In Heroes vs. Hordes, your choice of weapons and tomes will determine how far you can push through waves. Some shine in the early game and help you level fast, while others dominate the late game, especially in Nightmare Mode. The key is understanding not just which ones rank high, but why they perform well and when to prioritize them.
Heroes vs. Hordes Best Weapons Tier List (2025)
At the very top sit the S-tier weapons, which are worth prioritising in nearly every run. Bombs are the undisputed king of damage because they scale incredibly well from the start all the way into the late game, often topping the damage charts even in the hardest content.
Ice Wand, on the other hand, earns its spot by offering survival through control, freezing both hordes and elites so you can keep pushing further than your raw stats might allow.
Fire Orbs round out the S-tier by being a versatile core option that excels as enemies close in and evolves into a devastating Flame Wheel with the right tome.
In the A tier, Dragon’s Breath dominates the early game with its wide cone of fire that melts hordes, making it perfect for leveling and farming, but its cone-shaped attacks don’t hit enough enemies later on to stay relevant in Nightmare.
Chain Lightning deserves its place here as well because it brings excellent multi-target damage and synergizes well with tomes that boost projectiles, making it a great complement to almost any build.
The B-tier weapons have strong uses, but they’re more situational. The Crossbow is a great choice if you can commit to forging it, as it applies Vulnerability to enemies and boosts the overall damage of your entire build.
Similarly, the Arcane Wand, sometimes referred to as the Arcane Staff, finds its strength in Nightmare Mode and boss fights, where its burn and single-target hits can really shine, though it’s less effective outside of those scenarios.
Dropping to the C tier, weapons like Boomerangs and Divine Aura tend to be more about control than raw damage. Boomerangs evolve into Herowangs, adding useful slows that can help in tight spaces like the Arena, but overall, they don’t bring enough killing power.
Divine Aura provides early sustain through its Vampire Aura evolution but quickly falls off as the game progresses, leaving it more of a fallback option than a core weapon.
Finally, in the D tier, Poison Darts and Hammers sit at the bottom. Poison Darts are only worth mentioning if you happen to be stuck with Evasion Tome, since their small area of effect makes them nearly irrelevant in real runs.
Hammers, meanwhile, feel clunky and weak because of their low hit rate, and even when evolved, they tend to push enemies away rather than kill them, which makes them one of the least desirable options in the game.
Heroes vs. Hordes Best Tomes Tier List (2025)
Just like weapons, tomes make or break your build. At the S tier, Cooldown Tome is unmatched thanks to the sheer volume of attacks it unlocks, letting you cast significantly faster and scaling your overall damage higher than almost any other upgrade.
Alongside it, Area Tome stands as one of the most valuable tomes because it not only evolves Bombs, one of the best weapons in the game, but also increases the size of splash attacks like Fire Orbs and Chain Lightning, dramatically improving crowd control.
In the A tier, Duplicator Tome and Damage Tome are both highly reliable choices. Duplicator Tome adds extra projectiles, which benefits a wide range of weapons and enables evolutions like Flame Wheel or Thunderbolt. Damage Tome is equally powerful because it universally boosts output, including pet damage, and plays a key role in evolving Dragon’s Breath.
Moving down to the B tier, Critical Strike Tome and Armor Tome serve as strong but secondary choices. Critical Strike Tome is great for late-game builds where you already have your core tomes secured, and while it technically evolves Hammers, that synergy doesn’t add much. Armor Tome, meanwhile, doesn’t evolve a top weapon but is extremely valuable for tanky runs or Nightmare attempts where survival is often the real challenge.
The C tier tomes fill more niche roles. Life Tome provides the Ice Wand evolution into Frost Nova, which is useful in certain defensive builds, while Coin Tome sacrifices power for farming efficiency, making it worthwhile only when you’re specifically farming gold-heavy runs with heroes like Leprechaun.
Lastly, the D tier is occupied by Evasion Tome, which simply doesn’t contribute much outside of very specific dodge-focused builds. While it evolves Poison Darts, the weapon itself is so low-tier that the synergy rarely feels rewarding.
The best way to approach Heroes vs. Hordes is to think about synergy, not just individual power. A weapon like Dragon’s Breath may carry your early game but fade out later, while Bombs and Ice Wand can keep dominating well into Nightmare Mode.
Tomes follow the same rule—Cooldown and Area tomes feel mandatory in most runs, while others are situational boosts depending on your weapon setup.
By combining the right evolutions and investing smartly into forging, you’ll set yourself up for smooth farming, stronger survival, and deeper progression against the endless hordes.
