Introduction

Welcome to our Dark and Darker Class Tier List! In this guide, we dive deep to figure out the best classes to play in both Solo and Group play in Early Access.

Barbarian

  • Overall – A Tier
  • Solo – B Tier
  • Group – S Tier
  • Difficulty – Easy to Play

The King of raw aggression. Very few classes can stand toe to toe with a good Barbarian and live to tell the tale. Couple that with the addition of Bard and you have the top tier class. The Barbarian is a decent solo class with access to Savage Roar and Morale Boost. This allows Barbarian to walk through most PvE fights with ease.

As good as Barbarian is in solo play, it’s even better in a group. Combine the Barbarian’s damage output with the buffs of a Cleric and a Wizard and you have an un-killable wrecking ball. With the Barbarian’s “one shot” potential, every group needs one and every group needs to know how to deal with one as well. Also, with the addition of Bard, the Barbarian has the option (much like the Fighter) to play in a double buff comp alongside a Cleric and a Bard. When pre-buffed correctly, this allows the Barbarian to roll over anybody with very little worry.

Wizard

  • Overall – A Tier
  • Solo – A Tier
  • Group – A Tier
  • Difficulty – Skill Dependent

The Wizard is the most gear dependent class in Dark and Darker. That being said, a geared Wizard in the right hands holds elite status in both solo and group Play. In solo play, Meditation allows Wizards to use their powerful spells to wipe rooms with ease and be ready for the next battle. Fireball and Magic Missile give the Wizard excellent ranged damage. Couple this with the Wizards utility spells (Haste, Invisibility, and Ignite) and you have a potent solo class. With gear, the Wizard has the chance to be S Tier with the use of the Ignite Dive build, utilizing Arcane Barrier, Ignite and Haste/Invisibility.

The same reasons that Wizard is good in solo play, also makes it good in group play. Wizards can help hold areas in PvP with the threat of ranged burst damage and help keep enemy melee players from closing the gap. Next, the Wizards utility spells can be used on their allies. Igniting your Fighter’s or Barbarian’s weapon and sending them into battle with Invisibility is a great way to open up a PvP fight.

Fighter

  • Overall – A Tier
  • Solo – A Tier
  • Group – S Tier
  • Difficulty – Easy to Play

The Fighter lacks identity by design and is a worse version of most of the other classes. What it lacks in identity it makes up for in versatility. The Fighter has access to the best gear and weapons in the game. As of Early Access, the Fighter is the ultimate melee option for teamplay.

The Fighter is also user-friendly as a starter class and plays well solo with access to self-healing! Running around with a spear and bow can make PVE a breeze. A well geared Soldier is a scary sight for any PVP engagement and goes in with a chance to win any fight. Currently, the Fighter can stack plate armor with Physical Damage Reduction as a stat. This allows the Fighter to be nearly invincible to most of the meta (Ranger, other Fighters, melee etc). However, the Fighter is still notoriously weak to Magic.

Cleric

  • Overall – A Tier
  • Solo -S Tier
  • Group – S Tier
  • Difficulty – Intermediate

The Cleric can be a good start for new players in solo play. Clerics can choose Holy Purification and Sanctuary for easy PvE room clears or can just stick with Judgement for a versatile skill that is good for both PVE and PVP. The Cleric has a pretty decent match-up into most classes in both melee and medium range fights. This is due to the amount of healing & buffing the Cleric has available but also ranged damage spells, such as Holy Strike.

In Group play, he Cleric is the cornerstone to any good group composition. With access to the only group healing spells and extremely powerful buffs, there currently needs to be a cleric in every 3 man group.

Ranger

  • Overall – B Tier
  • Solo – A Tier
  • Group – B Tier
  • Difficulty – Easy to play

The Ranger has the perfect skill set for solo play. Great damage output at range and access to the spear places the Ranger in an elite place in solo play. Combine that with Field Ration and you have a recipe for the perfect solo class.

In group play, however, the Ranger loses some traction to the Wizard and Bard. The Ranger doesn’t offer the same utility as the Wizard with no access to group buffs. While the Bard provides an insane amount of utility and some DPS too. Despite this, the Ranger is still a decent selection as they can help deal with enemy Barbarians at range and can use a spear for melee.

Rogue

  • Overall – C Tier
  • Solo – B Tier
  • Group – C Tier
  • Difficulty – Intermediate

Compared to the other classes in Early Access, Rogue is in the worst position. With the Rise of Fighter, other melee classes struggle to find their place in group comps. With equal skill sets, a Fighter wins almost every matchup. The Rogue also suffers from the strength of the Spear and the weakness of the Stealth Mechanic. It should be noted too that the Rogue needs both good gear and a lot of skill to make work effectively, especially in High Roller.

Bard

  • Overall – A Tier
  • Solo – C Tier
  • Group – S Tier
  • Difficulty – Intermediate

The Bard is a powerhouse support class in Dark and Darker. In Solo Play it suffers due to the lack of teammates to buff, the attention you bring to yourself and finally, the lack of consistent damage output versus other classes. One fun feature is your ability to hit hard with Drums.

However, in a group setting the Bard is positioned right next to the Cleric as an almost “must-have” class in your team comp. Any team comp that follows a format of “Bard, Cleric, one DPS or frontline” is destined for great success. The Bard has access to many powerful buffs to share with the team. While the Bard lacks raw healing numbers like the Cleric, it makes up for it with incredible utility.

Warlock

  • Overall – B Tier
  • Solo – A Tier
  • Group – B Tier
  • Difficulty – Easy to play, hard to master

The Warlock is the most recent addition to the Dark and Darker roster. In solo play, the Warlock shines already with several great tools such as Summon Hydra. The Warlock can solo basically any major boss in the game and annihilates PvE with Hellfire. In terms of PVP, it can be hard to navigate at times. However, the Blow of Corruption is an incredible melee tool for turning a fight.

In group play, the Warlock currently doesn’t offer much utility to the team outside of a summonable pet to control space with. Instead, the Warlock relies on using raw damage to help the team. Until the class is truly finished, we don’t know the position the Warlock will truly sit in.

Druid

Druid in Dark and Darker is an upcoming Class to the dungeon delver. The Druid has access to powerful spells – namely Shapeshifting. Shapeshifting is a powerful mechanic exclusive to the Druid, allowing them to shift between animal forms. Currently, the Druid is not available in Dark and Darker, however, the release of the class is expected to be around April-May 2024.

Dark and Darker Class Tier List Conclusion

That concludes our Dark and Darker Class Tier List. For individual Class Guides make sure to check out the rest of our Dark and Darker Guides.