Talisman Character Tier List as of "Clockwerk" Patch

The goal of this guide is to determine what characters in this game are seen as weak or strong assuming optimal play. I'll give a comprehensive look at every character (as of the "Clockwerk Kingdom(!)" patch) and evaluate their relative position to each other. Please keep in mind that Talisman as a game is very RNG heavy and volatile, but certain characters have a tendency to place higher than other. This list is based on personal experience based on 300+ hours in the game.

What are the criteria for tiers?

When making this list, a few criterion are considered. These would be how consistent a class is, how much it wins on average, and ability to make a game-changing play. All the reasons for how each character in these will be covered in an explanation. That said:

X tier: The best of the best. These characters need exceptionally bad RNG or they will just win by existing. Borderline broken.
S tier: Very strong characters. These characters can compete with the X tier characters and should be prioritzed.
A tier: Characters that can win but have to do a bit more work when compared to the top tiers. Still very formidable characters and solid picks.
B Tier: Characters that are pretty middle-of-the-road but are by no means "bad".
C Tier: Relatively average characters. They struggle to keep up with the better characters.
D Tier: Below average characters. They need considerable RNG to win.
E Tier: Poor characters. Starting to get into pretty bad territory. These characters really struggle to win and will only do so with staggering RNG.
F Tier: Worst of the worst. Avoid playing these characters if you like to win.

The Tier List

X tier:
Warlock, Doomsayer
S tier:
Alchemist, Prophetess, Dark Cultist, Dragon Priestess, Sprite, Martyr, Sage, Bounty Hunter
A Tier:
Wizard, Leprechaun, Black Witch, Magus, Ninja, Illusionist, Apprentice Mage, Warlord, Tavern Maid, Assassin, Fire Wizard, Minotaur, Conjurer, Barbarian, Engineer, Trophy Hunter
B Tier:
Troll, Merchant, Nomad, Cat Burglar, Dervish, Genie, Jin Blooded, Dragon Hunter, Dragon Rider, Mutant, Gambler, Martial Artist, Amazon, Tinkerer, Woodsman, Specialist, Artificer
C Tier:
Shaman, Saracen, Philosopher, Swashbuckler, Rouge, Cleric, Vampire Hunter, Thief, ♥♥♥♥♥, Valkyrie, Vampiress, Spider Queen, Scout, Arcane Scion, Scavenger, Samurai, Pathfinder, Ancient Oak, Swindler
D Tier:
Spy, Highlander, Grave Robber, Courtesan, Pirate, Jester, Ogre Cheiftain, Witch Doctor, Sorceress, Gladiator, Elementalist, Celestial, Possessed, Totem Warrior, Leywalker, Spectre Collector
E Tier:
Druid, Dwarf, Elf, Ghoul, Monk, Knight, Necromancer, Shape Shifter, Goblin Shaman, Exorcist, Ascendant Divine, Black Knight, Clairvoyant
F Tier:
Warrior, Chivalric Knight, Dread Knight, Devil's minion, Minstrel, Priest, Archon

X Tier

Warlock: Whoo man where to start with this guy. His base statline is pretty alright at first glance, but in practicality all a player needs to do with this character is gain one craft and the game drastically changes. This guy flings spells like no other. He will always screw you over, he will always be ahead of you, and did i mention he starts in the middle region? It's really hard to stop a warlock from just taking over a game. His only weakness is 1 starting fate, which is a pretty small price to pay for being able to play the whole spell deck over the course of a game.



Doomsayer: A character who gets more broken with the more players in the game. In 2-3 player scenarios, he's probably low S-tier, but above 4? Good luck trying to slow this guy down. He's got a great statline, has practically infinite fate, and can spell fling like the best. He kinda does everything really well. Not as BS as the warlock but can definitely be a machine if he gets rolling. There isn't really anything bad about him either, except he can be slightly inconsistent with adventure cards.

S Tier

Alchemist: If it weren't for the X tier being absurdly strong, this guy would be in X tier. Your whole gameplan as the alchemist is to mass money by abusing the city. Buy potions/scrolls and turn your 1 gold investments into 3 gold a piece. Rinse and repeat. He can quickly buy very strong items in the city and continue to snowball his early gold advantage until your opponents are defeated by money. His only downsides would be that 2 starting strength is pretty weak and he can be sometimes slow. But he's very consistent and has a static, but very effective gameplan. When you have practically unlimited gold, who needs fate and life when you can just regain them at-will with money?



