Dark Souls III Classes

Dark Souls 3 offers a multitude of weapons and abilities to accompany you in your journey through Lothric, however, sometimes it might be difficult to choose which path you want to follow. While all classes in the game are considered viable, the one you will pick in the beginning of the game will greatly influence which type of play you might want to adopt.

In this guide, we will be looking at all the classes you can choose from, while discussing their advantages and disadvantages, so you can decide which class is the one for you!

Assassin

Assassin, Dark Souls 3 Class

Recommended Stat Priority: VGR > INT > STR/DEX > END

The Assassin is a good class for players who pursue an INT/DEX build. It can use sorcery and DEX oriented weapons effectively due to its stat distribution among ATN/INT/DEX.

It’s starting weapon, the Estoc, is a solid thrusting weapon which is great for new players. Just like the Thief’s shield however, the Target Shield that the Assassin class provides is not good for blocking while it excels at parrying. The Spook spell that the Assassin can use allows you to prevent non-lethal fall damage, allowing the player to traverse areas with greater ease.

Cleric

Cleric, Dark Souls 3 Class

Recommended Stat Priority: VGR > END > FTH > STR

The Cleric is a very good class, bot offensively and defensively, utilising mostly STR weapons and miracles.

Even though it has low starting HP, it makes up for it with the usage of healing spells, specifically Heal which heals twice as much as the Heal Aid spell we mentioned earlier. Another spell the cleric can use from the beginning is the miracle Force, which can not only grant you breathing room since it sends enemies that are close to you far away, but it can also protect you from incoming arrow attacks.

The weapon that the class offers, the Mace, is a very powerful weapon especially effective against heavily armored opponents and if upgraded can easily take care of any foe up until the endgame. The shield is not good due to it’s low absorption and stability, making dual wielding the Mace instead a much more effective way of approaching enemies.

While miracles are effective defensively, there are not many powerful offensive miracles making hybrid Cleric builds a more optimal way of building your character.

Deprived

Deprived, Dark Souls 3 Class

Recommended Stat Priority: Honestly, it’s up to you.

The Deprived class is definetely for someone who knows what they’re doing.

This class starts at Soul Level 1 forcing every stat to start with a 10, essentially handing over to you full control of how your character will develop. The fact that it starts at SL1 means that the first few level ups are going to be cheaper than normal, enabling you to focus on a specific skill set.

However, the downsides to this are immense, you start the game with a Club, which has an awfully short range,a Wooden Shield which is literally good for nothing and to top it all off, you’re naked! This means that you have almost no defence against incoming attacks,making you rather vulnerable.

For a new player, the early game will be a nightmare to get through. We do not recommend this class unless you absolutely know what you’re doing.

Herald

Herald, Dark Souls 3 Class

Recommended Stat Priority: STR/DEX > FTH > VGR > END

The Herald is undeniably one of the most powerful classes for a beginner in the game.

Not only does it provide you with a 100% physical absorption shield, like the Knight, but it also gives a weapon you can use while hiding behind it. The spear can unleash attacks even behind the full cover of a shield, making this equipment arguably the best starting setup for a new player.

Also, this is the first class that offers a spell to use, Heal Aid. Heal Aid is the weakest healing spell in the game but it can still prove useful considering its low cast time.At any case, this class’s stats also allow it to cast strongers spells, like Heal, without having to level up, so it is recommended to switch to a better healing spell as soon as possible.

The Herald’s stat distribution allows the player to create a melee/spell hybrid build, utilising miracles and weapons both.

Knight

Knight, Dark Souls 3 Class

Recommended Stat Priority: VGR> STR/DEX > END

The Knight is the most popular class in Dark Souls 3. It is favoured by new and veteran players alike, mostly because it is as solid as a class can get. The Knight starts with a longsword and a Knight’s shield, both of which can easily carry you until the end of the game. The Knights Shield offers total protection against all physical attacks, which is incredibly useful against almost all enemies in the game. The Knight armor is quite sturdy as well and offers great protection.

Some downsides of the Knight class is that it lacks in magical aptitude and requires many level ups to be invested in INT and FTH in order to become a viable spellcaster, however it shouldn’t be your plan to play around magic with a Knight anyways. Also, the Knight starts the game with over 70% weight load, causing you to fat roll. To avoid this you can remove one piece of your armor, preferably the gauntlets.

The Knights stat distribution allows you to build around STR/DEX oriented weapons, such as most straight swords and greatswords and it can also be a good class for finesse weapons as well.

