Ranking Companions by Combat Effectiveness

[Zbearbear]

Just pretty much the title. I know we're bound to have different rankings based on preference and playstyle, but just curious. My rankings are based on how comps support my archer/tease damage build.

1. Brint/Brienne: Can't go wrong with a hard hitter like them that has some decen AoE attacks. Even in Pyromancer, still a hard hitter, but feels better with their melee loadout.

2. Cait: Solid mage. Mostly use her for healing but dabble in her other loadout now and then for fun

3. Arona. Similar to Brint/Brienne. A good hard hitter for help clearing enemies. Solid in both loadouts for her.

4. Etheryn. Love to swap between her and Cait for her Group Heal, but love her healing form just as equally as Cait. But Cait still wins out in terms of usefulness for me.

5. Azyrran. Gods can never spell her name right. Another solid melee comp to support my ranged build. I enjoy her erotic warfare form too.

6. Atugia. Don't get me wrong, she's a good dps/support hybrid, but she misses...a lot. A LOT. And when she does hit, she does fuck all damage. So, I'd rather use anyone else. She's just outclassed in damage and support abilities by other options despite having interesting abilities and being an alright character. I appreciate her, but there are just better options, you know?

7. Berwyn. He's alright, but just don't really have a use for him. I bring him out to keep on level with everyone else, but if I'm using another ranged attacker, I'd rather just use Etheryn.

8. Quntillus. I legit forget he exists. Never used him once.

Well that's it for me.

 

[Lone Wolf115]

1 Cait: I only use her first set and she goes every where with me.
2 Kiyoko and Brint/Brienne tied: Solid room sweeper second person that's with me.
3 Etheryn: Her first set always get the job done.
4 Arona: Her ghost fighting outfit makes her tolerable to have plus its universal both live and dead.
5 Berwyn: His earth elemental makes up for his charm spell.
6 Azzy: Her first set is good but other that I don't use her often.
7 Atugia: Better than Quin.
8 Quin: Completely useless.

 

[Zbearbear]

1 Cait: I only use her first set and she goes every where with me.
2 Kiyoko and Brint/Brienne tied: Solid room sweeper second person that's with me.
3 Etheryn: Her first set always get the job done.
4 Arona: Her ghost fighting outfit makes her tolerable to have plus its universal both live and dead.
5 Berwyn: His earth elemental makes up for his charm spell.
6 Azzy: Her first set is good but other that I don't use her often.
7 Atugia: Better than Quin.
8 Quin: Completely useless.

Man I forgot the whole deal for Arona's other form was fighting ghosts. Found some ghosts in the Undermountain area but just used my archer and Azzy's lust damage forms to wipe them in like three turns.

 

[Lone Wolf115]

Man I forgot the whole deal for Arona's other form was fighting ghosts. Found some ghosts in the Undermountain area but just used my archer and Azzy's lust damage forms to wipe them in like three turns.

Yeah but it's universal it's perfect for all enemies.

 

[VerySexyGrammar]

Brienne's been good, and being able to switch her damage between physical and magical has been useful. Probably my favorite character.

Azyrran's very solid too, huge armor and various strong offensive powers.

Guessing Arona's pretty good but I've never used her.

Etheryn's the best healer, with surprisingly solid physical damage capabilities on top, though learning that she will never be female has pretty much removed any interest I had in the character. I've been going back to Cait for healing even though she's nowhere as good.

Hopefully we're going to see a lot more companion sets in the future.

 

[Bobonga]

1. Cait All sets are very good, except the witch set. The resolve heal doesn't justify the lack of offense.

2. Brint/Brienne Overall strong companion in every set. Always usefull

3. Ryn Outrider is pretty meh. Queenly raiments makes her THE healbot.

4. Azzyran Bimbo Azzy is a absolute terror on the battlefield, crits left and right and is capable of carrying entire fights alone. Sadly her heal is to weak to justify her as a healer. Don't know about hive knight. Never used that one, but she seems to be a jack-of-all-trades combatant.

