[ Guide ] Arknights: Ranking the best 6-Star for their niche and class

As players can expect a 6-star paid selector ticket with special occasions in Arknights, here’s a guide to help you decide which one to get when the time comes. This list will only cover permanently available, global releases. “Best” is also not a strict qualitative point, as each Operator can have a niche they shine in. Check out our recommended 5-stars here in the mean time.

Modules are also mostly not considered so as to be more “beginner” friendly.

EASE OF USE

Operators in this category often see very high usage, and for good reason. Flexibility can be king especially when it comes to more challenging content when you may have limited space, or banned classes.

OPERATOR	CLASS	SKILL 1	SKILL 2	SKILL 3	COMMENTS
EYJAFJALLA	Caster	"Standard" skill.	Can hold up to 3 charges when mastered, dealing AOE damage and reducing Arts resistance.	Relatively long cooldown nuke.	Classified as a single target Caster with AOE capabilities. Extremely solid choice if lacking Arts damage.
SILVERASH	Guard	Luxury mastery choice.	Allows him to be an off-tank.	Signature skill, highly recommended to master as soon as possible.	Removing stealth from enemies is relatively niche, but reducing deployment cooldown is handy to have. Skill 3 is a highlight for mass deletion of enemies.
SARIA	Defender	Can hold a lane by herself, or support adjacent units with a large heal when they go below 50% HP.	AOE heal with decently large range, may remove the need for dedicated Medics.	Large heals, and makes stalling zone thanks to its slow, while also boosting Arts damage taken by enemies.	Talent can give SP to allies, IF they're not already at full HP.
BLAZE	Guard	Luxury mastery choice.	Needs ramp up time, but then gets ATK and DEF increase, and +1 tile range.	Burst damage at cost of own HP.	Arguably power-crept, but still an easy to use unit to hold a lane. Decently survivable thanks to one-time "immortality", and has higher resistance to statuses.
CEOBE	Caster	Could permanently Bind a single unit not immune to the status.	Most common skill, for rapid fire single target damage on a high Physical DEF enemy.	Not particularly useful on high Physical DEF enemies, Silence utility is case by case basis.	Maybe not as needed if you have Eyja. Still a very solid pick if you need more targetted Arts damage.
BAGPIPE	Vanguard	Standard skill.	Burst damage with up to 3 charges.	High damage "off-tank", only enemies with the highest Physical DEF may shrug it off.	Enables other Vanguards thanks to increasing their starting SP including her own, while being an extremely competent and powerful Vanguard herself.
THORNS	Guard	Standard skill.	Defensive mode, can heal himself back up in this mode. Actual use is relatively debatable.	Signature skill, turns him into an auto-turret ground Sniper on second cast, permanently.	Needs some wind up time, worth it for his sheer versatility.
SURTR	Guard	Luxury mastery choice.	More "consistent" damage without killing herself.	High burst Arts damage, potentially makes her good bait for other high damage attacks as side effect.	Skill 3 is basically what most, if not all, want her for. Her reducing enemy Arts resistance ensures she will hit really hard, and she can live a little longer to try finish the job. Weakness is not being able to hit air units.
MUDROCK	Defender	Unnecessary.	Good for lane-holding, helping her survive even better.	Often utilized for challenge runs, with slow and stuns, though she doesn't block anything until she's done charging up for the bonk.	Watch her spin if you have Blemishine and (Guard) Ch'en on the field. Worth having for both "regular" and challenge content.
MOUNTAIN	Guard	Luxury mastery choice.	For lane-holding, turning him into a pseudo-AOE melee hitter. Regeneration and his own talent mostly negates the -DEF% demerit.	AOE damage, "slowing" down enemies by modestly shoving them around.	Almost has no drawbacks of his archetype. Low deployment cost means he can be quickly placed down as needed.
SAGA	Vanguard	Standard skill.	Easy to spam, especially when it comes to trash enemies for even more SP to spam.	Helps for lane holding in essence, offering some range and DPS.	Talent may cause some embarrassing accidents since she doesn't attack Crippled targets outside of Skill 2. One-time survival mechanic, offering her more durability before you deploy your core units.
IRENE	Guard	Levitates an enemy, striking them twice in the priess.	AOE damage and Levitates enemies.	Her signature skill, enabling her to basically skewer an enemy in mid-air.	She gets increased attack speed which means she can gain SP faster. The fact she can also ignore enemy defense, which is a 100% chance on Aerial enemies - doable through Levitate - gives her a synergistic kit.
MŁYNAR	Guard	A generic skill.	Double hit and increased range. Gets to keep his attack multiplier if he gets to kill an enemy during its duration.	A damage skill on par with (arguably even better than) SilverAsh's Truesilver Slash. He is capable of True damage too.	His primary weakness is that he can't block anything when he's standing by, but considering the damage he can bring, that's not the biggest tradeoff.

