This tier list ranks all 19 Risk of Rain 2 survivors based on their performance on Monsoon difficulty as the baseline, with Eclipse viability factored in. Rankings reflect a synthesis of community consensus from r/riskofrain, multiple external tier lists, and first-hand knowledge from building all 19 character guide pages and playing RoR2.
Every survivor in RoR2 is viable. Tiers reflect consistency and ceiling rather than whether a character can win runs. A C-tier survivor in skilled hands beats a misplayed S-tier survivor every time.
How We Rank
Damage output against elites and bosses. Mobility for repositioning and pillar skips. Survivability through healing, armor, or I-frames. Item scaling: how well common items convert into power. Eclipse viability: whether the kit holds up as difficulty modifiers stack. No D or F tier exists because every survivor in RoR2 is genuinely viable on any difficulty with the right build.
Risk of Rain 2 Tier List
S
S Tier
Dominant on Monsoon and Eclipse. Strong kit fundamentals, excellent scaling, and minimal item dependency.
Highest single-hit damage in the game. Best mobility of any melee survivor. Barrier on every gauntlet hit. Immune to fall damage. Scales with virtually every item and remains top tier from stage 1 to Eclipse 8.
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Most feature-loaded survivor in the game. Free revive per stage at 7 Tranquility stacks, massive barrier from Soul Spiral, Sojourn mobility for pillar skips, and one of the strongest team support kits. Rewards mastery disproportionately.
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Growth passive scales with max HP items that are otherwise weak, creating build flexibility no other survivor has. Laser Burst deals 2100%/s at max charge. Consistently powerful from early game without needing specific items.
See Build
Highest reliable single-target DPS in the game. Guaranteed crits on weak points. XQR tracking primary gives strong sustained pressure. One-shots most bosses with Crowbar and Laser Scope builds. Dominant at range.
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Jack of all trades with two complete forms. Built-in 18.2% heal from Shadowfade, +100 armor in Corrupted form, and 2000% Corrupted Drown DPS. Strong across every category without requiring specific items.
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A
A Tier
Strong and consistent on Monsoon. Require some item awareness or mechanical skill to hit their ceiling but reward investment well.
Desperado's infinite scaling damage is one of the strongest late-game tools in the game. Backstab guarantees crits from behind. Lights Out kill-reset chains can trivialize stage clears. Very consistent across all difficulties.
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Poison deals % max HP damage making it permanently relevant regardless of enemy scaling. One of the least item-dependent survivors in the game. Strong sustained presence with near-zero fall-off. Self-sustaining through Regenerative and Epidemic.
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Yes, CHEF! boosted Dice deals up to 9600%+ on returning cleavers. Boosted Ice Box freeze enables execute chains. Strong AoE clear and one of the best single-target burst ceilings post-SotS update.
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Two freeze options provide exceptional crowd control and execute thresholds. Ion Surge enables permanent flight for pillar skips. Charged Nano-Bomb up to 2000% burst. High ceiling but requires comfort with cooldown management and aerial positioning.
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Defensive Microbots passive shoots down projectiles removing entire categories of danger. Hacking beacons generate free economy. Shock Beacons stun-lock entire stages. Diablo Strike is the highest single-hit damage in the game. Strong but no mobility.
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Invulnerability frames on Eviscerate and Blinding Assault make him extremely safe in skilled hands. Expose tech with Focused Assault and Slicing Winds provides high consistent AoE DPS. One of the highest skill ceilings in the game.
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B
B Tier
Solid and reliable on Monsoon. Work well with common item builds but have clearer weaknesses or a steeper learning curve than A tier.
Strong mobility and the ability to attack while sprinting make her consistent in kiting. Laser Glaive procs on-hit items on each bounce. Flurry's 4x crit damage scaling is uniquely powerful. Limited by low HP and Ballista's 20s cooldown for single target.
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Highest base HP at 200. Retool dual-weapon flexibility and the best on-hit proc rate of any early-game survivor. Power Mode doubles DPS. Held back by 4.5 m/s base speed. Very strong but lacks mobility.
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Turret item inheritance creates effectively three survivors worth of on-hit procs. Bustling Fungus and TR12 nest is extremely strong. Lysate Cell third turret is a massive upgrade. Weak primary and zero mobility are real liabilities on later stages.
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Unique drone command kit with strong stacking scaling. Drone count snowballs into strong mid-game presence. Fragile without drones established. AC DLC character with community consensus still forming.
