AFK Journey Heroes Tier List: Stop Wasting Resources on the Wrong Units

S-Rank Mauler Mage, arriving December 18th, is a fan‑favorite from this season’s story, so players are excited to play her. Her kit has been refined after several updates, and she is already dominating Endless Dream Realm bosses on VN servers, with strong PvP potential.

His kit, featuring summoned armor and a stun, scales well in AFK stages, making him a compelling choice for many players this season. He can keep monsters stunned for extended periods, which is highly effective. While some claim he performs well in Supreme Arena, in practice even at full power he occupies only a niche role there. Avoid overinvesting, as his summoned armor loses energy more quickly under heavy burst damage, limiting its effectiveness. The additional damage primarily targets monsters.

I once labeled her a mediocre niche hero, but she excels as a hypercarry in PvP and can dominate the mode for a while. While the meta may shift, she remains a gateway to higher ranks for PvP-focused spenders.

Elijah is the top support hero for all players and roasters, and should be among the first heroes you build.

She is essential to pull and build, excelling in all game modes. Don’t hesitate to invest in her EX Weapon; it will sustain your content for a long time.

Phraesto is the second most essential Hypolestial hero after the Twins, and even for free‑to‑play players he is indispensable due to his overwhelming strength everywhere.

He heals and buffs. Recent balance changes before the global release kept him useful everywhere, though his range no longer covers the entire map. Since release, he has remained a strong presence in every season's meta teams.

Pandora is a valuable dimensional hero who empowers key carry heroes, improving nearly every team.

He has strong potential, especially because his tank damage scales with HP. However, he cannot tank alone and the shielding mechanic requires one or two other heroes to support it. He is a solid tank with a cool design and works well in most modes, notably in several Dream Realm bosses.

Her reflection, healing, and buffing make her a powerful hero. Building her is worthwhile, and she remains highly relevant.

He is a very tanky hero and is increasingly popular in the Dream Realm meta. While effective, most players should still prioritize heroes like Twins and Phraesto.

Ravion is an overpowered PvP hero who applies heavy pressure from the start and is also strong immediately in the Dream Realm. If you consider him a top priority, read our banner pull and build priority notes below.

A true comeback. Though unused at launch, Ulmus now excels at pushing stages by extending ally crowd control, especially with the increased number of CC heroes, and is difficult to eliminate.

The Graveborn support hero everyone wanted, but is he the right choice? He is a healing battery with negligible damage and offers little support, yet remains relevant in many Dream Realm meta teams.

She offers strong support; for pure debuff use, one non-ascended copy suffices. She cannot heal alone, but she is a staple in Dream Realm meta.

When she debuted, Lily May dominated Dream Realm, crushing Eironn compositions in PvP and becoming the go‑to hero for players aiming to max out quickly. Today she’s cooled off; while still solid against bosses, she’s no longer meta. Her main strengths now lie in countering Eironn and crowd‑control compositions in PvP. She’s still viable, but if you haven’t built her yet, there are better options.

She performs well in AFK, PvE, and PvP stages thanks to her Haste manipulation, but she struggles against bosses.

He was the gold-standard hero at launch, but is no longer. Today he remains vital for several meta Dream Realm bosses.

Aliceth is a tech hero for PvP, boosting ranged units to cover the entire map and offering minor benefits. She isn’t meta‑changing but can fit in Dream Realm teams. She’s not a top‑priority celestial; consult our Celestial/Hypogean order guide for a detailed build order and role placement. For spenders or PvP players she’s a solid choice, but for regular F2P players heroes like Twins, Reinier, Baelran, and Phraesto are more important.

He snowballs well with energy recovery on kills and can instantly kill low health enemies, making him a strong damage dealer. He needs Mythic+ or higher gear to shine, but he is essential against Dream Realm bosses, so he’s a top shop pick.

He shines with heal block and solid damage, but requires manual play and may not fit all setups. He can help advance your PvE progress.

She deals relentless damage while staying in range of enemies, especially with sufficient healing nearby. Although much of her kit requires EX investment, she remains useful at L+ and works in all modes. She may not be the top pick in any mode today, but she is still a strong hero overall.

His kit limits large-scale damage, so while he remains meta against some bosses, most players find more impactful heroes.

He starts strong, but his healing and damage boosts are weak. He's not very powerful unless you need extra energy to trigger your heroes' ultimates early.

He is a hero with a mechanic similar to Koko, but tailored for static ranged support. He had a rough start, but now performs well in most modes.

Day 1, he's already meta in Dream Realm teams for the first boss, proving his strength. If you skipped Ravion, he's a hero to acquire. He will drive a lot of Dream Realm action this season.

Shakir is a versatile hero who excels at damage, support, and core roles in Mauler teams. Though he may be overlooked early, he becomes crucial against many Dream Realm bosses, including newer ones that rely on his all-in-one kit.

