In Elden Ring, you will have to choose a class as soon as you start playing, as well as an initial gift to make things easier at the beginning. Obviously, one of your first questions will be what is the best class and gift to start playing with. Although the best classes in Elden Ring start with similar stats, there are two classes that are far superior to the rest.
If you’re interested in Elden Ring tips make sure to check out our guide.
Table of Contents
The best starting gift
Among all the initial gifts available, the most useful is the Golden Seed. This way, as soon as you start, you will be able to use it in a place of grace and have an extra Vial from the beginning of the game. Having an additional healing or mana recovery never hurts, and the rest of the starting items are not going to get you out of anything.
Can you change classes?
Yes, but no. If you started as a Wretch, for example, the game will never give you the option to choose again, but you can cast spells with a melee class and vice versa. It’s all a matter of dedicating levels to raising other attributes.
The best starting classes
Although in advanced games you will be able to create a hybrid character completely different from the initial one, there are two classes that are far above the others: the Astrologer and the Samurai.
The Astrologer is the best starting class for a very simple reason: the enemy AI does not react well to long-distance magic attacks. Normal enemies won’t even be able to get close to your character and, as for bosses, you can get on your horse and cast spells while going in circles. The result will be extremely effective, although it is possible that in the future they will teach the bosses to properly defend themselves from this strategy.
If, on the other hand, you don’t want to go “easy mode” and want a melee class, the Samurai is the best of them all. Not only does he have pretty decent armor, which offers a great balance between weight and defense, but you start with the Catana, the best starting weapon. The damage is considerable and, in addition, it causes Hemorrhage, which affects almost all enemies and does brutal damage. It is also one of the classes that start with a bow, so you will be able to deal with ranged enemies.
All classes and differences
We want to clarify that the Samurai and the Astrologer are extremely above the other classes, so as a general rule, we would say that today “There are two classes and all the others”. However, if you want to know a bit about the others, these are all the starting classes and their characteristics:
Vagabond
The vagabond is basically a knight. They have decent armor and the highest starting Vigor (Health) level. They will start with a long sword, a halberd, and a shield.
– Level: 9
– Vigor: 15
– Mind: 10
– Endurance: 11
– Strength: 14
– Dexterity: 13
– Intelligence: 9
– Faith: 9
– Arcane: 7
Warrior
The Warrior is presented as a rogue. They start their adventure with the skill level of all, which allows them to easily wield a Scimitar in each hand, doing a lot of damage quickly at the cost of not having much protection.
– Level: 8
– Vigor: 11
– Mind: 12
– Endurance: 11
– Strength: 10
– Dexterity: 16
– Intelligence: 10
– Faith: 8
– Arcane: 9
Hero
The Hero is the barbarian. They offer the highest Strength level of all the starting classes and have an ax. They only lack a club to make it clear what a barbarian they are.
– Level: 7
– Vigor: 14
– Mind: 9
– Endurance: 12
– Strength: 16
– Dexterity: 9
– Intelligence: 7
– Faith: 8
– Arcane: 11
Bandit
In the Bandit, we see another rogue. They are not as specialized as the Warrior, but their main advantage is that they will start with a bow. And that in a Souls style game is a great advantage.
– Level: 5
– Vigor: 10
– Mind: 11
– Endurance: 10
– Strength: 9
– Dexterity: 13
– Intelligence: 9
– Faith: 8
– Arcane: 14
Astrologer
If you want to play as a pure mage, the Astrologer is what you are looking for. They will start the game with a short sword, a wand to cast spells, and the highest Intelligence level, which will allow them to use relatively powerful spells from the beginning.
– Level: 6
– Vigor: 9
– Mind: 15
– Endurance: 9
– Strength: 8
– Dexterity: 12
– Intelligence: 16
– Faith: 7
– Arcane: 9
Prophet
There’s not much to work with here, the Prophet is basically a healer. There are attack spells focused exclusively on Faith, but, unless you’re always going to play in a team, you’d better turn it into a hybrid to find the Paladin quickly… and for that, there’s already another class.
– Level: 7
– Vigor: 10
– Mind: 14
– Endurance: 8
– Strength: 11
– Dexterity: 10
– Intelligence: 7
– Faith: 16
– Arcane: 10
Samurai
The Samurai is… well, they embody their own class, a Samurai. You start with an Uchigatana, capable of causing Hemorrhage very quickly, the starting armor will also come in handy after a few hours of gameplay, all their stats are pretty balanced to make a hybrid, and you have a bow from the start. Perfect for anyone looking for an absolute all-rounder.
– Level: 9
– Vigor: 12
– Mind: 11
– Endurance: 13
– Strength: 12
– Dexterity: 15
– Intelligence: 9
– Faith: 8
– Arcane: 8
Prisoner
The Prisoner is quite good for creating a hybrid class. They don’t stand out in anything, but they don’t lack anything. They are a blank sheet of paper with which you start with an advantage.
– Level: 9
– Vigor: 11
– Mind: 12
– Endurance: 11
– Strength: 11
– Dexterity: 14
– Intelligence: 14
– Faith: 6
– Arcane: 9
Confessor
Combining their Faith level with the physical stats, the Confessor can become a Paladin class quickly. You have a good starting sword, a shield that protects from physical damage, and a talisman to cast healing spells or supports.
– Level: 10
– Vigor: 10
– Mind: 13
– Endurance: 10
– Strength: 12
– Dexterity: 12
– Intelligence: 9
– Faith: 14
– Arcane: 9
Wretch
With the Wretch, you have no class: 10 points in all categories. It is the starting point for an absolute hybrid. However, you must keep in mind that it will be expensive (in Runes) to start playing: you have no equipment, and you will have to get everything on your own.
– Level: 1
– Vigor: 10
– Mind: 10
– Endurance: 10
– Strength: 10
– Dexterity: 10
– Intelligence: 10
– Faith: 10
– Arcane: 10
Conclusion
These have been all the initial classes and their stats. What do you think of the best classes in Elden Ring? Will you go for one of the two best ones or is there another one you like more? Tell us in the comments!
