Most demanded class in groups?

[FractalizeR]

Hello.

I am going to start a game and just want to know, what classes are the most needed in groups currently? Several years ago when I played WOW, we couldn't get good Priests. So, I started Priest.

Year or two passed and we got Priests, but Warriors just disappeared ;)

What about current situation in DDO now? I was going to play either Wizard or Cleric. What would you suggest from the current class balance in game? And what build I am going to take to be useful in groups (I don't like soloing too much)?

[toughguyjoe]

go Cleric. Hjeal People. After you figure out the spell mechancis and all that, experiment around, clerics can be great Crowd Control and damage too at higher levels. Have fun with it, but as a cleric, always remember. People will expect you to hjeal them.

[FractalizeR]

So, is there a demand for clerics now in game? And what specs do you recommend?

[Brennie]

For a free player, Cleric is certainly your best bet for "most wanted". Rogue comes in second. Wizard can be handy, but is never really "essential" (barring a few intelligence runes here and there).

[Brennie]

So, is there a demand for clerics now in game?

There is now, and always will be a demand for clerics. Because of the game mechanics, quests become fantastically harder without a steady source of healing (Since character don't regenerate health or spellpoints). Clerics make getting from shrine to shrine fantastically easier.

[sigtrent]

Clerics are almost always the class groups are looking for most often. Its also the class that can drive you crazy when you play in groups looking for clerics. Folks sometimes use clerics as something of a crutch and nursemaid.

That said, clerics are also really fun if you don't make them overly specialized. Also good clerics get a lot of love from other players.

[sigtrent]

So, is there a demand for clerics now in game? And what specs do you recommend?

The best clerics (in my opinion) have a high wisdom (16 to 18) a decent strength (12-16) and solid con (14-16) Everything else is just gravy. You get a tough character that can fight decently and is a great help to any party. From there keep your wisdom as high as possible and learn how the different spells work.

I especially like taking a one or two fighter levels on my clerics so I can use pretty much any weapon, but I might not recommend that to a brand new player and folks might get the impression you are a "battle cleric" something about which there are endless debates on the board.

I'd reccomend to start you make one cleric and one fighter or ranger or barbarian (a pure combat class) as it gives you a good feel for the game from different angles.

[Lorien_the_First_One]

If you are going cleric, I'd recommend Human, 14 STR, 14 CON, 18 WIS, rest 8.

I'd recommend you stay pure on your first cleric, mutliclassing makes everything a bit more complicated. If you really wanted to maximize melee ability for low levels, 1 level of fighter. I'd strongly recommend against barbarian on a cleric as a new player.

At low levels you will have decent melee skills, good AC potential, and effective healing.

At later levels you will have effective healing, cc, and offensive casting abilities.

Check out the cleric forums for more ideas and info.

[yams]

So, is there a demand for clerics now in game? And what specs do you recommend?

For builds, look at SirGog's thread (http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=223253). Be sure to rep him! I feel that the offensive caster cleric is the best choice...but that's me.

And if you want to smack things and use your entire SP pool as extra HP for just yourself, make sure your group leader knows that in advance. :)

[DelverRootnose]

...of the 12 players there is usually one or two clerics or favored souls and one bard. Bards are fun but clerics can solo well.

[LugnutEU]

I would say cleric is the most in demand class while levelling, but at the level cap (if the number of tells i get on my bard is any indicator) Bards are very in demand (probably because there are less around)

[MrCow]

I would say cleric is the most in demand class while levelling, but at the level cap (if the number of tells i get on my bard is any indicator) Bards are very in demand (probably because there are less around)

I'd say the same in that clerics are always in high demand and bards are in high demand in the upper levels. My secondary account which is just a bard I use for quest opening purposes (and thus is often just inactively sitting in a zone until I need him) tends to get somewhere in the ballpark of 14 tells a day for raids (and about 35 tells a day for Greater Heroism/Inspire Competence if I leave him in the House Deneith weapon broker shop :)).

[Daggaz]

If you go cleric2/wizard2/sorcerer2/favoredsoul2/paladin2/fighter2/barbarian2/ranger2/monk2/rogue2 you will always be guaranteed to get in on a little bit of the action.

Or you could just go with cleric..

[FractalizeR]

Thanks a lot! ;) I will check Cleric and Bard classes.

[Daggaz]

Thanks a lot! ;) I will check Cleric and Bard classes.

