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Quick Stats
v1.13 · March 2026 · 0 Golden Eggs
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| Category | Top Pick |
|---|---|
| Best overall |  Chaos (OtC) - all 21 Arcana simultaneously, stats exceed Queen Sigma |
| Best base game |  Queen Sigma - +1% Might & Growth/level, 4 Arcana choices, 100+ rerolls |
| Best stat scaler |  Scientist Mina - +1% chosen stat at lvl 10/20/30/40/50 (uncapped) |
| Best movement pick |  Babi-Onna - weapons fire on movement, not cooldown. Pentagram = screen wipe |
| Best gold farming |  Sammy - kills convert to gold + XP. Beats Big Trouser when Limit Break optimised |
| Best beginner pick |  Pugnala - dual guns union to Phieraggi, +1% Might/level. Best early unlock |
| Easiest survival |  Krochi Freeto - 2 Revivals built in. Cross evolves to Heaven Sword |
| Only F tier |  Exdash - lowest stats in the game, Ebony Wings start. Universally considered the weakest character with no competition for the bottom spot. |
| Tier | Character | Why They Rank Here | |
|---|---|---|---|
| SS | | Chaos Ode to Castlevania - secret unlock | Starts with all 21 Arcana cards simultaneously plus stats bigger than Queen Sigma. Infinite Corridor as starting weapon. Universally considered the most broken character in the game. Requires unlocking almost every OtC secret. Literally breaks the game engine. |
| SS | | Queen Sigma Base game - 100% completion unlock | +1% Might and +1% Growth per level. 333 Max Health. 100+ rerolls. Starts with Victory Sword. Chooses any Arcana at several run intervals for unrivalled build customisation. Requires completing the entire base game to unlock. Universally ranked above all other base characters. |
| S |  | Red Death Base game - secret unlock | +100% Movement Speed plus bonus Health and Might. Starts with Death Spiral (an evolved weapon) giving a massive early advantage. The fastest character in the game - excellent for map traversal and relic grabbing. Many bonus objectives are trivial with this speed. |
| S |  | Big Trouser Base game - secret unlock | The gold farming king. Starts with La Robba and gets +1% Greed every 2 levels. With Limit Break this snowballs into absurd gold generation. Essential for players grinding the PowerUp shop. Sammy challenges it for raw gold output but Trouser is the classic pick. |
| S |  | Megalo Menya Moonspell Legacy of the Moonspell - Megalo form | Gains periods of complete invincibility throughout a run. Disappears when the time limit expires - designed to clear stages fast. Combination of survivability and damage output makes her the best Moonspell character. Community consensus: best DLC character for standard runs before Castlevania. |
| S |  | Je-Ne-Viv Tides of the Foscari - secret unlock | Starts with Insatiable (exclusive weapon scaling with Magnet and Greed) plus Shadow Servant. The unique weapon Insatiable cannot be obtained by any other character. Widely considered the most powerful Foscari character. Exceptional AoE damage with no hard weaknesses. |
| S | | Sammy Base game - secret unlock | Starts with Vicious Hunger which converts enemy kills to gold. Gains EXP from gold. With Limit Break and a single weapon run this dwarfs even Big Trouser for gold output. Requires defeating 6000 Sammy enemies to unlock - a long grind with a massive payoff. |
| S | | Babi-Onna Legacy of the Moonspell | Weapons trigger on movement, not cooldown reduction. Long-cooldown screen-wipers like Pentagram, Troll Bomb, and Gorgeous Moon fire multiple times per second with speed investment. Babi-Onna with Paranormal Scan and speed is one of the strongest builds in the game. Requires movement - cannot stand still. |
| S | | Scientist Mina Emergency Meeting | Starts with Science Rocks. Must reach level 50 to unlock. Science Rocks requires you to walk over rocks to trigger - awkward for most players. |
| A |  | Avatar Infernas Base game - Piano Puzzle unlock | Starts with Flames of Misspell, one of the strongest weapons. Substantial passive bonuses and decreasing cooldown per level. Unique piano puzzle unlock. Extremely strong out of the gate. |
