Which Job Should I Pick? - A Guide

A very common question that gets asked almost every day in the MapleLegends discord:

“Hi, I”m new to the server. What job should I pick?”​

And surprisingly, we don’t really have a guide on the pros and cons of each class on the server. I thought I’d help fill in the gap.

As someone who has been familiar with this game for more than 10 years (in this server since 2017) and has an interest in video game classes and game mechanics, I hope I will be able to create a comprehensive comparison between the various classes you can play here, and help new players make an informed decision on what classes to play.

A few disclaimers.

1. All of the following is strictly my opinion and up for debate.
2. I base my opinion on the POV of a new player who would like to experience all content in the game if possible.
3. The meta of this server changes constantly and perception of which classes are "best" or "worst" can vary wildly from one period to another. This can be due to new content, innovations in bossing techniques or balance patches. As a result, you might find yourself playing a class that's not considered "high-tier". If this matters to you, please ask around the discord for current meta trends before picking a job.
4. Longer list of pros =/= better. For example, Night Lords have more cons than pros, but those help them be the gold standard for DPS classes in Maple.
5. Longer list of cons =/= bad class. Corollary to the above.
6. I have yet to actually do Pink Bean with my own character. Therefore, if there are any pros and cons for each job pertaining to PB, I could very well be uninformed. Please correct me.
7. As a warrior main, I definitely have a bias towards and better understanding of Warriors. I have less comprehensive understanding of Pirates, for example. Input from experienced players is appreciated.

Spoiler: Warrior

Pros

• Highest hit points. Needs the least HP washing, and has the easiest time doing so.
• Solid AoE attack from first job — smooth leveling curve from the beginning.
• Generally well-balanced and can be expected to perform well at all late-game bosses.
• Mostly affordable gears and scrolls.
• Has “Rush”, a 4th job skill that allows you to pin bosses.
• Generally a good choice for first character.

Cons

• Has accuracy problems
  • Will find themselves clamoring for each point of dex/acc, and will still have monsters they cannot 100% hit even at level 200.
  • Will find themselves nearly totally useless in early party quests
  • Locked out from doing Bodyguard A and “The Boss” — an unimportant late-game boss.
• Generally slow movement. Practically mandatory to invest in a mount.
• Does not get any new attacking skills in second job.
• Generally dependent on Speed Infusion to reach full potential in 4th job
• Ultimately loses out and gets outdamaged when cleave is not needed, at single-target bosses like Pink Bean
• Melee range + low avoidability + no i-frames means you get hit often and expend more potions.

Spoiler: Hero

Pros

• Easy to play, one-button-to-rule-them-all gameplay.
• Strongest cleave damage
• One of the least HP-wash dependent classes

Cons

• Endgame swords can be expensive
• No viable alternative weapon choice (axes are ultra terrible)
• Party buff is replaceable by easily-purchased consumables
• Slash blast + Power strike from level 10-120
• Does not excel at the main endgame bosses - Horntail, Pink Bean.
• Can be boring due to only using 1 attack for eternity

Spoiler: Paladin

Pros

• Strong single target damage
• Extremely high damage output at elemental-weak bosses
  • Super good at Scarlion, Neo Tokyo and other random bosses
• Fast grinding from 130-150 due to Heavens Hammer
• Rare non-mage class to have a map-wide attack
• One of the least HP-wash dependent classes
• Elemental advantage allows you to grind at unique, off-meta places — no need to compete for common grind maps

Cons

• No party buffs whatsoever
• Mediocre to bad cleave damage
• Takes time to reach peak at 4th job (needs ACB, Blast, Power Stance, Holy Charge minimally to be a productive bosser, on top of 30 levels of HH to grind yourself there)
• Endgame swords can be expensive
• Completely useless at bosses strong to all elements
• Slash blast + Power strike from level 10-120

Spoiler: Dark Knight

Pros

• Hyper Body gives everyone in the party massively improved HP/MP and is an extremely important party buff for grinding and bossing.
• Strong cleave damage (not far behind Heroes at all)
• New attacks in 3rd job (no need to slash blast + power strike from 10-120! yay!)

Cons

• HP washing required (much easier to wash than ranged classes though)
• Awkward endgame weapon choices
• Berzerk, their damage buff requires maintenance of HP at 50% — this can be dangerous/annoying in certain situations
• Since washing is trendy, Hyper Body will eventually lose relevance (this is still quite a ways off however)

Spoiler: Archer

Pros

• Has “Sharp Eyes”, by far the most in-demand bossing buff that drastically increases damage of your party.
  • Many bossing parties hinge entirely on availability of the archer. It’s really a big deal
• Will never encounter accuracy issues for appropriately-leveled content

Cons

• Very low HP; needs HP washing and/or Hyper Body to participate comfortably in end-game content.
• Horrendous first job
• Terrible at grinding
• Generally immobile and vulnerable when attacking.