SOME FINESSE REQUIRED

These Operators either need some timing, or have a drawback that doesn’t necessarily have to be a drawback.

OPERATOR	CLASS	SKILL 1	SKILL 2	SKILL 3	COMMENTS
EXUSIAI	Sniper	Unnecessary, a luxury...?	For more controlled fire.	Automatic rapid fire.	Falls off when against high Physical DEF enemies which she'd like more help against. Otherwise, solid pick for anti-air.
ANGELINA	Supporter	Arguably luxury.	For single-target slows, not exactly for damage.	AOE Arts damage with Slow. Offers some meme potential as it reduces enemy Weight.	Arguably more dependent on upgrades than others. Doesn't normally attack on two of her skills, increasing need for timing skills.
KAL'TSIT	Medic	Arguably unnecessary.	Gives Mon3tr AOE attack. Attack speed is for Kal'tsit, not Mon3tr. Needs Mon3tr deployment to charge up.	Gives Mon3tr True Damage, ignoring defenses at decaying attack multiplier. Needs Mon3tr deployment to charge up.	Two of her skills don't charge up if Mon3tr is not deployed, but the skills have relatively low cost to make this mostly negligible. Needs two on-field deployment slots. DO NOT USE AS YOUR ONLY MEDIC.
MAGALLAN	Supporter	For stalling.	For Arts damage.	For Physical AOE damage.	Extremely flexible toolkit. Lower in priority for non-summoner enthusiasts as drones retreat once skill duration ends.
PHANTOM	Specialist	Luxury.	To snipe off single targets.	Push "bomb" with random debuffs. Push could potentially be detrimental as direction cannot be controlled.	If you need to stall one enemy, Gravel is cheaper. Projekt Red can also be good enough to snipe targets, or to stun. However, since you have effectively two units to do whatever you need him to, his overall toolkit can be tailored to the situation if you're squad limited.
WEEDY	Specialist	Niche use.	Ramp up to "hold" a lane.	Deals True Damage depending on distance travelled, her signature skill.	Has damage, not relegated to just a glorified 6-star Push Specialist. Skill 1 used to stunlock enemies in challenge runs, otherwise niche. Water Cannon "doubles" her Skill 2 / 3's effectiveness. If you need additional damage, could be an option in a pinch.
BLEMISHINE	Defender	Heal only occurs when attacking something.	Puts enemies to Sleep, Talent helps her prioritize these enemies and deal higher damage to them.	Gives her more defense and attack and heals allies, but does not heal HERSELF.	Sleeping enemies cannot be targetted by allies. If she can't clear them, she may let enemies through once they wake up.
GNOSIS	Supporter	Relatively standard skill offering double attack.	Burst Cold / Freeze damage that can be charged.	Rapid fire attack for Cold Freeze application, and one large burst on skill end.	Without applying Cold / Freeze, it's arguable he's not as high impact as more consistent burst damage. He's still worthwhile since he doesn't have as "punishing" a downtime as someone like Angelina.
LEE	Specialist	Attack boost and minor dodge.	Passively boosts his attack speed. Active marks the target for both him and his allies, while he bops away at it to boost the end explosion damage.	Pushes smaller units away, makes him tankier / better dodge tank capabilities. Gives him more attack range.	Due to continuously consuming DP, he can be tricky to use. He also doesn't have the self-sustain that Jaye has as tanky or evasive as he is (since it's not guaranteed). However, being able to stun enemies (provided you have DP) can be clutch, and his ground attack range can be extremely useful too (push strength notwithstanding).
GOLDENGLOW	Caster	Simple skill for attack speed.	Permanently increases attack range.	Her signature skill with global range and slow.	While she's undeniably incredibly powerful, her global range doesn't have specific targetting. If her drones don't explode and kill the enemy, you may find them locked onto an enemy for longer than you'd like.
HORN	Defender	Long distance sniping of invisible enemies possible.	Both Physical and Arts nuke potential.	Goes guns a-blazing at the cost of HP.	Due to her range and two of her skills eating her HP, she can be harder to use for those not familiar with stages to maximize her long range nuking potential. She does get to be so angry to stay alive a little longer and nuke faster, if not necessarily something you want to rely on.
POZYOMKA	Sniper	Generic skill, but has infinite duration.	2 charges of burst damage potential, besides reducing her Typewriter's redeployment time.	Increased attack range and faster attack speed, and more damage. Pretty much her signature skill.	The finesse is mostly from finding a position for her Typewriter to utilize its defense reduction and double up on her skills.
PENANCE	Defender	Can charge up to deal Arts damage and stun.	Stops attacking to nuke enemies around her.	Becomes tankier, dealing Arts damage back to her attacker.	Unlike Mudrock, her usage differs a little, in being more Offense oriented to restore her shields. She doesn't have the same level of self-sustain as Mudrock but can't be healed.
REED THE FLAME SHADOW	Medic	Generic skill.	Puts an AOE on an ally and gives them additional sustain.	Her signature, where she can chain nuke a mob of enemies.	Her attack capability is more relevant for a rush of smaller enemies rather than a boss. If you need something more offensive during those periods, then sure.

