Best Elden Ring Nightreign Classes And Tier List

All of Elden Ring Nightreign's classes are viable, but the game's random, roguelike nature means that some are easier to pick up and build than others. A Wylder who only gets daggers and scythes can still hold their own against a tough boss, for example, where a Guardian without stamina buffs won't be guarding much for long.

It's worth experimenting with every class to see which one suits your style the most, but we've put together this Elden Ring Nightreign tier list to help you get started. If you're after more help, head over to our Nightreign tips guide, and make sure to check out our Nightreign skins gallery to see all the different outfits you can unlock for each class.

Our Nightreign tier list takes into consideration how easy a class is to learn, what they offer a team, and how hampered they are by bad item drops during an expedition. The Wylder, for example, does a little bit of everything, so they get a top-ranking spot. The Recluse is powerful, but markedly less so if she doesn't end up with a good mix of elemental spells to power her basic art.

Below is a summary of our Nightreign tier list, with detailed breakdowns further on.

• S-tier: Duchess, Wylder, Ironeye
• A-tier: Recluse, Executor, Raider
• B-tier: Revenant, Guardian

The Duchess looks fragile next to a heavy-hitter such as the Raider, but she's quietly one of the most powerful characters in the game thanks to her basic art and a guaranteed, Duchess-specific relic you can purchase in the Roundtable hold. Despite starting with a dagger, the Duchess scales more effectively with sorceries, followed by dexterity, so Nightreign encourages you to mix magic with melee damage and lets the Duchess change her combat style more than other characters can, except the Wylder.

Her Restage art replays the last instance of damage or chain of attacks against the Duchess's target, which, timed well with critical hits and other heavy attacks, can quickly take large chunks out of a boss's HP bar. The Duchess also gets a unique relic that activates Restage for free when she uses a chain attack with a dagger. The Duchess's ultimate art turns her and nearby allies invisible for several seconds. That might not seem as impressive as the Raider's totem or the Ironeye's heavy bolt, but having a few moments to escape from a pesky field boss or to revive allies without a Night Lord targeting you can make all the difference to your team's survival.

Wylder is Nightreign's all-rounder. They can tank some hits with a well-timed block, use heavy and light weaponry with equal ease, scoot around the battlefield quickly thanks to a useful art, and set the arena ablaze with their ultimate. The Wylder starts with a greatsword, but decent strength and dexterity scaling mean they can make good use of almost any weapon you find. Their basic art fires a hook that behaves differently depending on the target. It latches onto walls and the ground to quickly pull the Wylder across large distances, and it grabs lighter enemies and yanks them toward the Wylder. Fire it at a boss, and the Wylder zooms toward them without having to spend any stamina, so they can attack immediately.

Their art creates a massive explosion at a set point, though the aiming is tricky, and it's easy to miss entirely. Minor annoyances aside, there's no drawback to playing as the Wylder, and if you're used to playing standard melee builds in Elden Ring, this will be the best class to learn Nightreign with.

Ironeye might not look like much, but they're one of the most useful characters, if not the most useful, in Nightreign. Sure, their standard damage is low, and Nightreign's speed makes using greatbows a disadvantage in most cases. However, they're the only character who excels at ranged attacks and can fire off multiple hits without being bogged down by lengthy casting animations. Ranged attacks keep you out of a fast-moving boss's way and offer a safer method for reviving downed allies.

On top of that, the Ironeye's basic art marks enemies and makes them take more damage, while doubling as an evasive maneuver that quickly slides you out of an enemy's reach for a few seconds. Their ultimate art is one of the most powerful offensive skills in the game. It fires a massive storm arrow that pierces all enemies and creates a mighty gust in its wake that deals additional damage. It also revives any downed ally that it touches, knocks bosses off balance, and can even break the poise of a Night Lord.

The Recluse can be brilliant and one of the most powerful members of a team, but it all depends on what magic and Incantation drops she can find. An upgraded version of Glintstone Pebble can still take a big chunk out of a Night Lord's health bar if you end up with an unlucky run, but the Recluse needs at least one or two other elements at play in battle for her Magick Cocktail ability to really work. With the right combinations, she can call down holy lightning, freeze nearby enemies, and set off magical explosions.

Without the right combinations, however, she has to rely on good spell drops during an expedition. On the bright side, the Recluse's ultimate art helps restore the party's HP and FP with every attack, making her the closest thing to a healer you get in Nightreign.

For some extra mage tips, head over to our Recluse guide.

The Raider is a sturdy fella, but he needs some attentive teammates to avoid getting overwhelmed. He's built for heavy weapons and dual-wielding, with an S-rank in strength and not much proficiency in anything else. He doesn't really need to be proficient in other areas, though. One hit from his starting weapon is enough to see most standard enemies off, and when he's got two clubs, axes, or greatswords, even bosses go down quickly.

The issue is how much stamina it costs to dual-wield heavy weapons and attack with both of them, and the Raider's stamina scaling is rather modest given how extensive his needs are. Before level seven or so, you can get three good hits in before his stamina runs out completely, leaving you without enough to even dodge roll out of harm's way. That's where an ally who can keep foes off you will come in handy, though if you're not careful and run out of stamina in a boss fight, you can end up throwing the entire run because of it.

The Executor is a brilliant choice for those who like using a perfect guard ability, and their starting armaments and skills make it easy to build blood loss and deal extensive damage fast. Their ultimate art lets them cover a lot of ground quickly, and they can stagger even a Night Lord while transformed.

The only downside, and it can be a big one, is that their Cursed Sword skill--the one that lets the Executor perfect-guard against any attack--forces them to walk slowly. No running, no jogging, just a slow walk. With as fast as some of Nightreign's bosses move, getting in position to use that skill or to take aggro from a more vulnerable party member is almost impossible and requires a sprint, a stop, and then their art activation just to do something that should be fairly simple.

The Revenant isn't a bad character, but she is highly dependent on good luck to function well. As a faith-scaling caster, the Revenant needs Incantations or specific weapons that scale with that stat. That puts her at an instant disadvantage, since the likelihood of finding, say, a seal with Lightning Spear or a Gargoyle's Black Axe is much lower than getting a standard straight sword or greataxe that other characters could use. In a worst-case scenario, you can give her a bow or non-faith weapon, but her damage output suffers for it.

For more help with this class, check out our Revenant guide.

The Guardian should be Nightreign's defender, but he takes so much stamina damage from blocking that it's hard for him to fulfill his role unless you're lucky enough to get several passive stamina buffs during the expedition. Without an exceptional shield and high stamina, the Guardian can only block two or maybe three strong attacks before their poise breaks. Another issue is that the Guardian's basic skill only works on standard enemies. It's meant to launch foes and briefly stun them, and that just doesn't work with formidable enemies and other bosses.