Opinions wanted - Best class for each race

[sultanica]

Which races are best for which classes and why?
Besides issues of preference, which race is best suited for a particular class or classes?
Each has special abilities or point bonuses, so I'm trying to figure the best combination's.

Races

• Drow
• Dwarf
• Elf
• Halfling
• Human
• Warforged
• Half-Orc (update 5)

Classes

• Barbarian
• Bard
• Cleric
• Favored Soul
• Fighter
• Monk
• Paladin
• Ranger
• Rogue
• Sorcerer
• Wizard

[AdahnX]

I'm still new, but I also spend a lot of time reading the forums, compendium, and the wiki, and I can share some of my observations.

Warforged Wizard- Warforged get a Constitution bonus, which is very important for casters. They can self heal with Repair spells. And Intelligence is the only mental stat that doesn't take a hit, making it more difficult to build WF Sorcerers.

Drow Sorcerer- At least this is the class I've most frequently seen the drow associated with. Charisma is among their stat bonuses, but they also take a penalty to Con, which as stated above is important for casters, more so than Dexterity. My opinion personally would be rogue, since they would benefit from all the drow stat bonuses. Dex, which is key to a great many rogue skills and abilities. Int for more skill points as well as Search and Disable Device. And Cha for Use Magic Device and Diplomacy or Bluff.

Halfling Monk- Again, don't really understand the reasoning for it. Just see the build a lot.

Dwarf Fighter or Barbarian- Dwarves just seem geared towards being melees and tanks. I personally was never really a big fan, even in PnP.

Elf Ranger- Elves get Dex bonus, which helps out rangers who take weapon finesse or use bows, and the extra Armor Class helps since Rangers tend to wear light armor. Also Elf race opens up the Arcane Archer line of enhancements.

Human ?- Can't really pin Humans down to a best class. They are the definition of versatility. They don't get any stat bonuses or penalties, and the extra skill and feat that they get can be useful to just about anyone. Though if I was going to make a general suggestion it would be a class that doesn't seem to have enough skill points and feats. Cleric comes to mind.

Half-Orc- Wasn't aware that this was confirmed, but I'm glad it is. If PnP is any indication then Barbarians will be popular, but just about any melee class can benefit from the Strength bonus. Even thug type rogues.

Anyway, like I said, I'm new. Sorry I couldn't be more help.

[DavionFuxa]

There really is no best class or worst class for each race, though some races do have more going for them in certain classes.

* Barbarian
Human.
Because of high hit points, Humans will benefit from increased recovery when healed. It helps when you are taking quite a bit of the damage.

* Bard
None.
Bards are just too versatile to name a best race for.

* Cleric
Dwarf.
You get Dwarven Axes, get more spell points from Enhancements, and get more Constitution for higher Concentration.

* Favored Soul
No Idea.
What can I say, I really don't know about the class.

* Fighter
Dwarf.
Racial bonuses will fit in well to make the Fighter even more scary.

* Monk
No Idea.
Another Class I don't know much about.

* Paladin
Drow Elf.
Synergy is above and beyond what other races could offer.

* Ranger
Human.
Rangers tend to have some survival problems, so being a Human will help.

* Rogue
Halfling.
Them short people make the best backstabbers.

* Sorcerer
Warforged.
It doesn't matter if the racial bonuses will be lower, the self healing sorcerer is far ahead of any other.

* Wizard
Warforged.
Refer to what was said for Sorcerer, and apply as Wizard.

A Note Then About Elves:

Elves tend to be under par in relation to other Races, when it comes to being the best at anything. This is why you don't even see them mentioned once here.

[Newtons_Apple]

Barbarian - Warforged
Bard - Warforged
Cleric - Warforged
Favored Soul - Warforged
Fighter - Warforged
Monk - Warforged
Paladin - Warforged
Ranger - Warforged
Rogue - Warforged
Sorcerer - Warforged
Wizard - Warforged

[Eladiun]

This thread will end in tears.

