Elden Ring Nightreign Tier List: Who Soars in Limveld and Who Struggles? (Ironeye Leads the Pack)

Diving into the perilous depths of Limveld in Elden Ring Nightreign is all about finding a Nightfarer whose playstyle clicks with you. Theoretically, any character can conquer the challenges thrown your way. However, after extensive play, it’s surprisingly clear that the roster isn’t perfectly balanced. Some Nightfarers distinctly outshine others, with one, in particular, emerging as a clear frontrunner due to their potent kit, ease of use, and distinct advantage against the game’s toughest Nightlord bosses.

While the “meta” in a cooperative roguelike like Nightreign should always take a backseat to personal preference and fun, understanding who brings what to the fight can be fascinating, especially for newcomers. Below, we’ll crown the best character and then break down the full roster into a tier list, giving you our insights on each Nightfarer’s strengths and weaknesses.

Who’s the Best Character in Elden Ring Nightreign?

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The undisputed best character in Elden Ring Nightreign is Ironeye. In a game where the most formidable adversaries—the Nightlords—are incredibly mobile and frequently take to the skies out of melee reach, close-quarters combatants face a significant handicap. Archers, however, can consistently lay down damage during these intense boss encounters, and Ironeye is the premier archer.

His versatility is a massive boon. His Marking dash ability not only tags enemies for increased team damage but also serves as an excellent dodge, akin to Bloodhound’s Step, allowing him to evade even the most frustrating attacks. Furthermore, his Single Shot ability can stagger and heavily damage bosses, while typically clearing out lesser foes in an area of effect. While another character might arguably be better for solo expeditions, if you’re playing Nightreign as intended—in a group—Ironeye is unequivocally the top pick.

Elden Ring Nightreign Tier List

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S-Tier

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Ironeye

Hit your mark with our best Ironeye build, weapons picks, and tips.

As highlighted above, archery reigns supreme in Nightreign, making the best archer incredibly powerful. Ironeye’s Marking ability is a fantastic support tool, boosting the team’s damage output, while also providing him with a crucial evasive dash reminiscent of Bloodhound’s Step from the original Elden Ring. His Single Shot is also a game-changer for both boss stagger and area damage, especially potent if a Duchess is present to repeat its effects.

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Duchess

Stab from the shadows with our best Duchess build, weapons picks, and tips.

The quintessential support character who can also dish out serious pain with dexterity-based weapons, Duchess is an invaluable asset to almost any party. Her primary strength lies in her Restage skill, which allows her to duplicate instances of damage and stagger inflicted on bosses. Coordinated teams can use this to devastating effect, repeating the impact of ultimate arts or critical strikes. The skill also boasts a remarkably fast cooldown.

To compensate for her lower health pool, Duchess possesses an enhanced dodge. Her Finale ultimate art, which renders all nearby allies invisible, is perfect for clutch revives and can be the difference between a successful expedition and a heartbreaking failure. Note that Duchess is an unlockable character.

A-Tier

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Raider

Enjoy a rock in this trying time with our best Raider build, weapons picks, and tips.

A personal favorite, Raider excels at getting in enemies’ faces, headbutting them with his Retaliate skill, and summoning a somewhat comically large rock with his Totem Stella. While the totem’s effectiveness in granting poise and strength (and dealing damage on appearance) can be a bit inconsistent, Raider more than compensates as an S-tier strength powerhouse, wielding massive weapons and consistently breaking boss stances for critical hits.

If Raider absorbs enough damage during the initial phase of his tanky Retaliate skill, it transforms into a powerful uppercut that deals immense stagger, though landing it can sometimes be tricky. Thanks to his high damage output and stance-breaking capabilities, Raider is also one of the best Nightfarers for solo play.

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Wylder

Grapple monsters with our best Wylder build, weapons picks, and tips.

Wylder is the definition of an all-rounder. He boasts high strength with enough dexterity to effectively use katanas if a good one drops. His health pool is robust enough to survive most one-shot attacks, and aesthetically, he embodies the classic Dark Souls archetype. When you put a character on the box art, you tend to equip them for success.

