Chaos Zero Nightmare (CZN) Tier List

Tier Lists

There are two-tier lists, one for Seasonal Save Data and one for Chaos Manifestation (Roguelike Gameplay).

• Seasonal Save Data is based around a character's maximum potential using their best decks, equipment, and teams in the Nebula Distortion and The Great Rift game modes. Of the two, significantly more value is placed on The Great Rift game mode.
• Chaos Manifestation is based on the consistency, floor, and flexibility of the character over multiple roguelike runs.

Each tier list ranks characters differently, meaning one character can be top tier in one mode but struggle in another.

Categories

• DPS: Characters whose primary focus is maximizing the damage they deal and being the main source of it in the team they’re present in.
• Support DPS: Characters that can be played as a main DPS but also have incredible supportive capabilities and options. Those in this category, while able to be placed in the DPS category, offer more to the team than just pure damage and therefore cannot be ranked directly against pure damage dealers.
• Support: Characters in this category are fully focused on aiding the team through either healing, draw power, searching, AP generation, or buffing/debuffing as a focus, with damage taking a back seat.
• Shielder: Those in this category all supply the team with immense shields as a focus, but also support the team in many other ways as well.

Special Tags

• [Hybrid]: Characters with this tag display properties of two categories instead of one. The other category they could be ranked in is specified in their tag. Note support DPS all operate as having the [Hybrid] tag and won't possess it to prevent redundancy.
• [Draw]: Character has cards that provide substantial draw power to the team.
• [Search]: Character has cards that provide non-personal card searching on use
• [Break]: Character possesses a stronger-than-average potential to deal high tenacity damage
• [AP-]: Character is very AP hungry and requires a large amount of the team's resources or an AP-generating support.
• [AP+]: Character either generates a ton of AP for the team or requires very little to function themselves, allowing more to be used for the team.
• [Upgrade]: Characters can function while playing minimal or no cards due to much of their power residing in upgrades or signature class mechanics.
• [AoE]: Characters possess incredible AoE potential, notably above average.
• [Buff]: Characters possess buffing capabilities that work on other characters and that far exceed the standard amount in kits.

Ratings

Each tier indicates a stage of power, consistency, and relevancy in the current meta, with higher tiers being more powerful. The half tier of T0.5 has also been included to better demonstrate the closeness of characters in CZN, as many are able to perform very similarly even at the highest level.

Seasonal Save Data

• T0 & T0.5: Characters in these tiers are more consistent, flexible, and powerful than those below them and are capable of succeeding in high difficulty runs even while carrying other team mates in order to build their decks and without having to rely on “good luck”. Characters within these tiers also frequently possess high amounts of unique cards in order to improve the odds of hitting desirable deck-building outcomes.
• T1: Characters in this tier are good enough to clear high-end chaos/zero system difficulties, but aren’t as powerful or strong at carrying/farming as those in tiers above them, either due to weaker starting decks, reliance on hitting specific epiphanies and equipment, or less total damage, shielding, or healing output.
• T2: Characters in this tier, while absolutely playable, are outclassed in one or multiple areas, even after considering high-end deck-building options for their role for the current season. Either others perform the role they’re doing better, or their kit isn’t currently a strong fit.

Chaos Manifestation

• T0 & T0.5: Characters in these tiers are more consistent, flexible, and powerful than those below them and are capable of succeeding in high difficulty runs across most attempts without the need for “good luck”.
• T1: Characters in this tier are good enough to clear high-end Chaos/Zero system difficulties, but aren’t as powerful as those in tiers above them, either due to weaker starting decks, reliance on hitting specific epiphanies and equipment, or less total damage, shielding, or healing output.
• T2: Characters in this tier struggle to clear the highest difficulty Chaos/Zero system difficulties without being greatly assisted by other high-tier characters. These characters are usually only brought in order to acquire good save decks for them and not for their own merit in the mode.

