The best classes in 99 Nights in the Forest for October 2025 are Assassin, Cyborg, and Brawler in S-Tier, offering unmatched combat effectiveness and utility. These top-tier classes provide exceptional starting gear, powerful passive abilities, and scale incredibly well throughout your survival journey. Whether you prefer solo play or team coordination, our comprehensive tier list ranks all 24 classes based on combat effectiveness, resource gathering, team utility, and cost efficiency to help you make the perfect Diamond investment.
| Tier | Classes | Cost Range | Best For | Playstyle |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S-Tier | Assassin, Cyborg, Brawler, Alien, Pyromaniac | 100-600 Diamonds | Combat, Late-game | Aggressive, Solo/Team |
| A-Tier | Lumberjack, Blacksmith, Poison Master, Fire Bandit | 70-200 Diamonds | Resources, Support | Balanced, Team-focused |
| B-Tier | Ranger, Medic, Big Game Hunter, Chef | 40-600 Diamonds | Utility, Niche roles | Situational, Support |
| C-Tier | Scavenger, Hunter, Berserker, Supporter | 25-100 Diamonds | Early-game | Beginner-friendly |
| F-Tier | Camper, Cook, Gambler, Decorator | 10-55 Diamonds | Very specific niches | Casual play |
Our tier list is compiled from extensive research across 5 authoritative sources including GameRant, VG247, PCGamesN, and the official 99 Nights in the Forest Wiki. We evaluate each class based on:
Contents
Starting Gear: Katana, 120 Throwing Knives
Perks: +10% sprint speed, -15% HP, critical hit chance on first strike
Why S-Tier: The Assassin delivers unparalleled burst damage with high mobility. Despite the HP reduction, the katana's incredible damage output combined with throwing knives creates a devastating combo that excels in both solo and team play. The speed bonus allows for quick positioning and escape, making it one of the most consistently powerful classes regardless of game updates.
Starting Gear: Laser Cannon, Alien Armour
Perks: Alien tech overheating mechanics, healing at full charge, energy restoration on kills
Why S-Tier: Cyborg dominates late-game content with the laser cannon's massive damage output. While the overheating mechanic requires skill management, the payoff is enormous. The alien armour provides excellent defense, and the energy restoration on kills creates a sustainable combat loop that few classes can match in extended engagements.
Starting Gear: Leather Body Armor
Perks: +30% melee damage, +20% HP, cannot use ranged weapons, health regeneration
Why S-Tier: Incredible value for just 100 Diamonds. The Brawler's massive HP pool combined with increased melee damage makes it nearly unstoppable in close combat. The health regeneration perk ensures sustainability, and while the ranged weapon restriction is a drawback, the melee bonuses more than compensate, making it perfect for aggressive players.
Starting Gear: Raygun
Perks: Night vision, sprint speed mechanics with alien tech, faster tech recharge
Why S-Tier: Alien offers unique utility with permanent night vision, eliminating the need for light sources. The raygun provides solid ranged damage, and the sprint speed mechanics create interesting tactical options. At only 100 Diamonds, it's an exceptional value for players who want versatility.
Starting Gear: Flamethrower
Perks: Fuel system, auto-cooked food, speed boost with burning enemies
Why S-Tier: Pyromaniac excels at crowd control with area-of-effect fire damage. The ability to auto-cook food provides sustainability, and the speed boost mechanic creates an aggressive playstyle that rewards skillful positioning. While expensive, the flamethrower's effectiveness against groups of enemies justifies the investment.
Starting Gear: Good Axe
Perks: Bonus log drops, double sapling chance, increased wood gathering
Why A-Tier: The best resource gathering class in the game. For only 70 Diamonds, you get massive wood generation that accelerates base building and crafting progression. Essential for team compositions and incredibly valuable for solo players who want to rush campfire upgrades.
Starting Gear: Hammer
Perks: Access to higher crafting tiers, recipe discounts, bonus scrap
Why A-Tier: Blacksmith enables faster progression through the crafting tree, which is crucial for mid-game success. The ability to craft higher-tier items earlier than other classes provides a significant advantage, and the scrap generation helps maintain resource flow.
Starting Gear: Poison Armor, Blowpipe
Perks: Enhanced poison effects, poison spread on death, increased damage to poisoned enemies
Why A-Tier: Excellent for both solo and team play. The poison mechanics create devastating damage-over-time effects that scale well into late game. The poison spread ability makes it incredibly effective against groups, and the damage bonus against poisoned targets ensures high DPS.
Starting Gear: Infernal Crossbow, Wildfire Potion
Perks: Fire-based abilities, chance to set enemies ablaze, bonus chest drops
Why A-Tier: Fire Bandit combines solid ranged damage with powerful fire effects that provide additional damage over time. The starting gear is excellent for early-game progression, and the fire mechanics scale well against tougher enemies, making it a reliable choice throughout the game.
Starting Gear: Rifle, 12 Ammo
Perks: Permanent stat boosts from pelts, increased drop rates, health from mammoth tusks
Why A-Tier: While expensive, Big Game Hunter offers unlimited scaling potential through permanent stat boosts. The ability to continuously improve your character by consuming animal parts makes it one of the best late-game classes, though it requires significant investment to reach full potential.
