Rise of Kingdoms Commanders Tier List: Best Legendary Commanders to Invest In

Rise of Kingdoms has well over 80 commanders now, and not all of them age the same way. Some legendaries that felt mandatory a year ago have quietly slipped into filler territory, while a handful of newer Season 3 releases and Prime upgrades have taken over the top of the meta. If you're deciding where to put your gold heads and sculptures next, this list breaks commanders into tiers based on how much value they actually deliver in open field fights, rallies, and defense right now.

Quick answer: who's on top right now

Zhuge Liang, Liu Che, and Hermann Prime currently dominate the meta and are the three commanders worth prioritizing above everyone else. Alongside them, Alexander Nevsky and Scipio Prime round out the S+ tier, giving you five commanders that are safe investments no matter which mode you play most.

 

S+ Tier: Build These First

Commander	Troop Type	Best For
Zhuge Liang	Archer	Open field damage
Liu Che	Infantry	All-around, rallies & defense
Hermann Prime	Archer	High burst, cheap Prime upgrade
Alexander Nevsky	Cavalry	Open field + rallying

This tier is small on purpose. These are the commanders that win fights almost by themselves and rarely become dead weight, even as the meta shifts around them.

Zhuge Liang is the archer everyone is chasing right now. His skill damage scales hard with Season 3 tech, and he pairs cleanly into most open field comps without needing a niche secondary.

Liu Che leads the infantry pack. He brings strong AoE and survivability, which makes him just as useful defending a garrison as he is pushing into an enemy rally.

Hermann Prime turned a long-forgotten epic into one of the best archers in the game. If you already had the base Hermann built up, upgrading him to Prime is close to a free power spike.

Alexander Nevsky hits all three categories hard — he rates S+ in both open field and rallying objectives, which is rare. His damage reduction and active skill burst make him one of the safest cavalry picks in the game.

Scipio Prime is the tankier infantry option in this tier, built for players who want to lead rallies without worrying about counters.

 

S Tier: Excellent, Just Not S+

Commander	Troop Type	Best For
Xiang Yu	Cavalry	Open field burst
Justinian	Cavalry	Open field + rallying
Huo Qubing	Cavalry	Open field damage
William	Cavalry	Open field, pairs with Saladin
Belisarius Prime	Cavalry	Open field, decent all-around
Yi Seong Gye	Archer	PvE/PvP all-rounder
Shajar al-Durr	Archer	Open field + defense
Boudica Prime	Archer	Open field burst
Ashurbanipa	Archer	Open field + rallying
Guan Yu	Infantry	Conquering & open field
William Wallace	Infantry	Open field + defense
Ragnar Lodbrok Prime	Infantry	Open field + defense
Gorgo	Infantry	Defending objectives
Philip	Universal	Flexible troop-type pick

This is where things get less clear-cut, and where players sometimes overpay for hype. S-tier commanders are strong and worth building, but they usually specialize rather than doing everything well.

Cavalry players get a deep bench here: Xiang Yu, Justinian, Huo Qubing, William, and Belisarius Prime all perform well in open field fights, though several of them drop off hard when it comes to defending objectives.

On the archer side, Yi Seong Gye remains a workhorse pick years after release thanks to how flexible he is across PvE and PvP, while Shajar al-Durr, Boudica Prime, and Ashurbanipal all bring strong burst damage.

Infantry has Guan Yu, William Wallace, Ragnar Lodbrok Prime, and Gorgo — the last of which stands out specifically as a defensive pick rather than an all-rounder.

Philip is the one universal-troop-type commander in S tier, and he's a solid choice if you don't want to commit to a single troop line early.

 

A Tier: Reliable Mid-Investment Picks

Commander	Troop Type	Best For
Alexander the Great	Infantry	Shielding, KvK2 pick
Saladin	Cavalry	Damage reduction, counters
Minamoto no Yoshitsune	Cavalry	Open field mobility
Takeda Shingen	Cavalry	Open field damage
Choe Yeong	Archer	Defending objectives
Scipio Aemilianus	Infantry	Rallying objectives
Tariq ibn Ziyad	Infantry	Balanced all-around
Sargon the Great	Infantry	Balanced all-around
Cheok Jun	Infantry	Open field, budget pick

A-tier commanders won't carry a KvK on their own, but they're far from wasted sculptures. Alexander the Great, Saladin, Minamoto no Yoshitsune, and Takeda Shingen are longstanding favorites for exactly this reason — dependable, not flashy.

