Tutorial Shows How to Build a Custom Apex Legends Tier List Calculator

A new tutorial demonstrates how to build a Python calculator that generates custom Apex Legends tier lists using real pick-rate and win-rate data.

The guide uses the Season 29 "Overclocked" meta as a worked example, noting that Season 30 "Marked" has already changed the landscape.

Season 29 ran from May 5 to August 3, 2026, introducing the legend Axle and system changes like Deathbox Respawns and Chained Healing that shifted fights toward sustained aggression.

Season 30 launched on August 4, 2026, bringing a Bloodhound rework, a World's Edge map update, and an energy-weapon overhaul.

The tutorial argues that building a calculator flips the passive act of reading a tier list, allowing users to decide how much weight win rate gets versus pick rate and whether Predator-sample data should count the same as general-population data.

"Reading a tier list is passive," the tutorial states.

"You take someone else’s weighting of pick rate, win rate, and 'feel,' and you accept it. Building a calculator flips that: you decide how much weight win rate gets versus pick rate."

The project is designed to be dependency-light and runs on platforms including a Chromebook or a Steam Deck in desktop mode.

Users supply their own legend and weapon stats as JSON files, with the tutorial using publicly reported Season 29 figures from community tracking sites.

Keeping the data layer simple means the calculator reads flat JSON files and remains runnable even if a tracking site changes its layout.

The tutorial notes that a key benefit of coding the tool over using a spreadsheet is automation, allowing the script to point at a new data file every patch and diff the output against the last run.

"That diffing step is where a tier list calculator earns its keep over a static list someone wrote once and never updated," the guide explains.

The scoring engine has nothing Apex-specific baked into its math, making it portable for weapon stats, character stats from another shooter, or even non-gaming rankings.

The guide advises starting by deciding what "good" means for the tier list, suggesting a model that weighs three inputs: win rate, pick rate, and a third factor.

It highlights the disagreement across existing tier lists, noting that cross-referencing several Season 29 lists shows the same five or six legends causing most of the friction: Bloodhound, Lifeline, Fuse, Gibraltar, Mad Maggie, and Alter.

"Gibraltar lands in S-tier on one list and A-tier on another," the tutorial notes.

"Alter is reported at a 15.9% pick rate before a nerf and 1.6% after, which tells you two very different stories depending on which number you quote."

It also states that Fuse gets ranked anywhere from S to B because his kit rewards area denial against uncoordinated teams but struggles against squads that simply avoid his grenades.

The tutorial uses figures pulled from community tracking sites including Two Average Gamers, Gamsgo, and Epiccarry, cross-checked against EA’s official season notes for dates and legend buffs.

Redington Cybersport reported in October that Respawn is testing default cross-play for console Apex Legends players on US-West servers.