HomeGuidesDragon’s Dogma 2
Best Dragon’s Dogma 2 vocations: Every vocation rankedThe best Dragon’s Dogma 2 vocations for beginners, veterans, pawns, and everyone else
The best Dragon’s Dogma 2 vocations for beginners, veterans, pawns, and everyone else
Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom
Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom
Looking for the best Dragon’s Dogma 2 vocations?There are ten vocations in total inDragon’s Dogma 2, ranging fromRPGmainstays like the Fighter and Mage to more unorthodox fare like the Mystic Spearhand. You’re also not locked into a single vocation, and there’s nothing to stop a particularly adventurous Arisen from ranking up every single one. Even if you stick to a single vocation, you may want your main pawn companion as well as all of the other pawns you recruit to specialise in other vocations in order to create a party suited to all situations.
In other words, every Arisen who sets out to vanquish the titular winged boss ofDragon’s Dogma 2will eventually come into contact with the game’s many classes. We’ve ranked each of these vocations in the guide below to help you decide which is right for you and your squad.
Dragon’s Dogma 2 - Capcom Highlights: March 2024This highlight reel shows off all the incredible adventure awaiting the new Arisen of Dragon’s Dogma 2.Watch on YouTube
Dragon’s Dogma 2 - Capcom Highlights: March 2024
All Dragon’s Dogma 2 vocations
Best Dragon’s Dogma 2 basic vocations
If you’ve just begun your journey as an Arisen, you’ll have four basic vocations available to you at the start of the game, and choosing the right one can be daunting. Here’s our ranking of each, from the easiest choice to the trickiest.
1. Fighter
Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom
2. Archer
Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom
For those who prefer the ranged approach over melee attacks, the Archer is an excellent vocation that can fire arrows at the speed of light. You needn’t worry about aiming so much, since Dragon’s Dogma 2 features a fine-tuned auto-targeting system, but the Archer does get skills that enable them to zoom in on foes. Even more fun are the Archer’s trick arrows, which can explode, tar, or drench enemies with water and blight. In short, the Archer simply haslots of versatilityat their disposal, albeit a tad more inventory management than other vocations. Also, you can jump kick goblins in the face, which is always a plus.
3. Mage
Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom
With vital skills likeAnodyne, Clerity, and Halidom - which respectively heal, hasten, and cure debilitations - the Mage is aclassic support spellcasterthrough and through. They’re not as flashy as the other basic vocations, and their light armour restrictions mean that they’re the weakest. But choosing a Mage allows you to heal yourself via magick instead of popping a constant stream of Salubrious Droughts, and you’ll also have foundational attack spells to help you hold your own. Additionally, you can enchant allies' weapons with potent elemental buffs. If the thought of healing your pawn and blessing them with fire magick before flamethrowing a foe yourself with Flagration sounds appealing, you should be a Mage.
4. Thief
Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom
The Thief has one of the morecomplex and diverse skillsetsout of the starting vocations in Dragon’s Dogma 2. You’re essentially a melee DPS-dealer, but with less durability than the Fighter and the tendency to make swift moves that can easily miss. But if you can master the Thief’s dexterous moves, you’ll have a wide variety of tactics that deal massive damage. Thieves can pin foes to the ground for a fatal stab, slice away at weak points as they climb the backs of massive bosses, use gimmicks like ropes to make a foe fall to their knees, and even steal stuff on a successful strike. All of these options might be a bit overwhelming, which makes the Thief rank lowest on our list here, since we’re ranking in order of easiest-to-use to most challenging. If you love the idea of swift damage and a wide selection of skills, though, the Thief is right up your alley.
Best Dragon’s Dogma 2 advanced vocations
The advanced vocations of Dragon’s Dogma 2 are gated off via story quests and will take some time to completely unlock. Two of them - the Warrior and the Sorcerer - are similar to the Fighter and Mage, but with a fair degree of complexity, while the rest range from magick and melee hybrids to the truly unusual Trickster. Here’s our ranking, from best to toughest-to-play.
