Chaos Zero Nightmare hands you a deep roster of Combatants, and not all of them pull their weight once you reach endgame content. The deck-building combat rewards smart team building over raw rarity, but knowing which units carry teams, which support them, and which to bench saves you a lot of wasted resources. Rankings come down to three things: how much damage a unit deals, what utility it brings (buffs, debuffs, healing, shields), and how easy it is to play without elaborate setups.
Chaos Zero Nightmare tier list (June 2026)
Here is where every Combatant lands across the five tiers. Use it to check your roster fast before you decide where to spend upgrade materials or banner pulls.
| Tier | Combatants |
|---|---|
| S | Cassius, Mei Lin, Mika, Tressa, Veronica |
| A | Beryl, Chizuru, Hugo, Kayron, Khalipe, Luke, Rei, Renoa |
| B | Haru, Nia, Rin, Selena, Yuki |
| C | Lucas, Magna, Orlea, Owen |
| D | Amir, Maribell |
S tier: best Combatants for endgame
These are the units worth pulling and investing in first. They clear difficult content with minimal fuss and stay relevant as new Combatants arrive.
| Combatant | Why they rank S |
|---|---|
| Cassius | The best card-draw enabler. He shuffles your hand for fresh cards and lets you pick specific ones, while his quest mechanic delivers heals, buffs, and debuffs through potential nodes. |
| Mei Lin | Premier single-target DPS for Passion teams. She applies Passion weakness, deals Tenacity damage to build AP, and buffs the squad at the same time. |
| Mika | Free from the start and the most reliable support in the game. She focuses on healing and AP generation and slots into almost any team. |
| Tressa | Another free starter that overdelivers. She specializes in damage-over-time effects that spread across enemies, and her 0-cost Shadow Daggers shine in combo and follow-up decks. |
| Veronica | Her Ballista summons deal heavy damage every turn at no cost, and she can draw cards from other characters to open up strong team combinations. |
A tier: strong picks that need setup
These Combatants compete with the top tier but ask for more investment, the right teammates, or specific situations to fully deliver.
| Combatant | Notes |
|---|---|
| Beryl | Burst specialist who uses Retain to hold her best cards, then unleashes them for big damage or reduced AP costs. Stacking cards triggers upgrade effects. |
| Chizuru | A capable damage dealer that performs well in standard combat without heavy support. |
| Hugo | Follow-up attack specialist focused on single targets. Pair him with units that use Targeting Attack Cards, not AoE characters. |
| Kayron | Flexible main or sub-DPS with strong AoE. His Exhaust mechanic scales the longer a fight runs. |
| Khalipe | High AoE damage plus solid defenses. Easy to set up, and she can deal Tenacity damage to break enemies and gain AP. |
| Luke | Bullet playstyle for single-target damage, but RNG-heavy. He needs high Critical Chance to perform. |
| Rei | A strong free unit who buffs damage, thins your deck for better cycling, and grants Morale buffs that help multi-hit attackers. |
| Renoa | Single-target Bullet DPS with follow-up attacks. Her Dirge Bullets can clog your deck, so bring discard or draw support. |
B, C, and D tiers: situational and replaceable
B-tier units do their jobs but are more situational or need extra effort. C-tier picks work only in specific setups. D-tier Combatants should be replaced as soon as you have alternatives.
| Tier | Combatant | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| B | Haru | Her Anchor Shot deals heavy burst, especially when used multiple times, but she needs teams that generate extra cards. |
| B | Nia | A support alternative for DPS units that need discard help or card search. Adds healing and easy follow-up attacks. |
| B | Rin | An AP-neutral single-target DPS that wants to be the only damage dealer. She loves damage buffs but loses momentum when teammates use attack cards. |
| B | Selena | Flexible DPS who applies Mark, breaks Tenacity, and adds Passion weakness for Passion teams. |
| B | Yuki | Constant AoE damage when her Inspiration tag is active. She needs card draw and the right team or she falls apart. |
| C | Lucas | Bullet AoE that applies Mark and Passion weakness, held back by heavy AP demands. |
| C | Magna | An offensive tank that counterattacks and scales damage off defense. Flexible if you want survivability. |
| C | Orlea | Versatile support with steady damage and HP sustain. Her Retain mechanics need careful hand management and ramp time. |
| C | Owen | A free unit that can fill a DPS slot early. Easy to set up but low damage; works as sub-DPS through multi-hit epiphanies. |
| D | Amir | A free tank that scales damage off defense, but her Metallization is weak and she has one of the lowest defense stats among tanks. |
| D | Maribell | A counterattack tank that gains shields from damage dealt and deals damage based on shields. Functional but outclassed. |
Season 2 newcomers reshaping the meta
The Season 2 content, including the Narja patch and the Partner system, introduced several units that now sit at the very top of the meta. These additions changed how endgame teams are built for modes like Chaos Manifestation and Great Rift.
| Combatant | Role | Why they matter |
|---|---|---|
| Nine | DPS | The top single-target damage dealer in Season 2. Her Fighting Spirit stacks build through a fight for huge burst windows, and she carries boss content with minimal setup. |
| Tiphera | Support | A 5-Star Order Controller offering healing on par with Mika plus damage buffs and card generation, which fuels aggressive AP spending. |
| Narja | Support | A premium buffer whose preemptive utility prevents damage rather than reacting to it. She synergizes strongly with Haru, Hugo, and Nia. |
| Sereniel | Partner | The designated Partner for Selena. Deployed together, Sereniel pushes Selena from a solid pick into a meta-defining force. |
| Rita | Support DPS | A hybrid that deals meaningful damage while supporting the team, useful for flexible compositions. |
How to use this tier list
Tier placement is a guide, not a rule. A lower-ranked Combatant inside a well-built team can outperform a top-tier unit with no synergy, so build around the strong characters you actually own. If you pull Mei Lin, lean into a Passion team. If you land Hugo, focus on follow-up attack synergies.
Free-to-play players are in a good spot. Mika, Tressa, and Rei are all S or A-tier and obtainable without spending, so level and build them properly before chasing limited banners. Roles matter just as much as tiers; aim for a mix of damage, support, and AP generation rather than stacking your highest-rarity units and hoping they fit together.