Aion 2 classes: which one should you play?

Aion 2 has eight classes on the global servers, and Elyos and Asmodians can play all of them. Each class uses one weapon type, and you can't switch class later: a different class means a new character. This guide compares the eight so you pick one you'll stay with.

Every class has the same amount to work with: 12 active skills, 10 passive skills, 13 stigma skills to choose from and five Daevanion boards. The Korean version has a ninth class, the Brawler, which isn't on the global servers.

New to the game? Start with your first week in Aion 2.

The eight classes at a glance

How to choose

Easiest start

Gladiator.

Mostly solo

Spiritmaster or Gladiator.

Tank

Templar, which holds enemies on itself so the group can fight.

Healer

Cleric, the only class that can resurrect. Chanter if you'd rather heal less and hit more.

Ranged damage

Ranger for an easier start, Sorcerer for more damage on a more fragile character.

One-on-one PvP

Assassin, if you accept the hardest learning curve.

Gladiator

Weapon

Greatsword

Role

Melee damage, can tank

Difficulty

Easy

The Gladiator is a frontline fighter, and its high HP lets it stand in as a second tank. Most of its attacks hit up to four enemies at once, so groups of monsters go down quickly. A passive heals you as you land hits and restores a quarter of your HP when you drop to half, so you can keep fighting without a healer.

Leaping Slam jumps you onto a target up to 20 m away, and Mocking Blade knocks it down for the follow-up. That makes the Gladiator the most comfortable class for solo questing and farming. In PvP it's a chaser with two gap closers, but it struggles against classes that keep their distance once both are used.

Templar

Weapon

Longsword and shield

Role

Tank

Difficulty

Moderate

The Templar is the dedicated tank: heavy defense and skills that protect the rest of the group. Its main attacks raise Enmity, the game's threat, so enemies keep hitting you instead of your party. Poach pulls a target from 20 m away to your feet, Shield Smite stuns, and blocking heals you.

The buttons are simple. The skill is in keeping every enemy on you and pulling them toward your group, not away from it. Its damage is the lowest of the eight, so solo leveling is slow, but you'll rarely die. In PvP it controls where a fight happens and protects its team, but it rarely kills anyone alone.

Assassin

Weapon

Two daggers

Role

Burst melee damage

Difficulty

Hard

The Assassin hides in stealth and strikes from behind with fast dagger combos, poisons and stuns. Shadowstrike puts you behind a target up to 20 m away and stuns it, and Insignia Explosion detonates the marks your attacks build up.

Its damage depends on attacking from behind and chaining a stun into a knockdown, and its low HP punishes every mistake. It's the duelist of the eight: in PvP a good opener decides the fight, and a missed one usually means getting out.

Ranger

Weapon

Bow

Role

Ranged physical damage

Difficulty

Easy to start, harder to master

The Ranger attacks from up to 20 m away. Snare Shot slows the target, Marking Shot moves you in the direction you choose and raises your critical hits, and traps add damage while you keep shooting.

The basic loop of slowing the target and shooting it is easy to learn. Staying out of reach is the part that takes practice, because your HP is thin. In PvP it kites melee classes well, but it loses to anyone who can close the gap twice in a row.

Sorcerer

Weapon

Spellbook

Role

Ranged magic damage and crowd control

Difficulty

Moderate

The Sorcerer deals the most damage at range, and pays for it with low HP and defense. It works with two elements. Fire skills such as Flame Arrow, Firestorm and Hellfire do the damage. Frost skills such as Ice Chain, Frost and Winter's Shackles slow and freeze enemies before they reach you.

You track two chains of skills, manage your mana and stay at range with no way to heal yourself. In PvP you freeze a target and burst it down, but you're easy to catch once your escapes are used.

Spiritmaster

Weapon

Orb

Role

Magic damage through spirits

Difficulty

Moderate

The Spiritmaster summons Fire, Water, Earth and Wind spirits that do the fighting while you curse enemies and stack damage over time from range. Every time a spirit uses a skill you gain an element, and at four you can use Elemental Fusion.

Because the spirits take the hits, it's the most forgiving class for solo leveling. Played well, it means tracking spirit cooldowns and spending Elemental Fusion at the right moment. In PvP its fears break up groups, but it's vulnerable while a spirit is dead and its summons are cooling down.

Cleric

Weapon

Mace

Role

Healer

Difficulty

Moderate

The Cleric is the main healer, and the only class that can bring a fallen party member back: the Summon Resurrection stigma, available from level 22, revives an ally within 40 m every two minutes. Healing Light heals whoever in your party is lowest, Light of Regeneration heals the whole party over 30 seconds, and Radiant Recovery heals everyone and removes a debuff.

It still fights between heals, with spells such as Judgment Thunder and Chain of Torment cast from 20 m. Solo, that makes it slow but safe. In a group it has the busiest job of the eight, and in PvP it keeps a team alive but has little killing power alone.

Chanter

Weapon

Staff

Role

Support, second healer and melee damage

Difficulty

Moderate

The Chanter fights in melee with a staff and makes the people around it stronger. Its mantras, such as Undefeated Mantra, raise damage and damage tolerance for nearby party members and stay up the whole time. Recuperation heals the party and removes a debuff.

It still hits hard with a stun followed by a heavy smash, so it's sturdy and quick on its own. In a group you're also the cleanse and the backup heal, so the real skill is watching health bars while you fight in melee.