Guildrun is a PvE roguelike autobattler where no two runs play out the same way. Your relic pool shifts, your shop offers change, and the heroes you recruit rarely match what you planned. That makes a static tier list less useful than understanding why certain builds dominate, and what makes them worth chasing when the pieces start showing up.
What makes an S-tier build in Guildrun?
The strongest builds in Guildrun share one trait: they generate value on every trigger, not just when conditions align perfectly. S-tier compositions either snowball through Rush or Stall mechanics, stack Shards for explosive relic payoffs, or combine durable frontlines with carries that scale harder the longer a fight runs. Below is a breakdown of every top-tier composition and what you actually need to make it work.
Rush Duelist core setup
S-tier builds ranked
Rush Duelists
The Rush Duelists composition builds around Rip (Vanguard), Nyx (Duelist), and Irini (Duelist) as its core three. Rip anchors the frontline with 1250 HP and 42 Defense, and his Bloodthirsty passive converts Rush triggers into Max Health Attack. The Crown of Haste item compounds this by granting 1 Attack and 8 Max HP per Rush trigger across the entire run, meaning a well-executed Rush chain turns Rip into a scaling wall.
Nyx and Irini handle the damage side. Nyx's Ferality passive grants stacking Attack Speed and Attack for every Rush trigger during combat, refreshing every 12 auto attacks. Irini's Limitless passive adds 1 Attack Speed per auto attack, and after Stall 15, auto attacks deal 100% Attack Speed bonus damage. Together they create a feedback loop where Rush triggers accelerate both offense and defense simultaneously.
The relic package reinforces this loop aggressively. Key pieces include:
- Acceleration Resonator: grants Heroes 250 Shields on every Rush trigger
- Acceleration Fluctuator: gives Heroes 10 Attack Speed and 10 Attack on Rush trigger
- Temporal Alignment Crystal: cross-multiplies Rush and Stall triggers for shields and enemy damage
- Acceleration Legacy Crystal: adds +1% basic stats per 2 Rush triggers once Rush 6 is reached
Rush Shard Gen Duelists
This variant keeps the same Rip, Nyx, and Irini core but layers a Shard generation engine on top. Irini swaps to dual Lone Wolf's Bow and Sacrificial Scythe to generate Shards on kill, while Nyx picks up the Golden Eye rank modifier (1 Shard every 10 auto attacks) instead of Rush Dynamo.
The relic additions are what separate this from the base Rush Duelist build. Shard Power Extractor deals damage equal to 10% of enemy Max HP on every Shard generated (minimum 2500 damage), Shard Ascendancy adds 1 bonus Shard per generation after completing its 25-Shard quest, and Shard Fluctuator hits all enemies for 500 damage on each Shard generated. Once the Shard engine is running, every kill or Rush trigger cascades into area damage.
Shard Gen Assassins
Zuri (Tank/Assassin), Dragomir (Assassin), and Hoyoung (Assassin) form the Shard Gen Assassin core. Zuri starts with 900 HP and 52 Defense and uses Stone Skin to permanently gain Defense and Magic on every Crit, while The Serpent's Kiss passive inflicts Poison on attackers and generates HP/S. The Polymath's Prism item gives Zuri +20% to primary stats for each of her classes, which is particularly strong given her Tank/Assassin dual class.
Dragomir's Devour active generates 2 Shards per Rank on kill and his Shard Collector rank modifier adds 1 Shard every other Crit. Hoyoung's Killshot fires at the farthest enemy and his The Hunter passive generates 1 Shard per hex of distance on kill. With both assassins generating Shards from different sources, the five-relic package (Shard Resonator, Shard Fluctuator, Generation Conduit, Shard Ascendancy, Shard Power Extractor) fires constantly.
Stall Aria
This is the most support-heavy S-tier build and the one that punishes players who skip healer slots. The five-hero lineup of Rowan (Vanguard/Tank), Pollen (Mystic), Aria (Mage), Gustav (Mystic), and Grace (Mystic) builds around Stall triggers and Mystic cast synergies.
Aria is the scaling anchor. Her Requiem Barrage deals 15 (+100% Magic) damage every half second while inflicting Frost and Burn, and The Crescendo passive permanently grants 3 Magic per Stall trigger, plus +50% Magic and extended Barrage duration at Stall 20, 40, and 60. The Crown of Patience item makes Stall abilities trigger 12 seconds sooner, which stacks with the extensive Deceleration relic package.
Pollen's Sanctuary of Bloom creates a flower field that applies Shields and Poison each second, with The Fae's Kiss passive doubling Poison output after Stall 20 and increasing all enemy Debuffs by 33% after Stall 40. Gustav's Blizzard active Shields heroes inside it while dealing Frost damage, and The Investor passive converts Shards into team-wide Mana Regen. Grace's Salvation can resurrect dead Heroes after Stall 20, which is the closest thing to a safety net this game offers.
