Tears of Metal Artifacts Tier List

What counts as an artifact?

Store copy describes combining powerful upgrades with over a hundred artifacts each run. In practice, artifacts modify your hero, your Scottish battalion, or both — separate from emblem clan rewards that change your moveset on the overhead map.

Charms are another layer from event nodes and unlock paths. This tier list covers artifacts only; charms get a dedicated wiki page in a later stage.

Grading criteria

S tier — pick changes how fast you delete hordes or how safely your squad survives Act III elites. A tier — strong in most builds without hard counter-matchups. B tier — excellent when your build already commits to one stat. C tier — fine for Act I until something better appears.

YouTube overview footage (Boss Room Banter, *5LjqlUF8y-8*) highlights that emblems are previewed on the map while artifacts snowball during campaigns — plan routes for emblems, but let artifact tiers guide in-run priorities.

First-impression creators on Steam Next Fest demos noted the same pattern: runs that hoard random high-rarity drops without a battalion plan fell apart once threat modifiers added arrow towers and infinite reinforcements. Artifacts that buff combo cadence, area control, or squad cooldowns consistently outlasted raw armor stickers.

Mother Stone Shard — combo snowball

Large enemy counts keep your combo meter climbing; Mother Stone Shard turns that tempo into run-winning damage. Community tier lists consistently place it at the top for Tears of Metal artifacts tier list searches because Act III density makes it explode.

Pair with Orbs emblem paths or any family that spams light-attack finishers. Avoid if your route skipped combat nodes and you lack fodder to feed stacks.

Highland Warlord Emblem — battalion engine

Paper Cult designed combat around leading a battalion, not solo hero fantasy. This artifact buffs allied DPS and tightens squad ability cadence — exactly what co-op groups need when threat level spikes.

First-impression streams show the three-bar command gauge feeding infantry, spearmen, and archer orders; shorter cooldowns mean more panic-button clears without burning your full gauge.

Dragon Meteor Core — battlefield control

Critical hits proc AoE bursts that interrupt elite advances — critical in musou density where one captain reaching your backline ends runs. Stacks with Claymore Grindstone and crit emblems from the Smite family route.

Review footage shows elites clustering after musou specials; time Dragon Meteor Core pickups before Act II captain rooms so your first crit procs already have fodder to detonate.

Claymore Grindstone

Crit-focused heroes and emblem finishers love this pickup. Armor penetration matters more than raw tooltip damage against Act bosses with heavy guard — combine with Dragon Meteor Core for chained explosions.

Blood of the Invader

Demo and EA reviews stress scarce healing. This artifact rewards aggressive elite clears instead of hunting event fountains. Strongest on solo runs where nobody else can cover you.

Iron Vanguard Gauntlets

Stunlock chains from English knights and oversized elites are a common run-ender. Permanent stun protection buys time to parry — core skill per tutorial VO: blocking beats dodging because dodge cooldown is long.

When B tier outruns A

Alchemist's Catalyst jumps to S on ability-caster heroes if you already hold double cooldown reduction. Chieftain's Horn spikes during boss weeks when you can align horn procs with battalion commands.

Early act trap picks

Merchant's Coin feels helpful when village currency is tight, but combat artifacts win campaigns — currency follows clears. Broken Standard and Rusty Boundary Spike teach new players that defense without scaling falls off once threat modifiers activate.

Act I — learn systems

First act introduces emblem clan rewards, charm events, and the overhead map. Artifacts should plug immediate gaps: healing after elites, stun protection before you read boss tells. Don't reroll the entire run for S tier in Act I unless the drop is truly run-defining.

Act II — density spike

Enemy hordes thicken; combo and AoE artifacts pull ahead. This matches developer intent — combine upgrades into distinctive builds rather than stacking unrelated stat sticks.

Act III — check boss gear

Boss mechanics punish greedy DPS. Keep one sustain or mitigation artifact even on glass-cannon routes. Cross-check bosses for phase-specific weak points before swapping everything to crit.

Split artifact types

Two players both rolling Mother Stone Shard wastes coverage — one takes combo scaling, another takes Highland Warlord Emblem for shared battalion value. See co-op guide for role splits and revive etiquette.

Threat level coordination

Parties that push threat for better village rewards hit amplified hordes sooner. AoE S-tier artifacts become mandatory; single-target B-tier picks drag the squad. Call out artifact drops so whoever is behind can catch up at merchants.

Village upgrades that amplify artifacts

Permanent settlement bonuses change which artifacts spike. Unlocking the artifact shop early (see village upgrades) widens your pool before Act II — Mother Stone Shard and Highland Warlord Emblem show up more often in community clears when players invest there first.

Challenge modifiers after the first boss raise difficulty but also reward depth; bring at least one sustain artifact before enabling them, even if your DPS artifacts look irresistible on paper.