MORE SITUATIONAL

These Operators have even more niche uses, but knowing how to use them will make them very potent.

OPERATOR	CLASS	SKILL 1	SKILL 2	SKILL 3	COMMENTS
CH'EN	Guard	Niche use.	Instant nuke at full mastery.	Multi-hit damage and stun.	Relatively power-crept. High defense enemies make her Skill 2 look underwhelming for finishing blows. Skill 3 takes time to ramp up even with her own talent.
SIEGE	Vanguard	Standard skill.	AOE damage with up to 3 charges. Provides DP only when attacking.	Gives no DP, offering more damage and stun chance.	Skill 2 would let her hold a lane, but once she has no enemies to attack, she can't provide DP. Skill 3's use is also niche; why not bring an actual Guard instead?
IFRIT	Caster	Standard skill.	Holds up to 3 charges to deal Arts damage and also reduces Physical DEF.	Continuously lowers HP to burn enemies in range while lowering their Arts resistance.	Single line range will require more careful placement than other Casters, but is quite powerful regardless.
SKADI	Guard	Standard skill.	Drop to snipe off single enemies.	For tanking a single enemy.	Simple kit, somewhat usable as a fast-redeploy Specialist. Simple kit also means she doesn't have the flexibility to fit into teams.
SCHWARZ	Sniper	"Standard" skill.	Offers less restrictive damage.	For sniping high defense enemies, "generally" bosses. Requires mastery for +1 tile range.	Her narrow range, be it regular or her Skill 3, won't make her your first choice for a Sniper. She does have her niche leaning to destroying higher Physical DEF enemies.
HELLAGUR	Guard	Deploy and forget.	To tackle single targets, more for Physical damage enemies that he can dodge (subject to chance).	AOE, for slamming down enemies in a single line.	Can't be healed. Requires low HP for high attack speed, so it takes balancing his HP for maximum efficiency. Can at least heal himself back up if needed.
MOSTIMA	Caster	Standard skill.	"Locks" enemies in place. Works on enemies walking into the AOE.	An Arts version of SilverAsh's Truesilver Slash. Comes with some Push force, long cooldown.	High cost to deploy, and has weakness of limited range and slow attack speed. Even with own talent, skills may take too long to recharge as some may prefer.
ROSA	Sniper	Standard skill.	+1 target.	Binds and damages enemies. Decently fast cooldown, and quite damaging especially on heavier enemies.	Requires working around her unusual range. Does not prioritize air targets, so cannot be a direct replacement for anti-air.
SUZURAN	Supporter	"Standard" skill, unreliable.	Pseudo-AOE, permanent multi-hit and slow.	Stops attacking to slow enemies in range, while healing allies. Enemies are debuffed in this area.	While quite a useful unit, her effectiveness arguably depends on your existing roster of units. She helps her allies do more, but on her own, unlikely to be very game-changing.
EUNECTES	Defender	Standard skill.	Can potentially lock down single targets.	Turns her into a tank with massive damage, at cost of stunning her at end of duration.	Can't recharge SP when not blocking enemies, not even with external help. Since she can only normally block one enemy, she's unlikely to be high priority except for niche uses.
ARCHETTO	Sniper	Pseudo-AOE.	Can hold charges for pseudo-AOE / spam.	Multi-hit, multi-target, longer range.	All skills require her to be attacking, offset by her own talent. Ricochet may be detrimental depending on bounce. If you already have Exusiai, she's lower priority. Better than Exusiai with multiple targets.
PASSENGER	Caster	"Standard" skill.	For more consistent damage, slow and range.	Burst damage, can reach outside of his range. Random targetting.	Definitely requires investment and more support at base level. High skill and deployment cost makes him more niche.
