Elden Ring Nightreign hands you a fixed character, not a build-from-scratch class — so the Nightfarer you pick is the single biggest decision of an Expedition. There are 10 Nightfarers: 8 in the base roster and 2 added by The Forsaken Hollows. Each starts every Expedition at Level 1 with no armor, can use any weapon it finds, and levels up to a hard cap of Level 15 (513,116 Runes) across a single three-day run. This guide ranks all 10 by how reliably they carry a squad — and, just as importantly, how forgiving they are when you get matched with strangers or go in solo.
⚡ TL;DR — best Nightfarers in Nightreign
- Nightreign has 10 Nightfarers total: Wylder, Guardian, Duchess, Recluse, Ironeye, Raider, Executor, Revenant (base 8) plus Scholar and Undertaker (Forsaken Hollows).
- Best all-round pick / best for beginners: Wylder. He starts unlocked, has a once-per-run cheat-death (Sixth Sense), a grappling hook for mobility, and A-grade Strength scaling — the safest character to learn the game on.
- Best support / best for random squads: Ironeye. A ranged DPS who can revive downed teammates from a distance and marks enemies for bonus team damage — the glue that wins pub Expeditions.
- Highest skill ceiling: Duchess and Executor. Duchess can re-inflict recent damage and turn her whole team invisible; Executor is a katana parry-master with DEX S and Arcane S scaling.
- Best pure caster: Recluse — the lowest HP pool (200) but the highest FP (80) and the only Nightfarer that heals allies through her spell economy.
- You do not need to buy anything to try them. Six Nightfarers are unlocked from the start; the rest unlock through play, not a store.
Nightreign is a standalone co-op roguelike — it is not a DLC for Elden Ring. It has its own systems (Nightfarers, Nightlords, Expeditions, Limveld, Relics), so forget Sites of Grace and Ashes of War here. If you're brand new, our Elden Ring beginner systems piece covers the base game; this one is Nightreign only.
How Nightfarers work (and why "best" is about role, not raw power)
Every Nightfarer is a fixed character with a unique Character Skill (a cooldown ability) and one Ultimate Art (a charged super), plus a personal set of attribute grades from S (best) down to D. You cannot respec those grades — they define what the character is good at. What does change run to run is the weapon you find, the passive Relics you slot, and your squad's composition.
Three facts shape every ranking below:
- You start at Level 1 with no gear, every run. A Nightfarer's early-game survivability matters more than its theoretical ceiling, because a squad that dies on Night One never sees Night Three.
- Solo play scales enemy health down, but you lose the revive economy of a trio — so "best solo" and "best in a squad" are different questions.
- Nightreign has been patch-quiet since March 2026 (latest version 1.03.5, released 2026-03-31). The roster and role identities below are stable, not chasing a shifting meta.
What are the best Nightfarers in Elden Ring Nightreign?
Here's the full ranking, then the reasoning for each tier. Grades listed are the character's attribute scaling (Strength / Dexterity / Intelligence / Faith / Arcane, plus survivability stats).
S-Tier — carry a squad in any comp
- Wylder — all-rounder, cheat-death, grapple mobility
- Ironeye — ranged DPS + long-range revive + enemy marking
- Recluse — caster with team-healing spell economy
A-Tier — excellent in the right hands or comp
- Duchess — tempo assassin, damage re-inflict, team invisibility
- Executor — katana parry specialist, DEX/ARC scaling
- Guardian — frontline tank with the best survivability grades
B-Tier — strong but conditional
- Raider — heavy bruiser, area control, staggering strikes
- Revenant — summoner who fights through spirit minions
- Scholar (Forsaken Hollows) — arcane-focused seeker
- Undertaker (Forsaken Hollows) — Strength/Faith hybrid
The tiers aren't a power ladder so much as a reliability ladder. An expert Duchess or Executor can out-damage anyone here; the S-tier three simply ask less of you and forgive more when a run goes sideways.
