D&D What Class To Play? – Choose The Best D&D Class For You

What Do You Want to Play?

First things first. In a game like Dungeons and Dragons, you could be spending hours in the skin of your character, so you want to make sure that it is a concept that you love and can connect to. Take a look at your character sheet and decide what ability you want to focus your character around.

Strength

You are rough, tough, and ready to rumble. Punt gnomes or pick up heavy things and put them back down.

• Barbarian
• Fighter
• Paladin

Dexterity

You are accurate and agile. Like a ninja. Or a cat. NINJA CAT! Typically, stealthy, quick, and backflip-y

• Monk
• Fighter
• Rogue
• Ranger

Intelligence

Nerd. But an impressive one. Usually a highly investigative character, vast knowledge in history to assist in their campaign, clever, and knows their way around a book.

• Wizard
• Artificer

Wisdom

You’ve been around the block and know a thing or two about people. You’re usually insightful, street smart, can take care of yourself with survival skills, or give really good advice. 

• Cleric
• Druid
• Monk
• Ranger

Charisma

You are the face of the party and should ensure that you are the one talking during role-play heavy encounters. Smooth talker, commanding presence, great leader, and very flirtatious *saxophone begins to play*

• Bard
• Paladin
• Sorcerer
• Warlock

Artificer

An Artificer stands strong with her many inventions ready to obliterate her foes with DIY energy!

What is the Artificer?

Many within the Dungeons and Dragons universe see magic as a tool, a way to bypass obstacles, or impose their will on their surroundings. No class sees Magic as a better tool than the Artificer.

The Artificer uses magic as their own type of science, infusing the everyday objects around them with magical properties. The Artificer is not one for complacency. A true Artificer will endlessly invent;  improve on their creations or make new ones.

The master of handiwork that uses magic to imbue their craft and make it something of Legend.

Role

The Artificer is an extremely versatile class, able to fill most roles within a party. Intelligence is the Artificer’s primary statistic so, they could very well be the party’s tactician, investigator, lore nerd, or scholar. Between elixirs, infusions, and spell versatility, the artificer could serve at the party’s healer, damage dealer, tank, or specialist.

Pick This Class If:

• You love thinking of creative “inventions” and laying magical traps for your enemies.
• You want to play a character with a honed craft.
• You like windup toys.
• You want versatility within your class role.
• Explosions.

Barbarian

The Barbarian moving peacefully through the countryside. Oh! And stacking bodies.

What is the Barbarian?

YELLING! YELLING SCARY! AX! AAAAGGHHH! Seriously, the Barbarian is your brutish of brute classes. The mechanics of a barbarian are completely built around their strength.

The barbarian is an artist of smashing faces. It is also one of the easier classes in the game to play making it very beginner-friendly. 

The Barbarian draws from a wave of roiling anger inside them, frothing at the mouth and motivated only by bloodlust. Fighting against a barbarian is like fighting a hungry wolf, a buffalo protecting its young, or your sibling after you took the last breadstick.

Role

Just by being a Barbarian you are automatically your party’s Tank. Due to your Rage ability to take half damage from piercing, slashing, and bludgeoning damage. In mundane battle, you have essentially double HP. The Barbarian is also an effective damage dealer with their ability to reroll damage dice, bonuses from raging, and brutal critical.

Pick This Class If:

• You want to play an athletic character.
• You like angrily rolling dice.
• You LOVE combat
• You like being able to take risks and trust you won’t take much damage for it.

Bard

That flute may look harmless but look at his eyes, this will be the last song you ever hear!

What is the Bard?

The seduction artist of the party and the true skill junky of D&D. The bard is known mostly by their ability to play the guitar so well that they can weave arcane means of casting into their songs. The Bard is extremely versatile with abilities to heal their allies, damage their enemies, or seduce just about everything that can understand speech.

Bards obtain an ability called Jack of All Trades allowing them to get a boost to every single skill check, whether they are proficient or not. They are highly charismatic which gives them the ability to be just as great at deception, persuasion, and intimidation as they are at performing.

