Slay the Spire 2 tier list - the best characters ranked

With the game now in early access, we've got the only Slay the Spire 2 tier list you need to do Neow's bidding all over again. In this guide, we've ranked each of the five characters available in the game from best to worst, detailing the reasoning behind each placement. While there aren't any stinkers, not all of these slayers are made equal, and you'll want to use the most powerful options if you hope to clear challenging Ascension attempts while unlocking all the available cards, relics, and events.

Of course, Slay the Spire 2 is still a ways away from launching, so there's always a chance our rankings could change with future updates and balance patches, plus the eventual full release. Once you've decided which character you're going to use, we've also got a guide to the best Slay the Spire 2 cards you can use to finesse your build as you power through each act on your way to face a new nemesis.

Slay the Spire 2 tier list

At the time of writing, The Silent reigns supreme at the top of our Slay the Spire 2 tier list. It's hardly surprising, given that the assassin was also widely regarded as the best option in the original game. Still, she might be even more powerful now, with her new 'Sly' keyword cards making discard builds feel just as potent as her already overpowered Shiv and poison builds. Things can get a little tricky in the very early game, but once you've got a couple of key pieces for any of her builds, her power level starts ramping up rapidly.

The Defect is Slay the Spire 2's second-best character in the current early access build. They're capable of dealing damage and putting up solid defenses by way of lightning, dark, and frost orbs, while the new addition of glass orbs offers a backup if you evoke all your lightning in one turn. The only reason The Defect doesn't share the S-rank with The Silent is that not all of its build options are made equal, and while its 0-cost card and Claw-oriented builds are viable, their power ceiling isn't nearly as high as going all-in on orbs, at least in our experience.

In B-tier, The Ironclad is firmly decent, with a variety of strength and block builds capable of getting you through a successful run. His main issue is his low ceiling in terms of potential. Outside of Demon Form, there aren't a bunch of cards you can rely on to scale damage through a battle without playing fast and loose with your health. He's a great character for those still finding their feet, thanks to his straightforward combinations, but if you're trying to use him to grind Ascension runs, he might run into trouble by the time you get to double digits.

The Necrobinder is the highest-ranked new character in our tier list, sharing B-tier with The Ironclad. Her doom-inducing builds have plenty of scope, but unlike poison, doom deals damage after the end of a turn, rather than before the enemy attacks, which can make it difficult to make it through hard-hitting elite and boss battles. You can mitigate damage by boosting the health of her human-hand-shield Osty, which is capable of doling out decent damage itself, but combining doom and Osty cards into a hybrid build currently lacks the synergy required to push The Necrobinder into the higher echelons.

At the bottom of our Slay the Spire 2 tier list is The Regent. His majesty struggles a lot in the early game, and the fact that you have two energy resources to deal with rather than just one means you're more likely to brick a hand than with any of the other characters. The Regent still has plenty of potential, as none of the character options in this game are downright bad, but it takes a little more luck and a little more nuance in the art of deckbuilding as you progress to make it all the way to the end of a run.

How do I unlock all the Slay the Spire 2 characters?

If you're reading our Slay the Spire 2 tier list and noticing characters you haven't unlocked yet, don't worry, we can help there, too. In the table below, we've got details for how to access all five slayers:

If you're returning from Slay the Spire, you might notice there's a missing character from the original game. As of the latest early access build, The Watcher is not available in Slay the Spire 2. There's a lot of speculation as to why she's not a part of the sequel's roster, but we don't have any concrete information from the developer, Mega Crit, at the time of writing, so we can't be certain of the reasons behind her absence.