As a long time gaming commentator and meta-analyst, I‘ve helped millions determine the optimal character picks across popular titles throughout my career. Now with the long-awaited Dead Island 2 finally nearing launch, the burning question the community has been debating for me is: "Out of the diverse cast of 6 playable zombie-slayers, who reigns supreme?"
This comprehensive guide will thoroughly analyze each character‘s unique strengths, weaknesses, and ability synergies so you can determine who best fits your preferred playstyle. I‘ve tapped into all available unofficial resources plus my own expertise to showcase exactly how much lethal, zombie-demolishing potential each Slayer brings to the table.
Let‘s first establish a quick overview of the key criteria I evaluated:
The 3 Metrics for Slayer Supremacy
Base Attributes
The foundation of every Slayer‘s power comes from their Core Stats:
- Toughness – Reduces damage taken
- Stamina – Fuels special attacks
- Health Recovery – Passive regeneration rate
- Critical Damage – Weakpoint exploiting potential
- Agility – Movement and attack speed
- Peak Health – Total HP pool, balances Toughness
- Resilience – Resistance to elemental damage over time
These attributes determine versatility, flexibility, and dueling power across various combat scenarios.
Innate Abilities
Each Slayer boasts two unique skill modifiers that provide offensive or defensive bonuses. These can shore up stat weaknesses or double down on existing strengths.
Proper Innate synergy into combat rotations can make or break a Slayer‘s potential against swarms of zombies or challenging elites.
Playstyle Potential
Finally, how do a Slayer‘s full capabilities align with popular zombie-hunting approaches? Can they enable various fantasies ranging from an unstoppable brawler to untouchable ninja? Or do they lean decisively towards – or away – from certain tactics?
Now let‘s analyze each Slayer in detail across these metrics to determine who claims the ultimate zombie-slaying crown!
S-Tier: Elite Generalists
The S-Tier Slayers boast well-rounded attributes and flexible Innates that enable them to adapt to any combat situation and playstyle smoothly. They represent the pinnacle of zombie-demolishing versatility.
Jacob
| Attribute | Points | Overall Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Toughness | 3/5 | 5th |
| Stamina | 4/5 | 3rd |
| Health Recovery | 2/5 | 6th |
| Critical Damage | 3/5 | 4th (Tied) |
| Agility | 3/5 | 4th (Tied) |
| Peak Health | 5/5 | 1st |
| Resilience | 1/5 | 6th |
Out of the entire Slayer roster, Jacob boasts the single highest Peak Health at a massive 5/5 rating according to the Official Prima Guide. This enormous permanent HP pool couples with moderate Toughness to produce one of the most durable Slayers in the game.
His Stamina also leads the pack at 4/5, enabling him to unleash deadly assault chains. 3/5 Critical Damage and Agility provide well-rounded offense to boot.
The sole flaw lies in terrible Resilience, requiring players to steer Jacob away from electrified zones which shred his limited resistance.
Fortunately, Jacob‘s flexible Innates help address this…
Innate Abilities
Feral (A) – Consecutive attacks grant stacking +15% damage buffs. Against clustered zombie mobs with 5+ chains, this single-handedly produces over 100% increased DPS.
Crit Regen (B) – Every critical hit has a 25% chance to regenerate 15 Stamina. Given Jacob‘s impressive crit and Stamina ratings already, this keeps his action economy smoothly sustainable.
Overall, Jacob brings a thrilling "chainsaw through hordes" fantasy to life thanks to his unmatched health pool and synergetic damage Innates that allow him to throttle groups of enemies safely. While poor Resilience requires some caution around elemental hazards, Jacob otherwise serves as a versatile pick for nearly any playstyle.
Dani
| Attribute | Points | Overall Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Toughness | 3/5 | 5th |
| Stamina | 5/5 | 1st |
| Health Recovery | 1/5 | 6th |
| Critical Damage | 3/5 | 4th (Tied) |
| Agility | 3/5 | 4th (Tied) |
| Peak Health | 4/5 | 2nd |
| Resilience | 2/5 | 5th |
Where Jacob falters with sustain, Dani‘s 5/5 Stamina – the single highest rating in the game – excels tremendously. This allows Dani to push ability rotation complexity further than any other Slayer. Her respectable Secondary Core Stats remain aligned with Jacob as well for flexibility.
