History Main / FantasyCharacterClasses

* '''[[BlackMage The Blaster]]''': Other names: ''Nuker'', ''[[Franchise/FinalFantasy Black Mage]]''. A Magician that specializes on offensive spells, differentiating themself from the more support-oriented magic users. May have a few buffing abilities at their disposal, but those are often dedicated to strengthening their own spells. Probably the biggest source of ElementalPowers within a party, with FireIceLightning magic at the most basic.

'''[[FunctionalMagic The Magician Classes]]''': Other Names: ''Mage, Wizard, Sorcerer, Witch, Warlock, [[OverlyLongGag Magi, Magus, Sage]]''. By whatever name you know this class by, you know this class: they primarily use magic powers. In any game with classes, there will always be one that maps to the Magician. These have the widest variety of any set of role-playing classes simply because there are so many varieties of FunctionalMagic. In a FantasyKitchenSink setting, there can potentially be an infinite number of magic users, so long as there is justification for considering them each their own type. A Magician is usually a GlassCannon, blasting away at long range, but easily taken down at close range. Variations include:

* '''[[ArcherArchetype The Sniper Ranger]]''': This version is totally reliant on archery, but usually does higher damage because of it. May have a variety of status-inflicting arrows to slow or otherwise annoy enemies. [[LongRangeFighter Keeps to the back of a battle, as they're weak in terms of close combat]].

** '''[[WanderingMinstrel The Bard]]''': Other Names: ''Minstrel'', ''Maestro'', ''Troubadour''. The Bard is a class specializing in [[MagicMusic music]]. Perhaps understandably, they're [[QuirkyBard butt of a lot of jokes in fantasy settings]], however, depending on the game, they may be useful. Bardic songs are generally useful for buffing allies, weakening enemies, status effects, and occasionally damage (via BrownNote or MakeSomeNoise). Sometimes they act as the JackOfAllTrades. Of all the classes, Bards are the most likely to be [[TheSocialExpert good at diplomacy]] with [[NonPlayerCharacter NPCs]].

* '''The Bandit''': Other Names: ''Burglar, Thug, Brigand''. Close to the Thief, a Bandit is a Rogue whose stealth skills are either downplayed or non-existent. While they have all the standard Rogue abilities, they tend to use them in less subtle ways - instead of unlocking a door they'll kick it down, and instead of stealthily pickpocketing their enemies they'll simply walk up and grab things from them. Sometimes they also can intimidate their enemies or are good at destroying structures, as well as whole slew of other "gang" related abilities. Bandits are generally the MightyGlacier of Rogue classes, having stats more similar to a Fighter (though they may still be a FragileSpeedster compared to non-Rogues). While they display slightly more variation in weapons than standard Rogues, most Bandits still cannot equip heavy armor and are thus not as tough as Fighters.

* '''[[Seekers The Detective]]''': The Detective is an oft-overlooked variant of roguey types. They excel at rooting out hidden secrets and unraveling mysteries. They rely on a sharp eye for detail, but also on a finely honed ability to read the words and deeds of other creatures to determine their true intent. They excel at defeating creatures that hide among and prey upon ordinary folk, and their mastery of lore and sharp eye make them well-equipped to expose and end hidden evils. Undercover cops, private investigators, and spies tend to fall into this category. They're a lot less likely to be criminals, and some magic-using examples may cross over with the BlueCollarWarlock.

* '''The Detective''': The Detective is an oft-overlooked variant of roguey types. They excel at rooting out hidden secrets and unraveling mysteries. They rely on a sharp eye for detail, but also on a finely honed ability to read the words and deeds of other creatures to determine their true intent. They excel at defeating creatures that hide among and prey upon ordinary folk, and their mastery of lore and sharp eye make them well-equipped to expose and end hidden evils. Undercover cops, private investigators, and spies tend to fall into this category. They're a lot less likely to be criminals, and some magic-using examples may cross over with the BlueCollarWarlock.

In [[RolePlayingGame RPGs]] a [[CharacterClassSystem Character Class]] is a designation that determines a player's abilities and fighting style (and depending on the game possibly even their origin, education, and home area) often in the form of a job or archetype. A character class is defined by the abilities that it lends to a character — as such, two different characters with the same class are theoretically interchangeable, in that they have the same "power set" and can play the same role in gameplay because of their similar abilities. However, character class systems can come with varying levels of customization — ranging from characters of a given class being literally identical to having so much variety that character class is no longer even a good indicator of that character's abilities. While most common in fantasy RolePlayingGames, they have recently began to appear in other genres, such as trading card games and MOBAs.

In [[RolePlayingGame RPGs]] a [[CharacterClassSystem Character Class]] is a designation that determines a player's abilities and fighting style (and depending on the game possibly even their origin, education, and home area) often in the form of a job or archetype. A character class is defined by the abilities that it lends to a character — as such, two different characters with the same class are theoretically interchangeable, in that they have the same "power set" and can play the same role in gameplay because of their similar abilities. However, character class systems can come with varying levels of customization — ranging from characters of a given class being literally identical to having so much variety that character class is no longer even a good indicator of that character's abilities. While most common in fantasy RolePlayingGames, they have recently began to appear in other genres, such as trading card games and '''MOBA'''s.