Role

The Bard thrives in out-of-combat scenarios, making them the face of most parties and allowing them to be the negotiator when it comes to weaving their words. However, in battle, the bard serves a heavy support role with healing capabilities and a multitude of buffing spells along with their ability to inspire their allies to add dice to their skill checks. The bard can also minimize incoming damage and increase their allies’ ability to dodge incoming attacks.

Pick This Class If:

• You love to role-play.
• You like blowing people up by playing the flute.
• You like deceiving or persuading the people around you into taking actions you want them to.
• You want to cast arcane magic but also have healing and support capabilities.

Cleric

HOLY MOLY! The Cleric will embrace you with the holy death hug and take you, peacefully, to the Gods.

What is the Cleric?

The holy man of casters. At creation, you will select a god from across the multiverse or within your homebrew setting to worship and use their ideals to influence your role within the world. There are a multitude of Cleric Domains to focus on, from nature to tempest or war to life.

The downside of all the spell and domain options is that the cleric is one of the hardest classes to play in all of Dungeons and Dragons. If you can get past the difficulty and still want to play a cleric then you will be delving into, probably, the most versatile class in the entire game.

Role

The cleric, with a multitude of domains and spells they prepare per day, is one of the most versatile classes in the game allowing them to fill numerous roles, but what they are most notably good at is support. A cleric in the party makes for an amazing healer and support caster. You will be able to control the battlefield, ensure the safety of your party, and crush enemies. 

Pick This Class If:

• Your party all chose super damage dealing characters and your group has no healer… *sigh*
• You enjoy the versatility and large spell lists that allow you to change your utility daily.
• You like to lean into the morality of your character heavily.
• You like prayers that can melt your enemies.

Druid

Ever wonder what would happen if you ate all your spinach like your parents told you to? Yeah. I bet you feel real silly now.

What is the Druid?

If you like growing massive gardens without all the work, then this class might be for you.

The Druid is a force of nature that can commune with the very makeup of the wilds around them to control the battlefield. Druids also have this INSANE ability to turn into animals like Beast Boy from Teen Titans (the old, cool one ok?!). 

The Druid is a bit difficult to play with all their spell options but using the unforgiving force of nature to impose your will is pretty cool.

Role

The Druid is a utility heavy class making for a fantastic support/utility role within the party. Most Druid abilities air on the side of crowd control, with party sustaining spells, and healing. Turning into animals allows you to spy on your enemy, sneak into places unnoticed, and eat bird seed without being judged. 

Pick This Class If:

• You don’t mind the difficulty in choosing spells daily.
• You love animals and can think of lots of cool ways to use that Wild Shape ability.
• You like the idea of commanding nature to do your bidding.
• You think yourself to be a resourceful player and can use the many tools at the Druid’s disposal to maximize your party’s effectiveness.

Fighter

This Fighter stands in a Mosh Pit of battle, deflecting arrows from her enemies.

What is the Fighter?

If you enjoy tactical combat and the openness to master any weapon and wield any type of armor, you might enjoy playing the fighter. The fighter is the most versatile, non-arcane, character in the game with the ability to take extra turns in combat, rejuvenate themselves under enemy fire from time to time, and dish out damage with any weapon within their reach.

The fighter, with the help of its subclasses, can vary so wildly player to player that your group could have an entire party of fighters and all have different abilities. The fighter will be able to use, almost, any item your party comes across expertly.

Role

Fighters are mostly damage-dealing combatants but, with certain subclasses, can have versatility in combat by disarming their enemies, knocking them prone, or maneuvering them on the battlefield. The fighter is self-efficient and can provide stability to any party. 

Pick This Class If:

• You want to be a bit of a brawler.
• You like having the option to switch around armor and weapons as you need or want to.
• You like versatility in combat that is not too complicated.

Monk

As if the Monk's punches weren't lethal enough, he added blades to his punches. BLADES!

What is the Monk?

If you’re all about feeling “Totes Zen” and punching bad guys in the face, then the monk might just be your cup of tea! 

