Guide: What class should you pick as a new player?

Prologue
There's a lot of guides on choosing a class, but the vast majority of them are out of date and/or contain misinformation or simply are not comprehensive enough to cover all aspects that go into choosing a class. This is my humble attempt to rectify this. This guide will be as comprehensive and up-to-date as I can manage and I will attempt to keep it that way going forward in-line with balance changes.

There will be a summary at the bottom with some recommendations, so if you're just looking to be told what to do, then scroll to the bottom. Otherwise, I highly recommend reading through the whole guide as there's a lot of important information and concepts for new players to learn.

What goes into choosing a class?
Let's start at the beginning, by examining what are the different aspects of actually choosing a class. If you are a new player, this is likely the most important part of the guide, and although it may be a bit wordy, I highly recommend you take the time to read through this section. I will try to make it as digestible as possible to even players coming in completely blind.

This is, at least in my opinion, the comprehensive list of all aspects that go into choosing a class, prioritized roughly in order by which the player needs to address them:

1. Fantasy: The fantasy you want to roleplay as and what part of the group dynamic you want to fill. ML is an MMORPG; at the end of the day you are roleplaying a virtual character in an alternate world. If you absolutely have your heart set on something like "I know I want to be an Ice Wizard" or "I'm positive I want to be an archer" then you should follow your heart, pick that class, and ignore the rest of the guide. Everything that follows after this point is going to be some form of optimization, so if you don't care about any of that and just want to play something that looks cool to you, then play that.
2. NX: NX is a "premium" currency that can be obtained daily through the two vote links on the MapleLegends website. There are two vote links, one of which resets once a day at midnight server time for 5k NX, increasing by +20 NX each time you vote up to a maximum of 6.5k NX after 75 votes, and the other of which resets every 12 hours and grants 500 NX. There is a mechanic on ML called "HP Washing" that involves a process of using NX and increasing the INT stat temporarily to permanently increase your HP and MP. While there are ways of playing the game without washing, such as "HP Challenges" which is a long quest line (still under construction at this time) that allows you to permanently increase your HP up to a set threshold, there are some classes where washing is highly encouraged, and new players should be aware that if you choose to not HP Wash one of these classes properly, the character will be at a permanent disadvantage compared to those who choose to wash. This is a complicated topic with no really great solutions for new players, but if you're worried about the long-term viability of your first character, then how much NX you have access to and how soon you'll need it plays an important role in making your first character. That being said, the game will still be very much playable for characters who choose to not wash, so if you have your heart set on playing one of the wash-recommended characters without washing, then by all means go for it.
3. Progression: The preferred playstyle you have in games and methods you are willing to undertake in order to progress. If you are the type of player who enjoys grinding solo, then farming heavy classes will be recommended. If you are the type who only wants to do party play and group up, then other classes will be recommended. Keep in mind that the vast majority of players will do a little bit of both. Progression will generally be divided into two categories, grinding/farming and bossing, as PQs do not account for a significant amount of the overall progression of a character. Generally a class will be very good at one or the other or be moderately good at both.
4. Gameplay: The style and difficulty of gameplay you want to be engaging with. In most MMORPGs there is a concept known as a "rotation," or the set of inputs you'll repeatedly cycle through over a period of time while playing the game. For example, some classes revolve around building up resources to unleash a big attack, while others will revolve around casting a big attack with a cooldown and counting seconds until you can use it again. Some classes are easier/harder than others and some require more/less inputs than others.
5. Friends: The class choices of the people you'll be playing with the most. If you joined ML with a close friend or significant other or were invited by someone already playing and they have chosen a class already, it's incentivized for you to play something that will synergize with them. If you're spending a lot of time playing with someone, it's good to have your characters work well together.
6. Independence: How reliant you are willing to be on other players and/or mules. Mules are alternate characters that fulfill a specific role in a group, such as casting an important buff, and otherwise sit inactive. If you want to play a class that doesn't rely on buffs from others, then some classes will be more recommended than others.
7. Groups: How easy of a time you're looking for when applying and getting into groups. Some classes are have high demand and are auto-accept into most groups, while other classes you'll be competing against other players for limited slots. If you want to get into groups easily, or if you're not worried about group play, some classes will be more recommended than others.
8. Infrastructure: How this character will set you up for success in the future. 'Infrastructure' is a loose term on ML used to describe the overall set-up you have, including the resources and characters you have access to. Some characters will set you up for success and enable faster progression in the long run, and will retain important utility down the line even if you choose to make a different character.

Now that you have a baseline familiarity of these important concepts, let's take a look at every single class through the lens of each of these categories, before we end on some recommendations.

Mages
Mages are known primarily for their excellence at farming. Starting even from low levels, they are generally the fastest leveling classes in the game and have access to fantastic mobility with Teleport, and by 4th job are capable of massive, map-clearing attacks that kill many monsters at once. While they generally will fall short of other classes (non-mages are generally referred to as "attackers" because of their excellence in doing single-target damage compared to mages) they still have utility in some bosses.

