Which Diablo Immortal class should you play?

Diablo Immortal‘s launch is upon us, so it’s probably time to begin thinking about what class you want to play as you start to vanquish the minions of hell. Luckily, this list will seem familiar if you’ve met the Diablo 3 class line up.

Let’s review the possibilities!

New Diablo, new experiences

There are a few notable caveats about the classes you may be familiar with in their Immortal incarnations, the first and most important of which involves class skills. It’s a mobile title, distilling options from the Diablo 2 or 3 experience. Make sure you review the class’s more concentrated skill pool before choosing. For example, say you called the Barbarian your beloved across all the franchise titles. You don’t want to find yourself ready to add Bash to your bar, only to discover it doesn’t exist in DI.

Next, your control experience on mobile devices, while incredibly smooth, will be closer to the console experience than a computer experience. This setup will be easy to get around in time, as Immortal is coming out on the PC. While this inclusion will be pretty awesome for diversifying the experience of the title, and we’re really excited about cross-progression, you may want to take the control scheme you’ll be using most often into consideration. Your favorite class may not be as favored when you start aiming skillshots with your thumb on a touchscreen.

Now for some good news! Remember, in this version of the Diablo franchise, you are not locked into your class and will be able to change (eventually). So if you start trying out something new and discover you don’t like it as much, you won’t need to be locked into your first choice forever. Yes, you could spin up an alt, but it’s never fun to lose your initial character’s time (and progress) investment.

Got all that? Excellent. Time to check out the options.

Melee classes — up close and personal combat

As with D3, Immortal is starting with three melee classes in the ranks:

• Barbarian — “A savage wanderer,” the Barbarians formerly of Mount Arreat are the solo berserk powerhouses we know and love from the franchise. Pitted against large groups, the Barbarian will deal out serious damage at the cost of their survivability. After all, being up close to hit your enemy means the enemy is close enough to hit you. Immortal skills highlight: Hammer of the Ancients, Whirlwind, Wrath of the Berserker.
• Crusader — “A wrathful zealot,” Crusaders are your pure shield-wielding holy tank. If the defensive style is more up your alley, consider the Crusader. They also provide some solid party-level buffs and have the best mobility skills in the game. Immortal skills highlight: Condemn, Draw and Quarter, Shield Charge.
• Monk — “A master of martial arts,” Monks are the solid utility class in the lineup. Picture something between the damage of the Barbarian and the mobility/support skills of the Crusader. Where Barbarians barrel through damage and Crusaders defend, the Monks shine in quick dodges and evasion. Immortal skills highlight: Exploding Palm, Fists of Thunder, Seven-Sided Strike.

The melee classes are really about how they engage their enemies. The Barbarians are giving damage as good as they get it. Crusaders shield themselves from the onslaught to act as the fight’s focal point. Monks agilely dart around their enemies, escaping hits while zipping in and landing hits. Which sounds like your flavor of fun?

Ranged classes — destroy from a distance

Unlike melee, the starting line-up for Immortal‘s ranged classes is minus a head — D3‘s Witch Doctor. Otherwise, we see three familiar faces:

• Demon Hunter — “A vengeful stalker,” Demon Hunters shine in delivering high damage output from a distance. The inclusion of skills such as Multishot from the onset means you’re constantly able to wipe out masses of demons, but the Demon Hunter shines at single target damage. The trade-off is mobility; yes, the Demon Hunter can shoot while moving, but it’s at the cost of reduced speed. Immortal skills highlight: Impale, Multishot, Rain of Vengeance.
• Necromancer — “A manipulator of life and death,” the Necromancer in Immortal is your option for a pet class. Skilled at keeping both themselves and their minions alive, Necros bring a lot to the table for both solo and group players. Their diversity means substantial damage achieved against both single targets and groups. Like the Demon Hunter, Necromancers don’t experience fantastic mobility options, with only a new skill (Wraith Form) for speed boosts. Immortal skills highlight: Skeletal Mage, Command Skeletons, Corpse Explosion.
• Wizard — “A living conduit of arcane power,” Wizards are the pure caster of the group — incredibly powerful, with both crowd control and damage output shining in their toolkit. If you are a solo player that 1) loves casters and 2) desires some strong mobility, the Wizard is your new best friend. Immortal skills highlight: Disintegrate, Magic Missile, Teleport.

Unlike the melee classes, the ranged classes shine in how they damage enemies best. The Demon Hunter is your single target specialist; conversely, the Wizard reigns over AoE. The Necromancer makes an even split between the two, with a side of minion hordes. What sounds best to you?

Getting started in Immortal

Once you’ve picked your class, it’s time for the biggest pre-game boss in any MMO — customization. You will want to set up your character as close to your preferred appearance as possible from the onset, as the game is not launching with the ability to rework your look (although that option will be coming in time). You start on a boat, gliding towards Wortham — the tutorial zone for Immortal. You will not encounter any other players until you progress to the Ashwold Cemetary.

Congrats! You’ve started your first character in the Diablo MMO. Whatever your choice, I am sure you will enjoy exploring this new iteration of Sanctuary. Happy Hunting!