Universal Tower Defense Tier List [UPD 1.0]

Updated on February 3, 2026: Added all units from the Cell update as well as the two new battle pass exclusives.

The best units in Universal Tower Defense depend on five categories which are Hybrid, Hill, Ground, Support and Farm. I’ll show you the best ones for all roles as well as talk about the best game modes, traits and relics for all units. Here’s my Universal Tower Defense tier list and guide.

Universal Tower Defense Unit Tier List

This is just a preview of the Universal Tower Defense tier list but the real ranking reasons are below. I’ll go into each individual unit and talk about why it’s ranked where it is, as well as the best game modes for it and specific traits. Note that I won’t go much into progression since any unit can be good to progress with if you upgrade and Etherealize it with some Relics equipped. I’ll focus more on Nightmare, Infinite, Challenges and Virtual Realm.

Portal Note: You can open Portals with the Perfect Arena Key dropped in the Dragon Ball Legend stages. You must complete each Portal tier in order to be able to get the Perfect Arena Key for the next portal tier (T2>T3 25% drop chance/T3>T4 10% to keep T4 50%).

Stat & Evo Assumptions: I’ll assume you’re feeding and upgrading the units with good stat rolls from the Traits NPC. I’ll also assume the EVO versions of units if they have an EVO. You can assume the non-EVO versions are a tier below in the same categories. For example, the base Admiral is still a good support but instead of a Hybrid he’s a good Ground unit.

Best Stats: Usually the best stat to increase is Damage for overall DPS or SPA since most Relic Set Bonuses have effects that trigger on 5th/6th attack so the faster you trigger these the better.

Best Traits: I’ll list the best traits for each unit below.

Farming Tips: Check out the FAQ below for the best farming tips for Gems, Trait Rerolls and more.

Meta Hybrid

S-Tier Hybrid	Rankings Explained
Phantom Captain (Carrier) Secret	• Massive DPS summoner unit that summons both attack planes on her location and line planes that explode on contact • The line planes deal excellent supporting AOE burst damage while her personal planes deal sustained DPS AOE damage • She also buffs her planes for +30% crit rate and +50% crit damage during the first 10 seconds of their duration for a ton of DPS • Overall a strong contender for one of the best Hybrid DPS units • Best Trait: Ruler
Migumen (Finale) NY Capsule Exclusive	• She’s now Meta with the new update • Great DPS overall but her Nuke on max deals massive damage, especially on E6 • Apart from the Nuke she’s a great Burn DoT damage unit • This is because in addition to the Burn DoT she’s also excellent against armor due to True Damage and Radiation • Extremelly flexibile unit when you play around her active • Best Trait: Ruler or Sacred
Jinoo (Monarch) Banner Secret	• Top 3 DPS unit with shadows dealing massive damage with the scaling buff • Best unit for Infinite due to the massive scaling and decent on VR • Note that he’s not the best for faster game modes since he takes a while to scale up • That said, he got a massive buff on December 20 giving his passive to the unevolved version and pumping his mana gain and damage • Best Trait: Ruler or Eternal
Berserker (Enraged) Mythic	• Much better now in the new update with the fix • Top 5 DPS unit in the game overall and arguably one of the best Hybrids due to game mode flexibility, CC and hyper armor damage • Fast ramp-up value • Obliterates armored enemies, slows and increase all damage taken on enemies • Second-best unit for VR after Kriatu EVO • Decent on Infinite but not the best • Best Trait: Ruler or Sacred
Ice Empress (Forst) Winter Capsule Exclusive	• A mix of impressive DPS and execution as well as top-tier stalling support and even a bit of buffs • She has a ton of passives but the main ones are freezes and slows for amazing stalling for your other DPS units • Summons units which is really strong but requires 50 kills on her meter so she’s best for extended game modes and not quick farming • Combos well with other Frost units which she buffs for 20% like Koyote or Jangluu • Overall a powerhouse DPS and Support hybrid • Best Trait: Ruler

