If you’re looking to get back into Lost Ark, the hit MMO action role-playing game from Tripod Studio and Smilegate, you’ve come to the right place. A fresh start on a new character is a great way to get back into the swing of things. There are a ton of classes to choose from and it can be difficult to decide what to pick. This ranked tier list of all the classes in Lost Ark will focus on which perform best overall across PvE and PvP as of March 2023. This list is an opinion based on having tried out each of the classes again recently, and we should note that specific classes may be better suited to certain players, so keep that in mind!
All Classes in Lost Ark Ranked by Tier
S Tier
Bard
The Bard is a support class that excels in providing powerful buffs and healing to their allies, making them invaluable in dungeons and raids. The Bard class is not the most mobile, and it can be difficult to get the timing down on when it’s best to use their skills. Even so, the impact from the healing and buffs that this class can pump out is undeniable. It’s the closest thing to a true healer class like in other MMORPGs out of all the classes to be ranked in Lost Ark.
Paladin
The Paladin is a support class that has two types of skills: yellow and blue. Yellow skills are used to activate your support abilities while blue skills are designed to deal damage. As a support class that provides good utility through their blue skills, Paladins are highly desirable to have in a party for any kind of end game content. They are particularly valuable to have in raids, as they possess one of the best damage boosting buffs in Lost Ark, which can really help the party to take down bosses efficiently.
Scrapper
The Scrapper is a damage-dealing class that has a strong mix of hard hitting shock attacks and great mobility. Due to their high DPS they do well in raids and dungeons by outputting constant damage. They also perform well in PvP, as their mobility gives them an edge over a lot of other classes that may have trouble pinning them down or escaping their damage.
Sorceress
The Sorceress is your typical mage-style spellcaster. They can be built to have either sustainable, spell-fueled DPS with respectable mobility or high burst damage that can really delete enemies at the cost of a lot of the mobility. The first style is much better for PvE so that you can output consistent damage throughout raids and dungeons while being able to quickly reposition with your mobility skills. The second build style is much better suited to PvP where being able to burst down players is very satisfying and effective.
Striker
The Striker is a fast-paced brawler class that has a very fun playstyle with rapid attacks that deal high and consistent DPS. They also provide a powerful utility to their whole team in group content in the form of a potent attack speed buff. The fun, burst-heavy playstyle of the Striker class will do very well across all content providing an excellent experience and likely the most fun out of the classes in the S tier.
Gunlancer
The final class going in the S tier is the Gunlancer. This class is currently the most tanky out of all those available and is an absolute gem in PvE content. Your team will love you as you easily control enemy mobs with your crowd control abilities. When it comes to bosses, you can face tank them all day while freeing your team up to focus on dealing as much damage as they can. Not only is this class incredibly resilient, but they also deal excellent damage and are very easy to pick up and learn compared to most other classes. This makes them a perfect first character choice too!
The Gunlancer’s Hook Chain attack.
A Tier
Wardancer
The Wardancer is a fast-paced, damage-dealing class that has good, consistent DPS across content and is also really fun to play. This class is easy to pick up but tricky to master. Much like the Striker class, the Wardancer has a main utility in the form of an attack speed buff that can be provided to allies. The reason that they are not in the S tier is that the Striker class is essentially a better version of the Wardancer.
Artillerist
The Artillerist class is a slow, ranged gunner class that has strong, sustained DPS. Their weapon can fire like a minigun, a flamethrower, and even dish out artillery shells, which is really cool. They can also summon turrets that will deal additional damage and boost the Artillerist’s overall attack strength. Their main issue is that they can feel quite sluggish to play due to a focus on slower heavy attacks and low mobility but more tankiness.
Shadow Hunter
The Shadow Hunter is a demon-based class that sounds like an assassin-style class. However, they play much more like a fighter in PvE. They have strong attacks with good area of effect and range. There are two main builds for this class that change the playstyle quite a bit. The first build focuses on the demon form, providing a bunch of really fun and flashy demon abilities but deal less damage. The second build forgoes the demon form and purely focuses on the human skills, which isn’t as fun to play but does deal a fair bit more damage. Overall it’s a fun and strong class that will do well across all content.
Gunslinger
The Gunslinger is one of the most difficult classes to learn how to play effectively in both PvE and PvP, though the high skill ceiling does come with the reward of high damage output. They mostly play around using their rifle to deal a lot of damage and have a variety of beneficial utility skills as well as good mobility to help them stay at range. If you can master the Gunslinger class, you’ll find yourself having a great time no matter what content you’re playing through.
Deathblade
The Deathblade class fits the rogue/assassin style of class. They have cool, flashy attacks that deal great damage and a range of debuffs that they can apply to enemies to make fights easier. They are highly mobile so they can get around very quickly with their skills. They are also very easy to pick up and play making them a great choice for a new player who wants a quick and fun damage-dealing class to play.
