Rabbit & Steel is a unique take on the roguelike genre, combining the problem-solving elements of MMORPG raiding with elaborate bullet patterns from bullet hell shoot 'em ups to create a fresh action-puzzle hybrid. Players select one of 10 different classes, each with their own set of unique abilities that can be altered in unique ways with gem upgrades and a randomly selected assortment of items to take on a gauntlet of enemies and bosses.
While every class is capable of completing a full run, their distinct strengths and weaknesses naturally make some more suited for the challenges that can arise in the course of a playthrough, whether it's the strength of their default skillset, powerful gem upgrade combinations, or a once-in-a-lifetime game-breaking item build. The following is a tier list ranking all 10 classes of Rabbit & Steel's 1.0.0.4 patch.
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Rabbit & Steel Tier List
While the game has only just been released, players have already begun to discover powerful item builds and obscure synergies that provide some classes unique advantages over the competition. While some classes have broken out as early favorites, don't be surprised to see some of the game-breaking combinations such as the triple Dancer and Druid with garnet defensive upgrades strategy receive some adjustments in future patches.
|
S-Tier |
Dancer, Defender, Ancient |
|---|---|
|
A-Tier |
Druid, Spellsword, Wizard |
|
B-Tier |
Bruiser, Sniper |
|
C-Tier |
Heavyblade, Assassin |
S-Tier Classes
The best classes in Rabbit & Steel all combine a solid set of abilities with either strong supportive abilities, incredible damage output, or both. Their powerful default skills not only allow them to thrive in any situation but leave them versatile enough to reliably adapt to whatever random items and shop inventory they come across.
- Dancer - The de facto top tier of Rabbit & Steel, with a party including 3 Dancers being used to achieve the world's first 4-player clear of Lunar difficulty in only 2 hours and 20 minutes after release. The Dancer's defensive ability provides the offensive Warcry buff to all allies, increasing their damage by 20% for 5 seconds, and providing additional buffs with gem upgrades. Two notable upgrades are the ruby defensive ability which provides all allies with 2 seconds of invincibility, allowing the entire group to bypass difficult boss mechanics or save friends from dangerous situations, and the garnet defensive ability leveraged by the world-first team, providing Rabbitluck to greatly increase the chance of random effect activations. Besides the powerful utility of their defensive ability, their remaining attacks leave them versatile enough to make effective use of most items, with their primary and secondary abilities being able to take advantage of items that leverage random chance effects, multi-hitting attacks, and cooldown reset procs, while their hard-hitting special ability pairs well with damage multipliers, or Timegem items that scale with cooldown.
- Defender - Similar to the Dancer, the Defender features incredible utility thanks to its special ability, Novi Holy, that erases projectiles in a radius around them. Thanks to its ability to hold up to 5 charges, Defenders are capable of holding multiple uses and burn them multiple times in a row to simplify dangerous attack patterns for themselves and their party. Another similarity with the Dancer is their defensive ability granting nearby allies a brief moment of invincibility, with the ruby upgrade extending this invincibility window to a full second. Their primary ability makes great use of items that scale with multiple hits, as it strikes 3 times by default and can be upgraded to hit up to 8 times per cast, while their special ability does significant damage on its own as well, making it a great option for items that multiply damage. As a bonus, the Defender's secondary ability is a tracking projectile that is charged by each use of their primary ability, giving them a powerful option to attack from positions where their thrusting primary attack wouldn't connect.
- Ancient - Diverging from the Dancer and Defender before it, the Ancient provides monstrous amounts of damage while remaining versatile enough to adapt to a wide variety of items. While the Ancient primarily wants cooldown-reducing or -resetting items to leverage its powerful special ability, the built-in cooldown-reduction synergy provided by their secondary ability helps it take advantage of items and upgrades that boost secondary abilities as well. The multi-hitting nature of their special ability further widens the pool of useful items Ancients can make effective use of, while their spammable ranged primary attack allows them to deal damage from any distance. Although players will need to micromanage the positioning of their minion to play the Ancient effectively, those who can do so will be well-rewarded for their efforts.
A-Tier Classes
Classes within the A-tier are able to handle just about any situation the game can throw at them but don't necessarily reach the game-breaking heights that some of the classes in S-tier can reach. While solidly safe picks, these classes might have a few weaknesses that can see them struggle in certain scenarios or be a bit more item-dependant than their S-tier counterparts.
- Druid - The last member of the world-first Lunar difficulty 4-player clear, Druids are the damage-over-time class of Rabbit and Steel, featuring multiple long-duration abilities that allow them to passively deal damage from a distance. Like the Dancer, their defensive ability is able to provide buffs and invincibility to the rest of the party, with the garnet upgrade leveraged by the world-first clear able to reset its cooldown to chain together windows of invincibility. Outside of its defensive ability, the Druid mostly wants to focus on its special ability which summons a butterfly that periodically fires a powerful attack at the Druid's target. To truly shine, the Druid relies on items to reduce or reset the cooldown of its key special and defensive abilities, but they are able to become absolute powerhouses in both damage and support with the right build.
