Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad has certainly started out strong and it’s not entirely because of the popularity of the franchises involved nor the massive roster that mixes 77 unique characters from the Tom Clancy-inspired games. Beyond some fan favorites being among the huge roster, the strategic aspect of the game from building your very own elite squad right down to choosing and timing commands in an encounter plays a vital role in making it a an exciting, challenging, and immersive experience altogether.
In essence, there is always a natural intent from the developers to balance each character out and make everyone play a significant role in the game. It can’t be helped, though that some heroes and villains simply outshine the others, especially in more major game modes that players regularly engage in. Like any other tier lists we presented, though, our Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad tier list is very subjective. Admittedly, we have yet to raise any character’s grade to rank 8 and unlock a leader skill, more so unlock and use units more than most people would on the same account.
If you have just started diving into the game and currently trying to grasp its basic features and content, the we suggest that you visit our beginner’s guide first to learn some simple tips and strategies to jumpstart your progress. For this guide, we will be entirely focusing on ranking down every hero and villain based on how we see their overall value at max rank.
For some, operatives that unlock at 5 stars naturally come with a higher value but we feel that it should not be the case. Note that we consider heroes and villains within the same tier as equals and are only arranged alphabetically. As much as we want to entirely consider each units value on their own, we opted to award points as well for characters that we feel can synergize better with more teams.
Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad S Grade Soldiers
These are the heroes and villains that we consider to be top-notch and should definitely be invested in if you have them in your roster. As most of these characters will be challenging to obtain, being fortunate enough to grab one of them should urge you to build a team around them, especially keeping in mind their leader skills.
Doc [Support – Dutiful – Rainbow Six – SMG]
Doc is definitely the best support character in Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad. His active skill, Stim Pistol, allows him to perform ranged healing equal to 150% of ability power to an ally with the lowest health. Since you can obtain him already at rank 4 or 4 stars, he will have his passive, Never Over, unlocked, which gives him the ability to revive any member of the squad, including himself, once per battle with 40% health. His own health will also increase by 5% at rank 6 provided that he is paired with a resourceful ally.
Caveira [Striker – Resourceful – Rainbow Six – SMG]
Caveira is a unique attacker that utilizes stealth to take down the farthest enemy, potentially the support types, making her a good unit to have on any team builds. Her active skill, Interrogation, targets the farthest enemy and causes root, barring their ability to move, then deals damage to them equal to 120% of her ability power and an extra 80% bleed damage for 5 seconds plus stun for 2 seconds. If the bleeding kills the target, all enemies will receive 15% more damage for the next 5 seconds. Caveira cannot be stopped for the duration of her skill and since she will be at rank 4 when you obtain her, Silent Step will give her stealth as she moves around the field. At rank 6, Caveira will have an extra 5% skill damage if paired with an intimidating ally and at rank 8, will unlock a leader skill that boosts skill damage of Rainbow Six allies by 15%.
El Cardenal [Support – Composed – Santa Blanca Cartel – Pistol]
A powerful support villain, El Cardenal comes with a mass heal with his Divine Protection, which restores the team’s HP by 40% ability power plus 100% resistance for 10 seconds. As he is at rank 5 when you obtain him, his passive ability, Resureccion, gives him a one-time revival with 30% health and 100% ability charge. His health grows by 5% more at rank 6 if paired with an enduring ally and at rank 8, he grants an extra 30% reload speed to composed and sniper allies.
El Sueno [Guardian – Enduring – Santa Blanca Cartel – Shotgun]
A very tough defender with high survival skills and especially tougher with Santa Blanca Cartel affiliates, El Sueno is definitely a top-tier villain. To start off, his active skill, Fearless Leader, allows him to taunt all enemies and gives himself a 40% worth of ability power as healing for each enemy taunted. He comes with a passive, True Believer, that reduces AoE damage by 90% and gives himself 0.5% health regen for every enemy targeting him. His skill damage goes up by 5% at rank 6 with a dutiful ally and at rank 8, he can grant fellow Santa Blanca Cartel units a 15% health boost.
