Character Tiers: Difference between revisions

* In ''[[Tatsunoko vs. Capcom]]'', the Japanese developed a different tier list for the characters (partially because unlike in the United States, the players didn't stop thinking that [[Karas]] was a broken character), using two tier lists - one for the overall character performance being the point (combat) character and another for the character's assist. Roll isn't considered the lowest tier (she's mid), and her assist is ranked high in the tier list, upping her rank as a [[Joke Character]] to [[Lethal Joke Character]].

* [[Guilty Gear]] XX had a very unusual tier setup—partially because the game is so well-balanced that tiers rarely affect a match significantly, but unusual in that the top tier consisted of only ONE character—Eddie. Mainly because of his ability to destroy you on wake-up due to unblockables. Eddie was crippled somewhat in ''Slash'', but he recovered in ''Accent Core'' (with a triple unblockable sequence) and now shares his spot with Testament. The catch? All of the characters have a ''steep'' learning curve, and it can take several months (or even ''years'') of practice to use them effectively in [[Tournament Play]].

** The Continuum Shift II update is considered to be very well balanced. On the top we have Makoto and Noel, and on the bottom Tager. Most characters are viable, and tournaments top 8 generally have few overlapping characters. In fact a Hakumen and a Tsubaki, both low tier, won national tournaments in US and Japan.

** Continuum Shift Extend is also considered to be very well balanced. Thanks to the damage nerf, characters that can produce high damage like Ragna, Valkenhayn and Hakumen tend to be high in tier list.

 

== Tabletop Games ==

** More in-depth: [http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?topic=5293 The generally agreed list] is six tiers. Tier 1 is for characters like wizards, clerics, and druids, who learn loads of powerful spells and abilities and learn even more with every new book. Tier 2 is for characters like sorcerers, psions, and favored souls, who learn powerful spells and abilities, albeit more restrictively (the creator compared it to the difference between a nation with a thousand nukes and one with ten). Tier 3 is for characters like bards, factotums, and duskblades, who can either do one thing pretty well and still be useful, or do everything appreciably. Tier 4 is for characters like rogues, barbarians, and rangers, who can do one thing pretty well and only that thing, or can do a lot of things without ever really shining. Tier 5 is for characters like fighters, monks, and paladins, who can do only one thing (and not all that well), or can only ever achieve [[Master of None]] level. Tier 6 is for [[Joke Character]]s, plus [[Tier-Induced Scrappy|the samurai.]] And then there's [[Broke the Rating Scale|Truenamer]], which is like Tier 7 in uselessness, and Planar Shepard, a [[Prestige Class]] that's referred to as being "Tier 0".

** Tiers themselves are based on "As Written" comparisons based on how effectively the class can deal with different situations. The original author pointed out that optimized fighters can still be a low tier but capable of taking down the [[Physical God|Tarrasque]] in a single turn. In the hands of the right munchkin many classes can be equal to higher tiers.<ref>except for the Complete Warrior Samurai</ref> The Truenamer breaks the tier system by dint of its mechanics not being properly thought out, getting worse by every level, until level 19 when it will just spam Gate Celestial Angels.

** 3.5e successor [[Pathfinder]] strives to make all characters much more balanced. All classes received upgrades, but low tier 3.5 classes received more extensive rewrites while powerful 3.5 classes only received minor enhancements to make them more fun to play. A good example is that the Wizard, a top tier character, received new abilities which are hardly worth a mention and had many metamagic feats nerfed, while the Paladin, a tier 5, had its trademark Smite Evil and Lay on Hands abilities boosted to undreamed of levels. The overall effect is to make the more worthless classes more enjoyable to play, though competent casters can still break the universe in half.

** D&D Minis had informal tiers based on the perceived usefulness of a particular miniature. Unlike the RPG, spellcasters were rarely in the top tier due to [[Squishy Wizard]] Syndrome, among other things. Also, very few of the most powerful monsters from the RPG were top tier as minis, due to poor playtesting by the Devs.

** It's a joke among the 40k fandom that you're not allowed to bitch that GWS hates/ignores your army... unless you play Dark Eldar (who have not gotten a codex update in ''twelve years'').<ref>This is no longer true</ref> <s>[[Internet Backdraft|Or Squats.]]</s>

** You can still bitch about Necrons, though. It is a fact universally acknowledged that Necrons suck.