King of Greed Build Guide: Vault Dispenser Economy
A King of Greed build for 9 Kings 1.0: Vault, Dispenser, Beacon, and the gold curve that turns an economy into the strongest scaling damage in the game.
Quick answer: The King of Greed build turns gold into attack speed. Vault generates gold, Dispenser converts every gold earned into +1% attack speed, and Beacon adds more. It is slow for the first 15 years and unstoppable after year 25.
Greed is the economy king. Its cards care about gold, and its win condition is a board that gets faster and stronger as the treasury grows. That makes it the best scaling deck in 9 Kings and one of the hardest to pilot.
This guide covers the Vault Dispenser build, the gold curve, and the decisions that keep a slow start from becoming a lost run.
The deck
Greed's nine cards:
- Palace (base): a ray that insta-kills a target; golden enemies drop gold.
- Thief (troop): jumps to the backline.
- Mercenary (troop): costs gold, gains units.
- Beacon (building): +2% attack speed per year to adjacent troops.
- Vault (building): +3 gold per year per level.
- Dispenser (building): +1% attack speed for every gold earned.
- Midas Touch (enchantment): 2% chance on kill to gain 1 gold.
- Mortgage (building): destroy a plot for 30 gold per level.
- Over-Invest (enchantment): pay 30 gold for +15% all stats.
The deck has two economy engines, two payoff cards, and enough gold generation to support them. It is the most internally consistent deck in the game.
The Vault Dispenser engine
The core is a three-card loop:
- Vault generates gold every year.
- Dispenser gains attack speed for every gold earned.
- Beacon adds attack speed to adjacent troops.
Vault is the fuel. Dispenser is the engine. Beacon is the multiplier. Put all three in the same cluster and you have a board that gets faster every year without spending a card.
The fourth piece is Midas Touch. Every kill has a 2% chance to give gold, which feeds Dispenser. On a wide board, that is a steady stream of attack speed.
Opening priorities
Greed's opening is about surviving long enough for the engine to come online.
Years 1–3: take Vault if it appears. If not, take Beacon or a cheap troop. Do not take Dispenser before you have an economy.
Year 4: take Loan or Sharp Blades. Loan accelerates the engine; Sharp Blades keeps you alive.
Years 5–7: place Vault next to your carry. Place Beacon next to the carry. If you have Dispenser, place it in the same cluster.
Years 8–11: save gold. Greed wants to enter the year-12 merchant with 60+ gold.
Year 12: buy Dispenser if you do not have it. If you do, buy a second Vault or a Beacon.
The gold curve
Greed's power curve is not linear. It looks like this:
- Years 1–10: weak. You have little gold and no attack speed.
- Years 11–20: stable. Vault is generating, Dispenser is scaling.
- Years 21–33: dominant. The engine has compounded.
The danger zone is years 8–15. You are not strong enough to win every fight, and you cannot afford to lose lives. Take the safe fights, avoid unnecessary risks, and let the economy catch up.
The full board
By year 25:
- Base plot: Palace.
- Carry plot: a troop with Beacon and Dispenser support.
- Support plots: Vault, Dispenser, Beacon.
- Front line: Mercenary or Thief.
- Kill zone: Palace's ray plus the carry.
- Open plot: a second Vault or a defensive card.
Do not put Vault on the front line. It has no combat value and will be destroyed.
Decrees
The best decrees for Greed:
- Loan: +99 gold immediately. The best tempo decree for this build.
- Sharp Blades: +30% attack. The carry still needs damage.
- Exploration: extra plots. Greed needs room for three support buildings.
- Overwork: support buildings trigger one more time. Excellent with Vault and Beacon.
Avoid Bunker unless you are playing a tower variant. Greed's damage is troop-based.
Perks
The Greed perks that matter:
- Peddler: +1 free shop purchase. More cards, more economy.
- Nepobaby: +30 starting gold. A faster start.
- Fixer: +10% Dispenser damage. Direct scaling.
- Patron: +10% Vault gold. More fuel.
- Oligarch: +10% gold from all sources.
Universal: Ingenious, Expansionist, Persistent, Lucky, and Politician. Lucky helps find Vault and Dispenser.
The Final Battle
Greed beats the boss with a fast, heavily buffed carry. By year 33, Dispenser should have added hundreds of percent attack speed. The boss dies quickly if your carry survives the first hit.
The weakness is burst. A Greed carry with no defensive support can die before the engine matters. Steel Coat or Feast is worth a slot.
Common mistakes
Building Dispenser before Vault. Dispenser without gold is a worse tower.
Spending gold on rerolls early. Every gold spent is attack speed lost. Save for the merchant.
Ignoring defense. Greed's carry is fast but fragile. One defensive card is mandatory.
Taking fights you cannot win. The engine needs time. A lost life at year 10 is a lost run at year 30.
The best strategy→ page covers the gold curve in more detail, and the best decrees→ page ranks Loan and the other economy picks.
If you have less than 30 gold at year 12, you are behind. Fix it before you buy another card.
FAQ
Is King of Greed good in 9 Kings? Yes. It is one of the two strongest kings in the 1.0 build, with the highest late-game ceiling.
What is the best Greed build? Vault Dispenser: Vault, Dispenser, Beacon, and a buffed carry.
Should I buy Over-Invest? Only on a carry that will survive. 30 gold is a lot before year 20.
How do I unlock King of Greed? Spend 999 gold across your runs.
Sources
Official source: 9 Kings Steam store page ↗