While there are plenty of decisions you’ll have to make while playing Lords of the Fallen, arguably the most important one is which class you’re going to start the game with. Aside from dictating what your initial stats will be — which is valuable to consider when planning out a character build — the class you pick also determines the gear you’ll have at your disposal when you take your first steps into Mournstead.
If you’re not sure which class to choose, don’t worry. Below, you’ll find a comprehensive overview of everything you need to know about each one. This includes what stats they have, what those stats do, all the gear each class begins the game with, and their overall strengths and weaknesses.
Lords of the Fallen: Class stats and attributes
Since the strengths and weaknesses of each of the Lords of the Fallen classes are primarily dictated by their stats and attributes, it’s important that you know what each of them does. Therefore, I’ve put together a quick list of each stat below that covers how they strengthen your character.
- Strength: Needed to use gear with Strength requirements. Increases physical damage.
- Agility: Needed to use gear with Agility requirements. Increases physical damage.
- Endurance: Governs stamina, maximum equipment load, and ammunition.
- Vitality: Governs HP, maximum equipment load, and ammunition.
- Radiance: Needed to use gear and spells that require Radiance. Also governs mana.
- Inferno: Needed to use gear and spells that require Inferno. Also governs mana.
What is the best Lords of the Fallen class?
True to the nature of Soulslike RPGs, Lords of the Fallen doesn’t have a definitive “best” class. Each class in the game fills a specific type of niche, ensuring that there’s always good choice available no matter how you’d like to build your character during your playthrough.
With that said, if I had to pick one class to recommend above the others, it’d be the Dark Crusader. Offering heavy armor protection, lots HP and stamina, great initial damage, and enough Strength and Radiance to instantly get a hybrid paladin-style build going, it has few — if any — weaknesses. You won’t be using it for Agility or Inferno setups, but beyond that, it’s phenomenal. Unfortunately, though, you can’t use it in your first playthrough unless you own the Deluxe Edition.
My other choice would probably be the Hallowed Knight, which is effectively a Dark Crusader with less Radiance, but a bit more durability thanks to their large shield that mitigates a lot of incoming damage when you block. I also found spears to be incredibly useful in my initial playthrough, so for that reason, I’d also say that the Mournstead Infantry class is up there as well.
Hallowed Knight class stats and gear
- Level: 15
- Stats: Strength 12, Agility 8, Endurance 15, Vitality 11, Radiance 9, Inferno 8
- Ammunition: 13
- Starting weapons: Hallowed Knight Sword, Hallowed Knight Shield, Grenade (3 ammo/throw)
- Starting armor: Heavy
- Bonus item: N/A
The Hallowed Knight is one of the easiest classes for players new to Lords of the Fallen, and also happens to be one of the best as well. With its large shield and heavy armor, you’ll be able to block and take more damage than any of the other nine classes (the special Dark Crusader class is the exception; more on it later).
Lots of Endurance results in a ton of stamina to work with, and thanks to 12 Strength, you can get an effective Strength build going soon after the start of your playthrough. The extra point in Radiance compared to most other non-magic classes means you’ll have a head start should you wish to go the paladin-style Strength/Radiance hybrid route.
While the Hallowed Knight has tons of ammo from its high Endurance and Vitality, the Grenade you start with requires three points of it per throw. Because of this, you may want to look for another ranged weapon soon after starting the game.
Udirangr Werewolf class stats and gear
- Level: 12
- Stats: Strength 16, Agility 10, Endurance 13, Vitality 10, Radiance 8, Inferno 8
- Ammunition: 9
- Starting weapons: Udirangr Werewolf Sword, Bloody Hatchet (2 ammo/throw)
- Starting armor: Light
- Bonus item: 2x Minor Fire Salts
The Udirangr Werewolf is the ultimate Strength-focused class for players that want to go all-in on damage early on and are willing to sacrifice good defenses. They hit extremely hard right out of the gate and their starting sword is excellent for cleaving crowds of enemies, but they can’t take much punishment. If you pick this class, you’ll need to be on point with your dodges.
Notably, the class also gets a pair of Minor Fire Salts consumables, which come in handy for buffing your weapon when you need some extra damage. I recommend saving them for boss fights.