The tradeoffs are weaker Peak Health and equally terrible Health Recovery. Thankfully one of Dani‘s Innates perfectly offsets this weakness…
Innate Abilities
Thunderstruck (A) – Dani‘s explosive heavy attacks inflict knockback and 170 base damage plus severe falloff AoE. Against packed hordes, Thunderstruck devastates with excellent crowd control.
Bloodlust (S) – Each multi-kill temporarily grants +50 Health/second. By systematically thinning swarms with Thunderstruck first then isolated chains, Dani sustains health similar to mid-tier recovery Slayers.
With outrageous Stamina backing a lethal AoE bomb plus sustainable health regeneration tied to kill streaks, Dani eagerly fulfils a heart-pounding "zombie-crusher" fantasy for those desiring high intensity ability chains. Her flexibility still allows for generalist play, but Dani truly shines as a solo-carrying beast in the hands of experts.
A-Tier: Specialists With Defined Playstyles
While the A-Tier Slayers remain wholly viable picks for zombie destruction, their pronounced strengths and weaknesses cater them towards specific playstyles to truly excel.
Carla
| Attribute | Points | Overall Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Toughness | 4/5 | 1st (Tied) |
| Stamina | 3/5 | 5th (Tied) |
| Health Recovery | 3/5 | 3rd (Tied) |
| Critical Damage | 1/5 | 6th |
| Agility | 2/5 | 6th (Tied) |
| Peak Health | 3/5 | 5th (Tied) |
| Resilience | 5/5 | 1st |
Carla dominates as Dead Island 2‘s supreme stone wall tank. She boasts tied 1st place Toughness at 4/5 and the solo highest Resilience score for unrivaled sustainability against floods of weaker enemies.
Her poor Critical Damage and Agility prevent intense fights against dangerous elites, but excellently compliment an "Immovable Object" playstyle.
Innate Abilities
Mosh Pit (A) – Approaching groups grants +50% Melee Damage for 10 seconds. Carla doubles her middling damage to compete offensively when sufficiently surrounded.
Dig Deep (S) – Upon dropping below 50% health, instantly gain +60% Damage Resistance for 10 seconds. This synergizes perfectly with Mosh Pit during giant horde pulls to make Carla nearly invincible.
With outrageous survivability Innates that enable soaking mass zombie aggro, Carla acts as the perfect pick for anxiety-prone players preferring a relaxed playstyle. Her weaknesses around single target damage simply incentivize pulling large crowds.
Ryan
| Attribute | Points | Overall Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Toughness | 5/5 | 1st |
| Stamina | 3/5 | 5th (Tied) |
| Health Recovery | 3/5 | 3rd (Tied) |
| Critical Damage | 2/5 | 5th |
| Agility | 1/5 | 6th |
| Peak Health | 3/5 | 5th (Tied) |
| Resilience | 4/5 | 2nd |
The tank playstyle finds its second champion in Ryan, who ties Carla for the game‘s #1 Toughness rating. His 4/5 Resilience also helps him soak environmental damage when holding hot zones.
Slow speed and poor single target damage output remains problematic however. Ryan must get value through disruption over raw kills.
Innate Abilities
Retaliation (A) – Upon dodging or blocking attacks, Ryan unleashes a counter blow for 180% increased damage. This helps offset his mediocre crit for higher return on each punishment window.
Seesaw (B) – Every knocked down enemy grants +100 Health. With Retaliation‘s augmented impact and Ryan‘s disruption tools, he can lock down and drain isolated threats fairly well.
Ryan demands an expert eye for identifying attack telegraphs from deadly elites and good timing to maximize his block-counter punisher fantasy. But those who enjoy methodically controlling the battlefield will enjoy becoming an unbreakable pillar against the zombie hordes.
B-Tier: High Risk, High Reward Fragility
The B-Tier Slayers tie for the highest potential single target damage in Dead Island 2. But their pathetic durability and reliance on perfect execution places them strictly into hands of advanced players.
