Acrid, the toxic beast of Risk of Rain 2, offers a unique playstyle that blends melee strikes with powerful damage-over-time effects. Unlike traditional ranged characters, Acrid thrives in hit-and-run tactics, relying on poison and blight to slowly tear down even the toughest bosses. However, Acrid’s success depends heavily on the items you pick during your run. To help players make the most out of this unconventional survivor, here’s a comprehensive Acrid item tier list tailored for optimal synergy and survivability.
Understanding Acrid’s Strengths and Playstyle
Core Mechanics
Acrid’s kit revolves around two major damage types: Poison and Blight. Poison, applied by his passive, deals a flat percentage of the enemy’s max health over time especially useful for tanky enemies. Blight, gained through his special skill when configured, scales with Acrid’s base damage and benefits more from crits and stacking.
Because of this dual nature, your choice of items should be based on the version of Acrid you’re playing (Poison vs Blight) and how aggressively you want to engage enemies in melee combat.
S-Tier Items – Essential Picks for Acrid
- Shatterspleen– Grants critical strikes a chance to inflict Bleed and causes enemies to explode upon death. Works incredibly well with Acrid’s multi-hit attacks and synergizes with Blight builds.
- Will-o’-the-wisp– Clears groups of enemies efficiently when poisoned or blighted targets die. Perfect for crowd control and chain reactions.
- Infusion– Since Acrid often engages in close quarters, extra health is essential. Infusion helps stack that early on.
- Ukulele– Procs AoE lightning from your attacks, making it easier to clear crowds. Pairs well with Acrid’s multi-hit poison and melee swipes.
- Harvester’s Scythe– Acrid benefits from any healing due to his frontline playstyle. When combined with high crit chance, this item ensures consistent survivability.
A-Tier Items – Highly Effective and Recommended
- Predatory Instincts– Grants attack speed when landing critical hits. More attacks mean more poison or blight application and faster damage output.
- Soldier’s Syringe– Increases attack speed, improving damage and poison uptime. Especially good when using Vicious Wounds often.
- Tri-Tip Dagger– Stacking Bleed is great with Acrid’s fast attacks and can be used alongside poison or blight for hybrid builds.
- Leeching Seed– Provides passive healing per hit, which is very effective for Acrid’s constant close-range attacks.
- Death Mark– Acrid can easily inflict multiple status effects. With Poison, Bleed, and Burn (if paired with Gasoline or Shatterspleen), Death Mark consistently triggers its bonus damage effect.
B-Tier Items – Situational or Build-Specific
- Gasoline– Causes burning in an area when enemies die. It’s helpful for crowd control but less effective against bosses.
- Focus Crystal– Boosts damage when close to enemies, which suits Acrid’s melee approach. However, positioning can be risky.
- AtG Missile Mk.1– Offers burst damage that scales well, but lacks synergy with Acrid’s DoT-focused toolkit.
- Ignition Tank– Works in Bleed/Burn builds and can stack damage well when you’ve picked up complementary items like Gasoline or Molotov-based gear.
- Paul’s Goat Hoof– Movement speed is always useful for dodging and kiting, especially during mid to late game stages.
C-Tier Items – Lower Impact for Acrid
- Sticky Bomb– While decent for other survivors, it doesn’t synergize as well with Acrid’s DoT mechanics and feels redundant.
- Energy Drink– Boosts sprinting, but Acrid needs more offensive and defensive items due to his close combat nature.
- Backup Magazine– Extra charges of secondary attacks are helpful but not game-changing for Acrid compared to others like Huntress or Commando.
- Topaz Brooch– Provides a temporary barrier per kill, but in high-damage situations it doesn’t offer consistent protection.
Legendary and Boss Items – Game Changers
Top Picks
- 57 Leaf Clover– Increases your chance for any proc effects. Useful for proccing Bleeds, Shatterspleen, and more.
- Rejuvenation Rack– Doubles healing, turning items like Leeching Seed and Harvester’s Scythe into incredible healing tools.
- Brilliant Behemoth– Gives AoE to all attacks, including melee. This massively boosts Acrid’s damage spread.
- Wake of Vultures– Temporarily gains abilities from elite enemies. Acrid’s survivability and DPS can spike with this.
Boss Tier Items
- Shatterspleen(again, worth repeating) – Bleed synergy and AoE on death make it arguably Acrid’s best-in-slot item.
- Genesis Loop– Good burst when Acrid’s health is low, useful during boss fights or chaotic waves.
Void and Lunar Items – Use With Caution
Void Items
- Plasma Shrimp– Replaces all missiles with shield-based missiles. Not ideal due to low synergy.
- Needletick– Adds collapse on hit. Has some synergy with multi-hits but not priority over Bleed or Poison.
- Weeping Fungus– Great for Acrid when combined with movement speed items; heals while sprinting.
Lunar Items
- Shaped Glass– Doubles damage but halves health. Risky for Acrid’s melee style unless heavily tanky already.
- Gesture of the Drowned– Automates equipment. Useful if combined with good AoE equipment like Royal Capacitor or Disposable Missile Launcher.
- Transcendence– Converts health to shields. Dangerous for Acrid due to his reliance on healing-over-time effects.
Equipment Choices for Acrid
- Royal Capacitor– Great burst against elite enemies or bosses.
- Milky Chrysalis– Grants flight and mobility, helping with hit-and-run tactics.
- Gnarled Woodsprite– Provides passive healing, keeping Acrid healthy during extended fights.
- Preon Accumulator– Massive AoE damage for room-clearing, but slow recharge.
Building Around Blight vs Poison
Poison-Focused Build
This setup thrives on damage over time. Prioritize survivability and AoE. Items like Will-o’-the-wisp, Infusion, and Death Mark pair well.
Blight-Focused Build
This path rewards aggressive play and crit stacking. Items like Shatterspleen, Harvester’s Scythe, and Predatory Instincts are crucial. This build benefits most from attack speed and direct engagement with elites.
Acrid stands apart from other survivors in Risk of Rain 2 due to his flexible combat approach and unique damage types. Whether you focus on poison to watch enemies decay or build around blight to become a ferocious melee assassin, your item choices dramatically influence your performance. Use this Acrid item tier list as a guide to prioritize essential pickups and maximize his deadly potential in every run. By focusing on healing, proc synergy, and damage amplification, Acrid can evolve into one of the game’s most efficient and satisfying survivors.