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Following the blanket nerf for assaults, Caliber became a much more enjoyable PvP experience but a few other balancing changes also shifted places within each role.
Koszmar is perhaps the best example, now a shell of his former self as he became both squishy and lost the glass tank capability, leaving his place on the team uncertain.
So here is a tier list of operators in each class to help you navigate the meta in the ranked season and even regular matches following the big update.
S tier operators mean you are mostly at an advantage in a match while picking A tier will generally mean you won't be at too much of a disadvantage unless you get counter-picked of course. B tier will mean there is a good chance you are still fine if you play it right, C tier will often put you at a disadvantage and D tier means you are griefing your team with this pick. Therefore, I will not write up explanations on these two tiers since there are so many better picks that are actually useful.
Assaults
- S Tier
- Sly
- Mustang
- Faro
- Perun
- A Tier
- Aphela
- Rein
- Corsair
- Plut
- Sterling
- B Tier
- Starkadr
- Lazootchick
- Volk
- C Tier
- Shaowei
- Voron
- Koszmar
- Avant-Garde
- D Tier
- Martello
Sly doesn't care about assault health nerfs because she just copies her target's HP and goes on her way. She can effectively have 100 per cent upkeep time on her ability thanks to the short cooldown and impact flashes make her even more formidable. Couple that with an overpowered sidearm and you've got yourself an operator that is best in class.
Mustang is currently cheesing people with his gadget, which one-shots almost everyone and those who survive have too little health to remain any threat. Suppression doesn't work on it so the only effective way to counter him is to bring stuns, EMP grenades or impact flashes. Basically, anything that would help you dodge getting splattered by the under-barrel shotgun. Oh, and it gets a shell back whenever he executes someone.
Faro can pop his ability and become a tank that shreds everything in front of him thanks to his gun's insane DPS. The gadget is solid and he generally doesn't have that many counters, making him a safe first pick in ranked. He is the new Corsair - master of all trades.
Perun is the new best Q warrior thanks to the low cooldown on Piercing Shots, which lets him have the best DPS in the game, by far. He also has impact flashes now, allowing him to work around and outplay pretty much anything thrown at him.
Aphela's no-brain policy is a bit weaker now that she is that much squishier as people can burst her down easily and hide behind a corner for two seconds to let her die. She can, however, go right up in their face and then pop the ability to force kill trades so it is best to keep a distance from her or bring an EMP effect.
Rein is always powerful because he can counter problematic Q warriors while Corsair retains his ability power and DPS but he is now a jack of all trades, rather than a master.
Plut's DPS is great and so is his ability but his biggest weakness is that everything he does well, someone does better.
Sterling's self-revive still keeps him up in high tiers and his noob tube will secure kills in clutch moments.
Starkadr may surprise you since I put him in B tier but that is more about personal taste. I simply don't like his over-reliance on the ability, meaning an EMP operator can severely drop your usefulness. A Perun can burst you down and run away while you wander for 10 seconds aimlessly and so on.
Lazootchick and Volk are generally useful thanks to their noob tubes and decent weapons but they don't excel at anything, which is primarily what holds them back from being A or S tier.
Supports
- S Tier
- Barreira
- Bishop
- Fortress
- Svarog
- A Tier
- Odin
- Prorok
- Yingzhou
- B Tier
- Bourbon
- Kit
- C Tier
- Matador
- Sputnik
- Almaz
- Stern
- Zubr
- D Tier
- Hagana
- Bastion
- Tibet
Barreira will give you headaches if you don't have reliable stuns or cover piercing in your team. Other than that, there isn't much to talk about - he is hard to hit and he is boring to play. I highly recommend countering with Komar.
Bishop remains a heavy hitter with ever-useful EMP jammers. Extremely high DPS for a support will see you get kills often and Light Weight Chest rig makes him close to a beefy version of an assault. You can't go wrong with this guy.
Fortress is another support that pretends to be an assault but instead of EMP utility, she will give everyone incendiary bullets. This is a major advantage for at least three rounds, more if you bring a Shersheret along. With high mobility, health and DPS, she is great at flanking enemies.
Svarog is a new entry in the S tier club, mostly thanks to his ability that causes everyone outside of close range unable to hit him. Be careful when playing against shotgun users as Suppression doesn't work on them but other than that, just spray the enemies and laugh as they spray around you. Even if someone tries to wait out the Suppression in cover, you can pop a few explosives on them.
Odin is still strong with his ability and a ton of rockets but he has proper counters now and the primary weapon is not as strong as it used to be.
Prorok alternates between being a hard carry and a regular everyday support. If he weren't so reliant on his smoke, he would be at the top of the list but even with that hitch, he is still very strong, even if enemies bring Thermal Optics. It only means they will get to see where you are but you still have a damage boost, incoming damage reduction and better strafing speed while in smoke.
Yingzhou is the king of peeking as his shotgun has barely any spread. You can two-tap anyone with well-placed shots and his bubble can make taking an objective an absolute pain in the side.
Bourbon is currently the weaker version of Svarog but he is fantastic at countering Barreira. Just shoot the legs until he is stunned, at which point all body parts will be wide open.