The 19-relic package is the largest of any S-tier build and includes Deceleration Mandate (adds a team slot after 25 Stall triggers), Deceleration Apotheosis (gives Heroes +20% all basic stats at Stall 25, 50, and 75), and Defensive Energy Crystal (gives Tanks and Vanguards Shields equal to 100% Max HP at combat start).
Crit Rush Assassins
Ratna (Mage/Assassin), Rip (Vanguard), and Yuuna (Assassin) form the Crit Rush Assassin core. Ratna is the standout hero here. At S Rank, she holds Starfall, which deals 190+ Magic damage, Stuns all enemies on Crit, and permanently gains 10 Magic per kill. The Magnanimous specialization gives her the Assassin class and 25 Crit, and her Hermit rank modifier grants +25% Magic and +50% Crit when alone in the back two rows. Critical Offense Growth at S Rank then permanently adds 1 Attack and 1 Magic per Crit, creating a run-long scaling engine.
Yuuna's Shuriken Shadow Strike throws shurikens scaled by Crit count at the lowest-health enemy, and The Collector passive generates escalating Shards on kill. The 15-relic package stacks Crit from multiple sources, including Shard Precision Prism (Crit equal to Shards in bank, up to 1000), Critical Ascendancy (first auto attack against each enemy gains 1500 Crit after 100 total Crits), and Assassin's Supremacy Filigree (Assassins gain Stealth and 200 Crit at Rush 4).
Stall Tanks
Skorn (Tank) and Fiona (Mystic) are both S Rank in this composition, supported by Pimenta (Tank), Aria (Mage), and Gustav (Mystic). Skorn's Come At Me! active taunts all enemies and generates Shields equal to 10 (+10% Defense, +10% Magic) per Stall triggered, then deals damage equal to 50% of remaining Shields after 5 seconds. His Stall Certainty rank modifier makes Stall abilities trigger 6 seconds faster, and Stalled Defense adds 45 Defense on every Stall trigger.
Fiona's Vault Spark applies Shields to the lowest-HP heroes scaled by Mana Regen, and The Tycoon passive converts cast counts into stacking Max HP bonuses for the whole team at combat start. Gustav's The Glacier specialization grants him the Tank class and 50 Defense, making Blizzard apply Defense-scaled Shields directly to himself.
The 13 relics include two team-size expanders (Victory Mandate and Arcane Mandate), Defensive Energy Crystal, and Shield Conduit (Heroes gain 100 Attack and 100 Magic while Shielded after applying 7500 Shields).
A-tier builds worth running
Three A-tier compositions are worth understanding because they appear frequently in the shop and can carry a run when S-tier pieces do not arrive.
Debuff Duelists is the leanest build on this list at only 2 relics. Irini's Limitless passive and Sal's Permafrost active both benefit from Pimenta's The Lover passive, which grants 15 permanent Attack Speed to heroes directly behind her at combat start (Sal gets 15 more). The Plague Velocitizer relic gives Heroes 1 Attack Speed and 2 Attack per Debuff type on all enemies every 4 seconds, which compounds quickly with Frost, Burn, and Poison all active.
Debuff Mages swaps Irini for Funke (Mage), whose Wildfire active blasts all enemies in range for 175 (+200% Magic) damage and 15 (+66% Magic) Burn, and The Detonator passive adds 10 ticks of Burn damage per cast. Aria's The Resplendent specialization makes all Mages inflict 20% more Debuffs, with Aria herself inflicting 50% more. Rowan in the back row applies +75% Defense to all Heroes via Rear Support at S Rank.
Rush Duelists Stack adds Karsu (Duelist) and Logan (Warrior) to the Rip/Irini core. Karsu's The Warband passive permanently gains Crit, Attack, and Attack Speed on cast, and shares those gains with all other Duelists at combat start. Logan's The Juggernaut passive converts Execution damage into lasting Shields equal to 75-125% of damage dealt depending on Rank.
How to choose the right build for your run
The tier list above assumes you have access to the right heroes and relics. Most runs will not hand you a perfect S-tier setup. Here is how to evaluate what you actually have:
- If your shop keeps offering Rush relics early, pivot toward Rush Duelists or Crit Rush Assassins. The Acceleration relic family is cheap to start and scales hard.
- If you recruit Rowan and Fiona in the same run, Stall Tanks becomes viable even without Skorn, because their Stall Certainty rank modifiers stack.
- If Zuri appears early with her Tank/Assassin dual class intact, build toward Shard Gen Assassins. Her Poison-on-attack-retaliation creates Shard generation even before Dragomir or Hoyoung arrive.
- If none of the above appear, Debuff Duelists requires only 2 relics and 3 heroes. It is the easiest composition to assemble from whatever the shop provides.
Guildrun patches weekly during the demo period, so hero balance, relic effects, and item stats can shift between sessions. Check the Guildrun guides collection after major patches before locking in a build order.
For players coming from other strategy games, the core principle transfers directly: identify your strongest piece, build around protecting it, and do not spread resources across heroes that do not contribute to the same win condition. A focused three-hero build with the right relics will outperform a full five-hero roster with no coherent direction almost every time.