Prophetess: Another spell slinging character (there's a theme here), this one trades off raw spellcasting for some nice utility. Being able to remove an unwanted card is wonderful, and being able to see other character's spells can be pivotal in late-game scenarios. Prophetess does trade off a craft point for an extra fate point when compared to the Warlock however. She's still a very potent character and with some planning, she can destroy the competition.



Dark Cultist: Probably the most inconsistent character in S tier, the dark cultist is a very "all-or-nothing" character. With the ability to gain stats after every enemy kill, she is a very snowbally character who can have buff stats in no time. With good RNG this character is X tier, but with average or bad RNG she's high B tier. Still, the ability to quickly end games with a lot of stats is just way too strong to ignore, even tho she has 1 starting fate.



Dragon Priestess: 5 fate and being evil make a fiendish combination. You'll always have a good early-game due to this, and hopefully you find some cultist friends to start snowballing. To be honest, she's kinda weak without her followers, but with followers oh dear she's nigh unstoppable. Praying non-stop is very powerful, and being able to ignore dragon rage is a nice perk. Her base statline is a bit lackluster outside of the 5 starting fate, but who needs that when you can just print fate. A little slow to start rolling but gets to be insane with enough time.



Sprite: Another spellcasting jerk. The sprite can spellcast just as good as the warlock can, and has a nifty evade ability. 1 strength and 1 fate is a pretty noticeable negative about this character, but again it's meaningless when you can play the whole spell deck at your leisure.



Martyr: With a staggering baseline of 4 fate and 5 life, the martyr has a lot of things going for her. She's pretty flexible but one thing is certain, she will cheese a big battle in the game guaranteed. Ranging from the Eagle King, a large trophy enemy, the Dungeon boss, or even another player, nobody is safe from her, not even the ending bosses. The bonus from praying is nice, and if you get low on life, head to the chapel and reload your life clip. Using lives as a resource in battle is extremely powerful, but sometimes using too many can get you killed.



Sage: Flinging spells and seeing what's to come is the sage's game. He's pretty consistent, as well as flexible. Rolling twice to move is icing on the cake for this spellslinging character. His only con is his 2 base starting strength. 3 fate is nice for a spellslinger as well.



Bounty Hunter: The big bad Bounty Hunter. 5 starting strength lets you bully other characters early in the game, and the character pushes you in that direction by offering gold as a reward. Use this gold to help you bully more and take your opponents hard-earned trophies. The biggest boon of this character is always winning standoffs, which is insane at all stages of the game. Full plate on this guy is game-winning, as well as certain spells that force standoffs. A character for those looking to be an aggressive player.

A Tier

Wizard: Another spellflinger. Y'all know the drill by now. The wizard doesn't really have any other perks tho; he's basically an inferior warlock. Still solid.



Leprechaun: While he's not the best at something, the Leprechaun definitely does a lot of things well. He's essentially a weaker alchemist at his core, but he can teleport sometimes, which can get pretty silly after a while. Plus look at his face! Does this look like the face of mercy to you?



Black Witch: Reducing the amount of RNG is very powerful. And the Black Witch is a great pick for those seeking a solid, consistent character. She doesn't really have anything that helps her get ahead tho, but having a chance to nullify magic is pretty amazing considering the better characters are spellcasters.



Magus: If this guy couldn't cast spells, he'd be pretty awful. But he can, so that makes him A tier at worst. His follower ability is kinda meh, and having 1 fate is pretty awful, but spellcasters are strong in this game, so he lands here.



Ninja: Definitely the sleeper pick of this tier, a first look at not having followers might be an extreme turnoff. However, he far than makes up for it with secret strike, which makes your enemies hit like kittens. Added with the fact you can pick your fights by evading ANY FIGHT, you get a character which thrives on opportunity. If he could have followers he'd be borderline X tier, secret strike and evade is that strong.



Illusionist: A mix between Ninja and Black Witch and a personal favorite of mine. Her battle ability to make enemies laughably weak scales pretty nicely. She doesn't need much else to be A tier, but unfortunately that's all she has going for her is her strong combat ability. At least she has a nice aesthetic.



