Top 10 Dark Souls 3 Best Classes [2023]

Dark Souls 3 brings the gaming world a new challenge. Once again bringing epic bosses, deep dungeons and fantastical beauty. Notorious for being a challenging game that tests the mental and physical limits of a player, although this is quite a bit of an exaggeration it isn’t far from the truth. For some this is true, however, for the patient gamer, there is no greater pleasure than Dark Souls 3.

It has all the facets that make up a great game such as environmental storytelling, RPG elements, overarching story, and class systems. Speaking of class systems, Dark Souls 3 has many classes, each with a varying about of impact on your playthrough. Now, this may prompt the question of which is the Dark Souls 3 Best Class and to answer that question is why this guide exists.

In this guide, we will come to a consensus on which Dark Souls 3 class is the best for you and your playstyle, while also explaining the attribute system within the game as it can be quite confusing for new players.

Related Article: Dark Souls 3 Best Strength Weapons

Attributes Explained

Vigor: The Vigor determines overall Health and Frost Resistance. This will help your character live more than one or two hits from bulky enemies and brutish bosses.

Endurance: This Attribute controls Stamina, Lightning Resistance and Bleed Resistance. Without this aspect, you will not be able to manoeuvre during confrontations with bosses.

Attunement: This specific Attribute raises your FP (Focus Points) and the number of Attunement Slots you receive upon levelling up. This is primarily focused on spellcaster builds and more or less ignored on melee builds.

Vitality.jpg” alt=”” width=”25″ height=”25″ /> Vitality: The Vitality in Dark Souls 3 controls your Equip Load, Defense and Poison Resistance. This is important for wearing different types of armour sets and general defence. Important for any type of build be it specialist or quality.

Luck: This increases Item Discovery which is basically the chance of items dropping from mobs while your Curse Resistance and increases your character’s Bleed capabilities and Poison capabilities. Check more on Luck Here.

Strength: This raises your Fire Resistance and determines how heavy of a weapon you can equip in-game. It also determines the Attack Power when using any weapon and it is usually used in conjunction with Dexterity for quality builds or used alone for very high strength builds.

Dexterity: Dexterity adds Attack Power while decreasing spellcasting times, and is required for equipping a number of weapons. This is the same as Strength, where it can be used in combination with another aspect for a quality build or used solo for high dexterity builds.

Intelligence: Intelligence is required to cast Sorceries, Pyromancies and increases Magic Resistance. This is mainly an attribute for spellcasters and magic specialist builds.

Faith: The Faith is also a requirement for casting spells and raises the power of spells too whilst also increasing the players Dark Resistance. Another attribute that is focused on more magic specialist builds and used in conjunction with Intelligence and Attunement.

Best Dark Souls 3 Best Classes

Dark Souls 3 contains multiple classes, mainly 10 of them. Each with its own pros and cons to the playstyle of the player. In this guide, you will see all of the classes explained and see which ones fit the best for you.

Knight

“An obscure knight of poor renown who collapsed roaming the land. Sturdy, owing to high vitality and stout armour.
-Dark Souls 3

The knight is the standard Dark Souls 3 class that any newbie or veteran can enjoy. They start with a Long Sword and a Knight Shield whilst wearing the Knight Armour Set, which is quite good for the beginning areas of the game. The knight also starts at Soul Lv.9 which is amongst the higher side of the starting classes.

This class is best for those who would like to stick more to melee and want to enjoy the game on a sort of ”default” setting and some have even called it the Dark Souls 3 best class for beginners.

The exact statistics of the Knight are as follows:

• Vigor = 12
• Attunement = 10
• Endurance = 11
• Vitality = 15
• Strength = 13
• Dexterity = 12
• Intelligence = 9
• Faith = 9
• Luck = 7

Mercenary

 

“A mercenary and veteran of the battlefield. High dexterity allows masterful wielding of the dual scimitars.”
-Dark Souls 3

The mercenary is an interesting Dark Souls 3 class due to the starting weapons and allocation of the attributes. This class starts with Sellsword Twinblades and a Wooden Shield whilst adorning the Sellsword Set.

The mercenary is a very over-powered class if the player knows how to exploit the games hidden mechanics and buffs. The mercenary also starts with Soul Lv.8.

The exact statistics of the Mercenary are as follows:

• Vigor = 11
• Attunement = 12
• Endurance = 11
• Vitality = 10
• Strength = 10
• Dexterity = 16
• Intelligence = 10
• Faith = 8
• Luck = 9

Warrior

“Descendent of northern warriors famed for their brawn. Utilizes high strength to wield a heavy battleaxe.”
-Dark Souls 3

The warrior is one of the more niche classes that exist within Dark Souls 3 and that can be attributed to the fact that this class does not offer many special features, unlike the previously discussed Dark Souls 3 classes.

The starting weapons are the Battle Axe and a Round Shield with the Northern Armour Set. The warrior also starts with a relatively low Soul Lv.7.

The exact statistics of the Warrior are as follows:

• Vigor = 14
• Attunement = 6
• Endurance = 12
• Vitality = 11
• Strength = 16
• Dexterity = 9
• Intelligence = 8
• Faith = 9
• Luck = 11

Herald

“A former herald who journeyed to finish a quest undertaken. Wields a sturdy spear and employs a gentle restorative miracle.”
-Dark Souls 3

Just like the Warrior, the Herald is a niche class very rarely used by the players. This class has 3 basic weapons. One of these is a long-range Spear and a Kite Shield whit a Talisman that casts the Heal Aid Miracle alongside a Herald Set of armour, with Soul Lv.9. It is not recommended to use thisDark Souls 3 class unless you are trying a specific challenge run or you are a big enthusiast of spears.