Spoiler: Bowmaster

Pros

• The archer with highest peak DPM.
• Superbly smooth gameplay with hurricane - machine-gun like skill

Cons

• Does not have Snipe to compensate for early 4th job weaknesses
  • Especially if HP washing

Spoiler: Marksman

Pros

• Better DPM in early 4th job due to Snipe
• Quite possibly best single-target among all early 4th job characters
• Better damage and Pink Bean than Bowmasters due to Snipe dealing flat 200k damage against a boss with 50% damage reduction
• More forgiving of HP washing
• Cheaper gear due to lower population
• Has a freeze spell that can immobilize monsters

Cons

• Unique bossing utility in the Blind skill- decreases accuracy of mobs by 30% (yes, even bosses)
• Lower theoretical peak DPM than Bowmasters
• Reliant on Speed Infusion for full potential
• High level crossbows can be kinda hard to find
• Uses 3rd job attacking skill forever
• Crossbows conceal your character’s face

Spoiler: Magician

With inputs from Daydreamer

Pros

• Can sell leech for reliable income
• Can leech your own future characters, making them much easier to grind and HP wash
• The best classes for straight-up “farming” mesos
• Tanky and does not require HP washing*
• Generally very easy to grind (aside from F/P 2nd job)
  • Does not really require expensive gear to grind
  • Some truly effortless grinding options in 2nd/3rd job
  • Easiest classes to reach level 200
• Will never encounter accuracy issues for appropriately-leveled content
• High mobility from 2nd job onwards due to teleport
• One stat to rule them all. Just add INT and never bother with other stats

Cons

• Generally low single-target damage output
• (Archmages) not wanted in bossing parties
• INT gears and scrolls are by far the most expensive due to demand for washing gear

Spoiler: Bishop

Pros

• Holy Symbol, the best grinding buff, increases all EXP gained by party members by 50%
• An absolute must for any bossing party due to resurrection, dispel and Holy Symbol
• Has one of the most skill-dependent bossing roles in Horntail
• Can effortlessly grind and farm mesos from level 50-80
• Quite debatably the best choice for first character
  • Can't really go wrong with one since everyone needs a HS mule

Cons

• 4th job skillbooks are EXPENSIVE.
• Lowest single-target damage output in the game
• Genesis has lower damage than Blizzard and Meteor — takes longer to reach peak farming potential at non-holy weak mobs
• Extremely mainstream; 50% of all 4th job characters are Bishops

Spoiler: Archmage (Ice/Lightning)

Pros

• One of the best AoE grinding skills in 2nd job
  • Makes questing and grinding consistently smooth at any level
  • Doesn't rely on gimmicks to level, unlike FP (poison mobs) and cleric (holy-weak mobs or heal only)
• Can effortlessly grind and farm mesos from level 50-80
  
• Blizzard freezes mobs; makes them debatably the easiest class to farm with
  • Saves you lots of pots in the long run since you don't get knocked around while grinding
  • Unfortunately does not work in Shaolin (best general grinding spot)
• Chain Lightning in 4th job gives them surprisingly good single-target damage against certain elementally-weak bosses (Neo Tokyo)
• Good choice for first character

Cons

• Blizzard is still slightly weaker than Meteor in terms of raw numbers
• Unwanted for major bosses
• No party buffs
• Needs a 3rd job Holy Symbol mule for leech selling
  
• Very high potion costs in 4th job- each use of Blizzard costs around 1k mesos.

Spoiler: Archmage (Fire/Poison)

Pros

• THE best AoE skill in 4th job, Meteor
• Extremely fast 3rd job grinding with Poison Cloud
• Has a rather unique grinding path due to how poison spells work.

Cons

• Awful early 2nd job with no AoE and no viable poison targets
• Is possibly the overall worst bosser in the game
  • Main single-attack is poison-elemental which is many bosses are outright immune to and none are weak to
• No party buffs
• Needs a 3rd job Holy Symbol mule for leech selling
• Very high potion costs in 4th job- each use of Meteor costs around 1k mesos.

Spoiler: Thief

Due to the 2 thieves being markedly different from each other in almost every single aspect, I will not list general pros and cons for them.

Spoiler: Night Lord

Pros

• In most practical situations, has the best single-target damage in the game
• Very comfortable to play due to extremely high dodge chance and single-button gameplay
• Transcendent mobility due to Flash Jump + Haste
• Will never encounter accuracy issues for appropriately-leveled content

Cons

• Very low HP; needs HP washing and/or Hyper Body to participate comfortably in end-game content.
• Extremely dependent on Sharp Eyes buff for damage
  
• Terrible at grinding
• Virtually zero good AoE skills
• Expensive gears and scrolls
• Throwing stars can take up a large chunk of inventory space

Spoiler: Shadower

Pros

• Strong survivability due to Meso Guard (halves damage taken) — relatively non-dependent on HP washing
• Extremely fast 3rd job grinding due to Meso Explosion
• Unique party utility from Smokescreen — basically party invulnerability for a short period
• Has the highest dodge chance in the game
  • Saves tons of potions combined with Meso Guard
  • Serves a niche called "Seduce mule" in Horntail where you tank the boss' single-target seduce with your high avoid
• Capable of farming mesos from mobs due to Pickpocket
• Always at max movespeed due to haste
• Relatively cheap equipments and scrolls
• Excellent choice for first character
• Fun skills with several different attacks

