Class Tier List for New Players - Lost Ark Guide - IGN (2024)

Lost Ark offers 16 classes to play, which can be intimidating to choose from at first glance. In order to help you determine which is the best starting class for you, we've put together this Lost Ark class tier list based on how easy these classes are to pick up and play.

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There are some people who want to know what the “best” class is and that’s ok, but all the classes are viable in endgame content and PvP. The “meta” also changes all the time and there is a huge balance patch coming soon for the Korean version of the game.

Again, every class is viable, and play what you like. Changing your main isn’t too costly at the beginning so try multiple classes and see which class speaks to you. Once you reach tier 3 and start acquiring gems, tripods, etc. then it might be a little tough to change but that’ll take time.

Tier List for New Players

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Every class has 2 class engravings that change how they are played. However, most of them can be grouped together for this list other than the Berserker.

S Tier Lost Ark Classes

These classes do not require a lot of gear to start feeling good to play and are fairly easy to jump into.

Berserker (mayhem) - A slightly tanky melee class. Easy to play and hard to master. Slow, hard-hitting skills and nothing overly complex. Mayhem always allows you to be in burst mode at all times with a max of 25% HP but you take 65% less damage.

Sorceress - A ranged caster class that allows you to be out of harm's way most of the time while offering great damage.

• Check out our Sorceress Build Guide for strategies and tips.

Artillerist - A tanky ranged class that can pump out a lot of damage with nothing overly complex.

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Paladin and Bard - Both of these classes are supports trying to keep the team alive in tough encounters. They are very sought after so finding groups will be easy.

A Tier Lost Ark Classes

Like the S tier, these classes do not require a lot of gear to start feeling good to play.

Gunlancer - A super tanky DPS class but also has great survivability, can protect allies, and has a brief taunt that can cancel some bosses' mechanics. Gunlancer does play a little differently than most classes. For example, having a backstep instead of a directional dodge. However, if you can get used to playing Gunlancer they offer a lot with their unique kit. They are pretty popular to bring into group content as well.

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Deathblade, Striker, and Deadeye - These are all grouped together because they all are great DPS classes that have the same mechanic for maximum damage, positionals. You will gain bonuses to skills with a front or back attack indicator if you hit the enemy in the corresponding place. Some bosses are very mobile so taking advantage of this mechanic can be very difficult at times.

• See also: Deathblade Build Guide and Tips

Deadeye and Gunslinger - These classes use 3 different weapons and you can change between them at will for a total of 16 active skills. Each weapon has different skills so mastering this class can be a little tricky but is very rewarding. Be careful however, these classes are very squishy.

Scrapper - A tanky melee class that offers a lot of stagger and self buffs. This class has two resources so it might be a little tough to get used to resource management.

Lance Master/Glaivier - A stance switching melee class. This class has more skills than the normal 8 at a time but not as much as Gunslinger or Deadeye. The flow of switching back and forth can take a little bit to get used to.

Sharpshooter - A ranged class with some melee abilities and a hawk companion. This class is a little squishy, however.

B Tier Lost Ark Classes

Shadow Hunter, Wardancer, Berserker (berserker technique), and Soulfists are all great classes. However, they suffer from feeling really great to play later on (mid/late tier 3). This is mainly due to stats for builds, gear sets, runes, tripods, etc. This can be a good thing if you do already enjoy these classes before mid/late tier 3 because you can take solace in knowing it gets even better later.

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Shadow Hunter - A transformer melee class. Once transformed you have new abilities you can use. One engraving focuses on transforming but getting to a point where you can transform more often doesn’t happen until mid/late tier 3. The other engraving makes it so you can’t transform at all and focuses on the regular abilities.

Wardancer - A fast-hitting, mobile melee class. Similar to the Striker class in execution but requires a lot of cooldown reduction which can’t be achieved until mid/late tier 3.

Berserker’s Technique Berserker - In order to get similar damage out of this engraving as mayhem it requires a lot more gear.

Soulfist - A melee class with a bit of ranged potential. This class can do a lot of damage with its awakening skill. However, it takes a long time to charge, and if you miss you will lose a lot of your damage. Also, this class requires a bit more stats (swiftness, crit, etc) to feel really good to play.

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As previously mentioned, don’t let this list sway you too heavily. If you think something looks cool try it out and see if you like it. You get two level 50 boosts after you complete the Vern questline and hit 50. Therefore, if you see another class you want to try out you can boost one to see if you like that class even more.