Monster Train 2 Tier List – Best Clans Ranked (2026) [Destiny of the Railforged DLC]

Updated February 6, 2026

After playing Monster Train 2 for over 145 hours, I was able to unlock and rank all clans in the game. I especially enjoyed playing with Railforged, introduced in the Destiny of the Railforged DLC. They feel as classic as any other clan as it was really easy to understand their unique faction mechanics.

Monster Train 2 is all about expanding on everything that worked in the original. That means more weapons, items, enemies, and most importantly, factions! As it takes a lot of time to unlock everything needed, we've created the Monster Train 2 tier list with the best clans in the game.

All 12 Factions Ranked

S

Melting Remnant

Underlegion

A

Lazarus League

Luna Coven

Banished

Railforged

B

Wurmkin

Hellhorned

Pyreborne

C

Awoken

Stygian Guard

D

Umbra

Unfortunately, you won't have all factions at the start of the game, so expect multiple runs until you do. The good thing is that there are no really bad clans, as every clan has a different combat style. But don't get me wrong, some are still better than others! Below is a list of all Monster Train 2 factions, based on how successful they are as the primary clan, their power, and how hard it is to play them.

Related: Monster Train 2 Beginner's Guide

All Monster Train 2 Clans Tier List & Unlock Guide (All 12 Factions)

There are 12 clans in Monster Train 2 after the latest DLC. There are six new clans (Underlegion, Banished, Pyreborne, Lazarus League, Luna Coven, and the latest Railforged) and six returning factions from the original (Hellhorned, Umbra, Stygian Guard, Melting Remnant, Awoken, and Wurmkin). When you start the game, you'll unlock new clans relatively quickly, but it takes time to get the old ones.

S Tier Clans

Underlegion - Outnumber the Enemy

Don't be fooled by Underlegion's seemingly weak roster of units, as no one can match the power of mushroom Funguy troops. Your main task is to build an army of ever-expanding Funguy by using several key units and spells. The best way for this strategy to work is to place the champion and the units listed below on the third floor, giving them time to grow uninterrupted by enemies.

Key Underlegion Cards

Best Clan to Pair With:

• Hellhorned - Strong units that can hold waves of enemies while you buff your Funguys on the 3rd floor.
• Lazarus League - Use Unstable (mainly Plague Doctor) to trim down enemies on lower floors.

Melting Remnant - Live, Die, Repeat

The Melting Remnant faction was the best clan in the first Monster Train with its almost infinite supply of wax units. Forget about holding on to units, as they're even better when they die (Burnout mechanic where each unit dies after a couple of rounds).

If you play them right, you'll always have all floors filled with buffed units ready to die and return to the battle. Because of its specific strategy, it focuses exclusively on melting Remnant cards, as their strategy is too weird for others even to back them up.

Key Melting Remnant Cards

Best Clan to Pair With:

• Pyreborne - Soldier of Fortune will make your wax units even stronger, while Greed will make you rich (10 coins for each unit killed).
• Lazarus League - Scrap for Parts has ideal synergy with Remnants (Sacrifice a unit to draw another unit and give it 40 attack and 0 Ember cost).

A Tier Factions in Monster Train 2

Luna Coven - Powerful If Played Right

Luna Coven is a magic-focused clan in Monster Train 2 with an interesting mechanic that revolves around Moon phases combined with a spell power (Conduit mechanic). This is a very powerful faction, but you'll need some time to get used to its glass-cannon fragility.

I suggest you combine it with a clan that has strong units and offensive skills, like Pyroborne. This way, you can focus on powerful spells while being protected by tank units like Greed Dragon.

Key Luna Coven Cards

Best Clan to Pair With:

• Awoken - You'll need bodyguards to protect this frail clan, and no one is better at defense than Hollows (Awoken and Thorned). Also, having a lot of Sting cards buffed with buffed damage will do wonders.
• Stygian Guard - Combining two magic-oriented clans may not be the safest bet, but it's probably the most entertaining! When it works, it's incredible!