General Criteria

• Manual play,
• Using optimal team composition,
• Characters are level 60,
• All Potentials unlocked,
• Character is equipped with a level 60 partner of either:
• S5 4★ or 3★ (Gold/Blue),
• S1 5★ (Purple),
• Character equipped with Memory Fragments that have optimal main and sub stats,
• Characters' Egos (dupes) are rated at:
• 4★ - E6,
• 5★ - E0.

Roles Criteria

We compare characters within their role - so DPS are compared to other DPS, and ratings are adjusted based on their performance in that role. Don't try to compare characters between roles, because their ratings mean different things.

• DPS: Rating is heavily influenced by the character's ability to deal enough damage to achieve success within the highest difficulty of seasonal save game modes and their consistency and ability to function without specific equipment/epiphanies in roguelike modes.
• Support DPS: Rating is heavily influenced by what synergy and benefit they provide to other characters while also factoring in general support and damage capabilities in both modes.
• Support: Rating is influenced by the character's ability to support the team either through buffing or providing additional resources in the form of card search, draw, or AP. How effective a support character is at enhancing one or multiple other characters' strategies determines their ranking on the tier list. Ability to sustain the team through healing is also considered.
• Shielder: Rating is influenced heavily by the character's ability to output strong and consistent enough shielding to survive endgame (if needed) while also bringing more to the table through supportive effects or enough damage to make a difference.

15.01.2026

Season 1 made major changes to CZN’s endgame while also introducing a host of quality-of-life additions. The combination of these changes, alongside brand-new, far more challenging content, resulted in deck-building strategies being taken to the next level to optimize for a level of difficulty not seen in the game before the season started. The result of all of this was a far greater understanding of what’s strongest for each game mode by everyone.

With Season 1 now over, we’re making some major updates to the tier list based on all the learnings of the season, plus the introduction of

New things:

• Tier 1.5: Now that we have more characters and the difference between their power level is more apparent, we’re introducing another tier in order to be able to more accurately represent the power gap between characters within each category.
• Unique Cards: Unique card blocking is now at the forefront of optimal deck farming in Chaos-related game modes. If you want the best odds of getting a card duplicate you want, you’ll want to be running the character your deck building for alongside 2 other characters with as many unique cards as possible (they cannot be offered as duplication choices). Because of this, we’re adding Unique Card potential as a minor part of the Chaos criteria. In the event that new, much harder Chaos content is released that cannot be “farmed,” we’ll consider removing this addition, but until then, we want the tier list to reflect what’s currently optimal in the mode as much as possible.
• Shielders: Currently, shielders aren’t a popular choice in either Chaos or Save data game modes. In this update, we’re adjusting the whole category, ranking everyone there down a tier to reflect their current position in the meta, as no shielder currently satisfies all the criteria in order to be considered T0. In Save data, we had planned to adjust rankings in a similar fashion, but with the release of Narja and all shielders being Def Damage dealers, we’ll instead be holding off to see if Narja can improve the relevancy of any of them.

Now let's talk about

• Chaos: In Chaos Narja heals, brings great AP efficiency, deals solid single target and AoE damage, and buffs all while possessing the potential to convert 3 of her cards into unique via Epiphanies (on top of one of her cards already starting with unique). That’s up to 4 total unique cards or 80% of her total card pool, which, when combined with her strong all-around kit covering almost every base all by herself - we strongly feel she’s worthy of the tier 0 spot.
• Save: Narja has a lot of save data deck options, almost too many, all of which are powerful in their own niches and teams. With that said, the majority of those decks are currently at or around the power level of current supports, with the sole exception being Cassius and his ability to generate his way out of control in any encounter he’s allowed to set up. We believe Narja has potential to grow as more characters are released, especially if they play into her Def-Buffing playstyle, but right now, she doesn’t feel like she overpowers current options with the community's current understanding of her kit.

After season 2 begins, we’ll be doing another major update of the tier list based on the new equipment, encounters, and neutral cards made available.

