Last Epoch boasts an impressive selection of 15 Mastery classes, each offering a unique specialization that can significantly enhance your gameplay. These Masteries range from traditional roles like Sorcerer to more unique options like Falconer, where you can soar across the map with your avian companion to deal damage. With such a variety, deciding which Mastery to focus on can be challenging, but this Last Epoch Mastery tier list aims to guide you through the selection process.
One key aspect to remember is that you're not restricted to a single Mastery. It's common to explore multiple Masteries for optimal builds, and you can allocate points into the first half of any other Mastery's passive tree. Additionally, you have the flexibility to change your Mastery at the Respec NPC in the End of Time, allowing you to experiment and refine your playstyle.
How We Ranked the Best and Worst Masteries in Last Epoch
Ranking Masteries involves assessing how well they meet the needs of various build types. A Mastery's strength is determined by its ability to enhance clear speed (mapping), bossing (single-target damage), and defense. 'More' damage multipliers, for instance, are more potent than 'increased' damage multipliers, which can boost a Mastery's ranking if they are prevalent. It's crucial to scrutinize passives to understand their damage scaling mechanisms.
Defensively, stats like critical hit damage reduction and critical damage avoidance are vital for mitigating random damage spikes. Resistances, while obtainable through gear and idols, offer valuable flexibility when available on the Mastery passive tree. Damage reduction is highly valued for survival, and recovery options like leech and health regeneration further enhance a Mastery's defensive capabilities. Masteries that offer these stats efficiently tend to rank higher.
When evaluating Mastery skills, their damage potential and usability in both clearing and bossing scenarios are considered, alongside their play feel. Even a skill with S-Tier damage may drag a Mastery down if it feels clunky to use. For players comfortable with complex mechanics like snapshotting, certain Masteries might be ranked higher due to their potential.
Last Epoch Tier List: Best Season 2 Masteries
Contribute to the community Tier List by voting on the best Last Epoch Masteries!
Last Epoch Season 2 Masteries Tier List
S-Tier: Paladin, Void Knight
*Best overall clear, bossing, and defense, with no significant weaknesses*
A-Tier: Falconer, Bladedancer, Shaman, Druid
*Strong clear, bossing, and/or defense. Lacking significantly in one area*
B-Tier: Marksman, Lich, Beastmaster
*Good clear, bossing, and/or defense. Lacking significantly in one or more areas*
C-Tier: Necromancer, Forge Guard, Runemaster
*Decent to good clear, bossing, and/or defense. Lacking significantly in one or more areas*
D-Tier: Spellblade, Warlock, Sorcerer
*Poor to good clear, bossing, and/or defense. Lacking significantly in multiple areas*
Our Last Epoch Tier List explanations below feature example builds from our friends at Maxroll.gg.
S-Tier Last Epoch Masteries
S-Tier: Void Knight
If you're looking to dominate the battlefield with a colossal purple sword and unparalleled resilience, the Void Knight is your go-to Mastery. Utilizing skills like Erasing Strike and transitioning into the World Splitter version, this class scales exceptionally well. The Warpath variant is equally formidable and user-friendly, making it an excellent choice for new and casual players alike.
Void Knight offers enhanced mobility and effective HP (eHP), maintaining its reputation for impressive clear and strong bossing damage. Its ability to deal damage while moving is a significant advantage for DPS, and the gameplay feels smooth and engaging. With 200% added damage effectiveness on all skills and a whopping 600% on Erasing Strike, Void Knight is where you want to be for top-tier performance.
The passive tree is packed with benefits, including resistance to and penetration for Physical and Void damage, leech, damage reduction, increased health, and more. Key nodes like Sorrow & Steel, Void Corruption, and Mortal Cleave offer a blend of damage, armor, and critical hit enhancements. For more detailed builds, check out the Smite Void Knight for its speed and tankiness or the Time Rot Void Knight for its complex but rewarding sustain and burst damage.
S-Tier: Paladin
The Paladin Mastery has been recognized by Eleventh Hour Games as exceptionally powerful, especially post-Sentinel rework. Judgement Paladin's dominance in the Terminate Uber Abberoth race solidifies its S-Tier status. The Paladin boasts potent skills, robust defense, and immense damage output.
