If you’ve spent even a few hours running Void missions or boss raids in The First Descendant, you’ve definitely asked yourself what is the best character in the first descendant to fit how you like to play. There’s no one-size-fits-all answer, of course, but picking the right Descendant can turn a frustrating wipe on a hard mode boss into a smooth, fast clear with great loot drops. I’ve put over 120 hours into the game across solo runs, 2-player co-op, and full 4-person raid squads, so I’ve tested every playable character in nearly every possible scenario to break down the top picks for every use case.
What Is the Best Character in The First Descendant for Solo Play?
Solo players need three core things from their Descendant: reliable self-sustain, enough area-of-effect damage to clear waves of mobs fast, and enough survivability to tank unexpected boss hits without a healer on your team. After testing every character through 10+ hard mode Void Intercept runs solo, the clear top pick for most solo players is Viessa. Her ice-based abilities freeze entire groups of enemies in place, so you don’t have to dodge constant incoming fire while you focus on high-priority targets. Her passive also restores a small chunk of shield every time she defeats a frozen enemy, so you barely need to use health kits mid-run even on higher difficulties. That said, she does have a small downside: her single-target boss damage is slightly lower than other picks, so you’ll need to pair her with a good secondary weapon to melt boss health bars fast. If you prefer a more aggressive playstyle instead of CC-focused runs, Jayber is a great alternative, with his rocket jump and explosive AoE attacks that clear rooms in seconds.
Top Picks for Multiplayer Raid and Co-op Teams
Multiplayer squads work best when every player fills a distinct role, so the best character for you will depend on what your team is missing. If you’re looking to play a pure DPS role to melt boss health bars, Gley is unbeatable right now. Her passive increases her damage output the longer she stays in combat, and her ultimate ability deals massive burst damage to a single target that can shave off 30% or more of a boss’ health bar in one use, as long as you hit the weak point. For support players, Sharen is the gold standard. Her team-wide shield buff and healing aura can keep your entire squad alive through even the hardest boss AoE attacks, and she can also revive downed teammates from a distance without putting herself at risk. If your team needs a tank to draw aggro away from squishy DPS and support players, Ajax is the only pick you need. His massive base health pool and damage reduction passive let him soak up hits that would one-shot any other character, and his taunt ability ensures all enemies focus on him instead of the rest of your team.
- Always ask your squad what role they need before locking in your character to avoid overlapping picks
- Pair Gley with a support character to maximize her uptime, since she has very low base survivability
- Ajax players should always prioritize defense and health stats over damage to get the most value from their kit
You don’t have to stick strictly to these roles if you’re playing casual co-op with friends, of course. But if you’re running hard mode raids for rare loot, sticking to these meta picks will cut your clear time in half and reduce the risk of wipes significantly.
Best Character for New Players Still Learning the Game
If you’re just starting out and haven’t unlocked all characters or upgraded your gear yet, you don’t want to pick a character with a high skill ceiling that requires perfect ability timing to be useful. The best pick for new players is Bunny, without question. Her movement abilities let you zip around maps fast to collect loot and avoid incoming damage, and her AoE electric attacks are super easy to use to clear mobs even if you don’t have great aim. She’s also extremely forgiving if you make mistakes: her passive gives her a temporary speed boost whenever she takes damage, so you can run away and recover before you get downed. You also unlock her very early in the main story, so you don’t have to grind for hours to get access to her kit. A lot of new players make the mistake of picking high-damage but low-survivability characters first, and end up getting frustrated when they get downed every few minutes. Bunny lets you learn the game’s mechanics, boss patterns, and map layouts without feeling like you’re being punished for small mistakes.
Once you’ve put 20 or 30 hours into the game and feel comfortable with the core mechanics, you can start experimenting with other characters. But Bunny is by far the most accessible pick for new players, and she’s even viable in endgame content if you build her correctly.
How to Adjust Your Character Build for Maximum Effectiveness
Even if you pick the best character for your playstyle, you won’t get much value out of them if you’re using a bad build or the wrong modules. First, always match your module stats to your character’s core strengths: for example, Viessa players should prioritize ability cooldown reduction and ability strength to make her freeze effects last longer and trigger more often. Gley players should focus entirely on critical hit chance and critical damage to maximize her burst DPS output, since her kit is built around high single-target damage. Don’t waste module slots on stats that don’t benefit your character’s core role: there’s no point putting health modules on Gley, for example, because she’s meant to stay behind the tank and deal damage, not soak up hits.
You should also test different builds in low-difficulty missions before bringing them to hard mode raids, to make sure they work the way you expect them to. I’ve made the mistake of bringing an untested Gley build to a hard mode Void raid before, and I ended up dealing 50% less damage than I usually do because I picked the wrong modules for her kit. Taking 10 minutes to test in a normal mode mission first can save you and your squad a lot of frustration later.
At the end of the day, what is the best character in the first descendant will always come down to your personal playstyle and the content you want to run. The picks we’ve broken down here are a great starting point, but don’t be afraid to test other characters to see what feels most fun for you. The game is meant to be enjoyed, after all, and even a slightly less meta character will work fine if you enjoy playing them. If you’re still unsure, try running a few low-difficulty missions with each character you have unlocked, and you’ll quickly find the one that fits how you like to play.