26.12.2025

In this update, we’re adjusting the tier list based on the newly released Great Rift setup as well as adding

• 
  Sereniel - At the time of her release, Sereniel had already proven she’s a force to be reckoned with in both Chaos-based game modes and Save Data modes.
• Chaos: In Chaos Sereniel’s main strength is her absurd unconditional Tenacity damage that often leads to one or multiple Ravages per turn, which unlocks the rest of her kit, allowing her to add back cards to snowball more damage and even more ravages. It would be one thing if this strategy relied on specific Epiphanies to work, but it doesn’t - even Sereniel’s base cards perform at an incredibly high level, and most of her epiphanies are not only viable but further add to this strength. All this adds up to a very capable and well-rounded character in the mode.
• Save: Sereniel isn’t the highest output single target DPS in the game, losing that title to Mei Lin and other similar multi-hit scalers, but she is very well suited to the current meta, specifically the current Great Rift, which is basically designed around her. Even looking past this, though, Sereniel has a strong enough kit and team options that she’s absolutely able to stand above the pack when optimized, especially if you’re willing to go a step further and invest in multi-Ravage set-ups using Selena’s Tenacity restoring cards. In the current seasonal endgame, Sereniel is definitely a tier 0 unit. We’ll review her rating again when the shilling stops, but given her incredibly high ceiling, only limited by the amount of Ravages you can achieve per turn, we don’t expect her to fall too far behind even once it stops.
• 
  Selena - Before Sereniel's release, Selena lacked a home in any top-end teams; now, after her release, she very clearly has a niche and a position by her side. Selena is capable of refreshing the enemy's Tenacity bar multiple times per turn, allowing Sereniel to continually generate and add back her lasers. She is the only character that can enable this currently and is one of Sereniel’s stronger save data teammates. Based on this, we’re raising her save data rating up a tier.
• 
  Yuki - Before this update, Yuki’s rating was propped up by her strength on side one of the previous Great Rift. Now, in the new great Rift, Yuki is seeing very little success which, combined with her just okay performance in Nebula Distortion, is enough to knock her down a tier for now.

05.12.2025

As mentioned in our previous update, now that

Because of this, the new tier list will focus exclusively on characters' performance in Nebula Distortion and the Great Rift, with greater emphasis being placed on performance in Rift, as it’s the harder and more rewarding mode. Keep in mind that seasonal content heavily favors certain characters and elements, and that will be reflected in the tier list, so if some characters feel rated low compared to your experience, it’s because they’re currently not favored in the present season.

New additions:

• 
  Chizuru - At the time of her release, Chizuru has proven to be an effective choice in Chaos-based game modes thanks to her best attack card possessing Retain, being able to be generated, and her upgrade providing AP efficiency to the whole team without its downside really coming into play. Based on this, we’re rating her highly at T0.5.
• On the other end of the spectrum, Chizuru’s save data performance doesn’t quite match the current powerhouses of the season. Here, her AP restriction becomes far more relevant as it’s not just likely but easy to generate 5 or more AP per turn, making her signature upgrades downside far more punishing.
• In addition to this, while Chizuru's base kit is capable of stacking a single attack card super high for crazy clips (and 'screenshot' damage), her per-turn damage compared to the likes of Hugo, Mei Lin, and others is on the lower end. Also, unlike Yuki, who is experiencing a ridiculous boost from being both AoE and getting triple buffed in The Great Rift, Chizuru lacks that same niche. Based on all of this, we’re placing Chizuru initially in T1 in save data modes.

29.11.2025

Now that Season 1 is well underway, a lot has changed within the endgame meta: new character builds have been found, players are using Forbidden cards more efficiently, S1 equipment is mostly optimized, and players have gotten a lot better at manipulating save data. All of this has resulted in some characters becoming stronger, while others have either shown weaknesses or stayed at the same power level.

Furthermore, the current Save Data tier list we have, based on Dimensional Twilight, isn’t reflecting the power level of some characters. Because of this, we have a major overhaul planned for it which includes major ratings adjustments as well as the inclusion of the more challenging S1 Save Data game modes which are a step above Dimensional Twilight in difficulty. However, before that overhaul, we want to observe how the final, and likely most competitive save data mode plays first (The Great Rift). With that said, the Great Rift is days away, and we don’t want the tier list to remain incorrect for that long, so we’re doing a partial update now.