Sam Fisher [Striker – Composed – 4th Echelon – Assault Rifle]
One of, if not, the most popular protagonists in the entire roster, Sam Fisher is definitely a soldier everyone would want in their elite squads. Mark & Execute is an excellent single target eliminator and eyes the enemy with lowest health. It will instantly kill an enemy if their health is below 25% and will deal 80% ability power if not. Mark & Execute fires 4x, which basically leaves you 4 chances of insta-killing your target. As Sam Fisher unlocks at 5 star, his rank 4 passive, Silent Killer is immediately available. With it, having his health brought down to 30% or less gives him stealth and activates Mark & Execute as well, boosted by 100% ability power. Sam Fisher’s skill damage increases by 5% at rank 6 as long as he has a resourceful teammate.
Counterintelligence is a leader skill that activates once he reaches rank 8 and gives 10% weapon damage to all LMG or AR weapon type allies.
Nomad [Enforcer – Dutiful – Ghost Recon – LMG]
The main protagonist of Ghost Recon Wildlands certainly has a spot among the top-tier operatives in Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad and it’s not because of popularity. Nomad’s Sync Shot ability selectively targets 3 enemies with the lowest health and deal 150% damage to each of them. If that is not enough, all buffs on the targets are effectively removed as well and if their health happens to be below 35% of its max capacity, they will be instantly executed. As he is a 5-star unit, his passive skill, Thermal Vision is unlocked when you obtain him. This enables Nomad to instantly target enemies on stealth mode and gives him 100% accuracy. At rank 6, Nomad’s health increases by 5% when paired with an enduring ally. He will likewise activate a superb leader skill, Squad Resilience, at rank 8, which gives a 0% health bonus to Ghost Recon faction members, pistol users, or enduring soldiers.
Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad A Grade Soldiers
While still short of making it to the S Tier, these heroes are still worth investing in. Given as well that it takes 5 units to build a full team, these are your considerations to team up with the S-listers you have already unlocked.
Arrow [Pointman – Intimidating – Hawx Squadron – Pistol]
First Lieutenant Cole “Arrow” Bowman is best suited for a full team of HAWX faction members but still excels outside of it. His active skill, Sky Bug, is an excellent support ability that raises all allies’ ability damage by 60% and their potency by 150%. Once you collect enough intel and raise him to 4 stars, his passive ability, War Games, will boost all allies’ resistance by 90% whenever a target begins to prepare an active skill. At rank 6, his health is boosted by 5% if a resourceful ally is in play. His leader ability, Wingman, unlocks at rank 8, giving all allied HAWX operatives a 15% health boost.
Ash [Striker – Intimidating – Rainbow Six – Assault Rifle]
A specialized defender-killer, Ash excels in taking down enemy units that are in cover. Her basic skill, Breaching Round, targets a random enemy in cover twice and dealing 100% ability damage. If no enemies are in cover, however, the targets are directed towards enemies with the lowest health but deals only half as much damage. As Ash unlocks at 4 stars, her passive skill, Killer Entrance, comes unlocked and it gives her 100% ability charge and twice as much ability power when deployed in combat. She also gets a 5% weapon damage boost if there is an allied resourceful unit in the team.
Winston Banks [Support – Dutiful – Last Man Battalion – SMG]
Winston Banks is one of the top support operatives around, even if he starts at rank 1. His active ability, Combat Medic, grants him a shield equal to 30% of his ability power followed by moving to and healing an ally with the lowest health percentage by 100% of his ability power over 4 seconds. He will then heal the target and all allies within medium radius by 50% of his ability power. At rank 4, he gains his passive skill, In The Zone, which removes all control effects on him and grants him a 4-second control immunity whenever he obtains a shield. Banks will also have a 5% increased skill damage at rank 6, provided that he has a resourceful ally.
Charles Bliss [Guardian – Intimidating – Last Man Battalion – LMG]
As the standing leader of the Last Man Battalion (LMB), Charles Bliss works best around members of his own faction. Despite that, his guardian skills still set him as an excellent defender. For starters, Air Support is a decent AoE damage skill worth 110% of his ability power. More so, its added effect of granting Bliss a shield worth 50% health for every enemy it damages makes Bliss a very tough cookie to crack. At rank 4, his passive skill, Over Protective, unlocks, giving him the ability to taunt all enemies targeting an ally with less than 35% health, effectively giving him a shield as well worth 40% of his ability power for each enemy taunted. His weapon damage increases by 5% at rank 6, if he is paired with a dutiful ally and, at rank 8, his leadership ability, Charismatic, boosts weapon damage of LMB allies by 15%.