Gah! I forgot bard!! =/

[Tokeri]

if youre new to the game and dont want to be someones nurse/healbot and actualy play the game, not just look at red bars going down for you to fill.

a good meele that can take care of them selfs is the ranger you get self healing from wands in the lower lvls(healing spells in the later lvls with good buffs) and free two wepon fighting and stealth&hide as class skills solid solo class to just dont mix up rangers with ranged combat (most low lvl traps can be bypassed with little to no effort anyway's)

dual wield and stealth up to casters and take em out then throw the rest of em in the blender

clerics are the "most wanted" class in any group but its not to fun to play as youre first char imho

and if you mess up as a cleric in a group prepare for a shi-t storm, meele's are not expected to carry a group.

another class to note is paladin if you prefer two handed fighting they can also heal from wands in the lower lvls and get heals and buffs later but they are more of a tank class

check the classes part in the forum for builds... just my 2 cents but if you like the idea of playing a support char you cant go wrong with a cleric or wizard

edit : spelling -_-

[phreek]

As a new player, I'd rather recommend a bard.

They get high haggle (Wich increases your revenue, and that's always great for a new player)
High UMD (Can use all type of equipment/scrolls/wands)
Great buffing, and good solo ability.

I'd recommend doing a 18 Bard/2 fighter, STR build with Khopeshes. Warchanter of course.

If not, than make a Cleric. (Favored Soul over Cleric if you want to buy it.)

[voidholder]

As a new player, I'd rather recommend a bard.

They get high haggle (Wich increases your revenue, and that's always great for a new player)
High UMD (Can use all type of equipment/scrolls/wands)
Great buffing, and good solo ability.

I'd recommend doing a 18 Bard/2 fighter, STR build with Khopeshes. Warchanter of course.

If not, than make a Cleric. (Favored Soul over Cleric if you want to buy it.)

New players should stay away from khopeshes IMO, they can't afford any decent ones anyway so will get much more mileage out of other weapons. If you do a warchanter better make sure you know how to meet the prereqs (warchanter enhancement at level 6, natural dex 17 before level 9 for improved two-weapon fighting...). Clerics are much more difficult to screw up. Just remember to ignore turning undead. :)

EDIT: But no group (barring end game raids) ever fails to leave before getting a bard, so to the op cleric (or favored soul) is the answer to the most wanted class question.

[donfilibuster]

Parties make sure to advertise for healer and rogue since it is good to not leave home without one.
A good party however would then make sure to get a tank, a caster and dps and that someone has buffs.
The need of an arcane caster varies from quest to quest but makes it easier and there's no lack of work for them.

That there seems to be fewer clerics may be just because they are all busy and taken :-/ but may not be a real shortage.
On the other hand multipurpose classes like ranger, bard and fvs may have some trouble taking spots if the party leaders 'reserve' them for some class they think they need.

[Lorien_the_First_One]

Parties make sure to advertise for healer and rogue since it is good to not leave home without one.
A good party however would then make sure to get a tank, a caster and dps and that someone has buffs.
The need of an arcane caster varies from quest to quest but makes it easier and there's no lack of work for them.

That there seems to be fewer clerics may be just because they are all busy and taken :-/ but may not be a real shortage.
On the other hand multipurpose classes like ranger, bard and fvs may have some trouble taking spots if the party leaders 'reserve' them for some class they think they need.

Wiz/Sorc have more trouble than some getting into raids because often 'you just need 1'. Same for bards, but there are less of them so they still slot in well.

FvS should be welcomed by any group. Why would you think clerics get in easy and FvS have problems when FvS can do anything a cleric can do (often better)?

[Shumanfoo]

As a new player, I'd rather recommend a bard.

They get high haggle (Wich increases your revenue, and that's always great for a new player)
High UMD (Can use all type of equipment/scrolls/wands)
Great buffing, and good solo ability.

I'd recommend doing a 18 Bard/2 fighter, STR build with Khopeshes. Warchanter of course.

If not, than make a Cleric. (Favored Soul over Cleric if you want to buy it.)

I also agree as above that an 18/2 TWF warchanter is a bad new player build. You would really want a 32 point build and understand how certain fear pre-req's work before doing that. And Khops aren't cheap.

If you want to try Bard, you could do a THF (Two-Hand Focus) and not have to worry about your Dex. That leaves some breathing room stat wise. On top of that you wouldn't need to pick up the THF line of feats if you wanted to pick up more casting feats, which allows more flexibility. Just realize that a THF bard won't have as high DPS as a well-built TWF.

[Syntax42]

As said before, a healer (Favored Soul or Cleric) and a Rogue are needed in most groups. Some dungeons don't have traps, but most do. There isn't an extreme shortage of any class. Sometimes, groups have trouble finding a good caster or tank. Hirelings (AI-controlled teammates) can replace the cleric frequently, so don't think you will be in high demand just because you are a healer.