Judgement alone offers a staggering 350% damage effectiveness and 200% critical multiplier, complemented by other strong skills like Symbols of Hope, Holy Aura, and Healing Hands. The passive tree provides the game's highest resistances, recovery options, damage reduction, and more. Standout nodes such as Covenant of Light and Covenant of Protection offer significant boosts to damage, sustain, and defense.
While Judgement is the star, alternative builds like Bleed Hammerdin and Smite provide strong options for those looking to experiment with different playstyles.
A-Tier Last Epoch Masteries
A-Tier: Falconer
The Falconer Mastery, once overpowered, was adjusted to be "just under OP," maintaining its status as a top-tier choice. With unmatched movement speed and high damage output, Falconer excels, particularly with skills like Aerial Assault. However, its defense is a notable weakness, requiring careful management of Dodge, Silver/Dusk Shrouds, and Glancing Blows.
For those willing to embrace the challenge, the Zero HP Ballista Falconer build offers immense damage, though it's not suitable for hardcore play. Umbral Blades is another strong option, utilizing Shadow Daggers before transitioning to a Dexterity-focused build with Talons of Valor and Razorfall. This Mastery is ideal for players who enjoy fast-paced, dynamic gameplay.
A-Tier: Bladedancer
Bladedancer, while less popular than Falconer, offers similar strength and versatility. With high DPS skills, robust passive support, and effective iframes from Lethal Mirage, Bladedancer excels in clear, single-target damage, and defense. It's the go-to choice for those seeking a fast and powerful melee class.
The passive tree includes crucial nodes like Pursuit for efficient damage and movement, Argent Veil for reliable dodge, and Death's Door for damage reduction on low life builds. Builds like Shadow Daggers, Shadow Cascade, Chakrams, and Lethal Mirage provide various playstyle options, with the Chakram version being viable for Uber Abberoth.
A-Tier: Beastmaster
Beastmaster, a summoner Mastery, may not match the tankiness of Void Knight or Paladin but still secured second place in the Uber Abberoth race, thanks in part to Storm Crows and Summon Wolf. Beastmaster Summons, though slow to start, prove to be a powerful archetype.
Building around Poison Nova Scorpion offers well-rounded damage and clear but suffers from low movement speed. Options like Haste via The Scavenger belt can help, but Beastmaster will never be as fast as other classes. The passive tree supports damage reduction, health, healing, and crit, though it lacks in direct damage support.
A-Tier: Shaman
Shaman is a versatile Mastery for melee and elemental builds, capable of pushing high Arena waves. While its clear speed is not top-tier, its defensive capabilities are solid. Tornado is a standout skill, offering significant damage and a vacuum effect, while Earthquake and Avalanche require careful mana management and support.
The passive tree offers penetration, cooldown reduction, mana, and various elemental damage boosts. Key nodes like Fist of Stone, Lagon's Answer, and Conflux provide efficient damage and defensive options. Shaman's auto-casting abilities, such as Swirling Maelstrom, add to its appeal.
A-Tier: Druid
Druid's Storm Werebear build is renowned for its high DPS and ability to tackle challenging content like Abberoth and high Arena waves. Its effective HP and engaging combo-based playstyle make it a well-rounded choice, though it's not the fastest at farming.
Werebear skills like Rampage and Maul offer competitive damage and movement, while Roar provides crowd control and sustain. The passive tree includes strong nodes like Spirit Warden, Focused Wrath, and Bush Stalker, enhancing damage, crit, and recovery. While Spriggan Form offers defense, it's better paired with other Masteries.
B-Tier Last Epoch Masteries
B-Tier: Lich
Lich embodies the classic 'sacrifice for power' archetype, leveraging potent skills like Reaper Form and a robust passive tree. Drain Life, while underwhelming, can be useful with the Hecatomb node. Aura of Decay, though appealing for poison builds, is weak in practice, while Death Seal offers significant damage boosts with some risk.