Apprentice Mage: Definitely the most inconsistent character in A tier, the Apprentice Mage basically has two stages of gameplay. His early game which is, "Please spell don't backfire and kill me" and late game which is, "I am your god now". He's a spellslinger with a significant downside early, but later he is insanely powerful, even able to cast spells from the discard pile (!). Big-risk, big-reward character.



Warlord: With an above-average statline and a way to get around cursed followers, the warlord does one thing but she does it very well. Get a bunch of followers and beat the crap outta people and get their followers. Eventually you'll have a whole brigand of followers to bash people's head in, but she can sometimes have trouble getting them.



Assassin: *teleports behind you* the character. Much like the ninja, he has a super strong ability, and is good at only one thing, and it's punching people. He's great at farming trophies for strength, but unfortunately he becomes slightly less good with craft-based endings. Pretty nice statline as well.



Fire Wizard: A scaling spellcasting ability? And he throws fire at people? But Library, how is he not at least S tier? Unfortunately there's one little detail what makes him A tier. Pyroblasted enemies can't be taken as trophies. This one thing holds him back. Him having 2 starting strength is a little butts, but 3 fate is pretty nice.



Minotaur: This guy is all about stampede. Adding a whopping 6 potentially to strength combat is crazy. Unfortunately this is all he's good for, as his craft and psychic combat are laughable at best. 5 life let's you tank a little bit and that's nice.



Conjurer: She's basically a weaker prophetess, but there are times where moving an adventure card to your space is a huge boon. 1 fate is pretty horrendous tho.



Barbarian: Probably the most anti-spellcaster character there is. He just really hates magic, and it turns out that's really powerful in this game. Being able to COMPLETELY NULLIFY SPELLS, and get around a horrendous base craft stat with being able to cheat losing lives in psychic combat, the barbarian is a pretty cool character if you don't mind being dumb as a brick. 5 life is very nice, but if you get a craft-based ending, good luck to you. Hit up that dungeon and pray you don't get craft fights with your effective 6 strength at game start.



Dragon Hunter: Deathblow the character. Deathblow is pretty insane and is always relevant. Rolling double dice is amazing, but that's all he's really got. Struggles in pyschic combat.



Dragon Rider: Great stats and a dragon pet? Sign me up. The problem is actually getting a dragon. With a dragon, she gets pretty strong and is essentially a Dragon Hunter, but with the perk of using double dice for craft fights. Plus, being able to go where you want is a powerful tool.



Ascendant Divine: She can't spell cycle like the rest, but her perk is that she can store more spells on hand. She's definitely a solid overall pick, but she's really reliant on her first 4 gift spells.


Trophy Hunter: A more PvE approach to the Bounty Hunter. His base stats are pretty great, 4 Strength and 2 Fate is better than it sounds. His passives really compliment each other, move manipulation is very great and getting a boost against Animals and Beasts helps. You can opt for a "no-craft" style of play by just selling all your craft trophies if you gain any. Not a lot of drawbacks to this guy, very solid and competitive character.


Engineer: Target the cog early for some fun times. You can really luck out and get a harmony invention early and just stomp. You only need 1 gold for an invention, and considering how strong inventions can be, you can become powerful really fast. The bonus you get is just icing on the cake, they are all good, especially the spellcycling bonus. Same stats as the Artificer, pretty ok but nothing to write home about. Don't be afraid to use fate to land on the cog.

B Tier

Troll: Troll strong. Troll smash punys. Troll 6 lives, very hard to kill. Troll not very smart tho, not very lucky either.



Merchant: He's basically an even weaker alchemist. You start with 5 gold but lose all the things that make alchemist good and get... kinda not much in return. 4 fate is pretty nice tho.



Nomad: Another personal favorite of mine, being able to ignore bad terrain is very valuable, especially while in the middle region. Sitting in one space is powerful (hidden valley). She's consistent, but doesn't really have a lot of "umph" factor.



Cat Burglar: Encounter manipulation order is strong, and being able to steal a valuable means you'll be in the city a lot. Cheesing a big item can bust a game open, and her statline is pretty alright too. 2 starting strength is a little bit of a bummer.



Dervish: This guy is FUN. Dance around the battefield in a whirlwind of death, or be pretty lackluster otherwise. Pretty decent statline and being able to start in the middle is pretty nice.



