Apex Legends Season 20 is officially here, and with it comes various gameplay changes. This will, unsurprisingly, shift the balance of power once more for competitive play. The question now remains: are top characters like Horizon and Catalyst still considered top of the tier list?
Sit back, relax, and let’s dive into our thoughts on the best Apex Legends character picks for offensive, defensive, support, and recon players. Here are the top Apex Legends, ranked by category.
APEX LEGENDS TIER LIST, RANKED
Here’s our latest Apex Legends character tier list for Breakout, based on each character’s potential for high-level competitive play.
(Note: this list is only for the classic Battle Royale mode. The more dynamic and fast-paced gameplay of the Mixtape playlist will undoubtedly call for a different lineup.)
- S-Tier: Wattson, Catalyst, Caustic, Mad Maggie, Valkyrie, Conduit
- A-Tier: Bloodhound, Revenant, Crypto, Pathfinder, Loba, Wraith, Bangalore, Horizon, Fuse
- B-Tier: Newcastle, Gibraltar, Octane, Lifeline
- C-Tier: Rampart, Vantage, Mirage
- D-Tier: Ash, Seer, Ballistic
APEX LEGEND’S BEST CHARACTERS FOR OFFENSIVE PLAY
Mad Maggie
Mad Maggie is an aggressive legend that excels at pushing teams with a strong defensive setup. Her passive, Warlord’s Ire, gives her increased movement speed with shotguns and highlights enemies that she damages. Her offensive recon ability, combined with the speed pads dropped by her ultimate, gives Mad Maggie and her team the ability to push into teams that are playing defensively.
Her tactical, Riot Drill, is also effective against legends with shield abilities like Gibraltar or Newcastle. Teams that rely on throwing down a shield to resurrect a teammate or heal up will easily get opened up by Mad Maggie’s offensive capabilities.
Wraith
Wraith is currently one of the most well-known legends with the highest win rate, and it’s primarily because of her tactical, Into the Void. The ability to become essentially invincible for a few seconds allows you to weave in and out of fights with ease. Combined with her passive and ultimate, Wraith is perhaps the best Apex Legends character for initiating and escaping team fights.
With that said, Wraith is also one of the more challenging legends to master. Her kit and playstyle center around quick-second decisions, battlefield awareness, and being unpredictable. Outsmarting enemies with creative uses of Into the Void is the key to winning with Wraith. If the enemy team can read your movements, they can easily counter you, and it’s game over. Be especially wary of an enemy Bloodhound with his ultimate on, as he can quickly chase you if you attempt to escape.
Bangalore
Bangalore is an all-around balanced pick and touted as the best Apex Legends character for beginners (which, in our opinion, isn’t entirely the case). Her best ability is undoubtedly her passive, allowing you to engage enemies and reposition quickly in the thick of it. Smoke Launcher is also a fantastic ability and the key to mastering Bangalore. You can use it in various ways — escaping tight spots, closing in on an enemy, or providing cover as you revive a teammate.
However, her mediocre ultimate is Bangalore’s biggest problem – and the reason she doesn’t see action in higher tiers. It takes too long to impact, giving enemies time to avoid it altogether. The damage isn’t as powerful either. Because most of her ability kit is getting on engagements quickly, Bangalore is more suited to an aggressive playstyle. Thus, we believe that this legend is better suited for mid to higher-level players.
Fuse
Apex Legend’s explosive expert, Fuse, is looking to be in a good place this season. The Grenadier passive makes grenades 10x more dangerous and accurate in his hands, including the hard-to-aim Arc Stars. His tactical and ultimate are great offensive and defensive tools, suitable for bombarding chokepoints and slowing down approaching enemies.
The new legend upgrade system also brings a powerful tier 3 ability for Fuse - Knuckle Hustler. This ability activates a short speed boost on a successful hit of his tactical ability, Knuckle Cluster. Combining a short burst of ordnance spam with a Knuckle Cluster can weaken a squad while you rush in to clean up the kills.
Octane
Octane is the epitome of aggressive play, and you’ll always find a good Octane player recklessly charging ahead of his team during engagements. Both his tactical and ultimate give him incredible mobility, making him the fastest legend overall. In addition, he excels at harassing the enemy team with skirmishes and hit-and-run tactics. Plus, his passive allows him to heal up quickly and do it all over again.
