Stonewards Best Builds Tier List: Strongest Early EA Builds
A practical tier list of the strongest Stonewards builds in Early Access, based on official patch changes, class balance notes, and verified community reports.
Last verified: August 18, 2026 — Game version: Stonewards Early Access Hotfix 0.1.5. Facts come from official Steam sources and verified player reports.
Not every upgrade in Stonewards is equally strong. Between the Blacksmith level cap being raised to 999, Craft Speed being reworked into a percentage, and Hunter’s Companion getting buffed, the best builds in Early Access favor consistent melee damage and fast resource generation. This tier list ranks the strongest archetypes we have seen discussed in the community and confirmed against patch notes.
Tier List Assumptions
- Based on Hotfix 0.1.5 and earlier Early Access patches.
- Focused on regular missions, not the exact Infinite Mode meta.
- Builds assume you are actively mining between waves and forging every gap.
S-Tier: Tanky Miner + Warrior Frontline
| Role | Class | Why it works |
|---|---|---|
| Frontline | Warrior / Miner | High melee output, can hold choke points, and repair walls under pressure |
| Resource | Miner | Mines faster and brings back more ore for the team |
| Upgrade focus | Attack + Health + Wall toughness | Lets the frontline tank while ranged classes deal damage |
This build dominates because Early Access enemy waves reward straightforward melee damage and survivability more than complex combos.
A-Tier: Hunter with Companion
Hunter’s Companion was buffed in a recent hotfix, making the pet a reliable source of extra damage. Pair it with knockback upgrades to keep monsters away while the companion chips away. This build is safer than a pure ranged Archer because it does not rely solely on charge-up shots.
B-Tier: Archer & Mage
Archer and Mage are not weak, but community feedback notes that their charged attacks can feel slow in fast waves. They need more upgrades to feel smooth and are less forgiving for new players. With enough Craft Speed and attack upgrades they become strong, but they require more setup.
What to Avoid
- Spread your upgrades too thin. Pick one scaling path per run.
- Ignore wall repairs. A high-damage build is useless if the gate falls.
- Skip mining. Resource poverty snowballs quickly.
For upgrade details, read our best upgrades and builds guide. For playing alone, see solo guide.
From Community Gameplay
Recorded runs back up the tier list with practical observations:
- Dig strength + movement speed is the meta opener. “Dig strength matters because it shortens that boring part of the trip, while movement speed gets you in and out quickly enough” to reach the deeper, richer layers (community gameplay, 01:08).
- The pink wall layer is the target zone. When you reach the pink wall layer, that is where the current best ore and chest rooms sit — builds that reach it early snowball (community gameplay, 01:25).
- Crit builds are popular in practice. Players pick crit rate and crit damage at the forge, often paired with a heal-on-crit effect so the build self-sustains (community gameplay, 03:02; 01:45).
- Upgrades are randomized per player. One player saw dig strength, another got “sprint speed, armor, and max stamina” from the same forge visit, so your tier list needs to adapt to what you are actually offered (community gameplay, 03:17).
- Four rings is the cap. Confirmed again in footage: “I can only have four rings,” so ring builds are about picking the best four, not stacking indefinitely (community gameplay, 02:32).
- An Archer without arrows is a dead pick. One player found a bow but no arrows: “tenías arco… pero no tengo flechas.” Always keep a wood supply flowing for arrow crafting (community gameplay, 04:13).
Sources
- The Boys are Dwarves (community gameplay): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-XuIMMYeW8
- Official Steam store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4502710/
- Official Steam announcements hub: https://steamcommunity.com/games/4502710/announcements/
- Steam Community discussions: https://steamcommunity.com/app/4502710/discussions/
Fan-made guide. This site is not affiliated with Banana Tiger Studio, Steam, or Valve; all game content and media belong to their respective owners.