- Neighbors Suburban Warfare best character depends on your team role, not raw power alone.
- Gramps is the only healer-reviver, making him nearly mandatory for squad play.
- P / the firework character ranks highest for burst and area-control damage.
- Kevin's grappling hook offers the strongest mobility but demands skill and low HP management.
- Kim is the top utility pick for repairing house structures mid-fight.
Full Character Roster Overview
Choosing the Neighbors Suburban Warfare best character starts with understanding the full roster and what each kit actually does in a match. The cast covers the classic squad archetypes — a ranged tank, a melee bruiser, a healer, a utility builder, a mobility skirmisher, a diver, and a stealth specialist. At least one additional character was locked and slated for a later release, so expect the meta to shift as new faces join the neighborhood.
Video Highlights:
- Every character's item and ultimate ability explained in one rundown
- Gramps confirmed as the roster's healer with a revive ultimate
- Kevin's grappling hook singled out as a community favorite for movement
- The firework character flagged as potentially the most broken pick
- One character (Mary Jean's cell-phone counterpart) locked at launch
| Character | Item Style | Key Ability | Ultimate | Role |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chad | Vacuum cleaner | Hybrid ranged/melee pull | Vacuum pull-in pressure | Ranged tank |
| Doran | Melee blows | Knockback strikes | Devastating boxing burst | Melee bruiser |
| Gramps | Mid-range support | Heal fallen neighbors | Revive + sustain | Healer |
| Kim | Hybrid wrench | Throw for damage, repair structures | Oil turret that blinds + light damage | Utility |
| Kevin | Grappling hook + projectile | Pull toward destination | High mobility skirmish | Assassin |
| P | Cannon | Dive in/out dealing damage | Skyward launch into ground smash | Diver |
| Mary Jean | Stealth tools | Pick locks, escape enemies | Echolocation reveals enemy positions | Stealth |
A squad without Gramps loses out on the roster's only revive ultimate. If your team already has healing covered, lean into damage or mobility instead.
Tier Rankings: Who Is the Best Character?
Tier rankings in a squad game are role-relative, but some kits simply do more work per match than others. Based on kit strength at launch, here is how the roster stacks up.
| Tier | Character | Why They Rank Here |
|---|---|---|
| S | Firework character | Remote fireworks give huge area control and splash damage; ultimate blinds and reverses enemy controls — potentially broken |
| S | Gramps | Only healer, only revive ultimate, mid-range safe playstyle |
| A | Kevin | Best mobility via grappling hook, strong projectile, but low HP |
| A | P | Cannon dive-in/dive-out lets you engage and escape on demand |
| B | Kim | House repair is strategically strong; turret adds passive damage |
| B | Doran | Solid knockback melee, straightforward brawler |
| B | Chad | Flexible hybrid pull, decent frontline option |
One character is still locked at launch, and balance patches can reshuffle these rankings quickly. Treat this tier list as a launch-window snapshot, not a permanent verdict.
S-Tier: Firework
- Remote fireworks for area control
- Big splash damage
- Ultimate blinds and reverses controls
S-Tier: Gramps
- Heal + revive in one kit
- Mid-range safety
- Scales with team coordination
A-Tier: Kevin
- Grappling hook mobility
- Ranged projectile poke
- High skill ceiling, low HP
Best Pick by Playstyle
There is no single Neighbors Suburban Warfare best character for everyone — the right answer depends on how you like to fight. Match your pick to your natural playstyle and you will outperform a "stronger" character played badly.
| Playstyle | Best Pick | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
| Team captain / support | Gramps | Healing and revives keep the squad alive in extended fights |
| Aggressive slayer | P | Cannon dives create picks, then escape before retaliation |
| Mobile flanker | Kevin | Grappling hook lets you reach backlines and rooftops fast |
| Objective defender | Kim | Repair structures and blind pushers with the oil turret |
| Frontline brawler | Doran | Knockback blows control space in tight corridors |
| Flexible anchor | Chad | Hybrid vacuum handles both ranged and melee threats |
| Infiltrator | Mary Jean | Lock-picking and echolocation for scouting and escapes |
The strongest squads pair one sustain source (Gramps), one dive threat (P or Kevin), and one objective player (Kim or Mary Jean). Avoid stacking three melee brawlers.
How to Master Your Main: Step-by-Step
Follow these steps to go from picking a character to genuinely carrying matches.
Lock a Role, Not a Character
Decide whether you want sustain, damage, mobility, or utility first. This narrows the roster to two or three candidates that fit your squad's needs.
Learn the Item Timing
Every character's item has a distinct rhythm — Chad's vacuum pull, P's cannon dive, Kim's wrench throw. Practice in low-stakes matches until the timing is muscle memory.
Save Your Ultimate for Value
Revives (Gramps), ground smashes (P), and control reversals (firework) are wasted as openers. Hold them for team fights or objective moments.
Coordinate With Your Neighbors
Combos like Kevin hooking in after P's ground smash or Gramps reviving a pushed Doran turn even fights into routs.
Re-Evaluate After Each Patch
New characters and balance changes will shift the tier list. Re-test your main whenever an update drops.
Spend your first few hours on one character only. Kit mastery matters more than counter-picking in a squad brawler.
Skill Difficulty & Team Value Compared
Two axes matter when picking a main: how hard the kit is to use, and how much value a skilled player extracts per match.
| Character | Difficulty | Team Value | Solo Queue Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gramps | Low | Very High | Medium |
| Doran | Low | Medium | High |
| Chad | Low | Medium | High |
| Kim | Medium | High | Medium |
| P | Medium | High | High |
| Kevin | High | High | High |
| Mary Jean | High | Medium | Low |
| Firework | Medium | Very High | High |
Low difficulty plus very high team value (Gramps) makes the best entry pick. High difficulty characters like Kevin and Mary Jean reward invested players but punish beginners.
Character Mastery Milestones:
- Land your ultimate in three consecutive team fights
- Win a match using only your signature item for damage
- Coordinate one combo with a teammate's ability
- Reach a positive win rate over ten matches on your main
FAQ
Q: Who is the best character in Neighbors Suburban Warfare overall?
At launch, the firework character and Gramps sit at the top. Fireworks offer unmatched area control, splash damage, and a control-reversing ultimate, while Gramps is the only character who can both heal and revive teammates.
Q: Is Kevin good despite his low HP?
Yes. Kevin's grappling hook gives the best mobility in the game, letting him pull toward destinations and disengage freely. Skilled players dominate with him, but the low HP pool punishes mistakes hard.
Q: Which character is best for beginners?
Gramps, Doran, or Chad. All three have straightforward kits: Gramps heals from mid-range, Doran brawls with knockback melee, and Chad's vacuum works at both ranged and melee distances without tight timing.
Q: Are more characters coming to the roster?
Yes. At least one character (associated with Mary Jean's cell phone toolset) was locked at launch and slated for release later, so the tier list will likely shift as the roster expands.