Partisan class stats and gear
- Level: 12
- Stats: Strength 13, Agility 12, Endurance 12, Vitality 12, Radiance 8, Inferno 8
- Ammunition: 10
- Starting weapons: Partisan Flail, Partisan Shield, Partisan Crossbow (2 ammo/shot)
- Starting armor: Medium
- Bonus item: 3x Unripe Berries
Lords of the Fallen has a handful of different all-rounder classes, with the Partisan standing out as the one with the best crowd control. This is because the moveset of the flail you get with it includes lots of horizontal sweep attacks, and the attack speed of the weapon itself is fairly quick. The crossbow is a great ranged weapon, too, and Unripe Berries come in handy when you need to boost your stamina regeneration.
The shield and armor you get isn’t quite as protective as the Hallowed Knight’s, but it’s considerably better than what the lighter classes start with. And with near-equal amounts of Strength and Agility, you’ll be well on your way to a hybrid “quality” build that’s great for weapons that scale with both.
Mournstead Infantry class stats and gear
- Level: 12
- Stats: Strength 12, Agility 14, Endurance 12, Vitality 11, Radiance 8, Inferno 8
- Ammunition: 9
- Starting weapons: Mournstead Infantry Spear, Mournstead Infantry Shield, Short Javelin (2 ammo/throw)
- Starting armor: Medium
- Bonus item: Briostone Trio
The Strength and Agility-focused Mournstead Infantry class is extremely similar to the Partisan, with the main difference being its starting weapon. Whereas the Partisan’s flail is ideal for cleaving through large groups, the Mournstead Infantry Spear is perfect for poking at single enemies from a good distance away.
This class excels in battles against single targets as a result, though when you’re fighting several opponents, you’ll need to kite away from groups so you don’t get surrounded. Note that if you can get multiple enemies to line up, you can stab through them all.
Blackfeather Ranger class stats and gear
- Level: 8
- Stats: Strength 11, Agility 13, Endurance 11, Vitality 10, Radiance 8, Inferno 8
- Ammunition: 8
- Starting weapons: Blackfeather Ranger Axe, Blackfeather Ranger Shield, Blackfeather Ranger Bow
- Starting armor: Light
- Bonus item: 2x Ammunition Pouch
The third and final jack-of-all-trades class is a bit of an odd one. It has a low starting level of eight and relatively equal stats across the board, making it very easy to mold the class into whatever type of character you want to play as. The downside, though, is that you have poor armor and a less-protective shield. The axe is also a fairly mediocre weapon with average damage, short range, and a narrow hitbox when swung.
That said, the bow you get with it is fantastic, as it deals high damage despite its arrows only costing you one ammo point per shot. The Ammunition Pouch items you’re given also allow you to restock on arrows if you run out before reaching a new checkpoint.
Exiled Stalker class stats and gear
- Level: 10
- Stats: Strength 9, Agility 16, Endurance 11, Vitality 11, Radiance 8, Inferno 8
- Ammunition: 9
- Starting weapons: 2x Exiled Stalker Dagger, Lacerating Knife (1 ammo/throw)
- Starting armor: Light
- Bonus item: 3x Poison Salts
The Exiled Stalker is Lords of the Fallen’s nimble close-range assassin, capable of rapidly inflicting high damage thanks to speedy dual-wielded daggers and 16 Agility. You can also apply your Poison Salts to your daggers to apply a damage-over-time effect to bosses or tough enemies. Meanwhile, the Lacerating Blade throwables you get cause Bleed, which chunks a bunch of health off whatever you’re fighting once the status effect is applied.
The caveat here is that you have very light protection, so you’ll die very quickly when you take damage. Like with the Udirangr Werewolf, you can’t afford to screw up dodges or parries with this class.