Mercenary

Mercenary, Dark Souls 3 Class

Recommended Stat Priority: DEX > END/VGR

The Mercenary class, with it’s high DEX and average VGR, is a great choice for players who are looking for a more finesse weapon oriented build, using katanas,daggers and bows.

The class offers you the sellsword twinblades as a weapon and the wooden shield. It is hightly recommended that you ditch the shield, since it’s absorption stats are awful, and dual wield the twinblades instead. With it’s fast attack pattern, this weapon can dish out immense amounts of damage. The armor the class is nothing noteworthy and can be swapped with pretty much any other piece you might prefer.

Like the Knight, this class lacks in magical abilities as well.

Pyromancer

Pyromancer, Dark Souls 3 Class

Recommended Stat Priority: VGR >  INT = FTH  > ATN > END

The Pyromancer class introduces us to the third form of spellcasting in this game, Pyromancy.Pyromancies scale using both INT and FTH, which means that a pyromancer requires an investment of levels in both of those stats in order to be optimally effective.

This class starts with a Hand Axe, which is a viable weapon for the early game but it’s better to replace it when opportunity arises. The Caduceus Round Shield is not good due to its stats and stability and therefore it’s better not to use it. The Pyromancer is also provided with a Pyromancy Flame, which acts as your catalyst for Pyromancies.

The Pyromancy you can utilise at the beginning of the game is Fire Ball, which is a solid choice until most opponents even up until the mid game. The Pyromancer  also has the Great Swamp Ring, which augments the damage of all Pyromancies by 12%.

Pyromancies are pretty powerful, both offensively and defensively and if you combine them with a weapon that scales with both INT and FTH, like the Murakumo, you will be unstoppable.

Sorcerer

Sorcerer, Dark Souls 3 Class

Recommended Stat Priority: VGR > INT > ATN > END

Even though the Sorcerer can prove itself to be the most powerful class in the game, especially later on, the early game is an absolute nightmare for a beginner player.

It has the lowest starting VGR in the game, meaning it has the lowest HP out of all starting classes. This, and the low absorption armor it provides render the Sorcerer a very weak class defensively.Asides from that however, the Sorcerer is a great mage class that can utilise Soul Arrow and Heavy Soul Arrow at the very start of the game, both of which can deal much damage, even at mid game. The Sorcerers Staff is the best staff for characters from 0-49 INT making it essentially the best early/mid game staff there is.The class also offers to the player the Young Dragon Ring, which boosts all sorcery damage by 12%.

In order to get through the early game, the player must use their FP very conservatively, and avoid getting hit as much as possible so they can convert their Estus to Ashen Estus and regain FP from it instead of healing. If the player manages to get through the early game, the late game will be a breeze since the sorcerer can employ a variety of powerful spells like Soul Spear, Soul Stream and many more.

While pure INT builds are more than viable after the early game,if you mix it up with some STR or DEX you can create crazy combinations by using weapons like Moonlight Greatsword or Friede’s Great Scythe.

Thief

Thief, Dark Souls 3 Class

Recommended Stat Priority: VGR > END > DEX

The Thief is one of the most underpowered classes in the game.

Even though the Thief starts with a bow, finding enough arrows to make adequate use of it in the early game might prove to be quite an issue. Experienced players might be able to make use of the Iron Round Shield, since it is one of the best shields in the game for parrying.In terms of blocking however, it’s low stability and low physical damage absorption render it as non-viable. Due to it’s high Luck stat, the Thief has the highest item discovery rate at the start of the game, and may be a good class to pick if you plan to use Anri’s sword.

The Bandit’s Knife however may prove useful since it is a fast weapon that makes it easier for you to backstab an enemy, causing critical damage to them. It also has the Quickstep weapon art, which enables you to traverse rough terrain like swamps at a quick pace.

All in all, its low defensive capabilities make it a weak class, susceptible to most threats found in the world of Dark Souls III.

Warrior

Warrior, Dark Souls 3 Class

Recommended Stat Priority: VGR > STR/VIT > END

The Warrior is the best class to choose if you’re looking for a pure melee STR build. It’s high VGR allows you to tank much damage even early on the game and the high STR allows you to use it’s starting weapon, the Battle Axe , which when combined with it’s Weapon Art, can dish out tons of damage. Any hope of magic ability is immediately shattered upon looking at the starting ATN stat, which essentially offers 0 spell slots to the player.

All in all, this class is meant for players that wish to use heavy STR oriented weapons, like Ultra Greatswords and Greathammers.