Dimensional Twilight:

• 
  Rei T1 → T0.5 - In Save Data game modes, Rei has gained a lot of ground recently as players move from survival to optimizing for damage. Rei’s buffs in the current state of the game are some of the most potent, especially for high hit frequency characters who have lower initial card multipliers. Of the supports currently available, Rei is one of the most universal outside of Mika, and her play rate has only been progressively rising as the community's understanding develops.
• 
  Luke T1 → T0.5 and moved to Main DPS - Previously Luke was seeing the most play as an assistant to Hugo, but now with the advent of more optimized Dance of the Demon builds being used, he has found himself positioned strongly as one of the top single target damage dealers in the game when set-up correctly (specifically with a well built Triple 0 Cassius). Luke requires more deck and team building attention than most characters, but when he has it, he is a strong pick even at E0.

Chaos Manifestation:

• 
  Luke moved to Main DPS - With Luke being far more prominent in the meta, players need to run him more in Chaos in order to build his decks. As a result, they’ve found ways to mitigate his weak card multipliers early on in order to have him work more effectively as a proper damage dealer. Because of that, we’re shifting him to the main DPS category.
• 
  Nia T1 → T2 - As both us and the community continue to push the boundaries of what is strong and what isn’t in CZN, we want our tier list to reflect that. Nia is a character that has been flagged as being weaker than those she’s currently sharing a tier (with Orlea). Nia’s base deck is incredibly weak and eats away at card advantage, something that can be solved with epiphanies but is a burden early in runs. Also, some of Nia’s epiphanies change cards in ways that aren’t always easy to use, or usable at all in a run, resulting in dead cards in your deck. Because of this, we’re dropping her out of T1, as she’s currently the weakest support in Chaos, and Orlea is showing stronger results.
• 
  Hugo - Based on feedback and further testing, even with the fix to Hugo’s Hunt commence epiphanies, we have made the decision to keep him in T0.5 for now.

18.11.2025

Based on the feedback we have received for the recently released Chaos Tier List, we're making the following changes:

• 
  Mei Lin T0.5 → T0 - Out of all damage dealers, Mei Lin shines the most in Chaos and she's the only one deserving to sit in T0 for now. Even if you don't get her 'move' Epi, she still has multiple viable build paths that allow her to deal with most enemies she faces, making her very consistent in her performance.
• 
  Hugo added to Watchlist - Hugo could potentially move to T0 with Mei Lin, but we need to do more testing and gather more feedback before deciding on pulling the trigger.

14.11.2025

We have added

10.11.2025

With Season 1 on the horizon and pre-season coming to an end, we’re implementing a final round of changes to the tier list based on all new synergies, info, and community feedback. The biggest change in this update is the introduction of T0.5 - a tier in between T1 and T0 - which we’ll be moving quite a large number of characters into to better represent their current position in the meta. Outside of this, we’re also making some other smaller adjustments as well.

• Tier 0.5 - One of the biggest pieces of feedback we’ve heard (internally and from the community) is that characters are far closer in power level than is currently represented on the tier list. We’re adding T0.5 in an effort to fix this. Characters who were close to T0 level but not quite there have been moved to T0.5, while those who weren’t as close remain in T1. This is something we have in other games and feel is appropriate for CZN, too. Let us know what you think of this change.
• 
  Rin
  
