Full character tier list: Dietrich's critical hits, Sirocco's evasion, and Sofia's long-range healingMinor spoilers

Original video: Fortune's Weave full character tier list | English-language gaming channel Jay Dunna

After a Hard clear, Dietrich is the most well-rounded pick and Sirocco makes an enormous contribution. Healing range, reliable accuracy, and recruitment timing all change a character's value.

Growth distribution and role value#

This list draws on a completed Hard playthrough, with most of the weight on Part 1 performance. Class discussion mainly concerns the advanced classes you use for much of the campaign. S is for truly outstanding characters, A means very strong, and B means someone who does their job but rarely carries the team alone.

Cai's team fills gaps with range and mobility#

Cai gets S. His stats are balanced, he can fight with lances and Blaze Arts, and his high mobility remains the biggest draw. His area Blaze Arts are powerful in Part 1. Their damage becomes less spectacular later, but his movement and versatility stay useful. In a mounted team, have him soften a group first, then follow with a chariot's straight-line charge to combine the team's strengths.

Peter gets A. An extra tile of range on bow Combat Arts means he can hit enemies without taking a counterattack. His high Dexterity also makes that safe damage reliable early on. When his damage falls behind in Parts 2 and 3, I would move him closer to B. Chariots can keep helping through mount growths, and you do not have to keep hoarding his bow Combat Arts.

Tialla gets B. An extra tile of range for arts targeting allies is useful, but low HP and Defense make her vulnerable to physical one-shots on Hard. She helps with early healing, while more durable healers arrive later. If you make her a Dancer in Part 3, that extra allied-art range also applies to Dance. It is a valuable option, though I did not use it this run. Ultand also gets B. Adjacent healing is useful, but without Physic, late-game healing is less convenient than the Guardian candidates.

Guzran is strong early. Roll the right random bonus to Hit, Avoid, or critical rate, and he can make that battle much easier. His durability varied widely across my saves, though, and I started replacing him in Part 2. My opinion of Alexandra has risen since the last list. Her Speed, exclusive mount, and ability to pick off mages have real value, though her HP and Strength still need help.

Majide gets C. His Strength and HP are good, but axes struggle to hit, and his attack bonus costs him Avoid. You need to put work into fixing his accuracy. Nuzzuo gains attack and Hit against targets he has effectiveness against, but his thin Defense and Resistance make any hit painful later on.

Evasive frontliners need the right mount support#

Noctula gets B. Pugilist evasion works with her personal ability, and her physical bulk is better than Nuzzuo's. She can serve as an evasive frontliner, but offers little extra utility. Nydine gets B on Cai's route and C elsewhere. Her strengths are riding through enemies and crossing terrain. The right mount setup matters enormously for her.

Jasmine deserves to move up after a full clear. She works better letting enemies initiate for her Hit and Attack bonuses, and armor can genuinely hold some situations in this game. She can also get armored movement, reducing the problem of a heavy frontliner falling behind. She is unremarkable early, but using her reveals what she can do.

Dietrich keeps critical hits coming#

Dietrich gets S and is my number one. His Dexterity is high, initiating adds critical rate, and sword-related critical bonuses bring him to around a 40% critical rate through much of the game. Mastering Myrmidon for DexRavaging Arts adds 6 damage to critical hits. Add Rogue's Avoid after a kill, and both his damage and survival improve.

At the end of Part 1, mine had 33 Strength, 25 Defense, 18 Resistance, and 53 Avoid. He was already hard to take down. He can also use Levin Sword, with his high growths and critical rate opening up plenty of weapon choices. Still, Sirocco contributed even more to my Hard clear in some ways. I will get to him later.

Frontline durability and long-range healing#

Esmeralda's Brawn reduces equipment weight to 80%, while Pilum adds Hit and attack. That makes her a good fit for armored lance use. Movement, Speed, and Resistance hold her back later. High Defense is no reason to leave her in front of mages. Fabio gets A. He has 50 Magic growth and starts with three-tile spells, letting him attack safely. Do not force a mage into melee just to use an adjacent enemy Dodge penalty.

Mikaela gets B. Her close-range Hit and attack bonuses are straightforward, and her Defense is good. She gets the job done. Yang Jie sits high in B. Early access to Physic, along with better HP, Defense, and Resistance than fragile healers, lets him fill that healing role right away.

Io also sits high in B on Cai's route, but his value is tied to his exclusive mount and chariots. Catania can contribute as a Guardian with Physic without so much mount investment. That makes her easier to fit into other routes, though her HP is still low.

