Lilith Games’ AFK Arena has been around for a while and yet it continues to reel in more fans in addition to the millions of players already hooked into it since its launch. While reasons abound as to why AFK Arena is such a huge hit among mobile gamers, the host of unique heroes you collect and upgrade in the game which brings about tons of possibilities as to roster inclusions and team compositions make for an engaging and addictive gameplay. The gacha method of acquiring heroes may make it hard for anyone to acquire the heroes they want and that is a given; with some patience and dedication, though, you will eventually be able to acquire all the heroes you need.
Beyond actually acquiring each and every hero available in AFK Arena, the various resources you need to enhance your top heroes will need to be constantly collected. More so, having a good idea of which heroes to spend your time and resources on becomes a must as early as possible as switching between heroes at some points in the game will either cost more resources or gems in the case of resetting previous favorites.
If you have just started playing AFK Arena and want to better understand the basic game mechanics and considerations to start the game right, be sure to read our AFK Arena beginner’s guide. For additional strategies when you encounter challenging battles as well some tips on resource management, we have an advanced guide to cover that. We also have a complete guide on how you can ace and advance through battle stages as efficiently and fast as possible. Lastly, for our top picks for the best heroes in the game, check our best heroes guide.
Moving forward, we will be talking about the best teams in the game. Although most of the best heroes many consider may vary from one list to the next, you need to know and understand that team chemistry considers other factors that may not apply to considering heroes each on their own. Likewise, different game modes in AFK Arena may require different requirements and rosters.
One sure thing is that different tiers in the game can impact each hero’s efficiency in battle which naturally leads to shifting choices in considering the best heroes for your team as you move on from one tier to the next. For purposes of clarity, let’s consider levels 1 to 60 as Tier 1, levels 61 to 160 as tier 2, and above level 160 as tier 3. Progressively, that’s early, mid, and late to end game battles to consider as far as team proficiency and chemistry is concerned.
1. AFK Arena Best Tier 1 Team (Levels 1 To 60)
Levels 1 through 60 can honestly be beaten by any set of heroes but as a general rule, though, sticking to a the tried and tested formula of having tanks or stern enough heroes up front and any mixture of damage dealers and support characters at the back row must be observed. For purposes of having a good idea of which heroes you should invest on early in the game, as well as which ones ought to be kept in second priority as they will have to be shifted later on, we have to establish a good team to work with knowing that you can keep an eye on which ones will remain to be part of our top team considering higher tiers and all game modes in general.
Our first pick for the frontline tank and healer role is Lucius. At base level, Heaven’s Protection is an excellent team shielding ability that reduces 500% damage for 8 seconds. After reaching level 11, which is just a few minutes away, Divine Strike is a useful crowd control AoE skill that can knock down opponents while also dealing damage. Divine Blessing unlocks at level 41, and with this skill, Lucius can heal his ally with the lowest health for 200% of his own attack rating and raises their defense rating for 5 seconds as well. As a tank and healer, you shouldn’t expect much from Lucius on the damage department. Chances are, though, that he will always be the last hero standing in the toughest of battles.
For our second frontline hero, we choose Ezizh as the other tank who serves as a support character as well. Ezizh’s first skill Fissure, will work great later on in the game but for starters, it won’t be that significant. Feeble Mind works okay right off the bat especially if used against enemies that can cause damage to your team. Horrify boosts Ezizh’ s value for tier 1 as it locks out the enemy team’s ultimate skills for 2 seconds. 2 seconds may not seem much but it can really turn the tide of battle in your favor at certain points in the initial stages of the game.
Next up on our roster is our favorite support character, Nemora. Her bas skill, Wild Wonder is great to have on any team as it heals 30% of every team member’s health. Beguile’s charm effect is also good to have, definitely not for the damage, but to essentially have more control on the battle as it turns one enemy on another even just for normal attack damage. Mother Nature on Nemora alone won’t seem much, but with its utilization reaching out to Lucius’ Divine Blessing, it has an added value for the whole team.
Saveas is who we consider as the best Damage Dealer for tier 1. Saveas is actually a little behind in terms of survivability and defense but with our top 3 picks, there’s hardly any worries as far as defense is concerned. Burning Acrimony is all about boosting DPS as it greatly increases Saveas’ attack speed at the cost of 8% of his HP. It’s a really painful trade off but it shouldn’t be a cause of worry for this team. Again, Bloodied Spear also reduces Saveas’ HP by 8% to increase his damage. As a vampiric effect, Saveas’ level 41 skill, Sacrificial Sustenance, regenerates his health by 4% for 10 seconds at the cost of sacrificing 8% of it as he uses the skill.
Last, but definitely not the least on our picks, is Ira as the second damage dealer. Hail of Arrows is a great mass damage dealer for multiple enemies at this tier while Glacial Arrow, beyond the damage it deals, will also slow the enemy down for 3 seconds. Piercing Arrow which becomes’ available at level 41 causes bleed damage, as well as reduces health regeneration which is a great debuffer especially against tough tanks on the enemy side.
Keep in mind that the back row can either be 2 damage dealers and 1 support character or vice versa. Given that this is tier 1 and considers only up to level 60, Nemora as your main support with some assists from our first pick Lucius should be more than enough to keep the team’s survivability.
2. AFK Arena Best Tier 2 Team (Levels 60 To 160)
If you have made it past level 60, then chances are that you feel the challenge beginning to pour in on some game modes, perhaps not all at the same time, but at least at some points close to one another. While you may be inclined to level up your heroes almost equally from levels 1 through 60, you may opt for a different strategy beyond that as some heroes will be more worth the investment of hero experience and hero essences at this point.