• Leveling Rate: Very high
• Mobility: High
• Game Knowledge Required: Moderate

Bishop
I'm not going to beat around the bush: Bishops are by far the most recommended class for a brand new player. They're exceptionally versatile in how they can be used for a new player, they level quickly, require very little funding to get started, and can still be functional without too much NX. Bishops are holy mages that excel at dealing holy damage, and have extremely important party buffs/utility such as Holy Symbol (increases the EXP of all party members by 50%), Holy Shield (makes you immune to dangerous status effects), Resurrect (revives all dead party members) and Mystic Door (allows you to transport party members from town to a map). They excel at farming, leeching (killing lots of monsters to level lower level characters), and are important in bosses.

1. Fantasy: Holy mage capable of powerful holy attacks, healing and shielding magic for protecting allies, and the ability to resurrect dead party members. Bishops play the role of support, mostly, but are still important sources of damage in certain key fights. If you enjoy playing healers or supports, then Bishop is your closest match.
2. NX: While a "fully" washed Bishop is actually one of the most expensive NX projects in the game, the recommended amount of NX needed for a Bishop is only a couple million, and they're more than capable of functioning even with as little as 500k NX (around 3 months of voting), making them accessible for new players.
3. Progression: Bishops have a pretty smooth leveling experience from start to finish, with great grinding spots even pre-4th job. Bishop gameplay is best utilized solo farming, due to their ability to clear the map easily AND grant party members increased EXP, although they're more than welcome in most boss fights due to the importance of Holy Symbol. They're also very capable in PQs, giving you a lot of flexibility in how you play the game; Bishops do well in pretty much most methods of leveling, it's just they're extremely good at farming/leeching.
4. Gameplay: Gameplay is mostly rotating around the map and casting Genesis and Holy Symbol at certain intervals while farming/leeching. To some this style of play is casual and relaxing and great for watching Netflix, YouTube, etc. while to others it's mind-numbingly boring and repetitive. In bossing, Bishops are capable of supporting their teammates and negating boss mechanics if they're paying attention, requiring knowledge of boss animations and heads-up play. While this may sound intimidating to a new player, the vast majority of Bishops who have learned to play Bishop in Hornntail (arguably the most important boss fight for a Bishop) have appreciated the experience and enjoy it.
5. Friends: Bishops are capable of supporting pretty much anything. No matter what your friends choose to play, a Bishop will have some important use.
6. Independence: Bishops are pretty much entirely buff-independent; you are the one bringing all the important buffs.
7. Groups: Bishops are highly welcomed in some bosses, but generally muled (brought as an inactive secondary character) in others. The larger boss fights, such as Horntail, Pink Bean, and Aufheben, will usually have space for active Bishops, as well as some lower level bosses like Zakum, but expect to have a pretty heavy NX and wash requirement for things like Horntail, Pink Bean, and Aufheben. New Bishops shouldn’t expect too much bossing activity for a while.
8. Infrastructure: Bishops are the crux of infrastructure and likely the single most important addition to any player's arsenal of characters. It cannot be understated how useful a Bishop is even as a secondary character in progressing through the game due to its ability to leech your other characters and mule in boss fights.

Fire/Poison
Fire/Poison (FP) mages are known for having the most damage of the three mages. They lack the important party buffs of Bishops and the stuns of Ice/Lightning mages but make up for it by having noticeably more damage. This makes them slightly more useful in bosses and lets them start leeching (killing lots of monsters to level lower level characters) and farming monsters at a slightly lower level than their counterparts. They have by far the fastest rate of leveling in the game overall and make rapid progression, which can sort of backfire for new players if they outpace their NX.

1. Fantasy: Archmages with powerful area-of-effect attacks that deal fire and poison damage. The fire attacks are pretty cool and feel destructive but the poison attacks tend to look like farting, which is pretty amusing for most players.
2. NX: Similar to Bishop, FPs have a wide range of washing potentials, and can function on pretty low NX. However, FPs tend to have a much more accelerated leveling track and can sometimes outpace their NX supply for new players. Regardless, they are more than capable of functioning even with as little as 500k NX (around 3 months of voting), making them accessible for new players.
3. Progression: FPs are first and foremost a farming class. They excel at killing a lot of monsters at once and have much less utility than Bishops in bossing. If you're looking to do a lot of solo grinding, then it's a good choice, although keep in mind if you're planning on selling leech, you'll need to make a secondary character to serve as a Holy Symbol mule, since you won't have access to it yourself, unlike Bishop. Although the pre-3rd job experience isn’t as smooth as Bishops, FPs make extremely rapid progression starting 3rd job, outclassing even some 4th job grinding as early as level 80.
4. Gameplay: Gameplay is mostly rotating around the map and casting Meteor at certain intervals while farming/leeching. To some this style of play is casual and relaxing and great for watching Netflix, YouTube, etc. while to others it's mind-numbingly boring and repetitive. There are optimizations that can be made for playing archmages in boss fights, but new players generally won't have access to most of these as they will require a bit more washing than a brand new account is capable of.
5. Friends: Fire Poison mages generally don't synergize well with other classes. Unless you're planning on helping leech your friends, you generally won't be interacting with your pals much.
6. Independence: FPs are buff independent when attacking but will require a Holy Symbol mule for selling leech to maximize EXP gains.
7. Groups: FPs have very little utility in group play and will struggle to get into groups. This is likely one of the hardest classes to get into boss parties with.
8. Infrastructure: FPs are great for selling high level leech due to their significantly higher damage than Bishop allowing them to kill monsters Bishops can't, and at a lower level than ILs. However, they're by no means necessary and most players will never make an FP in their life. If you choose to go down the extremely optimized multimage route, which consists of farming solo using multiple mages to completely clear a map, then FPs are useful as they allow you to start farming at a lower level than Bishop and therefore reduce your upfront costs to set up. This is a long-term farming strategy with steep initial costs, however, and not something a new player should be too worried about.