The key to using Octane is to spam his Stim tactical, giving you inhuman speeds that make you almost impossible to hit (as long as you keep moving). This allows you to run circles around opposing teams and get the jump on them at the right moment. The only drawback is that this will make you extremely low on health, where the wrong move will often lead to death. But for players who want to brave the risks for fantastic rewards, Octane is a great pick.
BEST APEX LEGENDS CHARACTERS FOR DEFENSIVE PLAY
Wattson
Wattson is the best Apex character for turtling players, as her entire kit revolves around creating an impenetrable fortification. Her signature ability is the Perimeter Security tactical, which makes fences that damage and slow enemies passing. And in case anyone gets through, her Interception Pylon ultimate provides an additional layer of protection.
With that said, the biggest problem with Wattson is her lack of any real offensive capabilities. Winning with her relies on the proper placement of her tactical and ultimate, a keen sense of your environment, and plenty of patience. It also helps that her abilities have relatively short cooldowns, allowing you to spam them.
Also, remember that Wattson is a team-reliant legend. Even at full blast, her defensive abilities can’t stop an entire three-person squad head-on, so it’s best to stick with your own team to survive.
Catalyst
Catalyst is a versatile defensive legend who can either completely lock down an area, or use traps to control already occupied enemy territory. While other legends like Wattson tend to play a more defensive lockdown game with their traps, Catalyst’s kit can be used more offensively to control space.
Because of her penchant for both offense and defense, Catalyst is one of the more versatile controllers in the game. Whether you want to lock down an area for your team, or use traps to force an enemy squad into a bad position, Catalyst is a legend that excels at all types of engagements.
Caustic
Caustic is all about zone control in tight spaces. The centerpiece of his ability set is the Nox Gas, which can be deployed with either his tactical or ultimate. Enemies caught within the gas are damaged over time. But what makes the gas especially powerful is his Nox Vision passive, which allows him to see enemies within the toxic cloud.
Caustic excels at fortifying an enclosed location, punishing enemies foolish enough to charge head-on. He becomes even more dangerous as a match drags on, where the battlefield gets smaller, and fighting happens in tighter spaces. Even with this defensive nature, don’t be afraid to play Caustic offensively as well, by closing the gap between you and your opponents quickly and spamming your Nox Gas abilities.
Gibraltar
Thanks to his hidden passive, this walking fortress is the best Apex Legends character for defensive play, which grants him a 15% damage reduction. Furthermore, this tankiness synergizes well with his other passive, Gun Shield, to make him nearly impenetrable during engagements.
Gibraltar is also one of the best legends in Apex Legends with the most versatile skill set ever. On the one hand, his defense-oriented Dome of Protection tactical is a literal lifesaver, allowing you to heal and revive teammates safely in the middle of a firefight. On the other hand, the Defensive Bombardment is a ridiculously effective dispersal and damage dealer, useful for both offensive and defensive situations.
While we treat Gibraltar as a defensive player, his role is more akin to a captain, calling the shots for the team. Proper communication and coordination around the usage of his Dome of Protection and Defensive Bombardment abilities are absolutely vital to winning with this character.
Newcastle
Newcastle is a formidable combat medic in Apex Legends, known for his excellent defensive capabilities. His skillset is designed to keep his team alive in the heat of battle, making him a valuable addition to any squad. He is naturally a shoo-in for any Apex character tier list. However, mastering Newcastle's abilities can be a challenge, particularly for inexperienced players.
Newcastle's passive ability, Retrieve the Wounded, allows him to revive downed allies while protecting them with a full-body shield. However, this ability can be quite noisy, making it risky to use in certain situations. To avoid alerting enemies, it's possible to unequip any knockdown shields before reviving, minimizing the sound of the revive animation.
Newcastle's tactical ability, Mobile Shield, throws a drone that creates a mobile energy shield, providing your team with additional cover in intense gunfights. Meanwhile, his ultimate ability, Castle Wall, allows him to jump to an ally or target area and create a fortified stronghold that can be useful for creating a defensive position or rescuing teammates from danger.
While he’s a solid Legend, not many players choose to use him. This is because Newcastle is used for defending the squad, a skill that doesn’t come easy to most, and requires practice and experience to master.
To make the most of Newcastle's abilities, it's crucial to position yourself effectively and work closely with your teammates. Remember, Newcastle is not designed to get kills — rather he keeps his team alive while they do the dirty work. With practice, Newcastle can be a powerful asset to any squad, providing critical defensive support in even the toughest of battles.
