The nine professions

Every character in the game is one of these nine, and the choice cannot be changed later. Here they are side by side, with a line each on how they actually play. Click one for the full guide.

• GuardianHeavy armour and the thinnest health pool in the game, held up by blocks, aegis and healing. Forgiving once you use its defences, punishing if you facetank.
• WarriorNineteen weapon sets, one resource bar and no complicated mechanic. The class that asks the least of you and gives back the most per keypress.
• RevenantYou channel dead legends and swap between two of them mid-fight. Very strong, very rigid: each legend fixes your utility skills for you.
• EngineerKits, turrets and belt gadgets, and the longest list of buttons on the roster. Enormous range of things to do, steep hill to climb first.
• RangerYou and a pet, always. Comfortable levelling, good damage at range, and a pet you have to actually manage rather than ignore.
• ThiefInitiative instead of cooldowns, so you spam what works until the bar runs dry. Highest skill ceiling for staying alive, thinnest margin when you misjudge.
• ElementalistFour attunements, four full skill bars, lowest health in the game. Enormous output when you rotate cleanly, a wet paper bag when you do not.
• MesmerClones, phantasms and shatters. The class that wins by making the enemy hit the wrong target, and the one that takes longest to click.
• NecromancerA second health bar you fight out of, minions that hold aggro and no reliance on dodging perfectly. The most forgiving class for a first character.

Numbers, weapons and elite specialisations live in the individual guides. Compare all nine in one table →