Wylder — the best beginner and best all-rounder
Wylder is the first Nightfarer most players touch, and he never stops being good. Bandai Namco's own character card calls him "a nomad swordsman in relentless pursuit of the Nightlord" — mechanically, he's the game's safety net. His survivability leads the pack (roughly 240 HP / 65 FP / 54 stamina at Level 1) with A-grade Strength and B-grade Dexterity, so almost any weapon you loot works in his hands.
What makes him S-tier is the kit, not the numbers:
- Sixth Sense (passive): he cheats death once per Expedition, auto-reviving. On a roster where a single Night One death can end a run, a free resurrection is enormous.
- Claw Shot (skill): a grappling hook that closes distance to enemies or terrain — the best raw mobility on the roster, which matters when the Night circle is collapsing.
- Onslaught Stake (Ultimate): plants an explosive stake for a burst of poise-breaking damage.
If you're learning Nightreign, or you just want a character that's never a wrong pick, Wylder is the answer.
Ironeye — the best support and the pub-squad MVP
Ironeye is a Dexterity-scaling ranged DPS, and on paper "an archer" sounds like a support-DPS also-ran. In practice he wins more Expeditions with strangers than anyone else, for one reason: he can revive a downed teammate from range. Most revives force you to run into danger and stand still; Ironeye pulls a teammate back up from safety, which is the difference between a wipe and a comeback.
His Marking mechanic tags enemies so the whole squad deals extra damage to them, turning him into a force multiplier rather than a solo carry. Kit highlights:
- Eagle Eye (skill): ranged marking that boosts team damage on the target.
- Single Shot (Ultimate): a heavy precision shot for burst on a marked enemy or Nightlord.
- Long-range revive: the standout team-utility ability on the roster.
For matchmade trios where you can't coordinate builds, Ironeye is the most valuable body you can bring.
Recluse — the best caster and the only team-healer
Recluse is "a witch of the deep forest who deftly wields ancient sorceries." She has the lowest HP pool on the roster (~200) but the highest FP (~80), with S-grade Intelligence and S-grade Faith — the purest spellcaster Nightreign offers. She's glassy, so she sits in S-tier on utility, not durability.
Her signature is a healing loop most players underrate: Soulblood Song lets allies restore HP and FP by striking enemies she's marked, so a good Recluse quietly keeps the whole squad topped up while dealing sorcery damage. She rewards positioning and punishes greed — mispositioned, she's the first to go down; played from the backline, she's a win condition. If you love the base game's mage playstyle, she's home.
Duchess and Executor — the high-ceiling picks
Duchess is "a nimble fighter who specializes in stealth and prefers daggers" — a tempo assassin with A-grade Intelligence and B-grade Dexterity (~220 HP / 75 FP). Her kit is the flashiest on the roster:
- Restage (skill): re-inflicts the damage recently dealt to a target — enormous burst if your squad has just piled on.
- Finale (Ultimate): turns Duchess and her allies invisible, a repositioning and revive tool that trivializes some Nightlord phases.
- Magnificent Poise (passive): stability that lets her stay aggressive.
She's A-tier rather than S only because that damage-doubling is conditional on the team already landing hits — great with coordination, mediocre without it.
Executor is the katana duelist: DEX S and Arcane S scaling built around parrying. He can deflect and punish in a Sekiro-adjacent rhythm, which is devastating against single big targets like Nightlords — but he asks for mechanical skill that Wylder simply doesn't. In a squad that can hold aggro for him, Executor is a top-three damage dealer.
Guardian, Raider and Revenant — the specialists
- Guardian posts the best raw survivability grades on the roster — the dedicated frontline tank. If your squad keeps getting collapsed on Night One, a Guardian holding the line buys the run.
- Raider is the heavy bruiser: A-grade HP with S-grade Strength, built around staggering strikes and area control (his Totem Stela creates a platform-and-buff zone). He hits like a truck but is slower and more telegraphed than Wylder.
- Revenant is the summoner — she fights largely through spirit minions (Necromancy / Summon Spirit, with an "Immortal March" Ultimate). She's the most unusual playstyle and shines when you can let the summons tank while you support, but she's the least beginner-friendly of the eight.