Ice/Lightning
Ice/Lightning (IL) mages are known for having slightly lower damage than FPs but with the ability to freeze enemies in place. However, the ability to freeze has been turned off in some of the highest level farming maps in the game, which reduces the utility of this side effect and generally results in ILs just being a slightly weaker version of FPs.

1. Fantasy: Archmages with powerful ice- and lightning-themed attacks. ILs are pretty popular among enthusiasts and tend to attract players that go deep into the class, despite its shortcomings compared to the other mages, and the class tends to have fun visuals in line with its theming.
2. NX: Similar to Bishop and FP, ILs have a wide range of washing potentials, and can function on pretty low NX. ILs have a similar pace of leveling to Bishops, making it less common for them to outpace their NX supply compared to FPs, and are more than capable of functioning even with as little as 500k NX (around 3 months of voting), making them accessible for new players.
3. Progression: ILs are first and foremost a farming class. They excel at killing a lot of monsters at once and have much less utility than Bishops in bossing. If you're looking to do a lot of solo grinding, then it's a good choice, although keep in mind if you're planning on selling leech (killing lots of monsters to level lower level characters), you'll need to make a secondary character to serve as a Holy Symbol mule, since you won't have access to it yourself, unlike Bishop. ILs, similar to Bishop, have smooth leveling even from early levels all the way to endgame.
4. Gameplay: Gameplay is mostly rotating around the map and casting Blizzard at certain intervals while farming/leeching. To some this style of play is casual and relaxing and great for watching Netflix, YouTube, etc. while to others it's mind-numbingly boring and repetitive. There are optimizations that can be made for playing archmages in boss fights, but new players generally won't have access to most of these as they will require a bit more washing than a brand new account is capable of.
5. Friends: Ice Lightning mages generally don't synergize well with other classes. Unless you're planning on helping leech your friends, you generally won't be interacting with your pals much.
6. Independence: ILs are buff independent when attacking but will require a Holy Symbol mule for selling leech to maximize EXP gains.
7. Groups: ILs have very little utility in group play and will struggle to get into groups. This is likely one of the hardest classes to get into boss parties with.
8. Infrastructure: ILs are great for selling high level leech due to their significantly higher damage than Bishop allowing them to kill monsters Bishops can't, albeit at a higher level than FPs. However, they're by no means necessary and most players will never make an IL in their life. If you choose to go down the extremely optimized multimage route, which consists of farming solo using multiple mages to completely clear a map, then ILs are useful as they allow you to start farming at a lower level than Bishop and therefore reduce your upfront costs to set up. This is a long-term farming strategy with steep initial costs, however, and not something a new player should be too worried about.

Warriors
Warriors are melee attackers primarily known for their ability to hit multiple targets at once. They excel in boss fights with multiple big enemies, and generally have a smooth leveling curve due to this AoE excellence extending to grinding. However, they tend to fall behind in fights without many targets to hit and fights where it's hard to stand close enough to hit a target.

• Leveling Rate: High
• Mobility: Low
• Game Knowledge Required: Low (Hero, Paladin), High (Dark Knight)

Hero
Heroes are a melee cleave-oriented class that hits 3 targets with their primary attacks. In single-target situations, they build up Combo Orbs by attacking then unleash them in a devastating huge attack (Panic) at once, providing a natural cycle to attacking. They have some marginal utility in parties but are overall outperformed in their role by other classes.

1. Fantasy: Heroes are your typical warrior/fighter archetype, simple and straightforward. They revolve around beating the shit out of 1-3 enemies at close range, with very little complexities besides that.
2. NX: Heroes, along with the other Warriors, require the least amount of NX in the game, making them strong choices for first characters. It is unlikely the player will feel handicapped at all if they choose to wash.
3. Progression: Heroes deal decent AoE damage and are competent bossers, making them flexible in how they choose to level. While at lower level PQs they might not be the strongest, they have access to pretty much all methods of progression and generally perform well enough in all of them.
4. Gameplay: You attack to build up Combo Orbs, which can be spent to perform a large strike. However, each Combo Orb increases your damage passively, so you'll be noticeably weaker after using them. As such, in some fights, missing your big attack due to status effect or range can feel pretty terrible. Heroes are good for rhythmic and cyclical gameplay but can be performed at only a marginal efficiency loss with just one button if you prefer to keep things simple.
5. Friends: Heroes have decent synergies with a lot of attacker classes due to their ability to cast Rage, which grants party members +20 weapon attack, saving them potion money. They also have utility such as AoE stuns and enemy defense buff removal which has utility in some fights. Heroes are somewhat dependent on Buccaneers for buffs, so it's better to make one if you already have a friend who will play Bucc.
6. Independence: Heroes are reliant on Buccaneer's Speed Infusion to deal full damage. You can build your Hero to be less reliant on Speed Infusion, but you'll be weaker for it, so it's generally recommended to just run with a Bucc or make a Bucc mule. Note that Buccs aren't always easy to find to run with.
7. Groups: Heroes have moderate to low utility and damage, making them mediocre attackers. They're generally outperformed in cleave situations by their Warrior brethren Paladins and Dark Knights and outperformed in single-target situations by... pretty much everything except Shadowers. There are some fights where Heroes are extremely powerful where Heroes have an easy time getting accepted, but you may have trouble finding groups at other fights.
   Excels at: Jiaoceng, Horntail, CWK, Scarlion/Targa, Core Blaze, Aufheben
8. Infrastructure: Heroes have little value in many player set-ups, but serve as a stepping stone attacker for players with little NX. They have some utility in multiclient attacking, but are generally outclassed. Heroes gain a small amount of value from archers’ Sharp Eyes, but are generally fine without it.