Good Hybrid

S-Tier Hybrid	Rankings Explained
Bio-Android (Perfect) Secret	• Very slow to get going but gets powerful if you have time to evolve him (Gets Hybrid) so he’s better in Infinite • Evolves by beating mini-bosses he spawns and E2 is really good since it reduces the HP of those bosses • You need to reach Perfect state for him to be good (Hybrid+Max Upgrade) though Semi-Perfect does have Confusion which is decent support • Most of the prime DPS comes from high base damage, Sub-Unit summons and the 5% on-hit Line AOE follow up • That said, the active nuke does stun in an AOE which is really strong for bosses and is on a 90s global cooldown • Overall, really slow to get going but is close to Meta DPS and utility on final evolution
Rohan & Robot 16 (Limit Breaker) Mythic	• A ton of passives here but to summarize it’s a weak unit at start slowly increasing damage up to Wave 10 • That said you have Red Combo and A-16 which boost your damage with follow up attacks, low SPA, stuns and stun immunity • Then it’s all about the two actives where the first is available once you stack up Rage and is an AOE Nuke (It take away A-16 damage boosts) • It also puts you into Mode 2 with maxed-out stats and a Line AOE active that deals massive damage and resets your Rage • Overall, despite high DPS in the end, it’s a lot of work and really slow to get going similar to Bio-Android which might not be good in most modes • This is a lower-tier Hybrid for now
Koyote (Number One) Mythic	• A Hybrid-on-upgrade DPS machine that spams wolf summons on takedown dealing sustained DPS and charging energy (Especially on E4) • Also has a massive damage burst Nuke that fires on max energy doing 500% damage • Koyote isn’t the best hybrid DPS but he’s good for any mode • Best Trait: Ruler for main DPS or Sacred/Eternal for secondary DPS
Ichiko (Rage) Secret	• Ichiko is good, don’t get me wrong, but he’s just raw DPS with not a lot of utility past the 5-second active stun that’s on a 90s cooldown • Requires a specific build around crit chance and damage to maximize his passive damage and overall DPS (Go full damage on substats) • Still one of the better units in the game, just slightly weaker than the ones above • Best Trait: Ruler or Sacred

Weaker Hybrids

Weaker Hybrid	Rankings Explained
Dragon Guy (Silverite) Challenges Secret	• Got massive buffs to Twin Dragon Hunting Flash, Shatter and Are You Scared helping him in faster modes • He’s not a Meta DPS but he is Meta if you consider him a Hybrid DPS Support mix since he can CC enemies • Great on Virtual Realm and Infinite but takes a while to activate his Trance (This is not as much of a problem anymore due to buffs) • He’s best with units that can apply Freeze since his Shatter deals burst damage on frozen targets • He can also self-cleanse stuns which is really good for Infinite • Best Trait: Ruler or Eternal
Scarlet Maid (World) Get from Virtual Shop	• A hybrid DPS and Support that can now be viable with the December 20 buffs to her skill damage and The World ability • Stuns enemies, has Slows and deals great DPS with Time Gauge stacks which trigger various high damage attacks • The only downside is that her CC needs to be activated by attacking and is not on every attack like other CC units • Great on Infinite • That said, she’s best when you have E6 since the CC lasts for a long time • Best Trait: Ruler or Sacred
Mob (100%) Mythic	• Overall a great slowing unit and an always useful Hybrid that got a slight damage buff which adds up fast • Really good for VR and Infinite as a supporting slowing option with Eternal and decent with Ruler as a DPS but I would stick to it as a support/DPS mix • Best Trait: Ruler or Eternal
Bambee (Blitz) NY Capsule Exclusive	• Deals okay damage but her main strength is flexibility since she applies status effects based on your team’s most used element • These status effects are also better with Bambee since they last longer • I recommend building your team around Ice since due to Ice Empress, Koyote and Jangluu being some of the best units in the game Water: Slow Wind: Wind Shear Rose: Bleed Dark: Stun Fire: Burn Light: Radiation Ice: Freeze

