If you just hit the title screen of Hotta Studio’s new urban fantasy gacha and you’re asking “who do I actually pull for?” — I’ve got you. After grinding through Version 1.0, cross-checking every patch note, and cross-referencing community consensus across Mobalytics, Game8, Pocket Tactics, FandomWire, and NerdsChalk, I built this Neverness to Everness tier list that ranks every single playable cityrunner in the game from S+ down to C.
In short: at launch, Nanally, Sakiri, Chiz, and Jiuyuan are the strongest characters in NTE. Baicang and Haniel are the best non-meta supporting picks, while Mint, Skia, Edgar, and Aurelia sit at the bottom of the meta despite their visual appeal. Below, I’ll explain exactly why, give you role-by-role breakdowns, and recommend who to pull, who to skip, and who to save your Annulith for.
Table of Contents
NTE Tier List Quick Look (Version 1.0)
| Tier | Characters | What This Tier Means |
|---|---|---|
| S+ | Nanally, Sakiri, Chiz, Jiuyuan | Meta-defining, pull immediately |
| S | Baicang, Haniel | Slightly conditional but still elite |
| A | Daffodill, Hathor, Esper Zero (MC), Adler | Strong, flexible cores |
| B | Fadia, Mint, Hotori, Lacrimosa | Niche or unconfirmed picks |
| C | Skia, Edgar, Aurelia | Avoid early investment |
Quick verdict: If you only have one limited pull this patch, send it on Nanally. If you want the strongest free unit, grind out Chiz through City Tycoon. If you want versatility, pick Sakiri from your free S-class selector.
Neverness to Everness Tier List (September 2026) How I Ranked Every Character
Before we dive into placements, here’s how I built this list. A tier list is only useful if the criteria are clear, so I weighted four factors:
- Raw combat strength — Single-target DPS, AoE clearing, and break damage on white stagger bars.
- Team flexibility — How easily a character slots into multiple comps without forcing a specific pairing.
- Skill ceiling vs. floor — A character that needs perfect execution drops a tier compared to one that performs out of the box.
- Account value — Long-term scaling, dupe accessibility, and resource generation perks (like Hathor’s furniture or Chiz’s free awakenings).
NTE is a brand-new gacha as of April 29, 2026, so this list will shift over the coming patches. I’ll be updating it every time a new banner drops or a balance patch hits.
Tier Definitions Explained
| Tier | Meaning |
|---|---|
| S+ | Best-in-slot in their role. Worth pulling on first banner appearance. |
| S | Excellent but with a small caveat (skill expression, team requirement, or banner slot). |
| A | Strong all-rounders that comfortably carry early and mid-game accounts. |
| B | Situational picks that need investment, dupes, or specific teammates to shine. |
| C | Outclassed by other options. Fun for personal preference, weak for meta progression. |
S+ Tier Characters: The NTE Meta Kings
Nanally — The Limited DPS Carry
Nanally is the first limited 5-star on the Ichi-daime banner and is the highest raw DPS in the game right now. Her kit revolves around summoning an Underboss that coordinates follow-up attacks while she fires plasma anima arcs. The Underboss applies small pull effects, so mobile enemies stay glued to her damage zone — meaning even hectic boss arenas don’t break her rotation.
Why she’s S+:
- Highest single-target damage at launch
- Cleans AoE just as well as bosses
- Nearly zero setup — point, shoot, melt
- Stacks insanely well with Sakiri’s 30% attack buff
If you’re new and want to plug-and-play your way through Version 1.0 content, Nanally is the easiest “press button, win fight” carry available. I’d recommend her over every other limited character on the horizon for at least the next two patches.
Sakiri — The Best Support in NTE
Sakiri is the strongest buffer and crowd-controller in the launch roster, full stop. Her ultimate hands the entire team a 30% attack boost (scaled off her own base attack) for 20 seconds, which essentially doubles your DPS character’s burst window. On top of that, her Devour Whole skill pulls enemies into a tight cluster — tap it for a knockdown, hold it to levitate them in mid-air for AoE chaining.
Why she’s S+:
- Free to obtain via the S-class selector after 50 pulls
- Buffs scale with your DPS investment, so she only gets better
- Best mob-grouping tool in the game
- Slots into literally every team
Sakiri is my pick for the free S-class selector because she elevates whatever DPS you already have. Pair her with Nanally and your damage during burst windows is genuinely unfair.
Chiz — The Best Free Character in NTE
Chiz is unique because she’s completely free through the City Tycoon system, including all five awakening copies and her signature weapon. She runs a Grain mechanic: basic attacks and skills generate Grain, which inflates her damage; her ultimate then locks in those values during a “Grain Market” state where timing your skills at peak prices deals devastating damage.