The exact statistics of the Herald are as follows:

• Vigor = 12
• Attunement = 10
• Endurance = 9
• Vitality = 12
• Strength = 12
• Dexterity = 11
• Intelligence = 8
• Faith = 13
• Luck = 11

Thief

“A common thief and pitiful deserter. Wields a dagger intended for backstabs alongside a military-issue bow.”
-Dark Souls 3

The thief is an interesting class most usually reserved for builds who aim for high bleed damage and a tougher run of the game. This is because the Theif starts off with a Soul Lv.5, which is the second-lowest in the game. The thief starts off with a Bandit’s Knife and an Iron Round Shield alongside a Short Bow which has 30 arrows in it.

This is usually not in the running for the Dark Souls 3 best class, not by a long shot, however, it does have its place and we have a very good guide on a good Dark Souls 3 Theif Build.

The stats of the Thief are:

• Vigor = 10
• Attunement = 11
• Endurance = 10
• Vitality = 9
• Strength = 9
• Dexterity = 13
• Intelligence = 10
• Faith = 8
• Luck = 14

Assassin

“An assassin who stalks their prey from the shadows. Favours sorceries in addition to thrusting swords.”
-Dark Souls 3

The assassin is considered to be one of the best classes to speedrun the game. This class starts with the Estoc as a base weapon which is quite powerful in the early game, alongside a Target Shield and a Sorcerer’s Staff with which to cast its most powerful spell.

The spell we are talking about is Spook, a spell that negates all fall damage to the player character, all while starting at Soul Lv.10, the highest soul level of any class.

The statistics are as follows:

• Vigor = 11
• Attunement = 14
• Endurance = 11
• Vitality = 10
• Strength = 10
• Dexterity = 14
• Intelligence = 11
• Faith = 9
• Luck = 10

Sorcerer

“A loner who left formal academia to pursue further research. Commands soul sorceries using high intelligence.”
-Dark Souls 3

The sorcerer is a magic focused Dark Souls 3 class that mainly utilises spells from long range. They are equipped with the Mail Breaker, an average weapon, and a Sorcerer’s Staff alongside a Leather Shield.

The sorcerer also has spells in the form of Soul Arrow and Heavy Soul Arrow, hence reinforcing the ranged playstyle of the sorcerer. All of this with a Young Dragon Ring which boosts sorceries alongside a Soul Lv.6.

The statistics of the following are:

• Vigor = 9
• Attunement = 16
• Endurance = 9
• Vitality = 7
• Strength = 7
• Dexterity = 12
• Intelligence = 16
• Faith = 7
• Luck = 12

Pyromancer

“A pyromancer from a remote region who manipulates flame. Also, an adept close combat warrior who wields a hand axe.”
-Dark Souls 3

The pyromancer is a different type of sorcerer which uses flame type spells that can aid them in hand to hand and range based combat. This is also a good starter class that allows for a mixed style of combat for the player and is in the running for Dark Souls 3 best starting class. The pyromancer starts off with a Hand Axe and a Caduceus Round Shield.

What sets this class apart is the Pyromancer Flame which allows the user to cast a variant of spells, known as pyromancies. The starting pyromancy given to the class is the Fireball which does a good bit of damage to all flesh-based enemies. This class also starts with a Great Swamp Ring which boosts pyromancy damage.

The stats of the class are:

• Vigor = 11
• Attunement = 12
• Endurance = 10
• Vitality = 8
• Strength = 12
• Dexterity = 9
• Intelligence = 14
• Faith = 14
• Luck = 7

Similar Article: Dark Souls 3 Pyromancer Builds

Cleric

“A travelling cleric who collapsed from exhaustion. Channels high faith to cast many varied miracles.”
-Dark Souls 3

Once again we arrive at a niche Dark Souls 3 class that is not used by the wider player base. The cleric is a high faith character meaning he relies heavily on magic and miracles.

The cleric begins with the Mace and a Blue Wooden Shield, which is nothing special. But the cleric also has the Cleric’s Sacred Chime to cast miracles. The miracles that the cleric has access to in the beginning are Heal and Force. The cleric also has a relatively low Soul Lv.7.

The stats of the Cleric are as follows:

• Vigor = 10
• Attunement = 14
• Endurance = 9
• Vitality = 7
• Strength = 12
• Dexterity = 8
• Intelligence = 7
• Faith = 16
• Luck = 13

Deprived

“Naked and of unknown origin. Either an unfathomable fool in life, or was stripped of possessions upon burial.”
-Dark Souls 3

Last but not least is the deprived class. The class for true try hards and masochists who either love grinding or love to challenge themselves to the point of insanity. This class starts out equipped with nothing but a Club and a Plank Shield. This class also has the lowest soul level in the entire game being Soul Lv.1.

The stats of the deprived are such:

• Vigor = 10
• Attunement = 10
• Endurance = 10
• Vitality = 10
• Strength = 10
• Dexterity = 10
• Intelligence = 10
• Faith = 10
• Luck = 10