Starting Gear: Revolver, 18 Ammo, Flashlight
Perks: Ammo refund chance, increased starting ammo
Why B-Tier: Ranger provides solid early-game ranged capability, but the revolver's limited fire rate holds it back compared to other options. The ammo refund mechanic is helpful but not game-changing, making it a decent but not exceptional choice.
Starting Gear: 2 Bandages
Perks: 5x faster revives, improved revive effectiveness, medkit upgrade
Why B-Tier: Essential for team play but nearly useless for solo players. The revive speed is invaluable in coordinated groups, but the lack of combat effectiveness makes it a niche pick that depends entirely on team composition.
Starting Gear: Recipe Book, Chef's Station Blueprint
Perks: Unique powerful recipes, auto-seasoning, additional recipe unlocks
Why B-Tier: Chef provides excellent food-based buffs that can significantly boost team performance, but the high cost and lack of direct combat utility make it a situational pick. Best for coordinated teams that can maximize the food buff benefits.
Starting Gear: Medkit
Perks: Auto-revive on first death, damage boost on revival, increased damage at low HP
Why B-Tier: The auto-revive ability is powerful but creates a one-time-use mechanic that doesn't provide sustained value. The low HP damage bonus is interesting but risky, making it a high-skill class that's inconsistent for most players.
Starting Gear: Extra sack slots
Perks: Faster chest opening, bonus scrap from chests
Why C-Tier: While the extra inventory space is helpful early game, the benefits diminish significantly as you progress. The chest opening speed is a minor convenience that doesn't justify spending Diamonds when better options exist.
Starting Gear: Bear Traps
Perks: Increased meat and pelt drops, extra pelt trades
Why C-Tier: Hunter provides marginal resource gathering benefits that are easily replicated by other classes or normal gameplay. The bear traps are situational and don't provide significant combat advantages.
Starting Gear: Bandage
Perks: Player bonding system, damage absorption, shared hunger restoration
Why C-Tier: The bonding mechanic is interesting but requires perfect coordination with another player to be effective. In most situations, other support classes provide more consistent and reliable benefits.
Starting Gear: Fishing Rod
Perks: Faster rod leveling, instant casting, faster fish bites
Why C-Tier: Extremely niche utility that's only valuable in specific scenarios. Fishing is not a core progression mechanic, making this class irrelevant for most playstyles and game modes.
Starting Gear: Flashlight
Perks: Reduced hunger drain, improved night vision
Why F-Tier: While cheap, the benefits are minimal and easily obtained through normal gameplay. The hunger reduction is negligible, and night vision can be achieved with basic items, making this a waste of Diamonds.
Starting Gear: Seasoning
Perks: Better food restoration, faster cooking, hearty stew chance
Why F-Tier: Outclassed by the Chef class in every way. The benefits are minor and don't justify the cost when you could save for Chef or other more impactful classes.
Starting Gear: None special
Perks: Chest upgrade/downgrade chances, coin drop chance
Why F-Tier: The random nature of the Gambler's abilities makes it unreliable and inconsistent. The risk of downgrading chests outweighs the potential benefits, making it a poor investment for serious players.
Starting Gear: None special
Perks: Extra furniture trader items, trader visibility, furniture discounts
Why F-Tier: Purely cosmetic and utility-focused with no combat or survival benefits. Furniture is not essential for progression, making this class irrelevant for competitive play.
The current meta favors high-damage combat classes with strong scaling potential. Assassin and Cyborg consistently top tier lists across all sources due to their exceptional damage output and late-game viability. Resource gathering classes like Lumberjack remain essential for team compositions, enabling faster progression through crafting tiers.
Key Meta Shifts:
For solo play, Assassin and Brawler are consistently ranked as the best choices. Assassin provides high mobility and burst damage, while Brawler offers incredible survivability with high HP and melee damage. Both classes scale well and don't rely on team coordination.
Lumberjack (70 Diamonds) provides exceptional value by accelerating resource gathering, which is crucial for early-game progression. Brawler (100 Diamonds) is also outstanding value, offering combat effectiveness comparable to much more expensive classes.
Support classes like Medic and Chef are only worth it in coordinated team play. For solo players, they provide minimal benefit, but in teams of 4-5 players, they can significantly boost overall team effectiveness and survival rates.
Class tier lists typically shift with major game updates, which occur every 2-3 months. Balance changes, new enemy types, and biome additions can dramatically affect class effectiveness. Always check for recent updates before making significant Diamond investments.
For new players, it's generally better to buy one or two mid-tier classes (70-200 Diamond range) rather than saving for a single expensive one. Classes like Lumberjack, Blacksmith, or Poison Master provide immediate benefits that will help you farm Diamonds faster for future purchases.
Gems and Diamonds are the same premium currency in the game. Different sources may use different names, but they function identically for purchasing classes and other premium items. You can earn them through gameplay achievements or purchase with Robux.
In 99 Nights in the Forest, mastering the right class can make all the difference between surviving another night or becoming prey to the dangers lurking in the woods. Each class brings unique strengths, weaknesses, and playstyles — from the powerful Warrior to the strategic Tamer and the mystical Druid. While tier rankings help you choose the most effective options, your personal skill, team synergy, and adaptability ultimately define your success. Experiment with different classes, learn their abilities, and find the one that best suits your journey through the enchanted, perilous forest.
No matter which class you choose, every night in the forest brings new challenges — and new legends to create.