If you opened this Anime Adventures tier list because you just hit Update 20 Shibuya and you’re staring at an inventory of half-evolved Mythics wondering which one to actually max, I get it. The meta in May 2026 looks a lot like the Update 19.5 Assassin Park lineup, but the new Dungeon mode and Worthiness cap bump to 400% changed how I’d build a roster from scratch.
Here’s what’s inside:
- The full Meta to D tier ranking for May 2026
- Why Griffin (Darkness) is in a tier of its own
- Support stacks that take a 19,000 DPS unit to over a million
- Traits and relics that decide if a unit is meta or mid
- New player pull priority and what to skip
I learned the hard way that maxing five units to upgrade 4 is way worse than maxing one to upgrade 8. Don’t spread upgrades thin in Infinite Mode. That mistake is the framing for everything below.
Table of Contents
How I’m Ranking Every Unit in Anime Adventures
This list weighs three things: peak DPS ceiling with full supports and relics, role coverage across damage types and placement (ground, hill, hybrid), and how viable the unit is across Story, Infinite, Raids, Portals, and the new Dungeon mode.
I’m not separating physical and magic into different tiers because most teams need both anyway. I’m also disregarding trait viability for the main ranking since traits are RNG-gated. A unit that needs a Unique trait to be S tier is still S tier here, but I’ll call it out.
The Update 19.5 ranking still holds for most units. Update 20 mostly added new units and game modes, with a handful of balance tweaks (Levy Ackman crit buffs, Pito damage buff, Ashborn return). The big shift this patch is the Worthiness cap moving from 200% to 400%, which changes how much yen sacrifice scales matter.
The Full Anime Adventures Tier List for May 2026
Here’s the breakdown. Tier definitions: Meta sits above S as game-defining picks. S is best in role. A is solid investment. B is niche or older. C/D is don’t bother.
| Unit | Tier | Type / Role | Why It’s Here |
|---|---|---|---|
| Griffin (Darkness) | Meta | Hybrid / DPS | Sacrifice mechanic = infinite damage scaling |
| Berserker (Evo) | Meta | Ground / Bleed AoE | Best AoE wave clear in the game |
| Vegeto (Fused) | Meta | Hybrid / Physical DPS | Highest physical DPS ceiling |
| Supreme Being (Sovereign) | Meta | Hybrid / Summoner | Best Infinite Mode carry |
| Shinobi (Eternal/Awakened) | Meta | Ground / Burn DPS | Top burn unit, shreds bosses |
| Legendary Assassin (Prime) | S+ | Ground / Single-Target | 2x DPS to closest, Slim Down scaling passive |
| Spider (Immolation) | S+ | Hybrid / Burn DPS | Best single-target burn, only 15 raid clears |
| Shadowgirl (Time Traveller) | S+ | Ground / Physical AoE | Best ground secret support DPS |
| Golden King (Evo) | S+ | Hybrid / Single-Target | Map-wide range with buffs |
| Daky (Obi) | S+ | Hybrid / Bleed DPS | High DPS with stacking bleed |
| InHuman | S | Hybrid / Support DPS | Disables enemy passives, full AoE |
| Dracula (Evo) | S | Ground / Summoner | One of the few solo-carry units |
| Umbra | S | Hybrid / Full AoE DPS | Top secret AoE besides Supreme Being |
| Bubblegum (Evo) | S | Hybrid / Full AoE | Pricey but huge range |
| Saber | S | Hill / Cost-Effective DPS | Extreme DPS for the price |
| Fuji | S | Hill / Air DPS | Highest GDPM with placement cap of 4 |
| Dazai (No Longer Human) | S | Ground / Debuff Support | Strips enemy buffs in range |
| Menace | S | Hybrid / Support DPS | Stun, bleed, AoE combo |
| Captain (Timeskip/God) | A | Hybrid / Range DPS | Flexible positioning |
| Gilgamesh (King of Heroes) | A | Hybrid / AoE DPS | Light damage, screen-clearing ult |
| Poseidon (Tyrant of the Seas) | A | Hybrid / Aqua DPS | Slow + damage utility |
| Lulu (Geass) | A | Ground / Crowd Control | Geass commands enemies to stop |
| Reaper | A | Ground / Physical DPS | Strong tunnel control unit |
| Reliable Student | A | Support | Slow debuff with AoE |
