The Elden Ring gaming community is used to the Souls formula, as FromSoftware’s popular open-world video game includes many of the starting classes you’d expect from a Souls game. There are spell-casting wizards, mighty knights, enchantment-casting clerics, and even a naked class for those who enjoy FromSoftware’s unique brand of punishing gameplay more than most.
Something that we find quite curious is that, the game also features the standard builds like bandits and rogue characters, but this time it also includes a samurai class for those who like to play with medium armor and swinging katanas.
While the class you choose doesn’t lock you into a specific playstyle, it will dictate your first few hours. So make sure you pick a class that suits your preferred combat style, as well as one that benefits your additional abilities.
Best Elden Ring Starting Class for Beginners: Vagabond
If Elden Ring is your first Souls game, you may want to try a tough character who can hold their own in combat and help you learn the basics. The wanderer is the knight character from the Elden Ring and comes already equipped with heavy armor, a sword, and a shield.
The Vagabond starter class is essential for Strength, Vigor, and Endurance builds, but you can tailor these to your liking, adding a few point spells to your arsenal or anything else you want. You could make the wanderer a proficient battle mage, or stay the route of strength and heavy weapons.
However, we recommend that you increase your faith stat a bit to take advantage of enchantments in combat to improve yourself and eliminate enemies. This starter class starts at level 9 with stats spread evenly across the board.