The Cretaceous balance patch nerfed a lot of the top builds,
but one of the builds that managed to get through unscathed was the Rodent.
They survived by using a weak but versatile and intelligent Generalist playstyle.
But, with the Dinosaurs out of the way, they began to diversify into a bunch of different niches
and incorporate a wide variety of different strategies into their playstyles.
Some of them were kind of janky, to be honest,
but many of them have stood the test of time to become a mainstay of the current meta.
Rodents all have one attribute in common: their signature Incisor Teeth,
Which, while not very useful in combat, can deal severe damage to structures.
Making the most of this ability is a core component of rodent gameplay.
Rodents are on the weaker side when it comes to combat, and most
stick to the "Evasive Generalist" strategy,
relying on their Intelligence stat and special abilities to remain competitive.
Mastering this type of gameplay is difficult,
but luckily, their relatively short spawn time helps mitigate this challenge.
Even though their bread-and-butter moveset is pretty consistent,
there are several unique builds that stand out as particularly viable.
So, let's get into the tier list now.
So, bottom of the tier list is ____________,
So, bottom of the tier list is the Lemming,
but NOT for the reason you might think.
It's a common misconception that Lemmings have such a low Intelligence stat
that the only thing they're good at is getting a big group together, jumping off the stage, and uninstalling.
This isn't true— although, to be honest, if you're maining the Lemming, you might be better off uninstalling—
but anyways, those Twitch clips are fake. Don't be fooled!
The actual lemming playstyle is only slightly more effective though.
It revolves entirely around hoping that the "Blizzard" world event happens and creates the Deep Snow biome.
If it happens, Lemmings can use it as cover and build extensive tunnel networks through the snow.
But, if not...
...Lemmings have zero defensive options and end up getting bodied left and right,
to the point where their playerbase drops hard until the next big snowfall.
As we all know, rising global temperatures are making snow biomes disappear across many servers.
And so, this already pretty unviable strategy is becoming even less viable
as the meta progresses towards getting wetter and more tropical.
Moving on up the tier list, we have the Capybara.
The Capybara is at an awkward place in the meta,
in that it hasn't quite spent enough Evolution Points to actually get much use out of its bulkiness.
This is because, unfortunately, their home server is the Amazon rainforest,
which is also the home server of many of the most powerful S-tier predators in the game,
such as the Harpy Eagle, ______ and ______,
such as the Harpy Eagle, Caiman and ______,
such as the Harpy Eagle, Caiman and Jaguar,
all of which have no problem dealing enough damage to bring down a Capybara.
Their main method of defense is hiding underwater,
which works against aerial builds like the Harpy Eagle
but is a pretty terrible strategy against the vast majority of predators in the rainforest.
Anacondas, Jaguars and Caimans all thrive in the Aquatic biome,
and hiding underwater won't do you any good against them.
To move up in viability, I recommend boosting your defensive stats even further
or spend some Evolution Points unlocking at least some sort of solid damage-dealing ability.
Also in D-Tier, I'm placing the _______________.
Also in D-Tier, I'm placing the Naked Mole-rat.
The Naked Mole-rat is unique in that it's the only mammal to ever unlock the Eusocial ability.
But, to be honest, as cool as that is, the Naked Mole-rat uses it quite poorly and
doesn't really benefit much from implementing RTS tactics into its gameplay.
Yes, Naked Mole-rats have a queen, workers and drones,
just like Eusocial insects,
but the only thing that makes Eusociality such an unbelievably strong strategy
is that it enables a group of individuals to achieve things
that would be impossible alone,
like taking down a huge boss,
traversing a huge barrier, or
surviving a catastrophe.
You never see Naked Mole-rats doing something like this.
It kind of makes sense why while other Eusocial creatures live on almost every single terrestrial server,
Naked Mole-rats are confined to just a small area in Africa.
Sure, they do have the coveted Cancer Resistance ability,
but spending Points to unlock an extremely rare power that benefits the individual
makes no sense when playing as a Eusocial colony.
Your abilities should serve the colony, not the colony's units.
The one impressive thing they do achieve is creating a large base,
but there are other rodents who do this better, like the next contender on this list.
Jumping up to C-Tier, we have the ______,
Jumping up to C-Tier, we have the Beaver,
one of the most well known Builder classes in the entire game.
This is where it becomes important that a rodent's teeth deal high damage to the environment.
Beavers have iron-reinforced teeth that can be used to bring down trees—
this isn't optional, by the way.
Like all rodents, their teeth have a passive regeneration ability
that mitigates loss of durability.
But, this also means that if they don't continuously use them,
they'll eventually become overgrown and deal damage to the user.
Anyways, the resources they gather are used to construct dams in rivers.
This serves as their home base and main method of defense.
Once fully completed, it works great,
but the strategy does have its drawbacks that keep the Beaver out of the higher tiers.
For one, Beavers are very vulnerable while their dam is still under construction.
They have no good method of defense if they're caught in the open.
Even their iron teeth don't deal enough damage to truly deter a predator,
and carrying large amounts of mass through the woods makes Stealth very difficult to maintain.
