"15% (+15% per stack) chance to block incoming damage. Unaffected by luck." The stated 15% is misleading. The actual formula is hyperbolic - 1 stack gives 13.04% block chance, not 15%, and you can never technically reach 100%. Every block completely negates the hit. No cooldown. Luck from Purity or 57 Leaf Clover has zero effect. Cannot block Void Fog. Corrupted by Safer Spaces (SotV DLC).
The in-game tooltip says +15% per stack. That is not how it actually works. Tougher Times uses hyperbolic stacking: each new stack adds less than the last. The formula is:
Each stack adds less than the one before. Going from 1 to 2 stacks adds about 5.5%. Going from 50 to 51 adds only 0.2%. This means stacking past 10-15 has sharply decreasing returns for the item slots used. Keep picking them up, but don't over-prioritize past a moderate stack.
Purity has zero effect on Tougher Times. Purity's -1 luck per stack makes all random effects roll extra times for an unfavorable outcome. Tougher Times is explicitly excluded from this system. Running Purity does not reduce your block chance at all. This makes Tougher Times the strongest defensive item to pair with Purity.
57 Leaf Clover also has zero effect. The Clover's +1 luck per stack improves all random effects - except Tougher Times. You cannot boost your block chance with Clovers. The item is entirely self-contained.
Tougher Times gives a chance to completely block incoming damage. When a block triggers, zero damage is taken and "Blocked!" appears instead of a number. The stated 15% per stack is misleading - the actual formula is hyperbolic: 1 - 1/(0.15 x stacks + 1). One stack gives 13.04% actual block chance, not 15%. The block chance never technically reaches 100%.
No. Tougher Times is one of the few items in the game explicitly unaffected by the luck stat. Purity's penalty and the 57 Leaf Clover's bonus both have zero effect on Tougher Times block chance. This makes it uniquely reliable on Purity builds.
You need 60 stacks for a 90% block chance using the formula 1 - 1/(0.15 x 60 + 1) = 90%. Practically, 10 stacks gets you to 60% and 27 stacks to 80% - both achievable in long runs or with Artifact of Sacrifice. 100% block chance is theoretically impossible with normal play.
Tougher Times has no cooldown and rolls a chance on every hit - better against rapid multi-hit enemies. Safer Spaces guarantees the next block but then recharges for 15 seconds - better against single massive hits. Safer Spaces is the void counterpart that corrupts all Tougher Times when picked up.
Yes. Tougher Times can block self-inflicted damage from Helfire Tincture, Shrine of Blood activations, and REX's HP-cost skills. However, it cannot block Void Fog damage from the Void Fields - that damage specifically bypasses both Tougher Times and Repulsion Armor Plate.
Tougher Times is unlocked by completing the Learning Process challenge, which requires dying 5 times across any number of runs. It is one of the earliest challenge unlocks in the game and most players complete it naturally.