Genie: Flexibility is this guy's forte. Unfortunately that's also his downfall. He doesn't particularly excel in anything but trading any kind of trophy is very powerful.



Jin Blooded: This character is just a huge troll. Without spellcasters, he's pretty lackluster until he gets a spellbook and starts cycling, but with spellcasters in the game he's the biggest cockblock outside of the barbarian. Definitely an "anti-meta" character, but damn is he good at it.



Mutant: Do you like abusing good RNG to win games? If so, the mutant is for you. Just get godlike rolls and you win. It's that simple. Not getting good rolls and it's curtains for you. Expect to get dark re-rolled A LOT.



Gambler: Reduce the odds? Gambler's definitely an interesting character. He requires a bit of luck, but getting able to get a favorable event/ game screwing event (the jail event in the city comes to mind) is game-breaking. Outside of that, he's kinda lackluster. Mediocre across the board.



Martial Artist: Punch people and punch em some more. Martial Artist excels on capitalizing onother players positions. Crippling Blow is criminally underrated, and being able to somewhat manipulate your move is strong. +2 to strength without a weapon is a great way to get your pre-weapon combat on track.



Amazon: Amazon is a character that essentially has "take-backsies". Pretty strong in a game that has luck involved. Unfortunately you can only redo Strength combat, which is kinda a bummer, but if that pesky crawling hand somehow beat you, you can whoop it. Double move dice is pretty nice as well.



Tinkerer: Virtually unlimited carrying capacity, and getting free stuff from the purchase deck is pretty strong early. Tinkerer might be A tier with the new purchase deck including a greatsword; his raw combat stats are awesome. Unforunately he doesn't scale particularly well, and there are some events that can punish you for having followers.



Scout: This guy + spaces with 3 card draws are fun. Picking and choosing is very strong, and he even has a way to get on these places semi-consistently. Very good at denying important spaces as well (hidden valley comes to mind).



Woodsman: Chop chop. This guy loves to punch things with his axe. That's all he's good at too. His bonus adventures cards are pretty nice to have. Get a Battleaxe and chop some heads.



Tavern Maid: The whole ordeal with Tavern Maid is your 5 starting potions. Sometimes you'll get great RNG and be a swole barmaid with a great statline, other times you'll be left with a pretty mediocre character. Her drink tax is pretty nice, but it can sometimes buff opponents, which generally isn't great.



Specialist: Mandatory card draw is usually a boon, but there will be some cases where you won't want it (1 life mostly). Basically the craft counterpart to the Trophy Hunter, her stat permanent stat gains are offset a bit by relying on the extra card draw. One of the types are dragons, so hunting Dragons is advisable by landing on those tokens (especially green ones, those have a majority of craft fights). Good statline, but she has a bit more variance involved in her general gameplan, which leaves her here.




Artificer: If you can luck out on getting a lot of gold, hit up the city and buy those scrolls and potions. Getting around some cursed items is low-key great, but he's kinda at the mercy of the adventure deck. The highlands is a good place to farm magic objects, you can find many trinkets in there. Base stats are ok, 4 fate is handy.

C Tier

Shaman: Shaman is basically, "man I wish I was in another form" character. All the things the class gets transformation wise are wonderful, unfortunately you get locked in to a form and it's kinda not great. 5 fate is really nice tho, but you'll mostly be using these to transform.



Saracen: You start in the middle region, and live there for the whole game. That's it.



Philosopher: You get a little bit of manipulation and that's always great. Pretty meh statline.



Swashbuckler: Man, talk about a class that looks awesome on paper, but horrible in practice. In theory, you can take a lot of turns with his ability, but more often than not you'll be just like everybody else. There are times where he can pop off, but he's a very "all-or-nothing" character. Except more often that not he'll miss. He isn't lower because of bonus adventure cards, which are always good.



Rouge: Her cheeky ability when fighting multiple enemies is AMAZING in the day, but you'll rarely use it. She's got a great statline with 4 fate, and choosing enchantress stat boosts is pretty useful. She also looks nice.



Cleric: She's got a lot of good things going for her. She has effectively 6 life, and has a good craft stat, but she's kinda weak without fate. So if you get screwed over, you probably won't have fate for the whole game. Very susceptible to the city Assassin.