  Kayron
  
  Renoa and
  
  Haru T1 → T0.5 - All the previously T1 DPS have outstanding decks capable of obliterating the current endgame content, which makes having them a full tier below Hugo and Mei Lin unusual. As mentioned above, we’ve moved them a half tier closer to hopefully make things more accurate.
• 
  Beryl T1 → T0.5 - Beryl, without a doubt, has one of, if not the best, card draw engines in the entire game when it comes to short fights, making her the go-to choice for low-turn clears of Dimensional Twilight, which many consider the pinnacle of character power tests. Outside of this, Beryl also has a very potent upgrade build capable of dealing high output, consistent damage each turn, which has also been shown to clear endgame without trouble easily. Based on this, we’re moving Beryl to T0.5 now and watchlisting her to move to T0 in the next update.
• 
  Luke T2 → T1 and moved to Support DPS - We previously watchlisted Luke based on his potential with Dimensional Cube and have found that this combo is quite effective, especially if you have his signature Partner Janet for additional Bullet Generation. With that said, currently Luke is seeing more play as a sub DPS than main DPS in the current meta - at least when you have him at E0, so without any dupes. With the latest builds, findings, and testing in mind, we’re moving him to the Support DPS category for now and raising him to T1, but we will keep an eye on him to see if he’s able to break away and sit as a main DPS in the future.
• 
  Nia &
  
  Cassius T1 → T0.5 - In the endgame, both Nia and Cassius are outstanding at fulfilling the role of getting your team to the combo pieces it needs as fast as possible while also offering other great synergies, such as boosting overall team damage thanks to discards and dimensional cube. Nia is the better Dimensional Cube enabler, has more reliable healing, and has lower cost card filtering, assuming you have E1 unlocked, but Cassius has higher combo potential thanks to his quests, and if you have the AP to spare is better and more direct in his searching thanks to Joker pulling any card not just going through 3 at a time like Nia. Regardless, both are incredibly potent supports that have only gained momentum since release, and we’re raising both to the new T0.5 tier.
• 
  Orlea T2 → T1 - Orlea’s Vulnerability build a build that has recently come to the forefront, allows her to apply a good amount of AoE vulnerability, which, when combined with the buffs she provides via Softie, allows her to operate as a solid buffer/debuffer above where we have her currently placed on the tier list. Based on this new build, we’re updating her placement from T2 to T1.
• 
  Magna T1 → T0.5 - Magna is performing above her current placement in T1 and holds more endgame power than Maribell based on current available knowledge. Because of this, we’re raising her to the newly created T0.5.
• 
  Amir - Amir is currently being played more in the damage role compared to her current shielder/protector role. Based on this, we’re moving her to the DPS category for now. We’re also watchlisting her to move up, as many players are seeing reasonable success with her in endgame. Before that, we’ll take some additional time to observe her performance in the upcoming phase. Her build on her profile will also be updated to reflect that soon.

04.11.2025

We’re making our first CZN tier list update based on community feedback, further testing, and new findings. Due to how early it still is and the nature of the game, this update is a small one, but we have some larger changes planned that will likely go live once further testing and our guides are fully complete.

• 
  Mei Lin - We have Mei Lin marked as one of our top re-roll targets due to her power, and absolutely acknowledge how strong she is. Our initial tier list release was conservative to avoid placing any character too high. With feedback in and further testing, it’s clear Mei Lin is more than qualified to move up and sit next to Hugo. She is moving from T1 to T0.
• 
  Luke
  
  Nia and
  

  Dimensional Cube
  - We’ve completed further testing on the Dimensional Cube and found it exactly as broken as expected for Luke, with Nia being the primary enabler. With that said, we’re maintaining the watchlist for now as we’re still yet to complete our testing on every piece of equipment and still need to test the cube on every other character as well. Expect Nia and Luke to be addressed on the next update, though.
• 
  Beryl - We’ve been testing Beryl and certainly aren’t ignoring her; we understand the power of her Retain Extra Attack Upgrade build. However, this playstyle, while passive and almost completely AP neutral, isn't as supportive as the card draw Veronica provides or as synergistic as the exhaust plus targeting attack Tressa offers. Beryl is more damage-aligned, while still having qualities as a Support DPS. We’re still discussing how to handle this. For this reason, she’s being watch-listed for now.

There are plenty of other placement adjustments we’re considering based on your feedback and new testing done by our team and the community each day. We’ll continue making updates frequently moving forward.

