Best in Slot Gear Lists and How to Use Them

Best in Slot (BiS) gear lists identify the theoretically optimal item for every equipment slot on your character. These lists serve as gearing roadmaps, guiding your loot priorities and helping you evaluate whether a new drop is an upgrade worth equipping.

How We Selected: We analyzed options using gameplay testing, community feedback, and performance benchmarks. Evaluation criteria included comfort during long sessions, software compatibility, input responsiveness. None of our selections were paid placements or sponsored content.

How BiS Lists Are Created

BiS lists are generated through exhaustive simulation testing. Theorycrafters simulate every combination of available items across all equipment slots, testing hundreds of thousands of gear configurations to identify the combination that produces the highest performance for a given encounter profile.

In WoW, tools like Raidbots’ Droptimizer and Top Gear features automate this process for your specific character. The theorycrafter community then publishes generalized BiS lists that represent the optimal configuration for a typical character of each class and specialization.

FFXIV BiS lists from The Balance Discord account for substat tiers and breakpoints. Because FFXIV stats only change behavior at specific integer thresholds, BiS determination involves precise materia melding calculations that maximize the number of stat tiers crossed. A BiS list that hits a Critical Hit tier by one point provides the same benefit as one that overshoots by fifty points, making precision melding essential.

GW2 BiS is simpler because stat combinations are fixed per gear piece. A full Berserker’s Ascended set is BiS for Power DPS builds, and a full Viper’s set is BiS for Condition builds. The optimization lies in rune, sigil, and food selection rather than per-slot item comparison.

Using BiS Lists as a Gearing Priority Guide

A BiS list tells you what you are working toward, but the path matters as much as the destination. Prioritize acquiring BiS items from slots where the upgrade over your current gear is largest. Replacing a Normal-difficulty ring with a Mythic BiS ring provides a larger performance gain than replacing a Heroic belt with a Mythic BiS belt.

Create a personal priority list ranking BiS items by the DPS gain each provides over your current gear. Use simulation’s gear comparison feature to quantify these differences. This priority list tells you which bosses to use bonus rolls on, which Great Vault slots to target, and which items to bid on if your guild uses a loot council.

In FFXIV, map your BiS list against the loot tables for each Savage floor. Knowing that your BiS weapon drops from the fourth floor and your BiS chest drops from the third floor lets you plan your weekly token expenditure efficiently, acquiring uncontested BiS pieces through tokens while hoping for contested pieces from drops.

When BiS Lists Do Not Apply

BiS lists assume a static gear state and a specific encounter profile. Your actual optimal gear changes as you acquire pieces. A BiS list calculated for a character in full Heroic gear may differ from one calculated for a character already wearing three Mythic pieces because diminishing returns on secondary stats shift the relative value of remaining slots.

Encounter-specific optimization means the true BiS varies by boss. A versatility-heavy set might be BiS for a survival-intensive progression fight where staying alive matters more than raw damage. A haste-heavy set might be BiS for a fight with strict uptime requirements. The generic BiS list represents an average optimal, not the fight-specific optimal.

Tier set bonuses override normal BiS considerations. A lower item level tier piece that completes your four-set bonus almost always outperforms a higher item level non-tier piece. Simulating with and without the set bonus provides the definitive answer.

Avoiding BiS Tunnel Vision

Do not hold out for BiS items while ignoring meaningful upgrades. An item that is 90% as good as BiS, available now, provides more total benefit over the tier than waiting weeks for the BiS piece that provides 100% performance. Equip upgrades as you get them and continue working toward the ideal set.

BiS lists change with balance patches. A mid-tier balance change that buffs mastery and nerfs haste might completely reshuffle your BiS list. Re-simulate and re-evaluate after every significant balance update rather than chasing a list that may already be outdated.

For more on gearing, see our stat priority guide and gear set management guide.