Unlock requirements and class names may contain spoilers for progression, bosses, special waves, and late-game modes.
Fast answer
The answer before the background
The roster contains 19 playable classes: Deprived Wretch, Liche Necromancer, Vampire Survivor, Sinned Deamologist, Sorcerer Hollow, Gangly Grafted, Meldum Afflicted, Cyclop Exile, Doll Maker, Sprout Brotato, Psycho Possessed, Voodoo Shaman, Boneworm Brainiac, Imp Contraptineer, Dark Metaman, Beast Whisperer, Courtier Clown, Fortuity Destiny, and Celestial Vessel. Start with Deprived Wretch, then unlock classes by completing their stated feats in a single run. For a dependable first specialist, Liche Necromancer, Sinned Deamologist, or Sprout Brotato gives a clear build direction; exact balance rankings are subjective and can change with patches.
Roster
Every playable class and its role
Classes change the way a run is built. They are not merely cosmetic character skins: each one has a different focus, class heritage tree, or restriction that can alter the minions and upgrades worth pursuing. The descriptions below summarize the role confirmed by the roster reference and official game description, not a universal power ranking.
- Deprived Wretch — The default generalist, focused on relics and chests. It is the safest class for learning the basic boneraise loop.
- Liche Necromancer — Builds around level-one skelly minions and quantity. It rewards keeping a broad, growing undead army.
- Vampire Survivor — Uses contact with meanies to gain bones. It is more aggressive and asks you to manage health and positioning carefully.
- Sinned Deamologist — Specializes in Deamon or Demon minions. Choose it when you want a large part of the run to revolve around demon upgrades.
- Sorcerer Hollow — Focuses on spell scrolls. It suits players who prefer active spell timing and spell-driven damage.
- Gangly Grafted — Specializes in Giant minions. Its route is slower to assemble but can produce a small number of powerful units.
- Meldum Afflicted — Centers on Meldus minions and their fusion requirements. It is a specialist class rather than a simple all-purpose option.
- Cyclop Exile — Focuses on eye-popper archer, canoneer, and Morgzoloth minions. Its identity is tied to cyclopian forces and special waves.
- Doll Maker — Replaces the normal skelly plan with Wax minions. It is a good choice when you want a more structured army of waxen units.
- Sprout Brotato — Builds around Bro minions. The class becomes more attractive as you collect and combine different Bro options.
- Psycho Possessed — Uses the perks and abilities of other classes. It is a flexible but unusual choice, best approached after learning several class mechanics.
- Voodoo Shaman — Specializes in Zombie Bro minions. Its plan is narrower than Sprout Brotato's, but it has a clear undead-bro identity.
- Boneworm Brainiac — Gains effects from the minions it raises. Variety matters more here than committing to only one minion family.
- Imp Contraptineer — Focuses on building contraptions and raising Impling Trappers. It rewards players who actively use the map's defensive machinery.
- Dark Metaman — The broad stat-focused class. It is less specialized around one minion family and more concerned with general scaling.
- Beast Whisperer — Replaces skellys with Beast minions. Its army and upgrade choices differ substantially from the default route.
- Courtier Clown — A transformation-focused wildcard class. Its effects can change meanies, pickups, chests, and minion offers, so adaptation is more important than a fixed recipe.
- Fortuity Destiny — Starts a run as a random unlocked class. It is a variety option, not a replacement for unlocking the underlying classes.