Summoner
The Summoner class, much as the name implies, has a range of summons that they can use. They also have a variety of damage-dealing spells to make use of as well. In PvE — especially raids — they are a really good class as between your damage or your summons’ damage, you’re always able to be dealing damage making them super consistent with DPS output. They also handle themselves well in PvP. With their strong crowd control abilities and damage-dealing summons, they easily put other classes in a bind. This is another class that is easy to pick up and do well with and is recommended for new players as well as veterans.
Berserker
The Berserker class is a big, large, and in charge warrior class that is slow but deals massive damage. They get some awesome-looking weapons and armor and put them to good use, being relatively tanky and dealing some of the best damage across solo and group content. They have excellent AOE moves that allow them to effectively deal with groups of enemies, which really helps when clearing dungeons and raids. They are easy to pick up and use effectively making them a good starter choice as well.
The Berserker’s Crime Hazard attack.
B Tier
Reaper
The Reaper class is very much an assassin class with a focus on stealth, teleports, and poison. The Reaper class can be built for either burst damage or sustained damage, but both are similar in DPS output so it comes down to how you prefer to play. They have good damage and do well in dungeons. Where they shine is in PvP. With their ability to teleport around attacking and applying poison, they are difficult to go up against and you’ll often be able to dance around your opponents as you wear them into the ground.
Destroyer
The Destroyer class is a very slow but very hard-hitting class that can deal some crazy damage. They have strong shielding from enemy attacks with their skills, and their large weapons look really cool in combat as well. They are easy to pick up and use and are best at disrupting enemies with a variety of skills that can knock down and interrupt enemy attacks. This makes them great at PvP as well, as the ability to power through enemy attacks means you can really stick on to your target and make it near impossible for them to escape your onslaught.
Soulfist
The Soulfist class is a very cool monk-style class that focuses on martial arts-style skills. They deal great damage, have good mobility, and have one of the most powerful awakening attacks in Lost Ark. They put out good consistent damage and play well across all content. They are a little more difficult to learn how to use well due to their unique mana system that needs to be recharged.
Sharpshooter
The Sharpshooter class is a bow class that has a variety of fun ranged attacks. They can output a ton of raw damage with their skills and have strong AOE damage to deal with groups of enemies really well. They are actually one of the top damage dealers in Lost Ark but have very little utility, which means that they don’t really bring any benefits to a team other than their damage output. They don’t have much crowd control so it can be easy for enemies to get into close combat, which is a problem as the class is quite squishy.
The Sharpshooter’s Charged Shot attack.
C Tier
Arcana/Arcanist
The Arcana or Arcanist class is a mage class that deals in dark magic arts. They have a lot of RNG mechanics in their skills, which can be fun sometimes but also frustrating when trying to deal consistent damage. The class focuses on building up stacks and then releasing the stacks to deal a lot of damage. It’s another class that has a high skill cap and if you can master the class and play it to its full potential, you can put out a crazy amount of damage and play it at a higher tier level. However, this will be difficult for most players.
Scouter/Machinist
The Scouter or Machinist is a class that has a futuristic feel with its epic guns and drones comboing into visually appealing attacks. When you play the Machinist class, it’s more like playing two different classes at once, as you have to cast your own skills as well as your drones’ skills. It’s one of the most unique classes in Lost Ark and is very cool and fun to play. It’s just a little difficult to master because of the extra thought and mechanics needed to utilize the drone effectively to deal good damage and alter positioning. If you can master the class though, it will play at a much higher tier. It will just take time to get to that point as you learn the class.
Lance Master/Glaivier
The Lance Master class is a spear-focused class that has a fast-paced attack style where you swap between two different weapons. It’s not too difficult to get used to and some very cool and powerful attacks. It has a lot of charging mechanics in its playstyle where you need to charge up attacks, which some people may not be a fan of. Overall it’s a very fun class and is worth giving a chance, but just be aware it won’t be as powerful or useful as other higher ranked classes that are available in Lost Ark.
The Lance Master/Glaivier’s Thrust of Destruction attack.
D Tier
Deadeye
The Deadeye is a ranged class that uses guns. Its strongest weapon is the shotgun, which can be used to deal a lot of damage in PvE. The problem with the class is that you need to have really good positioning to be able to deal the most damage possible while also avoiding most hits as the class is very squishy and can get downed quickly. It’s one of the trickier classes to master, and you’ll want low ping when playing to ensure you can react quickly, which makes it a poor choice for people without fast internet or near a regional server.
That’s all of the classes in Lost Ark ranked by tier. Hopefully you’ll have a better idea now of which class you’d like to play if you’re returning to the game or starting for the first time. Let me know in the comments below if you think any of the Lost Ark classes should have been ranked at a higher or lower tier. Your opinion might help someone else choose the right class!
