Destiny: Rising Tierlist: Best Meta Characters

Building the perfect squad in Destiny: Rising requires understanding which Lightbearers truly dominate the battlefield. With NetEase's mobile take on the Destiny universe emphasizing hero collection and tactical team composition, choosing the right characters can make or break your PvE progression. This definitive ranking breaks down every major Lightbearer's strengths, weaknesses, and optimal usage scenarios to help you invest your resources wisely.

Destiny: Rising Tierlist: Best Meta Characters

S-Tier

Wolf

Wolf stands as arguably the most accessible S-tier character you'll encounter. This Solar Lightbearer excels at both sustained damage and area control, making him invaluable across all PvE content.

His Wolf's Butchery super transforms him into a relentless damage machine, granting maximum Lupine nature and sharing Wolf's Dash with nearby allies. What makes Wolf exceptional is his stacking damage system - landing consecutive hits on the same target builds up to a devastating 70% damage multiplier.

Destiny: Rising Tierlist: Best Meta Characters

Tan-2

For pure single-target devastation, Tan-2 reigns supreme. This Solar specialist wields sniper rifles and scout rifles with deadly precision, making him the go-to choice for high-value target elimination.

His Blessing of Dusk super creates a blessed area that not only deals massive damage but provides team-wide damage bonuses. The combination of long-range precision weapons and multiplicative damage buffs makes Tan-2 absolutely essential for challenging boss encounters.

Destiny: Rising Tierlist: Best Meta Characters

Jolder 

Jolder transforms team survivability with his Barrier of Starlight super. This 4.5-meter spherical shield absorbs up to 14,400 damage while lasting 20 seconds, effectively making your team invincible during critical moments.

What sets Jolder apart from typical tanks is his surprising damage output. He maintains excellent DPS while providing unmatched protection, making him invaluable for both offensive pushes and defensive holds.

Destiny: Rising Tierlist: Best Meta Characters

Maru

Maru stands as one of the most formidable S-tier characters in Destiny: Rising, celebrated for her exceptional blend of artillery offense and defensive resilience. As a 5-Star Void character, she wields the unique Relic Tohora, a Collapsing Cannon, which she utilizes to deliver explosive volleys that scale in both damage and protective capabilities. This dual functionality allows her to not only inflict significant damage but also provide substantial shielding for herself and her allies.

Her standout ability, Abyss Engulf, enables her to become nearly unkillable by generating overshields, making her an invaluable asset in high-stakes PvE encounters. While her raw damage output may be slightly less than some other S-tier characters, her sustained DPS combined with her defensive options ensures she remains a top-tier choice for endgame content. Maru's versatility and reliability make her a cornerstone in many team compositions, particularly in scenarios demanding both offensive firepower and robust defense.

Destiny: Rising Tierlist: Best Meta Characters

A-Tier

Gwynn

Gwynn brings devastating close-range combat with her Soul Harvest super. Upon activation, she gains 6 void spirit immediately and enters a berserker state with 20% movement speed and high damage resistance.

Her Verdict relic deals void damage in a 4-meter radius with each slash, making her exceptional for crowd control situations. While she lacks self-healing unlike most characters, her raw damage output and mobility compensate significantly.

Destiny: Rising Tierlist: Best Meta Characters

Estela

Estela is a formidable character who excels in battlefield control, commanding illusory allies while wielding a combination of Pulse Rifles and LMGs. Her Corruption resource system enables her to escalate damage over time, creating devastating effects on groups of enemies. The more she generates Corruption, the stronger her abilities become, allowing her to take down multiple enemies with ease.

Estela's unique mechanics set her apart, starting with her Misfortune debuff, which spreads between enemies, weakening them as it passes from one target to another. She also employs a three-tier illusion summoning system, allowing her to create powerful allies that can confuse and overwhelm foes. Additionally, Estela benefits from a self-sustaining ability loop, as the Corruption she generates fuels her powers, allowing her to continuously apply pressure on the battlefield without needing constant external support.

Destiny: Rising Tierlist: Best Meta Characters

Xuan Wei

Xuan Wei transforms into a domineering divine beast with Juggernaut's Dominance, using powerful claws to strike and knockback enemies. While visually impressive, his damage scaling doesn't match top-tier alternatives.

Destiny: Rising Tierlist: Best Meta Characters

B-Tier

Ning Fei 

Despite his legendary status, Ning Fei currently falls short of expectations. His Arts of Staff super provides chain lightning and clone damage bonuses, but the actual damage output fails to compete with other options.

Destiny: Rising Tierlist: Best Meta Characters

C-Tier

Finnala

Finnala combines tanking capabilities with impressive damage through her Reaper's Descent super. This spinning attack inflicts Scorched status while generating 100% more enmity, ensuring enemies focus on her instead of fragile teammates.

Destiny: Rising Tierlist: Best Meta Characters

Attal

Attal fills the crucial support role with her Song of Faith super, launching bird-shaped Arc projectiles that deal AoE elemental damage. Her medium-range positioning allows her to heal allies while maintaining offensive pressure.

Destiny: Rising Tierlist: Best Meta Characters

Ikora

Ikora, while holding high potential, doesn’t quite live up to the expectations of an S-tier character. Her combination of Grenade Launcher and Rocket Launcher feels sluggish, leaving her less responsive in fast-paced battles where timing is critical. Though her theoretical damage numbers are impressive, her DPS often disappoints in actual combat, failing to deliver the consistent output needed for prolonged fights.

What holds her back further is her reliance on specific team compositions to truly shine. Without the right teammates, Ikora’s impact is significantly diminished, reducing her versatility in more diverse encounters.

Destiny: Rising Tierlist: Best Meta Characters

Kabr

Kabr struggles to establish himself as a top-tier character due to several key design flaws. His defensive shields simply don’t offer enough protection in intense combat scenarios, leaving him exposed when his team needs him most. His Blinding Shield is also hindered by a narrow radius, which makes it unreliable for disrupting multiple enemies at once.

On the offensive front, Kabr falls short, offering minimal damage output compared to other characters. His overall contribution to a fireteam is limited, making him less of a powerhouse and more of a support that struggles to keep up in high-stakes situations.

Destiny: Rising Tierlist: Best Meta Characters

Remember that tier lists evolve with balance updates and new content releases. Focus on mastering a core team of proven performers while staying flexible for meta shifts. The investment in S-tier characters like Wolf and Tan-2 will serve you well regardless of future changes, making them safe choices for long-term progression in Destiny Rising's challenging PvE landscape.