Marcus Brown [Enforcer – Composed – Ghost Recon – LMG]
An enforcer with decent DoT and control skills, Marcus Brown can fit well with various teams. His active skill, Heavy Gunner, deals a cone-shaped AoE damage to enemies equal to 24% ability damage per second that lasts for 5 seconds. Enemies damaged at least 3 times by this skill will incure bleed damage as well equal to 40% ability power for 4 seconds. Once you take him to rank 4, his passive ability, Inexhaustible, gives him a revenge-type skill that triggers whenever he is damaged by an enemy’s ability power. This will reduce every enemy’s potency by 25% and diminish their weapon damage by 20%. Brown earns an additional 5% health at rank 6 when teamed up with an intimidating ally.
Alicia Diaz [Striker – Resourceful – Ghost Recon – Sniper Rifle]
Alicia Diaz is a superb single target eliminator although slightly conditional. For starters, her active ability, Headshot, can deal 115% ability power to an enemy with the lowest health. At rank 4, she gets a 100% armor penetration boost and an extra 50% ability power provided that she is not targeted by any enemy. She can further boost her weapon damage by 5% at rank 6, provided that a composed ally is in the team.
Echo [Technician – Composed – Rainbow Six – SMG]
Echo’s value comes from his ability to stun multiple targets. His active skill, Yokai Drone, targets 4 random enemy units and deals 25% ability power to each of them. More importantly, each hit stuns the enemy for 2 seconds. Echo starts at ranks 3 and once you raise him to 4 stars, his passive, Easy Target, will begin prioritizing enemies under a control effect in the random selection of his targets and lodges an additional 15% ability power damage to each of them. He can earn a 5% weapon damage boost at rank 6 provided that he is paired with an enduring ally.
Fixit [Technician – Dutiful – Ghost Recon – LMG]
Fixit is a superb specialist that can boost his own survivability and weaken all enemies as well. His main skill, Rocket Launcher, targets a single enemy but explodes on impact and damages all enemy units within a medium radius worth 100% ability damage, reducing the potency of each unit hit by 80% for 5 seconds. At rank 4, his Engineer passive can interrupt an enemy’s active skill if they are targeting him. At rank 6, Fixit can gain an extra 5% health when there is an enduring unit within the team.
Fury [Pointman – Enduring – Ghost Recon – Assault Rifle]
An excellent finisher that can reset her skills and provide support to her teammates as well, Fury can be a very dangerous foe to contend with and can work well with various teams. To start off, Shadow Stalker targets an enemy unit with the highest weapon damage and attack them 3 times, causing 75% ability damage each strike while on stealth. If she manages to eliminate the target, she will reset this ability and attack another target, keeping herself in stealth mode for 3 more seconds after the ability expires. Panther is a defensive support skill that becomes available at rank 4 and enables her to give an ally stealth for 3 seconds if their HP drops below 30%. While on stealth, it will boost accuracy by 20% and weapon damage by 40%. Her skill damage will grow by an extra 5% at rank 6 if you have a dutiful ally in the team.
Anna Grimsdottir [Support – Enduring – 4th Echelon – Pistol]
Anna Grimsdottir may not be the medic type of support unit but is definitely a huge plus to any team. Her active ability, SMI Support, cleanses all negative status effects on the team and provides a shield to everyone as well equal to 35% of her ability power. As she is unlocked at 4 stars already, she will have her passive skill, OPSAT Link, available as well. This enables her to add +150% potency and +90% ability power to herself or allies whenever they prepare an active ability and lasts for 3 seconds. Her weapon damage increases by 5% at rank 6 whenever she has a composed ally. At rank 8, her leader skill unlocks, providing a 31% shield bonus to Splinter Cell allies.
Holt [Guardian – Composed – Ghost Recon – Shotgun]
Holt is another solid defender that comes with taunt, damage reduction, and an extra life, so to speak. His active skill, Noisemaker, will taunt all enemies In a large radius, effectively forcing them to target Holt for 6 seconds with a reduced weapon damage of 25%. As he will be at 4 stars when you acquire him, Holt’s passive, Medic Drone will also be active. This continuously heals him equal to 10% of ability power and will even revive him once every battle with HP worth 50% of his ability power. Revival will destroy the drone in the process.
