The Trial of Spite is one of the harder Artifact challenges in Risk of Rain 2, completed by entering a specific Artifact Code on Sky Meadow or Helminth Hatchery and surviving the ensuing fight in Bulwark's Ambry to claim the Artifact from the Reliquary. Beating it permanently unlocks the Artifact of Spite, which causes every defeated Monster team enemy to spew explosive bouncing grenades on death.
This guide covers the exact Trial of Spite code, both stage entry points (the standard Sky Meadow path and the Seekers of the Storm DLC alternative on Helminth Hatchery), the Reliquary fight mechanics, the per-enemy bomb counts you face once Spite is active, and the strongest Survivor and item picks for surviving this trial.
Trial of Spite is one of the Artifact-unlock challenges in Risk of Rain 2. Each Artifact in the game is gated behind its own Trial: enter the correct Artifact Code on a stage, survive a short combat encounter in Bulwark's Ambry, and walk away with the Artifact permanently unlocked for all future runs.
What makes Trial of Spite distinct is the difficulty curve. You enter the trial without knowing exactly what you'll face, but the moment you start defeating enemies in the Reliquary, the Artifact of Spite's effect activates immediately. Every enemy you kill drops a cluster of bombs. Within 30 seconds, the floor of the arena is covered in bouncing explosives, and you have to keep killing while dodging your own kill rewards.
According to the wiki, Trial of Spite was added alongside the original Artifacts release. The exact code (▲●▲ ●●● ▲●▲) became one of the more memorable Artifact codes in the community because of its symmetry. We recommend doing this trial after you have completed at least one full run, since the Reliquary fight punishes under-leveled Survivors hard.
Every Artifact Trial in Risk of Rain 2 is gated by a 9-symbol code entered on the Compound Generator (the obelisk-style structure on Sky Meadow or Helminth Hatchery). The Trial of Spite code is one of the most symmetrical patterns in the game, which makes it relatively easy to memorize:
Read row by row, the pattern is: Triangle, Circle, Triangle (top), Circle, Circle, Circle (middle), Triangle, Circle, Triangle (bottom). The full code is identical when read across or down. Top row and bottom row are mirrors of each other, with a uniform middle row of all Circles.
| Position | Symbol | What to Press |
|---|---|---|
| Top Left | Triangle | Pillar with triangle face up |
| Top Center | Circle | Pillar with circle face up |
| Top Right | Triangle | Pillar with triangle face up |
| Middle Left | Circle | Pillar with circle face up |
| Middle Center | Circle | Pillar with circle face up |
| Middle Right | Circle | Pillar with circle face up |
| Bottom Left | Triangle | Pillar with triangle face up |
| Bottom Center | Circle | Pillar with circle face up |
| Bottom Right | Triangle | Pillar with triangle face up |
The Compound Generator has 9 pillars in a 3x3 grid. Each pillar has 3 faces (Square, Triangle, Circle). To input the code, walk to each pillar in turn and rotate it until the correct face is pointing up, then activate the central obelisk to confirm. For the full Artifact Code reference and tips on entry sequencing, see our Risk of Rain 2 Artifact Codes guide.
The Trial of Spite has a fixed structure that applies to every Artifact Trial. Here is the exact run sequence:
Sky Meadow has been the standard Compound Generator stage since launch. Helminth Hatchery was added with the Seekers of the Storm DLC as a thematic alternative for that DLC's loop. Both stages spawn the same Compound Generator with the same 9-pillar mechanics and lead to the same Bulwark's Ambry trial. Pick whichever stage you prefer for your run path.
Bulwark's Ambry is the hidden realm shared by every Artifact Trial. The arena is built from block-shaped stone platforms with a central Artifact Reliquary that you channel to win. The structure is the same regardless of which Trial brought you there, but the fight conditions vary because the corresponding Artifact's effect is already active during the trial.
For Trial of Spite, the active effect is the kicker: every enemy you kill drops a cluster of bouncing grenades. The grenades pass through the player but detonate on the third surface contact, dealing area damage. They do not damage you on touch. They only damage you when they explode after bouncing.
Per the wiki, the Artifact of Spite drops a varying number of bombs depending on enemy size and class. These counts hold during Trial of Spite as well:
| Enemy Type | Bombs Dropped |
|---|---|
| Lemurian (basic) | 2 |
| Most small enemies | 3 |
| Larger enemies (Imp Overlord, Evolved Lemurian) | Significantly more |
| Bosses | ~50 |
| Solus drones, Engineer turrets, friendlies | 0 (Monster team only) |
The "Monster team only" rule matters. Your Engineer turrets, Bandit Smoke clones, and any Survivor of the Void DLC allies do not drop bombs when they die. Only enemies on the Monster team trigger the effect, which means you can use friendly summons as effective shields against the bomb chaos.
Two non-obvious mechanics make Trial of Spite feel chaotic the first time:
Beating Trial of Spite permanently unlocks the Artifact of Spite for use in any future run. Once enabled at the start of a run, every Monster team enemy explodes into a bomb cluster on death.
Artifact of Spite has two genuine use cases that justify the chaos. First, it is a required pick for the Trial of Prestige challenge (which combines multiple Artifacts), so unlocking it is part of the broader 100% completion path. Second, it pairs well with kiting Survivors like Huntress and Commando, who can stay at range and watch the bombs damage other enemies in chain reactions. Bombs damage anything in their radius, including other monsters.