Why she’s S+:
- 100% free, no gacha luck required
- Fully awakened by progressing City Tycoon
- High skill ceiling = high reward
- Scales into endgame with consistent investment
The catch is that Chiz takes weeks of City Tycoon grinding to fully unlock and demands rhythm-based play to hit her ceiling. But for a free unit, she’s outright broken once mastered. Treat her as a long-term project, not a launch-day carry.
Jiuyuan — The Hybrid DPS-Support
Jiuyuan is the only character on this list that can play both DPS and sub-support at a top level. She marks enemies with Lethal Rose Pact through her attacks, then detonates everything with her ultimate for massive AoE damage. Her A1 awakening boosts attack by 5% per marked enemy (capped at 15%), and her A2 unlocks team-wide healing equal to 20% of accumulated detonation damage.
Why she’s S+:
- Selectable from the S-class selector after first 50 pulls
- Burst damage AND crowd control rolled into one
- A2 awakening turns her into a budget healer
- Strong in both single-target boss and mob-clearing scenarios
I rank Jiuyuan slightly behind Nanally for raw damage, but her flexibility makes her the safer pick if you don’t already have a support locked in.
S Tier Characters: The Almost-Best Picks
Baicang — The Skill-Ceiling DPS
Baicang is a DoT (damage-over-time) carry running on the Incantation element. He has multiple modes that switch between solid single-target attacks, AoE damage, and self-healing — making him one of the most self-sufficient damage dealers in the game. With proper play, he can actually out-damage Nanally because his ceiling is higher.
Why he’s S, not S+:
- High skill floor — clunky for new players
- Best paired with Daffodill, which adds team-building friction
- Without optimal rotations, his damage falls below Nanally’s
If you skip the Nanally banner, Baicang is the next best DPS pull from the standard roster.
Haniel — Pure Buff Support
Haniel is the A-class equivalent of Sakiri but acts as a “swap-in, buff, swap-out” support. She’s free as a pre-registration reward in many regions, which makes her insanely accessible. Her short on-field time means your DPS gets to use the buffed window for max damage — a buff loop similar to high-rotation gacha supports.
Why she’s S:
- Free in most accounts via pre-registration
- Tiny skill investment, big payoff
- Buffs scale with team strength
- Never a wasted slot in any composition
She slots beneath Sakiri only because Sakiri also brings crowd control. If you have both, run them together for absurd buff stacking.
A Tier Characters: The Reliable Backbone
Daffodill — The Boss Breaker
Daffodill specializes in white-bar Break damage, which staggers bosses and opens massive damage windows for the rest of your team. She also has a long-range mid-combo dodge for repositioning during boss AoEs, plus excellent parry and swap mechanics.
She received small nerfs from the beta period, and now leans heavily on Baicang (or a similar Incantation partner) to truly shine. If you have a boss-focused team and the synergy pieces, Daffodill comfortably plays at near-S level. Solo? Top of A tier.
Hathor — The Stylish AoE / Account Value Pick
Hathor is the best AoE clear in the launch roster, but her real value is off the battlefield. Owning her unlocks furniture that passively generates equipment for your account through extra Cartridges per day. She also adds blue flame VFX to your vehicles, which is a nice cosmetic bonus.
Strengths:
- Best mob clearing in the meta
- Daily resource bonuses through Life Skill
- Strong long-term account scaling
Weaknesses:
- Charging animation leaves her vulnerable
- Knockback skills can scatter the mobs you’re trying to AoE
- Boss-fight damage falls short of S-tier picks
If you care about account-wide progression, Hathor is borderline S-tier value. As a pure combat DPS, she’s solidly A.
Esper Zero (Main Character) — The Reaction Driver
Zero, the customizable main character, runs a unique Instant Cycle mechanic that accelerates the Esper Cycle combat system. They drive elemental reactions faster than any other unit, plus they have a built-in self-heal that most launch DPS units lack.
Zero won’t carry damage like Nanally, but they’re the connective tissue that makes reaction-heavy comps work. The female version is reportedly slightly stronger numerically based on community testing. Either way, you’ll always have Zero on your account, so building them up is never a wasted investment.
Adler — The Plug-and-Play Shielder
Adler is the easiest survival pick at launch. One button press shields your entire team, and his Incantation element gives him reaction synergy with Baicang. He doesn’t deal much damage, but the reliability of “I press the shield button and we don’t die” is genuinely valuable in early-game and on harder content.