Meta Ground

S-Tier Ground	Rankings Explained
Fallen Prince (Ruthless) Mythic	• Also a ramp-up unit like Roku and Rohan but unlike them he’s not slow since he gets no damage debuff • He just keeps buffing himself up each wave and kill with damage, crit chance, range and attack speed until he goes Super Saiyan • Once you reach max cap with his crit chance buff (0.25% per kill up to 30%) he goes SS with Hyper Armor Damage and guaranteed crits after a few kills • Overall a very strong Ground unit that’s good for any mode and isn’t that slow like some Cell Update units
Robot 17 & 18 (Fighterz) Mythic	• A high-tier Ground unit that’s better than Roku and Rohan because even though they scale damage with waves they don’t start with a damage debuff • They deal great Circle AOE DPS with massive range and you can switch between them for 3 seconds of Disruption or Confusion per switch which is great utility • As a cherry on top they’re also immune to stuns and have an active Nuke on final upgrade for decent damage • Overall a great Ground unit with good DPS and some support potential
The Drink (Survivor) Mythic	• A simple and strong Full AOE contender for your Ground slot that deals impressive DPS thanks to various self buffs • Also does Burn damage on Upgrade 6 • Overall not a lot of utility here, just pure DPS so it’s not a must-have but it’s nice to have
Kriatu (Cheater) Mythic	• The best ground unit in the game currently • Also the best unit in the game for VR • Deals increasingly more damage as he crits • Get the Duelist trait on him ASAP so that he can crit more and therefore ramp up damage faster • He can only gain more crit from Traits • Got a huge buff on ability damage making him even better • Best Trait: Duelist
Sasku (Chakra) Mythic	• Overall great on any mode with excellent DoT damage, utility and overall DPS (Especially with the buffs on Arrow and Kirin) • The utility mainly comes from the passive which has some hybrid potential • Also has decent CC for pseudo-supporting • Excellent for grinding Story since he’s easy to get and EVO • You can either run him as your main DPS with Ruler or off-DPS with Wizard for DoTs • Best Trait: Wizard or Ruler

Good/Alternative Ground

A-Tier Ground	Rankings Explained
Grommjow (Panther) Exclusive	• Deals decent AOE DPS and works similarly to Koyote where you’re collecting meter but instead of a nuke, Grommjow transforms on full meter • The transformation boosts both single-target DPS and AOE damage due to the explosion per enemy • Great against armor • Best Trait: Ruler or Eternal
Ronin Obito/Rogue Oni Exclusive Day 7 Daily Reward	• The best on Story mode since you can get him for free Day 7 and grind story • Impressive DoT damage but not as much utility as other DoT units like Sasuke, Ace and Admiral • Will be much stronger if they gave him an EVO like Rule • Best Trait: Wizard
Footballer (Ego) Exclusive BattlePass Reward Level 25	• Decent DPS with the self-buff and mini damage buff on ally but doesn’t combo with anything nor excel in anything • Great for Story since you can get it fast for free via BattlePass • Overall a decent DPS option if you don’t have anything else • Best Trait: Ruler or Sacred

Meta Air/Hill

S-Tier Air	Rankings Explained
Jangluu (Eclipse) Winter Capsule Exclusive	• Deals a ton of damage on Frozen enemies even though he doesn’t stun on Freeze • Best combined with units that can freeze like Ice Empress since she also buffs Ice units • Requires a specific team setup but can potentially be one of the best Hill units in the game • Best Trait: Ruler or Eternal
Spade (Donut) Mythic	• The best Air/Hill DPS unit and one of the best units in the game overall due to the passive on-shield damage • Amazing for progressing story/legend stage since you can get it fast and you need a good Air ASAP • Otherwise great for VR and Infinite as your Hill slot with Ruler as a main DPS or Astral as a secondary DPS • Best trait is Astral since Spade is the best Burn DOT unit in the game right now • Best Trait: Astral or Ruler
Ultiorra (Oblivion) Mythic	• Similar to Tierabel in that Ultiorra deals decent DPS and also has supporting abilities from Unpredictable Despair where he can Confuse or Stun enemies • I prefer him over Spade when not facing shields since Spade is better against shields • You also get an active Nuke that deals massive damage on a 45s cooldown which is pretty good for clearing important waves • Best Trait: Ruler or Eternal
Sharpshooter (Precision) Mythic	• Massive range with decent DPS and a decent amount of off-supporting capabilities (Place her in the back so she’s in Sniper mode) • Can hit enemies across the entire map in Sniper mode with a neat little damage bonus • The grenades offer some AOE support damage • She can also mark enemies with her active to take more damage from all sources and buffs Fire unit damage placed near her • Overall a decent DPS hill unit with two modes for great range and a little bit of support • Best Trait: Pick the highest damage trait or Ruler since she doesn’t need extra range from Traits because Sniper mode has infinite range