5. Kyoko Haven't used her that much, but she seems pretty strong. Given how popular she is, it is save to assume that her performance will always be up to date.

6. Quint resolve nuke, but gets overschadowed by Dancer Cait and Bimbazzy. Health Dmg output isn't that great either.

7. Berwyn Master of none, which is really bad. Dmg is not great, charm spell is useless and group heal is not enough for him to be the healer. The summon is his only saving grace

8. Atugia The tankiest tank you can get. Doesn't matter though since she can't maintain aggro. Also bad hit rates and not great dmg.

9. Arona The Ghost set is awesome. High dmg and ranged option. Especially good for the undermountain imps. Shame that warcry is useless. Chieftain/exiled Set? Bless-bot, otherwise useless. Warhides? Motherfucking useless to the max! Shes supposed to hit hard and she does. But she never hits in the first place. Chieftain/exiled/warhides have only 12 accuracy! I did the entire Lureling dungeon with her, and she hit a total of 3 times. I perma bench her until i get the ghost set and never change it afterwards.

Edit: For the ranking: I would put ghost hunter Arona at 5th place. I banish the other 3 sets to the shadow realm. Furthermore I play Cock of Greed to implement two more companions into the game.

 

[Zbearbear]

1. Cait All sets are very good, except the witch set. The resolve heal doesn't justify the lack of offense.

2. Brint/Brienne Overall strong companion in every set. Always usefull

3. Ryn Outrider is pretty meh. Queenly raiments makes her THE healbot.

4. Azzyran Bimbo Azzy is a absolute terror on the battlefield, crits left and right and is capable of carrying entire fights alone. Sadly her heal is to weak to justify her as a healer. Don't know about hive knight. Never used that one, but she seems to be a jack-of-all-trades combatant.

5. Kyoko Haven't used her that much, but she seems pretty strong. Given how popular she is, it is save to assume that her performance will always be up to date.

6. Berwyn Master of none, which is really bad. Dmg is not great, charm spell is useless and group heal is not enough for him to be the healer. The summon is his only saving grace

7. Quint resolve nuke, but gets overschadowed by Dancer Cait and Bimbazzy. Health Dmg output isn't that great either.

8. Atugia The tankiest tank you can get. Doesn't matter though since she can't maintain aggro. Also bad hit rates and not great dmg.

9. Arona The Ghost set is awesome. High dmg and ranged option. Especially good for the undermountain imps. Shame that warcry is useless. Chieftain/exiled Set? Bless-bot, otherwise useless. Warhides? Motherfucking useless to the max! Shes suppiosed to hit hard and she does. But she never hits in the first place. Chieftain/exiled/warhides have only 12 accuracy! I did the entire Lureling dingeon wiht her, and she hit a total of 3 times. I perma bench her until i get the ghost set and never change it afterwards.

Kiyoko is useable? How is that? I mean...I don't care for her or the other fox folk much. But how can I actually use her?

 

[VerySexyGrammar]

Kiyoko is useable? How is that? I mean...I don't care for her or the other fox folk much. But how can I actually use her?

You have to free her from the necklace she's trapped in. As far as I understand it, it involves characters in the fox den area and it's only possible for characters that have a dick. Never done it myself (and probably never will) so I don't know the full details, but I assume the wiki lists the steps required.

 

[Bobonga]

1. Get a dick

2. Fuck her to progress to the birth of Kinu

3. Clear the Kistsune den.

4. Talk to Komari or the shrine girls (don't remember which one). You should now get the option to break the amulett and free her.

5. Kyoko is a glasscannon mage and comes with 3 (!) sets. Not an expert on them but one is focused on AOE and blight dmg, one on debuffs and the last one on fire dmg and dots. But honestly I don't remember. The complicated set names don't make remembering easier.

Edit: You don't need to get Kinu before clearing the den. But Kinu and the den are a hard requirement to free Kyoko.