He’s also a free pre-registration reward in many regions, making him a no-brainer addition to most rosters.
B Tier Characters: Niche but Usable
Fadia — The Damage Redirection Tank
Fadia is an S-class survival unit with a damage redirection mechanic — she absorbs portions of damage taken by allies. With enough copies and investment, she can make a team feel nearly invincible in long fights. The downside? She does practically zero damage. In a meta that rewards fast clears, she struggles to justify a slot unless you’re hard-stuck on a specific boss.
Mint — The Postergirl Letdown
Mint is the marketing face of NTE, but her in-game performance is genuinely disappointing. She offers a low-cooldown parry skill and decent single-target / AoE numbers, but every other DPS in A-tier or above outclasses her. She’s easy to max-dupe through standard banners, which slightly lifts her ceiling, but she’s still not a competitive pick for endgame content.
Hotori — The Synergy Carry
Hotori is a TBD-to-bottom-A character based on early testing. She can feel powerful in a team built specifically around her, but she’s not remotely plug-and-play. Most players will skip her unless they specifically enjoy her playstyle and want to invest the team-building effort. I’ll move her up the list if launch-week data confirms higher potential.
Lacrimosa — The Hypothetical S
Lacrimosa is an interesting case: she’s a standard S-rank DPS, and early Chinese-server testing suggests she might actually outperform Daffodill once meta crystallizes. But until global players grind her in the live patch, I’m placing her tentatively at the top of B until further data comes in.
C Tier Characters: Skip These for Now
Skia — The Lakshana Element Bot
Skia exists mainly to provide the Lakshana element for synergy with Light-element characters like Chiz. His personal damage is mid-range and his AoE crowd control is decent, but he’s outright outclassed by every other DPS in the game. He might rise if Lakshana-element team comps become meta-defining, but right now he’s a C.
Edgar — The Stationary Healer
Edgar is a pure healer, but his healing area is stationary, which is a huge problem in fast-paced fights against mobile bosses. NTE’s combat doesn’t currently demand heavy healing, and any future support will likely outclass him immediately. Avoid investing.
Aurelia — The Free Day-Three Reward
Aurelia is given out for free on day three of logging in. She has decent crowd control with her ultimate, but her damage is low and her mobility is poor (especially in dodging and aerial combat). Take her free, test her out, but don’t invest serious resources.
NTE Character Tier List by Role
If you’re building a team and want a quick reference, here’s how every character ranks within their specialty role:
| Tier | DPS | Buff/Support | Survival |
|---|---|---|---|
| S | Nanally, Esper Zero, Jiuyuan | Sakiri | Adler |
| A | Baicang, Hathor, Daffodill, Chiz | Haniel | Fadia |
| B | Mint, Hotori, Lacrimosa | — | Edgar |
| C | Skia, Aurelia | — | — |
Best NTE Team Compositions at Launch
Based on this tier list, here are the strongest team setups you can run in patch 1.0:
The Burst Comp (Best Overall)
- Main DPS: Nanally
- Support/Buff: Sakiri
- Sub-DPS / Reaction: Esper Zero
- Defender: Adler
This is the gold-standard launch team. Sakiri groups enemies and buffs damage, Nanally melts everything, Esper Zero drives reactions, and Adler keeps your squad alive. It carries through every Version 1.0 content piece.
The DoT Comp (For Boss Encounters)
- Main DPS: Baicang
- Boss Breaker: Daffodill
- Buff: Haniel
- Defender: Adler
Baicang’s Incantation DoTs scale up while Daffodill shreds white bars to open burst windows. Haniel buffs the burst, Adler keeps everyone breathing.
The Free-to-Play Special
- Main DPS: Chiz (free via City Tycoon)
- Buff: Sakiri (free S-class selector)
- Reaction Driver: Esper Zero (free MC)
- Defender / Buffer: Haniel (free pre-reg) or Adler
This entire team can be built without spending a single Annulith on banners. Lock this in early and you’ll cruise through all early-game content.
Reroll Tier List: Who to Pull on Day One
If you’re rerolling and want the optimal start:
- Nanally — Top reroll target. Nothing in this patch matches her raw power.
- Sakiri (free selector) — Always grab her with the free pick.
- Jiuyuan — Strong fallback if you don’t get Nanally.
- Baicang — Best non-limited DPS pull.
- Daffodill — Solid if you plan to build a boss-focused account.
You should not reroll for Mint, Skia, Aurelia, or Edgar. They’re either weak or freely available.