Cons

• Damage potential is middling (though it will always be better than mages)
  • Lower single target than Paladin and other Ranged attackers
  • Lower cleave than Heroes and Dark Knights
  • Still has strong damage output at Horntail
• Awful 2nd job with no AoE skills throughout
• Has to think more about AP than other classes, since you use STR, DEX, LUK and even INT if you're washing

Spoiler: Pirate

Due to the 2 pirates being markedly different from each other in almost every single aspect, I will not list general pros and cons for them.

Spoiler: Buccaneer

Pros

• Has “Speed Infusion”, an extremely useful party buff that increases the attack speed of all warriors, marksmen and corsairs in your party
• High HP somewhat lessens the burden of washing
• Has invulnerability frames on many skills to dodge attacks
• Can pin monsters and bosses with Corkscrew Blow
• Has many many skills you can click on and string into combos
• Relatively cheap equipments and scrolls

Cons

• Weak cleave
• Has accuracy issues
  
• Inconsistent stance — tendency to get knocked off high platforms, which lowers damage in Horntail
• Annoying/underwhelming to play until 4th job

Spoiler: Corsair

Pros

• Technically has the highest single target damage in the game, especially when fully buffed
• Decently mobile with a pseudo Flash Jump in Wings+Recoil Shot combo
• Diverse skill set, fun to play; player skill matters
• Has Air Strike, a full map hitting spell.
  • Makes them surprisingly decent at grinding/farming in 4th job
• Will never encounter accuracy issues for appropriately-leveled content

Cons

• Low HP and needs HP washing and/or HB to participate comfortably in end-game content
• Reliant on SI and SE for optimal damage output
• Mechanically challenging and really requires masterful control from the player to optimize damage output
• Unbearably awful at grinding (probably worst in game) until mid-4th job
• Does not achieve peak DPS when boss can consistently fight back and force you to reposition (e.g Horntail)
• Zero party utility

Spoiler: So, what's the best class for a new player?

There is certainly some room for debate.

However, the general consensus is to start with a BISHOP. You get a character that levels quickly and cheaply, while not requiring much investment in leveling gear. Most importantly, when it gets to 3rd job you have an HS mule for your future characters (everyone who doesn’t have one, wishes they had one) and when it gets to 4th job you have a character that can sell leech, can leech your future attackers, has premade INT gears for washing your future attackers, and can even join bossing if you really want to.

Besides that, ARCHMAGE (ICE/LIGHTNING) is another solid first choice. This character does not come with the extremely overpowered HS buff (and you likely need to create a priest later), but is debatably faster to level while still being easy on your meager earnings as a noob. 4th job archmages gain the ability to farm lucratively quite a bit earlier than bishops while not requiring the hefty investment for in-demand 4th job skillbooks. However, this character offers extremely limited bossing capabilities.

Let’s say you don’t want to play a mage. I’d recommend any of the WARRIORS. Any of the 3 warriors offer smooth leveling curves from level 1 to horntail, pretty much. It is extremely easy to HP wash a warrior (minimal INT gear required) and one of their main low-level weaknesses (bad accuracy) can be easily remedied through hyper-budget accuracy gears and sniper pills from Ludibrium.

Alternately, you could go for a SHADOWER. This character has the invaluable Meso Guard which really lessens the burden of HP washing (e.g no need to wash for Horntail). In conjunction with its extremely high dodge chance, Shadowers save potions big time, which really adds up over the course of a bossing character’s career. They do solid damage at almost all bosses. They have an extremely fast grind through the infamously tedious 3rd job. The problem with Shadowers as a first character would be a rather crappy 2nd job since you get no AoE skills, and the 3rd job grind does require some basic funds to do (but it’s not difficult to earn if you know what you’re doing).

TL;DR:
I recommend the following:

1. Bishop
2. Archmage (I/L)
3. Warriors
4. Shadower

Changelog:

1. Added changes on mage section suggested by Daydreamer
2. Removed Taunt increasing exp as a pro for Shadowers due to Taunt nerf
3. Added a con to Warriors - increased pot use due to low range, low avoid and no iframes.
4. Changed all mention of "AFK farming" to "effortless farming" to prevent misunderstandings that it could be encouraging paperweight botting.
5. In light of 2021 Anniversary Patch, removed mentions of alt+tab hurricane gameplay as it has been fixed.
6. Huge bunch of changes after reading the "What is the worst class thread"

 

Right I'm on light theme myself so forgot that would be a problem. Let me try to fix that real quick

EDIT: removed the text colors for each class. I thought it would make the whole guide more colorful and less monotonous, but that's probably not a good trade off for being unreadable on dark mode.

 

Thanks for input! Good to insert to the guide. I'll do that later