BEST APEX LEGEND CHARACTERS FOR SUPPORT
Conduit
Conduit is currently the strongest support legend in the game, due to her role as a combat medic, more suited than Lifeline to enter the fray. Her tactical ability, Radiant Transfer, is the bread and butter of her kit. This ability grants Conduit and a teammate temporary shield, lasting roughly 20 seconds. She has less permanent sustain than Lifeline, due to her support ability being a temporary boon that decays over time. However, her burst shielding is a very strong buff for a teammate to receive in a fight.
Conduit’s passive and uItimate abilities also further her identity as a combat medic who likes to be in the heat of a teamfight. Her passive, Savior’s Speed, grants a speed boost when running towards allies that are out of her tactical range, allowing her to scout aggressively and then quickly regroup. Her ultimate is Energy Barricade, a line of shield-jamming machines that damage and slow enemies. Energy Barricade can be used as a defensive tool to stop pushes, but can also be thrown behind enemies to block off an escape route. Because of her ability to play as an aggressive combat medic, Conduit remains a more versatile support choice than something like a Lifeline.
Loba
Loba might not be the most obvious choice as a support legend due to her lack of a way to heal or buff her teammates. While lacking direct offensive and defensive capabilities, her ability kit can be a deal-breaker in a game where having the right gear makes a big difference. Her passive and ultimate means you and your team will never run out of guns, equipment, and ammo ever again.
One ability that makes her useful in a team fight is her tactical, Burglar’s Best Friend. The key to making this work is to treat it as a repositioning tool and not as a way to engage on another team, because you’ll be vulnerable right after teleporting to the location.
Horizon
Horizon blurs the line between offensive and support play thanks to her superior repositioning. The main driver for this is her Gravity Lift tactical, which lifts anyone and anything in the air. While in the air, Horizon can shoot at the enemy team with almost 100% accuracy, making it a surprisingly useful ability if you’re a sniper.
Her ultimate, Black Hole, is helpful for specific situations, such as pulling enemies in to disrupt healing or reloading. Pair it with tons of grenades or Fuse’s abilities, and it’s an effective way to flush opponents out of a spot.
Making Horizon work relies on spotting opportunities to use her tactical and gain the high ground on the opposing team. However, be careful when lifting off, as she can’t strafe as much as she could in previous seasons.
Lifeline
Lifeline is Apex Legend’s best character for support because she’s currently the only healer in the entire roster. That makes her a worthy addition to any team at any level of play. Her signature is, of course, her D.O.C. Heal Drone tactical that heals nearby teammates automatically. Her passive, while nerfed from her more powerful revive shield, still makes her the most effective legend at bringing back teammates from death.
Unfortunately, the one thing that’s short with Lifeline is her Care Package ultimate. While it’s helpful in certain circ*mstances and can be game-changing, it feels somewhat off from her role as a healer. Fortunately, her tactical and passive more than make up for this deficiency. Like any support character, Lifeline fits well with the team player. She needs to stick with her squad at all times, reading the situation in the middle of a fight to know which team member needs healing or reviving.
Mirage
This tricky illusionist is perfect for players who enjoy outsmarting people. Mirage excels at sowing confusion, so you can either escape or get the jump on unsuspecting foes. Mirage’s kit centers on the use of holographic decoys that move and look like the real Mirage, which an enemy can easily mistake for the real you. His passive, Now You See Me, makes you into an effective reviver, rivaling even Lifeline.
While Mirage might seem like a defensive or support character, the key to winning with him is actually to lean on the aggressive side. His holographic decoys are fantastic ways to engage the enemy, distracting them long enough for other teammates to make quick work of them. You can even play a little mind game, running in the direction of your decoys, then quickly turning around to fire.
APEX LEGEND’S BEST CHARACTERS FOR RECON AND SCOUTING
Valkyrie
Valkyrie’s main advantage is her mobility. The VTOL Jetpack passive gives her superior repositioning that rivals even that of Pathfinder’s grappling hook. The only drawback is that you can’t fire or do anything else while flying, so smart usage is essential.
Her ultimate, Skyward Dive, brings her repositioning ability to the entire team, launching and diving them anywhere across the map. Offensively, you can count on the Missile Swarm tactical to slow and stun enemies, always great in a team fight.
The second part of her passive, Jet-Fighter HUD, activates whenever she is skydiving, including during her ultimate. While Jet-Fighter HUD is active, Valkyrie will mark any visible enemy legends within 250m. This makes Valkyrie a great leader that can steer the team in the right direction.