1. Warrior
Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom
The Warrior is for folks who like oversized weapons that require finesse to use properly. (Those of you who exclusively prefer greatswords and similar heavy weapons in Monster Hunter, you know who you are!) Unlocked fairly early in Dragon’s Dogma 2 after the player completes the questVocation Frustration, the Warrior takes our top spot largely due to the huge damage that results in mastering this vocation’smany charge attacks. The slow nature of the Warrior is certainly a learning curve compared to speedier classes, but when it comes to slicing the legs of bosses and knocking off large sections of their health bars, the Warrior has no equal.
2. Magick Archer
Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom
Why shouldn’t arrows be magickal in nature? The Magick Archer answers this question with an impressive collection of skills that run the gamut from firing ice and flame shots to healing allies with Remedy and Recovery Arrows. Unlocked late in Dragon’s Dogma 2 after you complete the questSpring in Thy Stepand speak with the NPCCliodhna, theMagick Archer’s wild abilitiesare nevertheless worth the wait. I’m personally partial to their Ricochet Seeker skill, which looses a magick arrow that bounces all across the battlefield, dealing additional damage the more it collides with walls. For those who like magick but would rather tweak their bow string than utter incantations, the Magick Archer is a tonne of fun.
3. Mystic Spearhand
Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom
4. Sorcerer
Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom
While the Mage possesses a smattering of attack magicks and a hefty number of support spells, theSorcerer goes all-in on damage. Unlocked after completing the questVocation Frustration, the Sorcerer’s not quite as exciting as the other advanced vocations in my eyes, mostly because several of its base skills are shared with its basic vocation cousin. But if you like fancy spells, there’s a lot to enjoy here. Expect to be whipping out fiery vortexes, lightning storms, and epic blizzards at a moment’s notice, ending with meteor-summoning magicks like Meteoron.
5. Warfarer
Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom
6. Trickster
Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom
Unlocked partway through the questFlickering Shadowsafter you interact with the NPCLuz, the Trickster doesn’t exactly attack - instead, they summon forth illusory smoke and various mirages through theirspecial weapon, the Censer. For instance, their Delusory Screen skill conjures a wall that stops enemies in their tracks and blocks vision, while Aromatic Rally boosts the offensive capabilities of allies. Skilled Tricksters can even create illusory bridges and swiftly remove them, making any foes standing on top fall to their deaths. While this is certainly an intriguing class, it’s difficult to use properly and ends up at the bottom of our list for its niche appeal. For those with a keen understanding of enemy behaviour, the Trickster might have something to offer, but most will want to look elsewhere.
Best Dragon’s Dogma 2 vocation for pawns
It’s of course possible to make your main pawn an Archer or a Thief, especially if you’ve got a good selection of trick arrows in your inventory or need an ally to scale large bosses. Remember, main pawns can swap their vocations just like Arisen, so it’s worth ranking up all of their vocations if you’ve got time to spare.
Here, we have my Fighter attacking a griffin’s underbelly while the Warrior pawn has climbed onto its neck, ready to unleash severe blows. Meanwhile, the Archer’s delivering shots from afar while the Mage prepares to heal. That’s a well unified party! |Image credit:Capcom/Rock Paper Shotgun
When recruiting NPC pawns or other players' pawns via Riftstones, the only thing to pay attention to is ahealthy party composition. When in doubt, follow the classic RPG code, filling your party witha tank, a damage dealer or two, and at least one supporting pawn who can heal.
For instance, if your Arisen is a Fighter and your main pawn a Mage, you’d probably want to recruit a Thief or a Warrior to your cause. If your Arisen is a Warrior and your main pawn an Archer, then you’d best get a spellcaster on your side quickly.
That said, if you want a unique experience, you can certainly run around with an unbalanced party or one composed of an Arisen and pawns who are all the same class. An all-Mage group will sure have a lot of healing magick at their disposal, making for some memorable times - though you should note that taking down massive monsters might be a challenge!
That finishes our comprehensive look at the best vocations in Dragon’s Dogma 2. If you’re looking for more detail on the vocations listed here, start with our deep dive into the magickal ways of theMage, the smooth firing of theArcher, the sword and shield tactics of theFighter, or the shifty dagger action of theThief. For more advanced vocations, check out our guide to the greatsword swings of theWarrior, the extreme magick of theSorcerer, the Duospear slices of theMystic Spearhand, the crafty illusions of theTrickster, the bow spell combos of theMagick Archer, or the many weapon skills of theWarfarer.