| A |  | Gyorunton Base game - special unlock | Can evolve weapons with any chest pickup regardless of conditions. 300 Max Health (3x the base). Uses Bracelet as starting weapon. The evolution perk is game-changing - evolve weapons much earlier than any other character. |
| A |  | Gains Boros Base game - secret unlock | Starts with Heaven Sword (an evolved weapon). One of very few characters that starts with a fully evolved weapon from the base game, giving a massive early damage advantage. |
| A | | Pugnala Provola Base game - secret unlock | Starts with both Phiera Der Tuphello and Eight The Sparrow simultaneously. +1% Might per level. With Tiragisu these evolve into Phieraggi - one of the strongest weapons in the game. Double-gun start is among the best early games available. |
| A |  | Smith IV Base game - secret unlock | Starts with Vandalier (already evolved). +100% Luck plus +1% Luck per level. Extreme Luck scaling enables incredible item and weapon pool manipulation throughout a run. |
| A |  | Leda Base game - secret unlock | Starts with Holy Wand (an evolved weapon). Evolved starting weapon gives immediate zero-cooldown damage with no investment required. |
| A |  | Megalo Syuuto Moonspell Legacy of the Moonspell - Megalo form | Aggressive damage build with strong scaling. Starts with Night Sword. High power Moonspell form with solid survivability and offensive output. |
| A |  | Luminaire Foscari Tides of the Foscari - A-tier DLC pick | Starts with Prismatic Missile (one of the best base weapons in the game). Passive ability adjusts based on the first chosen Arcana from II, XIV, or XIX enabling build flexibility. High damage and versatile. |
| A |  | Genevieve Gruyere Tides of the Foscari - Foscari pick | Starts with Shadow Servant (which evolves into Ophion, the S-tier instant-kill weapon). Extra utility from the unique weapon Insatiable on unlock. Good scaling and a powerful evolution path. |
| A |  | Alucard Ode to Castlevania - key unlock | Movement Speed, Armor, and Max Health bonuses. Four hidden trigger abilities: levelup fires a flamethrower pickup, overhealing summons attacks, low health triggers a sword cleave, and Soul Steal charges on standing still. One of the most mechanically rich characters. |
| A |  | Sonia Belmont Ode to Castlevania - Belmont line | Excellent scaling potential and powerful weapon synergies with the Sonic Whip line. Consistent DPS while maintaining survivability. Widely listed as a top Castlevania character alongside Alucard. |
| A |  | Vlad Tepes Dracula Ode to Castlevania - secret unlock | High damage output with abilities that enhance survivability. Deals significant area damage. Pocket Gamer and multiple sources list as top-tier Castlevania character. Unique thematic synergies with vampire-killing tool evolutions. |
| B |  | Concetta Caciotta Base game - unlock | Starts with Shadow Pinion. +1% Might per level. Shadow Pinion is a high-ceiling weapon for skilled players and the evolution (Valkyrie Turner) is A-tier. |
| B |  | Boon Marrabbio Base game - secret unlock | Starts with Thousand Edge (an evolved weapon). One of the few characters starting with an evolution, giving immediate high-DPS output. |
| B | | Krochi Freeto Base game - unlock | Starts with Cross. 2 Revivals. The revivals provide enormous safety net for learning runs or risky builds. Cross evolves into Heaven Sword (A-tier weapon). |
| B |  | McCoy-Oni Legacy of the Moonspell - Oni pick | Starts with 108 Bocce. Gets stronger with Curse/Luck differential - unique scaling mechanic that rewards commitment to building that gap. |
| B |  | Menya Moonspell Legacy of the Moonspell | Starts with Four Seasons. Amount and Duration increase damage (unique mechanic). Good damage output once the unique scaling is understood. |
| B |  | Miang Moonspell Legacy of the Moonspell | Starts with Silver Wind. Good Luck scaling and decent healing from the evolved form. Solid mid-tier Moonspell pick. |
| B |  | Syuuto Moonspell Legacy of the Moonspell | Starts with Summon Night. Decent damage and a strong evolution path via Echo Night. |