Ironclaw [Enforcer – Dutiful – Spetsnaz Guard Brigade – Shotgun]
Ironclaw is a unique defender that focuses on debuffing enemy units rather than supporting her own. Her active ability, Wolf, reduces all enemies’ resistance by 65% and also diminishes their armor by 40% for 10 seconds. Ironclaw starts out at 1 star but once you get her up to rank 4, her passive ability, Deep Strike, can reduce an enemy’s ability power by 80% for 5 seconds as they prepare to their active ability. This can only activate once per second, though so if two enemies start preparing their active skills at the same time, one of them will not be affected. Ironclaw receives a 5% skill damage boost at rank 6 if paired with an enduring ally.
Jessica Kandel [Support – Resourceful – The Division – SMG]
Yet another effective support unit, Jessica Kandel’s mass heal over time ability and control effects removal makes her a very useful member of any team. For starters, Support Station will target the ally with the lowest health but its effects work around a medium radius, healing everyone it reaches by 30% of her ability power per second and lasts for 7 seconds. At rank 4, her passive, Immunizer, instantly removes control effects on any ally that received a heal from any source and gives them control immunity for 3 seconds. Her skill damage increases by 5% at rank 6 provided that she is paired with a dutiful ally. At rank 8, her leader skill, Viologist, will boost healing effects by 30% on all dutiful or SMG allies.
Faye Lau [Technician – Enduring – The Division – Assault Rifle]
It may be hard to appreciate Faye Lau’s ability on her own but with a full squad of heroes from The DIvision faction at higher ranks, she can make short work of enemy teams with her AoE prowess. Fay Lau’s active skill, Sticky Bomb, will make a target run in fear and, more importantly, detonates after 2 seconds causing damage equal to 95% of ability power to enemies within a medium radius.
Her passive skill, Explosive Rounds, makes her normal shots explosive, dealing 4% ability power damage to enemies within a small radius from the target. She can gain an extra 5% kill damage if there is an enduring unit within the team and at rank 8, will unlock her leader ability, Analytic Tactic, boosting AoE damage of all The Division allies by a massive 21%.
Tom Reed [Support – Resourceful – Black Arrow – Pistol]
Tom Reed’s utility will largely depend on your squad’s roster but, just the same, can very much tilt the battle in your favor if his skill executes well. Tech Warfare selects a random ally and gives him or her an extra 70% ability charge. Once the ability activates, all allies earn a 15% damage reduction for the next 5 seconds. At rank 4, Cyber Security will shield allies with 100% ability power if they are silenced. He can earn an extra 5% health at rank 6 if paired with a dutiful ally and at rank 8, unlocks his leader skill, Ambition, which boosts each allied Black Arrow soldier’s potency by 20%.
Rook [Guardian – Intimidating – Rainbow Six – SMG]
Rook is yet another bullet sponge armed with an ability to also make his squad mates tougher. Rook starts off with his active skill, Impact Grenade, which targets the closest enemy and deals 65% ability damage. Enemies hit by the grenade will be stunned if they are focused on Rook, and will be taunted if not. At rank 4, Rook unlocks his Rhino – Armor Pack passive and provides all allies 40% damage reduction from pistols, SMGs, and SGs at the start of battle. If the ally’s health drops below 30%, they lose the Rhino buff and earns a 40% ability charge. Rook earns a 5% health boost at rank 6 if there is a resourceful ally in your team.
Scarecrow [Pointman – Intimidating – Last Man Battalion – Assault Rifle]
A strong attacker with terrifying control skills, Scarecrow is definitely a good pick for almost any team composition. Rogue Agent may not deal as much raw damage, but its impact to gain control of the enemy unit with the most HP to make him or her attack his own allies for 3.5 seconds can be very disruptive to any team roster. Scarecrow attacks the target as well for the duration of the confusion status. As he unlocks already at rank 4, his passive skill, Hacked, comes in very handy as well with its 15% chance to silence an enemy unit preparing to initiate an active skill. His weapon damage will also increase by 5% at rank 6 if you have a dutiful ally on board.