[Yaga_Nub]

Barbarian - Warforged
Bard - Warforged
Cleric - Warforged
Favored Soul - Warforged
Fighter - Warforged
Monk - Warforged
Paladin - Warforged
Ranger - Warforged
Rogue - Warforged
Sorcerer - Warforged
Wizard - Warforged

What he said.

[r3dl4nce]

Better have 2 races per class...

Barbarian - human or WF
Bard - human for warchanter, drow for spellsinger
Cleric - dwarf or human
Favored Soul - elf or human
Fighter - human, WF, dwarf
Monk - halfling dex , wf str
Paladin - human 32 pnt
Ranger - tempest human
Rogue - halfling, drow
Sorcerer - human, WF
Wizard - drow, WF

[Thrudh]

There really is no best race for any class... Racial benefits are pretty small in the grand scheme of things...

Probably the best case can be made for warforged as wizards and sorcerors because of the self-healing..

There are some nice synergies that lead certain races to certain classes, but any race can do very well at any class.

[JustWinBaby]

It all depends if you have 32 point characters available or not. If you do, pick Warforged. But then again, they are the easy button in DDO.

Just pick Halflings for everything. Can't go wrong there. The mobs won't attack you at all, they'll think you're too stupid. Heck, they'll even tell you to quit playing DDO. It gets worse when they see you breakdancing in the middle of a Boss Fight.

And then....

The halfling pulls out his Giant +8 Stupid Good Burst Rapier of Awesomeness and the enemies run away due to the awesomeness of the halfling.

So, warforged for 32 pointers, Halfling just because.

[TiberiusofTyr]

There really is no best class or worst class for each race, though some races do have more going for them in certain classes.

* Cleric
Dwarf.
You get Dwarven Axes,

No. Dwarves treat Dwarven axes as melee weapons. You still have to take fighter, paladin, barbarian, or ranger to get them for free.

* Barbarian
Warforged. power attack enhancement, immune to fatigue

[jcTharin]

Barbarian - Warforged
Bard - Warforged
Cleric - Warforged
Favored Soul - Warforged
Fighter - Warforged
Monk - Warforged
Paladin - Warforged
Ranger - Warforged
Rogue - Warforged
Sorcerer - Warforged
Wizard - Warforged

What he said.

what they said

[sigtrent]

The problem is each class has different builds, but I'll say its a "generic build" and see what I get...

Barbarian = Warforged [runner up is dwarf]
The built in defenses, quick armor swap, extra power attack, and greatsword support all make this the way to go. Hell on a healer but who needs em!

Bard = Drow [runner up is Halfling]
Were talking caster bard here and the extra charisma is great. Con is not much of a bard staple "not in the face" is more the typical bard strategy than tanking.

Cleric = Human [close runner up dwarf]
Humans can get a wisdom bonus and they extra feat and skill points are nice. Dwarves would win but for the cha penalty.

Favored Soul = Human? (runner up drow?]
I'm not much of an expert. I think the stat versatility and the extra feat give humans the edge. Drow get a charisma bump which is nice.

Fighter = Warforged [Runner up dwarf]
You don't need feats and WF get tactics and power attack extras as well as quick armor swap... Some builds favor other races but a generic fighter can't go wrong with WF.

Monk = Human [Runner up warforged or halfling]
Tough one, but human has no down sides and all the others have something for and against in a class that is best when fairly balanced in its stats.

Paladin = Human [Runner up Drow/Elf]
Humans give you the stat spread you want/need for paladin and the extra feat is a godsend in making specialist paladins. Drow has a good stat spread and elf has the nice weapon go-along. Their low con can be compensated for in a paladin build.

Ranger = Elf [Runner up dwarf]
I had to give them something... Elves just have a lot of natural synergies with a "typical" pure ranger build and few others have anything special they add to the class.

Rogue = Drow [Runner up Halfling]
Drow rogues are straight up easy to make. The stats align up really well and they get skill bonuses to boot. Halflings are well suited but just don't get as many applicable freebies.

Sorcerer = Drow [Runner up Warforged]
For classic sorc action, drow are a natural with 20 starting charisma. While WF self healing is massively powerful, its 16 starting con is a setback you can't ignore and makes them a more specialized build than a general class example.

