Melt All The Ice Heat Tools Tier List
Hairdryer starters, mid-game heaters, and endgame melt weapons ranked for real clear speed.
Tier list philosophy
In Melt All The Ice! your primary identity is the heat tool in your hands. The official pitch is simple: the world froze, you start with a hairdryer, you buy better tools, you upgrade their power, and you carve into frozen rooms until the cause of the freeze is revealed. This tier list ranks tool roles along that journey—starter, mid, and endgame—using melt power, efficiency, and cost.
Exact shop names can shift after patches from The Frozen Studio. Use the bands below as a spending framework, then confirm prices in your live server. Pair this page with the Tools Hub, the hairdryer deep dive, and the upgrades guide.
Ranking key
| Tier | Meaning |
|---|---|
| S | Best melt throughput for the stage; buy when affordable |
| A | Excellent workhorses; great value for most clears |
| B | Serviceable bridges or niche room tools |
| C | Early teaching tools or quickly outclassed options |
C-Tier — Starter heat (teaching tools)
Hairdryer (default starter)
- Role: Onboarding fantasy and first ice contacts
- Strengths: Forgiving, thematically perfect, teaches aim cones
- Weaknesses: Low melt power; long clear times on thick walls
- Verdict: Mandatory opening chapter, not a long-term main. Read Hairdryer for when to replace it.
Early pocket heaters / weak handhelds
Anything barely above the hairdryer that costs almost nothing usually sits in C. Buy only if you need a tiny speed bump to reach the first A-tier purchase without stalling. Do not dump every coin into micro-upgrades on C tools—save for a real jump (Getting Started).
B-Tier — Mid bridging kits
Focused mid heaters
- Role: Open first interior rooms without the full cost of endgame weapons
- Strengths: Noticeable melt spike over C-tier; manageable learning curve
- Weaknesses: Fall off in deep-freeze volumes; poor if you skip melt-power upgrades
- When to buy: After you understand basic carving from how to melt and need hallway/bedroom clears for the walkthrough
Wide-spray comfort tools
Some mid options favor wide cones over pinpoint melt. They feel strong in open foyers (B-tier comfort) but waste energy in tight corridors. Rank them B unless your class role is support clearing large shared spaces.
A-Tier — Session workhorses
Balanced heat rifles / upgraded blowers
- Role: Default main for most of the mid house
- Strengths: Strong power-per-coin, scales cleanly with melt upgrades, reliable in co-op
- Weaknesses: Not always the absolute fastest on final bosses of ice thickness
- Play pattern: Combine with capacity / backpack upgrades so you are not constantly banking currency mid-carve
Precision melters
High aim requirement, excellent for door seals and decorative ice that blocks story props. A-tier for skilled players who already practice tracking from the melt guide; B-tier in the hands of brand-new co-op guests.
S-Tier — Endgame heat weapons
Peak melt cannons / dual heat blasters / specialty endgame heaters
- Role: Delete late rooms, speed completion goals, carry less-geared teammates
- Strengths: Top melt power, best clear times when fully upgraded
- Weaknesses: Steep cost; buying too early starves class perks or utility upgrades
- Advice: Unlock after your economy loop is stable. If a single purchase would empty you with no melt-power levels left, wait—see upgrade priority in upgrades.
S-tier tools shine in coordinated co-op when one designated melter holds the best weapon while scouts open paths.
Suggested purchase ladder
- Survive on C-tier hairdryer just long enough to fund a real upgrade.
- Move into B-tier only if A-tier is still locked behind a currency wall.
- Main an A-tier workhorse through most story rooms.
- Finish with S-tier once mid house is mapped and upgrades are online.
- Recheck ranks after notes on the Updates Hub.
Tool tiers × class roles
| Role (see classes tier) | Preferred tool band |
|---|---|
| Primary melter | A → S as soon as affordable |
| Scout | B/A precision tools for opening paths |
| Support | B/A wide tools for shared spaces; prioritize group utility upgrades |
Efficiency tips that change effective tier
A C-tier hairdryer with perfect aim and smart room prioritization can temporarily outpace a careless A-tier spray. Conversely, an S-tier weapon aimed at already-cleared ice is wasted. Tier letters assume competent play:
- Carve channels instead of melting decorative surfaces first
- Sweep loot so upgrades keep flowing (scripts are optional and risky—manual collect is fine)
- Watch server ice state in co-op so two S-tier players are not melting the same wall
Related links
Revisit this page whenever The Frozen Studio adds a new heater identity—the ladder stays the same even if individual product names change.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers for Melt All The Ice players.
Is the hairdryer ever worth heavy upgrades?
Only light upgrades to reach the next tool. Heavy investment into the starter is usually inefficient—replace it and move up the ladder.
Should I rush S-tier tools immediately?
Not if it leaves you with zero melt-power levels or utility upgrades. Stabilize on A-tier, then finish with S when the economy supports it.
Do tool tiers differ in co-op vs solo?
Throughput ranks are similar, but co-op may assign the S-tier weapon to one melter while others run cheaper A/B kits for scouting.
Where do I learn aiming techniques?
Use the how to melt guide for carving lines, priority surfaces, and efficiency habits that raise any tool’s effective tier.
Will new tools invalidate this list?
New heaters slot into C–S bands using the same criteria. Check Updates and re-test clear times after patches.