00:00ELDEN RING CLASS
00:05Understanding what Elden Ring class to choose and what the best options are will really help
00:09in the early stages of the game. The Vagabond is great for starters if you favour melee,
00:13while the Prophet or Astrologer is a great choice for more experienced players who want
00:17more magic options, while the Wretch is for the masochists only who really want a challenge.
00:22Each class comes with a loadout of weapons and pre-levelled stats with an emphasis on
00:26certain statistics known as attributes, which will affect different things about your character
00:30and as a result gameplay. Defeating enemies will give you runes which you can then use to level
00:35up your character to hone your build further. But, due to an uncapped levelling system,
00:39you can spend points in different attributes at any stage to diversify your abilities whenever
00:44you want. For example, if you've been using a melee build you might decide you want to get
00:47into magic so you can just start spending points on boosting the relevant attributes.
00:51Be aware though that this is something you should only consider late game once you've
00:55already considerably levelled up other stats and you really know what's going on.
00:59The Vagabond is probably the best beginner-friendly Elden Ring class that can be
01:03specialised for strength or dexterity to craft a strong and relatively simple melee build.
01:08You'll start with a standard longsword, halberd and heater shield, although we reckon it's best
01:12to stick with the longsword and shield for fast attacks and good blocking. With the highest
01:16starting health of any class and a nice set of armour for decent protection, the Vagabond will
01:20be able to take far more hits from the start, although wearing a full armour set initially
01:25means you'll have a slow dodge roll unless you boost your endurance to carry more or take some
01:29off. In contrast, the Wretch is the most pro-player option in the game. This is a blank slate class,
01:35starting with 10s across the board in all attributes and no equipment bar a club.
01:39They don't even get clothes. This means starting from scratch and finding your own weapons and
01:43armour. This class is really only recommended for players with a lot of experience with previous
01:47FromSoftware games, and even then it would be better picked for a second playthrough once you
01:52really know what's going on. The Warrior is a dexterity-focused melee class favouring lighter
01:56melee weapons that require a bit of finesse or ranged weapons like bows. You'll start with two
02:01scimitars and a shield and a base dexterity of 16 which will give you some nice early melee
02:05damage with those scimitars. That will allow you to focus on boosting endurance for more dodge
02:09rolls and attacks. The Hero focuses on all-out strength, using heavier weapons with slow attacks
02:14that deal massive damage. You'll start with 16 points in strength and a big axe, and putting even
02:19more points into strength will help you meet the requirements of some truly hefty strength-based
02:23weapons early on. Heroes start with more health and stamina, meaning they're a little tanky and
02:27agile too. You can boost these attributes more in the early levels to make the hero more balanced,
02:32or you can focus purely on strength to up your damage as much as you can. The Bandit class is
02:36basically a stealth assassin with a dagger and a small shield. Bandit players need to avoid direct
02:41conflict and should instead focus on critical hits with backstabs or sniping with the starting
02:46short bow. If things do go loud, you'll have to rely on dodging and parrying. However, the Bandit's
02:50stats are generally low and balanced enough that re-specializing into different play styles
02:55shouldn't be too difficult, providing you can find the right gear. The Astrologer class is one of the
02:59few options built for magic from the start, with an impressive 15 mind and 16 intelligence. It means
03:05they can cast many powerful sorcery spells, making it a quite destructive ranged magic class. However,
03:10all the other stats are quite low, so it might be a good idea to spend your first runes boosting
03:14health and stamina to be a little less squishy. Then you can focus on bringing up your intelligence
03:18to meet even more higher attribute requirements for better spells and making the older ones
03:23powerful in the process. The Prophet class is the other side of the magic coin, focusing instead on
03:27faith to cast incantations, which are generally more supportive than offensive. This will make
03:32you a holy warrior role, backing up yourself and allies with healing incantations while smiting
03:36foes with fire and holy damage. So long as you have good attribute to healing spells,
03:40focusing your runes on the mind attribute will increase how many incantations you can cast.
03:44The Samurai class is a sort of vagabond and bandit hybrid, and all about dexterity-focused
03:49melee, combining good strength, the highest base endurance of any class, and great dexterity,
03:54with ranged sniping as a secondary option thanks to the starting longbow. Samurai players should
03:58focus on mastering dodges, parrying, and the two-handed weapon stance to deliver precise
04:03strikes and attack combos. Sitting between the warrior and astrologer, the Prisoner combines
04:07both good dexterity-based melee with intelligence-based sorceries to deal a range of damage.
04:12That high dexterity also has the added bonus of quickening spellcasting, so prisoners have
04:16potential to deal a lot of damage very quickly. This class is let down, however, by low vigor and
04:21endurance, so boosting HP and stamina should definitely be a focus initially for leveling up,
04:26while putting a lot of points into dexterity is going to improve your melee and magical
04:30capabilities. Similar to the Prisoner, the Confessor blends the balanced melee capabilities
04:34of the Vagabond with the faith-focused incantations of the Prophet. Base strength and dexterity stats
04:39of 12 mean there's a lot of freedom in which weapons Confessor players can specialize in,
04:43but we recommend pooling your runes into either one or the other to get either strength or
04:48dexterity-focused weapons, rather than trying to use both. Balance this with levels in faith,
04:53vigor, and endurance to keep your incantations up to speed and your Confessor healthy.
04:57That should give you a relatively balanced character, competent in both martial and
05:00magical attacks. So there's your guide to Elden Ring classes, and a few suggestions
05:04for beginners and pros alike. Remember, the Vagabond is great for starters if you favor melee,
05:09while the Prophet or Astrologer is a great choice for more experienced players who want more magic
05:13options, while the Wretch is for the masochists only who really want a challenge. For more help
05:17with Elden Ring in general, don't forget to like and subscribe to GamesRadar.
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