Black Desert has started closed beta in the west and thousands of western players are finally able to get their hands on the game but may still be unsure of which class to choose because the official site doesn't give a lot of information on classes. That's why I made thus guide, with my personal point of views on each class. I know a greater number of players are still waiting for their tickets so I hope this guide can also work as a topic of which class you are going to play in next beta, open beta, or at launch.
After you finish reading, tell us which class is your first choice
Warrior/Valkyrie
Difficulty ★★☆
Attack ★★★☆
Defense ★★★★★
Evasion ★★☆
Mobility ★★☆
Combos ★★★
Pure melee classes with outstanding defense/block. They can be seen as tanks in MMORPGs with "holy trinity" class system but their trait of taking damage for teammates is only obvious in PvP although they do have best physical damage resistance in PvE.
They don't have great combos but they (especially Valkyrie) got lots of CC abilities, most of which can knock down the enemy. With such good CC abilities, it really doesn't matter they are not good at evading enemy attack.
So generally Warrior/Valkyrie has great survival ability in solo PvE farming. However, they aren't very effective solo farming machine.
Ranger
Difficulty ★★★☆
Attack ★★★★
Defense ★★★
Evasion ★★★★
Mobility ★★★★
Combos ★★
She's underdog in terms of combo and defense but her 10% move speed bonuses greatly increases the mobility and survival chance in both PvE and PvP, especially when combined with appropriate skills.
Ranger doesn't have the deadliest attack but she's capable of doing common farming, even without a good weapon.
Like the similar classes in other MMOs, Ranger has the CC ability to draw a distance from enemies and keep dealing damage. Be noted that Ranger relies on high accuracy more than any other class.
Witch
Difficulty ★★★★
Attack ★★★★☆
Defense ★★★
Evasion ★★★☆
Mobility ★★★☆
Combos ★★★★
Don't take it for grant, she's not an entire ranged mage. In fact she's half melee and half ranged class. What makes her special is the ability to boost the whole party's attack power in PvE and PvP. That makes Witch a popular choice in group battle such as boss fight. This is also a class that requires some practice to master.
Berserker
Difficulty ★★★☆
Attack ★★★★★
Defense ★★★★★
Evasion ★★☆
Mobility ★★☆
Combos ★★★
Compared with other classes, a sophisticated control will make Berserker capable of fighting multiple enemies and doing AoE attacks. Berserker can leap onto the enemies and make some brutal smashes. If you like the feeling of being a juggernaut and making devastating attacks, Berserker is your first choice. He also has some CC abilities such as stun and grip. If there's any hold-off for me, it should be the poor mobility and unimpressive appearance.
Tamer
Difficulty ★★★
Attack ★★★☆
Defense ★★★
Evasion ★★★★☆
Mobility ★★★
Combos ★★★☆
She's very different from Blade & Soul's Summoner. Tamer is a melee class with shining skills that remind me of Chinese martial arts. She can only summon a black werewolf-ish creature at the moment. Besides, the werewolf can become a mount. Her outstanding evade ability make up for the lack of defense power. On the other hand, she's definitely not a class with high burst damage. Most of the CC abilities can knock down the enemy.
Male Blader/Female Blader
Difficulty ★★★
Attack ★★★★
Defense ★★★★
Evasion ★★☆
Mobility ★★★★★
Combos ★★★☆
They are melee classes with only one ranged skill. Similar to Warrior/Valkyrie, they use stun and knock-down as CC abilities. Without impressive offensive and defensive power, they stand out from other classes with highly mobile ability, most notably, the charge skill (no cooldown). Another thing you may like is Blader gets more effective HP recovery ability. Blader is an easy-to-learn class in PvE but pretty difficult to play in PvP.
Sorceress
Difficulty ★★★☆
Attack ★★★★★
Defense ★★☆
Evasion ★★☆
Mobility ★★★
Combos ★★★
Analysis: Sorceress has obvious advantages and disadvantages at the same time. She boasts the most powerful ranged attack but she's also the most vulnerable one among all classes. What's more, her skills drain a lot of mana and make her unable to keep casting the deadly spells. Last but not least, she gets magnificent AoE power but poor mobility.
Kunoichi
Difficulty ★★★★★
Attack ★★★★★
Defense ★★
Evasion ★★
Mobility ★★★☆
Combos ★★★★★
With the most powerful attack among all classes and the most vulnerable armor (yes she's more vulnerable than Sorceress), Kunoichi is the most difficult class to play in Black Desert. That means if you are hit by a stun or knock down, you better pray that your opponent make some terrible mistake and fail to send you back to respawn site. On the other hand, Kunoichi has mediocre AoE power and long cooldown time. Fortunately she has pretty lots of CC skills.