Paladin
Paladins are warriors who excel at dealing elemental (Fire, Lightning, Ice, and Holy) damage, allowing them to do very well at fights where the boss is weak to one of those elements. They have simple and straightforward gameplay and are the recommended class for a new player who wants to make an attacker instead of a mage, due to their versatility and excellence in key fights.

1. Fantasy: Paladins deal chunky hits to elemental weak monsters, and have a giant holy hammer attack from the skies that deals a bunch of damage. If you like bonking things with big hits and shouting "Deus vult" then this is the class for you.
2. NX: Paladins, along with the other Warriors, require the least amount of NX in the game, making them strong choices for first characters. It is unlikely the player will feel handicapped at all if they choose to wash.
3. Progression: Paladins deal decent AoE and single target damage and are competent bossers, making them flexible in how they choose to level. While at lower level PQs they might not be the strongest, they have access to pretty much all methods of progression and generally perform well enough in all of them.
4. Gameplay: You pick the element to empower your weapon with, then smash away. Paladins are pretty simple and straightforward in their gameplay for the most part and are easy to play well even for a new or inexperienced player, making them friendly as a first character.
5. Friends: Paladins have a decent AoE stun and are able to consistently knockback and pin enemies, especially those that are elemental weak, making them useful partners for classes that can't pin in some endgame bosses. Paladins are somewhat dependent on Buccaneers for buffs, so it's better to make one if you already have a friend who will play Bucc.
6. Independence: Paladins are reliant on Buccaneer's Speed Infusion to deal full damage. You can build your Pally to be less reliant on Speed Infusion, but you'll be weaker for it, so it's generally recommended to just run with a Bucc or make a Bucc mule. Note that Buccs aren't always easy to find to run with. Paladins gain a small amount of value from archers’ Sharp Eyes, but are generally fine without it.
7. Groups: Paladins deal exceptionally high damage in fights with elemental weakness, especially those that are Holy or Fire weak, making them almost must-haves in certain fights. Overall they perform well in a wide-range of content. Paladins will have an easy time getting into some fights, and a harder time at others.
   Excels at: CWK, Scarlion, Core Blaze, Aufheben
8. Infrastructure: Paladins have little value in many player set-ups, but serve as a stepping stone attacker for players with little NX. They have some utility in multiclient attacking, and can find some niches in endgame bosses.

Dark Knight
Dark Knights (DK) are high-risk medium-reward attackers that balance staying at low health to deal extra damage. They have extremely important party utility, especially for low-wash or HP challenge players, but can be prone to death while dealing damage at the hands of an inattentive player, making them less popular for more casual players.

1. Fantasy: Dark Knights have dragon- and berserker- themed attacks and abilities, dealing increased damage the lower HP they are and sacrificing HP to use some abilities. They excel at dealing high damage to lots of enemies, and can buff their allies HP by a significant amount, but also have a high risk of death themselves. If you like living life on the edge or want to play a supportive Warrior, this is a good choice.
2. NX: DKs, along with the other Warriors, require the least amount of NX in the game, making them strong choices for first characters. It is unlikely the player will feel handicapped at all if they choose to wash.
3. Progression: DKs deal decent AoE damage and are competent bossers, making them flexible in how they choose to level. They also have access to unique AoE farming methods starting at a lower level than most classes, and generally perform well in all different methods of progression.
4. Gameplay: You will be expected to maintain your party buff "Hyper Body" on your allies to ensure their HP is high enough to survive boss attacks. When attacking, you must keep your HP as low as possible and/or use your active Berserk ability to maximize your damage output, which generally will keep you just at the threshold of death. DK gameplay tries to fulfill the fantasy of living life on the edge as an intense berserker, but often tends to be frustrating for most players, as the chance of death tends to be too high and windows where you can successfully zerk tend to be too small to feel enjoyable.
5. Friends: DKs are capable of supporting most low-wash or HP Challenge characters well, so they're a great pick if your friends are planning on playing ranged characters and not washing. They are reliant on Buccaneer's Speed Infusion, and to a slightly lesser degree, archers’ Sharp Eyes, to deal full damage, so it's better to make one if you already have a friend who will play Bucc.
6. Independence: DKs are reliant on Buccaneer's Speed Infusion to deal full damage, and to a lesser degree archers' Sharp Eyes, so it's generally recommended to run with a Bucc or make a Bucc mule as well as an archer or SE mule. Note that Buccs aren't always easy to find to run with.
7. Groups: Dark Knights are highly desired in many fights due to many players choosing not to wash, and thus requiring Hyper Body. You should have an easy time getting into most boss groups.
   Excels at: Jiaoceng, Horntail, CWK
8. Infrastructure: Dark Knights make very useful mules due to their access to Hyper Body. They retain utility well into endgame even as just a secondary character.

