Last Updated on by Samuel Franklin
This Darkest Dungeon tier list details the best classes for your party expeditions. With 18 total hero classes (16 base and 2 DLC) it can be difficult to determine the best mix of 4 characters to acquire resources and push your Hamlet upgrades. While players may have their own playstyle preferences for party composition there are several heroes that perform better at specific roles.
This characters tier list is for new and returning gamers progressing through their initial playthroughs on Darkest or Radiant Mode difficulty. For players in this situation I recommend using the Crusader, Hellion, Houndmaster and Vestal primarily while pairing them with the other above average heroes below.
Table of Contents:
– Classes Tier List
– Tier List Ranking Factors
Darkest Dungeon Classes Tier List
These recommendations are for hero recruitment and party structure:
| Hero | Tier Rating | Notes |
|---|---|---|
 Crusader |
S | A hero that can do it all with damage across enemy ranks, healing, stun, stress management and high base stats to be a tank. The Crusader is a huge asset to your early progression as they need little attention to be effective and why it is a tutorial character. |
 Hellion |
S | A flexible damage dealer that can stun, bleed and hit each enemy rank with some form of attack when in the first two positions. A dual frontline stun is one of your greatest assets as it allows you to drag out a fight safely to patch up your other heroes. A notable weakness is your selfish camp skills but these can be mitigated with other heroes. |
 Houndmaster |
S | Highly flexible at any position this character fills many team roles across combat and camping. The Houndmaster has an attack all enemy bleed, stun, enemy protection reduction, self heal and a stress reduction for all heroes. These themes continue in the camping skills where you can prevent night time ambush and remove some accumulated stress across the party with therapy dog. The Houndmaster also brings their own dog treats that can buff damage and accuracy for a few rounds but don’t make the mistake of never using them as they do use a limited expedition inventory slot. |
 Vestal |
S | The Vestal is a fantastic support character for starting adventures given her reliable heals and ability to stun enemies although she offers little outside of this role. As you progress in the game and with your own Darkest Dungeon knowledge you’ll be better served by other support heroes though so beware of getting overly attached to these healing specialists long term. |
 Arbalest |
A | Flexible across damage and support roles although takes some investment to achieve their combat potential. On the support side they can play as your main healing hero when you consider both their combat and camping skills while equally lowering the accuracy/critical chance of the enemy backline. Meanwhile on the offensive side they can hit all enemy positions across their attack skills so you can always attack when necessary. |
 Musketeer |
A | A reskinned Arbalest that was added as free DLC in 2018 and as a result is in the same tier list position as the Arbalest with similar strengths and weaknesses (note trinkets are unique between Arbalest and Musketeer). |
 Bounty Hunter |
A | High flexibility with stuns, pull and damaging attacks that can be used from many positions in a party on a range of enemy target positions. This flexibility allows the Bounty Hunter to fit many team compositions and adjust to combat shuffles. |
 Grave Robber |
A | A powerful damage dealer with investment but suffers from a niche damage role that other heroes can often do better. The damage is definitely there if you opt to bring the Grave Robber along (primarily through Lunge attack skill) but requires setup and they lack flexibility in combat to do much else. The Grave Robber camping skills do compensate somewhat with a decent mix of stress management and scouting utility. |
 Highwayman |
A | A tutorial hero the Highwayman is damage focused with a simple combo of Duellist’s Advance and Point Blank Shot that have you dance between positions effortlessly. Combined with a bleed and a ranged attack the Highwayman can hit every rank necessary although lacks notable party combat utility given the selfish rogue design of this character. |
 Leper |
A | A hard hitting character that sacrifices some accuracy compared to other heroes although this can be easily overcome by basic trinkets (or skills). The Leper also includes a combined self HP and stress heal that are two things new players may struggle with that make them a reliable front position hero. |
 Plague Doctor |
A | One of the best support heroes in the game once you have a foundation of trinkets the Plague Doctor’s speciality is the double stun of Blinding Gas. They can also inflict or cure Blight and Bleed to slowly lower enemy HP with each turn. This support hero grows stronger as your game knowledge and trinkets improve to potentially replace your Vestals. |