Tachanka [Enforcer – Intimidating – Rainbow Six – Shotgun]
Tachanka is an excellent defender with good control skills. To start off, Sentry does 20x piercing shots that each deal 15% ability power and reduces the targets’ ability charge by 4%. For 5 seconds, Tachanka earns an extra 40% armor and also roots everyone he hits. As he will be at rank 5 when you obtain him, his passive, Barbed Wire is active as well, able to reduce his target’s ability power by 10% every second for up to 5 times. He gains a 5% health boost at rank 6 with a composed ally and at rank 8, will enable SG or enduring associates to deal 30% more damage to controlled targets.
Valkyrie [Support – Intimidating – Rainbow Six – SMG]
An excellent support unit you can have across all squad rosters, Valkyire is all-out when it comes to boosting the efficiency of the whole squad. Her active skill, Black Eye, provides a boost to all allies, increasing their accuracy by 15% and adding 5% to their critical chance. Once you rank her up to 4 stars, Valkyirie unlocks her passive ability, Battlefield Surveillance, which is a two-pronged buff. Allies gain a 60% resistance whenever an enemy unit prepares an offensive ability and allies also gain a 30% ability power buff when an enemy unit readies a defensive ability. Through Enduring Defense, she can gain an extra 5% health at rank 6 whenever there is an enduring team member.
Walker [Striker – Composed – Wolves – Assault Rifle]
If there were other Wolves faction units you can team him up with, Walker would probably be an S grade villain. No Mercy can easily dispose of squishy enemy units as it targets the enemy with the lowest health and deals 210% ability damage. If the skill reduces the enemy’s health below 25%, then another shot will instantly execute them. If not, then they will bleed for 5 seconds worth 80% ability damage. At rank 4, Walker starts chomping down on shields as his passive ability, Skell Tech, unlocks. Whenever Walker’s target receives a shield, it will be cut in half and the target receives an extra damage worth 120% ability power. Walker gets a 5% skill damage boost at rank 8 if paired with an intimidating ally.
Ning Wang [Technician – Enduring – Last Man Battalion – Sniper Rifle]
Ning Wang’s added value comes with her unconditional leader ability, which grants all allies a 5% weapon damage boost, although you still need to bring her up to rank 8 to utilize it. Ning Wang’s primary skill, Piercing Round, is also very destructive with its initial damage equal to 100% ability power, an extra bleed damage over time worth another 100% of ability power, and a small cone AoE effect that can damage enemies behind the target for 140% of ability power. At rank 4, she can root her target if their HP goes below 20%, disabling their ability to move for 10 seconds. With an intimidating ally at rank 6, Wang will have her health increased by 5%.
Zeal [Striker – Composed – Hawx Squadron – Pistol]
Zeal is a decent AoE attacker that will uniquely benefit from taunting enemies. His active skill, Firestorm, deals damage not just to a single target, but also nearby enemies as well worth 50% ability damage 4 times. At rank 4, he unlocks his passive, Lone Mercenary, that cancels taunts directed at him and gives him a 50% ability charge instead. With numerous teams banking on defenders with taunts, you will find Zeal using his active skill and bombarding enemy teams more often. With a resourceful ally at rank 6, Zeal’s skill damage increases by 5%.
Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad B Grade Soldiers
Not that great but not that bad either, these units offer decent skills that make them as good substitutes for your team for lack of better candidates. In the event that you want to focus on building a team around a specific faction, then feel free to invest in some of these heroes and villains based on your needs.
Bard [Guardian – Resourceful – Phantoms – Pistol]
A unique guardian that deals damage reactively, Bard works best with fellow Phantom operatives although he can still make a good fit with other rosters. His active skill, ADS Shield, can taunt all enemies who are not in cover. While the shield is deployed, it continues to charge and reflects 20% of damage taken back at the enemies. After 5 seconds, the charge is directed towards all enemies and damages them for 20% ability power plus 40% of all reflected damage done while charging. At rank 4, Bard earns a shield worth 60% ability power whenever he receives a control effect. Bard can earn a 5% health boost at rank 6, provided there is a composed ally in the team. His leader ability at rank 8 gives fellow Phantom operatives a +20% magazine size.
Buck [Striker – Resourceful – Rainbow Six – Assault Rifle]
Buck focuses more on eliminating the enemy with the highest weapon damage score and his main skill, Frag Grenade, can deal damage equal to 70% of his ability power in a small radius. He also has a damaging passive at rank 4 that allows him to fire 2 shots during reload, damaging enemies in a cone area for 20% ability power. His weapon damage can increase by 5% at rank 6 if there is an intimidating ally in the squad.