Railforged - Mechanical Precision

Railforged is a clan introduced in Monster Train 2: Destiny of the Railforged DLC. This faction has multiple ways to improve your armor, but also your equipment and units. That's possible thanks to its Forge mechanic, which stacks points you can use to buff spells, equipment, and units. As this clan is primarily defensive, you should pair them with Hellhorned (offense) or Lazarus League (plenty of equipment).

Key Railforged Cards

Best Clan to Pair With:

• Hellhorned - Combine offensive cards from the Hellhorned faction with the defensive capabilities of Railforged to get a balanced combination.
• Lazarus League - Plenty of equipment allows you to further experiment with the Forge mechanic, and let's not underestimate the offensive capabilities of these monsters. You'll need some time to find the best card combos, but you'll have fun in the process!

Lazarus League - Mad Scientist Project

Lazarus League is one of the most fun factions to play as it allows you the most strategizing freedom. Having said that, I found their Unstable ability (If a unit has less health than the stacks of Unstable, they die and explode) to be the most productive way of dispatching enemies.

Key Lazarus League Cards

Best Clan to Pair With:

• Hellhorned - Rage is a significant boost for your Unstable build. The stronger Plague Doctor is, the faster it will wipe your enemies from the face of the train.
• Banished - Cursed Twinblade on Plague Doctor will do wonders, as well as a Valor boost.

Banished - Fallen Angels

Banished is one of the first clans you'll get to use in the game—and that's a good thing! They're actually very good, especially when you figure out how to maximize the Valor mechanic (attack and armor bonus).

Key Banished Cards:

Best Clan to Pair With:

• Lazarus League - A wide variation of equipment items (weapons) can do wonders for your ever-moving Valor-pumped units.
• Pyreborne - A combination of offensive spells that can easily destroy back units, Pyregel (extra damage), and dragon eggs makes Pyreborne an excellent ally.

B Tier Clans

Pyreborne - Dragons and Deals

Pyreborne is an all-around clan that focuses on dealing damage and generating gold through the Pyregel mechanic (bonus damage to burning enemies). What makes this faction powerful is the combination of dragon eggs that hatch into formidable units and spells that can soften up enemies before they reach your Pyre.

The Greed Dragon alone makes this clan worth playing, as it generates massive amounts of gold that you can use to upgrade cards and buy powerful artifacts. Pair this with their fire-based damage dealers, and you have a faction that's both economically strong and combat-ready.

Key Pyreborne Cards

Best Clan to Pair With:

• Melting Remnant - The gold generation from Greed Dragon synergizes perfectly with disposable Burnout units that you can constantly cycle.
• Luna Coven - Tanky dragons can protect fragile magic units while spells benefit from the extra gold for upgrades.

Hellhorned - Fury and Fire

Hellhorned brings raw power through their Rage mechanic (temporary attack boost), making them excellent at dealing burst damage to enemies. While straightforward in their approach, they lack the complex synergies that make S-tier clans dominant.

Their units focus on dealing damage and building armor to survive, with Imps (small summon units) playing a supporting role. The faction has several damage spells with Piercing that are effective against backline enemies. They're perfect for newer players or as a support clan due to their reliability and ease of use.

Key Hellhorned Cards

Best Clan to Pair With:

• Lazarus League - Rage-boosted units work well with Unstable strategies and equipment synergies.
• Banished - Valor and Rage stack well together, creating powerful units that hit hard and survive longer.

Wurmkin - Consume and Hatch

Wurmkin is the returning clan from the original Monster Train, and it's just as weird and powerful as before! This clan is focused on slowly building its strength, from hatching powerful units to buffing placed ones. This is possible thanks to shards that you get each turn by playing cards or using card mechanics.

For example, Spine Chief can give you one shard per attack, giving you a steady income each turn. Similar to Umbra, their mechanics are not that friendly to other factions, so focus on Wurmkin and use other clans as a secondary help.

Key Wurmkin Cards

Best Clan to Pair With:

• Awoken - Hatch your units on the top floor while the Awoken clan tries to slow them down on lower levels.
• Umbra - While Umbra units are not especially compatible with Wurmkin, focus on cards that expand room capacity so you can place more units and buff them with shard bonuses.