Ability-wise, Wylder’s grappling hook significantly smooths out combat encounters by allowing him to quickly close the distance on Nightreign’s agile, leapfrogging bosses. This can be further enhanced with remembrance relics that add potent follow-up attacks. Wylder’s ultimate art deals substantial stagger damage, reliably creating openings for critical hits on bosses. Crucially, he’s invulnerable while using it, making it a viable last-ditch option for reviving a teammate when you can’t risk taking a hit.

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Executor

Pretend you’re playing Sekiro with our best Executor build, weapons picks, and tips.

On paper, the Executor should be a top-tier, S-class character. His unique skill, Cursed Sword, allows him to negate most attacks with a parry window far more forgiving than its Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice inspiration. His Ultimate Art, Aspects of the Crucible: Beast, is fantastic for clearing groups of enemies and can keep many medium-weight bosses stun-locked. The status effect build-up from his high arcane stat is also excellent, with bleed damage remaining as potent as ever.

The main issue is that he’s a character in Nightreign. The game’s inherent chaos means his ability to duel single enemies effectively diminishes significantly when swarmed. Furthermore, without passive abilities to boost aggro generation, his Cursed Sword’s slow movement speed and limited reach often leave him chasing enemies, especially when paired with a ranged attacker like Ironeye who naturally draws considerable attention. He’ll spend a lot of time awkwardly stance-shifting to catch up.

His high dexterity and arcane scaling mean he’ll still contribute in these scenarios, but it will often be due to a powerful weapon rather than his inherent kit—and any character can find a good weapon.

B-Tier

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Revenant

Raise an army of skeletons with our best Revenant build, weapons picks, and tips.

This doll-like necromancer can summon a member of her “Family” – skeletal minions – to tank boss attacks and draw aggro. Summoning the large skeleton, Sebastian, is particularly effective. These allies will even revive downed teammates, provided they aren’t distracted by other enemies. Her Immortal March ultimate art is also quite useful, reviving allies and granting them temporary immortality (though they can still take damage, just not die).

Revenant’s primary drawback is her reliance on landing killing blows to summon temporary minions. This forces her into combat, which is risky given her very low health. Similarly, during Nightlord boss fights, while she can temporarily draw aggro with her summons, there are no smaller enemies to convert into minions. This means a significant part of her kit goes unused, and she must risk direct combat to contribute damage. Revenant is an unlockable character, available after unlocking Duchess.

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Recluse

Fancy some sorcery? Check out the best Recluse build, weapons picks, and tips.

Recluse is a curious case; she has the potential to be an S-tier character when playing with a coordinated group of friends who can manage their elemental affinities to fuel her strongest spell combos. As a spellcaster, Recluse extracts elemental affinities from nearby targets (including allies) to cast a variety of powerful spells via her Magic Cocktail skill. This sounds incredibly strong, but her effectiveness is heavily dependent on the elemental makeup of her team. If she can’t perform Magic Cocktails due to a lack of suitable affinities, she also can’t collect affinity residues, which are her primary means of restoring FP for spellcasting. In a pinch, spamming basic combos like three magic residues or three fire residues (a common affinity if using relics) is an option.

If her spellcasting breaks down, she’s forced into direct combat, which is far from ideal given her low HP, stamina, dexterity, and strength. However, her Soulblood Song ultimate art is quite handy, marking enemies with a sigil that allows you and your allies to recover HP and FP upon hitting them. Perhaps the key to mastering Recluse is to bring three of them. Regardless, she’s not recommended for players just starting out or those playing with random teammates.

C-Tier

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Guardian

Become a shielded bulwark with our best Guardian build, weapons picks, and tips.

It’s hard not to appreciate the Guardian’s striking design as an anthropomorphic hawk-man. Unfortunately, he feels somewhat out of place in Nightreign’s meta. While he is undeniably the tankiest character on the roster, boasting the highest base health and a unique enhanced blocking stance, he offers little else. Compared to a character like Raider, Guardian is outmatched in most meaningful aspects. Furthermore, since every character in Nightreign can equip and use shields, his primary specialty feels less impactful.

His unique skill is primarily useful against crowd-controlling trash mobs, which are generally not the source of major difficulty for most players. While his ultimate ability has niche applications, such as making Guardian invincible to survive targeted boss attacks or providing a defensive buff to nearby allies, it pales in comparison to the high damage output of Wylder’s ultimate or the incredible utility offered by Duchess. It’s a shame, as Guardian is a visually interesting addition to Nightreign’s eclectic cast.