Reaper Form provides movement and AoE damage with health recovery, though it drains life. The passive tree supports Intelligence stacking, mana, health, ward, and recovery, with standout nodes like Dance With Death and Hollow Lich enhancing damage efficiency. Lich is a solid choice for players who enjoy high-risk, high-reward gameplay.
B-Tier: Marksman
Marksman, the classic Archer subclass, shines with builds like Hail of Arrows and Heartseeker. The former benefits greatly from the Sanguine Hoard unique quiver, while the latter offers auto-targeting projectiles. Marksman excels in HP on hit, making it durable in combat.
Multishot and Hail provide strong damage options, though Detonating Arrow falls short. The passive tree supports dodge, crit, movement speed, and recovery, with key nodes like Heightened Senses and Thief's Quiver enhancing survivability and damage. Marksman is ideal for those who enjoy ranged combat and high clear speed.
C-Tier Last Epoch Masteries
C-Tier: Necromancer
Necromancer, another summoner Mastery, focuses on undead minions and can reach impressive Arena waves. Summon Skeletal Mage reduces enemy health regeneration and can be used for traversal, while Sacrifice sees limited use due to poor personal damage support.
Dread Shade offers temporary damage boosts and can be customized for different effects, while Assemble Abomination summons a tanky minion. Summon Wraith provides respectable damage with various elemental support options. The passive tree offers recovery, minion support, and various damage boosts, though defense is limited to recovery and minion tanking.
C-Tier: Runemaster
Runemaster, a unique caster archetype, allows for spell combination through Rune of Invocation, offering extreme versatility. Hydrahedron is a highlight, enabling 1000 corruption viability, while Focus Autobomber provides tankiness through Strength, Intelligence, and Ward stacking.
Skills like Flame Rush and Frost Wall offer competitive damage and utility, while Runebolt and Glyph of Dominion provide crit and debuff support. The passive tree supports Ward, mana, elemental debuffs, and various damage boosts, making Runemaster a competitive choice despite not matching higher tiers.
C-Tier: Forge Guard
Forge Guard offers unique build options but struggles to compete with top-tier Masteries. Manifest Armor serves as a decoy and rewards STR/armor stacking, while Shield Throw and Ring of Shields provide offense and defense. Smelter's Wrath and Forge Weapon offer high damage effectiveness but come with drawbacks.
The passive tree includes strong nodes like Guardian for health and regen, though overall, it lacks the standout options found in higher-tier Masteries. Forge Guard is suitable for players seeking unique playstyles.
D-Tier Last Epoch Masteries
D-Tier: Spellblade
Spellblade, despite being D-Tier, remains viable with strong DPS and speed but struggles with defense. Flame Reave is underwhelming due to its limited AoE and high mana cost, while Enchant Weapon boosts DPS and triggers Ignites. Firebrand offers enjoyable gameplay but lacks the damage to progress far, while Surge and Shatter Strike provide mobility and crit support.
The passive tree offers Ward support and some intriguing nodes like Flame Walker and Arcane Shielding, but lacks the comprehensive support found in higher tiers. Spellblade suits players who enjoy combining magic with melee.
D-Tier: Warlock
Warlock focuses on damage over time and Curses, making it accessible for new and casual players. Skills like Cthonic Fissure, Profane Veil, and Chaos Bolts are central to builds like Bleed and Witchfire. While damage is competitive, defense is a significant weakness, relying heavily on eHP and recovery.
Key passives like The Ashen One and Crimson Favours enhance specific builds, but overall, Warlock lacks the defensive options of higher-tier Masteries.
D-Tier: Sorcerer
Sorcerer, a classic caster class, offers viable builds like Frostbite Frostclaw but struggles to stand out. Skills like Static Orb, Ice Barrage, and Black Hole provide strong stats and utility, while Arcane Ascendance and Meteor demand careful mana management.
The passive tree supports Ward, damage buffs, and elemental debuffs, but lacks comprehensive support. Sorcerer is suitable for players who enjoy traditional caster playstyles.
For more detailed guides and builds for Last Epoch 1.2, visit our Last Epoch 1.2 builds page, Tombs of the Erased!