Archers
Archers are ranged attackers with the ability to cast Sharp Eyes (SE), one of the most important buffs in the game. SE increases the chance of Critical Hits and increases Critical damage, which is important for enabling other classes, most notably Night Lords, who are almost entirely dependent on SE. Archers are also capable of outputting respectable damage of their own, although they can suffer in fights where being hit a lot is problematic compared to Night Lords.

• Leveling Rate: Low
• Mobility: Very low
• Game Knowledge Required: Moderate (Marksman), High (Bowmaster)

Marksman
Marksmen (MM) focus on dealing slower but stronger hits than Bowmasters, but generally fill the same role. They are noticeably more buff dependent, but are slightly more effective at lower levels, and excel at different bosses than Bowmasters.

1. Fantasy: Marksmen fill the fantasy of snipers. They don't attack quickly but have hard-hitting and infrequent attacks. They also provide important party utility to their teammates, helping augment their damage. If you like seeing big numbers as a ranged class and empowering your allies, this is a good pick for you.
2. NX: MMs, along with all ranged classes, require significant NX to wash to ideal levels of HP. As such, it's not recommended to create one until you have a decent sized NX bank, ideally around 2m NX (about 1 year of voting), and therefore not ideal for new players. While they are playable with less, or even no washing, you'll be at a significant disadvantage and heavily reliant on the presence of Dark Knights, who aren't always readily available.
3. Progression: MMs, like other ranged classes, aren't as efficient as grinding, making their most effective leveling through group content and bossing. If you're looking for something that can do long hours of solo grinding, this isn't an ideal pick.
4. Gameplay: MMs have rhythmic and cyclical gameplay similar to Heroes. You'll mostly be filling with one attack while waiting for your big attack to be available. Some players find this rhythmic counting-based playstyle monotonous, while others enjoy it. Archers also tend to have middling avoid, meaning you won't get knocked around as much as low avoid classes, but you'll be having to reposition quite frequently.
5. Friends: MMs are reliant on Buccaneers for Speed Infusion, so it's good if you have friends who will be playing Bucc. MMs provide SE, helping to enable Night Lords, so they're also a good pick if you'll be playing with Night Lords.
6. Independence: MMs need Buccaneer Speed Infusion to deal full damage, so it's generally recommended to run with a Bucc or make a Bucc mule. Note that Buccs aren't always easy to find to run with. If you are planning on not washing and are Hyper Body reliant, note that Dark Knights aren't always easy to find to run with.
7. Groups: MMs are desired for their ability to use SE, which empowers NLs, one of the most common classes in the game. Because of this, getting into groups is usually not too much effort, although you won't always have access to SI from a Bucc because of how uncommon Buccs can be.
   Excels at: Core Blaze, Toad, Pink Bean
8. Infrastructure: MMs make great mules due to their ability to cast SE, an important party buff. Although they're buff reliant for multiclient attacking set ups, they still hold vital utility at pretty much all levels of play.

Bowmaster
Bowmasters (BM) focus on dealing a ton of rapid hits in comparison to its counterpart, Marksmen. They're completely buff-independent, with powerful endgame scaling, although are generally outperformed by MMs at lower levels and are more vulnerable to certain endgame boss mechanics.

1. Fantasy: Bowmasters attack with a flurry of rapid-fire arrows. Because their attack animation is so quick, it allows for decent flexibility in dodging some attacks since you're not locked into cast animations. They also provide important party utility to their teammates, helping augment their damage, and have the ability to slow down mobile bosses at later levels. If you like seeing consistent and rapid attacks from ranged and empowering your allies, Bowmasters are a good choice.
2. NX: BMs, along with all ranged classes, require significant NX to wash to ideal levels of HP. As such, it's not recommended to create one until you have a decent sized NX bank, ideally around 2m NX (about 1 year of voting), and therefore not ideal for new players. While they are playable with less, or even no washing, you'll be at a significant disadvantage and heavily reliant on the presence of Dark Knights, who aren't always readily available.
3. Progression: BMs, like other ranged classes, aren't as efficient as grinding, making their most effective leveling through group content and bossing. If you're looking for something that can do long hours of solo grinding, this isn't an ideal pick.
4. Gameplay: BMs have a continuous channeled attack that constantly spit outs arrows. It has no AFK-timer (a check to make sure you're not paper-weight botting) allowing you to continuously attack for long stretches without repositioning in certain fights. They also have a lot of technical optimizations that they can do that other classes can't, allowing them to stay active on small platforms after hits that would knock off other classes. Due to the amount of optimizations they have access to, BMs are generally regarded as one of the higher skill ceiling classes and require more active attention and focus in some fights, although in other fights they are also the most AFK class and don't require you to do anything other than hold a single button. Archers also tend to have middling avoid, meaning you won't get knocked around as much as low avoid classes, but you'll be having to reposition quite frequently.
5. Friends: BMs are great at enabling other classes due to their party buff, Sharp Eyes. They're a great choice if your friends are planning on playing Night Lord.
6. Independence: BMs are entirely buff independent for their damage, allowing you to operate independently without relying on others. If you are planning on not washing and are Hyper Body reliant, note that Dark Knights aren't always easy to find to run with.
7. Groups: BMs are desired for their ability to use SE, which empowers NLs, one of the most common classes in the game. Because of this, getting into groups is usually not too much effort.
   Excels at: Zakum, Nameless, Dunas 2, CWK, BGA
8. Infrastructure: BMs make great mules due to their ability to cast SE, an important party buff. Although they require two machines for multiclient attacking set ups, they still hold vital utility at pretty much all levels of play.

