Ranking Methodology
Classes and companions are scored across 3 scenarios on a 0–10 scale: (1) PotD 6-man Party, (2) Solo PotD viability, and (3) Casual / Story Mode new-friendliness. Each tier aggregates the weighted average with build accessibility factored in.
Pro Tips
- S-Tier: Breaks the game's difficulty curve. Can solo PotD or carry bad party comps.
- A-Tier: Extremely strong. Needs minimal gear investment to dominate encounters.
- B-Tier: Solid and reliable. Good in most party comps but has clear weaknesses.
- C-Tier: Niche. Shines only in specific builds or requires high-end gear to compete.
- D-Tier: Challenging. Requires mastery to make work on PotD.
Class Tier List (11 Classes)
| Tier | Class | Role | Why this rank | PotD Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S | Cipher | DPS / CC Hybrid | Soul Whip infinite resource. Mind Wave + Psychovampiric Shield break every fight. Gaze of the Adragan single-target lockdown. | 9.8/10 |
| S | Wizard | AOE DPS / CC | Spell mastery gives double casts. Combusting Wounds + Ninagauth's Shadowflame = party wipes. Grimoire weapon swap abuse. | 9.6/10 |
| S | Chanter | Support / Summoner | Dragon Thrashed phrasal build deals more AOE damage per second than most casters. Skeleton/ogre summons are free bodies. | 9.3/10 |
| A | Druid | AOE / Healer / Shift | Relentless Storm wins fights by itself. Great shifting damage with Form of the Delemgan. Only held back by slow spiritshift ramp. | 8.7/10 |
| A | Paladin | Tank / Support | Darcozzi Paladini + Flames of Devotion = highest burst damage tank. Lay on Hands party heal. Faith and Conviction passive god mode. | 8.5/10 |
| A | Fighter | Tank / DPS | Unbroken engages entire enemy teams. Disciplined Barrage self-buff + high DR. Mule kicks build top-tier single target. | 8.3/10 |
| B | Monk | Melee DPS | Wounds mechanic means damage taken = damage dealt. Swift Strikes + Torment's Reach clears screens. Needs specific gear (Sura's Plate, etc.). | 7.6/10 |
| B | Rogue | Single-target DPS | Sneak Attack on all 14 afflictions. Backstab capstone high ceiling. Glass cannon — dies to focused fire if not protected. | 7.4/10 |
| B | Priest | Healer / Support | Barring Death's Door saves wipes. Divine Mark + Crown of the Faithful party buffs. Direct damage spells are weak post-Patch 3. | 7.2/10 |
| C | Ranger | Ranged DPS / Pet | Sky Dragon Druid pet carries hard. Marked Prey + Driving Flight great. Pet death = downtime and bonds wasted. | 6.3/10 |
| D | Barbarian | Melee AOE DPS | Heart of Fury still one of the highest AOE burst buttons, but Carnage damage nerfed hard in Patch 2.x. Low survivability for melee. | 5.5/10 |
Companion Tier List (8 Recruits)
| Tier | Companion | Class | Best Build | PotD Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S | Pallegina | Paladin (Darcozzi) | Off-Tank + Flames of Devotion Burst | 9.4/10 |
| S | Kana Rua | Chanter | Dragon Thrashed Summoner | 9.1/10 |
| A | Aloth | Wizard | AOE DPS + Crowd Control | 8.8/10 |
| A | Eder | Fighter | Unbroken Main Tank | 8.6/10 |
| B | Hiravias | Druid | Spiritshift Melee Druid | 7.7/10 |
| B | Sagani | Ranger | Itumaok Hunting Bow | 7.2/10 |
| C | Grieving Mother | Cipher | Bleak Walker Cipher DPS | 6.8/10 |
| C | Durance | Priest (Magran) | Healer + Fire Support | 6.4/10 |
Optimal Party Compositions (Patch 3.7)
PotD Meta Party (Highest Difficulty)
| Slot | Who | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tank | Eder / Custom Fighter | Unbroken Engager | Max Perception, Resolve 20+ |
| Off-Tank | Pallegina | Darcozzi Paladin Flames of Devotion | Exceptional resistances + burst |
| AOE DPS #1 | Kana Rua | Dragon Thrashed Chanter | Must-have — consistent AOE |
| AOE DPS #2 | Custom Wizard or Aloth | Combusting Wounds Stacker | Swap grimoires for double casts |
| Single-Target | Custom Cipher (Watch) | Mind Lance + Psychic Backlash | Your Watcher best as Cipher |
| Healer / Support | Custom Priest + Druid | Barring Death's Door Bot | Can flex Hiravias druid for more damage |
Story / Casual Party (No Stress)
No meta needed — recruit whoever you want. If you want to breeze through without trying though: Eder tanks, Durance heals, Aloth wipes screens, Pallegina bursts, Sagani provides consistent ranged damage. Your Watcher can fill literally any role.
Frequently Asked Questions
Fighter or Cipher. Eder (Fighter) shows you why the class is forgiving — high DR, self-healing via Constant Recovery, and Disciplined Barrage always works. Cipher (a popular Watcher choice) gives you the most broken ability set but requires reading your resources. If you want zero effort press-button wins, go Fighter main + Cipher companion.
Yes. Barbarian dropped slightly (Carnage multiplicative to additive), Wizard went UP (Grimoire Vivification + Combusting Wounds interactions explicitly preserved), and Chanter confirmed top-tier. Ranger gained a pet survivability bug-fix that keeps them out of D-tier. See our Patch Notes page for the full impact breakdown.
Yes — Cipher (Bleak Walker multiclass equivalent hybrid builds), Chanter (Dragon Thrashed) and a very specific Monk (Torturer + Clarity of Agony + Sura's Plate) build all clear it. A well-built Paladin is nearly unkillable too. Solo PotD is NOT a balanced experience — it exploits the enemy AI's focus-fire issues with stealth chains.
Durance is not a bad character — his stats (low Perception for a caster, dumped Resolve) and his restricted Magran Priest sub-class limit his effectiveness on PotD. Custom priests with high Intellect + Perception with a different deity (Skaen, Woedica) simply outperform. Durance is still perfectly usable on Normal and Hard difficulties; he's just outclassed in min-max comps.