AIGameGuides.com v4/27/2025

Choosing a character class in Elden Ring is an important first step in defining your playstyle, especially as it influences your starting stats, gear, and early-game strategy. Each class caters to different playstyles, but it's important to remember that Elden Ring allows for a lot of customization, so no class locks you into a specific build permanently. Here’s a guide to help you choose the right class based on how you want to play the game:

Vagabond

•Starting Level: 9

•Best For: Tanky, strength-focused melee combat

•Attributes: High Vigor, Strength, and Dexterity

•Starting Gear: Longsword, Halberd, Heater Shield (100% physical block)

•Playstyle: The Vagabond is ideal for players who want to focus on heavy armor, strong melee attacks, and taking lots of hits. With high Vigor and Strength, this class excels at wielding powerful weapons and surviving tough enemies. Its shield provides strong defense early on.

Recommended For: Players who like a durable character and plan to use heavy weapons and armor.

Warrior

•Starting Level: 8

•Best For: Agile melee combat with dual-wielding potential

•Attributes: High Dexterity and decent Endurance

•Starting Gear: Scimitar (dual-wield), Light Shield

•Playstyle: Warriors are nimble fighters specializing in Dexterity weapons like curved swords, katanas, or spears. Their agility allows for fast strikes and good dodging. Dual-wielding weapons early on makes them great for aggressive melee builds, focusing on fast, light attacks.

Recommended For: Players who prefer speed and precision in combat and want to use dexterity-based weapons.

Hero

•Starting Level: 7

•Best For: Strength-focused brute force builds

•Attributes: High Strength, decent Vigor

•Starting Gear: Battle Axe, Leather Shield

•Playstyle: The Hero excels in raw power, dealing massive damage with heavy weapons. Its high Strength allows it to use large weapons like greatswords and greataxes early in the game. It's a strong melee class for players who want to hit hard and trade blows.

Recommended For: Players who enjoy overwhelming enemies with heavy attacks and tanking damage.

Bandit

•Starting Level: 5

•Best For: Stealth, archery, and critical hits

•Attributes: High Arcane and Dexterity

•Starting Gear: Knife, Shortbow, Buckler Shield

•Playstyle: The Bandit is designed for players who enjoy sneaking up on enemies, landing critical hits, and using bows. The high Arcane stat increases item discovery, making it easier to find rare items. It's ideal for a stealth-based approach or hybrid Dexterity/Arcane builds.

Recommended For: Players who enjoy a stealthy, ranged playstyle with a focus on critical strikes.

Astrologer

•Starting Level: 6

•Best For: Magic and ranged spellcasting

•Attributes: High Intelligence, Mind

•Starting Gear: Staff, Short Sword, Small Shield

•Playstyle: Astrologers specialize in magic, focusing on sorcery with Intelligence as their primary stat. They start with ranged magical attacks like the Glintstone Pebble, making them highly effective at keeping distance while dealing damage. Ideal for pure spellcasters.

Recommended For: Players who want to focus on sorcery and ranged magical combat.

P

rophet

•Starting Level: 7

•Best For: Faith-based miracles and healing

•Attributes: High Faith, decent Mind

•Starting Gear: Spear, Sacred Seal, Small Shield

•Playstyle: Prophets excel in casting incantations, which are Faith-based spells. These can include both offensive miracles (like fire-based spells) and healing abilities. This class is great for players who want to wield both melee weapons and cast support or offensive magic.

Recommended For: Players who prefer a versatile playstyle combining melee combat and Faith-based magic.

Confessor

•Starting Level: 10

•Best For: Hybrid melee and magic with stealth

•Attributes: Balanced Strength, Dexterity, and Faith

•Starting Gear: Broadsword, Sacred Seal, Kite Shield

•Playstyle: Confessors are well-rounded hybrids, combining solid melee skills with Faith-based incantations. They can heal, buff, and attack with both weapons and magic. This class is perfect for players who want a versatile character capable of stealth, melee, and magic.

Recommended For: Players who like a balance between melee and magic with some stealth options.

Samurai

•Starting Level: 9

•Best For: Dexterity-focused melee and ranged combat

•Attributes: High Dexterity, Endurance

•Starting Gear: Uchigatana, Longbow, Red Thorn Roundshield

•Playstyle: The Samurai is designed for Dexterity builds, excelling at using katanas and long-range bows. With good mobility and versatile combat options, this class can deal with enemies both up close and from afar.

Recommended For: Players who enjoy using katanas and bows, focusing on dexterity-based combat with agility.

Prisoner

•Starting Level: 9

•Best For: Hybrid Intelligence and Dexterity builds

•Attributes: High Intelligence, Dexterity

•Starting Gear: Estoc, Staff, Shield

•Playstyle: Prisoners start with a combination of melee combat (using Dexterity weapons) and sorcery. Their focus on both Intelligence and Dexterity allows for a balanced approach of spellcasting and agile melee attacks.

Recommended For: Players who like to mix sorcery and dexterity-based combat.

Wretch

•Starting Level: 1

•Best For: Custom builds from scratch (challenge)

•Attributes: All stats are at 10

•Starting Gear: Club

•Playstyle: The Wretch starts with the bare minimum in terms of gear and stats, making it a blank slate for players who want to fully customize their build from scratch. It’s a challenging class for experienced players.

Recommended For: Players who want maximum flexibility and a challenge by starting with no advantages.

Choosing a Class Based on Playstyle

•Melee-focused players: Vagabond, Hero, Samurai, and Warrior are great choices.

•Magic users: Astrologer for sorcery, Prophet for Faith-based incantations, and Confessor for a balance of melee and magic.

•Hybrid builds: Prisoner and Confessor offer a mix of magic and melee.

•Stealth or archery: Bandit and Samurai excel in ranged combat and sneak attacks.

•Challenge-seekers: Wretch is perfect for those who want full control and are comfortable with a tough start.

Each class provides a unique starting point, but with Elden Ring’s flexible leveling system, you can shape your character to fit any playstyle over time. Pick a class that aligns with how you want to tackle the early game, but don't be afraid to experiment and adapt!