Kiroc needs a status ailment on his target before he can cash in his damage and critical bonuses, making the setup awkward. Benditz gets C. He benefits from chariots, but for the same investment I would rather use someone with extra utility such as safe attack range. Halvin gets a lower B. Accumulating Hit is interesting, but her Strength is still close to an ordinary archer's. She needs a longer map to get the most from it.

Goliath can take pure physical attacks and is useful for blocking chokepoints. The problem is that he cannot ride flying mounts and lacks armored movement. It becomes harder to keep him involved as late maps push forward with more spells and reinforcements. Dante gets low B. His support aura and spells help, but low HP and Defense leave him in danger as soon as an enemy flier gets close.

Leda's team combines complementary tools#

Leda gets S. Her Speed is high, but songs really elevate her. Late-game deployments are large, and her Strength song adds 7 Strength. If an ally doubles, that means 14 extra damage, often turning a failed kill into a kill. Let four units act, stand between them, then use the refresh song for four extra units’ worth of actions. Her dispelling song is also key support against enemies with undead blessings. Without Cleansing Blades or Seraphim, I especially relied on her to open fights.

Buccar gets A. An extra 2 movement in armor is extremely useful, and an armored mount lets him keep moving. Taking 90% damage means taking 10% less. That part is modest, but reliable. His Dexterity is a little better than Tobias's, making him more accurate and a good physical frontliner throughout the game.

Sirocco gets S and was the star of this playthrough. Goddess’s Favor restores 5 HP after combat, and evasion abilities add more Avoid. If an occasional hit does not kill him, he can keep dodging, countering, and healing himself back up. I had late-game situations where he dodged eight attacks in a row, while wind magic shot down the incoming fliers.

He can also heal, wield swords, and use a good spell selection. His strength is the combination of evasion, recovery, and offense, rather than one extremely high Magic stat. He felt easier to use than Dietrich on many maps. Olympia also gets S, with more emphasis on burst damage. Equipping magic raises her critical rate, and enhanced Nosferatu adds more attack and critical rate while its damage heals her. She is frailer than Sirocco, so keeping her from going down is harder late on.

Mu sits near the top of A. Do not overlook the growth boost. Once trained, Strength, Speed, and bulk all keep up, and they can also serve as an evasive frontliner. Inyoni is a different kind of archer: the damage potential is excellent, but accuracy still needs work.

Mages need to survive as well as deal damage#

Loretta gets B. Her half-HP and full-HP conditions provide bonuses, and her Speed growth is good. My Wing Soldier build did not work out well, though. Low HP makes those health conditions unreliable. She can switch classes to cover her weaknesses. Fianna gets C. Her 55 Magic growth is excellent, but HP, Defense, and Speed are low. A Luck-triggered healing ability paired with low Luck also makes her awkward to use.

Zarcone gets D. High Dexterity and axe Hit solve his accuracy, but not his lack of Strength. He still often ends up dealing zero damage. Seteth instead brings a chance to strike first in his first combat on enemy phase. Killing an enemy early saves him from taking a hit, and his overall growth distribution is fairly balanced.

Theodora supports the team while taking hits#

Theodora gets S, just behind Dietrich. A 70 HP growth already gives her high durability, and she also has a 30% chance to halve incoming damage. She can start fights with ranged stones, then gains Seraphim and Physic in her late-game white magic list. Whether attacking undead armored enemies or healing distant allies, she has a job to do. Guardian brings her lances and white magic together neatly. Her weaknesses are Speed and accuracy. Those stones can miss, too.

Bonaventure gets A. His Magic is slightly below Fabio’s, but Dexterity and adjacency support are better, helping allies’ Hit when he stands nearby. He also learns Torch. Save it to reveal fog maps, or cast for leveling experience when he has no attacks or healing to do rather than waiting every turn. Lilian gets B. Her reliability is what I like most: she adds Hit when enemies cannot counter, then Attack at 100 Hit. Peter has safer range and Inyoni has higher Strength, but Lilian reliably does her own job.

Lysander can use Avoid when initiating and stack Speed through kills, but he did not deliver what I wanted this time. His Dexterity, damage, and unique role did not stand out enough. Tobias is the opposite: very high Strength makes each hit hurt. His main issues are accuracy and Resistance, so use Combat Arts and teammates to help him.

Sofia's healing reaches farther#

Sofia gets S and is the healer I value most. She adds 10 to healing and can gain 2 healing range, extending Physic as well. Even with your front line spread out, she can deliver large heals. That is extremely important late in Hard. Protect her early, then have the team fight around her while she keeps everyone topped up.