Thieves
Thieves excel at avoiding attacks, making them incredibly durable in most fights. They tend to have a reputation of being largely "hands-off" due to how infrequently they actually get hit, making them generally easier to play compared to other classes. Night Lords are known for their exceptional damage in a wide range of boss fights, while Shadowers are known for their versatility in having many ways of negating damage and staying alive.

• Leveling Rate: Low (Night Lord), High (Shadower)
• Mobility: Very high (Night Lord), Moderate (Shadower)
• Game Knowledge Required: Low (Night Lord), Moderate (Shadower)

Night Lord
Night Lords (NL) are the be-all and end-all for most players. They're the pinnacle of achievement that most players work towards over time due to their exceptional ability to put out high levels of damage in a wide range of content, survive boss mechanics, avoid hits, and their ease of play. There's a lot of reasons why this is by far the most popular attacking class in the game.

1. Fantasy: Night Lords are elusive, hyper-mobile, ninja-star throwing assassins. They're capable of putting out high levels of damage while taking very little in return, while also having the highest levels of mobility in the game. If you like jumping around and dealing tons of damage, then you'll have a lot of fun on NL.
2. NX: NLs, along with all ranged classes, require significant NX to wash to ideal levels of HP. As such, it's not recommended to create one until you have a decent sized NX bank, ideally around 2m NX (about 1 year of voting), and therefore not ideal for new players. While they are playable with less, or even no washing, you'll be at a significant disadvantage and heavily reliant on the presence of Dark Knights, who aren't always readily available.
3. Progression: NLs, like other ranged classes, aren't as efficient as grinding, making their most effective leveling through group content and bossing. If you're looking for something that can do long hours of solo grinding, this isn't an ideal pick.
4. Gameplay: NLs high avoid and long range gives them a lot of flexibility in a wide range of boss fights. Their ability to dodge the majority of incoming attacks means you rarely have to reposition, and their high mobility lets you get into position quickly. They are quite buff-reliant, including self-buffs, so make sure you're on top of managing your buffs. There's a decent amount of optimizations that NLs can make despite their easy of play, making them enjoyable for players of all skill levels.
5. Friends: Night Lords are extremely reliant on Sharp Eyes from their party members, so it's recommended to make one if you already have a friend making an archer for SE.
6. Independence: NLs are highly reliant on the party buff Sharp Eyes. You will be losing a significant amount of damage without it, meaning you're pretty much required to have it active at all times if you want to be dealing damage. If you are planning on not washing and are Hyper Body reliant, note that Dark Knights aren't always easy to find to run with.
7. Groups: NLs are the most common class in the game, but they're also still highly desired to how effective they are their job. It may be easier or harder to get into groups at times depending on how easily you can find SE and what boss you're trying to run. Expect fierce competition at some of the more valuable bosses, though.
   Excels at: honestly pretty much everything
8. Infrastructure: NLs are not going to help support your other classes or set ups. Instead, they're usually the goal for most player's infrastructure: the final goal for most players is to eventually convert to a well-washed and funded Night Lord.

Shadower
Shadowers (Shad) are nigh-indestructible, trading away the range and damage of Night Lords for survival tools and utility. They are comfortable in a wide-range of activities, from high-risk endgame boss fights to casual farming, and have exceptionally low upkeep due to their extraordinary avoid. Shadowers are a popular pick for players who are looking for a more flexible and mobile melee class than Warriors.

