Universal Tower Defense Units Tier List

Units are the characters you use to fight enemies in Universal Tower Defense. Some characters perform much better than others, making levels easier and helping you progress faster. However, with units spread across five different rarity levels and each having different abilities, knowing which characters to use can be confusing. This Universal Tower Defense tier list ranks every unit from best to worst, explaining which characters you should focus on building and which ones to replace when you get better options. Understanding unit strength helps you make decisions about who to upgrade and use in your team. For complete details about every unit and their abilities, check our full guide on all units in Universal Tower Defense and their abilities.

Table of Contents

Here’s how every unit ranks from S Tier (best) to D Tier (worst):

Tier	Units
S Tier	Sung Jin-Woo, Sasuke, Kirigaya Kazuto, Ace
A Tier	Shanks, Hatsune Miku/Virtual Idon, Sakuya, Gin Ichimaru/Gen, Rukia Kuchiki/Ruka
B Tier	Shikamaru/Shakumira, Rock Lee/Pebble, Blackbeard/Greybeard, Genos, Kakashi/Masked Ninja
C Tier	Zoro/Triple Threat, Sanj/Fire Foot Cook, Neji/Nejo, Speedwagon/Fastcart, Goku
D Tier	Naruto/Nutaru, Nami/Namo, Gaara/Gaaru, Luffy/Laffy, Renji/Ranji, Orihime/Orahemi

Universal Tower Defense Units Tier List

S Tier – Best Units

These units are the strongest characters in the game. They deal high damage, have powerful abilities, and help you win the hardest levels.

Unit	Rarity	Element	Role	Why S Tier
Sung Jin-Woo	Secret	TBA	TBA	Summons shadow soldiers that fight for you. This gives you extra attackers on the field without using more placement slots. The 0.00625% drop chance makes him the rarest character, and his summoning ability is very strong.
Sasuke	Mythical	TBA	TBA	Deals good damage and can stun everything in an area. The area stun effect stops multiple enemies at once, making difficult waves much easier. Stun effects help your entire team by preventing enemies from moving.
Kirigaya Kazuto/Kriatu	Mythical	Ice	Ground	Has 30% critical rate that can’t be changed except with traits. Gets follow-up attacks after landing 15 critical hits on attacks 1-3, and after 50 critical hits on attack 4. The guaranteed critical hits and follow-up attacks make him deal consistent high damage.
Ace/Spade	Mythical	Fire	Hill	Inflicts burn for 60% damage over 4 seconds and bypasses armor damage reduction. The armor bypass is very strong against armored enemies that normally take less damage. The burn effect adds extra damage on top of his regular attacks.

A Tier – Very Good Units

These units perform well and help your team significantly. They’re strong options that work in most situations.

Unit	Rarity	Element	Role	Why A Tier
Shanks	Mythical	TBA	TBA	Gets damage buffs when he gets kills. As he defeats more enemies, he becomes stronger throughout the battle. The scaling damage makes him better in longer fights with lots of enemies.
Hatsune Miku/Virtual Idon	Mythical	TBA	TBA	Can buff damage and range for your whole team. Team-wide buffs help every character you place, making her valuable for supporting your entire team. Support characters that buff everyone are always useful.
Sakuya	Mythical	TBA	TBA	Can stop time completely, stun enemies, and buff her own damage. Time stop effects are powerful because they freeze all enemies. The self-damage buff combined with crowd control makes her strong.
Gin Ichimaru/Gen	Legendary	Fire	Ground	Gains 1% additional attack for every point of range he has. This means the more range he gets from upgrades or traits, the stronger his attacks become. The scaling attack bonus rewards building range.
Rukia Kuchiki/Ruka	Legendary	Ice	Ground	Does 20% more damage to enemies with freeze effect. If you have other characters that can freeze enemies, Rukia deals bonus damage to those frozen targets. Works well in teams focused on freeze effects.

B Tier – Good Units

These units are decent and help you progress. They work well enough but aren’t as strong as higher tiers.

Unit	Rarity	Element	Role	Why B Tier
Shikamaru/Shakumira	Legendary	Light	Ground	Gains +0.10% range when he slows an enemy, up to +20% total range (increases to +25% and +0.15% per slow at Ethereal 6). Also unlocks active ability Complete Shadow Possession at Ethereal 6. The range scaling is good but requires upgrades to reach full potential.
Rock Lee/Pebble	Legendary	Rose	Hybrid	Gains +0.5% attack when he applies knockback to enemies, up to 40% total. The attack bonus stacks throughout the battle as he knocks back enemies. However, he needs to land knockback effects to become strong.
Blackbeard/Greybeard	Legendary	Dark	Ground	Deals +65% damage to armored enemies. Very useful against armored enemies but doesn’t help against regular enemies. The situational bonus makes him strong in specific levels but average in others.
Genos/Cyborg Disciple	Mythical	TBA	TBA	Does good damage against enemies that are already burning. Works well if you have other fire characters that can apply burn effects. Requires team synergy to be effective.
Kakashi/Masked Ninja	Epic	Fire	Ground	Gives +12% range and damage to all Team 7 characters. Support ability helps specific characters but only if you’re using Team 7 members. The bonuses are decent but require building around specific characters.

C Tier – Decent Units

These units are okay for early game but should be replaced with better options when you get them.

Unit	Rarity	Element	Role	Why C Tier
Zoro/Triple Threat	Epic	TBA	TBA	Gains +2% damage per enemy hit with a maximum of 20%, but decreases buff by 10% when a new wave begins. The damage stacking is nice but losing 10% every wave makes him inconsistent.
Sanj/Fire Foot Cook	Epic	Fire	Ground	Deals +25% more damage to enemies with burn effect. Only useful if you have characters that can burn enemies. The bonus is situational and doesn’t help against non-burning enemies.
Neji/Nejo	Epic	Wind	Ground	Gives allies in range +5% critical chance. The critical chance buff is small and only affects characters near him. Better support characters exist with stronger buffs.
Speedwagon/FastCart	Epic	Rose	Ground	Every character placed while he’s on the map reduces his next upgrade cost by 5%. The cost reduction is nice but requires specific placement timing. Better economy options exist.
Goku/Roku	Rare	Fire	Ground	Gains +5% damage on attack, but stacks reset at the start of each new wave. The damage stacking is good during waves but resetting makes him weak at wave starts.

D Tier – Weak Units

Unit	Rarity	Element	Role	Why D Tier
Naruto/Nutaru	Rare	Water	Ground	Has 17% base critical chance. At Ethereal 6, gains +30% attack and +30% range when near Sasku. The critical chance is okay but nothing special. Requires specific placement near another character to get bonuses.
Nami/Namo	Rare	Water	Ground	Places a bounty on enemies she attacks. When that enemy dies, gain 3x money from its defeat. The money bonus is small and requires her to attack specific enemies first. Other economy options work better.
Gaara/Gaaru	Rare	Water	Ground	Immune to incoming stun damage. Being immune to stun is useful but doesn’t help you deal damage or support your team. Very situational benefit.
Luffy/Laffy	Rare	Wind	Ground	Gains +10% range for every Pirate Crew character on your team. Requires building your entire team around Pirate Crew characters. Without the right team, he’s weak.
Renji/Ranji	Rare	Wind	Ground	Gains +1% attack on unit attack with a maximum of 10%. The 10% maximum attack bonus is very small. By the time you reach 10%, the bonus doesn’t matter much.
Orihime/Orahemi	Rare	Rose	Hill	At full upgrade, shields 1 character in range from enemy stun damage. Requires full upgrades to work and only protects one character. Better support options exist.