- Vanguard units hold the frontline in Anime Mysterious, buying time for your DPS and supports to work.
- Best all-around pick: Gojo (Mythic) combines AoE damage with crowd control at the front.
- Budget substitute: Stone Golem tanks hits but adds almost no damage — pair it with a burst carry.
- Key rule: Position vanguards at map bends where their range covers the longest path stretch.
- Investment tip: Fully upgrade 2–3 core units before expanding your placement count.
What Is a Vanguard Unit in Anime Mysterious?
A vanguard unit is any Anime Mysterious unit you place at the front of your defense line — tanks, crowd controllers, and hybrid fighters that absorb pressure while your damage dealers clear waves. In this tower-defense style Roblox experience, the vanguard decides whether enemies reach your backline, so choosing the right one shapes every stage you attempt.
Vanguards generally fall into three archetypes:
Pure Tank
- Absorbs enemy hits
- Stone Golem, Slime
- Low damage, high survivability
- Best with strong backline DPS
Control Vanguard
- Freezes or stuns enemies
- Ice Queen, Gojo
- Slows pushes, protects lanes
- Essential in hard wave defense
Hybrid Fighter
- Tanks while dealing damage
- Luffy (Gear 5), Beast Tamer
- Damage reduction passives
- Best value per placement slot
| Archetype | Example Units | Strength | Weakness | Best Mode |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pure Tank | Stone Golem, Slime | Survivability | No damage contribution | Tower |
| Control | Ice Queen, Gojo | Wave lockdown | Fragile without support | Story, PvP |
| Hybrid | Luffy (Gear 5), Beast Tamer | Damage + durability | Higher rarity requirement | All modes |
Position matters more than raw unit power early on. A well-placed low-tier vanguard placed near the first map bend outperforms a badly positioned high-tier unit, because its attack range covers a longer stretch of the path.
Vanguard Unit Tier Rankings
These ratings weigh damage output, crowd-control coverage, durability, and how well each unit performs at low investment across PvE waves and PvP defense.
| Tier | Unit | Role | Why It Ranks Here |
|---|---|---|---|
| S | Evil Witch | Support / DPS | Massive AoE damage plus team-wide buffs — best overall unit |
| S | Blood Demon | DPS | Highest single-target burst; melts bosses in PvE |
| S | Shadow Sovereign | DPS / Debuff | Great scaling and enemy defense reduction for PvP |
| A | Flame Swordsman | DPS | Consistent burn damage from early to late PvE |
| A | Ice Queen | Crowd Control | Freezes enemies; essential for hard wave defense |
| A+ | Goku (SSJ) | AoE DPS | Kamehameha beam clears waves; Ki Charge restores energy on kill |
| A | Kakashi | Support / Sub-DPS | Sharingan passive boosts team energy generation |
| B | Pirate Captain | Hybrid | Decent damage and gold bonus, falls off late game |
| B | Beast Tamer | Summoner | Reliable summons that hold lanes effectively |
| C | Stone Golem | Tank | Tanks hits but contributes almost no damage |
| D | Slime | Tank | Minimal HP and no utility beyond the first few stages |
| Stat | Gojo | Luffy (Gear 5) | Ice Queen | Stone Golem |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rarity | Mythic | Mythic | Legendary | Common |
| Vanguard Role | Control / DPS | Hybrid DPS | Crowd Control | Pure Tank |
| AoE Coverage | ★★★★★ | ★★★☆☆ | ★★★★☆ | ★☆☆☆☆ |
| Durability | ★★★☆☆ | ★★★★☆ | ★★☆☆☆ | ★★★★★ |
| Overall Rating | S+ Tier | S Tier | A Tier | C Tier |
Stone Golem and Slime only work with heavy backline investment or in niche comps. If you are still running Trainee Fighter or Slime as your frontline, replace them as soon as you pull your first 3-star unit — neither scales into late content.
