Dragon's Dogma 2 gives you 10 classes to choose from. A few are available at the start, and others need to be unlocked. While each has its own unique capabilities, certain factors still come into play if we want to talk about which option is ideal. As such, here's our Dragon's Dogma 2 best vocation tier list to help you figure out which classes stand head and shoulders above the rest.

The best vocations in Dragon's Dogma 2 - Class tier list

Our Dragon's Dogma 2 class tier list is based on a few factors. First, it's the notion that it's always better for the Arisen to be the one dealing the most damage since the player has full control over which skills to use. Second, it's that some classes can be selected for pawns, which means we can see how an AI-controlled character handles their capabilities, whereas a few unlockable vocations are for the Arisen only (i.e. they rely solely on the player's input). Lastly, we're going with the idea that each class has access to its respective Maister's Teachings/ultimate skills.

In any case, here's a summary on what we consider as the best vocations in Dragon's Dogma 2:

• S-tier: Thief and Sorcerer
• A-tier: Magick Archer, Mystic Spearhand, and Warfarer
• B-tier: Mage and Warrior
• C-tier: Fighter and Archer
• D-tier: Trickster

S-tier: Thief

The Thief is hands down the best vocation in Dragon's Dogma 2 when it comes to damage-dealing capabilities and survivability quirks. For DPS, you have Skull Splitter, which causes the Thief to spin and shred everything in front of it. Because this makes the Thief jump into the air, you can hit weak spots multiple times to easily take out a chunk off a target's health bar. Masterful Kill, meanwhile, deals a ton of damage if you press the button prompt just as an enemy's attack is about to land.

Finally, there's Formless Feint, an ultimate technique that comes from the Nameless Village. While active, it acts as a permanent "Shadowstep," which means you can avoid every kind of attack from all hostiles. Although your stamina drains over time, you can just spam Twin Fangs to string combo hits and execution-style moves.

S-tier: Sorcerer

The Sorcerer is also another amazing option that we rank highly in our Dragon's Dogma 2 class tier list. That's because of its near-unrivaled potential when taking out innumerable hostiles from afar. The High Levin spell, combined with Quickspell, is your bread-and-butter ability since several lightning strikes can quickly bring down your foes.

Later, once you've obtained Meteoron and Maelstrom from the Spellbound/Sorcerer's Appraisal grimoire quest, the Sorcerer's DPS potential skyrockets. Meteoron rains down blazing chunks of rocks from the sky, while Maelstrom creates a tornado. The latter, when used in indoor spaces (i.e. dungeons) melts the health bars of bosses since the tornado lasts for several seconds and deals damage multiple times.

A-tier: Magick-Archer

Both the Thief and Sorcerer are great already, but one class outshines them when it comes to damage-dealing capabilities. It's none other than the Magick-Archer, which is unlocked as part of the Put a Spring in Thy Step quest. While the Magick-Archer can fire shots that seek out targets, the primary reason why we consider it an A-tier class is its Martyr's Bolt ultimate technique.

While Martyr's Bolt is being charged, your maximum HP will get drained. The more HP is lost, the higher the damage, and you should see countless projectiles swarm your targets until they're eliminated. There's a high chance that even monstrous bosses would fall in a single cast.

Perhaps the clear downside is that Martyr's Bolt drains your maximum HP, not the "grey" amount that can still be healed by spells or flasks. As such, there's an inherent risk, where your character might swiftly eliminate a dangerous foe, only to have no more HP left by the time you're set to return to town. This is a class that requires you to keep a handy Wakestone or Allheal Elixir at all times. Lastly, it doesn't have any defensive maneuvers to help it escape from danger when hostiles get too close.

A-tier: Mystic Spearhand

If the Magick-Archer is the best vocation in Dragon's Dogma 2 when it comes to a single ability that can lay waste to foes, then the Mystic Spearhand has the top option when considering a single skill that boosts survivability. It's none other than Mirour Vesture--which is just a regular skill, mind you.

When cast, Mirour Vesture creates an impenetrable barrier for you and your allies. It affects the Arisen, the pawns in your party, and even friendly NPCs that are with you on a quest/escort mission. The barrier lasts for eight seconds, and makes you impervious to all forms of damage. Watch as explosive barrages from Dragons or Golems do barely a tickle.

Survivability is what makes the Mystic Spearhand a great vocation, but its damage pales in comparison to those mentioned above. Even its ultimate technique, Wild Furie, doesn't deal as much damage as the Thief's Skull Splitter. Still, the Mystic Spearhand is an A-tier class, and one that you should always try out in your playthrough.

A-tier: Warfarer

The Warfarer is a surprisingly good vocation to try, though it comes much too late in the campaign. You can obtain it from The Sotted Sage/Newt Liqueur quest.