She had a rough start in AFK Journey Season 2, but now shines in several Dream Realm bosses. Not the most flashy hero, but worth building today.

Meta for the Dream Realm boss Nocturen Judicator: her kit looks powerful in PVP, but she struggles to survive long enough to use her ultimate. In Dream Realm, she already works well at low ascension, and later upgrades have little impact unless you min-max.

Perse is a strong Season 5 hero, but on the faster VN servers he has a major drawback. When buffed he deals massive damage and can shred frontlines in a single burst, yet he is fully countered by Brutus, which ends the fight immediately. He also performs poorly in AFK stages and has little impact in Dream Realm. For now, it’s best to wait before pulling him.

Zanie is a hybrid that can DPS and off-tank with her turrets, but she lacks a clear role or strong strengths. In PvP, her turrets survive her, yet without AoE or crowd control effects she is niche to the few modes where she excels.

She is no longer very relevant. Some teams still use her in Dream Realm and PvP, but if her ultimate doesn't win the tug‑of‑war, she provides little benefit.

His early performance may seem weak, but once you build his Exclusive he becomes very strong by gathering enemies and debuffing them. While the meta may not value him much now, he is still a solid early‑game start.

Her endless reviving win condition makes her tough to defeat, but she rarely excels except in certain PvP comps or when used in PvE stages, where she helps with tough levels but is not a carry.

There has been a lot of hype and subsequent disappointment around Mehira, often driven by content creators who overhype and then abandon her. Consider multiple sources before forming an opinion. Recently she received a buff on the VN servers that improves her performance compared to the preview. She is not a Dream Realm hero and is not meta in PvP. In her current state, with all buffs, she mainly helps push AFK stages, which are tougher than previous seasons. This shouldn’t be a reason for most players, especially lower spenders, to build her. With additional buffs and in Endless mode she could become viable in Dream Realm, but she is already available in the Guide Store, so you don’t need to banner pull and can wait. She can still be useful for pushing AFK stages with a single copy, but most players can skip her for now or wait it out.

He has a barrier and can be a can opener sometimes, but overall he is primarily a PvP-focused hero.

She excels only in PvP when heavily invested, making her a classic high-spender hero. If you are willing to invest, she will provide significant value.

Strong crowd-control, but only useful in niche PvE setups and ineffective in Dream Realms; primarily a PvP hero.

He is specifically built to counter artifacts and various compositions, making him a lab-created PvP hero.

A solid tank that can cheat death and deal decent damage. He excels early and remains useful later, but over time he has become less viable and is often overwhelmed, needing another frontline hero to support him—contradicting his intended role.

He remains useful against certain Dream Realm bosses, though otherwise he requires many prerequisites.

Hewynn provides powerful, long‑range healing across the battlefield. While Smokey is often preferred, Hewynn is useful early in AFK Journey when a wide‑coverage healer is needed. At higher ascensions, her universal damage reduction benefits the whole team, but she focuses solely on healing, which can lead to over‑healing and leave other support roles under‑filled.

As the release approaches and we test him on the VN servers, my excitement wanes. He won't survive long enough in PvP to make a real impact. In Dream Realm, his true damage is present, but most of his kit is AoE and thus easily wasted. He increasingly appears to be a hero to skip.

Athalia excels at sniping enemies, but offers no utility outside PvP and works best alongside other PvP-focused heroes.

She can snipe enemy backrow, but many counter options now exist, leaving little room for her beyond early gameplay.

I haven't found anything unique about him. He can survive short bursts of damage, like Thoran from the Graveborn faction, but he has no special tank abilities. The only notable aspect is his low investment.

She is meta for ranged PvP teams, yet only a few players can fully exploit her devastating potential, mainly in PvP.

Summon is highly useful, offering crowd control and AoE damage that make her an excellent choice. She can carry you through the story and AFK stages for a long time, reaching 700+ easily. Building and ascending her is worthwhile, and investing in her exclusive and focus skills is a smart move. Although her power wanes later, early in the game she should be among the first heroes you ascend to progress the main story efficiently.

His invincibility period lets him survive intense bursts and extend your team's survivability. You don't need to ascend him much; simply acquire and deploy him when early burst survival is required.

He has a very long range, but his kit lacks burst and impact unless you need to counter buffs. He doesn't excel in any AFK Journey mode.

He works well without a large investment, and his energy boost at the start of battle keeps him useful over time. However, there is little else to note; he cannot solo tank, which is a shame because that would make him very powerful.

Like Lucy, Natsu's disadvantages outweigh his advantages, and he is not meta in any mode.

He is a powerful damage dealer in PvP, but offers little value elsewhere. Unless you spend heavily and build many hypocelestials per year, he is not sustainable for most players.

