Dark Souls 3 class guide

Assassin

Starting stats

Starting gift recommendations

Life Ring: The Assassin is one of the more powerful starting classes, but has a small amount of health. The Life Ring will help to alleviate this issue by giving a 7% boost to maximum health.

Play style

Parry/Backstab: The Assassin starts with the Estoc, a thrusting weapon that does great critical damage. The Assassin utilizes two main methods of dealing damage: parrying enemies and then attacking with a critical strike or using Spook to sneak up behind enemies for a backstab.

Where to focus stats

Dexterity: Pivotal to wielding higher damage critical weapons.
Attunement: Crucial in order to hold more spells and increasing Focus Points.
Intelligence: Required to use better staves and cast more powerful spells.

Key early items/NPCs

Rapier: Found on a corpse in the same area as the blue Winged Knight in the High Wall of Lothric. The Rapier has slightly less base damage versus the Estoc, but it has higher critical damage and can be used while blocking.

Dagger: Sold by the Shrine Handmaid. The dagger has a very high critical damage modifier, but also has very low base damage. It is best used as a secondary weapon and should be switched to after parrying to land a critical strike.

Pros

Fast Parry Shield
High Critical Damage
Thrust Weapon

Cons

Low Luck
High Starting Level

Sorcerer

Starting stats

Starting gift recommendations

Fire Gem: The Sorcerer starts with the mail breaker, a relatively weak weapon. The Fire Gem infuses a weapon with non-scaling fire damage, which is very beneficial in early-game combat, especially against Abyss enemies.

Play style

Caster: This play style relies on keeping a safe distance from an enemy and launching powerful spells. Carrying more Ashen Estus Flasks versus standard Estus Flasks helps to keep the Sorcerer from running out of casts between bonfires.

Where to focus stats

Intelligence: Utilize higher damage spells and better staves.
Attunement: Crucial for attuning more spells and using the Ashen Estus Flask less.
Dexterity: Increases spell casting speed.

Key early items/NPCs

Blacksmith Andre: Can infuse weapons with gems and can allot Estus charges between regular or Ashen Estus Flasks.

Yoel of Londor: Can be found at the end of his pilgrimage praying to Lordric Castle just after the first bonfire in the Undead Settlement. He sells basic spells including: Soul Arrow, Heavy Soul Arrow, Soul Greatsword, Magic Weapon, and Magic Shield.

Pros

Long-Range Damage
High Damage
Highest Attunement

Cons

Weak to Magic Resistant Enemies
Low Health

Pyromancer

Starting stats

Starting gift recommendations

Divine Blessing: Replenishes HP and cures ailments. Pyromancers come from the Great Swamp, a land ripe with poison. There are herbs that can cure poison and other such ailments, but anyone with knowledge of poison would be wise to have a Divine Blessing on hand.

Play style

Dark Flame: Starting with an even amount of Intelligence and Faith lends well to a Dark build. The most damage can be attained by leveling these two stats up evenly to give the most Fire and Dark damage possible. Straight Swords are best for this build since they usually have low stat requirements and high swing speed. Casting a weapon buff usually applies a flat damage boost to a weapon, which means that hitting an enemy with as many hits as possible yields the most damage.

Where to focus stats

Intelligence: Fire damage scales off the combination of Intelligence and Faith.
Faith: Dark damage scales off the lowest stat between Intelligence and Faith.
Attunement: Cast more Pyromancy or Dark Spells before needing an Ashen Estus Flask and attune more spells.

Key early items/NPCs

Cornyx of the Great Swamp: The Pyromancer can be found in the Undead Settlement in a cage on top of the building next to the Cliff Underside bonfire. He can upgrade your Pyromancy Flame and sells the following pyromancies: Fireball, Fire Surge, Great Combustion, and Flash Sweat.

Fire Clutch Ring: From the Cliff Underside bonfire, head up to the compound above and go past the torture equipment and hanging bodies that are outside. Run down the wooden bridge, kill the enemy seated at the end, and pick up the Fire Clutch ring that buffs all fire damage.

Pros

Ranged Attacks
High Damage against Abyss
High Combined Intelligence and Faith

Cons

Weak Armor
Low Luck
Low Vitality

Cleric

Starting stats

Starting gift recommendations

Fire Gem: The Fire Gem allows a weapon to be infused with non-scaling fire damage, which is very beneficial in early-game combat, especially against Abyss enemies.

Play style

Support: Playing as support in cooperative play can be a very rewarding experience. A good Cleric can heal and buff with area of effect spells, place negative status effects on enemies and knock them down to prevent the group from being overwhelmed in an ambush, and deal damage from long-range with lightening attacks.

Where to focus stats

Faith: High Faith allows for the casting of more powerful Miracles
Attunement: Grants the ability to cast more Miracles and attune more Miracles.
Endurance: Needed to continuously cast Miracles while still being able to dodge and run.

Key early items/NPCs

Blacksmith Andre: Can infuse weapons with gems and can allot Estus charges between regular or Ashen Estus Flasks.

White Soapstone: Sold by the Shrine Handmaid in Firelink Shrine. The White Soapstone allows the user to be summoned to other players’ worlds to aid them until the area boss is defeated. Successfully aiding a player in defeating the area boss will return the player to Ember form.

Warrior of Sunlight: In the Hollow Settlement after the first large bonfire is a room with bodies hanging from the ceiling. There's a hole in the floor that leads to a room with Estus Soup cooking on a hearth. On the table in this room is the Warrior of Sunlight talisman that will allow the player to join the Sunlight Covenant. Sun Bros, as members of this covenant are affectionately called, obtain Sunlight Medals every time they help a player beat an area boss, which are used to level up in the Sunlight Covenant.

Pros

High Faith
High Attunement
Healing Spell

Cons

Low Vitality
Low Endurance

Deprived

Starting stats

Starting gift recommendations

Cracked Red Eye Orb: You chose deprived, which means you are obviously a Dark Souls masochist, so starting with four chances to invade unsuspecting players is ideal. Just remember that the Cracked Red Eye Orb cannot be used until the High Wall of Lothric.

Play style

Evil Jedi: Metal Shield? Armor? Clothing? A deprived knows not these things.

Where to focus stats

Nowhere: Deprived are usually reserved for skilled players who are either doing a level one speed run or invading low level players. Dark Souls 3 has returned to the traditional mechanic of invasions being based solely on level (equipment and soul—pun intended) and does not use the Dark Souls 2 soul memory that was intended to help alleviate artificially low level invaders.

Key early items/NPCs

Leonhard: Found leaning up against Prince Lothric’s Throne in Firelink Shrine. When you first speak with him he will give you five Cracked Red Eye Orbs allowing for 9 chances to invade players early in the game.