Best Vanguard Setups by Game Mode
Each mode rewards a different frontline style. Match your vanguard to the content you are pushing.
| Mode | Recommended Vanguard | Core Lineup | Strategy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Story / Farming | Goku (SSJ) | Goku, Ichigo (Bankai), Tanjiro, Kakashi | Maximize AoE coverage to clear waves instantly and speed-farm XP |
| Boss Raids | Luffy (Gear 5) | Luffy, Gojo, Kakashi, Healer | Stack single-target burst and buffs to melt boss HP before enrage |
| Tower / Infinite | Gojo | Gojo, Goku (SSJ), Healer, Tank hybrid | Sustain and crowd control survive deep floors where enemies scale |
| PvP | Gojo | Gojo, Kakashi, Luffy, Sub-DPS flex | Chain stuns and burst to lock down the enemy team first |
Boss Burst Squad
- Core: Gojo, Luffy (Gear 5), Kakashi, Healer
- Substitute: Ichigo (Bankai) for Gojo
- Melts boss HP bars fast
Tower Endurance Comp
- Core: Gojo, Goku (SSJ), Healer, Tank hybrid
- Substitute: any stun-capable unit for Gojo
- Built for deep-floor survival
Plan your tower pushes and farming loops for the Weekend Double Drop Event, when all stages award 2x gold and XP. A control vanguard like Ice Queen keeps runs stable long enough to fully exploit the bonus.
How to Build Your Vanguard: Step by Step
Learn the Core Loop
Place units along the path to defeat waves. Clearing waves earns gold for placing and upgrading units; completing stages rewards gems for summoning new units.
Place Your Starter Vanguard Wisely
Put your free starter unit near the first bend of the map so its attack range covers the longest path stretch before adding anything else.
Upgrade Before You Expand
Fully upgrade 2–3 core damage units first, then add supports and crowd control. Upgraded units gain more damage per gold spent than fresh placements.
Save Gems for Multi-Summons
Never spend gems one pull at a time. Save for multi-summons, which offer better odds at higher-rarity vanguards like Gojo or Luffy (Gear 5). Redeem all active gift codes first for free gems.
Farm Your Limit, Not Your Comfort
Push until you hit a wall, then farm the hardest stage you can reliably beat for gems and XP. Replaying easy stages wastes progression time.
If you are starting fresh, reroll before investing hours: redeem every code on a new account, multi-summon, and keep the account only if you pull an S-tier unit like Evil Witch, Blood Demon, or Shadow Sovereign. Each cycle takes roughly 10–15 minutes.
Vanguard Upgrade Checklist
Work through these milestones to turn a basic frontline into a meta-ready defense.
Vanguard Milestones:
- Replace Slime or Trainee Fighter with any Epic or better unit
- Fully upgrade 2–3 core damage units before adding more placements
- Pull one crowd-control vanguard (Ice Queen or Gojo)
- Build a Boss Burst Squad for raid content
- Clear a deep tower floor with an endurance comp
Watch for limited-time Mythic banners such as the Gojo rate-up, which adds bonus gems per 10-pull. Timing your multi-summons around a rate-up significantly improves your odds of landing a top vanguard without extra spending.
FAQ
Q: What is the best vanguard unit in Anime Mysterious?
Gojo (Mythic) is the strongest overall pick. His Infinite Void skill delivers massive AoE damage and a stun, while his Domain Amplification passive boosts crit rate each wave, letting him frontline for boss raids, tower runs, and PvP simultaneously.
Q: Is Stone Golem worth using as a vanguard?
Only situationally. Stone Golem tanks hits well but contributes almost no damage, so he is a C-tier pick that works in niche endurance comps. Replace him with a hybrid like Luffy (Gear 5) or a controller like Ice Queen as soon as your roster allows.
Q: How do I get more vanguard units quickly?
Redeem all active gift codes for free gems, then save for multi-summons instead of single pulls — multi-summons give better odds at higher rarities and often include bonus pulls. Farming the hardest stage you can reliably clear keeps gem income steady.
Q: Should I reroll my account for a better vanguard?
Rerolling is best done on day one before you have built progression. Target an S-tier unit such as Evil Witch, Blood Demon, or Shadow Sovereign; a strong A-tier DPS is an acceptable stopping point. If you have already invested several hours, rerolling is rarely worth the loss.