The monk is one of the simplest classes and I can highly recommend this one for beginners who just want to play DnD! You don’t need any equipment, weapons, gear, or armor. You can just go around punching guys in the face and throwing them around like a mad man. 

Monks also get the ability to use “Ki points” to give themselves special abilities like more attacks, increasing their speed, or stunning their enemies.

Role

The Monk fills the role of a party damage dealer and melee combatant. Simply put, the monk’s abilities focus on attacking the enemy, avoiding damage with their quickness, and moving easily around the battlefield to exploit advantages.

Pick This Class If:

• You love Jackie Chan movies.
• You want simplicity in DnD combat.
• You enjoy being a powerhouse that can dish out quick and devastating hits while minimizing incoming damage.
• You enjoy being one of the fastest characters in the game and using it to beat your party in playground foot races.

Paladin

The Holy Avenger stands on a pile of sweet loot. 

What is the Paladin?

If you find the idea of becoming a trusted warrior of a God and using their divine power to blow up faces, then the Paladin might be for you. 

The Paladin can heal allies, dish out damage, and tank blows. They are a bit limiting in their role-play as you uphold the beliefs of your God that carries over into the actions that you make. BUT SMITING IS SO WORTH IT! 

The Paladin Oaths lend to creating an interesting diverse backstory for your character and the townspeople will cheer as they see their white knight ride into town.

Role

The Paladin’s largest focus is on damage dealing in melee combat. They can use spell slots to smite their foes to do insane amounts of damage, but along with their heavy armor proficiency and the possibility of wielding a shield, they can serve as excellent tanks with a very high armor class. The Paladin also gets the ability to heal their allies with their lay on hands ability making them a bit of an off healer as well.

Pick This Class If:

• You want to be a God in combat with high AC and insane damage potential.
• You want to delve into your character’s morality by enforcing their code of ethics within themselves.
• You want to be able to heal your party in case you must fill that role as well.
• You like not getting sick EVER because the Paladin is immune to disease. (#NoBubonicPlagueForMe)

Ranger

This Ranger is getting ready for battle but I can sense the melo-dramatic orphan backstory from here. I hope his favored enemy is glowing eyes!

What is the Ranger?

A class that excels in tracking, hunting, and hating certain species of creatures might be the type of thing you’re looking for. The Ranger is a blend of the fighter and Druid classes, where on one hand they can manipulate nature magic to get assistance from the wild around them but also have the ability of weapon expertise to make themselves effective in battle. 

One of the ranger subclasses also allows them to have a beast companion to give lots of scratches behind their ears. Who’s a good boy?

Unlike the name suggests, the ranger can excel at melee just as well as they can with a bow, you can be more like the Aragorn ranger than the Legolas ranger if you wanted!

Role

The Ranger serves as the party’s utility member. They have many out of combat perks with their favored terrain and favored enemies lending to effective tracking and survival skills on the road. The Ranger is also capable of dealing a lot of damage in combat and can fill that role when needed. With the ability to use spell slots for Cure Wounds the Ranger can also serve as an off healer in emergency circumstances.

Pick This Class If:

• You want a pet wolf to hang out with!
• You love the idea of being a survival expert in the wild.
• You think tracking and learning enemy capabilities is a lot of fun.
• You want to be an expert in certain biomes and want your character to have a particular vendetta against certain creatures.

Rogue

The Rogue sneaks into a city after dark and scopes out the next building to rob.

What is the Rogue?

The Rogue is the hardcore specialist of the classes and gets to outright become an expert in a skill of their choice. You’re good at breaking and entering, stabbing people, and mastering the mess of combat on your terms. 

The primary focus of a rogue is to assassinate their enemies quickly and generate advantages for themselves to continue doing outrageous amounts of damage. 

The Rogue is also very beginner-friendly, being one of the easier classes in the game.

Role

The Rogue serves as a party’s damage dealer but can either serve as a ranged fighter or a melee combatant. The Rogue is a Skill Specialist, making them extremely good out-of-combat in the skill of their choice. They can also get the party through locked doors quietly, disarm traps, and assassinate key targets.

