Kingdom Rush 6: Genesis TD Hero Tier Rankings

Background: A launch roster built around 12 heroes and 18 stages

Kingdom Rush 6: Genesis TD offers 12 different Heroes at launch, and players must combine them with Towers and Spells to slay enemies. The complete Kingdom Rush 6 Heroes tier list covers 18 different Stages that players can explore while mastering the different Heroes.

Development Process: Testing all 18 stages at two difficulties

The ranking is based on completing all 18 Stages at two difficulties. The reviewer’s observation is that any Hero can work as long as the Spell and Tower combos are correct. Even so, some Heroes are stronger than others.

S-tier Heroes are the easiest ones to use and they have overpowered skills. A-tier Heroes can elevate to S-tier under perfect use-case scenarios/Tower combos. B-tier Heroes will require you to show patience and master them.

S-tier: Ignus, Drakkan, and Zefira define the launch ceiling

Ignus is the reviewer’s favorite hero, and the reviewer would place Ignus in a separate tier of his own. Ignus makes it easy to bypass armor, and this applies to all its key abilities. The combination of Heat Wave and Fireball is great to target single enemies and crowds simultaneously. If enemies get too close, Melting Core takes care of them. Reverse Entropy adds a bonus: it restores Ignus’ health whenever he uses a skill.

Drakkan is the strongest option for shutting down enemies. Double Dragon can add an ally to aid in battle, while Nullifying Pulse silences all enemies within the area for 8 seconds. The ideal sequence is to trigger Nullifying Pulse and then follow up with Arcane Storm to amplify damage. Drakkan’s attack speed is on the slower side, but the rest of his kit makes him too strong to ignore.

Zefira lands in S-tier partly because magic-heavy loadouts favor her. She is probably one of the best support characters in the entire game. Zefira can lower nearby enemy resistance by 30%. With dazzling hammer and astral blink, she can stun groups of enemies and amplify her own damage, respectively. She can also block a fair amount of damage, making her integral in several situations.

A-tier: Ashbite, Oni, Gemina, Malik, Illiana, and Gerald Lightseeker can reach the top with the right setup

Ashbite is one of the most beginner-friendly Heroes to master. He has a massive health pool and great damage potential. Searing Sneeze allows players to stun and damage enemies at the same time. Blazing Breath and Wildfire Barrage are suitable for clearing crowds, while Landing Feeding Time is a hard task. Landing it can do more damage and get heals after killing enemies.

Oni has one of the reviewer’s favorite abilities in the entire game: Death Strike. With true damage, it can shred through the biggest of enemies. Lethal Combo adds a solid follow-up attack after any skill, allowing players to change combos for a longer period of time. Hellish Blink helps narrow down the gap with an enemy.

Gemina is a support hero with several tools. Players can create a blocker with Forward Illusion and follow it up with Guardian Decoy for more protection. The more illusions Gemina has, the better her Mirror Slashes get. She is an excellent support, but her strength depends on mastering the creation of clones.

Malik is the tank option needed at higher difficulties. He has a massive pool of health that can absorb damage, then follow it up with Earthquake, which stuns an area and all enemies inside it for 2 seconds. The reviewer’s favorite pick is Obliterate, which can remove a target from the map after a brief charging period. This is useful against tricky crowds when a specific enemy must be removed to nullify the rest.

Illiana is one of the best range attackers in the game, with hardly any options better. Her true damage ability and chance to shred enemy armor allow her to deal damage to single enemies and armored groups. Against a boss, players can combine attacks with Glitterbomb, which lands and stuns for 2 seconds. Airborne Bliss doubles basic attack damage whenever she is flying. However, Illiana does not have the highest amount of armor and health, so players must dodge at least a few incoming attacks.

Gerald Lightseeker is a no-nonsense unit that increases the survivability of the whole squad. Shield of Retribution adds armor and reflects incoming melee damage. Hardened Steel blocks melee attacks, and Battle Vigor helps regenerate lost health while Lightseeker is blocking an enemy attack. Fated Survival can be used to evade in rough situations. Lightseeker does not have the best attacks or reach, but immense survivability is a definite bonus.

B-tier: Connor and Bolin need patience; Rhodes remains unassessed

Connor’s kit mainly revolves around arterial slash, which damages all enemies near him. He has extremely moderate defenses, and his attacks largely depend on whether enemies are near him or not. These limitations make it hard for Connor to outrank the names on S and A-tiers.

Bolin has tools such as Smoke Mortar to slow a group of enemies and then follow up with Sharpened Rounds. Giant Slayer can amplify damage based on the enemy’s health. Unfortunately, Bolin is extremely slow, and most of his moves work well at higher levels.

Rhodes is the only Hero left unassessed in the tier list.

Latest Progress: November and December additions may reshape the ranking

Two new Heroes are coming in November and December, and they can easily shake up this tier list. The tier list originally appeared on Destructoid.

At present, the ranking represents a launch-window meta: 12 Heroes, 18 Stages, three tiers, and a complete pass through all 18 Stages at two difficulties. The system is clear enough for players to choose between overpowered launch heroes, setup-dependent heroes, and patience-required heroes, but it remains provisional because Rhodes has not been assessed and two new Heroes are coming in November and December.