It is more important that you play what you like in this game than picking something just to get in groups. If you like to melee, there are a lot of multiclass and pure builds that let you do that while still adding some useful buffs or heals to the group. Two levels of rogue on a Wizard are ok for disabling traps and evasion, but don't try to mix any other melee classes with the spellcasters. In general, you should have 32-point builds (or Drow) unlocked before attempting a multiclass build.

[EddieB_TBC]

Wow a lot of these answers are good advice but are they a bit advanced for someone just playing the game for the first time? Well it was just a thought anyway... analogy that went through my head was someone asking about running for school board vs town council and getting advice on what it takes to be a senator or the big wazoo himself. :D

Definately clerics are a desired class in the game but playing one as your first toon in the current incarnation of the game will require a solid degree of intestinal fortitude to not get burned out on the game. As you seem to be smart enough to come to the forums and ask a thoughtful question up front then I might also suggest you do some searching for threads where people complain about aspects of being a cleric so you can get a handle on some of the downsides you will encounter and how the better players suggest dealing with them. Knowing ahead of time when the other players are doing stupid things and dying not only isnt your fault but what you need to tell them when it happens will save a lot of hair pulling and bonking of your head on the keyboard. Simialrly knowing how to best help a party and how to balance expectations of your healing with your expectations of other party members ability to heal themselves can make playing a cleric much more enjoyable.

Other thought is when you pick a server then take a look at the guilds on the server and see about joining one that you might fit in with. The right guild will be able to help you learn the game and provide party members, knowledge, and support to bring you up to speed more quickly than wandering around korthos or the harbor joining random pugs generally will. Most of the severs have at least one or two guilds that are geared towards newer and mature players if you look for them.

[biggin]

My vote here is a THF bard. High haggle, good buffs, crowd control, heals, a little DPS in the mix, a perfect all around character to learn on. Most parties wont care what you do as long as you keep the songs going and a haste from time to time. You'll get a taste of every aspect of the game, see what you like to do in DDO the most, then have a high haggle toon always at the ready. And since it's THF, you only need to make one GS weapon, you can find other falchions, greatswords and greataxes relatively cheap compared to going khopesh.

[Shumanfoo]

One thing about THF Bard. You don't have the weapon proficiency for those weapons so your first spell should be Master's Touch (proficiency with all martial weapons). And if you are going to pick up the warchanter enhancement, you'll need the feats "Weapon Focus: type" and Power Attack. I would take focus at lvl3 and PA at lvl6. Rolling a human I would take starting feats of toughness and extend. Get a high strength, decent constitution, and decent charisma for starting stats.

Edit: Here is an example build for up to lvl6 THF Bard. It is 32 point, so you could drop a little Str or Cha for 28 point build. Drop Str if you are ok with a little weaker melee, or drop Cha for a little weaker offensive casting.


Character Plan by DDO Character Planner Version 3.34
DDO Character Planner Home Page (http://www.rjcyberware.com/DDO)

THF Bard 32pt
Level 6 True Neutral Human Male
(6 Bard)
Hit Points: 86
Spell Points: 240
BAB: 4\4
Fortitude: 4
Reflex: 4
Will: 4

Starting Feat/Enhancement
Abilities Base Stats Modified Stats
(32 Point) (Level 1) (Level 6)
Strength 18 19
Dexterity 8 8
Constitution 14 14
Intelligence 8 8
Wisdom 8 8
Charisma 16 17

Starting Feat/Enhancement
Base Skills Modified Skills
Skills (Level 1) (Level 6)
Balance 3 4
Bluff 3 3
Concentration 6 7
Diplomacy 3 3
Disable Device n/a n/a
Haggle 7 7
Heal -1 -1
Hide -1 -1
Intimidate 3 3
Jump 7 7
Listen -1 -1
Move Silently -1 -1
Open Lock n/a n/a
Perform 7 8
Repair -1 -1
Search -1 -1
Spot -1 -1
Swim 4 4
Tumble 0 2
Use Magic Device 7 8

Level 1 (Bard)
Feat: (Human Bonus) Extend Spell
Feat: (Selected) Toughness


Level 2 (Bard)


Level 3 (Bard)
Feat: (Selected) Weapon Focus: Slashing Weapons


Level 4 (Bard)


Level 5 (Bard)


Level 6 (Bard)
Feat: (Selected) Power Attack
Enhancement: Bard Inspired Attack I
Enhancement: Bard Inspired Bravery I
Enhancement: Bard Inspired Bravery II
Enhancement: Bard Inspired Damage I
Enhancement: Bard Lingering Song I
Enhancement: Bard Warchanter I
Enhancement: Human Improved Recovery I
Enhancement: Human Versatility I
Enhancement: Racial Toughness I
Enhancement: Bard Song Magic I
Enhancement: Bard Energy of the Music I
Enhancement: Bard Charisma I
Enhancement: Bard Wand Mastery I

[Matuse]

When you play an arcane, the rarest class is rogue.
When you play a melee, the rarest class is cleric/FvS.
When you play cleric/FvS, the rarest class is an arcane.

