TERA Classes Guide - Four Class Archetypes
Choosing a class is one of the most important things players go through when trying Tera. Each class comes with a unique set of usable skills, with the ability to glyph most of the available skills for personal customization of the character. Everyone has their own style of play though, so this article will provide you with a beginners breakdown of all classes in TERA. Then, you can get many possible class combos, and pick the best one may not just be a matter of personal preference.
Hopefully, this guide will help you pick the right one. What you should know is every class has a damage and weapon damage rating. There’s no difference between physical and magical damage making damage resistance items obsolete. Instead, you can build resistance to critical hits, stuns, knockdowns and similar forms of crowd control. There are 4 class archetypes in TERA:
Tanking Classes ⒈ Lancer Lancers are the primary tanks in TERA, though as with primary tanks in most games, they are far and few between. They wield a large shield and lance, wear heavy armor, and have the second highest HP pool out of all eight classes. Lancers are not only sturdy, but one of their skills blocks 100% of all damage taken from the front and, partially, the sides. This class also has an excellent technique for getting away (or catching up), which is their forward-charging dash.
⒉ Warrior Warrior is the second and last tank in TERA. Warriors wield dual swords, wear light armor, and have the highest HP pool and movement speed out of all eight classes. Furthermore, Warrior attacks are an arc – meaning they are not purely single-target characters. If you and your buddy are in the path of the swinging swords, you will both get hit, instead of just one of you. Warrior’s damage rating is higher than a Lancer, making them third lowest; they are positioned between Sorcerer (lower) and Slayer (higher) on the damage rating. Warriors are classified as the evasion tanks of TERA. They have fewer taunt options than a Lancer, but their higher DPS, as well as an AoE stun, make them a viable option as a tank.
Melee DPS Classes ⒈ Berserker Berserker is the first Melee DPS class I will cover. Berserkers wield giant axes, wear heavy armor and have the highest weapon damage rating; tied with an Archer. Their damage rating is second only to Archer. Their crit rate is highest; tied with Slayers. Berserkers are the slowest Melee DPS class, with an attack speed of 0.7 which is matched only by Sorcerer. Berserkers have become notorious for their ability to one-shot almost every other class, which obviously appeals greatly to many players. Berserkers are quite possibly one of the very few classes that can give a Lancer a difficult time, seeing as their heavy armor mitigates much of a Lancer’s already poor DPS, as well as their ability to hit extremely hard. The splash damage of a Berserker is slightly less than the damage dealt by a full-on hit but is still absolutely devastating if it crits.
⒉ Slayer Slayers are the second and last Melee DPS class of TERA. Slayers wield giant swords, wear light armor, and have the third highest damage rating. They are tied for highest critical hit rate with Berserkers. They also have the second-highest weapon damage rating! Slayers are in the mid-range of attack speed, a 0.6 which they are tied with Priest and Mystic for. While they are rather squishy if caught, they have greater mobility than a Berserker. Slayer’s damage output is slightly lower than that of a Berserker, but their faster attack speed ranged attack, and movement speed buffs more than makeup for it. Slayers are said to be the closest to an Assassin or Rogue as you will get. Despite their lack of dual wield, their feel, damage, and the way they play are more similar to an Assassin than any other class.
Ranged DPS Classes ⒈ Archer Archers are what I like to call the snipers of TERA. Their play style is very reminiscent of snipers, seeing as in PvP and boss fights they tend to snipe the primary target with their charge up shots; Penetrating Arrow and Radiant Arrow. As is typical of Archer classes, Archers wield a bow and wear light armor. But here is where Archers differ from the norm; they do not require ammo. Archers in TERA have unlimited ammunition, which is explained by the developers as the arrows technically being “magic”. Due to this, bows are classified as magical weapons when it comes to crafting.
⒉ Sorcerer Sorcerer is the AoE Ranged DPS class of TERA. Although they do have a wide variety of single-target spells, many of their skills are AoE or splash damage, and as such their damage and weapon damage ratings are slightly lower. In fact, a Sorcerer’s base damage rating is only fourth highest (behind Archer, Berserker, and Slayer in that order), and their weapon damage is higher only than a Warrior and a Lancer. Their range, however, is fifteen meters.
