection]] Blue Deck.png): The extra hand every round makes it less punishing to play 'throwaway' hands as makeshift discards that also ease a bit of scoring tension, which better preserves this Joker's power.
• Nebula Deck ( Start run with the {{V|Telescope|class=hl-cyan}} voucher <br> {{hl|red|-1}} consumable slot Win a run with the {{D|Blue}} on [[Stakes|any difficulty]] Nebula Deck.png): With Ramen skewed more towards easier-to-find hands in desperate need of scaling, the built-in Telescope ([[Booster Packs|{{hl|orange|Celestial Packs}}]] always contain the [[Planet Cards|{{hl|cyan|Planet}}]] card for your most played [[Poker Hands|{{hl|orange|poker hand}}]] Base Telescope.png) Voucher this Deck provides makes it a natural choice.
• All Decks with consistency-based bonuses allow them to form better hands in the absence of discards, which helps make much more out of Ramen than usual. These include the Painted Deck ( {{hl|orange|+2}} hand size, <br> {{hl|red|-1}} Joker slot Win a run with any [[Decks|deck]] on the {{Stake|Green}} difficulty or harder Painted Deck.png) (+2 hand size), the Checkered Deck ( Start run with {{hl|orange|26}} {{suit|Spades}} and {{hl|orange|26}} {{suit|Hearts}} in deck Win a run with the {{D|Black}} on any difficulty Checkered Deck.png) (only  Hearts and  Spades), and especially the Abandoned Deck ( Start run with no {{F|}}[[Card Ranks#Face cards|{{hl|orange|Face Cards}}]] in your deck Win a run with the {{D|Green}} on [[Stakes|any difficulty]] Abandoned Deck.png) (no face cards), which can very easily leverage the fast scaling of Straights with the Saturn (Increases {{ph|Straight}} hand value by {{mult|+3}} and {{chips|+30}} Available from start. Planet Saturn.png) Planet Card in tandem with this Joker. Even certain Erratic Deck ( All [[Card Ranks|{{hl|orange|Ranks}}]] and [[Suits|{{hl|orange|Suits}}]] in deck are randomized Win a run with any [[Decks|deck]] on the {{Stake|Orange}} difficulty or harder Erratic Deck.png) seeds can lend themselves well to consistently finding high-performing hands.

This Joker works best with weaker hands that can be more reliably made without discarding (or by using a hand as a makeshift discard), such as High Card, Pair, Two Pair, and Three of a Kind. To that end, this will force the player to become more dependent on Planet Card scaling than with most other builds, as all these hands are very weak at a baseline. Three of a Kinds should be prioritized if possible, as they have slightly more base + Mult and gain twice as much through Venus (Increases {{ph|Three of a Kind}} hand value by {{mult|+2}} and {{chips|+20}} Available from start. Planet Venus.png) as the others do ( Pluto (Increases {{ph|High Card}} hand value by {{mult|+1}} and {{chips|+10}} Available from start. Planet Pluto.png), Mercury (Increases {{ph|Pair}} hand value by {{mult|+1}} and {{chips|+15}} Available from start. Planet Mercury.png), and Uranus (Increases {{ph|Two Pair}} hand value by {{mult|+1}} and {{chips|+20}} Available from start. Planet Uranus.png), respectively).

This Joker is the only Multiplicative Mult Joker that objectively gets weaker over time. On top of its already average X2 Mult multiplier, it is best used in the earlier Antes as a 'transitional' Joker to be used while saving up money to gain more dependable sources of scoring.

The following Jokers synergize well with Ramen:

• Any Common Joker that can provide consistent shots of + Mult will benefit a build with this Joker greatly, allowing rounds to be solved faster, and as a result, more money to be conserved for longer-term options. Some of the better options include Abstract Joker ({{Mult|+3}} for each [[Jokers|{{hl|orange|Joker}}]] card<br>{{Currently|{{mult|+0}}}} Common Additive Mult Independent Abstract Joker.png) (which is viable even in the later Antes), Popcorn ({{Mult|+20}} <br> {{Mult|-4}} per round played Common Additive Mult Independent Popcorn.png) (itself a temporary addition), and Half Joker ({{Mult|+20}} if played hand contains {{hl|orange|3}} or fewer cards Common Additive Mult Independent Half Joker.png), Scholar (Played {{hl|orange|Aces}} give {{chips|+20}} and {{mult|+4}} when scored Common Chips and Additive Mult On Scored Scholar.png), and Walkie Talkie (Each played {{hl|orange|10}} or {{hl|orange|4}} gives {{chips|+10}} and {{mult|+4}} when scored Common Chips and Additive Mult On Scored Walkie_Talkie.png) (which are all Jokers that can easily be built around while still being strong).
• Banner ({{Chips|+30}} for each remaining {{hl|orange|discard}} Common Chips Independent Banner.png): Providing +30 Chips to all hands played for each unused discard, these two can cover both sides of the equation with almost any hand in the early game. The -1 discard malus inflicted by Blue Stake and higher makes this a less viable combo in the later difficulties, but it is still worth considering.
• Blue Joker ({{Chips|+2}} for each remaining card in {{hl|orange|deck}} <br> {{currently|{{chips|+104}}}} Common Chips Independent Blue Joker.png): Providing +2 Chips to all hands played for each card remaining in the deck, this essentially beats out Banner ({{Chips|+30}} for each remaining {{hl|orange|discard}} Common Chips Independent Banner.png) on the higher Stakes and can go even higher by adding cards to the deck, albeit this is ill-advised in combination with this Joker due to an absolute need for consistency.
• Delayed Gratification (Earn {{Money|2}} per {{hl|orange|discard}} if no discards are used by end of the round Common Economy N/A (Passive) Delayed_Gratification.png): This economy Joker rewards the user with $2 for each discard the player has at the end of the round, as long as no discards were used during the round. This can much more quickly help the player access more build stability when combined with the unique property of this Joker. Much like Banner ({{Chips|+30}} for each remaining {{hl|orange|discard}} Common Chips Independent Banner.png), however, it is far less viable on Blue Stake or higher, as it essentially becomes a Golden Joker (Earn {{Money|4}} at end of round Common Economy N/A (Passive) Golden_Joker.png) with an inconvenient activation condition.
• Green Joker ({{mult|+1}} per hand played <br> {{mult|-1}} per discard <br> {{Currently|{{mult|+0}}}} Common Additive Mult Mixed Green_Joker.png): A steady-scaling Additive Mult Joker that gains +1 Mult for every hand played but loses -1 Mult for every discard action (including The Hook). This is the only other anti-discard Joker that ignores the number of remaining discards, making it far more effective on all Stakes. Adding onto this, its Additive Mult pairs extremely well with the Multiplicative Mult this Joker gives, allowing them to comprise a respectable amount of your score alone, even into the late game!
• Burglar (When [[Blind|{{hl|orange|Blind}}]] is selected, gain {{hl|blue|+3}} Hands and {{hl|orange|lose all discards}} Uncommon Effect On Blind Select Burglar.png): An amazing partner with this Joker, replacing the player's discards with 3 extra hands at the start of the round. This effectively turns Ramen into an X2 Mult with no drawbacks, which, with enough Additive Mult, can serve well even into Ante 8 when it otherwise would not. It also enables synergy with Mystic Summit ({{Mult|+15}} when {{hl|orange|0}} discards remaining Common Additive Mult Independent Mystic Summit.png), which normally has anti-synergy with this Joker, giving a respectable shot of +15 Mult to more easily clear the Blinds. However, it does turn off synergy with Banner ({{Chips|+30}} for each remaining {{hl|orange|discard}} Common Chips Independent Banner.png) and Delayed Gratification (Earn {{Money|2}} per {{hl|orange|discard}} if no discards are used by end of the round Common Economy N/A (Passive) Delayed_Gratification.png), so consider other options if these are key to the current build.
• Astronomer (All {{hl|cyan|Planet}} cards and {{hl|cyan|Celestial Packs}} in the shop are {{hl|orange|free}} Discover every {{Planet|}} card Uncommon Effect N/A (Passive) Astronomer.png): One of the few effect Jokers that Ramen has synergy with, making Planet Cards and Celestial Packs in The Shop free. In doing so, it becomes easier to lean on poker hand level scaling in the event that scoring Jokers prove too inaccessible due to bad luck.
• Space Joker ({{hl|green|1 in 4}} chance to upgrade level of played [[Poker Hands|{{hl|orange|poker hand}}]] Uncommon Effect On Played Space Joker.png): With each played hand having a 1 in 4 chance to have its level upgraded before scoring, it can serve as a source of long-term scaling, especially while playing the large number of hands per round this Joker encourages.