For melee-focused Survivors like Loader, Mercenary, and Acrid, Artifact of Spite is genuinely punishing because they spend most of the run inside the bomb radius of dying enemies. Engineer with turrets has it especially rough. Turret kills also drop bombs around your stationary turret positions, often destroying them mid-fight.
If you want guaranteed unlocks via specific Artifact selection, enable the Artifact of Command alongside Spite to compensate by picking your items strategically.
The Reliquary fight is a sustained DPS check with significant secondary hazards from the bomb spam. From our experience and the wiki's combat notes, three Survivor archetypes do well here, and three struggle:
Huntress is the standout. Her mobility (Blink) lets her dodge bomb radii constantly, and her ranged primary lets her clear enemies without standing on top of their corpses. The Reliquary fight rewards constant kiting, and Huntress kites better than anyone.
Artificer handles Trial of Spite well because her flame primary and ice wall secondary both work at range, and her ion surge ultimate gives her an emergency escape from bomb clusters. Stack Hardlight Afterburners for extra ice walls to block bomb travel paths.
Captain is underrated for this trial. His Diablo Strike orbital deletes entire waves before they can drop their bombs, his beacons provide useful zone control, and his shotgun primary kills small enemies fast enough that you do not linger near corpses.
Engineer struggles because his turrets are stationary, and turret kills create bomb clusters around the turrets themselves. The turrets cannot dodge, so they take repeated explosion damage and often die mid-trial.
Loader and Mercenary are melee-focused, which means every kill puts you inside the bomb cluster of the enemy you just killed. Both can win the trial, but it requires significantly more mobility management than ranged options.
Trial of Spite is one of 14+ Artifact Trials in Risk of Rain 2, and many players run them in a specific order to maximize unlock value. After Spite, the most commonly chased trials are:
If you want the full progression order and difficulty rankings, the Artifacts hub covers every single Trial with completion strategies. The Trial of Prestige is the meta-trial that combines several Artifacts at once, so unlocking Spite is a hard prerequisite.
If this is one of your first Artifact Trials, do Trial of Command first. Command lets you select items in future runs, which makes every subsequent Trial significantly easier because you can build the exact loadout you need.
Trial of Spite has been in Risk of Rain 2 since the Artifacts system launched. Major changes since then:
| Date | Patch | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Artifacts Update | Trial of Spite added with the original Artifacts launch on Sky Meadow Compound Generator |
| 2024 | Seekers of the Storm DLC | Helminth Hatchery added as alternative Compound Generator stage with same trial mechanics |
| Various | Balance updates | Bomb damage and detonation timing adjusted to match Artifact of Spite balance changes |
The bomb behavior (third-bounce detonation, pass-through-player) has remained consistent since launch. If you read older guides describing different bomb mechanics, check the publish date. Anything pre-2020 is from Risk of Rain 1, where Spite worked differently.
The code is Triangle-Circle-Triangle (top row), Circle-Circle-Circle (middle row), Triangle-Circle-Triangle (bottom row). Enter it on the Compound Generator on Sky Meadow or Helminth Hatchery. The pattern is symmetrical, with corner Triangles framing an all-Circle middle row and a central column of Circles.
On the Compound Generator structure on Sky Meadow (Stage 5) or Helminth Hatchery (Stage 5, Seekers of the Storm DLC only). Both stages contain the same 9-pillar Compound Generator. Rotate each pillar to match the code, then activate the central obelisk to enter Bulwark's Ambry.
Once unlocked, the Artifact of Spite causes every Monster team enemy to drop multiple exploding grenades on death. Lemurians drop 2 bombs, most small enemies drop 3, larger enemies drop more, and bosses drop around 50. Bombs detonate on the third surface contact and pass through the player without damage on contact.
Trial of Spite is rated one of the harder Artifact Trials because the Artifact's effect activates during the trial itself, meaning your own kills produce hazards. Trial of Command and Trial of Sacrifice are easier first-time picks. Trial of Glass is harder. We recommend doing Trial of Command first to unlock guaranteed item selection, then tackling Spite with a built-out Survivor.
Yes, if you own the Seekers of the Storm DLC. Helminth Hatchery contains the same Compound Generator with identical mechanics to Sky Meadow's. The trial code, Bulwark's Ambry fight, and Artifact reward are all identical. Pick whichever stage matches your DLC ownership and run path.
Yes. The bombs from defeated enemies damage anything in their radius, including other Monster team enemies. This makes Spite useful for chain-reaction kills against tightly grouped waves, especially on stages like Sundered Grove where enemies bunch up.
Huntress is the strongest pick because her Blink mobility lets her dodge bomb clusters constantly, and her ranged primary keeps her out of corpse blast radii. Artificer and Captain are strong alternatives. Engineer, Loader, and Mercenary all struggle because their playstyles put them inside bomb radii repeatedly.
No. Engineer turrets are on the Survivor team, and only Monster team enemies drop bombs from the Artifact of Spite. However, the bombs from enemies your turrets kill still drop around the turrets themselves, which often kills the turrets in repeat trials. Engineer is one of the harder Survivors for Trial of Spite for this reason.
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Wiki citations: Trial of Spite, Artifact of Spite, Artifacts, Fandom Spite reference.
Sprites and screenshots sourced from the Risk of Rain 2 Wiki (riskofrain2.wiki.gg) under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0.