Vampire Hunter: She's just solid. She doesn't really do anything effectively well, but she doesn't have any glaring weaknesses. 2 fate is kind of a bummer. She punches things pretty well. +1 for a cool aesthetic as well.



Thief: This guy just exists to be a jerk. He will steal your talisman, and laugh with it all the way to the bank.



♥♥♥♥♥: She lives and dies by other spellcasters. With other spellcasters, she will take every spell in the game at some point, but otherwise she's ok? 4 fate is nice but she doesn't really do anything. Avoiding omen events is a nice perk.



Valkyrie: She's essentially a vampire hunter who can revive her followers. Pretty alright but not outstanding. 4 craft at the start is nice.



Vampiress: Vampiress is great at not dying. She will live the entire game. However, she doesn't really have any way to help her win outside of stealing followers, which relies on her opponents. If you hate getting killed however, this is a nice character to be. Good character for a newer player.



Spider Queen: She's really good at being annoying. However, being able to manipulate movement is really nice for yourself. She's C tier due to having another common element of characters here, they don't have things to help them win on their own.



Arcane Scion: An interesting character to say the least. He becomes a bit stronger with more players, but the real winner here is taking a magic object from a character. He's basically a Thief, but with a bit more magic and spell usage.



Scavenger: Scavenger isn't bad, but he isn't exactly good either. His stats are pretty nice, but his whole gimmick comes from rolling a 1. Scavenging can potentially be great, but more often than not he's just kinda whatever. Not needing a mule or a bag of holding is a nice perk.



Samurai: Samurai is pretty alright. You're pretty resilient to getting bullied early game, you start in the middle, and can kinda teleport with your ability to help people. Unfortunately, you're helping people, but it can be a small price to pay to get a bonus roll. He really shines with an Everflowing Purse. He's only here because he doesn't really have a meaningful impact on a game, but he's still really solid.



Pathfinder: Movement manipulation is great, but not so much when you gotta pay for it all the time. Pathfinder is essentially a much weaker Dark Witch, but he gets to ignore terrain some times. Rolling two dice in the crypt/mines can be nice, but you need to be winning first.



Ancient Oak: Ancient Oak trades a sub-par statline for flexible later stats with growth tokens. The problem is getting there, which is easier said than done when you lose early combats pretty hard. To top it all off, you're like the Monk and can't use weapons which is a huge negative. When you finally get growth tokens you're actually pretty strong and can compete, and you're really resilient. Get a good early game and you're set.



Swidler: 1 Strength, yikes. You're gonna want to stay in the middle region for a lot of the game, and start swindling those locals to get some income. The highlands is a decent alternative, as you can get gold from the stones there, as well as get some craft fights. The problem is that you are food for aggressive characters like bounty hunter, luckily you'll have some money to evade. 5 craft is pretty nice as well as 5 fate, don't be afraid to use it to get a big swindle.

D Tier

Spy: He's got a good statline, and that's about it. He doesn't really do anything on his own. He has to rely on others for all of his abilities except one that lets you look at the top card of a deck, which is lackluster.



Highlander: He would be so much better if Charge didn't make you lose your turn. Outside of charge, he's another lackluster character. You should spending a lot of time in the highland region tho, that's where the most hill spaces are. Expect a lot of "THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE" jokes.



Grave Robber: Quasimodo picked up a new hobby. Graveyard visits can let you pick up a BS item, even if they are far and few in between. He's wildly inconsistent, and isn't that great to begin with.



Courtesan: A poor statline but being able to snag objects and followers saves this poor character. You'll never use your other two abilities I'm convinced.



Pirate: A weaker Warlord. You don't get much else from your non-follower abilities. Mediocre at best.



Jester: He's only here for 5 fate and minimally useful abilities. Being able to dodge enemies is pretty nice sometimes.



Ogre Chieftain: The domination is mildly useful, and being able to evade monsters is better than you think, when there's 64 monsters across all decks. Unfortunately 1 fate is horrendous, and you're basically a weaker Troll.



Witch Doctor: Unfortunately he just doesn't really do anything. Evil Eye is a minor hinderance at best, except in very specific end-game circumstances (deporting people off of the crown is hilarious) But outside from that, he kinda sucks.



Sorceress: Beguile is nice when it works. Unfortunately, you're just a Courtesan reskin.