At last I want to mention that in Black Desert, characters under the same account share the "fatigue", "contribution point", and most armors and accessories. What does that mean? It means it's a lot easier to progress an alternative character.
After you finish reading, tell us which class is your first choice
Warrior/Valkyrie
Difficulty ★★☆
Attack ★★★☆
Defense ★★★★★
Evasion ★★☆
Mobility ★★☆
Combos ★★★
Pure melee classes with outstanding defense/block. They can be seen as tanks in MMORPGs with "holy trinity" class system but their trait of taking damage for teammates is only obvious in PvP although they do have best physical damage resistance in PvE.
They don't have great combos but they (especially Valkyrie) got lots of CC abilities, most of which can knock down the enemy. With such good CC abilities, it really doesn't matter they are not good at evading enemy attack.
So generally Warrior/Valkyrie has great survival ability in solo PvE farming. However, they aren't very effective solo farming machine.
Ranger
Difficulty ★★★☆
Attack ★★★★
Defense ★★★
Evasion ★★★★
Mobility ★★★★
Combos ★★
She's underdog in terms of combo and defense but her 10% move speed bonuses greatly increases the mobility and survival chance in both PvE and PvP, especially when combined with appropriate skills.
Ranger doesn't have the deadliest attack but she's capable of doing common farming, even without a good weapon.
Like the similar classes in other MMOs, Ranger has the CC ability to draw a distance from enemies and keep dealing damage. Be noted that Ranger relies on high accuracy more than any other class.
Witch
Difficulty ★★★★
Attack ★★★★☆
Defense ★★★
Evasion ★★★☆
Mobility ★★★☆
Combos ★★★★
Don't take it for grant, she's not an entire ranged mage. In fact she's half melee and half ranged class. What makes her special is the ability to boost the whole party's attack power in PvE and PvP. That makes Witch a popular choice in group battle such as boss fight. This is also a class that requires some practice to master.
Berserker
Difficulty ★★★☆
Attack ★★★★★
Defense ★★★★★
Evasion ★★☆
Mobility ★★☆
Combos ★★★
Compared with other classes, a sophisticated control will make Berserker capable of fighting multiple enemies and doing AoE attacks. Berserker can leap onto the enemies and make some brutal smashes. If you like the feeling of being a juggernaut and making devastating attacks, Berserker is your first choice. He also has some CC abilities such as stun and grip. If there's any hold-off for me, it should be the poor mobility and unimpressive appearance.
Tamer
Difficulty ★★★
Attack ★★★☆
Defense ★★★
Evasion ★★★★☆
Mobility ★★★
Combos ★★★☆
She's very different from Blade & Soul's Summoner. Tamer is a melee class with shining skills that remind me of Chinese martial arts. She can only summon a black werewolf-ish creature at the moment. Besides, the werewolf can become a mount. Her outstanding evade ability make up for the lack of defense power. On the other hand, she's definitely not a class with high burst damage. Most of the CC abilities can knock down the enemy.
Male Blader/Female Blader
Difficulty ★★★
Attack ★★★★
Defense ★★★★
Evasion ★★☆
Mobility ★★★★★
Combos ★★★☆
They are melee classes with only one ranged skill. Similar to Warrior/Valkyrie, they use stun and knock-down as CC abilities. Without impressive offensive and defensive power, they stand out from other classes with highly mobile ability, most notably, the charge skill (no cooldown). Another thing you may like is Blader gets more effective HP recovery ability. Blader is an easy-to-learn class in PvE but pretty difficult to play in PvP.
Sorceress
Difficulty ★★★☆
Attack ★★★★★
Defense ★★☆
Evasion ★★☆
Mobility ★★★
Combos ★★★
Analysis: Sorceress has obvious advantages and disadvantages at the same time. She boasts the most powerful ranged attack but she's also the most vulnerable one among all classes. What's more, her skills drain a lot of mana and make her unable to keep casting the deadly spells. Last but not least, she gets magnificent AoE power but poor mobility.
Kunoichi
Difficulty ★★★★★
Attack ★★★★★
Defense ★★
Evasion ★★
Mobility ★★★☆
Combos ★★★★★
With the most powerful attack among all classes and the most vulnerable armor (yes she's more vulnerable than Sorceress), Kunoichi is the most difficult class to play in Black Desert. That means if you are hit by a stun or knock down, you better pray that your opponent make some terrible mistake and fail to send you back to respawn site. On the other hand, Kunoichi has mediocre AoE power and long cooldown time. Fortunately she has pretty lots of CC skills.
At last I want to mention that in Black Desert, characters under the same account share the "fatigue", "contribution point", and most armors and accessories. What does that mean? It means it's a lot easier to progress an alternative character.