Kit is weaker than any of the operators listed above but a well-placed flag can turn the tide of battle, which can prove absolutely crucial in many scenarios. An unorthodox way of running Kit is to bring Fresh Forces so your flag recharges much faster if you are comfortable playing with 112 health.
Medics
- S Tier
- Acai
- Schatz
- Bones
- A Tier
- Kaval
- Shersheret
- Yaowang
- B Tier
- Buggy
- Travnik
- Bard
- Velour
- C Tier
- Ded
- Karavai
- Miguel
- Monk
- Watson
- D Tier
- Freyr
- Mikolaj
Acai is a no-brainer. The operator currently heals way too much and instantly pops just about everything in the game. Anything outside the shotgun's range can be brought down by his unusually strong sidearm. There are no bad sides to picking this operator so just do it.
Schatz is a highly aggressive medic who can push enemies and pull off clutch plays thanks to his strong weapon and flashbangs. He can also throw medkits around, healing a staggering 54 health per pack, which has a short cooldown. He is highly versatile and recommended in almost any situation.
Bones' weapon remains strong but her real selling point is the drone, Buddy. As long as she or an ally has at least low cover upon dying, they will probably be back up before the enemy can close the distance to execute them. In other words, your team will be semi-immortal with her around.
Kaval was indirectly buffed throughout the last few balance changes and now he is close to the top of the class. He is basically a somewhat less potent Schatz who has to get close to allies to heal them.
Shersheret received nerfs to her Link as the damage reduction is no longer what it used to be. However, she is still a fantastic pocket medic and if you have a strong teammate, she will enable them to hard carry a match. On the flip side, if your teammates are bad, so is Shersheret as a choice.
Yaowang is an unorthodox medic and if it weren't so tricky to land healing plates on allies, he would be closer to the top of the list. He is fantastic at taking enemies out behind corners or even pushing them thanks to EMP grenades, which also counter some of the more annoying Q warriors.
Buggy is a highly situational pick. If enemies have a lot of problematic projectiles via Yingzhou, Diablo, Odin or even anyone who tosses any kind of significant grenade, this medic becomes a godsend but otherwise, his healing is problematic since it forces allies to stay in the same place for a long period of time.
Travnik is another Schatz-like medic who is basically more aggressive thanks to higher DPS but his healing just can't compare. It requires you to stick next to an ally until they are topped off, which is often a death sentence for both of you. Otherwise, he is extremely fun to play with.
Bard can be extremely lethal with good aim but you get punished heavily for missing his bursts. His healing is also somewhat lacklustre as teammates lose autonomy due to having to stay in his AoE.
Velour's P90 is extremely potent in its very short range. If you do sneak up on enemies, he is great. Otherwise, you will have a hard time closing the gap. His ability is situational as it can bring some decent healing but the cooldown makes its overall usage somewhat questionable. The enemies can also pick it up.
Marksmen
- S Tier
- Avalanche
- Komar
- Sultan
- Scout
- A Tier
- Busel
- Vidarr
- Diablo
- Eima
- B Tier
- Kurt
- Strelok
- C Tier
- Tien
- Sokol
- Cacador
- D Tier
- Vagabond
- Sztylet
- Archer
- Canglong
Avalanche has an insane DPS, allowing her to be effective at almost all ranges. Her gadget will often catch enemies by surprise and flush them out of cover, unless that like being blown up by artillery. Her sidearm is a fantastic counter to Barreira and the ability can prevent stuns, making the regular flashbangs useless against her team. Always a good pick.
Komar and Sultan are highly similar after the former got a damage buff. It is highly recommended you bring Komar to fights where Barreira is present. Otherwise, Sultan might be a better choice thanks to his close-range proficiency and invisibility jammers. Komar is better in areas with a lot of cover since he can pop people behind it.
Scout remains a strong pick due to his borderline assault rifle and the highly useful flare that provides the entire team an advantage when fighting over an objective.
Busel's buffs made him a monster, as long as his ability is up. It makes him a menace at close range and allows him to reliably hit headshots while hip firing at medium range. This allows him to strafe faster and basically be an assault that can also one-shot someone across the map.
Vidarr's drone nerf made him less potent but he can still carry matches, as long as you don't hope it will insta-gib someone after making a 90-degree turn.
Diablo is also a strong pick due to his semi-automatic rifle. He also has the advantage of a grenade launcher that will flush out anyone trying to take cover while they are in your sights.
Eima is now viable with her scope on as well, meaning she can also be picked against operators that counter stuns. The game plan remains the same - hit them with the ability, switch to the sidearm and burst them down. Just bring Personal Priorities.
Kurt is a rare sniper who can have 100 per cent armour penetration, allowing him to two-tap even the sturdiest of enemies with body shots. The only reason he is in B tier is that the ones above him are easier to play. If you are proficient with the German sniper, he is a viable pick in all situations.
Strelok has been indirectly buffed by the assault nerf but it isn't recommended to pick him in long-range maps. Granted, the weapon does have a fairly long range but by the time you land enough bullets on a distant marksman, they will have given you at least two additional eye sockets.