Scholar and Undertaker — the Forsaken Hollows two
The Forsaken Hollows DLC (released December 2025, $15 on Steam) adds two Nightfarers: Scholar, an arcane-focused seeker, and Undertaker, a nun built around Strength and Faith. They round the roster to 10. They're placed in B-tier here as newer, more specialized characters — but note the exact unlock method is community-reported (defeat a specific early Nightlord to gain access), not something we've seen confirmed on an official page, so treat that step as "verify in-game," not gospel.
Which Nightfarer is best for solo play?
Solo Expeditions scale enemy HP down, but you lose the trio's revive economy — so you want a self-sufficient character that doesn't rely on teammates. The best solo picks:
- Wylder — the free self-revive (Sixth Sense) matters most when nobody can pick you up. Clear #1 for solo.
- Executor — if you're mechanically strong, his parry economy carries single-target fights without any team setup.
- Ironeye — safe ranged damage and kiting, though his revive utility is wasted solo.
Skip the team-dependent characters solo: Duchess loses her damage-double synergy, Recluse loses her healing targets, and Revenant's summon-support loop is far weaker without allies to protect.
Best Nightreign party composition
If you're rolling a coordinated trio, the classic winning shape is tank + DPS + support:
- Frontline: Guardian or Wylder to hold aggro.
- Damage: Executor, Raider or Duchess for burst.
- Support/glue: Ironeye (revives + marking) or Recluse (healing + sorcery).
A Wylder + Ironeye + Recluse core is the most forgiving high-floor comp in the game — self-revive, long-range revive, and team healing all in one squad. Swap in Executor or Duchess for a higher ceiling once your group can coordinate.
Key stats at a glance
- 10 Nightfarers total: 8 base + 2 from The Forsaken Hollows.
- Level cap per run: 15, requiring 513,116 Runes — every Expedition resets you to Level 1.
- Recluse has the lowest HP (~200) and highest FP (~80) on the roster; Wylder leads survivability at ~240 HP.
- Latest Nightreign version: 1.03.5 (2026-03-31) — the roster and roles have been stable for months.
FAQ
How many Nightfarers are there in Elden Ring Nightreign? There are 10 in total: 8 in the base game (Wylder, Guardian, Duchess, Recluse, Ironeye, Raider, Executor, Revenant) and 2 added by The Forsaken Hollows DLC (Scholar and Undertaker).
Who is the best Nightfarer for beginners? Wylder. He starts unlocked, scales with Strength so most weapons work for him, and his Sixth Sense passive revives him once per Expedition — the most forgiving character to learn the game on.
What is the best Nightfarer for solo play? Wylder again, because his free self-revive matters most when no teammate can pick you up. Executor is the best solo pick for mechanically confident players thanks to his parry-based single-target damage.
Are Nightfarers the same as Elden Ring classes? No. In the base Elden Ring you build a character from a starting class. In Nightreign, Nightfarers are fixed characters, each with a unique Character Skill and Ultimate Art — you pick a character, not a class.
What level can Nightfarers reach? Level 15 is the cap within a single Expedition, which costs 513,116 Runes to reach. Every run starts you back at Level 1.
Do I have to pay to unlock all Nightfarers? No. Six Nightfarers are available from the start and more unlock through normal play. Only Scholar and Undertaker require The Forsaken Hollows DLC, which is a paid add-on.
The bottom line
If you want one answer: pick Wylder until you know the game, then branch toward Ironeye for squads or Executor for a higher ceiling. Nightreign's roster is built so that every Nightfarer has a role — the "best" one is the one that covers the gap in your squad. Bring a self-reviver, a ranged reviver and a healer, and even a rough run tends to survive to Night Three.
For more on the wider FromSoftware universe, see our guides on the best starting class in Elden Ring, how much Vigor you actually need, and how to beat Margit the Fell Omen.
Roster, attribute grades and abilities verified against the Elden Ring Nightreign wikis (Eldenpedia and Fextralife) and Bandai Namco's official character gallery. Nightreign version 1.03.5 (2026-03-31) current as of publication.