 

[Erzulie]

I feel like the only person who uses Atugia (and (grugingly) Arona Warhides). The pair are extremely useful for any Leadership/healing PC as the suite is basically unkillable by anything save Kasyrra or glitches -- and I mean that literally, from experience. It doesn't provide explosive gameplay -- fights have a minimum number of rounds much of the time -- but it is utterly dependable.

 

[wery12345]

I have been using hexleathers cait and second set Kiyoko for so long and no content has really stopped me. I deadass dont know how good anyone else is.

 

[AKnottyMoose]

Based on personal experience:

1. Brint/Brienne - Really solid physical DPS, can swap to their magic sets when need be.
2. Cait - Base set hits a nice balance between utility/combat. Devotion is a neat safety net.
3. Etheryn - Queen Raiment set is the best healer, and still provides decent DPS with her attacks + ultimate.

(Insert tier gap here)

4. Arona - Budget Brint, although she also has her tank set. Brint's DPS is more generally useful though.

(Insert tier gap here)

5. Berwyn - Jack of all trades, master of none. Mediocre DPS, mediocre healing, and mediocre teasing. Suppose he's useful in that he's splashable in varied comps, but I always just end up wanting Cait over him.

6. Azzyran - Stuck between being Arona and Atugia, her mediocre tanking and DPS end up dragging out fights and lead to taking more damage overall in my experience. Haven't utilised a tease comp before so won't comment on Honey Maiden.

7. Quint -As stated above, I've never really utilised a tease comp before, so I can't comment on how useful Quint really may be. All I can say is that Mind Snap is a really strong ultimate, being a one shot on most enemies (or close enough that some basic teasing will finish the job quickly.) This then leaves you with the rest of his skills, which are basically entirely useless outside of tease comps. Basically only in this tier because Mind Snap.

(Insert tier gap here)

8. Atugia - The tankiest tank to ever tank. Would be great, except she fucking SUCKS. Similar problem to Azyrran, in that her focus on tanking often ends up extending fights and leading to the team taking more damage overall- sacrificing one of your precious two companion slots for a glorified sandbag isn't worth it. At least Azyrran has better DPS, Atugia's muscles are purely for show because she hits like a wet noodle.

Again, this is just all my personal experience with the characters so don't flame me too hard if you think Atugia is secretly sleeper OP. Can't comment on Kiyoko since I've never recruited her.

 

[wallysquid93]

It is really hard to rank on combat effectiveness since it wholly relies on your character build. As a copy of Cait's Hexblade set myself, it's really hard to choose a companion so I am constantly mixing and matching. With your character out of the picture I would say...

1. Brint/ Brienne and Arona- These are the obvious damage dealers so I put them all together because they basically offer the same potential.

2. Kiyoko- A great combo of debuff, buff, and damage. I'd say you throw her on if you are the primary damage dealer as she will help you punch harder.

3. Etheryn- Like Kiyoko she is a great support DPS and it definitely doesn't hurt having a summon as well. Her issue is her summon will be ineffective in some battles due to immunities. She also has a great heal set but if you are just looking for DPS I would stick with her primary set.

4. Cait and Berwyn- Cait is almost mandatory on your team if you aren't a healer or aren't using Etheryn's Heal set. Cait can dish out as much as she heals and has some amazing alternative support sets and one DPS set... though honestly if you are using her, her role will mostly be spamming heal on your DPS so damage output isn't what you really see out of her most of the time which is why she is down here. Berwyn is here because he dishes damage and has a summon which usually doesn't suffer in DPS from immunities like Etheryn's summon (Bleed is great until you realize some bigger threats just don't bleed)

5. Atugia- A real shame she is so low even though I do use her myself. I don't see much use for her unless your primary DPS is strictly a single target DPS. Great Tank and takes Aggro wellish... wish it was better. Your healer will mainly focus on her so your dps is going to be fairly safe if you aren't a AOE spammer because Atugia's aggro skills won't really work too well if you are drawing more aggro than her. Hopefully she gets better as the game develops.