Coda [Enforcer – Enduring – Phantoms – Shotgun]
Coda has decent overall skills and a less conditional leader ability making her a good fit for a variety of squads. To start off, Relentless Assault deals damage equal to 70% ability power to 3 random targets with a small AoE radius potentially damaging enemies beyond the target. As an added effect, damaged enemies will have a resistance reduction of 70% for the next 7 seconds. As she starts off at rank 4, Coda will have her passive, Intimidating Presence, will give her target a 60% weapon damage reduction if the target is also targeting her. She can earn an extra 5% weapon damage at rank 6 if paired with a resourceful ally. At rank 8, her leader skill, Protector, activates, giving Phantom faction members, and LMG or Sniper users an extra 15% resistance.
Victor Coste [Enforcer – Dutiful – 4th Echelon – Shotgun]
An enforcer with decent mitigation skills, Victor Coste targets an enemy with the highest ability damage with his active skill, Chaff Grenade. It can deal AoE damage equal to 80% ability power on a large radius, remove all buffs from the targets, and also reduce their ability damage by 45% for 8 seconds. With Wardog active at rank 4, weapon critical damage he receives will be reduced by 55%. Coste’s health gains an extra 5% boost at rank 6 with an intimidating ally paired.
Deuce [Technician – Intimidating – Phantoms – SMG]
A potent unit to incapacitate enemy ranks, Deuce has an active ability that can deal a huge AoE damage worth 60% of his ability power. Beyond the raw damage, it forces enemies hit to reload and if they are already reloading when struck, they will receive an extra 120% of ability power as damage. Buying Time, which unlocks at rank 4, can blind enemies targeting Deuce for 3.5 seconds whenever he reloads. Deuce earns 5% weapon damage at rank 6 if paired with a resourceful ally.
Dokkaebi [Pointman – Composed – Rainbow Six – Sniper Rifle]
Dokkaebi is packed with a focus fire-type of skill as well as a buff mimicry, making her a unique soldier to have on your team. Logic Bomb makes the enemy with the highest ability damage blind for 3 seconds, prompting your whole team to focus fire on the target with an extra 20% accuracy and 35% weapon damage. Dokkaebi starts at rank 4 so she has her passive ability, Virus, activated as well, giving her the ability to duplicate buffs received by an enemy unit which she applies to herself. With a dutiful ally and at rank 6, Dokkaebi earns a 5% skill damage boost.
James Dorsman [Enforcer – Resourceful – Last Man Battalion – LMG]
James Dorsman is a decent defender that focuses on debuffing enemy units. To start off, Tear Gas does damages enemies within a large radius by 90% ability power, reducing the enemies’ accuracy by 40% for 3 seconds. At rank 4, Alpha will reduce the enemy’s armor and resistance by 70% if they impose a control effect on Dorsman. Dorsman receives a 5% skill damage boost if he is at rank 6 with an enduring ally.
Emile Dufraisne [Enforcer – Composed – John Brown’s Army – LMG]
A defender with an execution skill and increased survivability, Dufraisne works best with fellow JBA faction members at rank 8 as his leader skill, Natural Leader, will boost all JBA allies’ crit chance by 15%. His Six Shooter active skill deals damage 6 times, equal to 30% ability power each and if the target’s HP goes below 30% after the sixth shot, they will be executed instantly. At rank 4, all heals received by Dufraisne is increased by 35%. He gains 5% more health at rank 6 with an intimidating ally in the team.
Nidia Flores [Pointman – Enduring – Santa Blanca Cartel – Assault Rifle]
Nidia Flores is a unique attacker that may not deal as much damage as others but can conditionally boost her survivability. Her main skill, Head of Trafficking, gives her and an ally with the highest weapon damage, an extra 15% critical chance and 65% critical damage for 3.5 seconds. At rank 4, her passive ability, Protect the Queen, will force all enemies targeting you to retarget if more than 1 of them is focused on you. Nidia gets a 5% skill damage boost at rank 6 if teamed up with an intimidating ally.
Gremlin [Technician – Resourceful – Spetsnaz Guard Brigade – LMG]
A specialist that does more damage to enemies in cover, Gremlin comes packed with decent AoE damage plus a chance to inflict burn status. His main skill, Bunker Buster, deals AoE damage around the target within a medium radius, causing damage amounting to 100% of his ability power and if it hits enemies in cover, will deal an extra 20% more damage to them. At rank 4, he can inflict burn on enemies in cover for 20% ability power lasting 6 seconds. His skill damage will be boosted by 5% at rank 6 if paired with an intimidating ally.