- Celestial Vessel — Added in the v37 Celestial Update. It can use Holy Monks, Heavenly Vessels, Heavenly Cherubs, and Godly Vessel-related content, but the official notes checked do not state its unlock condition.
| Class | Primary role | Unlock condition verified in sources |
|---|---|---|
| Deprived Wretch | Relics and chests | Default |
| Liche Necromancer | Level-one skellys | Boneraise 11 skelly minions |
| Vampire Survivor | Contact and bone generation | Lose 666 HP |
| Sinned Deamologist | Demon minions | Boneraise a sinful demon |
| Sorcerer Hollow | Spell scrolls | Cast 6 spells |
| Gangly Grafted | Giant minions | Boneraise a legion of 3 Giant minions |
| Meldum Afflicted | Melded minions | Boneraise a Mighty Meldus |
| Cyclop Exile | Cyclopian minions | Survive a cyclopian wave of Mount Eyeball Might |
| Doll Maker | Wax minions | Survive the final wave of the Paladinal Guard |
| Sprout Brotato | Bro minions | Boneraise a Big Bro |
| Psycho Possessed | Other class perks | Score 99,999+ with Fortuity Destiny |
| Voodoo Shaman | Zombie Bro minions | Boneraise 6 Zombie Bros |
| Boneworm Brainiac | Mixed minion effects | Use a legion containing a Meldus, Demon, and Bro |
| Imp Contraptineer | Contraptions | Boneraise 3 Impling Trappers |
| Dark Metaman | General stats | Max Gold Coins at 9,999 and Hero Souls at 9 |
| Beast Whisperer | Beast minions | Survive a hulking Ogre Juggernaut wave |
| Courtier Clown | Random transformations | A legion containing 3 Joker Jesters of any level |
| Fortuity Destiny | Random unlocked class | Unlock any other class |
| Celestial Vessel | Holy minions and blessed forces | Not stated in the official notes checked |
Older material uses the game's former spellings, including Deamologist, Deamon, Sorcerer Hollow, and Cyclop Exile. The v37 notes say the in-game wording changed from Deamon to Demon, but roster references may retain older names. Use the name shown in your current class menu when searching the Compendium.
Unlocks
How to unlock classes without wasting runs
Most class unlocks are challenge conditions that must be met in one run. The practical implication is that progress toward a requirement normally does not accumulate across several failed attempts. Before starting, read the class objective and shape the run around the required minion family, spell count, health loss, wave, or score.
- For minion requirements, keep the needed lower-level units alive until the boneraise option appears. Banishing too many related choices can make the target harder to assemble.
- For spell requirements, select Sorcerer Hollow or a spell-friendly setup when possible, then cast six spells during the same run rather than merely collecting scrolls.
- For wave requirements, invest in survivability and movement first. A class challenge is not complete if the required special wave is reached but the run ends before it is survived.
- For score requirements, use the class or map named by the objective. Psycho Possessed specifically requires a high Fortuity Destiny score, so random-class variance is part of the challenge.
- For Fortuity Destiny, unlocking one class is enough according to the roster reference. After that, it can randomly choose from your unlocked classes.
- For Celestial Vessel, check the current in-game Choose Class screen or the developer's latest update notes. The v37 announcement confirms the class exists but does not publish the unlock trigger.
| Objective type | Best preparation | Common mistake |
|---|---|---|
| Raise a named minion | Keep its prerequisite minions and avoid over-banishing its family. | Assuming the requirement counts across multiple runs. |
| Survive a special wave | Prioritize health, movement, defensive relics, and reliable damage. | Building only for early-stage farming. |
| Reach a score | Use a consistent map and avoid experimental banishes. | Treating a community tier list as an unlock rule. |
| Lose or spend health | Plan the health change safely and keep enough survivability to finish. | Taking unnecessary damage before the condition is ready. |
The listed conditions are reported by the class roster reference and official update material. The preparation advice is a practical recommendation, not an official requirement or guaranteed fastest route.
Choosing a class
Which character should you play first?
Choose Deprived Wretch for your first few runs. Its relic-and-chest focus does not force you into a specialized minion family, so you can learn how bones, boneraises, relics, spells, and class heritage interact. Once the basic loop is comfortable, move to a class whose central idea matches the build you want to practice.
- Pick Liche Necromancer if you like a large conventional skelly army and want a straightforward quantity-focused plan.
- Pick Sinned Deamologist if you prefer fewer, stronger demonic upgrades and are comfortable planning around Demon prerequisites.
