Dinotica Combat Companion Tier List
S-tier is a readable rider plus an AI partner that actually leaves your hitbox. Names are examples, not a fake Pokédex.
This combat tier list ranks jobs inside a three-slot rift party. You steer one mount. Two AI dinos cover space. If a species cannot do one of those jobs well, it belongs on the Worker Tier List, not in a pity S row here.
S — kits that change the room
Readable projectile riders. Fan shots and medium-pace sprays let you learn Dark Forest tells. They are less stylish than lobs with extra bounces, and they wipe less.
Roaming AI with independent angles. The best positive review in Early Access praised partners that are not glued to the mount. If a hatchling only attacks while stacked on you, drop it a tier.
Support that creates geometry. Wall droppers sounded weak until relics made the walls explode or tether a damage beam. That interaction is the closest thing Dinotica has to a broken combo. Keep the wall species if you already own relics that modify structures.
Named patch kits. Vexora’s Annihilation Barrage had projectile speed doubled and interval cut in 1.10.1 — that is an official thumbs-up for a bullet-hell rider. Gluttony’s Earthshaking Devour is a pull; pulls are S-tier when they actually fire (the same patch fixed a chance to fail). Kapi Bee’s Dual Bee Pursuit Sting re-inherited a splitting effect, which is code for “this kit is meant to multiply.”
A — solid chapter clearers
Simple melee riders with multi-hit basics. They struggle when arenas shrink, which 1.0 maps still do. Take them into Emerald Forest and Lost Sands; swap before Flame Rift if you cannot see telegraphs.
Lobed rock throwers that want bounce relics. High ceiling, awkward floor. Park them until you understand Totem Builds.
New 1.0 Dark Forest associated kits (青焰翼龍, 陵魚, and friends on Companions) are unranked in English until players publish kits. Do not bench a hatchling just because this page has no Western nickname.
B — specialists
Pure tanks with no readable shot. Fine as AI if they hold aggro; miserable as riders.
Duplicate copies of your S-tier rider. They do not stack damage by standing together. Merge them — How to Breed.
Anything that fills the screen with particles on the first totem. Fun, then a crash. Several reviews mention this. B-tier until you play on a machine that survives it; see System Requirements.
C — leave at home
Workers with watering or hunting talents and no combat tell. Forcing them into Nightmare because they are “high star” is how you donate a night to the rift. Put them on the farm via Farm and Base.
How to apply the list tonight
- Seat a readable rider.
- Seat an AI kit that functions off-screen.
- Optional support if you own matching relics.
- Buy movement speed before a new species.
- Confirm the party in the Team Builder.
Door symbols and boss tells remain more important than a letter grade. Read Dungeons and Bosses when a chapter still kills a supposed S party. If couch co-op is the plan, remember each human needs a rider — Co-op.
This list will move when a patch names a species again. Until then, rank the job you can see in the training dummy, not a rumour row from another dinosaur game.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers drawn from the current 1.0 build.
Is there a single best dinosaur?
No. The best party is a readable rider, an off-angle AI, and a worker who stays home.
Why is movement speed mentioned so often?
Veterans call it the upgrade that makes cramped rooms readable. It outranks most species swaps.
Should I use a particle-heavy special?
Only if your PC survives it. Particle storms have crashed runs; keep a simpler rider as backup.
Where do new 1.0 dinos sit?
Under Companions until English kits are documented. Hatch them, test the basic shot, then place the role yourself.