C Tier Clans

Awoken - Defensive Specialists

Awoken focuses on defensive strategies through their healing, Regen, and Spikes mechanics (damage reflection that punishes attackers). While they excel at surviving, they struggle with the offensive pressure needed to defeat tougher enemies efficiently. Their Hollow units (Awoken Hollow and Thorned Hollow) are incredibly tanky when combined with healing spells, but you must heal them often to maximize their strengths.

The Rejuvenate mechanic (triggers when units are healed) can buff units significantly, but you need the right combination of healing cards and units to make it work. Awoken are at their best as a support clan, where they provide survivability while your primary clan deals damage.

Key Awoken Cards

Best Clan to Pair With

• Luna Coven - Magic power boosts Spikes damage, and Tidal Turning can overheal into armor for incredible tankiness.
• Hellhorned - Strong offensive units can finish what Awoken's tanks set up, with armor synergies providing extra durability.

Stygian Guard - Magic Without the Punch

Stygian Guard relies on spell-based strategies with their Incant mechanic (effects trigger when you cast spells on the same floor), but they lack the raw power of Luna Coven. They focus on applying Frostbite (damage over time debuff) and using Sap and Armor for defense.

While they have interesting Monster Train card effects and can create fun spell-focused builds, they often struggle to compete with faster-paced clans. Their units are generally weaker, and Frostbite doesn't stack up to the damage output of other debuff strategies. The clan feels like it needs too much setup for too little payoff compared to top-tier options. That said, Stygian Guard is great as a support clan, especially for factions that have weak spells.

Key Stygian Guard Cards

Best Clan to Pair With:

• Luna Coven - Combining two magic clans doubles down on spell synergies for maximum spell damage output. It's risky, but it can be lots of fun!
• Awoken - Tank units can protect spell-focused strategies while Incant effects build up over time.

D Tier Clans

Umbra - The Weakest Link

Umbra clan sits at the bottom of the tier list due to its inconsistent mechanics and lack of excellent synergies with other clans. Their Morsel consumption strategy (eating small Morsel units to buff main units through Gorge triggers) sounds interesting. Still, it takes time to set up and rarely delivers the power needed for higher difficulty runs.

So many things have to be right in order for Umbra to work as intended. You'll need plenty of Morsel cards and room capacity upgrades to get there, and even then, you'll hardly achieve killer damage like other clans. I'm not a big fan of the Emberdrain mechanic (reduces Ember at the start of the next turn) as it gives you more action points, but cripple your future turns.

Key Umbra Cards

Best Clan to Pair With:

• Underlegion - Room capacity synergies and potential Morsel generation, but you're better off just building Funguys.
• Stygian Guard - Damage Shield and Lifesteal buffs can help Umbra tanks survive, but won't fix fundamental weaknesses.

How to Unlock Old Clans from Monster Train

Monster Train 2 has six new clans, and just when I was sad that I won't have a chance to mix them with the old factions, I managed to unlock all six old ones! Here's how you can do it too:

Monster Train 2 Clan Synergies Tips

Choosing the right clan combination is just as important as mastering individual factions. Here are some general tips for maximizing your clan synergies:

• Defensive + Offensive Pairing - Combining a clan with strong defensive units (like Awoken or Hellhorned) with an offensive powerhouse (like Luna Coven or Lazarus League) creates a balanced strategy.
• Economy Matters - Clans like Pyreborne and Melting Remnant that generate extra gold can fund expensive upgrades for your partner clan's key cards.
• Floor Placement Strategy - Place swarm units (Underlegion) on the top floor to give them time to multiply, while putting defensive units on lower floors to catch leaks.
• Focus Your Build - Don't try to do everything. Pick 2-3 key cards from each clan and upgrade them heavily rather than spreading resources thin.

Monster Train 2 Clans FAQ

That's all (for now) about the best clans in Monster Train 2. We'll update this guide as we play the game. For more information about the factions from the first game, check out the best clans and champions in Monster Train from the original to learn more.