- Pick Sorcerer Hollow if you want spells to be a major part of your damage and utility rather than an occasional emergency button.
- Pick Gangly Grafted if you enjoy combining units into Giants and protecting a slower-growing army.
- Pick Sprout Brotato or Voodoo Shaman when you specifically want Bro or Zombie Bro progression.
- Pick Imp Contraptineer if you like using the arena itself through traps and contraptions.
- Pick Courtier Clown only when you are comfortable reacting to changing offers. It is deliberately less predictable than the generalist classes.
- Pick Fortuity Destiny for variety, challenge runs, or the Psycho Possessed unlock route rather than for a controlled build.
| Player preference | Good starting choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Learning the game | Deprived Wretch | Fewest restrictions and the clearest baseline. |
| Large undead army | Liche Necromancer | Rewards skelly quantity and broad coverage. |
| Powerful specialists | Sinned Deamologist or Gangly Grafted | Builds around Demons or Giants. |
| Active spell use | Sorcerer Hollow | Makes scrolls central to the run. |
| Map defense | Imp Contraptineer | Turns contraptions into a class identity. |
| Randomized challenge | Fortuity Destiny | Chooses a random unlocked class. |
Community rankings disagree because performance depends on map, mode, meta progression, class heritage, and player preference. Treat tier lists as recommendations, not verified balance data.
Named questions
Answers to common character questions
The game calls its playable characters classes. That matters because the class changes the run's progression rules and unlock path, while minions are the units you raise during combat. A question about a 'character' usually means one of these classes, not a separate hero character with a permanent weapon.
- The starting character is Deprived Wretch.
- The random character is Fortuity Destiny, which begins as a randomly selected unlocked class.
- The class that uses other classes' perks is Psycho Possessed.
- The class focused on contraptions is Imp Contraptineer.
- The class that replaces skellys with Wax minions is Doll Maker.
- The class that replaces skellys with Beasts is Beast Whisperer.
- The newest named class confirmed in the sources checked is Celestial Vessel, added in the v37 Celestial Update on October 27, 2025.
- The playable classes are distinct from enemies such as King Gigald, the Queen, Godly Vessel, and other bosses. Those are not selectable player classes in the roster covered here.
Compare the class names and update number shown in your game. The official Steam update history confirms that v37 changed the roster and class menu, and later v37 patches fixed class-selection and Celestial Vessel issues.
FAQ
Common questions
How many playable characters are in Boneraiser Minions?
The roster checked here contains 19 playable classes, including Fortuity Destiny, Courtier Clown, and the later Celestial Vessel addition. Older guides may list fewer because they predate newer updates.
What is the best starting class?
Deprived Wretch is the safest first choice because it is the default generalist and emphasizes relics and chests rather than requiring a specialized minion family. After learning the basics, choose a specialist that matches your preferred build.
Do class unlock requirements carry over between runs?
The class roster reference states that unlock requirements must be completed in a single run. Plan the whole attempt around the objective instead of expecting partial progress to accumulate.
How do I unlock Fortuity Destiny?
Unlock any other class. Fortuity Destiny then starts runs as a random class from your unlocked roster.
How do I unlock Celestial Vessel?
The official v37 announcement confirms the class and its Holy minion theme, but the sources checked do not state its unlock condition. Use the current in-game Choose Class screen or a newer developer note rather than relying on an unverified requirement.
Are minions the same thing as characters?
No. Classes are the playable characters or starting identities. Minions are the combat units raised during a run, and a class usually changes which minion families or upgrade routes are most useful.
Sources
What we checked
Official listings establish current availability and product facts. Community pages are used for mechanics and build history, then labeled separately.
- OfficialOfficial Steam store page for Boneraiser Minions
- OfficialOfficial Steam update history, including Celestial Update v37 and patch v37.9
- ReferenceCharacter Classes reference with roster and unlock conditions
- CommunityCommunity class guide documenting Courtier Clown and its unlock condition
- CommunityCommunity strategy guide with class roster context and mode-specific discussion