| B |  | Gav'Et-Oni Legacy of the Moonspell - Oni | Starts with Mille Bolle Blu. Unlocking Gav'Et-Oni is key for accessing Boo Roo Boolle. Decent mid-tier Moonspell option. |
| B |  | Eleanor Uziron Tides of the Foscari | Starts with SpellString. The trio of Spell weapons eventually forms SpellStrom (S-tier). Starting with one makes the union path much more accessible. |
| B |  | Maruto Cuts Tides of the Foscari | Starts with Eskizzibur which evolves into Legionnaire (S-tier weapon). Great evolution path. |
| B |  | Rottin'Ghoul Tides of the Foscari | Starts with Party Popper. Decent early pick with access to Foscari stage pickups. |
| B |  | Megalo Impostor Rina Emergency Meeting - Megalo form | High base stats, special weapon mechanics, and the ability to scale through all phases of the game. The Megalo form of Impostor Rina with greatly enhanced abilities. |
| B |  | Ariana Operation Guns | Starts with Spread Shot. Good forward coverage and Prototype C is a solid evolution with drone support. |
| B |  | Bill Rizer Operation Guns | Starts with Long Gun. Fires constantly in the faced direction. Prototype A adds drone support. Solid corridor weapon start. |
| B |  | Colonel Bahamut Operation Guns - best Guns pick | +100 Max Health and +50% Might. Starts with Metal Claw which improves as health drops. Big Fuzzy Fist is a solid evolution. Best stats of the Operation Guns characters. |
| B |  | Probotector Operation Guns | Starts with Prism Lass. Solid base stats for the DLC. Good all-rounder. |
| B |  | Sheena Etranzi Operation Guns | Starts with Blade Crossbow. Homing projectiles make early game reliable. |
| B |  | Stanley Operation Guns | Starts with Homing Miss which evolves into Multistage Missiles. Reliable early game with homing projectiles. |
| B |  | Leon Belmont Ode to Castlevania - Belmont | Starts with Alchemy Whip which grows stronger per boss killed. Automatically acquires Svarog Statue at level 5. Good build momentum. |
| B |  | Richter Belmont Ode to Castlevania - Belmont | Starts with Platinum Whip (every 3rd activation fires extra projectiles). Strong sustained damage output. Classic Castlevania character with a solid kit. |
| B |  | Simon Belmont Ode to Castlevania - Belmont | Starts with Wind Whip. Damage scales with Growth stat making it exponentially stronger over time. Excellent long-run scaling. |
| B |  | Keitha Muort Tides of the Foscari | Starts with Flash Arrow - requires Iron Blue Will passive to reach its damage potential. Decent base stats and scaling Luck enables critical hit builds. Keitha was moved from D to low B by Bioness after community feedback noting Flash Arrow can be worked around. The Millionaire evolution (Flash Arrow + Iron Blue Will) is a strong mid-game weapon. |
| B |  | Ghost Lino Emergency Meeting | Immune to all damage but has -100% Might permanently, making most weapons deal zero damage. Requires Sarabande of Healing, Divine Bloodline, or Blood Astronomia to deal any damage. Limited weapon choices to work around the Might penalty. Damage immunity does not fully compensate for the severe damage restriction. Can pass through walls. Interesting niche build character. |
| B |  | missingN▯ Base game - secret unlock | Has a wide range of stats it randomises each run - can roll one of the best starting setups or one of the worst. Can potentially roll negative Health (invincible), but can also roll -100% Growth or reversed controls. Per Bioness: placed in B tier when reasonably rerolled. View stats before confirming. Make sure Death Spiral is the starting weapon, not Axe. Reroll by exiting and re-entering character select. |
| C |  | Arca Ladonna Base game | Starts with Fire Wand. Decent early picks but Fire Wand is D-tier at base. Becomes more interesting once Hellfire is accessible. |
| C |  | Christine Davain Base game | Starts with Pentagram. Incredible for XP farming (can hit level 30,000 by 30 minutes with the right build) but requires understanding of when not to let Pentagram destroy chests and gems. |