Pro Tips: Getting the Most Out of NTE Characters
After hours of testing, here are the small details I wish I’d known on day one:
- Always ult Sakiri before swapping to your DPS. The 30% attack buff window is short — don’t waste a single second of it.
- Daffodill’s parries break boss white bars faster than her main combo. Use her as your designated swap-parry character.
- Chiz’s Grain Market state is timing-based. Practice on weak enemies before bringing her into a real boss fight.
- Esper Zero’s self-heal triggers passively — keep them on field during low HP moments instead of your main DPS.
- Hathor’s furniture stacks. Place every cartridge-generating piece you unlock; it’s a passive resource snowball.
- Adler’s shield refreshes on swap. Use him as a rotational defender, not a bench-warmer.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Don’t dump resources into Mint just because she’s the postergirl. Her damage genuinely doesn’t compete.
- Don’t skip the free S-class selector. It’s a guaranteed S-tier upgrade — most players should pick Sakiri.
- Don’t ignore City Tycoon. Chiz is locked behind that progression, and she’s one of the best characters in the game.
- Don’t pull on standard banners early. Save Annulith for limited characters like Nanally.
- Don’t run Edgar as your healer in boss fights. His stationary healing zone is functionally useless against mobile enemies.
NTE Character Tier List FAQ
Who is the best character in Neverness to Everness?
Nanally is the strongest character in NTE Version 1.0 — she has the highest raw single-target and AoE damage in the launch roster, requires minimal setup, and synergizes with every team buffer. Jiuyuan and Sakiri follow closely as the most flexible S+ alternatives.
Who should I pull first in NTE?
You should pull Nanally on the Ichi-daime limited banner first. After that, use your free S-class selector (unlocked after 50 pulls) on Sakiri for the best support. Jiuyuan is your best secondary option from the same selector if you already have a buffer.
Is Mint good in Neverness to Everness?
Despite being the marketing face of NTE, Mint is not meta-viable. She has decent parry potential and basic single-target damage, but every higher-tier DPS outperforms her significantly. She’s playable for personal enjoyment but a poor investment for serious progression.
What is the best free character in NTE?
Chiz is the best free character in Neverness to Everness — you obtain her with all five awakening copies through the City Tycoon system. She has a high skill ceiling but rivals limited 5-stars when fully built. Sakiri (free via the S-class selector) is a close second.
Is Sakiri better than Nanally?
Nanally is the better damage dealer; Sakiri is the better support. They aren’t competing for the same role — they’re meant to be played together. If forced to pick one, take Nanally for raw power and grab Sakiri from the free selector.
What does S+ Tier mean in NTE?
S+ tier characters are the meta-defining picks at launch — Nanally, Sakiri, Chiz, and Jiuyuan. They outperform every other unit in their role, are the highest priority for pulls, and form the core of nearly every optimal team composition.
Is Esper Zero (the main character) worth investing in?
Yes. Esper Zero is A-tier, but their value is universal because every account has them. Their Instant Cycle mechanic accelerates Esper Cycle reactions and they have a built-in self-heal. Build them up — they slot into almost every team comp.
Will the NTE tier list change?
Absolutely. NTE just launched on April 29, 2026, so balance patches, new banner releases (Lacrimosa, Hotori, and others), and meta shifts will reshape this list every 4-6 weeks. Bookmark this page — I update it after every major patch.
How many characters are in NTE Version 1.0?
There are 17 playable characters at launch in Neverness to Everness Version 1.0: Nanally, Sakiri, Chiz, Jiuyuan, Baicang, Daffodill, Hathor, Fadia, Esper Zero, Mint, Edgar, Adler, Haniel, Skia, Aurelia, Hotori, and Lacrimosa.
What is the best beginner team in NTE?
The strongest beginner team is Nanally + Sakiri + Esper Zero + Adler — it combines the best DPS, best support, MC reaction driver, and the easiest shielder for survivability. If you don’t have Nanally, swap her with Jiuyuan or Baicang.
Final Verdict: Should You Trust This Tier List?
A tier list is a starting framework, not gospel. Player skill, team synergy, and personal preference all influence how well a character actually performs in your hands. Even C-tier characters can clear all current Version 1.0 content with proper investment — meta tiering exists for efficiency, not gatekeeping.
That said, if you want the absolute best return on your Annulith and time, follow this list. Pull for Nanally, lock in Sakiri from the free selector, grind out Chiz through City Tycoon, and build around them. You’ll cruise through launch content and have a flexible roster ready for the next banner cycle.
Save this page — I update it after every patch. And let me know in the comments who you pulled and how your team is shaping up.