Improved Catalyst

Improved Catalyst is a relic that increases the damage dealt by bombs. It appears as a collectible relic in runs and is available from the Demo release onward. The relic directly modifies the game's bomb damage parameter, adding a flat bonus defined by the game's data as {[ADDITIONAL_BOMB_DAMAGE]} to every bomb attack.

Because the effect is a straightforward additive damage boost, Improved Catalyst stacks with other bomb-focused items and relics to produce disproportionately large single-hit outputs. When combined with Alchemist's Cookbook, Short Fuse, and/or Enhanced Gunpowder, bombs become among the most powerful offensive options available, turning grenade-style shots into reliable burst damage against both single targets and grouped enemies.

Practical notes:

• Improved Catalyst makes bombs capable of one-shotting Green Slimes when obtained early in a run, greatly accelerating progress through the Forest when picked up at or near the start.
• The relic's benefit applies to every bomb fired; build strategies that increase bomb count, bomb frequency, or critical modifiers synergize strongly with this flat damage increase.
• Improved Catalyst does not change bomb behavior (blast radius, status effects, or mechanics); it only increases the damage value of bombs.
• Iconography for the relic was updated in an unknown post-release update; the relic itself has been present since the Demo release.