Sword Art Online: MD – Best 5* Burst Damagers Tier List (Rank SS+) Dark Element

This tier list will show you how good your Dark Element 5 star characters are when it comes to burst damages and ranking events. Refer here if you are looking for specific or elemental characters that you can use for your team. For best results, use vs their counter element and with teams. For beginners with limited number of characters, aim for a high ranked Dagger, Lance, Rapier, Dual, or Sword wielder that can also generate combos.
Other Useful Lists:
   – Character List (Element, Stats and Info)
   – 6* Burst DPS Tier List (Ranking Events)
   – 6* Characters Tier List (Overall)
   – 5* Burst DPS Tier List (Ranking Events)
   – 5* Characters Tier List (Overall)
   – 4* Burst DPS Tier List (Ranking Events)
   – 4* Characters Tier List (Overall)




(This Ranking Page (Burst DPS Rank SS+) is divided based on Element)
   – Note: Units with high Hits/Sec on their SS3s are great combo builders vs mobs. The effectiveness of mob clearing units depends on how the mobs are spaced out. None at the moment…

   – Units with high Hits/Sec on their SS3s. Can be used anytime during battle, but more effective if used from the start to generate fast combos (against single targets like bosses).

Image	Character Name	Elem. Wep.	Combo Gen	DPS Ratings vs Elements	Mob Clear	Roles (Best As)
(Hits/Sec)	Strong	Others	Weak
	Kirito [Masked Swordsman]	Dark Dual	14 Hits 2.0sec* (7.0)	SS+	SS	—	AA	*LS:+10% Atk (30+ Combos) *Nuker *Combo Gen
		Combo Window: Passive	Decent In-line AoE
SS3 Notes	– [MP:100],  [Barrier negates 1 strike],  [Self Heal],  [Instant SS3 upon switch],  [Ends behind target at mid-ranged position],  [Targets: Ground and Midair Enemies] – SS3s are easy to spam, just time it well, best with combinations. – Combo Partner: [Asuna] – Increases damage attained by 10%.
	Sinon [Illusion Killer]	Dark Sword	13 Hits 2.2sec* (5.9)	SS+	SS	—	B	*LS:+10% Atk (Dark Element) *Nuker *Combo Gen *Crit Dmg+ Buffer
		Combo Window: Passive	Single Target
SS3 Notes	– [MP:120],  [Instant SS3 upon switch],  [Crit DMG+ Team Buff],  [Midair Attack],  [100% Frame Lock],  [Targets: Ground and Midair Enemies] – SS3s are easy to spam, just time it well. – Combo Partner: [Dark Element] – Increases damage attained by 10%.

   – Characters with average or low Hits/Sec on their SS3s, or using long ranged or slow speed weapons. Still strong characters especially against their counter elements, best played with combo generators to deal stronger nukes at higher combo counts. None at the moment…

   – DO NOT limit your team by only using high DPS units, also consider using Support units like Debuffers. Refer here for a list of Support Units.
   – Characters that focuses on inflicting status effects like Stuns are also effective as support/utility units, depending on your current character pool and/or battle situation. Lvl 80 Character Stats (Lvl 100 for Free Characters).    – Note that Ranking Event limited characters will get higher stat bonuses than Gacha characters when limit breaking.

SS3 Attack Duration (Seconds):

   – SS3 Attack Duration in seconds (on-click until he/she can move again)    – #.#sec* =  Average Time. Dual Wielders (and some units) will get Max/Min speed depending on combos (10~50) but will only consider their average speed and DPS.

   – (Hits/Sec) determines how fast they can generate combos “per target”.

Ranking Event – Burst DPS:

   – Overall Damage Output/Sec (including buffs, defense debuffs, non-elemental damage multipliers, crit damage, and more). Tested on a null enemy (no elemental advantage) with same armor rating, without gears. Elemental damage multipliers will be calculated according to their overall DPS rating.    – Combo Generation and “how easy” SS3s can be spammed will affect DPS Ratings.

Ranking Event – Mob Clearing:

   – Heavily based on their AoE Range (considering all skills) and Speed.    – We will not consider Mob Clearing as ranking basis for now because it would be unfair for other limited ranged units.

Support Units that can buff, debuff enemies, or heal your team won’t affect their rankings for now, since these characters’ effectiveness also depends on their teammates’ strengths.

   – Please note that these Tier Lists are for reference only, ranking basis is a work in progress and will never be final. It’s not 100% accurate, but we’ll do our best to polish the guides.

   – Ordered By: Category > Combo Generation (Hits/Sec) > Faster Weapon Type > Name    – Characters under same rank are not always treated as on par, because they also have different roles, which will also require different playing styles.

   – Fire > Wind > Earth > Water > Fire (Holy < > Dark)

   – Characters with an Element that is in a disadvantage (except Holy/Dark) can only deal 75% damage.

   – Note that OS Characters and some selected characters have a Battle Skill or Skill Slot that increases their damages against Neutral element enemies.

Related Sword Art Online: MD Tips & Guides:
– Sword Art Online: MD – Terminologies and Team Building Guide
– Sword Art Online: MD – How to Defeat Ranking Event Bosses (Master+1) or