Wizard = Warforged [Runner up Drow]
Here the Warforged penalty is less, and the versatility to hold healing and combat spells is better. Wizards are also more likely to want to supplement SP with some combat ability or the like and WF do great there making the self healing all the better.

[PSU93]

There really is no best class or worst class for each race, though some races do have more going for them in certain classes.

* Barbarian
Human.
Because of high hit points, Humans will benefit from increased recovery when healed. It helps when you are taking quite a bit of the damage.

What about Dwarf? Higher CON, plus Axe Enhancements.
Warforged for stacking Power Attack Enhancements, also higher CON.

* Cleric
Dwarf.
You get Dwarven Axes, get more spell points from Enhancements, and get more Constitution for higher Concentration.

Dwarves do make good Clerics, but Dwarf Clerics do not automatically get Dwarven Axe proficiency.

* Fighter
Dwarf.
Racial bonuses will fit in well to make the Fighter even more scary.

Humans can have higher Intimidate if you're going for an Intimi-Tank.

* Paladin
Drow Elf.
Synergy is above and beyond what other races could offer.

I don't know about above and beyond. Less CON = less HP for a melee character, and Khopesh is superior to Rapier.

* Ranger
Rangers tend to have some survival problems, so being a Human will help.

Huh?

* Sorcerer
Warforged.
It doesn't matter if the racial bonuses will be lower, the self healing sorcerer is far ahead of any other.

Not disputing that WF don't make good Sorcs, but I wouldn't say they're "far ahead of any other."

[PSU93]

this Thread Will End In Tears.

Qft

[Lehrman]

Barbarian - Warforged, or Dwarf
Bard - Human
Cleric/FvS - Human, Dwarf, or Halfling if caster build
Fighter - Human, Dwarf or Warforged
Monk - Human, Dwarf, Warforged or Halfling
Paladin - Human or Drow
Ranger - Any
Rogue - Human, Elf, Drow or Halfling
Sorcerer - Human or Drow
Wizard - Human, Halfling, or Warforged

[Beld]

Barbarian - 6 Con Drow
Bard - 6 Con Drow
Cleric/FvS - 6 Con Drow
Fighter - 6 Con Drow
Monk - 6 Con Drow
Paladin - 6 Con Drow
Ranger - 6 Con Drow
Rogue - 6 Con Drow
Sorcerer - 6 Con Drow
Wizard - 6 Con Drow

6 Con Drow, when it absolutely, positively has to suck the worst - go gimp or go home

[Shishizaru]

Barbarian - 6 Con Drow
Bard - 6 Con Drow
Cleric/FvS - 6 Con Drow
Fighter - 6 Con Drow
Monk - 6 Con Drow
Paladin - 6 Con Drow
Ranger - 6 Con Drow
Rogue - 6 Con Drow
Sorcerer - 6 Con Drow
Wizard - 6 Con Drow

6 Con Drow, when it absolutely, positively has to suck the worst - go gimp or go home

Why not (28 pt) Elf?

[Beld]

Why not (28 pt) Elf?

And I'm bored this morning

[Impatiens]

For classes like Favored Soul it really depends on what kind of build you are going for.

Caster FVS: Human
Melee THF Pure FVS: WF
Melee TWF Monk splash FVS: Elf

For monks it also depends a great deal on your build focus.

Dex/Wis builds: Halfling
Strength/Con builds: WF or Human

So many classes have so many different builds that are very viable and what race is "best" is going to depend on what build you prefer. Any race can play any class well. Some have better synergy with classes than others, but as long as you have a solid stat distribution when you start the differences between races are not going to be that huge.

[gavagai]

Barbarian - 6 Con Drow
Bard - 6 Con Drow
Cleric/FvS - 6 Con Drow
Fighter - 6 Con Drow
Monk - 6 Con Drow
Paladin - 6 Con Drow
Ranger - 6 Con Drow
Rogue - 6 Con Drow
Sorcerer - 6 Con Drow
Wizard - 6 Con Drow

6 Con Drow, when it absolutely, positively has to suck the worst - go gimp or go home

Once again showing that the best race to win is the race to the bottom.