In Darkest Dungeon, efficiency is the glue that holds the player's flimsy and meek heroes together. Their dynamics as a party dictates whether players can face the abyss, or succumb to it after so many futile attempts at winning an uphill battle. Players will lose their heroes time and again, as that's part of the gameplay loop.

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Their sacrifices are not for nothing, however. Trial and error bought with piles of fallen heroes' corpses can be a good teacher. Some players will want to be thrifty with that kind of currency; luckily, others have tested which heroes mesh well with one another and in what situations their synergy excels. Hence, certain party compositions are more favorable.

These teams are the kind that players can take in two or more dungeon types or area types, without having to shuffle around or change too much. They work well in several situations and scenarios, and are reliable to fall back on.

• Three Crusaders
• Plague Doctor

Gamers will probably see where the name came from, and how this party can inspire some gameplay zeal. Crusaders are some of the highest damage dealers in the game, and their holy lances can hit wide.

Moreover, they have small amounts of healing and stress healing, making the team extremely resilient. In fact, players can even replace the Plague Doctor in lighter dungeons. However, for instances where specialized debuffs and backline damage is warranted, the Plague Doctor might be necessary.

• Flagellant/Hellion
• Highwayman
• Jester
• Houndmaster

Bleeding one's enemies to death in Darkest Dungeon is a safe tactic, but it does have its limitations. Bleed attacks don't work well against undead, so players will want to avoid using this team in dungeons with those kinds of enemies.

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The best part about this aspect is that most party members can hit multiple enemies and make them bleed all at once. Meanwhile, the Jester is the real MVP of the party due, to his stress healing and effective bleed procs.

• Man-at-Arms
• Houndmaster
• Arbalest
• Vestal

These guys are all battle-hardened individuals and form a perfect military team, with the Man-at-Arms holding the battle standard. He'll also be doing the tanking, as anyone behind him isn't that tough.

In terms of efficiency, this team has a high damage output with tons of crowd control potential. Having an Arbalest and a Houndmaster also allows players to deal with troublesome backline enemies.

• Hellion
• Abomination
• Occultist
• Plague Doctor

Granted, all heroes in Darkest Dungeon are outcasts, but these guys take the cake for being socially deviant. They're also a surprisingly effective group of misfits. The two spellcasters in the backline (Plague Doctor/Occultist) can stun and debuff the enemies as well as heal.

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The Abomination can also provide some nasty stuns. Meanwhile, the Hellion will outright kill everything while the targets can't move. Against bosses? As long as players can keep them stunned, it's a breeze for the Hellion.

• Man at Arms
• Crusader
• Bounty Hunter
• Vestal

In contrast to the team of outcasts above, these heroes are as morally upright as the game allows them to be. It performs similarly to the Outcasts team, except the Vestal is a better healer.

Stress relief is also done better by the Crusader in this group. Damage-wise, it deals a good amount, especially to the backline enemies thanks to the Bounty Hunter. The stun capabilities of this team are also decent enough against bosses.

• Bounty Hunter
• Houndmaster
• Occultist
• Arbalest

When it comes to maximizing damage outputs, players won't find this team wanting. It's all about weakening the enemies before unleashing wrath upon them. This is done with mark abilities that all party members possess.

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After that, it's a matter of killing the enemies, which is easy enough if they're all marked for execution. For other purposes, such as crowd control and survival, this team isn't bad thanks to the Occultist and some stress management at camp.

• Hellion
• Crusader
• Vestal
• Plague Doctor

The Ruins can be a nauseating place teeming with undead, so having teams that specialize in dealing with them is often mandatory. The Hellion in the frontline can keep frontline enemies incapacitated with her stun.

The Crusader is effective at killing backline enemies, while the Vestal is just there for healing and some occasional emergency damage dealing. The Plague Doctor shines best at casting Blight on enemies with high protection.

• Man-at-Arms
• Bounty Hunter
• Occultist
• Arbalest

The Weald is filled with organic and meaty enemies, so anything that can cause bleeding will be good there. However, Bleed compositions might not be for everyone, so a more standard team would be the Weald Team above.

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The Bounty Hunter keeps things under control, while Man-at-Arms soaks up damage and protects his allies. The Arbalest clears any stress-inducing nuisances, and the Occultist can prevent ambushes while dealing good damage to the backline.

• Man-at-Arms
• Abomination
• Jester
• Occultist

This team is similar to the one used in the Weald. It also utilizes the same tactics, with Man-at-Arms keeping everyone alive by being the distraction. Meanwhile, Abomination is great at incapacitating enemies and inflicting Blight against the tough ones.

Jester is just invaluable in this sort of setup, since he diminishes the Abomination's stress-causing disposition. The main damage-dealer here is the Abomination, who can tear through enemy ranks after transforming. Even without his transformation, he can still be useful to the party.

• Hellion
• Houndmaster
• Grave Robber
• Vestal

The Warrens is a disease-ridden place, but the enemies there all bleed. Thus, Bleed-heavy teams are welcome here. If not, then something lighter like the Warrens Team will do. The Hellion has multiple roles here, from stunning the frontline to making enemies bleed.

The Graverobber is a useful hero all-around due to her Snuff Box, which can cure diseases during camping. The Houndmaster is the primary source of Bleed status, and can attack several enemies. Then of course, there's the Vestal, who makes every team competent enough to survive even in the darkest of dungeons.

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