• Grabber (Permanently gain {{hl|blue|+1}} hand per round Base Grabber.png) and its upgraded counterpart, Nacho Tong (Permanently gain an additional {{hl|blue|+1}} hand per round Play a total of 2,500 cards Upgraded Nacho Tong.png), provide an extra hand with each acquisition, giving more opportunities to find higher-scoring hands to play.
• Telescope ([[Booster Packs|{{hl|orange|Celestial Packs}}]] always contain the [[Planet Cards|{{hl|cyan|Planet}}]] card for your most played [[Poker Hands|{{hl|orange|poker hand}}]] Base Telescope.png) guarantees that the Planet Card for the most played poker hand will always appear in Celestial Packs. Due to the very low base Mult of High Card, Pair, and Two Pair, this is a good addition to any build keeping Ramen for the long term.
• For similar reasons, Planet Merchant ({{Planet|}} cards appear {{hl|orange|2X}} more frequently in the shop Base Planet Merchant.png) and Tarot Merchant ({{Tarot|}} cards appear {{hl|orange|2X}} more frequently in the shop Base Tarot Merchant.png), as well as their upgraded counterparts Planet Tycoon ([[Planet Cards|{{hl|cyan|Planet}}]] cards appear {{hl|orange|4X}} more frequently in the shop Buy a total of 50 Planet cards from the shop Upgraded Planet Tycoon.png) and Tarot Tycoon ({{Tarot|}} cards appear {{hl|orange|4X}} more frequently in the shop Buy a total of 50 Tarot cards from the shop Upgraded Tarot Tycoon.png), are also possible considerations, albeit not as strongly recommended since they take notable Shop space away from Jokers, which are usually the main source of scoring.

• The Water ( Boss The Water.png) will always set your discards to 0, making it impossible to decrease Ramen.
• Amber Acorn ( Showdown Amber Acorn.png): If there are too many Jokers to keep track of otherwise, a single-card discard will trigger Ramen, revealing its location.

• Red Deck ( {{hl|red|+1}} discard every round Unlocked from start Red Deck.png): This Deck has anti-synergy with this Joker, as it encourages the player to discard more to find better hands.
• Black Deck ( {{hl|orange|+1}} Joker slot <br> {{hl|blue|-1}} hand every round Discover at least {{hl|orange|100}} items from your [[collection]] Black Deck.png) makes it very difficult to use Ramen, as it suffers from -1 hand per round. This forces more dependency on discards while disallowing liberal use of 'throwaway' hands.
• Similarly, Blast Off ( ) makes it even more difficult to use Ramen, as this deck only has 2 hands. This forces much more dependency on discards while disallowing liberal use of 'throwaway' hands.

