A useful familiar tier list ranks effects in context, not mascots in isolation. A familiar that improves the exact damage window of one carry can be an S-tier pairing for that unit and a poor choice elsewhere. Anniversary updates also add or revise familiars, so a static name order goes stale faster than a role-based comparison.
Use this page to sort the familiar you actually own. Read its live tooltip, identify what the effect changes, check whether the receiving unit can activate it, and then compare the pairing with alternatives in the same mode. Unknown or newly released effects should remain unranked until their conditions and stacking behavior are tested.
Tier definitions
| Tier | Meaning | Practical standard |
|---|---|---|
| S | Build-defining pairing | Large, reliable value for a top role with manageable conditions |
| A | Strong and flexible | Helps several credible teams or modes without awkward setup |
| B | Useful specialist | Valuable in the right stage, unit, or timing window |
| C | Narrow or replaceable | Works, but demands conditions or loses to common alternatives |
| Unranked | Insufficient live evidence | New, changed, or unclear effect that needs controlled testing |
This is a decision framework rather than a permanent list of names. Move a familiar only after the live tooltip or repeatable tests support the change.
S-tier familiar profiles
An S-tier familiar should solve an important problem reliably. Common profiles include an effect that amplifies a carry’s main damage window, shortens a crucial attack cycle, improves a scarce stat without destroying another breakpoint, or provides teamwide value from one slot.
The condition must be realistic. A huge bonus that activates only during an uncommon phase is not automatically superior to a smaller effect that works for every boss cycle. Confirm uptime in the exact mode you intend to farm.
A-tier familiar profiles
A-tier familiars are strong choices with broader availability or slightly lower peaks. Flexible damage, range, cooldown, economy, or support effects can fit here when they work across multiple unit archetypes. They are often the best account investment because they remain useful when the featured unit changes.
Choose A tier over a theoretical S-tier pairing when the latter breaks placement, requires an unavailable Memoria, or depends on a trait disabled by the mode.
B- and C-tier specialist profiles
B-tier options become valuable when a stage matches their condition: a specific enemy tag, long boss fight, early-wave economy need, or support interaction. Keep these familiars even if they are not on the default team. Event and challenge modifiers can turn a specialist into the correct answer.
C tier means the effect is hard to justify for current goals, not that the familiar is permanently worthless. It may have a weak numerical effect, an unreliable trigger, or competition from an easy replacement. A balance patch can change that assessment.
Pairing familiars with unit roles
Start from the unit’s job:
- Main carry: prioritize effects that improve sustained damage, important upgrade breakpoints, or boss uptime.
- Burst unit: favor effects that align with the active window rather than bonuses that peak between casts.
- Area clearer: value range shape, attack frequency, and effects that help repeated waves.
- Support/control: check whether the familiar improves the buff, coverage, or timing that defines the support role.
- Economy unit: compare faster payback with simply using a combat familiar on the carry.
Never assume a familiar affects an active ability, summon, clone, or transformed state unless the tooltip says so or a controlled test demonstrates it.
Mode-specific ranking changes
Story favors cheap, immediate value. Infinite rewards scaling and reliable long-run effects. Boss Rush can favor base-kit improvements if the current mode disables traits. Raids and event dungeons can promote effects that answer a specific boss or enemy tag. Trading value is a separate question and should not determine combat tier.
Create a small note for each team: mode, familiar, unit, reason, and observed result. This is more useful than forcing one global ranking onto every activity.
Memoria synergy
Familiars and Memorias should be evaluated together. A familiar may provide enough of one stat that a second effect has diminishing value, while a Memoria can cover the weakness that keeps a familiar out of a higher tier. Inspect the completed pairing rather than ranking both items independently.
When using Memoria Maker, place the effect you refuse to lose in the guaranteed base slot and treat other inheritance chances as optional upside. Do not consume a rare Memoria merely to make a low-priority familiar match a public ranking.
How to test a new familiar
- Record the familiar’s exact tooltip and acquisition source.
- Select one unit and one repeatable stage.
- Run a baseline without the familiar under the same upgrades and targeting.
- Equip the familiar and repeat the relevant wave or boss.
- Compare clear time, damage window, cost, and any activation indicator.
- Repeat enough times to separate the effect from random targeting or crit variation.
- Rank the pairing, not just the familiar name.
If a test result conflicts with the tooltip, keep the entry unranked and retest after reconnecting. Server version differences can create misleading comparisons around an update.
Avoiding misleading tier lists
Be cautious with lists that omit a check date, mix pre- and post-balance data, or rank an effect without naming the paired unit. A screenshot can prove that a familiar existed but not that its effect still has the same numbers. Creator showcases may also use traits, Memorias, or account bonuses that make the familiar appear stronger.
For the current anniversary version, verify every new Vanguard Familiar in the live collection and tooltip before assigning it a permanent tier. Leave unsupported names unranked rather than inventing effects or numbers.
Fast selection checklist
- Read the live effect and activation condition.
- Match it to a real unit role and mode.
- Check trait, Memoria, and support overlap.
- Prefer reliable uptime over an impractical peak.
- Test new or changed effects on a repeatable stage.
- Re-rank after balance notes or tooltip changes.
The strongest familiar is the one that improves a measured team problem without creating a worse one. Use tiers as a shortlist, then let the live tooltip and repeatable run decide the final pairing.