With the introduction of Chapter 10, the new Primal Hunt system, primordial items, and sweeping class reworks, the game's meta has shifted dramatically from campaign to empowered monoliths and endgame bosses.

Whether you're looking to speed farm monoliths, melt bosses, or simply find a build that matches your playstyle, Season 3 reshapes what's viable. Enemy damage normalization has smoothed survivability across progression, minion buffs revived Necromancer and Beastmaster archetypes, and new crafting flexibility via primordials allows for creative gearing. Still, some builds remain clunky (looking at you, Harvest Lich and Ignite Shield Rush) while others like Warpath VK and Ballista Falconer dominate.

This article breaks down the best starter builds in Season 3 and ranks them from worst to best in an early tier list, followed by a class-wide ranking.

Last Epoch Season 3 Build Tier List – Best Starter Builds Ranked

S Tier – Meta Definers

· Warpath Void Knight – Spin to win, nearly unkillable, and clears everything.

· Bear Beastmaster – Tankiest melee companion, hits like a truck.

· Erasing Strike Void Knight – Boss one-shot monster; slower for farming.

· Ballista Falconer – The face of Falconer dominance; AoE + single target.

· Judgment Paladin – New buffs turn it into righteous fire with healing.

· Abomination Necromancer – One-minion army; stronger, tougher, and finally viable.

A+ Tier – Strong, But Slightly Behind

· Tornado Shaman

· Lightning Blast Runemaster

· Totem Shaman

· Hydrohedron Runemaster

· Raptor Beastmaster

· Glacier Sorcerer

· Sabertooth Beastmaster

· Shatter Strike Spellblade

· Storm Crows Beastmaster

· Infernal Shade Necromancer

· Earthquake Beastmaster

A Tier – Reliable All-Rounders

· Melee DoT Lich

· Acid Flask Rogue

· Chaos Bolts Lich

· Javelin Paladin (Holy Trail)

· Rive Void Knight

· Shield Throw Paladin

· Devouring Orb Time Rot VK

· Crit Hammer Throw Paladin

· Shield Bash Forge Guard

· Bleed Hammer Throw Paladin

· Hail of Arrows Marksman

B Tier – Playable, But Flawed

· Marrow Shards Lich

· Smite Void Knight

· Stygian Coil Lich

· Multistrike Smite VK

· Forge Weapons Forge Guard

· Heartseeker Marksman

· Multistrike Forge Guard

· Umbral Blades Falconer

· Ignite Shield Rush Forge Guard

· Shadow Cascade Bladedancer

· Frostbite Frostclaw Sorcerer

· Lethal Mirage Bladedancer

· Flame Wraith Necromancer

· Squirrel Beastmaster

C Tier – Off-Meta or Underperforming

· Lightning Swarmblade Druid

· Multishot Marksman

· Torment Warlock

· Bleed Falconer

· Mana-Stacking “Void Mage” Necromancer

· Harvest Lich

Extra Tested Starters – Noteworthy Mentions

· Bleed Javelin Forge Guard: Surprisingly strong after gear tweaks; visually satisfying beams of light.

· Gathering Storm Dual-Wield Beastmaster: Weak and painfully slow; skip until buffs arrive.

· Static Sorcerer: Functional, but mediocre damage; Static needs an AoE rework.

· Bleed Shield Rush Paladin: Fun and consistent; AoE variant could rival top builds with primordials.

Last Epoch Season 3 Class Tier List

S Tier – The Kings

· Sentinel (Void Knight / Paladin / Forge Guard)

  · Void Knight: Warpath and Erasing Strike define the melee meta.

  · Paladin: Judgment buffs, Hammer Throw, and Shield Throw give multiple powerful routes.

  · Forge Guard: Shield Bash buffs breathed new life into the class.

· Primalist (Beastmaster / Shaman)

  · Beastmaster: Bear is tanky and top tier, Raptor got boosted, and Earthquake is back.

  · Shaman: Tornado trimmed but still strong; Totems are versatile with healing and AoE.

· Rogue (Falconer)

  · Falconer: Ballista is absurdly strong; other variants trail behind but are still workable.

A Tier – Great, But More Limited

· Mage (Sorcerer / Runemaster / Spellblade)

  · Sorcerer: Glacier dominates cold builds, though Static is middling.

  · Runemaster: Lightning Blast and Hydra turrets shine, but lean on the unique.

  · Spellblade: Shatter Strike remains flashy, reliable, and deadly.

· Rogue (Marksman / Bladedancer)

  · Marksman: Hail of Arrows is steady, but Multishot fell behind.

  · Bladedancer: Stylish but fragile; Lethal Mirage can nuke bosses but lacks consistency.

B Tier – Inconsistent or Gear-Dependent

· Acolyte (Lich / Necromancer / Warlock)

  · Lich: Chaos Bolts and Melee DoT shine, but Harvest is clunky.

  · Necromancer: Abomination is top tier, others like Flame Wraith remain squishy.

  · Warlock: Torment is still underwhelming despite buffs.

C Tier – Needs More Work

· Druid (Swarmblade)

  · Lightning Swarmblade lags behind; shapeshifting buffs didn't save it.

Final Thoughts

Season 3 of Last Epoch truly reshapes the meta. Warpath Void Knight, Ballista Falconer, and Bear Beastmaster dominate the endgame, while other builds like Judgment Paladin and Abomination Necromancer rose from mediocrity to the top thanks to buffs and primordial item flexibility.

At the same time, certain archetypes like Harvest Lich, Swarmblade Druid, and Torment Warlock are still searching for their place. With the new systems, however, even weaker builds feel more playable thanks to enemy damage normalization and better survivability across the board.

If you're starting Season 3 fresh, you can't go wrong picking from the S-tier, but with so many viable builds, this is the best time to experiment and find your favorite playstyle.


We hope you found this guide useful. For more Last Epoch tips and resources, visit Eld.gg — where you can also buy cheap Last Epoch gold!