Gladiator: Another outclassed character (seeing a theme here?), he's an inferior warlord. At least he has a shiny helmet. 5 life is actually kinda nice, but 1 fate is not.



Elementalist: A truly double-edged sword. He's good to pick up for strength/craft based endings, but that 1 on the other stat is huge yikes. You'll never use his other ability.



Celestial: Another case where having fate tied to a stat is very undesired. He's actually got really buff stats outside of craft, but if he gets his fate removed, he becomes a kitten. High risk for medium reward.



Totem Warrior: He's got flexibility, put he actually has to win fights. Having an axe is pretty middling, but at least he doesn't have 2 in any stat. He's not bad but definitely not great either.



Leywalker: Another token based character, he has a few good things going for him. One of them is not 1 strength. He has ways to get around it, but you won't be getting spells a lot. He goes up a tier if a lot of spellcasters are in the game.

Spectre Collector (no image): He just doesn't really have an impact. His statline is pretty average, and you're biggest impact ability requires people to die. He's good at punching spirits I guess.

E Tier

Druid: Changing your alignment sounds great in practice, but in practicality it's sometimes useful? Outside of that he doesn't really do much. 4 fate is a nice perk however.



Dwarf: Continuing the trend of 1st edition characters being low tier, Dwarf only has one cool thing about him, and it's cheesing the ending region. Sure would be a shame if there was a different middle region... He does have 5 fate which keeps out of the bottom, but he just kinda prays he gets lucky and gets to enter the middle before anyone else.



Elf: He has 3 strength and 4 craft. That's it.



Ghoul: Raised followers is pretty neat, but having only one kinda sucks when compared to Warlord. 4 fate and being evil is pretty nice as well, but he kinda just goes around the board and has zero impact on a game.



Monk: Deceptively good at combat, he packs a 5 strength punch early in the game. Praying doesn't really do too much, but the real sucker here is not allowing to use weapons or armour. 5 fate is pretty awesome however. He needs some real good RNG to be a threat.



Knight: He's good basically a monk with less fate. Not being able to attack good characters is kinda a pain.



Necromancer: Better ghoul that starts with spells.



Shape Shifter: He can copy another good character, but losing it upon life loss is kinda awful. It's really nice when you can get it off tho, which is rarely. Trophy morphing is pretty blah. You'd want to exchange the higher ones for stats, and throwing those away is pretty counter-productive.



Goblin Shaman: He barely squeaks by because he can use spells BARELY. Other than that, he's trash. The Crags bonuses are barely useful, and goblin cards are actually kinda rare (outside the dungeon where they're not as uncommon).



Exorcist: He's not bad, but he's definitely not good. Destroying spirits is alright, but not being able to take them as trophies is a bummer. 4 fate is nice. Just nothing really outstanding about this character.




Black Knight: Finally fed up with being a terrain space, the black knight is here to tax you and just be annoying. Spiked shield deters bullies which is kinda nice. He doesn't really do much outside of this.

Clairvoyant(no image): Butts statline outside of 5 fate, which you'll be burning thru like crazy. Card manipulation is always nice, as that's really the only positive about this character.



Possessed: He's good at punching, but don't use any lives doing so, otherwise you'll become kittens. He wants to snowball, but he's horrendously weak if he doesn't. Pretty hilarious with Hades Key.

F Tier

Warrior: Now we start getting to atrocious characters, starting with this 1 fate abomination. Heaven forbid you get a craft fight or use your one fate. He would be actually ok if he started with a weapon, but unfortunately you'll wish you'd be the Dervish. Good luck actually surviving to get two weapons.



Chivalric Knight: Why would you want to help people win the game and never have a turn? You're basically at the mercy of the quest reward deck, most of which aren't particularly game-breaking. You can't even bully weaker characters either.



Dread Knight: You start with a warhorse and then lose it immediately, then struggle to get to the graveyard afterwards. The story of every dread knight game. Avoid. If the archon didn't exist, he'd be the worst character in the game.



Minstrel: Animal charming is rarely useful, and dodging dragons is alright, but then you're left with a character who does nothing. At least you have 5 fate.



Priest: What happens when you fuse the Monk and the Exorcist? A miserable character. His only positive is the 5 fate. But not using weapons is a huge negative, and your spirit abilities are rarely useful, nor would you want to use it.