What makes the Warfarer unique is that it lets you equip any type of armor and weapon, with no class restrictions. You can even use all class abilities, save for ultimate techniques. Its Rearmament function allows you to swap among your weapons and activate/cast class-specific skills.

Yes, the Warfarer is versatile, and it lets you fine-tune your playstyle to a degree. For instance, you can activate the Mystic Spearhand's Mirour Vesture while wielding a polearm, and then swap to the Thief's dual daggers to use Skull Splitter. Perhaps one inherent flaw is that vocation-specific ultimate skills can't be used, and you'll often find yourself switching between weapons to the point that it ruins the flow of battle. Lastly, it bears mentioning that you still need to level the other classes to unlock the skills that you need. Once you've put in all that effort, the Warfarer might turn out to be your favorite (or you could stick to the other classes if you prefer their playstyles).

B-tier: Mage

Putting the Mage as a B-tier option might surprise you. After all, it has healing and protective spells like Anodyne and High Palladium. It can even cast offensive spells, such as High Flagration. Moreover, once you've completed Spellbound/Sorcerer's Appraisal, you'll receive Celestial Paean, the best support skill in the game (i.e. it grants high stamina regeneration and damage reduction).

However, we feel that the Mage is better suited as a vocation for pawns. Your AI companions are smart enough to know when they should heal and buff (especially if it matches their inclination/specialization). As such, it's unlikely for the Arisen to be the one to play the support role in the group.

B-tier: Warrior

The Warrior is a no-nonsense melee DPS class, and it remains one of the best vocations in Dragon's Dogma 2. It can draw enemy aggro/threat by using Roar, and hard-hitting abilities like Arc of Might, Mountain Breaker, and Windstorm Slash deal high damage even if they have a longer wind-up. It's consistent, true, and you can't go wrong with using it, especially once you have stronger weapons. However, the DPS classes mentioned above all have the means to outshine it in various situations.

C-tier: Fighter

To be fair, the Fighter isn't really a "bad" vocation. It can draw enemy attacks via Shield Summons, and defend against the brunt of the damage via Impeccable Guard or perfect parries with Deflect/True Deflect. Still, once you've reached the later stages of the campaign, the Fighter's DPS potential falls off considerably. Meanwhile, classes like the Thief and Mystic Spearhand both have better tools for survivability--i.e. Formless Feint and Mirour Vestige, respectively.

C-tier: Archer

We started the campaign playing as the Archer. Truth be told, we did enjoy using the class for a time. Then, we tried out other classes, and we started to wonder why we made a mistake in the first place.

Now, don't get us wrong: the Archer can hold its own in combat. It has the fast-firing Tempest Shot, the frontal cone hits from Barrage Shot, and the AoE blast from Exploding Shot. It even has well-timed Kick combos when enemies get too close, and a means of aiming for weak spots from afar. But those moves don't always translate to consistently high damage output later in the campaign (except maybe Exploding Shot). In contrast, other classes have skills that can hit weak spots multiple times, which can be activated while the Archer is still fiddling around with their aim.

D-tier: Trickster

That does it for our Dragon's Dogma 2 class tier list. Now that you know which options are ideal... oh, wait, did we forget something? Ah, yes, the Trickster.

Among the many vocations in Dragon's Dogma 2, the Trickster is, without a doubt, the most underwhelming. For one thing, you don't actually deal any damage as it. At best, you use Effigial Incense to summon a simulacrum (a ghostly copy of yourself), which can be used to (a) distract foes or (b) cling onto them so they fight by your side. This sounds good on paper, but there are a few other reasons why this class becomes more frustrating to use over time:

• You have to constantly spam a button to make the simulacrum appear next to you (unless you want to spend a couple of seconds summoning it when in combat).
• Even with weapons that have high stats, tougher foes can still destroy the simulacrum in a single hit.
• You spend more time running around to throw smoke at people's faces just to distract them.
• The idea of kiting bosses with a clone of yourself sounds fun, but fun doesn't translate to "fast and efficient." You end up relying more on companions, hoping they can do more damage in your stead.
• Utility moves like Delusory Screen/Illusive Divider (smoke wall) and Espial Incense (exploring via astral projection) are neat to have, but pale in comparison to what other classes bring to the table.
• Its ultimate technique, Dragon's Delusion, summons a gargantuan creature that doesn't attack.

If the Trickster is a vocation that is available to pawns, then it might be more worthwhile. Sadly, with numerous classes available to the Arisen, an option that doesn't even deal damage has to go all the way to the bottom of our Dragon's Dogma 2 vocation tier list.

Fierce foes and loyal companions await you as you journey onward in Dragon's Dogma 2. For other tips and strategies, you can visit our guides hub.