| Elf Mage (Aura) | A | Hill / Magic DPS | Best meta hill option |
| Killstreak | A | Hybrid / Cheap DPS | Good for early progression |
| Switchblade (Evo) | A | Hybrid / Support DPS | +25% physical damage taken on enemies |
| Harribu | A | Hill / Air-Specialist | Cost-effective for early air enemies |
| Somber | B | Ground / Bleed DPS | Outclassed by Legendary Assassin |
| Pito (Terpsichora) | B | Ground / DPS | Buffed in UPD20, still mid |
| Levy Ackman | B | Hybrid / Crit DPS | Crit changes helped, niche use |
| Ashborn | B | Ground / DPS | Returned this patch, decent |
| Sosuke (Awakened) | B | Hybrid / Magic DPS | Functional but mid |
| Naruto (Sage) | B | Hybrid / Magic DPS | Outclassed |
| Shiny Cooler | B | Hybrid / Physical DPS | Decent stats, niche |
| Rohon | C | Hybrid / RNG DPS | Wild Card ability is unreliable |
| Paradox | C | Ground / Timestop | Domain Expansion only buffs himself |
| Devil Boss | C | Support / Timestop | Time Erase ability is okay |
| All Force | C | Hybrid / DPS | Powercrept hard |
| Rukia (Evo) | D | Ground / Slash DPS | Trash SPA for the upgrade cost |
| Piccolo | D | Ground / Magic DPS | Don’t waste gems |
| Most pre-Update 15 Mythics | D | Various | Powercrept beyond use |
That’s the meat. The Meta tier is locked to five units with kits other Mythics can’t replicate. Below S+, it gets denser fast, and most A tier units clear all current Story content if you trait them well.
Why Griffin (Darkness) Sits Alone at the Top
Griffin’s base DPS is around 19,190, which is already strong. That number is barely relevant because of his Sacrifice mechanic. You feed yen worth of non-buff units into Griffin (Ascension) and he transforms into Griffin (Darkness), with damage that scales infinitely based on how much yen you sacrifice.
In a typical Infinite run, I’ll dump 100K+ yen into him and watch the DPS snowball. With Wenda + Time Piece relic, his DPS can climb past 1.5 million in a fully buffed setup. There’s no other unit in the game that scales like this.
The trade-off: Griffin needs a support stack to hit those numbers. The B-tier and A-tier support category basically exists to make Griffin stronger. If you don’t have Wenda, Leafy, or Commander on your team, Griffin’s ceiling drops hard.
Berserker shares the Meta tier for a different reason. He’s not infinite-scaling, but his bleed AoE in a packed wave means dozens of enemies tick down simultaneously. For Story Mode and early-to-mid Infinite, Berserker is arguably the better pick because wave clear matters before single-target burst does.
Vegeto (Fused Hero) is the third Meta-tier pillar. You get him by upgrading Carrot (Ultra) or Vego (Mage II) to upgrade 7 in the same game and triggering Fusion. He’s the cleanest physical DPS in the game with no setup gimmicks. Just place, level, deal damage.
Support Units That Stack Damage Through the Roof
Single DPS unit performance means nothing without the right support stack. Here’s the support tier broken out separately because supports do more heavy lifting than most newer players realize.
| Support | Tier | Buff Provided |
|---|---|---|
| Wenda (Reincarnation) | Meta | 100% global damage to all units |
| Leafy | Meta | 50% magic damage in range, stacks with Verdant Enchantment |
| Commander | Meta | 25% physical damage in range |
| Wind Dragon | S | Stacks with other physical buffs |
| Elfy (Sylph) | S | 50% magic damage, stacks to 100% |
| Kisuke | S | 20% range and 10% SPA buff in range |
| Switchblade (Evo) | S | +25% physical damage taken on enemies |
| Stringy (Awakened) | A | Solid Griffin support buffer |
| Golden Tyrant (Emperor) | A | Buff aura for Griffin stacks |
| Illusionist (Final) | A | Final-form support utility |
| Devil Boss | A | Time Erase + 50% damage during 8s window |
The core lesson: Wenda + Leafy + Griffin is the strongest single combo in Anime Adventures right now. Add Commander on top if you’re running physical DPS units alongside Griffin and you’ll cap out the buff stack.
