Necrobinder Builds
The 5 main Necrobinder builds, ranked from strongest to weakest. Jump to any build for its core cards, supporting cards, and key relics.
Rankings weigh how quickly each build comes together, how far it scales and how well it holds up at high Ascension, checked against the current game data. Early Access balance changes often, so watch the version notes.
Which Necrobinder build is best?
SSoul Cycle
Fill your Draw Pile with Soul cards, draw through them, and make every one you play hurt.
How it plays
Start with Soul makers that also defend, like Grave Warden and Capture Spirit. Haunt is the key piece: each Soul you play then drains a random enemy, and extra copies stack. Finish with Soul Storm, which grows with every Soul in your Exhaust Pile, and Death March, which rewards the extra draws.
Why S tier
The most dependable Necrobinder plan: the engine runs on Commons and Uncommons like Grave Warden and Capture Spirit that defend while they make Soul cards, and Haunt's HP loss ignores Block, so it holds up from Act 1 all the way to high Ascension. Doom Execute and Osty Summon can hit harder, but each needs more specific pieces or has a single point of failure, which is why this one is S.
Strengths
Runs on commons and uncommons, is stable from Act 1, and HP loss from Haunt ignores enemy Block.
Weaknesses
Damage is thin until Haunt shows up, and a bloated deck buries the Soul cards you need to keep cycling.
Version notes
- Haunt makes a random enemy lose 6 HP per Soul played in the live version (v0.107.1) and 7 HP in the beta (v0.111.0).
- Soul Storm adds 2 damage (+1 upgraded) per Soul in your Exhaust Pile in the live version (v0.107.1); the beta (v0.111.0) doubles that to 4 (+2 upgraded).
- Reave deals 9 damage (+2 upgraded) in the live version (v0.107.1) and 10 damage (+3 upgraded) in the beta (v0.111.0).
Core cards
Support cards
Key relics
Funerary Mask
At the start of each combat, add 3 Souls into your Draw Pile.
ADoom Execute
Pile Doom on enemies until it matches their HP, so they die at the end of their turn no matter their Block.
How it plays
Early on, lean on Doom cards that also defend, like Negative Pulse and Death's Door, plus Weak to survive. Then find a scaler such as No Escape, Countdown or Sleight of Flesh, and spread Doom with Deathbringer. End of Days and Time's Up close fights; remember Doom only kills at the end of the enemy's turn, so you still have to survive that attack.
Why A tier
Its ceiling rivals Soul Cycle's: Doom bypasses Block and enemy scaling, and Deathbringer and End of Days handle whole groups at once. It stays at A because it kills nothing until a scaler like No Escape or Countdown shows up, and every enemy still gets one more turn before Doom resolves, so it is slower and less forgiving.
Strengths
Ignores enemy Block and scaling, handles groups well, and many Doom cards come with defense attached.
Weaknesses
Slow to set up, enemies always get one more turn before Doom resolves, and it stalls without a scaling piece.
Version notes
- Shroud grants 2 Block each time you apply Doom in the live version (v0.107.1) and 3 in the beta (v0.111.0).
- Time's Up is Exhaust in the live version (v0.107.1). In the beta (v0.111.0) it no longer exhausts, so you can replay it as a repeatable finisher.
Core cards
Support cards
Key relics
Undying Sigil
Enemies with at least as much Doom as HP deal 50% less damage.
Book Repair Knife
Whenever a non-Minion enemy dies to Doom, heal 3 HP.
Unsettling Lamp
Each combat, the first time you play a card that Debuffs an enemy, double its effect.
AOsty Summon
Grow Osty with Summon, let him soak hits, and chain his attacks for big damage.
How it plays
Early Summon cards like Pull Aggro, Invoke and Afterlife keep Osty alive as your shield. Chain cheap Osty attacks (Fetch, Poke, Flatten, Rattle) and boost them with Calcify. Squeeze and your starting Unleash are the finishers, while Reanimate and Necro Mastery push Osty's HP very high.
Why A tier
The most forgiving archetype, since Osty takes hits for you, and chained Osty attacks boosted by Calcify give the character its best single-target burst. It falls short of S because everything hinges on Osty staying alive: once he falls your small HP pool is exposed, and finishers like Squeeze are Rare.
Strengths
Forgiving, since Osty takes hits for you, with strong single-target burst that ends normal fights quickly.
Weaknesses
Once Osty dies your own small HP pool is exposed, and several key payoffs are Rare.
Version notes
- Sacrifice gives Block equal to double Osty's Max HP in the live version (v0.107.1) and triple in the beta (v0.111.0), making it a much stronger emergency button there.
Core cards
Support cards
Key relics
Bone Flute
Whenever Osty attacks, gain 2 Block.
Bookmark
At the end of each turn, lower the cost of a random Retained card by 1 until played.
BEthereal
Play as many Ethereal cards as possible so your payoffs scale with the count.
How it plays
Create or tag Ethereal cards with Sculpting Strike, Call of the Void and Veilpiercer, and use Pagestorm to draw off them. Pull from Below hits once more for every Ethereal card played this combat, Banshee's Cry becomes cheap AoE, and Spirit of Ash adds Block each time you play one.
Why B tier
Once Pagestorm and Pull from Below are running it has some of the character's most explosive turns, with draw and Block built into the engine. But three of its five core cards (Spirit of Ash, Banshee's Cry, Call of the Void) are Rare, so it comes together far less often than Soul Cycle or Doom Execute, hence B.
Strengths
Explosive turns once assembled, with draw and Block built into the engine.
Weaknesses
Relies on specific Uncommons and Rares, and falls flat if the engine pieces never show up.
Version notes
- Eidolon is a different card in each version. Live (v0.107.1): Exhaust your hand, and gain Intangible if 9 cards were exhausted. Beta (v0.111.0): play ALL Ethereal cards in your Exhaust Pile, then it exhausts, which makes it a real payoff for this build.
Core cards
Support cards
CReaper Big Hit
Set up Vulnerable and damage boosts, land oversized hits, and let Reaper Form turn that damage into Doom.
How it plays
Apply Vulnerable with Fear or Putrefy and play Lethality to boost your first Attack each turn. The Scythe grows permanently every time you play it, and Eradicate cashes in big Energy turns from Borrowed Time. With Reaper Form out, every hit also applies Doom equal to its damage.
Why C tier
The burst is huge on paper, and with Reaper Form out every hit also turns into Doom. But almost every piece is Rare, Reaper Form costs 3 Energy, the build brings next to no defense, and a bad draw leaves you with nothing, so it is the least reliable of the five and sits at C.
Strengths
Very high burst with simple, easy-to-read turns.
Weaknesses
Draw-dependent and inconsistent, with little defense of its own.
Version notes
- The Scythe permanently gains 4 damage per play (+1 upgraded) in the live version (v0.107.1) and 5 (+2 upgraded) in the beta (v0.111.0).
Core cards
Support cards
Want every Necrobinder card rated individually, not just the ones in these builds?
Necrobinder Card Tier List →