Wuthering Waves
Methodology.
Every ranking on this site comes from a stated set of conditions. This page publishes them, so any number here can be checked, reproduced or argued with.
1. What a DPR figure is
DPR is the total damage a team deals over one full calculated rotation. DPS divides that total by the duration of the same rotation. A team can lead on DPR and trail on DPS, which is why both are shown: the first answers how much, the second answers how fast.
These are not community averages and not theoretical ceilings. They are the output of one explicit scenario, and the scenario is printed on every character page, in the Calculations tab, next to the numbers it produced.
2. DPR calculation conditions
Unless a character page states otherwise, every damage calculation on the site assumes:
- Character at level 90, all talents at level 10.
- Weapon at level 90, signature weapon at R1.
- The classic rotation for the character, not a one-off optimised sequence.
- Team buffs included, with the supporting characters named on the page.
- A fixed Echo main-stat layout, stated per character (for example cost 3 Aero% + Aero%).
- A fixed Echo substat distribution, published as a per-stat percentage on each page rather than left implicit.
Sequence tables (S0 to S6) are calculated under the same conditions, so the progression between two sequence levels reflects the sequence itself and not a change of assumptions along the way.
Rotation durations are normalised when a team’s theoretical rotation would run shorter than the game actually allows. Where that normalisation applies, the page shows it instead of hiding it inside the DPS figure.
A team whose calculations are not finished is marked as pending and publishes no number at all. It is deliberately not given a placeholder value, because a placeholder sitting next to seven-figure results reads as a result.
3. How the Tier List is built
The Tier List is not a sort of the DPR table. It combines in-game testing, the damage calculations above and community experience, and it judges a character inside the role being evaluated rather than in the abstract.
- Two separate grids. Fearless Trial and Whimpering Wastes each have their own ranking, and a character can sit in different tiers across the two.
- A common investment baseline. 5★ characters are read at S0R1 and 4★ characters at S6R1, so every character of a given rarity is compared under the same assumption.
- Three roles. Main DPS, Sub DPS and Support are ranked in their own columns. For Supports, healing, shields, buffs and team-wide boosts count towards the rating : damage alone would misrepresent them.
Tiers read as: S+ the outright meta, S excellent, A very good, B solid, C situational, D weak, always within the selected role and mode. A tier is a statement about a column, not about the character in general.
4. The Echo Analyzer build score
The Echo Analyzer reads a build from a screenshot and scores it out of 100 against the guide for that character. The score is the sum of four components, minus one penalty:
| Component | Weight | How it is awarded |
|---|---|---|
| Echo set | 20 pts | Awarded only if the equipped set matches one of the sets recommended in the guide, weighted by that set’s efficiency rating. Equipping the same Echo twice inside one set scores 0/20. |
| Main Echo | 10 pts | Awarded if the cost-4 Echo is one the guide expects for that set, weighted by its efficiency. A documented fallback Echo scores its own reduced rating. |
| Main stats | 10 pts | 2 points per Echo whose main stat matches the guide for its cost slot, across the five Echoes. Some characters have documented exceptions tied to weapon or sequence. |
| Substats | 60 pts | Scored against the stats that actually matter for the character, relative to the maximum value each substat can roll. A 1.05 bonus applies to low and mid builds and fades out between 50 and 60 points, so the top of the scale stays hard to reach. |
| Energy Regen penalty | − up to 6 pts | Applied when the build falls below the Energy Regen the rotation requires. A few characters are exempt because their kit does not depend on it. |
Substats are the largest component because they are where a build is actually won or lost. Each substat is scored relative to the highest value it can roll in game, so a near-maximum Crit DMG roll is worth more than a near-maximum flat DEF roll, and only the stats the character actually uses are counted.
Energy Regen is treated as a requirement rather than a bonus. Each character has the Energy Regen their rotation needs; falling short costs points, and exceeding it earns none. A few characters whose kit does not depend on it are exempt from the penalty entirely.
| Rating | Score | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| SSS | 90 – 100 | Near-optimal, exceptional build. |
| SS | 80 – 89 | Excellent and highly optimized build. |
| S | 75 – 79 | Very strong build. |
| A | 70 – 74 | Strong build with a few clear upgrades left. |
| B | 60 – 69 | Usable, clear room to improve. |
| C | 40 – 59 | Incomplete or poorly directed. |
| D | under 40 | Build not yet built for the character. |
5. Known limits
These numbers are useful because their conditions are fixed. That same fixity is where they stop being useful:
- A calculated rotation is cleaner than a played one. Real fights involve movement, dodging and mistimed inputs that no calculation reproduces.
- The fixed substat distribution is a reference point, not your account. Substats are random; two players with identical gear plans will not land identical numbers.
- Signature weapons are assumed. Builds without them will read lower than the published figures, and the gap is not uniform across characters.
- A Tier List is a judgement, not a measurement. Where damage calculations end, testing and experience take over, and reasonable people rank differently.
- The Echo Analyzer reads a screenshot. OCR can misread a value, and a build scored against the wrong profile will score wrong.
6. Updates and corrections
Calculations are revisited when a patch changes what they depend on: a new character, a balance pass, a new weapon or Echo set. Pages a patch did not affect keep their previous update date rather than being restamped, so the date shown on a page means something.
The Tier List keeps its own change history, so a move between two tiers can be traced rather than simply appearing.
If a figure looks wrong, say so on the Discord with the page, the team and what you measured. Publishing the conditions is what makes a result contestable on its own terms, and corrections get applied when a disagreement turns out to be an error rather than a difference of assumptions.
7. Where to see this applied
- DPR Ranking, every calculated team, sortable by total damage or by DPS.
- Tier List, both grids, by role, with the change history.
- Echo Analyzer, score your own build against the scale above.
- Character guides, each one carries its own Calculations tab with the exact conditions used.
Methodology FAQ
What exactly does DPR measure?
DPR is the total damage a team produces over one calculated rotation, under the conditions published on the character’s guide page. DPS divides that total by the duration of the same rotation, so it compares how fast the damage lands rather than how much of it there is. The two rankings can disagree, and that disagreement is informative: a team with the higher DPR can still be the slower one.
Why does a character’s DPR change between two team pages?
Because DPR is a team figure, not a character figure. The same character contributes different damage depending on who buffs them, which rotation the team runs and how long that rotation takes. Each team is calculated on its own; the numbers are not transferable between compositions.
Are the numbers a ceiling or an average?
They are the result of one stated set of conditions, not a maximum and not a community average. Level 90, talents at 10, signature weapon, a fixed Echo substat distribution and the team buffs listed on the page. A player with a better substat roll will beat the figure; a player without the signature weapon will not reach it.
Why do some teams show no DPR at all?
A team whose calculations are not finished is marked as pending and shows no number, rather than a placeholder that could be mistaken for a result. This happens most often when a character has just been released and their guide is not published yet.
Why is the Tier List not simply ordered by DPR?
DPR only answers how much damage a fixed composition produces under fixed conditions. The Tier List also weighs what a character brings to the teams they can join, how well they hold up across the content of a given mode, and what Supports contribute through healing, shields and buffs, which no damage total captures.
How often is all of this recalculated?
Damage calculations are revisited when a patch changes the numbers they depend on: a new character, a balance change, a new weapon or Echo set. The Tier List carries its own change history, and each character page shows the date of its last update. Pages that were not affected by a patch keep their previous date rather than being restamped.
I found a figure I believe is wrong. What should I do?
Report it on the Slyraf Discord with the page, the team and what you measured. Calculation conditions are published precisely so a result can be contested on its own terms, and corrections are applied when a disagreement turns out to be a genuine error rather than a difference in conditions.