CARNELIAN	Caster	"Standard" skill.	Slows on nuke.	Even more vigorous nuke.	Doesn't normally attack, so timing required. Offers more effects thanks to Charge mechanic. Arguably less durable than her sister, Beeswax, since she only heals herself on skill use.
PALLAS	Guard	Standard skill.	Offers stun and more range.	Buffs an ally in front of her and multi-targetting for herself. Can also buff self if there's no ally.	Leaning closer to support, might be better to get a more individually powerful unit over her.
MIZUKI	Specialist	"Standard" skill.	Offers some crowd control.	Offers more crowd control, at cost of own HP if there aren't more than 3 targets.	Damage potential and crowd control abilities relatively debatable. Furthermore, can't block and survivability is also debatable if using Skill 3.
SAILEACH	Vanguard	Standard skill.	Heals the lowest HP ally in range and buffs their DEF.	Stuns and slows enemies, debuffing those in range.	As a regular Vanguard, she's a luxury. Skill 2 is single target and variable targetting, so not the most reliable. Much like Suzuran, her Skill 3 is arguably only best when you already have units to take advantage of the debuff.
FARTOOTH	Sniper	Standard skill.	Can attack enemies outside her range if they're blocked by allies.	Deals more damage if enemies are outside her regular range in an infinite straight line.	Attack multipliers depend on enemies being outside her range, which itself is relatively wide. Base Skill 2 has low uptime even when mastered. Similar issues with Schwarz in getting target in range.
FLAMETAIL	Vanguard	Grants DP and a guaranteed dodge.	Grants DP, deals Physical damage, mini-Stun and Physical evasion to allies.	"Spammable" self-buff for increased ATK SPD, +1 block, and dodge. Also provides some DP.	Burst potential is high, but low skill duration. Kit revolves around dodging, and while the chance is quite high, no guarantee means bad luck could "ruin" runs. Not strictly meant for DP generation either, making more "standard" Vanguards more suited for that role.
FIAMETTA	Sniper	A simple skill increasing her range and attack.	Long range explosives with high AOE potential / double tapping.	Continuous AOE nuke at fixed distance until deactivated.	All her skills being Offensive recovery is slightly offset by her increased ASPD when no skill is active. For this alone, it's anti-synergistic with her signature skill 3. She also continuously passively loses HP; her attack multiplier requiring high HP means she needs constant support to take advantage of it. You can opt for easier to use units.
EBENHOLZ	Caster	Attack range becomes a line and attacks faster.	Loses his charges for a summon that lasts 30 seconds and detonates on enemy approach, pulling them towards him.	Made out to be a boss-killer skill.	His attack can theoretically go through the roof due to his archetype but his "boss killer" ability is more likely to be sidelined for easier to use Operators except in certain conditions.
DOROTHY	Specialist	Simple trap that debuffs Physical defense.	Physical damage and bind.	Does Arts damage and slow, while also detonating other traps in range.	Her S3 is one that's much better suited for enemy swarms compared to Robin or Frost, and setting off the other traps can be useful for bosses. She's in the Situational category as the chain detonation may be detrimental when the enemy gets slowed and isn't in range of the next trap, thus "wasting" damage.
STAINLESS	Supporter	Buffs ally attack, improves its effect at destroying active Devices.	Gives SP to allies, can be sped up at the cost of increasing the Device's HP loss.	The Offensive Recovery SP battery.	His S3 will be the one to help get Operators like Thorns up to speed. Any Artificer subclass Operator can repair the devices, but you will still need to find the position for placements of him, his Device, and the Operator that will benefit from it.