 Abomination |
B | A unique hero based around transformation that needs a specific team design to mitigate the stress this character inflicts on allies. In this transformed beast state the Abomination is designed as a fast high damage dealing hero and there are simply other character options without the stress drawbacks. Similarly while the transformation element can be ignored to focus on the Blight and stun effects of the human mode there are other choices to fill that role with better power, utility or camping skills. |
 Antiquarian |
B | Highly effective at Antiquarian runs for gold where they interact with every curio to acquire valuable antiques. The trade off for this is that they have low base stats and weak skills that reduce their party contribution. The Antiquarian does still have some basic support though with enemy accuracy debuffs, Blight damage and ally dodge buffs. |
 Flagellant (DLC) |
B | An interesting DLC hero designed for players with a good grasp of mechanics given your skills are focused on balancing bleeding and healing which is ineffective in against the Unholy enemies of the Ruins. Overall this is a high skill adventurer that can easily underperform for newer players so is best avoided until you feel confident in Darkest Dungeon mechanics. |
 Jester |
B | Can be a complex character if players want to utilise their full kit potential but is still highly effective if focusing solely on buffs and the occasional attack from position 3. In this support mode their Battle Ballad and Inspiring Tune are some of the strongest you’ll find although this turns them into a single track hero without the flexibility of some other support classes. |
 Man-at-Arms |
B | A simple hero that can stun and crush enemies with damage but is outclassed by other heroes in most adventures. For boss fights though The Man-at-Arms protection focused combat skills can be a useful choice. |
 Occultist |
B | The Occultist is intended to be in a support role with a heal, stun, pull and mark. Their heal can roll 0 and inflicts bleed so it is not as reliable as some other healing support heroes. Despite this the Occultist can always do something (particularly against Eldritch enemies) regardless of position and does become a decent adventurer later in your game progression. |
 Shieldbreaker (DLC) |
B | A hero that starts out in a weak state but like the Plague Doctor can reach impressive levels of power with the right team, upgrades and trinkets. Before this point the Shieldbreaker does offer decent attack flexibility through Pierce and Puncture although their unique camp nightmare mechanic may cause more problems for new players than they are worth. |
Class Tier List Ranking Factors
The following factors have been considered in these tier list ratings to determine the best class for your first Darkest Dungeon adventures:
- Base Stats/Skills: Strong stats provide a powerful starting point with maximum health, damage, dodge, speed, protection, accuracy and critical. Skills are an extension of this with combat and camping skills that define how a hero plays and their overall party contribution. While some heroes reach an entirely new power level with the best trinkets for them this takes time to accumulate. Base stats can also help overcome the abundance of negative quirks you might have to manage early before it is feasible to remove them on your core adventurer party.
- Flexibility: Flexibility is key to a Darkest Dungeon party to adjust your plans to the game randomisation. Flexible heroes are comfortable being positioned shuffled and have skills to attack multiple enemy positions.
- Utility: Other utility such as HP healing, stuns, stress healing and debuffs (e.g. bleed or blight) all contribute to a rounded party setup.
As with all tier lists even the lowest tier of heroes can win with enough game knowledge, a particular setup or in the right hands although your path to victory will be harder on average.
- S Tier: The top tier of Darkest Dungeon heroes that are always worth having in your team compositions. They are strong from the moment they are hired from the Stage Coach and bring fantastic flexibility or utility that make them important early and late game in their preferred positions.
- A Tier: Strong additions to your team these heroes hold their own during an adventure and are only limited by some weaknesses that players need to be aware of when utilising these.
- B Tier: This tier is reserved for the characters with niche uses or where there is an alternative pick that fills their intended party role better. If your team is built with these heroes in mind you’ll still be able to find some success in Darkest Dungeons although it will be tougher than a team of S and A tier options.