She once led the team with her unique wall-creating kit. In Season 1 she was central, but now she has little role except possibly as the Crystal Beetle boss in the Dream Realm.

Strong in Eironn and crowd-control teams when built, but he requires investment and is not an end-game hero.

She deals decent damage, and her ability to phase through walls disrupts enemy formations. While she remains useful for Necrodragon in Dream Realm and AFK stages, she is no longer relevant today, in my opinion.

She brings more downsides than benefits; her kit is decent, but it breaks faction bonuses and leaves her vulnerable.

Honestly, his sole function is handling walls, obstacles, and Saida's seeds; nothing else works well with him.

A release hero who remains useful today, though not meta‑relevant. He offers strong burst healing and energy support, but requires his EX Weapon to perform, which is a late investment for new players.

Excellent assassin when fully ascended, but otherwise fragile and a glass cannon. In certain stages or PvP, she can serve as a versatile tool.

A very strong PvP hero for setting the order, but largely ineffective outside the arena.

Excellent at blocking critical ultimates, but mainly useful in PvP rather than other modes. I love her design, but I'm hesitant.

When the game launched in early 2024, she was effective in some modes, but she is no longer relevant today.

Deals AoE damage, applies buffs and debuffs, and supports other AoE damage dealers in AFK Journey. A top non‑S‑Rank hero, she is easy to ascend thanks to multiple copy sources. Strong early, but later has limited roles in most game modes.

He can revive allies and deal damage, but requires significant investment in his Exclusive and has never been meta-relevant in AFK Journey.

A strong assassin when fully built, but early game he is a fragile glass cannon and you’ll never find yourself wishing for him later.

She was strong on release and with Eironn, but her kit and the Eironn meta are now outdated, limiting her usefulness.

Physical damage debuffer essential for some Dream Realm bosses.

Functions well as an off-tank with shielding, but is inadequate as a primary tank and has rarely fit into the meta.

His primary role today is reviving and heal denial; otherwise, he offers little value unless you play PvP.

Her magic damage reduction makes her useful in PvP against heavy magic users, but otherwise she has limited relevance.

She was an early AFK Stages pusher, later in Faction Tower. She is not particularly outstanding and is not essential to build.

She had a brief moment of relevance at the end of Season 1, but is now largely outdated.

She was a strong hero at launch, handling early carry well, but she’s no longer cutting-edge in the current meta. If you don’t have her built, I’d skip her.

Pull her with one copy to hard-counter Bonnie at the start; that's all she can do for you.

Effective in stages and PvP for eliminating backline enemies, especially in control teams. However, her impact is rare, appearing only once in a blue moon.

He has interesting mechanics, but he's not worth investing in the banner. With his inability to subway-surf along Alsa, he's only relevant in a few PvP setups.

He can match any DPS hero, mimicking their damage output on a target and manipulating enemy haste. He had a good start, but has not secured a place in the meta, even in PvP, because of many hard counters and his single‑target nature, leaving him without a clear role.

He can be annoying with death-cheating and targeting the enemy team's HP, but after the release nerfs he has become more of a PvP hero.

She is a durable tank with crowd control, self‑healing, and debuffing, letting her survive for a long time. She excels early and remains the best choice in Faction Tower.

Good early-game pusher, but never gained meta relevance.

She was a top damage dealer in Dream Realm at launch, but she is now largely irrelevant. Avoid investing in her.

Never became relevant in any game mode.

Solid damage dealer, but not exceptional.

He made a strong impact on release in S2, but honestly physical is not meta and there is no mode where he can truly shine, except by hard‑countering physical PvP teams, which are rarely seen.

She was used during the game's initial release in March and April 2024, but is now irrelevant.

He used to excel at damage scaling with target max HP against many bosses, but now that most of that power is locked behind his EX Weapon and many new heroes have appeared, he is no longer relevant.

He hasn't performed well since his release.

Good at crowd-controlling casters; not as useless as in AFK Arena, but still not essential.

An assassin excels against single targets but is ineffective against grouped enemies.

I was excited about him, but he is ineffective as a tank because he dies quickly even with heavy investment. His crowd control is acceptable, yet many better heroes offer that.

Same as in AFK Arena, he offers shields and tanking early, but later lacks the strength to tank alone. Not relevant beyond early AFK stages.

He performs well early in the story but quickly loses relevance and has no role in the AFK Journey meta. Overall, not worth it.

Lacks proficiency in all areas.

He deals little damage and cannot survive; avoid him for now.

His kit looks like a tank killer, but his damage output is insufficient, so he mainly helps other heroes against tanks without adding much. He is only useful in the first five days when you need to fill teams.

She buffers and heals, but neither role is strong, so she’s not worth investing time.