• Drunkard ({{hl|red|+1}} discard each round Common Effect N/A (Passive) Drunkard.png) and Merry Andy ({{hl|red|+3}} discards each round, <br>{{hl|red|-1}} hand size Win a run in {{hl|orange|12}} or fewer rounds Uncommon Effect N/A (Passive) Merry_Andy.png): The extra discards these two provide are almost useless in a Ramen build, except when considering the potential presence of Banner ({{Chips|+30}} for each remaining {{hl|orange|discard}} Common Chips Independent Banner.png) or Delayed Gratification (Earn {{Money|2}} per {{hl|orange|discard}} if no discards are used by end of the round Common Economy N/A (Passive) Delayed_Gratification.png). Using 3 Joker slots for such a combination can badly dampen scoring, so these two discard giving Jokers should generally be avoided.
• Faceless Joker (Earn {{Money|5}} if {{hl|orange|3}} or more {{hl|orange|face cards}} are discarded at the same time Common Economy On Discard Faceless_Joker.png), Mail-In Rebate (Earn {{Money|5}} for each discarded [[Card Ranks|{{hl|orange|[rank]}}]], rank changes every round Common Economy On Discard Mail-In Rebate.png), and Trading Card (If {{hl|orange|first discard}} of round has only {{hl|orange|1}} card, destroy it and earn {{Money|3}} Uncommon Economy On Discard Trading Card.png): These Jokers cannot give their payout unless Ramen gets decreased. Money does lead to better scoring, but the risk of depreciating Mult even a little is huge.
• Troubadour ({{hl|orange|+2}} hand size, <br> {{hl|blue|-1}} hand each round Win {{hl|orange|5}} consecutive rounds by <abbr title="Discards are OK to use.">playing only 1 hand</abbr> Uncommon Effect N/A (Passive) Troubadour.png): While its hand size bonus provides opportunity to more consistently find hands with higher base Mult, it has a debilitating -1 hand per round penalty, meaning it forces more dependency on discards that would weaken this Joker.
• Burnt Joker (Upgrade the level of the first {{hl|orange|discarded}} poker hand each round Sell 50 cards. Rare Effect On Discard Burnt Joker.png): Though a source of much-needed level scaling, it does this through discarding the poker hand in question, which actively worsens Ramen.
• Hit the Road (This Joker gains {{xmult|0.5}} for every {{hl|orange|Jack}} discarded this round<br> {{Currently|{{xmult|1}}}} Discard {{hl|orange|5 Jacks}} at the same time. Rare Multiplicative Mult Mixed Hit_the_Road.png) and Yorick (This Joker gains {{xmult|1}} every {{hl|orange|23}} {{hl|gray|[23]}} cards discarded<br>{{currently|{{xmult|1}}}} Find this [[Jokers|Joker]] from the [[Spectral Cards|{{hl|sblue|Soul}}]] card. Legendary Multiplicative Mult Mixed Yorick.png): The power of these cards both depends on discarding large quantities of cards, meaning they will both greedily slurp your Ramen right up. Yorick is usually worth keeping over this Joker, however, as it has the potential to reach very high XMult values if acquired early.

• Wasteful (Permanently gain {{hl|red|+1}} discard each round Base Wasteful.png) and Recyclomancy (Permanently gain an additional {{hl|red|+1}} discard each round Discard a total of 2500 cards Upgraded Recyclomancy.png): the extra Discards provided by these two vouchers are almost useless in a Ramen build, except when considering the potential presence of Banner ({{Chips|+30}} for each remaining {{hl|orange|discard}} Common Chips Independent Banner.png) or Delayed Gratification (Earn {{Money|2}} per {{hl|orange|discard}} if no discards are used by end of the round Common Economy N/A (Passive) Delayed_Gratification.png).
• Hieroglyph ({{hl|orange|-1}} Ante, <br> {{hl|blue|-1}} hand each round Base Hieroglyph.png) should be avoided while using this Joker, as its -1 hand per round penalty increases dependence on discards.

• The Hook ( Boss The Hook.png) will cause Ramen to lose X0.02 Mult per hand played, unless hand size is small enough to leave fewer than 2 cards in hand after playing.

• The Non-Perishable ( ) challenge bans Ramen.

• This Joker is part of the group of "Consumable" Jokers that can be destroyed with usage, dubbed "Food Jokers" due to their shared theme. The other Jokers in this group are Ice Cream ({{Chips|+100}}<br>{{Chips|-5}} for every hand played Common Chips Independent Ice Cream.png), Popcorn ({{Mult|+20}} <br> {{Mult|-4}} per round played Common Additive Mult Independent Popcorn.png), Gros Michel ({{mult|+15}}<br>{{hl|green|1 in 6}} chance this is destroyed at the end of round. Common Additive Mult Independent Gros Michel.png), Cavendish ({{xmult|3}} <br> {{hl|green|1 in 1000}} chance this card is destroyed at the end of round Common Multiplicative Mult Independent Cavendish.png), Egg (Gains {{Money|3}} of {{Hl|orange|sell value}} at end of round Common Economy N/A (Passive) Egg.png), Seltzer (Retrigger all cards played for the next {{hl|orange|10}} hands Uncommon Retrigger On Scored Seltzer.png), Turtle Bean ({{hl|orange|+5}} hand size, reduces by {{hl|red|1}} each round Uncommon Effect N/A (Passive) Turtle Bean.png), and Diet Cola (Sell this card to create a free [[Tags|{{hl|orange|Double Tag}}]] Uncommon Effect N/A (Passive) Diet Cola.png).^[1][2][3]
  • Of the five Food Jokers that scale down, Ramen is the only Joker that can avoid being scaled down throughout a run. The others are scaled down after hands are played or rounds are passed, both of which are necessary for progress.