Devil's Minion: He has mildly useful abilities, but most of them end up being useless. Again, no weapons or armour is a huge negative. Teleporting/healing life is actually kinda nice, and deporting spirits is rarely useful.

Archon (no image): Archon doesn't win. He just annoys spellcasters. His statline is very poor, and he just doesn't have any impact on a game. Arguably the worst character in the game.

Final Words

That about does it. This list is definitely subject to change as new characters come out/errata comes out which changes the characters around. Again keep in mind this is Talisman! RNG will somehow screw you over or somebody will have a game-changing play regardless of character. But hopefully this list shows how weak/strong characters are in comparison to each other.

If you have any further questions about the list, drop a comment and keep it clean.

Happy adventuring!

Change Log

3/31/19: Created.
4/16/19: Moved Tavern Maid to B Tier: Her potential to have a good early game is still there, but she just didn't scale as well as as some other A tier characters.
4/16/19: Moved Dragon Hunter and Dragon Rider to A tier: Smart players will hunt down dragon scales to try and get a dragon. I feel like the Rider is barely outside S tier. If the other S tier characters weren't so good she'd be up there.
5/16/19: New Patch! Will do a new write-up here soon...
2/9/20: Added Artificer, Trophy Hunter, Swindler, and Specialist. Finally.

[Guvenoren]

@Robert Montjoy
No, Talisman is not really a Roleplaying game. It's a race-adventure game with rpg elements such as stats.
But not a RPG.

Talisman is again, a race. A character's competitive value is meritable here.

[Guvenoren]

You missed to elaborate on Wizard having psychic attacks. Having psychic attacks with 5 starting craft is incredibly good early on.

[SymphonyNo28CoTkin]

Ranger?

[Mutant Ogre Magus Demigod]

Gladiator is devastating with added Followers. If he gets 3-6 Followers, that’s worse than any weapon. Can’t be D Tier. I say S Tier, because getting Followers is readily done.

[Kelibath]

Surprised that the minstrel is F tier honestly - I can see C or D, but that charm ability can kick off beautifully and even one lucky hit is enough to win most mid-game fights, seize others' items, etc?

Fantastic guide otherwise! The only note I'd make is the genders of a few female characters as "he" throughout but that's probably a matter of art interpretation

[Robert Montjoy]

I played the Board Game in 1985 for the first time. And honestly: Isn't this Game about Roleplaying? e.g. One taks a Chracter one "likes to be" and than tries to get to the CoC? Or is it not about beeing something by random and trying to make the best of the given situation?

List like above are just for competitive play... but than again... why play Talisman?

I would really much appreciate a list what would state what a charcater does well or what he does not. The Strength and the weaknesses and how to deal well with that. I would guess this would be much apreciatet ecspecially from new player, or does it not?

[Tri-Enclave President CEO]

Black Knight is B tier for me.
B for Bully.

[stripes]

read this for the sake of having fun seeing one person's take on the characters. had my disagreements but still a fun read! then i went to the comments, learned people play Talisman competitively, and my day was ruined

[Deornwulf]

Any list such as this is going to be subjective. A competent player who enjoys a particular character will find ways to win with that character. An incompetent player (or the AI) will lose with even the Alchemist.

Even though the Dread Knight is statistically the weakest character out of all other characters, a player determined to win with it will find a way.

A better way to approach this list would be to explain the strengths and weaknesses of each character and explain what a player must do or not do to win with that particular character.

The challenges have encouraged me to play characters I do not think worth my time yet I have won the game with them by paying attention to tactics...and been killed by the RNG while playing my favorite OP character.

[Threeist]

Interesting list.
-I'd consider upping Cat Burglar to A tier, as she can pretty reliably make small scores in the City, alchemize to get a flail, and then start rocking a lot of fights; I'd certainly pick her over Warlord.

-I also wonder about the Fighter being F tier and the Elf being E Tier. Two weapons has some actual potential

-Would demote Witch Doctor to E Tier; this guy is always roadkill when the AI plays him, and no players ever want to play him.

-Mutant is highly unreliable, would demote to C tier. Yeah, it can go hog wild, it can also straight suck.

Tl;Dr suggestions
Cat Burglar -> A Tier (+)
Fighter -> E Tier (+)
Witch Doctor -> E Tier (-)
Mutant -> C Tier