Pick This Class If:

• You want to be a sneaky character that slits throats.
• You want to be an expert at a particular skill.
• You think daggers and poisons are cool.
• You like doing heavy burst damage while moving around the battlefield to avoid detection.

Sorcerer

This Sorcerer has command over all the elements but I need to know how he grew such a nice beard!

What is the Sorcerer?

Being born with, created with, or manifesting magic is the key to the Sorcerer’s abilities. The Sorcerer is a powerful, sometimes nuclear, caster with the ability to buff their spell’s effectiveness. 

Being a Charisma-based caster lends the ability to be a party’s face while keeping combat efficiency. The sorcerer does not, necessarily, have to be a great mind in magic either, as their spells come innately. The sorcerer is a master over the raw nature of the arcane, taking command of the primal elements of the planes to do their bidding.

On the downside, the Sorcerer is limited in the number of spells they can learn throughout the campaign, forcing you to prioritize certain spells and miss out on others you may have wanted. On the plus side who doesn’t want to make all the goblins into popsicles?

Role

The Sorcerer is the strongest damage dealing class in the game with the ability to boost the power of their spells using sorcery points. They can also serve as excellent battlefield controllers, making the most of their concentration spells to hold down multiple enemies with single target spells by twinning their, normally limited, incantations.

Pick This Class If:

• You want to play a High Damage Dealing caster.
• You enjoy the idea of shaping your spells to do things they, normally, would not have the ability to accomplish.
• You like making human campfires.
• You want to play as the face of the party but still, want heavy casting abilities.
• You want to exploit the raw nature of magic without endless study.

Warlock

This Tiefling Warlock places a hex on his enemy to send them to oblivion.

What is the Warlock?

The 3 pillars of a Warlock are darkness, brooding, and Eldritch Blast. The Warlock forms a pact with an otherworldly patron, drawing on their power to increase their own. 

The warlock gets few spell slots but they recharge on a short rest and they get something called invocations that allow you to fully customize the abilities of your character. 

Typically, a Warlock is secretive and manipulative, embracing their dark side and casting Eldritch Blast. Did I mention Eldritch Blast?

Role

The Warlock serves best as a party’s spellcasting damage dealer. Because of their limited spell slots, Warlocks are more likely to save them for combat causing them to be weaker in out-of-combat utility. The Warlock can serve as an excellent investigator or battlefield controller as well, depending on what invocations they chose.

Pick This Class If:

• You like the idea of customizing the perks your character has, giving them a range of abilities.
• You enjoy spooky scary voices in your head.
• You want to play a high charisma caster.
• You like yelling “Eldritch Blast”.

Wizard

The adventuring Wizard looks out over the magical city of dragons he has been searching for.

What is the Wizard?

So, you want to have the most spell options of any class, have the option to alter the fabric of reality, and perform at children’s parties? Don’t worry, I got you.

The Wizard is the sole intelligence-based full caster so, if you want to play a character that is extremely intelligent and does not waste good stats on something that would only assist in role-play, then the Wizard is for you.

As a wizard, you will be able to pick a school of magic to focus on and become an expert within that field. You will still be able to cast spells from all schools though! Have your cake and eat it too!

Role

The Wizard can serve as a party’s powerhouse, or their battlefield controller, their support, or their utility tool belt. The only thing the wizard doesn’t naturally have access to is healing magic. With the largest spell list of any class, the wizard can pick up the spells they want allowing their wizard to go in any party role direction they want.

Pick This Class If:

• You want to be a highly intelligent arcane caster. 
• You want to have versatility as a caster and don’t mind spending all your gold on paper and ink.
• You think Merlin, Gandalf, and Harry Potter are cool.
• You don’t mind having to make quick decisions in combat about what spell to cast from your vast spell book.

By now you should have a pretty good idea about what class you want to play! From the healing capabilities of the Cleric, to the face smashing capabilities of the Barbarian, to the Explosion fire death abilities of the Sorcerer! If you enjoyed this guide, you might also enjoy:

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