Quintillus I can not properly rank as I never used him.

Edit: Totally forgot about Azzyran which should tell you I don't use her often. I would say a 3 or 4 for her though because she can dish... sometimes.

 

[Avallonkao]

1. Cait - Never played without her, good heals, not bad dmg. And Always at my party.
2. Brint - Like, Walking One hit kill in the beginning areas.
3. Etheryn - great support dps, and comes with an extra party member with her falcon.
4. Azzy - Good tank, and having Cait focusing on her for heals makes it easier to allow me to just DPS as much as I want without worry.

I don't use anyone else tbh, so I can't judge them rn. So far these are the only party members I use in combat.

 

[Afier]

This is all coming from the perspective of a Leadership focused Black Mage (as that's my primary build).

1. Cait: This girl does everything, and does it well. Passion Priestess is a good all-rounder with lots of fire damage and good heals alongside a strong shield. Witch trades out Damage for more defensive options. Hexblade trades healing for offence. And Dancer lets her work as a resolve damage dealer.

2. Brint/Brienne: Huge DPS alongside a strong encounter power and crazy daily mulches weaker combatants and can quickly end boss fights. The Pyromancer set is weaker in terms of burst, but makes up for it in fire damage synergy with the Black Mage.

3. Etheryn: Good support fighter with a strong alternate set for healing.

4. Arona: Base set is very strong burst damage, does incidental resolve damage. Spirit Totem does less burst damage, but has a strong damage typing.

5. Azzyrran: Base set is kind of mediocre, it's not bad, but lacks focus. Honey Knight looks good (but I haven't played with it much since I don't play resolve).

6. Kiyoko: I haven't managed to free her yet (because the other Kitsune are so annoying I can barely tolerate their BS), so she goes here because she has 3 sets, making her more flexible than everyone below her, even if her sets aren't any good.

7. Quint: Seems decent for an early game lust build, has no other sets.

8. Atugia: A good healing tank, but as tanking becomes increasingly irrelevant (as stray crits from bosses can just one shot a character) and healing becomes more important in the later game (as bosses get more actions and deal more damage), she's at best only good for the early zones, because her healing just can't keep up, and what shields she provides aren't reliable enough to prevent KOs. No second set

9. Berwyn: The weakest companion. I get that his kit is supposed to be broad, as a way to fit into any party, it just doesn't work. Anything he can do, someone else can do it better and provide more utility while doing it. As a fellow spellcaster that deals fire damage, he should do a ton of work alongside a player Black Mage because of the spellpower buff, but he really doesn't, as it's only his at-will power that fits into that synergy. He does resolve damage and heals, but way too infrequently to really act as your primary healer or resolve damage dealer, and his summon is only okay, having a stun, but it's lack of durability means it might get it off once in a big fight. Is probably the character that needs a new set the most.

 

[wery12345]

(because the other Kitsune are so annoying I can barely tolerate their BS

Fuck yeah an excuse to take a shot.

 

[Zbearbear]

This is all coming from the perspective of a Leadership focused Black Mage (as that's my primary build).

1. Cait: This girl does everything, and does it well. Passion Priestess is a good all-rounder with lots of fire damage and good heals alongside a strong shield. Witch trades out Damage for more defensive options. Hexblade trades healing for offence. And Dancer lets her work as a resolve damage dealer.

2. Brint/Brienne: Huge DPS alongside a strong encounter power and crazy daily mulches weaker combatants and can quickly end boss fights. The Pyromancer set is weaker in terms of burst, but makes up for it in fire damage synergy with the Black Mage.

3. Etheryn: Good support fighter with a strong alternate set for healing.

4. Arona: Base set is very strong burst damage, does incidental resolve damage. Spirit Totem does less burst damage, but has a strong damage typing.

5. Azzyrran: Base set is kind of mediocre, it's not bad, but lacks focus. Honey Knight looks good (but I haven't played with it much since I don't play resolve).

