Originally, part of the intention of this game was to be a bit vague, and I'm in between players who just want an auto play and others who want full info.
The items are provided every 3 combats, and the final floor is 20. I don't provide the player any sort of slay the Spire map, and personally I prefer this way but it's of course up to the players and what they want, so this may change.
This game can be very lucky based, yes! And I like to think it's part of the fun especially since runs are so short.
I'm not understanding your final critique. The gameplay loop is indeed: Do I retreat now or carry on? Unless I'm misreading.
