When you first enter Battle Arena, you pick 4 Token-mon from a pool of 12 to form your starting team. You get a 75 Token welcome bonus and your first win pays another +50, so you can recruit a fifth creature almost immediately after your first match — but these 4 starter picks shape your first 10-20 matches.
This is the tier list. Not every starter is equal. Some punch way above their weight at low rating, and some are traps that feel good but cost you matches.
One hard rule before we start: you must pick at least one Copper type. Without Copper energy regen, you'll run dry in 3-4 turns and spin Tier 1 forever. The tutorial enforces this. But you should pick two Coppers for real competitive play.
S-Tier — Always Pick These
Voltwire — Copper
The best overall starter. Voltwire has balanced stats, a great attack pool, and its reforge chain leads to Voltempror, a legendary. It contributes both energy regen and real damage, which is the definition of a carry starter. Pick Voltwire on every team.
Scraplet — Iron
High HP, high defense, solid attack — Scraplet is the tankiest Iron option and makes an excellent Main fighter. If you plan to stack Iron supports, Scraplet as your Main gives you a +15% attack passive plus natural survivability. Also the canon starter from story mode, for what it's worth.
Chromling — Chrome
The only Chrome starter. Picking Chromling gives you access to the reflect mechanic, which is underrated — 10% of incoming damage bouncing back adds up over a 10-turn match. Useful as either a support or a secondary Main in mirror-heavy metas.
A-Tier — Strong Picks
Spark-Wire — Copper
Your second Copper pick. Spark-Wire is a glass cannon — fast attacks, low HP. It's slightly worse than Voltwire as a solo Main but excellent as a Copper support: you get the energy regen AND some extra damage. Pair with Voltwire for a Copper-heavy backbone.
Ramchip — Silver
Silver starter with great healing synergy. If you're building a survival team (Silver Main + Silver supports for stacked healing), Ramchip is a solid pick. The +25% healing passive compounds with its reforge chain.
Gear-Bot — Iron
Second-best Iron support behind Scraplet. Lower HP but slightly faster. Good if you already picked Scraplet as Main and want a second Iron for the passive attack stack.
B-Tier — Situational
Staticling — Copper
Perfectly fine as a third Copper if you're going all-in on energy stacking. Stats are middling compared to Voltwire and Spark-Wire, but it's still a Copper — the energy regen alone justifies the slot.
Pipeworm — Copper
The fourth Copper option. Slightly lower stats than Staticling but acceptable if you need a fourth Copper body for a triple-Copper-support strategy. Rarely the best pick unless you already have Voltwire, Spark-Wire, and Staticling and want maximum energy.
Boltbit — Iron
Cheap Iron filler. Decent HP for the slot, but nothing special about its stat line. Acceptable in an Iron-spam build, unremarkable otherwise.
Joysprite — Silver
A Silver alternative to Ramchip. Functionally similar stats. Pick whichever you prefer visually — they're near-interchangeable for competitive purposes.
C-Tier — Avoid Unless You're Experimenting
Nutling — Iron
Lowest-stat Iron option. Only pick if you're running a meme build or want a cheap fourth body. There's always a better pick.
Dataflea — Silver
The third Silver starter. Technically functional, but Ramchip and Joysprite both outclass it on raw stats. Skip unless you specifically want a Silver body in a particular slot.
Recommended Starter Team Compositions
The Safe Bet: Balanced Beginner
- Main: Scraplet (Iron — tanky, high HP)
- Support 1: Voltwire (Copper — energy regen)
- Support 2: Spark-Wire (Copper — energy + damage)
- Support 3: Ramchip (Silver — healing passive)
This is the composition I'd recommend for anyone who just wants to start winning matches. Two Coppers mean you're never starved for energy, Scraplet tanks damage, and Ramchip's Silver passive keeps you topped up. Safe, effective, forgiving.
The Aggro Build: Iron Stack
- Main: Scraplet (Iron — +15% ATK passive)
- Support 1: Voltwire (Copper — mandatory energy)
- Support 2: Gear-Bot (Iron — stacks attack)
- Support 3: Boltbit (Iron — stacks attack)
All-in on damage. Your Iron stack gives you roughly +30% attack passively. One Copper is the minimum to survive. This build goes for Flawless wins — burst the opponent before turn 12 and never let them stabilize. Weakness: if the enemy tanks your opening, you have no sustain.
The Copper Spam: Infinite Energy
- Main: Voltwire (Copper — your best Copper as Main)
- Support 1: Spark-Wire (Copper)
- Support 2: Staticling (Copper)
- Support 3: Ramchip (Silver — minor heals)
Three Copper supports plus a Copper Main means +4 energy per turn. You can sit at Tier 5 jackpot-hunting indefinitely. This build abuses the energy tier system — every spin is amplified. Weakness: lower raw damage than the Iron stack, so you depend on Tier 5 rolls landing favorably.
The Tank: Healing Wall
- Main: Ramchip (Silver — +25% healing passive)
- Support 1: Voltwire (Copper)
- Support 2: Joysprite (Silver — stacks healing)
- Support 3: Chromling (Chrome — reflects damage)
Built to outlast. Silver Main + Silver support gives you huge healing multipliers, Chromling reflects damage back at the attacker, and Voltwire keeps the lights on. You'll lose the Flawless race but you're the favorite in long matches — and thanks to Overdrive hoarding, your supporter heals become absurdly valuable in the endgame.
What to Recruit First
After your first win, you'll have 75 starter tokens + 30 win reward + 50 first-win bonus + 25 daily = 180 Tokens. That's enough for any Common recruit (150 Tokens) with change, or you can bank toward a Rare (500).
My recommendation: spend your first 150 on whichever type is missing from your starter team. If you went Iron-heavy, recruit a Silver or Chrome for diversification. If you went Copper-heavy, recruit an Iron or Gold for damage. A balanced type spread lets you counter more opponents as you climb.
Ready to pick your starters and climb? Jump into Battle Arena and start winning. For more depth: Battle Arena Explained and How to Climb to Arcade Master.