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Junk Cube recycler creates item economy no other survivor can replicate. Strong Backblast melee burst. AC DLC character with a unique playstyle. Weaknesses vs flying enemies and depends on item snowball timing for its power spike.
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C
C Tier
Viable but require specific builds, item RNG, or significant mechanical investment to match higher-tier consistency on Monsoon.
Self-damage mechanic is punishing on Eclipse where healing is reduced. Tangling Growth provides excellent crowd control and his secondary burst is strong. Loses one-shot protection frequently. Rewarding at high skill but inconsistent by design.
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Simple kit that scales well with on-hit items but lacks any standout mechanic. Phase Blast is genuinely strong burst. Requires item snowball to feel impactful. Still completable on any difficulty with the right build.
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Secret character requiring all 4 Heresy items mid-run. Highest base stats in the game (440 HP, 18 damage) and Ruin detonation is devastating. Constant HP drain and mid-run transformation cost place her here relative to freely accessible survivors.
See Build
Sources and Methodology
Rankings synthesize community discussion from r/riskofrain tier list posts (2024-2026), external tier lists from commonsensegamer.com and gametruth.com, and first-hand knowledge from building all 19 character guide pages and playing RoR2. Drifter and Operator (Alloyed Collective DLC) have less community data than base game and SotV/SotS characters. Their placements should be treated as more provisional. All tier lists are subjective: playstyle, difficulty target, and item RNG all shift which survivor performs best in any given run.
Best Characters by Difficulty
Beginners / Drizzle
Forgiving kits, high HP, or simple mechanics.
Simple defaults, high HP pools, or self-explanatory scaling. False Son is deceptively beginner-friendly despite his high ceiling.
Monsoon
Consistent damage, mobility, or built-in sustain.
Handle the difficulty curve without needing perfect item RNG. These survivors stay in control across most stage compositions.
Eclipse 8
Built-in healing or sustain is mandatory.
Eclipse modifiers reduce healing. Seeker's Tranquility healing, Acrid's % max HP poison, and Void Fiend's Shadowfade stay relevant at any modifier stack.
Multiplayer
Team utility on top of personal damage.
Seeker revives teammates at 7 Tranquility stacks. Captain's Shock and Healing Beacons support the whole team. Engineer's turrets provide shared AoE coverage.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the best character in Risk of Rain 2?
Loader is the most consistently ranked top survivor across community tier lists. She combines the highest single-hit damage in the game, exceptional grapple-hook mobility, barrier generation on every melee hit, and fall damage immunity. Seeker and False Son are strong arguments for the top spot depending on playstyle.
Who is the worst character in Risk of Rain 2?
No character in RoR2 is unplayable. The game is balanced enough that any survivor can complete a run. Commando is most often cited as the weakest because his kit has no standout mechanic and requires heavy item investment to feel impactful. REX is similarly limited by his self-damage mechanic punishing mistakes on higher difficulties.
Why does the tier list only go S to C with no D or F tier?
RoR2 is well balanced enough that no survivor belongs in D or F tier. Every character can complete runs on any difficulty with the right items. C tier survivors have real weaknesses or high setup costs but are not unplayable. Even Commando and REX are viable in skilled hands. A D tier would imply a character is fundamentally broken, which none of them are.
Is Heretic good in Risk of Rain 2?
Heretic has the highest base stats of any survivor (440 HP, 18 damage) and Ruin's detonation is one of the most powerful burst tools in the game. The catch is she cannot be selected at character select. You must collect all four Heresy Lunar items mid-run to transform. The constant HP drain also requires dedicated healing itemization. High ceiling, high cost.
Which characters are best for beginners?
Commando and Huntress are unlocked by default and have straightforward kits. MUL-T and False Son are also beginner-friendly. MUL-T has the highest HP pool and False Son's Growth mechanic rewards simply picking up HP items. Seeker is accessible despite her high ceiling since Meditate's healing provides strong sustain.
Does the tier list change on Eclipse difficulty?
Yes. Survivors with built-in sustain rise on Eclipse since healing is progressively reduced. REX falls significantly due to his self-damage. Mobility-focused survivors who can skip encounters gain relative value on Eclipse 8. Acrid's % max HP poison is particularly valuable since it ignores the healing reduction entirely.
Are DLC characters stronger than base game characters?
Generally yes. Railgunner and Void Fiend (SotV DLC), Seeker and False Son (SotS DLC), and Operator (AC DLC) are all rated highly by the community. DLC characters tend to have more complex and more powerful kits. However, Loader (base game) is still widely considered the single best survivor in the game.
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