Ninae gets A. She can share her magic Avoid bonus with adjacent allies, and her white magic list includes ranged healing. Guardian suits her well. Her balanced growth distribution lets her fight and support; her value goes beyond a high total.

Lower-ranked characters struggle to secure kills#

Dadao gets D, mainly because I dislike his personality. On stats alone, he is closer to low B or C: he has HP, Strength, and Defense. But he did not feel good to use this time, and I did not want to keep using him. Peppe gets D. Only 30 HP and Strength growth means 60 Speed cannot save his damage, and his abilities involving weakened targets did not make him a good enough finisher.

Nezha gets B. Strength and Dexterity are fine, but his Attack bonuses involve repeated chance checks, while swords have more direct alternatives. Ursula gets B. Her management ability lets allies within two tiles access stored items: when a healer has acted and a frontliner needs HP, they can take medicine to save themselves. She can try physical or magical roles, but joins later than Lilian and may not outperform an archer you have already trained. Simon gets B. His HP, Strength, and Defense are solid, with Luck supporting his survival check. Diego gets C. The chance to prevent allies being doubled is too low, and his own benefit depends on follow-ups, leaving the whole setup unreliable.

Late recruits have less time to prove themselves#

Eshmel goes in S. I kept them as a Sentinel. Lances, healing, and purifying Blaze Arts all helped, and clearing miasma often also secured a kill. If mobility holds them back, give them priority when considering movement-boosting items.

Jester gets C. He joined late this time, and his swapping and post-dodge bonuses need setup. He never caught up with the existing core. Ludia's follow-up evasion is more direct, putting her above him, but late recruitment, Strength, and enemy Speed still limit her. Sha Lan gets B. Adjacent Speed support and healing both help, but she still falls short of the core you trained early.

Troy gets S. War Monk with her exclusive firearm is ideal for handling flying reinforcements. Some Hard maps send six to eight reinforcements every turn. Have her hold that approach and shoot enemies as they arrive, with time to use Physic between attacks. Her place comes from doing that job extremely well, rather than having the prettiest growth chart.

Hong Hua gets high A. Her magic Hit bonus, anti-flying spells, and Thoron all have value. Bertrand gets B. My level 55 version had poor growths and low Resistance, making him difficult to keep alive when his deployment was forced. Anatolia goes above Hong Hua. She has plenty of spell and Blaze Art options. Healing after dodging and stacking HP through kills also make survival easier.

Talimun gets low A. His growth total is high, but much of it goes into Luck and Charm. His real strength is debuffing. Swapping the Strength and Magic of an enemy that relies on one damage type can strip away its threat immediately. If you lack a mage to handle armor, swapping Defense and Resistance lets physical attacks do the job instead.

Centurio gets B. Halving damage in his first combat on enemy phase, together with high Defense, lets him take that first hit reliably. Aswan gets C. Her accuracy bonuses are good, but she arrives too late. Existing archers and Troy, who can also heal, are easier to keep in the team. Klapka has even less time to contribute. Arriving right at the end puts him very low.

Nathan gets high B. His HP, Strength, Dexterity, and Defense are all good, but protect his low Resistance from spells. Creek has Strength, Speed, and Dexterity, but little bulk, putting him below Nathan and near Ursula. Gaitz gets B. His Strength is good, but arriving late on Dietrich's route limits his training time.

Orchel and the final choices#

Orchel gets S. Her Strength, Defense, and Resistance growths are all high, while HP, Speed, and Dexterity are her weaknesses. Permanent HP boosters let that Defense and Resistance work better. She learns Physic, Seraphim, and Starlight, heals herself when healing allies, and also has Self-Repair during Overblaze. If you want reliable damage against undead armored enemies and a healer who is hard to break through, she is well worth deploying.

Looking back, Dietrich is the most well-rounded, with the queen close behind. Sirocco dealt the most damage in this run and was my easiest unit to use on many maps. If you credit Leda with all the extra team damage from her songs, she has a case for first place as well. Cai is hardest to replace for movement, Sofia for delivering healing at range, and Troy for handling flying reinforcements. Each fills a different role, and each team has different needs.

At the end, I still wanted to move Anatolia, Hong Hua, Tobias, and Buccar higher, and put Ninae below Talimun. These tiers reflect this particular ranking. The useful part to remember is why each character helps the team.

Tahonia gets B. Her growth focuses on HP, Strength, and Defense, with very low Speed; chance-based follow-ups from gauntlet arts add some damage. She is locked to Battlemaster and joins very late, leaving little room to change class or rebuild. Unless earlier core units have been lost, I find it hard to prioritize her.