6. Kiyoko: I haven't managed to free her yet (because the other Kitsune are so annoying I can barely tolerate their BS), so she goes here because she has 3 sets, making her more flexible than everyone below her, even if her sets aren't any good.

7. Quint: Seems decent for an early game lust build, has no other sets.

8. Atugia: A good healing tank, but as tanking becomes increasingly irrelevant (as stray crits from bosses can just one shot a character) and healing becomes more important in the later game (as bosses get more actions and deal more damage), she's at best only good for the early zones, because her healing just can't keep up, and what shields she provides aren't reliable enough to prevent KOs. No second set

9. Berwyn: The weakest companion. I get that his kit is supposed to be broad, as a way to fit into any party, it just doesn't work. Anything he can do, someone else can do it better and provide more utility while doing it. As a fellow spellcaster that deals fire damage, he should do a ton of work alongside a player Black Mage because of the spellpower buff, but he really doesn't, as it's only his at-will power that fits into that synergy. He does resolve damage and heals, but way too infrequently to really act as your primary healer or resolve damage dealer, and his summon is only okay, having a stun, but it's lack of durability means it might get it off once in a big fight. Is probably the character that needs a new set the most.

I respect this ranking

 

[AsteriskCGY]

I'm here just to learn about having another bimbo in the party.

I've stuck with Cait in the party since I also run a teasing build and have found myself pounded to the ground when I didn't want to pretty frequently, especially if I brought in a caster in the third slot.

 

[SmithEK]

I use Ryn instead of Cait, seeing as they both can heal.. I prefer my elf lover. Though during the first playthrough in the undermountain I always use Cait. Also Cait let's my MC die to much.

Kiyoko - why not? She's my extremely hot foxy wife. I always have her in my party if I play Herm.

Brienne or Arona usually takes my second spot..

 

[Burnerbro]

Berwyn: The weakest companion. I get that his kit is supposed to be broad, as a way to fit into any party, it just doesn't work. Anything he can do, someone else can do it better and provide more utility while doing it. As a fellow spellcaster that deals fire damage, he should do a ton of work alongside a player Black Mage because of the spellpower buff, but he really doesn't, as it's only his at-will power that fits into that synergy. He does resolve damage and heals, but way too infrequently to really act as your primary healer or resolve damage dealer, and his summon is only okay, having a stun, but it's lack of durability means it might get it off once in a big fight. Is probably the character that needs a new set the most.

If Stone Elemental's AoE attack that knock people prone was more reliable (both in terms of when the AI decides to use it and in terms of sticking the status onto enemies) and the poor thing didn't have tissue paper for armor, Berwyn would have been fine.

Having Shadow Magic instead of much less powerful Charm Spell would have helped with fitting him into more Lust Oriented party comps, especially since Psychic damage currently provides no advantages in most if not all fights.

 

[wery12345]

I still dont know what causes it but Kiyoko is capable of putting 100+ dmage burns on people, so thats why I use her(outside of her being the best ball of fluff).

 

[Zbearbear]

I'm here just to learn about having another bimbo in the party.

I've stuck with Cait in the party since I also run a teasing build and have found myself pounded to the ground when I didn't want to pretty frequently, especially if I brought in a caster in the third slot.

My archer build uses tease damage as a backup. I guess depending on your primary combat style, you might end up getting beat up, but archer with Crack Powder isn't too bad for avoiding damage. Curious to see how a pure tease damage build goes if that's what you're doing.

 

[AsteriskCGY]

My archer build uses tease damage as a backup. I guess depending on your primary combat style, you might end up getting beat up, but archer with Crack Powder isn't too bad for avoiding damage. Curious to see how a pure tease damage build goes if that's what you're doing.

Yea I started with minstrel charmer, and most of my fights is two rounds of aoe tease and targeted tease. I pretty much auto lose to unteaseable targets, like the walking golem thing in Undermountain.