Beavers also don't have much recourse if their river their base is located in freezes and becomes uninhabitable,
as they only get a Mobility bonus in liquid water.
In B-Tier, we've got the ___________,
In B-Tier, we've got the Prairie Dog,
the rodent that does Social Play the right way.
Like Lemmings, they create elaborate tunnel systems,
but unlike Lemmings, they do it in the ground, which is permanent,
instead of the snow, which is transitory.
They aren't Eusocial: each Prairie Dog is an individual player with free control,
but they do all work together to protect each other
[ ! ] but they do all work together to protect each other
by keeping watch and using Team Chat to warn each other when a Carnivore player is nearby.
They have no other defensive abilities, but somehow this strategy makes the matchup nearly impossible
for builds like the Coyote and Hawk to actually catch them.
It doesn't do the greatest job against Stealth, though,
so Owls and Snakes can still be problematic for them.
Also in B-Tier, we have the ultimate jack-of-all-trades for the low weight class meta: _______.
Also in B-Tier, we have the ultimate jack-of-all-trades for the low weight class meta: the Rat.
Rats don't have any single oppressive moves or abilities,
but their high Intelligence stat makes them extremely adaptable
and has let them establish a foothold in basically every single server in the game.
Their ability to function in a wide variety of diverse situations
[Rat squeaking in Japanese] makes them a nightmare for new players to deal with,
and their rodent teeth allow them to bypass barriers that would be impassable for most builds.
Rats rose to popularity in the meta because of their ability to stow away on the ships Humans used for fast travel...
...and then wreak havoc on islands that they stopped at.
Island metas are always more casual,
and the players there tend to have a lot less matchup experience than mainland builds.
And so, they are easily defeated by experienced and adaptable invasive builds, like Rats.
Rats are a solid choice for any experienced player,
because while they have no downright overpowered abilities,
their highly versatile playstyle can be a nightmare in the right hands.
This is why you see so many Rat mains in the Outside Hall of Fame.
In A-Tier, we have a build very similar to the Rat...
...but with higher mobility and better resource-gathering skills: ____________
...but with higher mobility and better resource-gathering skills: the Squirrel.
Squirrels are some of the best Arboreal builds in the game,
having the highest Arboreal Movement bonus of all time.
This enables them to evade attacks with ease and
lets them access loot that's normally tough to reach without the Flight ability.
But beyond that, they also have a uniquely strong matchup against Humans.
I've got Outside's best "Lore" specialist here to tell you about it.
— [RealLifeLore] Hey guys!
So, whether you expected it or not, Squirrels are one of modern Man's greatest enemies.
They can chew through electrical wires and cables with ease, and they love doing it,
which makes Squirrels the most frequent cause of power outages in America.
They are capable of infiltrating power stations by tunneling beneath them,
and then they'll bypass plastic animal guards with ease,
squeeze through small spaces, and chew through whatever wire insulation they come across.
Just one single Squirrel in 2015 knocked out a substation in San Francisco
that shut down power to 45,000 homes!
So, if you want to learn more about what these ferocious little creatures are capable of,
come and check out my video next after this one.
— Now, the top tier rodent is unique
in that it's the only Purely Defensive-based build I have ever rated as top tier: _____________,
in that it's the only Purely Defensive-based build I have ever rated as top tier: the Porcupine,
a build with such a high Defense level that even the most powerful predators in the game have terrible matchups against it.
The Quill ability deals damage to any player whose attacks make contact.
This is just hilariously effective against builds that rely on the move Bite or Swipe to deal damage.
While the initial damage from quills isn't terribly high,
every subsequent Bite or Swipe attempt while the quills are still embedded deals higher and higher damage,
meaning that unless you have a support class that can remove the quills...
...they can be a death sentence.
They have a remarkably high lifespans because of this.
So, if you're looking to play as a class that can do basically whatever it wants
without worrying about attacks from most of the cast,
Porcupine is your best bet.
The only things that can really pose a threat to them are disjointed weapons and projectiles,
but overall, Porcupines are one of the most well-protected builds of all time.
Normally, I'd recommend maybe relocating some of their defensive stats towards Intelligence,
but in this case, it seems that their mid-level Intelligence, low Mobility, and low Stealth do the job just fine.
In a lot of ways, having a high Intelligence stat is crucial to surviving in the current meta.
But, for some things, having a high level of EXP is no longer required,
like, for example, Web Design.
Squarespace's intuitive website builder means you don't need to have any experience to create amazing-looking websites.
Squarespace enables you to create beautiful websites that can showcase your work,
sell products and services of all kinds, promote your business and much more!
Whatever you want to make online, make it with Squarespace.
Head to squarespace.coms/tierzoo for a free trial,
and when you're ready to launch, use the Offer Code "TIERZOO"
to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain.
Thanks again to Squarespace for sponsoring this video,
as well as those of you who support me via Patreon!
Thanks again for watching, and good luck out there!
♪ EYEWITNESS | Outro ♪