30.10.2025

Initial release of the tier list. Also, to demonstrate the thinking behind how decisions are made for each character, we’ll be posting a Launch Log explaining why each character placed in T0 is where they are:

• 
  Hugo - Hugo is capable of dealing some of the best single-target damage in the game when set up correctly, thanks to his numerous and easy-to-access Extra Attacks. What makes him T0 on, though, is that he does this while not needing any specific cards in hand. Hugo’s damage is mostly “free” or passive, as any skill card grants him Hunt Commence and any targeted card triggers it, making him incredibly consistent no matter what you draw. Add to this the fact that his core strategy is upgrade-based and starts with Initiation, and Hugo is basically always executing his game plan the same way every time. Lastly, what pushes Hugo over the edge is his absurd synergy with Tressa and the fact that he has access to outstanding card economy options of his own, with multiple ways to either search or draw more.
• 
  Tressa - Tressa’s, like Hugo’s, current best deck is also upgrade-based and possesses Initiation, meaning her strategy is just as consistent. Also, like Hugo, she doesn’t rely on any specific hand and only needs any source of healing in order to work, something that can be found on many combatant cards and even partner effects. This, combined with her synergy with Hugo, forms one of the more dominant compositions at launch as both characters quickly establish their upgrades, then for the rest of the fight can execute it unhindered regardless of the state of your resources, deck, and cards you draw.
• 
  Veronica - Card draw is key to many strategies' best performance, and Veronica has the best currently in the game, with a lot of it costing 0. This, combined with the fact that all of her own deck is essentially upgrades outside of the draw cards themselves, makes her the ultimate deck thinner, easily capable of drawing all your key combo pieces every turn after her initial set-up. This is all on top of the fact that she can deal the majority of her very solid damage all for free, while executing the above makes her a dominant choice in many team comps that need draw power.
• 
  Mika - Mika is currently the only character with a base deck capable of generating AP a role that is incredibly in demand. She is also fully capable of sustaining a team in endgame without compromising her best deck at all, putting up some of the best healing numbers of any character. As one of the only characters that dramatically expands your available resources to perform actions each turn, the question often isn’t if you’ll run her but why you can’t run her twice.
• 
  Khalipe - Khalipe is capable of shielding enough to keep you alive in endgame while also dealing enough damage to be the damage dealer of the team herself. This, on top of the fact that damage is AoE and that she has great utility and supreme team flexibility, makes her the clear best shielder at the time of release for us.

In addition, we’re also watch-listing two characters immediately, as we’re confident in their placement based on our testing up to this point, but new discoveries made recently have benefited both tremendously. These characters are

Nia

Dimensional Cube

• 

  Dimensional Cube
  - The Dimensional Cube is an accessory equipment that can be purchased consistently in every run from the shop after achieving level 30 exploration in Blue Pot, thanks to the fact that every shop in Zero System can be refreshed 5 times for free. Here is what it does: Grants the wearer +10% additive damage whenever any character discards any card anywhere, with the exception of the end-of-turn discard.
• 
  Nia - Nia is currently the number one enabler of Dimensional Cube with her Ego Skill that discards the entire deck, triggering the cube for every single card it had - 20 cards is a +200% additive multiplier to everything for the turn. Nia’s other discard cards, of course, also work. Nia’s Curiosity is a semi-search double discard, equivalent to +20% and essentially a Morale stack for free, etc. This one equipment reinstates Nia as one of the best buffers despite not having any buffing in her kit. The reason we’re not immediately raising Nia is that while the cube is strong, if there is equally powerful equipment that does what the cube does without needing her, she might lose this new niche.
• 
  Luke - Luke’s biggest problem is that while he hits incredibly frequently, he lacks a strong way to scale those hits to a point where they’re competing with characters in the tier above him. Dimensional Cube may completely change this. As an example, Rapid Fire II hits 3 times and generates 3 Handgun bullets per Crit, if all Crit, that’s 6-hits, but the multiplier is a pitiful ~30% on each shot. But if you discarded the whole deck with Nia’s Ego skill before use, each shot may now be ~230% massively elevating the power of this one card. Again, we’re still in the test phase of this new style, so that’s why Luke is just watch-listed for now.