Alexander the Great in particular remains a top-tier infantry option because of his shielding ability and how well he synergizes with other infantry units, which is why he keeps showing up in beginner recommendations years after release.

Newer additions like Choe Yeong, Scipio Aemilianus, Tariq ibn Ziyad, Sargon the Great, and Cheok Jun are worth building if you already have their sculptures from chests, even if they're not worth chasing specifically.

 

B Tier and Below: Skip Unless You Already Have Them

Commander	Troop Type	Note
Richard	Infantry	Feels good early, weak long-term
Charles Martel	Infantry	Feels good early, weak long-term
Cao Cao	Cavalry	Feels good early, weak long-term
Most C/D/F tier	—	Better options exist for the same sculpture cost

Don't invest fresh gold heads into B-tier legendaries like Richard, Charles Martel, or Cao Cao — they feel decent early on but waste long-term resource investment. The same logic applies to most C, D, and F tier commanders on this list: they're not unusable, but there's almost always a better option for the same sculpture cost.

The exception is Prime versions of older commanders. If a commander you already maxed out gets a Prime upgrade, it's usually worth building even if the base version had fallen out of favor.

 

Tier List by Troop Type

If you're building around a specific troop line, here's a faster way to scan the list:

• Infantry: Liu Che, Scipio Prime, William Wallace, Guan Yu, Gorgo, Alexander the Great
• Cavalry: Alexander Nevsky, Xiang Yu, Justinian, Huo Qubing, William, Saladin
• Archer: Zhuge Liang, Hermann Prime, Yi Seong Gye, Shajar al-Durr, Ashurbanipal, Boudica Prime
• Universal: Philip, Trajan, Heraclius

 

Best Commanders by Role

Overall power isn't the only thing that matters — what you're actually doing with the commander does too.

Open field and rallying: Zhuge Liang, Liu Che, and Alexander Nevsky lead here since they carry S+ ratings in open field performance, making them the safest choices if most of your gameplay revolves around pushing rallies.

Garrison and defense: Choe Yeong and Gorgo both rate at the top for defending objectives, which makes them strong picks if your alliance needs you holding a fort or flag rather than attacking one.

KvK progression: which commanders are worth building really depends on what stage of KvK your kingdom is in — a commander who dominates KvK1 can turn into dead weight once Season of Conquest and crystal technology shift the power curve. Once KvK2 opens, Alexander the Great becomes a premier infantry pick thanks to his shielding kit, while Saladin turns into one of the best cavalry options because his tankiness pairs well with useful debuffs. If your kingdom is still early, prioritize easy-to-use, hard-to-kill commanders over specialists.

 

How This Ranking Is Built

This tier list weighs three things equally: open field combat performance, effectiveness rallying objectives like flags and forts, and how well a commander holds up on defense. No single commander maxes out all three, so the "best" pick really depends on how you play — rally leaders should weight open field and rallying higher, while alliance defenders should prioritize the defending column instead. Tier lists like this are a snapshot of the current meta rather than a permanent ranking, since balance changes and new Prime releases shift things every few months.

 

FAQ

Is it worth investing gold heads in B-tier commanders?

Generally no. B-tier legendaries can feel fine in the early game, but they don't scale well and you'll likely replace them once you unlock A or S-tier options. It's usually better to save sculptures for a commander you'll still be using at max KvK stages.

Do Prime commanders replace the base version?

Not exactly — Prime versions are stronger overall, but if you've already invested heavily in the base commander, that investment usually still carries over or upgrades rather than being wasted.

What should new or rebooted kingdoms prioritize?

Early kingdoms favor commanders who are cheap to unlock and hard to counter rather than the flashiest S+ pick. Yi Seong Gye is a common recommendation here because of how well he performs across almost every early-game situation.

Does this tier list apply to every KvK stage the same way?

Not fully. Some commanders that are excellent in KvK1's simpler meta lose value once Season of Conquest mechanics and crystal technology come into play, so it's worth checking a KvK-specific breakdown if you're deep into a season.

How often does the meta shift?

Enough that it's worth rechecking a tier list every couple of months. New Prime releases in particular tend to reshuffle the top of the rankings.