| C |  | Minnah Mannarah Base game - secret unlock | Starts with Bloody Tear (an evolved weapon). Immediate lifesteal from an evolved weapon is useful but Bloody Tear is only B-tier overall. |
| C |  | Mortaccio Base game - unlock | Starts with Bone. Gains +1 projectile every 20 levels. Scales unusually well over time and the Anima of Mortaccio evolution is locked to him. |
| C |  | O'Sole Meeo Base game - unlock | Starts with Celestial Dusting. Movement-scaling weapon. Profusione D'Amore evolution is restricted to O'Sole. |
| C |  | Peppino Base game - secret unlock | Starts with Soul Eater (an evolved weapon). Soul Eater is B-tier - lifesteal is nice but Pummarola is a weak passive to have built in. |
| C |  | Poppea Pecorina Base game | Starts with Song of Mana. Duration stat increases with each level (unique scaling). Song of Mana is B-tier and the Duration bonus eventually makes all weapons with duration scaling dramatically more effective. |
| C |  | Porta Ladonna Base game | Starts with Lightning Ring. Decent early weapon. Thunder Loop evolution is A-tier. +30% MoveSpeed makes map traversal easier. |
| C |  | Zi'Assunta Belpaese Base game | Starts with Vento Sacro. Scales damage with MoveSpeed and Luck. The Fuwalafuwaloo union path is viable but Vento Sacro is D-tier at base. |
| C |  | Engineer Gino Emergency Meeting | Starts with Lucky Swipe. Decent damage, awkward positioning. Crossed Wires is a good evolution. |
| C |  | Browny Operation Guns | Starts with Sonic Bloom. Best with Might. Wave Beam is a solid evolution. |
| C |  | Brad Fang Operation Guns | Starts with Firearm (spinning projectiles). Best with Duration and Speed. Functional mid-tier. |
| C |  | Lance Bean Operation Guns | Starts with Short Gun. Best with Amount and Area. Prototype B is a strong evolution. |
| D |  | Antonio Belpaese Base game - starter | The very first character. Starts with Whip (C-tier). No special passive abilities. Intentionally basic as the tutorial character. Outclassed quickly but the Whip line leads to Bloody Tear and Fuwalafuwaloo. |
| D |  | Yatta Cavallo Base game - unlock | Starts with Cherry Bomb. +1 projectile every 20 levels. Yatta Daikarin is restricted to Cavallo. Below average start and mid game. |
| D |  | Divano Thelma Base game | Starts with Laurel. Laurel is a C-tier defensive weapon but Crimson Shroud (SS-tier) is the evolution target. Divano is very slow which limits positioning. |
| D |  | Dommario Base game | Starts with King Bible. High Speed and Duration bonus but -40% MoveSpeed. The slow movement is a serious handicap in this mobility-heavy game. |
| D |  | Gennaro Belpaese Base game - starter | Starts with Knife. +1 projectile per level is a genuine passive but Knife is D-tier at base and Gennaro has no other distinguishing abilities. |
| D |  | Imelda Belpaese Base game - starter | Starts with Magic Wand. +10% Growth every 5 levels is useful but Magic Wand is D-tier and Imelda has no combat passives. |
| D |  | Pasqualina Belpaese Base game - starter | Starts with Runetracer. +30% Projectile Speed by level 15. Runetracer is C-tier and bounces well off walls. Below average overall but not terrible. |
| D |  | Bianca Ramba Base game - unlock | Starts with Carrello. Below average starting weapon with no standard evolution path. Mediocre overall. |
| D |  | Crewmate Dino Emergency Meeting | Gets permanent stat boosts whenever ANY player's weapon reaches max level - outstanding in co-op but weak in solo where you rely only on your own weapons. Solo tier drops significantly. |
| D |  | Shapeshifter Nino Emergency Meeting | Starts with Just Vent (F-tier weapon). Unjust Ejection is a B-tier evolution but getting there solo is rough. Gets Mini Shapeshifter with Bone as passive. |
| D |  | Lucia Zero Operation Guns | Starts with C-U-Laser. Best with Duration. Pronto Beam is a decent evolution but the base is C-tier. |
| D |  | Newt Plissken Operation Guns | Starts with Diver Mines (wall-hugging explosives). Very map-dependent and Atmo-Torpedo is a niche evolution. |