1. Fantasy: Shadowers are even more elusive than Night Lords, and fill the role of the close-range dagger-wielding dancing rogue. While they lack the raw damage of other classes, they have more survival and defensive tools than you could ever ask for, allowing them to put out respectable damage in more intense fights where survivability is an issue for other classes.
2. NX: Shads have the same HP scaling as ranged characters, and require significant NX to wash to ideal levels of HP. As such, it's not recommended to create one until you have a decent sized NX bank, ideally around 2m NX (about 1 year of voting), and therefore not ideal for new players. Because their skill Meso Guard effectively doubles their HP, many players believe Shadowers can get away with lower amounts of washed HP, although this makes them incredibly vulnerable to bosses that can dispel the buff, and as a melee character you'll generally have a pretty poor quality of life with lower amounts of HP washing, even with Meso Guard. While they are playable with less, or even no washing, you'll be at a significant disadvantage and heavily reliant on the presence of Dark Knights, who aren't always readily available.
3. Progression: Shads, like other melee classes, are exceptional at grinding. Shadowers overall have a smooth leveling curve, making it easy to progress at most levels of play. They're a great pick for players who want flexibility in bouncing between bossing and farming.
4. Gameplay: Shad's high avoid and defensive tools gives them a lot of flexibility in a wide range of boss fights. Their ability to dodge the majority of incoming attacks means you rarely have to reposition, and their mobility offers unique repositioning angles. They are almost entirely buff-independent, making it easy to slot a Shadower into pretty much any party, and they're the most popular pick as a Seduce (Sed) target in fights like Horntail, where one player has to soak an otherwise dangerous boss mechanic. In some fights, you’re reliant on an attentive party member to dispel you so you can charge up a large attack, and if they’re not paying attention it can be a frustrating experience. Although there are some fights with unique optimizations available to Shads, the majority of their gameplay tends to be quite stale.
5. Friends: Shadowers can be paired with pretty much anything without issue, making them a versatile pick no matter what your friends are playing.
6. Independence: Shads are highly independent and not reliant on other classes for party buffs. If you are planning on not washing and are Hyper Body reliant, note that Dark Knights aren't always easy to find to run with.
7. Groups: Shadowers may feel comfortable in a wide-range of content, but their lack of raw damage sometimes puts them at a disadvantage when applying to groups, as hosts may prefer to choose other classes with more damage. That being said, their independence from party buffs, high survivability, and vital role as a Sed target make them popular picks for many key bosses, allowing you to join parties without too much trouble, depending on the boss.
   Excels at: Jiaoceng, Horntail, Aufheben, Pink Bean
8. Infrastructure: Shadowers are the most popular choice for a Sed target, which makes them extremely effective as Sed mules. They're a great choice for building out your infrastructure if you plan on running Horntail a lot.

Pirates
Pirates are the "newest" class in the game, and have the most "modern" kits. They tend to have more engaging and active gameplay, and when executed correctly can be quite powerful. Corsairs have the highest possible single-target damage in the game, while Buccs excel at controlling fights through their wide range of utility. However, both of them also tend to have higher skill floors, and tend to fall flat when not played properly.

• Leveling Rate: Low (Corsair), Moderate/High (Buccaneer)
• Mobility: High (Corsair), Moderate (Buccaneer)
• Game Knowledge Required: Very high

Corsair
Corsairs (Sair) are one of the least picked classes in the game due to their high skill ceiling and having the lowest avoid of all ranged classes, making them frustrating to play for more casual gamers. Despite this, they still maintain a diehard and niche playerbase, as their gameplay is more engaging than other ranged classes and they're capable of putting out obscene levels of damage when played at peak levels.

1. Fantasy: Corsairs are gun-slinging pirate captains who gain control of their own boat, capable of commanding devastatingly powerful attacks at their enemies as long as their boat doesn't take too much damage. If you want to live the pirate fantasy or shoot stuff with guns and cannons, this is the class for you.
2. NX: Sairs, along with all ranged classes, require significant NX to wash to ideal levels of HP. As such, it's not recommended to create one until you have a decent sized NX bank, ideally around 2m NX (about 1 year of voting), and therefore not ideal for new players. While they are playable with less, or even no washing, you'll be at a significant disadvantage and heavily reliant on the presence of Dark Knights, who aren't always readily available.
3. Progression: The Sair early game experience is probably one of the roughest in the game, and can have a tough time getting to 4th job. While Sairs gain access to powerful grinding tools at later levels, they’re generally going to be primarily bossers. If you’re looking for a class that mostly revolves around long hours of solo grinding, this isn’t the pick for you.
4. Gameplay: Sairs have notably low avoid, meaning you're more often than not getting hit by attacks; however, their damage is largely reliant on not taking too much damage and maintaining their boat's HP. As such, skilled Sair gameplay revolves around knowing what incoming damage is about to happen and dismissing your boat to preserve HP, before re-mounting the boat after the attack to resume attacking. Because of this, Corsairs require a high level of game knowledge and player reactions to be played at a competent level, which is intimidating to many players. For those who are able to master this class, the experience can be rewarding, but for many others they'll be frequently left with no boat and pitiful damage.
5. Friends: Corsairs have mild scaling with Buccaneer's Speed Infusion and archers’ Sharp Eyes, although they function fine without either. Buccaneers can use Time Leap to instantly refresh a broken boat, which some Corsairs may find useful, making Bucc a solid partner for a Corsair.
6. Independence: Corsairs are mostly buff-independent, only having slight scaling with other party buffs. That being said, those buffs still make a noticeable impact on their damage and it's recommended to run with a Bucc when possible. Shadower Smokescreen can also be a huge boon as it gives you damage invulnerability for a large window, allowing you to attack freely without worry.
7. Groups: Sairs are popular picks at boss fights where their boat isn't at risk, and their high damage output makes them a popular choice for hosts. Despite this, their damage scaling really comes online at higher levels, so lower level Sairs may have trouble at times finding groups.
   Excels at: honestly pretty much everything except PB
8. Infrastructure: Sairs are not going to help support your other classes or set ups. They're a "goal" class that you use other characters to support.