Story Mode vs Infinite Mode: Different Picks for Different Goals
Tier rankings flatten if you don’t sort by game mode. Here’s what I actually use for each.
Story Mode and Raids
| Slot | Pick |
|---|---|
| Main DPS | Berserker or Vegeto |
| Burn anchor | Shinobi (Eternal) |
| AoE clear | Shadowgirl |
| Support | Reliable Student or Dazai |
| Single-target | Legendary Assassin (Prime) |
| Hill DPS | Elf Mage (Aura) or Saber |
Story has predictable enemy compositions, so you can lean into AoE wave clear and skip pure single-target nukes. Reliable Student’s slow is what carries you through tighter early stages.
Infinite Mode (past wave 50)
| Slot | Pick |
|---|---|
| Carry | Griffin (Darkness) |
| AoE backup | Berserker |
| Buff stack | Wenda + Leafy + Commander |
| Summoner | Supreme Being (Sovereign) |
| Boss-killer | Legendary Assassin (Prime) |
Supreme Being is what most players sleep on. His summoned entities give you extra bodies on the field that don’t take up your placement slots, and the AoE plus summons together cover gaps your other units can’t reach.
Dungeon Mode (Update 20 new content)
The new Dungeon mode rewards burst clearing because you’re managing limited dungeon keys. I run Vegeto + Berserker + a buff stack and brute force the chests. Cursed items and shrine pulls add risk for better reward, so high-burst units are way more valuable than slow scaling units here.
Infinity Castle
Elemental weakness rotations matter here. Aqua units like Poseidon shine when fire enemies dominate the rotation. Light units like Gilgamesh spike in dark-element rotations. This is the one mode where my A tier picks become S tier depending on which week it is.
Traits and Relics That Decide Meta or Mid
A correctly traited Mythic outperforms an untraited Secret. The current trait priority list:
- Unique is the best trait, period. 300%+ damage boost to one unit. Only worth it on low-placement-cap, high-DPS picks like Griffin, Vegeto, and Legendary Assassin.
- Divine is the runner-up. 20% damage, 10% SPA, 20% range.
- Golden is mandatory on any farm unit and great as a budget DPS trait (20% yen, 30% damage).
- Reaper is for boss-killers. 25% boss damage plus 10% global damage.
- Celestial gives 10% damage and range with 20% true damage on top.
- Godspeed is best on slow attackers like Saber.
- Sniper gives 25% range, perfect for small-circle units.
- Culling gives 20% damage when enemies are below 30% HP.
Reroll Mythicals with Star Remnants only when you already have a B-tier trait or worse. Mythical units cost 5 Star Remnants per reroll. Reroll Tokens cost just 1 per try, so save tokens for your meta picks.
For relics, the rule is simple:
- Lostvayne for physical DPS units
- Miracle Timepiece for magic DPS units
- Mangekyou Eye for burn units like Shinobi (doubles fire tick damage)
- Eternal Gaze is the upgrade path to Mangekyou Eye
Don’t bother farming relics for your B-tier or C-tier units. Save them for the unit you actually plan to max out.
The Units I Burned Gems on for No Reason
I dropped 200 gems on Rohon when he released because his Wild Card ability sounded broken. Random fire, slow, bleed, freeze, knockback on every hit. In practice, the random freeze breaks Timestop synergies and his AoE radius is too small to apply effects consistently. C tier with no clean fix.