Good/Alternative Air/Hill

A-Tier Air	Rankings Explained
Super Roku (Enraged) Mythic	• Roku has access to amazing tech where you can teleport him to different choke points within range to prolong his DPS once enemies leave range • That said he’s slow like Rohan & Robot 16 starting out with a massive damage debuff that goes away after a few waves but it’s not worth it IMO • Once the debuff is gone he can deal pretty decent DPS with his passive buffs but it might be too late at this point since he’s just a Hill unit • Would be better if he was Hybrid so as things stand he’s a low-tier Hill unit
Tierabel (Hydro) Mythic	• Great damage with spawning AOE damage tides • Plus, she also slows enemy units offering mini support potential • Becomes even stronger in her mode • Note that it isn’t that worth it running Nell just for the combo on the first passive since it’s not that much • Overall is kind of like Mob where it’s decent DPS and decent Support but not the best at either • Best Trait: Eternal
Cyborg (Fearless) Mythic	• The weakest Air/Hill unit but can still hold his own due to the December 20 buffs • The main reason he’s much better now is that his Nuke got a massive buff for targeted damage and is on a much lower CD • Decent DoT and he’s a must-have if you don’t have Spade or other Hill units to hit fliers • Best Trait: Wizard or Ruler

Meta Support

S-Tier Support	Rankings Explained
Ice Empress (Forst) Winter Capsule Exclusive	• A mix of impressive DPS and execution as well as top-tier stalling support and even a bit of buffs • She has a ton of passives but the main ones are freezes and slows for amazing stalling for your other DPS units • Summons units which is really strong but requires 50 kills on her meter so she’s best for extended game modes and not quick farming • Combos well with other Frost units which she buffs for 20% like Koyote or Jangluu • Overall a powerhouse DPS and Support hybrid • Best Trait: Ruler
Rule (ROOM) Exclusive BattlePass Reward Level 50	• Incredibly versatile support that stuns and teleports enemy units • Great on all modes but especially on Virtual Realm • Best Trait: Ruler or Eternal
Admiral (Magma) Legendary EVO	• The best budget unit in the game since you get it easily as a Legendary and it stays strong in the late-game via EVO • Easily one of the best Fire units in the game • Admiral is good for two reasons, he deals impressive DOT damage but also acts as a support with Confusion • Confusion makes enemies walk back which is amazing stalling for your main DPS units • Best Trait: Wizard or Fission
Miku (Super Star) Mythic	• Buffs all units around her with either increased Damage or Range • Etherealize up to 6 is key here to increase the buffs • The best buffer in the entire game and she becomes worth it after you place some units already so don’t use her as a starter or second unit • Amazing for Infinite • Best Trait: Artificer
Judas (Darkness) Battle Pass Level 50 Exclusive	• Low SPA but deals decent DPS, slows and has a ton of utility with his active • He’s a sub DPS unit with supporting options that are quite good and while he’s not a must-have support he’s still pretty good • His active is a crazy good support tool with a ton of flexibility on what statuses you can apply from slows to confusion
Ja’frey (Lightning Assassin) Battle Pass Level 25 Exclusive	• Ja’frey is a great alternative for your CC support slot because he’s an on-attack Stun-based unit with decent DPS • The stuns go up to 1.5 seconds on E4 which is really strong for any mode • Plus he’s not that hard to get
Shunks (Conqueror) Mythic	• You get both damage and stuns all in one unit making Shunks one of the best units in the game • Definitely worth to EVO • Meta support DPS for all game modes due to stuns • Best Trait: Ruler or Sacred