Massoud Ibn-Yussif [Striker – Composed – John Brown’s Army – Assault Rifle]
With taunt immunity and a penchant for eliminating health buffs, Massoud Ibn-Yussif uses a grenade launcher for his primary skill, launching 3 times and targeting the enemy with the highest health, and damaging the target along with others caught within the radius by 40% ability power. Enemies hit will take additional 15% burn damage over 4 seconds. At rank 4, Problem at Hand gives him taunt immunity and will have him focus on the closest enemy. If his target has more max health, he will inflict them with 40% resistance reduction and each bullet they take will deal 3% more ability damage. Ibn-Yussif earns Barrage at rank 8, giving a 30% AoE damage increase to AR, resourceful, or dutiful allies.
Midas [Technician – Resourceful – Ghost Recon – SMG]
Midas is a decent AoE damage-dealer that starts off with his primary skill, Explosive Drone, that can deal 160% ability damage to enemies within a large radius. At rank 4, his passive skill, Under-barrel Grenade Launcher, can deal 50% ability damage to enemies within a medium radius before he reloads. Midas gets a 5% skill damage boost at rank 6 if you have a composed ally within the team.
Jon Ming [Technician – Dutiful – John Brown’s Army – Sniper Rifle]
Jon Ming comes packed with a decent DoT skill and ability charge reduction when unlocked. Dragon Breath burns enemies in its line of fire with damage equal to 80% ability power over 7 seconds plus fear that lasts for 4 seconds. Payback reduces an enemy’s ability charge if they hit your teammate with a control effect. Skill damage is increased by 5% at rank 6 with an enduring ally.
Montagne [Guardian – Dutiful – Rainbow Six – Pistol]
A decent starting defender, Montagne’s active skill will taunt the 2 closest enemies for 5 seconds, reducing all incoming damage by 85%. When you rank him up to 4 stars, Montagne will receive 100% armor for every 25% health he lost. Skill damage increases by 5% at rank 6 with an enduring ally and at rank 8, Montagne will grant all allies an extra 10% armor.
Alexei Noskov [Pointman – Composed – Spetsnaz Guard Brigade – Assault Rifle]
Alexei Noskov is also a unique pointman that rather plays like a support unit. Analyze Weakness will boost the armor of an ally by 90% for each enemy targeting them and lasts for 7.5 seconds. At rank 4, Noskov will fill his ability bar by 50% every time an ally’s health goes lower than 50%. Skill damage increases by 5% at rank 6 with an enduring ally around and at rank 8, will provide 20% tenacity to enduring, sniper, or pistol-wielding allies.
Juana Pedriel [Support – Composed – Kataris 26 – SMG]
Juana Pedriel is a decent healer once you rank her up to 4 stars as she will then have her passive ability, Pre-packed Supplies, to heal allies by 110% ability power over 5 seconds if their HP goes below 50%. Initially, though, she will rely exclusively on her active skill, Heroes Call, to grant 2 allies with the lowest HP 100% lifesteal for the next 8 seconds.With an intimidating ally, Pedriel gains an extra 5% skill damage at rank 6.
Ringo [Enforcer – Intimidating – Hawx Squadron – Pistol]
Focused on locking down active skills of hi targets, Ringo starts off with his active skill, Targeting Ping, to reduce the ability charge of 3 enemies with lowest HPs by 80% and reducing the resistance of all enemy units by 80%. At rank 4, Focused Anger will deplete 70% of his target’s ability charge as well. Ringo gains a 5% health boost at rank 6 with an intimidating ally in the squad.
Shawn Robertson [Enforcer – Enduring – Black Arrow – Shotgun]
With armor and heal reduction, Shawn Robertson can effectively make the entire enemy team squishier. Thriving in Chaos randomly reduces teach enemy’s armor by 100%, 80%, or 60%. At rank 4, the enemy with the lowest HP will lose 80% of the healing it receives for 5 seconds. Robertson earns his leader skill at rank 8, giving a 10% armor boost to SG, SMG, or composed allies.