| F |  | Suor Clerici Base game - starter | Starts with Santa Water. +0.5 Recovered Health per level with good Recovery stats. The healing focus conflicts with the offensive meta. Santa Water is B-tier so the weapon is fine but the passive is defensive in a game where offence wins. |
| F | | Exdash Exiviiq Base game - secret unlock | Starts with Ebony Wings (D-tier). Very weak starting stats. The only notable thing is access to Vandalier union but the starting weapon and stats are among the worst in the game. |
| F |  | Iguana Gallo Valletto Base game - secret unlock | Starts with Clock Lancet. Gyorunton is a far superior choice for evolving weapons early. Clock Lancet is C-tier defensive so early game is slow. |
| F |  | Giovanna Grana Base game | Starts with Gatti Amari (A-tier at its peak) but Gatti Amari is terrible at the start of a game when stats are low. Giovanna is painful early and the reward comes very late. |
| F |  | Lama Ladonna Base game - starter | Starts with Axe. +10% MoveSpeed per level. Axe is D-tier at base and Death Spiral requires Candelabrador. Average at best. |
| F |  | Poe Ratcho Base game | Starts with Garlic. Garlic is C-tier but falls off fast. No meaningful passive beyond having Garlic available. Outclassed by nearly every other character by mid-run. |
| F |  | Toastie Base game - secret unlock | Starts with Peachone (D-tier) and Ebony Wings (D-tier). Both starting weapons are weak alone. Has extremely low starting health. Designed as a challenge character. |
| F |  | Horse Emergency Meeting | Starts with Hats (random bouncing projectiles with random properties). The randomness of both the character stats and the weapon make consistent runs nearly impossible. |
| F |  | Guardian Pina Emergency Meeting | Starts with Clear Debris (F-tier weapon). Requires reaching level 50 with Guardian Pina to unlock Clear Asteroids. Strong in co-op but solo the Area-affecting passive does nothing and Clear Debris cannot sustain the early game. |
Meta Notes v1.13 · March 2026 · Rogue Ranker | |
| Topic | Summary |
|---|---|
| How Characters Work | |
| Starting weapon matters | Characters that start with an evolved weapon (Leda, Gains Boros, Boon Marrabbio, Peppino, Minnah, Smith IV) have a significant early advantage since they skip the evolution grind entirely for that slot. |
| Passive stats scale everything | Characters with per-level stat boosts compound dramatically over long runs. Queen Sigma's +1% Might and Growth per level means by level 100 she has double the damage output and levelling speed of a neutral character. |
| Gold farming vs combat | Big Trouser and Sammy are rated SS/S purely for gold generation. In a standard combat run you would rank them lower. Pick them specifically when grinding the PowerUp shop. |
| Chaos caveat | Chaos starts with all 21 Arcana simultaneously - this includes Wicked Season (Curse), which actively makes the game harder. The net result is still overwhelming because the other 20 Arcana more than compensate, but Chaos is not a relaxing pick. It also has -99% Growth at the start. |
| DLC Power Ranking | |
| Ode to Castlevania | The biggest power creep of any DLC. Adds 80 characters, many starting with multiple weapons, characters that begin with Arcana cards, and trigger-based passive abilities that fire extra weapons. Several OtC characters rival or exceed the base game's best picks. |
| Tides of the Foscari | Je-Ne-Viv is one of the most powerful characters in the entire game. The other Foscari characters are solid but not game-breaking. |
| Legacy of the Moonspell | Megalo Menya Moonspell is the standout - periodic invincibility is extremely strong. The non-Megalo Moonspell characters are functional but below the top tier. |
| Emergency Meeting | Megalo Impostor Rina is the best pick from this DLC. Crewmate Dino is co-op specific. Most Emergency Meeting characters are average for solo play. |
| More VS guides | See our Vampire Survivors guide for stages, tips, and new player advice. Looking for what to play next? Our games like Vampire Survivors list covers the best alternatives. For more genre picks see our best roguelike games roundup. |