Good/Alternative Support

A-Tier Support	Rankings Explained
Tierabel (Hydro) Mythic	• Same as her Hill entry but with a focus on her slowing and supporting capabilities which are decent but not the best • Best Trait: Eternal
Lulu Quest Secret Check out how to unlock him>	• Our Lulu/Lelouch Quest Guide will show you how to unlock this unit • Lulu is a great support unit when he works that doesn’t attack but instead issues orders based on his cooldown • He can stall units a lot which helps your main DPS units get in more damage • He can also stun enemy units • That said, there’s also some great damage here with the Beam order (Which got buffed) • Great for all game modes and is overall one of the best supports • Laughing Captain Relic set bonus is great on him for reduced active cooldowns • Best Trait: Ruler or Sacred
Bambee (Blitz) NY Capsule Exclusive	• Deals okay damage but her main strength is flexibility since she applies status effects based on your team’s most used element • These status effects are also better with Bambee since they last longer • I recommend building your team around Ice since due to Ice Empress, Koyote and Jangluu being some of the best units in the game Water: Slow Wind: Wind Shear Rose: Bleed Dark: Stun Fire: Burn Light: Radiation Ice: Freeze
Scarlet Maid (World) Get from Virtual Shop	• A hybrid DPS and Support that can now be viable with the December 20 buffs to her skill damage and The World ability • Stuns enemies, has Slows and deals great DPS with Time Gauge stacks which trigger various high damage attacks • The only downside is that her CC needs to be activated by attacking and is not on every attack like other CC units • Great on Infinite • That said, for Supporting purposes she’s lower on the list since she’s best when you have E6 for a massive duration boost which can be slow to grind • Best Trait: Ruler or Sacred
Mob (100%) Mythic	• Overall a great slowing unit and an always useful Hybrid that got a slight damage buff which adds up fast • Really good for VR and Infinite as a supporting slowing option with Eternal and decent with Ruler as a DPS but I would stick to it as a support/DPS mix • Best Trait: Ruler or Eternal
Nelle (Primal) Mythic	• A weird DPS unit that revets between baby and adult form granting various buffs that ultimately produce sub-optimal damage • That said has some decent supporting abilities with Ichiko and Tierabel which are both really good units • That said, I wouldn’t run Nellee unless you really like her from Bleach
Shakumira EVO Legendary EVO	• A low DPS unit but offers great support potential with a stalling ability • Not the best unit to EVO for all modes but pretty great on Infinite, especially with the cooldown buff on the CC • Best Trait: Artificer
Zora Legendary	• Great beginner unit and overall a decent support with the CC effect • Scarlet Maid is a better unit and DPS but Zora’s CC is more reliable for supporting • Best Trait: Artificer

Farm

Farm	Rankings Explained
Bulmo Legendary	• A better version of Fastcart • Best Trait: Fortune
Fastcart Epic	• Get the Fortunate trait on him ASAP • Good for all modes • Best Trait: Fortune

Best Relics in Universal Tower Defense

Below you’ll find a list of all Relics and their set bonuses as well as which units you should use them on.

Set & Bonus Head	Set & Bonus Body/Legs	Best Units
Junior Ninja Head • Increase received buffs by 10%	Junior Ninja Body/Legs • +5% Damage • +10% Wind Damage	Wind Units if you’re running them with Miku (Super Star) in your team or other buff units
Master Ninja Head • Every 5 attacks, increase DOT damage by 20% for 10 seconds	Master Ninja Body/Legs • +5% Damage • +10% Dark/Rose/Fire Damage	Dark, Rose or Fire units that have DoT effects like Admiral (Magma)
Sun God Head • Every 6 attacks the wearer gains a damage buff equal to their range for 7 seconds 1 Range = 1% Damage	Sun God Body/Legs • +5% Damage • +10% Light/Water/Ice Damage	Light, Water or Ice units that have high attack speed like Kriatu
Laughing Captain Head • -10% Active Ability Cooldown	Laughing Captain Body/Legs • +5% Damage • -5% Cooldown • +5% Range	Great for any DPS unit that has an active ability like Lulu
Berserk Shinigami Head • Every 5th hit the next attack is buffed to deal 20% extra True Damage that ignores resistances	Berserk Shinigami Body/Legs • +5% Damage • +15% Armor Damage	Great on armor shred units like Berserker or to give your main DPS units some armor shred
Ex Captain Uraharo Head • Refund 5% of Yen spent on upgrades	Ex Captain Uraharo Body/Legs • +10% Critical Rate • +25% Critical Damage	Great on Mythics and Secrets that have the Duelist Trait Don’t put on Kriatu since he doesn’t benefit from Crit Rate other than from Traits

Universal Tower Defense FAQ

That’s it for my Universal Tower Defense tier list and guide. Check out our Universal Tower Defense codes for a bunch of free goodies.

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