While her jetpacks give her excellent positioning and recon potential, her vulnerability mid-flight means she can’t play the role of a solo skirmisher. Therefore, she excels as an initiator of engagements with your team in tow.
Bloodhound
Bloodhound is undoubtedly one of Apex Legend’s most consistent legends and one of the characters always present at the highest tiers of play. The reason is that he is the most effective scout in the game’s roster, thanks to his robust skill set that focuses on detecting and hunting down prey.
Start with his passive, which gives you an idea of where enemies have been. Once you suspect they’re near, use his tactical to scan the area for where they are (be careful as this gives your position away). Finally, you can activate your ultimate to hunt them down.
The great thing about Bloodhound is that he can be played both offensively and defensively, making him an excellent choice for beginners and pros alike. But at higher tiers, being aggressive is the way to go. Either way, the key with Bloodhound is always to have a plan of action and use your abilities decisively.
Pathfinder
Pathfinder’s role as a recon revolves around his grappling hook, allowing him to reach high areas quickly. It even gives you access to high places that few other legends can go. His ultimate extends that mobility to other team members by giving them access to a zipline.
As a recon role, Pathfinder thrives at pushing ahead of the team and spotting dangers and opportunities. For this reason, however, he’ll potentially be away from his team should he encounter trouble. Thus, a good Pathfinder player relies on mobility and nimbleness, using his grappling hook as his primary tool. Mastering it takes a while but it will improve your Pathfinder game dramatically if you do.
Crypto
Crypto, at first glance, should make for a powerful recon character. His signature ability is the Surveillance Drone tactical, allowing him to pilot a drone at a relatively safe distance, out of harm’s way himself. He can even detonate his drone with the Drone EMP ultimate, dealing damage to players and destroying nearby traps.
However, his most significant disadvantage is that he is entirely immobile and vulnerable while using his best abilities. Thus, careful planning is vital when using Crypto – make sure you’re in a safe spot or protected by a teammate while piloting your drone. In addition, learning to maneuver the drone is also vital to master this character.
Vantage
Vantage, the survivalist sniper, is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to long-distance characters. Her abilities specialize in mobility, allowing her to quickly gather information on enemies while also providing support from afar. Her passive, Spotter's Lens, equips her with extra UI overlays when aiming into a 2x or better scope, enabling her to read what type of body armor enemies have and how far away they are.
Vantage's tactical, Echo Relocation, positions a bat companion out into the sky, which she can then leap towards, making it extremely useful for repositioning during fights or jumping into the action when her team needs to push a skirmish quickly. And Vantage's ultimate Sniper's Mark, equips her with a sniper for longer-range fights, securing her a spot on the Apex Legend tier list for those who want to tussle with opponents on the edge of the ring.
Additionally, shooting an enemy with Sniper's Mark places a special mark on them, allowing subsequent hits from Sniper's Mark to deal double damage and reset its duration to 10 seconds. Vantage is a top-tier recon character, but players must learn to maneuver her abilities and carefully plan when using them.
Seer
Once feared as the most overpowered recon legend, Seer has fallen fairly far from where he once dominated the meta. The new legend upgrade system has not done much to counteract his nerfs, so Seer unfortunately sits towards the bottom of the tier list. However, skilled Seer players can still get a lot done through his ability to collect recon and make informed decisions.
Both his tactical and ultimate use micro-drones that help reveal enemies. How you launch them is unique and is part of Seer’s challenge. His tactical, for example, reveals enemies in a horizontal direction and also disrupts any abilities. His ultimate, Exhibit, uses the same revealing drones but instead covers a larger spherical area. Carefully aiming and knowing when to use these abilities is the key to mastering Seer.
Aside from his recon role, Seer excels at detecting enemies in the backlines and taking them out. However, it does require aggressive play on your part, and Seer’s lack of an escape ability means you have to be thoughtful and deliberate with this tactic.
LEVEL UP YOUR GAME WITH SCUF GAMEPADS
Knowing the top-tier characters in Apex Legends only matters if you can execute their abilities and techniques with utmost skill and precision. And a big part of this is having the right controller to help you out.
The paddles on the SCUF Envision, SCUF Reflex, & SCUF Instinct give you quick access to vital actions, like switching weapons, pinging, or crouching. This allows you to react with lightning-fast reflexes, spelling the split-second difference between victory and defeat.
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