Orian Preacher class stats and gear
- Level: 11
- Stats: Strength 10, Agility 8, Endurance 9, Vitality 11, Radiance 18, Inferno 8
- Ammunition: 8
- Starting weapons: Orian Preacher Hammer, Orian Preacher Shield, Orian Preacher Catalyst, Radiant Flare (Spell)
- Starting armor: Light
- Bonus item: 5x Small Manastone Cluster
If you’re interested in picking a class that’ll have easy access to Radiant spells that provide healing, Holy damage, and status effect cleanse buffs, you should opt for the Orian Preacher. Though the Radiant Flare spell you’ll start with is offensive in nature, there are several support-oriented spells you can get access to early. And since you begin the game with 18 Radiance, you’ll be able to wield them right away. 10 Strength also means this is another good class for setting up the paladin playstyle.
Unsurprisingly, the tradeoff here is near-useless armor and low stamina, so you’ll need to be careful about where and when you choose to cast your magic. Overall, this is a strong, but high-risk class that’s particularly effective in co-op.
Pyric Cultist class stats and gear
- Level: 10
- Stats: Strength 9, Agility 8, Endurance 11, Vitality 9, Radiance 8, Inferno 18
- Ammunition: 8
- Starting weapons: Pyric Cultist Staff, Pyric Cultist Catalyst, Infernal Orb (Spell)
- Starting armor: Light
- Bonus item: N/A
The Pyric Cultist is essentially a more aggressive, damage-focused version of the Orian Preacher. Instead of giving you the stats you need to use supportive Radiant spells, it has plenty for the use of destructive Rhogar ones. If you enjoy using pyromancies in Dark Souls, this class is for you.
Like the Orian Preacher, you’re getting poor protection from your armor. The Pyric Cultist’s starting HP is lower, too, though the class has better stamina to compensate for this.
Condemned class stats and gear
- Level: 1
- Stats: Strength 9, Agility 9, Endurance 9, Vitality 9, Radiance 9, Inferno 9
- Ammunition: 7
- Starting weapons: Broken Bucket, Throwing Rock (1 ammo/throw)
- Starting armor: Light
- Bonus item: N/A
This is pretty much the Lords of the Fallen version of Dark Souls’ Deprived or the Wretched in Elden Ring. Starting at level one with an equal nine points in each stat, worthless armor, and a literal bucket as a starting weapon, the Condemned is an extremely difficult class that we only recommend using if you’re an experienced player or Souls fan.
One advantage of the Condemned, though, is that its flat stat spread and low starting level means it’s basically a canvas that you can use to make highly specialized builds as you level up. Thus, it’s a terrible class for newcomers or those that want a strong early game start, but an amazing one for hardcore players and folks that want to min/max as much as possible.
Dark Crusader class stats and gear
- Level: 14
- Stats: Strength 12, Agility 8, Endurance 14, Vitality 14, Radiance 11, Inferno 8
- Ammunition: 13
- Starting weapons: Paladin Isaac’s Sword, Radiantburst Parchment (3 ammo/cost)
- Starting armor: Heavy
- Bonus item: Paladin’s Pendant (+2 Strength and +2 Endurance)
Though all players can unlock the Dark Crusader class by completing Paladin Isaac’s questline in their first playthrough, you won’t be able to use it until a second one unless you purchased the Deluxe Edition of Lords of the Fallen. If you did, though, you have access to what is arguably the best class in the game.
The best way to think of this class is as a variant of the Hallowed Knight with more Radiance, but a bit less protection due to the lack of a shield. It’s perfect for Strength/Radiance builds, and the longsword you start with is nearly as powerful as the Udirangr Werewolf’s. It’s also the only class that starts with a ring, which is the Paladin’s Pendant that gives a +2 buff to your Strength and Endurance.
What kind of Lampbearer will you be?
While I think the Dark Crusader, Hallowed Knight, and Mournstead Infantry classes are technically better than the others, don’t let that dissuade you from choosing one that sounds more enjoyable to you. The beautiful thing about RPGs is that every playstyle is usually viable, and that’s absolutely the case in Lords of the Fallen. Above all else, having fun is what matters.
Lords of the Fallen is available to play now on Xbox Series X|S and PS5 for $69.99, as well as on Windows PC (Steam and Epic Games) for $59.99. It’s quickly become one of my favorite Soulslikes ever, and is undoubtedly one of 2023’s best Xbox games and best PC games.