- Spellsword - The Spellsword is a unique class that doubles its spells with Darkspell charges generated by its secondary attack. Combined with its moderate-cooldown special ability with multiple charges, the Spellsword is able to effectively utilize a wide variety of items to pump out damage, including items that scale with multiple hits thanks to Darkspell, items that activate when a special ability is used thanks to its multiple charges, and items that reduce or reset cooldowns to increase the Spellsword's ability to spam special attacks. Despite being reliant on the synergy between their secondary and special abilities, the versatility of these attacks makes finding relevant items fairly reliable.
- Wizard - The quintessential magic user, the Wizard takes advantage of the synergy between its special attack, a powerful ranged attack on a cooldown, and its primary attack, a spammable ranged attack with a chance to reset its special's cooldown. In addition to its attacks, the Wizard can place a stationary field, providing beneficial effects while standing within it. Like the Spellsword, the Wizard makes good use of a wide variety of items, including those that interact with random chance effects, items that activate with special abilities, and, uniquely, items that activate while standing still, such as the Ruins item set. Although Wizard builds will almost always be centered around its special ability, the class's ability to attack from any position and wide pool of usable items make it flexible enough to succeed in just about any situation.
B-Tier Classes
While solidly capable of completing runs even on harder difficulties, the weaknesses of classes in the B-tier are not uncommon to see in an average run. They may be able to shine with the right builds, but can be reliant on finding the right items and upgrades to truly thrive, and may often struggle without the right synergies.
- Bruiser - A generally linear class with few good build options, the Bruiser relies on the Berserk buff provided by its special ability to spam its usually sluggish-but-hard-hitting primary attack. While the Berserk buff is unavailable, the Bruiser must rely mostly on its stubby, low-damage secondary ability to fill in the downtime, resulting in some positions where damaging the boss is simply not possible. The over-reliance on its primary attack results in many of Bruiser's gem upgrades being lackluster, with upgrades adding a cooldown to the Bruiser's primary attack forcing it to rely on its short-range secondary ability, and gem upgrades for its secondary attack not adequately addressing its limitations. To compensate, the Bruiser's defensive ability provides the class a strong, invincible mobility option on a short cooldown, allowing it to quickly reposition around the screen and almost always have the option to escape danger. The unique Berserk buff allows the Bruiser to leverage buff-extending items in a way that most other classes can't, but its reliance on the primary-special attack combination can also be limiting in some cases.
- Sniper - A ranged class that often relies on its secondary and special abilities to succeed. Like the Bruiser before it, the Sniper can often become over-reliant on its multi-hitting, homing special attack and synergistic secondary attack, while its linear primary attack can result in circumstances where a boss cannot be hit. While building around its primary attack is possible, the lack of reliability and increased difficulty of play often make the Sniper's secondary and special attacks a much more attractive option, and as a result, the number of truly exceptional build options can often feel limited. However, certain gem upgrades can help in this aspect, such as the sapphire secondary upgrade that deals additional damage when a debuff is applied using it.
C-Tier Classes
The C-tier represents classes that generally struggle in an important aspect that is commonly tested throughout the game, placing them at a concrete disadvantage compared to other classes. While they are perfectly capable of successfully completing a run, players will likely face challenges that are rarer or not present at all for other classes.
- Heavyblade - A slow class that relies on its special ability to effectively chase down its targets, the Heavyblade is a blank slate that relies on strong external synergies from gem upgrades and items to excel. While its special ability is a strong gap-closing mobility option with invincibility, the Heavyblade's slow base movement speed makes dodging certain attacks tighter than on any other class, and the reliance on its special ability can often force players to choose between safety and damage. Despite these limitations, the Heavyblade is capable of doing incredible amounts of damage with the right build, and the shape of its attacks allows it to attack from most angles despite its limited movement speed.
- Assassin - A technical class relying on the Vanish buff and rear attacks to provide safety and deal damage, the Assassin often struggles with effectively reaching its target and handling multiple targets. The limited range of its special ability and linear shape of its primary attack lead to more situations than almost any other class where hitting the boss is difficult, on top of asking players to position themselves behind the target to deal damage competitively with their stronger counterparts. To alleviate some of these issues, the Assassin has easy access to the powerful Vanish buff in its defensive ability, granting it extended periods of invincibility until its next attacks, with options to reset its defensive cooldown or attack without consuming Vanish. While attacks with multiple hits, random chances, and cooldown resets increase the number of synergistic items available to the Assassin, its limited range and back attack bonuses all but require investment into Vanish in some form.
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