Moving on with that strategy in mind, our top pick for the best tier 2 team is Brutus. Brutus is an awesome frontliner if you invest well on him as he does pretty decent damage and comes close to a tank as far as defense is concerned. Brutus’ Whirlwind skill doesn’t just deal goo damage, it is also immune to control effects. Once you pump him up to level 81, he will also be immune to magic damage while he is spinning into a frenzy. Roar is a great debuff that reduces physical defense of enemies by 25% and the effects grow stronger even as you gain more levels. Brutal Defiance further pushes Brutus into a damage dealer role as it boosts his attack value the further his HP goes down. On his own, this may not seem that good but with a good support hero behind him or two, he will be sure to take down a lot of the opposing enemies. Last Grasp, which unlocks at level 61, is more like a second life for Brutus as it leaves his HP down to 1 after receiving a killing blow and will be immune to damage for 4 seconds at level 1. Keep in mind that he can be healed within the period he is invulnerable which makes this ability an awesome game-changer.
We will keep our first tier tank, Lucius as our next pick for our tier 2 team. While other offensive heroes may fit the frontline better in some cases, the idea we have on this team is to have Brutus gain levels ahead of the pack to do more damage and take as much of it as well. In support of that concept, Lucius’ Heaven’s Blessing and Divine Protection will still come in handy. As the challenges ahead become more and more difficult, Lucius’ 4th skill, Blessed Shield will be a great booster for his personal defense.
Another retained pick from our first tier team is Nemora whose heals and overall support to the team continues to be indispensible. As her skills grow more potent within level 61 to 160, you will now also be able to use Life Force, which is an additional heal that gradually regenerates the health of your weakest hero by 30%.
While we do love Nemora and have faith in her healing capabilities, we choose to also secure the aid of Tasi as the fourth member of the team. Though she can heal well, we want Tasi more for her crowd control skills on this team. At this point, you should already love Tasi’s Slumber which can put enemies to sleep for 4 seconds. Consider the 25% of damage received to actually be dealt to the enemies as a great bonus since incapacitating them for four full seconds is already a huge deal in this game, especially with Brutus up front. Another great skill at this point is Banishment as a battle with the strongest opponent missing for 4 seconds can give you all the advantage you need to turn the tide of battle in your favor (if it still isn’t at this point).
Another pick right off the first tier team, which completes our roster for the second tier, is Saveas for that super boost on the damage-dealing aspect of the team. Brutus is strong especially if you invest most resources on him but during the mid-game, especially against a loosely similar roster on the other side of the battlefield, you would want that extra hand aimed towards eliminating your enemies before they break down your defences. Within the level bracket under tier 2, Saveas becomes even more formidable offensively and defensively yet still needs highly dependable support heroes to make sure he stays on the battle long.
3. AFK Arena Best Tier 3 Team (Levels 161 And Beyond)
Beyond level 160 comes the most challenging battles of the game where strategies, beyond combat power levels, become a lot more important. This is to be considered as the start of the late game all the way to end game which, hopefully, will put you to using the same heroes as members of your main team. At this point in time, you should probably have a lot of the best heroes in the game or if not, then the grind towards moving forward and maxing out levels out to provide you with more than enough time to gather the rest of what you need.
We will be sticking with our top pick for tier 2 as our number 1 pick for our tier 3 team as Brutus will be our main carrier for the team with his outstanding offensive and defensive capabilities. At this point, you will have tougher opponents to deal with and banking your resources on Brutus won’t make you regret it at any point beyond tier 2.
For our number 2 frontliner, we will be shifting back to Ezizh and leaving Lucius out as his crowd control skills and support skills will be more viable for our chosen team. His tank role may not seem much but with a good back row support, he will be key to winning victories.
As we prefer to play more defensively as battles grow more challenging, we will naturally retain both Nemora and Tasi as our third and fourth members. Both their healing abilities and other support skills are fundamental to keeping any party alive for as long as any team can.
For our extra damage-dealer, we choose to go with another crowd favourite, Shemira, as our back row DPS specialist. Despite Brutus’ raw strength, there will be several occasions at this point when that will not suffice on its own and while we do prioritize defense over offense, having three defensive heroes on this team ought to be enough to boost survivability at its optimum level.
Additionally, Shemira is a strong offensive character that can sustain her own thanks to Tortured Souls and Soul Siphon. Another indispensible skill of Shemira is Silence to keep enemy magic users at bay for several seconds.
Like Brutus, Shemira is the type of character you would want to invest resources on ahead of the pack which is why we hesitate to consider her for our tier 2 team. At this point however, your team can stretch their viability out until they reach max levels and focusing on Brutus over everyone else, even Shemira, won’t be as far needed as you would in the previous tier.
And so, these are our picks for what we believe are the best teams to have under each tier. We know and understand that there are as many different rosters to have as there are heroes in AFK Arena, and again, gacha may not always be equally kind to everyone as far as securing each mentioned hero is concerned.
There is also the consideration of how important equipment is and the sooner you obtain the heroes you want the sooner you can start spending on the best gears you can get for your team. If you can as well, feel free to check into what’s on sale at the Store even just intermittently between saving Diamonds for 10x summons, especially from mid-game where you would want to bank on that one hero to carry the rest of your team.
Lastly, this guide was written while playing version 1.16 of AFK Arena. At some point in the future which may follow a series of game updates, it’s very much possible that the developers would enhance some heroes and nerf others in an attempt to balance out the entire roster of characters in the game.
That ends our AFK Arena team guide. Be sure to still make your own experimentations with regard to team compositions as that make up a huge part of what makes AFK Arena fun and exciting. We hope that you enjoyed reading our guide and if not the actual teams we picked, at least understood the gist of what we are trying to accomplish. We know and understand that every player will most likely have their own favourite characters and teams, so feel free to share your own as well as give us feedback on our choices in the comment section!