Anime Vanguards continues to evolve with new units, tougher enemies, and game-changing mechanics. One system that plays a huge role in your performance is Familiars—companions that provide key buffs or advantages during battle. In this article, we’ll go over the best Familiar Tier List as of 2025 based on insights from a top-tier player shared by the community. This tier list is built around practical use, synergy with current meta units, and overall utility. Also check out Anime Vanguards Unit Tier List that we keep updating, and codes for more redeemable rewards!
Tier List Best Familiar Anime Vanguards
S Tier – Must-Have Familiars
These are the most impactful familiars in the current game state. They significantly improve your performance and often feel irreplaceable.
1. Pet Birb
- The strongest familiar in the game by far.
- Acts like a portable mythic trait, combining Deadeye, Solar, and Ethereal in one.
- Difficult to obtain and perfect, but incredibly rewarding.
- Boosts crit, damage, and range, making him ideal for nearly every unit.
- Especially dominant for late-game and high-wave content.
2. Darkness Consume
- Close second to Pet Birb, this familiar specializes in gauge manipulation.
- Ideal for units like Vegito, Dante, Virgil, and even Sid, helping them swap faster and access transformations earlier.
- With proper investment, can take Vegito from a 4-hit to 2-hit swap.
- Still relevant as more gauge-based units are added in updates.
3. Spirit Candy
- Technically A-tier, but deserves mention in S due to how essential he becomes in resilience stages.
- Only accessible method (aside from Lucy) to ignore enemy damage reduction.
- If you’re missing Lucy from the battle pass, Cone is your best option.
- Extremely valuable in later raids and stages with damage reduction mechanics.
A Tier – Strong, Reliable Picks
Great choices for specific units or general play, though not as universally powerful as the top tier.
4. Anime Vanguards Familiar (Event Exclusive)
- Offers flat stat boosts: +10% Damage, -5% SPA, +10% Range.
- Only one per account, making it limited but very helpful if you lack Pet Birb.
- A solid alternative and good filler familiar while building better ones.
5. A Good Boy
- Focused on boosting crit and crit damage, especially for Dragon Ball units.
- Outclassed by Pet Birb in every way, but still very useful if Pet Birb is unavailable.
- Can still support a wide range of damage dealers.
6. Spirit Candy
- Mentioned again here due to being borderline S-tier.
- Best option for countering damage reduction enemies if Lucy isn’t available.
B Tier – Situational but Useful
These familiars work well under specific conditions or on certain units, but generally aren’t a priority.
7. Manipulating Evil
- Works best with Buu and sometimes Sid.
- Relies on kill-based scaling, making it inconsistent or hard to use optimally.
- Only shines when you get high rolls or C3 corruption effects.
8. King of Ants
- Only synergizes well with Sung Jin-Woo, who is currently one of the strongest units.
- Outside of that one synergy, has no general usage.
9. Thirst for Battle
- Can boost post-stun damage, ideal for stun-affected units like Kimpachi or possibly Gogeta.
- Better than King of Ants or Manipulating Evil due to more flexible usage.
- Still niche, as stun isn’t always part of the strategy.
C Tier and Below – Limited or Outclassed
While not useless, these familiars tend to be too situational or have direct superior alternatives.
10. Padoru
- The only familiar focused on support and utility units.
- Reduces cost and gives extra Yen, useful for farms or budget-heavy comps.
- A neat pick but low priority due to limited impact on combat performance.
If you’re looking to build a strong loadout in Anime Vanguards, focus on getting Pet Birb and Black Spirit first. These two carry your roster with immense flexibility and scaling. After that, Cone, A Good Boy, and the Anime Vanguards familiar fill in valuable roles. The rest of the familiars shine in very specific setups but can be powerful tools when used correctly. As the game continues to update and new mechanics arrive, familiars like Black Spirit are expected to remain top-tier due to their interaction with the game’s evolving meta. Keep grinding those raids and refining your familiar rolls—every % matters when pushing to wave 10 and beyond!