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* '''[[NatureHero The Nature Magician]]''': Wields power over the [[NatureHero natural world]], often including [[ElementalRockPaperScissors elements]], [[FriendToAllLivingThings animals]], and [[GreenThumb plants]].

** '''[[WanderingMinstrel The Bard]]''': Other Names: ''Minstrel'', ''Maestro'', ''Troubadour''. The Bard is a class specializing in [[MagicMusic music]]. Perhaps understandably, they're [[QuirkyBard butt of a lot of jokes in fantasy settings]], however, depending on the game, they may be useful. Bardic songs are generally useful for buffing allies, weakening enemies, status effects, and occasionally damage (via BrownNote or MakeMeWannaShout). Sometimes they act as the JackOfAllTrades. Of all the classes, Bards are the most likely to be [[TheSocialExpert good at diplomacy]] with [[NonPlayerCharacter NPCs]].

* '''[[DragonKnight The Dragon Knight]]''': Other Names: ''Dragoon'' [[note]]though this term originally meant a soldier who [[DualModeUnit could fight mounted or as infantry]][[/note]]. A Fighter who is either [[HalfHumanHybrid descended from]], in the employ of, powered by, owns, or [[TheDragonslayer specializes in hunting]], dragons. A Dragon Knight usually has a variety of abilities that mimic or relate to dragons in some way -- {{Flight}} or [[InASingleBound high jumping ability]], [[BreathWeapon breathing fire]] or [[FlamingSword imbuing it into their attacks]], and dealing extra damage to dragons are all common. Some are able to [[OurDragonsAreDifferent tame or train dragons]] (typically [[DragonRider either big ones large enough to ride on]], [[ShoulderPet or smaller species/hatchlings]]) or even [[{{Animorphism}} transform into a dragon themselves]]. They seem to be associated with spears for [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyIV some reason]].

* '''[[DragonKnight The Dragon Knight]]''': Other Names: ''Dragoon'' [[note]]though this term originally meant a soldier who [[DualModeUnit could fight mounted or as infantry]][[/note]]. A Fighter who is either [[HalfHumanHybrid descended from]], in the employ of, powered by, owns, or [[TheDragonslayer specializes in hunting]], dragons. A Dragon Knight usually has a variety of abilities that mimic or relate to dragons in some way -- {{Flight}} or [[InASingleBound high jumping ability]], [[BreathWeapon breathing fire]] or [[FlamingSword imbuing it into their attacks]], and dealing extra damage to dragons are all common. Some are able to [[OurDragonsAreDifferent tame or train dragons]] (typically [[DragonRider either big ones large enough to ride on]], [[ShoulderPet or smaller species/hatchlings]]) or even [[{{Animorphism}} transform into a dragon themselves]]. They seem to be associated with [[BladeOnAStick spears]] for [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyIV some reason]].

* '''[[EverythingsBetterWithSamurai The Samurai]]''': Generally restricted to Asian settings, but can appear outside them under more generic names like '''[[MasterSwordsman The Swordmaster]]'''. Other Names: ''Yojimbo'', ''Kensei''[[note]]introduced as "Kensai" in Dnd 3.5e intended to translate to "Sword Saint"[[/note]], ''Ronin'' (In some occasion), ''Weapon Master'', ''[[Franchise/FireEmblem Myrmidon]]''. Samurai wear less armor than regular Fighters, which leads them to have less defensive abilities. In general, they commonly have access to KiManipulation, [[GlassCannon higher damage]], and higher speed and mobility, along with abilities related to {{Counter Attack}}s, [[KillingIntent sensing hidden enemies]], or [[SpeedBlitz acting before their opponents can act]]. Some Samurai can wield [[BowAndSwordInAccord both swords and longbows]] (and occasionally [[BladeOnAStick spears]]), but the majority focus on [[KatanasAreJustBetter the sword]] to the exclusion of all other weapons. After the Hero, Samurai are the class most likely to have unique weapons which other classes cannot use. Because Yojimbo are mercenaries, they may be literally able to [[Franchise/FinalFantasy spend money to deal more damage]].

* '''[[CloseRangeCombatant The Melee Ranger]]''': Other Names: ''Headhunter'', ''Predator'', ''Savage''. The Ranger that fights from melee range. Makes sense - the word 'Ranger' refers to someone who watches over territory, like a modern day Park Ranger, not from using ranged weapons. Will often be much more heavily associated with [[ClassicalHunter hunting]] and other animalistic thematics, with the association stemming between them and predatory creatures. Often uses a BladeOnAStick, BladeBelowTheShoulder, or an axe. Despite primarily being a melee character, will typically still possess a lot of ranged utility, either with a sidearm ranged weapon, or more commonly, by throwing their melee weapon, or by having a dedicated throwing weapon like a bola or chakram.