So, it doesn't matter what you play, your groups will still sit around waiting for someone.

[Impaqt]

What class you are rarely matters if you cant play the class well.

If you do play your character well, the class icon rarely matters.


Learn the game first. THen worry about how your going to get into groups.

[donfilibuster]

When you play an arcane, the rarest class is rogue.
When you play a melee, the rarest class is cleric/FvS.
When you play cleric/FvS, the rarest class is an arcane.

So, it doesn't matter what you play, your groups will still sit around waiting for someone.

Quite right, and think this is what the thread is about?
Now it is also correct that if you play any toon right you shouldn't have any problems finding a good group.

As for FVS they have no trouble as such but still get asked now and then if they heal or not.
As far as specialized classes go bards have less problem and rangers may have the most but often fill the dps spot.

[sly_1]

bard is another class that doesn't have problems finding groups. it's a double edged sword tho: most groups only want 1, so while fewer ppl seem to play bard than any 1 other class, if the group has a bard a lot of the time they don't feel they need another.

[aristarchus1000]

Lots of good advice in this thread.

I wouldn't advise a bard necessarily, because they aren't (perceived) as being necessary at early levels and you may get frustrated. They certainly aren't in demand until they get to the end game. Still you won't be wasting your time starting one, just don't expect a lot of demand early on.

I would say that bard is still a good class, since they are pretty self-sufficient. At the early levels, being self-sufficient will make your life much better, because many pick-up groups have players of questionable quality.

As a cleric or FvS healer you will be in high demand, I always see Groups looking for healers. Also, unlike bards, groups usually don't have a huge problem with having more than one. Choosing to be a healer is a good way to experience a lot of the game, since you aren't expected to know the quest that well since you are following people around. Once you get the hang of it, try to take your eyes off the red bars and pay attention to the quest, it will serve you well later. Clerics are also self-sufficient if built right. The quickest way to burnout is to build a healbot that is dependent on others, so try not to do that. A pure cleric with decent strength and the Divine Power spell (later) can do pretty well.

IMO arcanes and rogues require significant experience in the game to know what's coming up. I'd hold off on those until later.

Solid DPS builds are always good newbie build. Paladins and Rangers can self-heal which makes them a little self-sufficient. I think barbarians and fighters can be too dependent on others (typically healing) and can be frustrating as a first character.

[Krag]

Hello.

I am going to start a game and just want to know, what classes are the most needed in groups currently? Several years ago when I played WOW, we couldn't get good Priests. So, I started Priest.

Year or two passed and we got Priests, but Warriors just disappeared ;)

What about current situation in DDO now? I was going to play either Wizard or Cleric. What would you suggest from the current class balance in game? And what build I am going to take to be useful in groups (I don't like soloing too much)?

If you like grouping with people do NOT go CLERIC. Do not even think about it.
As a cleric you would have 3 choices:
- solo
- static group/solid guild
- pugging

You don't want to solo, you are not a member of a decent guild which leaves pugging. As for the last option you will need a thick skin and even then it won't be much fun.


Good choices for a starter are:
- 20 Bard (Spellsinger)
- 16Bard/2Rogue/2Fighter (Warchanter)
- 20 Wizard
- 20 Sorcerer

All those classes require minimum gear to be effective. Cheap inferno/efficacy clickie will serve you just as good as Mineral II will serve a warrior. You don't need even that much to sing your songs.

[Tinrae]

What about current situation in DDO now? I was going to play either Wizard or Cleric. What would you suggest from the current class balance in game? And what build I am going to take to be useful in groups (I don't like soloing too much)?

I personally get asked to join groups most on my Rogue. The second most asked is my Cleric.

[cdemeritt]

So, is there a demand for clerics now in game? And what specs do you recommend?

Just remember why Clerics are often in demand.... and there are many reasons many players don't PuG their clerics... I love the Cleric class, Clerics can be a lot of fun to play... However, in the wrong group, things can quickly become a nightmare for Clerics, and sometimes the headaches are just not worth it... However, find a class you like, learn the game, enjoy the game... I rarely have problems finding groups with any of my toons reguardless of class/level....