Sonnet [Technician – Composed – Hawx Squadron – Sniper Rifle]
Sonnet may exhibit a mediocre active skill, but her passive at rank 4 ups her value. Pandora UCAV deals 10% ability damage to a single target 10 times and does a medium radius AoE damage for 50% ability power afterwards. Double agent can be very disorienting for the enemy team, as every enemy who targets Sonnet will be confused for a second.
Enrica Villablanca [Support – Intimidating – John Brown’s Army – Pistol]
Enrica Villablanca is a decent support unit to have in the absence of better medics. To start off, Tech Medic moves her to an ally with the lowest HP and heal for 85% ability power as well as herself for 60% over 3 seconds. If either have HP below 50%, they gain shields worth 55% ability power before moving. At rank 4, Weapons Expert grants allies an extra 15% weapon damage for 3 seconds after they reload.
Weaver [Striker – Intimidating – Ghost Recon – Sniper Rifle]
Weaver can be a great damage-dealer given the right conditions. Multi Shot does 150% ability damage to his target as well as the enemy closest to the target. At rank 4, his passive, Long Range Specialist grants each shot he makes an extra 0.65% more ability damage per meter traveled by the bullet.
Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad C Grade Soldiers
While we can actually still trim this list down and split it further, we can consider these units to be circumstantial picks that you may revisit if ever you are missing an extra unit for specific themes or builds. They will still have use for the Daily Ops and other content but if you have units in the upper tiers, then you should be very selective when upgrading these units.
Karen Bowman [Support – Enduring – Ghost Recon – Pistol]
Isaac Briggs [Technician – Intimidating – 4th Echelon – Sniper Rifle]
Bronson [Guardian – Dutiful – The Division – Pistol]
David Crenshaw [Guardian – Enduring – Hawx Squadron – SMG]
Pablo Cuellar [Enforcer – Enduring – Kataris 26 – LMG]
Ricardo Diaz [Guardian – Dutiful – Kataris 26 – Pistol]
El Muro [Enforcer – Intimidating – Santa Blanca Cartel – LMG]
El Wey [Striker – Dutiful – Santa Blanca Cartel – Shotgun]
G1U [Pointman – Resourceful – Phantoms – Assault Rifle]
Alejandro Garcia Gomez [Technician – Enduring – Black Arrow – SMG]
Gridlock [Guardian – Composed – Rainbow Six – LMG]
Sergei Izotov [Support – Intimidating – Spetsnaz Guard Brigade – Pistol]
Pac Katari [Technician – Resourceful – Kataris 26 – Sniper Rifle]
Kestrel [Pointman – Resourceful – 4th Echelon – Shotgun]
Richard Kingsley [Pointman – Dutiful – Black Arrow – Assault Rifle]
John Kozak [Guardian – Intimidating – Ghost Recon – Shotgun]
Jimena Martins [Pointman – Dutiful – Kataris 26 – Assault Rifle]
Megan [Striker – Composed – The Division – Assault Rifle]
Scott Mitchell [Pointman – Composed – Ghost Recon – SMG]
Carson Moss [Guardian – Resourceful – John Brown’s Army – Shotgun]
Alex Nolan [Support – Enduring – Ghost Recon – SMG]
Elmaktoub Nomad [Technician – Dutiful – Rainbow Six – Pistol]
Jeremy Prentiss [Striker – Dutiful – Black Arrow – SMG]
Redfang [Striker – Enduring – Spetsnaz Guard Brigade – Sniper Rifle]
Ryan [Pointman – Intimidating – The Division – Assault Rifle]
Twitch [Technician – Enduring – Rainbow Six – Assault Rifle]
Vasily [Striker – Intimidating – Ghost Recon – Sniper Rifle]
Virgil [Striker – Enduring – Phantoms – Sniper Rifle]
It is largely possible that you will discover various uses for some of the heroes and villains that we value less than the others and as far as tier lists go, keep in mind that future updates may cause each hero’s value to change. Some low tier heroes may grow stronger in time while others may have higher synchronicity when new characters are added to the game.
This is where we will end our Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad tier list and we hope that you enjoyed reading through all of it. It’s a given that your opinion with regard to which heroes and villains deserve to be in the top tier and which ones deserve to be at the bottom will vary with our opinion. We respect that and would especially be interested in hearing your views about it so do not hesitate to let us know about it through the comment section below!