Bruno
| Attribute | Points | Overall Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Toughness | 2/5 | 6th |
| Stamina | 3/5 | 5th (Tied) |
| Health Recovery | 3/5 | 3rd (Tied) |
| Critical Damage | 5/5 | 1st |
| Agility | 4/5 | 3rd |
| Peak Health | 1/5 | 6th |
| Resilience | 3/5 | 4th |
Dueling any enemy head on spells instant death for Bruno, who shares the game‘s lowest Peak Health at only 1/5. He compensates with stellar 5/5 Critical Damage and high Agility for impressive theoretical DPS.
But saucey combos require flawless play…
Innate Abilities
Backstab (A) – Attacking from behind deals +250% Critical Damage, enabling Bruno to systematically isolate and erase oblivious zombies.
Rapid Reprisal (B) – Dodging/Blocking regenerates +20 Stamina for 5 seconds to fund retreats and re-engages.
With zero margin for error, Bruno epitomizes high risk, high reward glass cannon gameplay. Perfect backstabs let him erase ELITE enemies rapidly, but just a few hits will drop Bruno. Not amateur friendly whatsoever, but spectacular in expert hands.
Amy
| Attribute | Points | Overall Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Toughness | 1/5 | 6th |
| Stamina | 3/5 | 5th (Tied) |
| Health Recovery | 3/5 | 3rd (Tied) |
| Critical Damage | 4/5 | 2nd |
| Agility | 5/5 | 1st |
| Peak Health | 2/5 | 5th |
| Resilience | 3/5 | 4th |
Like Bruno, Amy shares atrocious durability traits with nearly non-existent health and pathetic Toughness. Her blazing 5/5 Agility score provides some escape potential, but engaging enemies is heavily discouraged.
Where Amy pulls ahead lies in stronger innate Support skills…
Innate Abilities
Relief Pitcher (B) – Throwing weapons regenerate +50 Stamina, funding Amy‘s swift hit and run tactics.
Divide and Conquer (C) – Attacking isolated enemies amplifies damage by +30%. Decent for picking off stragglers, but useless against groups.
Amy best operates as an elusive opportunist preying on zombie stragglers. But direct fights require lots of gear compensation to not get instantly melted. Her generalist potential remains far more limited than S/A-Tiers.
Best Slayer Picks By Playstyle
Given their holistic capabilities, which Slayer best fits popular combat archetypes? Let‘s summarize top pairings:
Warrior Brawler
- Jacob – Supreme durability and lethal Innate synergy reinforce relentless zombie face-tanking.
Cautious Survivor
- Carla – Near immunity to damage from any source when surrounded. Fearlessly soak endless hordes!
Hit & Run Expert
- Dani – Extreme speed and sustain to safely dismantle groups then regain HP rapidly during isolation duty.
Glass Cannon Skirmisher
- Bruno – Vanish and reappear to systematically Backstab elites by fully avoiding their threat ranges first. Severely punishing misplays.
Untouchable Phantom
- Amy – Her unrivaled mobility allows players to ghost in and out of combat rapidly. Gear must provide the killing power itself however.
So depending on preferences for either durability, speed, or raw strength – Dead Island 2‘s Slayer roster holds top-tier specialized potential to satisfy.
Verdict: Jacob Reigns Supreme
While arguments exist for each Slayer‘s potentials when played properly, Jacob‘s unmatched generalist toolkit ensures beginner and veteran zombie hunters alike can leverage him effectively.
He crushes noobs and experts criteria:
Survivability – Boasting the highest Peak Health + solid Toughness means most mistakes are forgiven
Sustain – High base Stamina & Crit Regen maintain his offense better than finite Innate boosts
Flexibility – Well-rounded Core Stats have no glaring weaknesses, enables diverse builds
Innates – Feral and Crit Regen directly fuel his combat lethality rather than purely defensive perks
So upon Dead Island 2‘s official release, both casual slashers and seasoned zombie slayers should strongly consider Jacob as their ideal all-around pick for surviving the apocalypse in style!
Let me know your thoughts on these expanded Slayer analyses down below! And stay tuned her at VeryAli Gaming for more Dead Island 2 news and tips!