I also wasted upgrade currency on Paradox after watching showcase videos. His Domain Expansion timestop only buffs the Paradox that activated the ability, not your whole team. The 60-second cooldown is too long to rely on, and he gets outclassed by every other timestop unit at upgrade 7.
Lesson: skill descriptions in the unit menu lie about how powerful the kit feels in actual gameplay. Always check community wiki tier list placement and base DPS numbers before committing upgrade resources.
New Player Pull Priority for May 2026
If you started during or after Update 20, here’s the order:
- Roll on the current Update 20 Shibuya banner if a Mythic is featured. New units have drop rate boost in their portals.
- Save for Griffin (Ascension) when his banner returns. He’s the single best long-term investment.
- Build Berserker first. He’s accessible and carries Story Mode through to Infinite Mode unlock.
- Get Vegeto through Carrot (Ultra) + Vego (Mage II). Both pieces are easier to acquire than chasing a Secret on the gacha.
- Stack supports before more DPS. Wenda, Leafy, and Commander turn a B-tier DPS into a viable carry.
- Spend Star Remnants on the Mythic you’ve fully evolved. Don’t reroll a Legendary trait if you’re going to evolve it later anyway.
The free Daily Infinite quest cap dropped from 50 to 40 waves recently, which makes daily grinding faster. Stack login rewards, daily challenges, and Lily Hunt Battle Pass progress to build gem reserves between banners.
FAQ
Should I roll on Griffin’s banner if I don’t have any support units yet?
Wait. Griffin without Wenda or a buff stack is just a high-base-DPS hybrid that can’t reach his ceiling. Pull supports first, then chase Griffin. His sacrifice mechanic only works when you have buff-tagged units to feed him.
What trait should I reroll for on Vegeto / Fused Hero?
Unique if you can afford it, otherwise Divine, then Reaper for boss content. Vegeto’s high base damage means he benefits massively from flat percentage boosts. Don’t settle for Superior I or II on a Meta unit.
Is Legendary Assassin (Prime) worth the 5,000 Takedowns evolution requirement?
Yes. The Slim Down passive scales his damage up to 200% over time, and the 2x DPS to closest enemy makes him a priority-target killer that deletes leakers. Place him near the end of your path and he picks off anything your other DPS missed.
What’s the best support unit if I can only build one?
Wenda (Reincarnation). The 100% global damage buff stacks with other supports and benefits every unit on the map. Leafy is the runner-up if you’re running primarily magic damage units.
How do I get Star Remnants without spending Robux?
Three reliable sources: defeating Star Golem in the latest Infinite Mode map, removing Shinies through Lucil, and the Travelling Merchant Shop. Daily Challenges also award them in small batches. Don’t reroll on Mythics until you’ve banked at least 25 Star Remnants.
Can I clear Infinity Castle with only A-tier units?
Yes, especially if your A-tier units cover the elemental rotation that week. Aqua units like Poseidon become essential in fire-heavy rotations, and Lulu’s Geass crowd control patches survivability gaps. The mode is more about damage type coverage than raw tier ranking.
Are Epic units viable in late-game Anime Adventures?
Mostly no. A few Epics like the strongest starters are okay for early Story Mode, but past Infinite wave 30 you’ll need Mythicals and Secrets. The exception is some Epic supports that still slot into specific budget builds.
What does Worthiness 400% cap actually change?
The Update 20 patch raised the Worthiness cap from 200% to 400%. This means stat upgrades through Worthiness now scale further, so dedicated players who max Worthiness on their meta units get a bigger DPS payoff than before. It mostly matters for endgame Infinite pushes.
Final Take
That’s my Anime Adventures tier list for May 2026. The headline takeaway: Griffin (Darkness) is the highest ceiling but useless without supports, Berserker is the safest Story carry, and trait quality matters more than the unit’s base tier. Update 20 added Shibuya and Dungeons but didn’t reshuffle the meta units, so the Update 19.5 picks are still your priority.
Build one fully-maxed team before chasing every new banner. A maxed Mythic with Divine trait beats five half-built Secrets every time. Save Star Remnants, stack supports first, and don’t reroll on a unit you’re going to evolve.