Buccaneer
Buccaneers (Bucc) are the true jack-of-all-trades in MapleLegends. There's nothing they can't do, and there's nothing they're not good at. They are a comprehensive package of fantastic damage, utility, control, support, and mobility all at a relatively low NX cost. There's very few reasons to not make a Buccaneer.

1. Fantasy: Buccaneers are punchy, scrappy Super Saiyans who are capable of pushing their enemies around in a variety of way and pummeling them with their fists. If you're looking to play a brawler who controls the field while supporting your allies, or if you enjoy playing tanks in other games, this is the class for you.
2. NX: Buccs are in a sort of middle-ground when it comes to washing. They don't require as much NX as ranged attackers, but require more than melee characters. A well-washed Bucc will usually run you around 2-2.5m NX. While most other classes you can vote and accrue NX while leveling and worry about washing later, Buccs are somewhat of a rare case where you need to be actively washing as you level, due to the importance of Fresh AP (the AP assigned to your character on level-up). It's recommended to have at least a small bank of NX before making a Bucc (at least 500k), making them not ideal as a first character for a new player, but a fantastic choice for maybe a second character.
3. Progression: Buccs excel at both grinding and bossing, and will make great progress at both. However, they'll have to choose one or the other during early 4th job, due to how valuable SP is on Buccs, meaning they lose flexibility in bouncing back and forth until later levels. Make sure you plan accordingly!
4. Gameplay: Bucc gameplay revolves around alternating between your two forms, Super Transformation (ST) and non-ST. During Super Transformation, you unlock powerful skills that let you deal lots of damage and avoid attacks or grab enemies and stun them, while non-ST you become more mobile and gain the ability to animation-cancel your abilities with a long cast time. You spend a significant amount of your time in invulnerability frames (iframes) and have decently high avoid. Combined with your implicit stance (the ability to not get knocked back at a 90% rate when taking damage) Buccs generally do not have high pot usage and won't have to reposition super frequently. Buccs also have great control skills with a variety of skills that can move enemies around, making them fantastic pinners and tanks that hold enemies in place for their allies.
5. Friends: Buccs have a variety of party skills and buffs that enable other players. They're a great pick if your friends are going to play a Marksman, Corsair, Warrior, or Bishop.
6. Independence: Buccs have an important party skill called Speed Infusion that many other classes like to use, making other classes highly dependent on them. Their other huge party utility skill, Time Leap, resets long cooldowns, such as Bishop's Resurrect. Buccs are generally not as reliant on other classes for party buffs, although they do gain some damage from archers' Sharp Eyes.
7. Groups: Buccs are arguably the most desired class in the game in almost any boss. Due to their wide array of pinning skills and party utility as well as their exceptional damage, the world is your oyster. It is very difficult to not get accepted into groups as a Bucc.
   Excels at: honestly pretty much everything except CWK
8. Infrastructure: Buccs are fantastic additions to any player's infrastructure due to their party buffs and skills making them exceptional mules.

Recommendations
Now that you have a general idea of what aspects make a class unique and how each class fairs in those aspects, it's time to actually get down to answering the question: What class should I play?

There are three answers to this question, depending on what kind of player you are. If you're a casual player who is just here for a good time, not planning on playing much, and don't care about optimization, then you should play: whatever you want. Seriously. It doesn't matter. Just pick something that looks cool and have fun with it. Don't worry about how good it'll be or how much effort it'll take, just go out there and experiment and have a good time and don't worry about HP washing.

If you're a brand new player with literally 0 NX who has never played before who does care about optimization though, and you want to set yourself up for success, there are two options:

1. If you don't want to grind and farm that much and want to make something that can dive straight into party content and bossing, then make a Paladin. They're cheap to wash and will serve you for a long time, and generally do well in a wide-range of content. Alternatively, if you’re looking for something a little more involved that will serve as an effective mule later, a Dark Knight is also a decent pick.

2. If you're okay with farming and grinding solo, and want to give yourself every single possible opportunity to succeed and set yourself up to enable additional progress down the line, then make a Bishop. Every single guide about choosing classes, no matter how old or outdated or incorrect, will recommend this, and it still holds true to this day. A Bishop is the single best choice for a new player if you're looking to make long term progress, and it opens up so many opportunities for you.

So, there you have it. As of the most recent update to this guide, your choices are: anything, a Paladin/Dark Knight, or a Bishop, with the latter being my own personal strong recommendation.

However, no matter what you choose to make, the most important and strongest recommendation that I can make is MAKE MULTIPLE ACCOUNTS AND VOTE! Voting is incredibly easy and you only need to simply make a character on a new account to start accruing NX. Regardless of what your first character is, you’ll be glad to have additional NX waiting for you later on when you choose to make something else. If you end up choosing a class and not having fun, it’ll be a huge boon as you can simply try something else instead but this time with a little more NX.

Best of luck gamers.

 

Depending on the fight yeah Shad can be the 2nd most AFK job in the game after BM. There's a large variance in how challenging a fight can be for some classes, ie BM is extremely AFK in Zakum but very active in HT, whereas Shad is very AFK in a fight like Toad but highly active in a fight like Aufheben. Overall from what I understand Shad gameplay is mostly single button with little repositioning requirement meaning it's pretty AFK/multiclient friendly.