CLASS LIMITATIONS

Due to their skillset, these Operators have arguably even more limited use, and would not be readily picked up except for fringe cases.

OPERATOR	CLASS	SKILL 1	SKILL 2	SKILL 3	COMMENTS
SHINING	Medic	Standard skill, ASPD for faster heals.	Holds charges to give brief boost in Physical defense. Hard to time, if at all.	Boosts ally Physical defense.	Often seen to protect squishier Operators in Aak showcase videos. Besides providing Physical defense, unlikely to be a priority pick.
NIGHTINGALE	Medic	Standard skill.	Holds charges to give brief boost in Arts resistance. Hard to time, if at all.	Increased area of healing, increases Arts resistance, gives Arts Dodge (unreliable)	Deploy and retreat her to get 3 of her Cages when you redeploy her, which can be handy as bait. Outside of providing Arts resistance and gambling the Arts dodge RNG, it's unlikely she'll be your priority pick. Apparently an Elite 2 Level 1 Nightingale's Cages decay slower than a higher levelled one, so do what you will with that information.
HOSHIGUMA	Defender	Standard skill.	Passively damages all enemies that attack her.	Offers AOE damage to shred anything in front of her.	A super simple kit for a tank. She can outright no-sell attacks, but this is random. If you want someone fancier with more flexible skills, she's unlikely to be a first pick.
AAK	Specialist	Standard skill for a fake Sniper.	Buffs HP and DEF of an ally after shooting them. Buffs also apply to him.	Buffs ATK and ATK Speed of an ally after shooting them. Buffs also apply to him.	His third skill is the most commonly seen one for showcases to boost a unit's attack. Both Skill 2 and 3 CAN kill the unit in front of him. He always loses HP, so if you're using him as an attacker, you need to support him with a Medic or he'd die when there's nothing to hit.

And there you have it, our recommendations for the best (more or less) 6-star Operators in Arknights, roughly sorted into their niches. It’s not to say the non-priority ones are Bad, it’s simply typically harder to find a slot for them.

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Arknights Global

Publisher: Yostar Inc

Developer: Hypergryph

Release Date: 2020-01-16

Android, iOS

Take on the role of a key member of Rhodes Island, a pharmaceutical company that fights both a deadly infection and the unrest it leaves in its wake. Together with your leader Amiya, you’ll recruit Operators, train them, then assign them to various operations to protect the innocent and resist those who would thrust the world into turmoil. Your tactics will determine the future of Rhodes Island. Fight for the Dawn!

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