The game is about to release and you don’t know what to play? It took me some time as well but in the end I have no doubt to the class I’ll play on release but how about you… still confused?

This little guide to classes touches a little on each, not trying to do an in-depth analysis of each but more how it “feels” when played so as to help you chose the class you will start out on. For an in-depth look into each class please refer to Blizzard's Class Guides.

There is one thing you have to always keep in mind though and that is that each class is great, some just take longer to emerge than others. For example the Mage shines right at the beginning while the Paladin doesn’t. However, if you give it some time they will not only emerge but shine as well.

So, here we go, I’ll present in alphabetical order all the classes WoW has to offer. Please remember that these are just my personal observations from having played every single one.

Druids

I would say this class really does it all: heal (and now even rez), tank, damage dealer and even cast offensive spells. So why doesn’t everyone play one? Because they are “masters of none”. You get to be a Healer but the Priest is better, tank but a Warrior is better, damage dealer but the Rogue is better and so on. Having said that, the flexibility you get by being able to replace any member your group maybe lacking is supreme.

With this class you can really fit into any role although to really shine you really should not be the primary healer. The Druid should be played offensively in groups until the main healer shouts OOM (out of mana) then you can shift out of your animal form and take over healing till the main healer is ok again.

Verdict: If you like the flexibility to play in any role but know that you are not a “full” replacement for any, this is the class for you.

Hunter

Until you reach level 10 you are basically a general melee class weaker than a Warrior and a Rogue but after this level is where you start to shine. After this level you can tame wild animals and make them your pets. You can train them in Growl (taunt), Bite and Swipe which are pretty efficient in doing damage and retaining agro on the pet. This is important as you are yes a good melee but an awesome ranged damage dealer. Even if its tempting to go up close to the target to engage them in melee resist the temptation and hit them with ranged… this is where you shine.

As you level and tame new pets you learn new abilities from them so its always good to tame as many as you can and see what you can learn from them. Once you learn all 3: Bite, Swipe and Cower (Growl is taught by the pet trainers at every 10 levels)  you will learn higher versions of these from higher animals you tame. Once learned you can teach your new pets those abilities. If you have a favourite pet, stable him at the stable master and go looking for a new pet to learn a new ability then teach your stabled one. Just remember not all pets can learn all you can teach them so chose wisely your main pet which will level along side you. 

Verdict: Fun class to play that is good at melee but excellent at ranged.

Mage

Bam, bam, dead. This is what playing a mage feels like. Strongest caster of all (direct damage) that has good crowd control tools and can summon food and water as well as teleport from one city to another and after level 40 can teleport the whole group.

This class is definitely fun right from the outstart. You just blast away and the enemy is dead within a short time. To compensate for this awesome power though mages are very mana hungry often having to sit down after a fight and consume their food and water that they just created. If you get 2 MOBs on you can just sheep one and for the next 20 seconds it will just eat the grass around it while you kill their friend. Should you still have enough mana after the fight you can then kill the sheep as well or just run to safety until you have enough mana to finish the job. Because of their crowd control ability, mages are usually a key component in instanced dungeon groups.

Verdict: Fun class to play that shines in raw output damage and crowd control

Paladin (alliance only)

This class starts out very slow and clumsy but at later levels begins to come out and shine. Although it can not do the same damage as a warrior it can tank as well, combined with all their auras and seals makes them a great group class. Auras are spells which the Paladin casts and all group members in his/hers immediate surrounding benefit from, like, armour buffs, damage shields and so on, these buffs don’t wear out and remain active all the time on all group members until they are in the Paladins immediate surrounding or the paladin switches to another aura. Seals (now called Blessings) are short buffs which increase the power of their group members like damage addition buffs that wear out after a certain time but are not dependent on the vicinity of the Paladin to the group.

Verdict: Very slow class to shine but once it does its fun and very group friendly.

Priest

This is probably the most sought out class in the whole game for groups. They have the best healing, and an “uber” combat shield they can cast on themselves and others which absorbs damage done to players and allows them to cast uninterrupted. They can also take control of humanoid NPCs and have them fight along side them for a set period of time.

This class is definitely a group class lacking raw damage output, although they can hold their own in any fight but at a slow pace.

Verdict: Players will love grouping with you, and if you like this then this is a very fun class to play. Just don’t expect to be the damage dealer of the group!

Rogue

This is one of the fastest classes that shines, although unmatched in your raw melee output power, you are also one of the fastest to get the unconditional attention of MOBs. In a perfect group you always need a class that can keep agro on themselves allowing you to keep backstabbing your opponent and dropping them fast. You will get a lot of moves that will make up for the lack of spells of this class. You will be able to stun opponents for long periods of time allowing you to “conveniently” move behind them and use your various backstabs, as well as finishing moves that DOT, slow, reduce armor and so on.

Rogues disappear in shadows and appear out of nowhere to place devastating blows on their opponents, rivaling the damage output of a mage if not surpassing it, just remember to try to keep the MOB’s focus on someone else in the group and that MOB will last a very short time!

Verdict: Fun class right off the bat and shines as the best melee damage dealer there is.

Shaman (Horde only)

Very fun class right of just as long as you use your totems wisely. Totems are the bread and butter of this class and should never be overlooked. Just by placing the right one in the ground you can turn the battle in your favor. The best example I can relate to this is when I fight NPC shamans, destroy their totems as they place them and they can be killed fast and easily, fail to do this and the battle will be VERY different.

Shamans get to place up to 3 totems into the ground as they fight just as long as they come from the 3 different categories they have: earth, wind and fire. A typical 3 trio of totems are AC buff (from the earth pool), Healing (from the wind pool) and a fire spitting totem (obviously from the fire line).

Shamans are also good healers in a group as they are not restricted in their casting as druids are when in animal form, so once they place their totems they can move in and melee with the MOBs, healing group members when required.

Verdict: Good all-round fun class that is slightly limited in their damage output.

Warlock

This is a strange class, that slowly begins to shine as you level up. The warlock gets very nice pets that are adept at fighting in different group or solo situations. The way that the warlock fights can make it a bit more a solo class because it does the job perfectly with little mana consumption but over time; basically the exact opposite of a mage.

Having said that, warlocks get great group utilities like rez stones, can summon people to them (with the help of 2 other group members) from anywhere in the world, get health stones that when clicked act as an emergency potion.

Verdict: Slow class to get to shine, that is a good solo class although it can bring nice utilities to a group.

Note: made a small correction, thank you to The Warlocks Den for pointing this out.

Warrior

This is the “meat-shield” of any group, the one that keeps MOBs attention centered on them and this for a reason, they are built to take punishment. The warriors raw output melee power is only second to that of the Rogue and like the rogue have many special moves that take away the need of spell casting, they just do them up close and personal.

Many people say that a Warrior and a Priest are the essential party members of any 5 man group as the Warrior avoids damage being done to other party members and the Priest keeps him/her in good fighting shape.

The warrior is the only class that can wear and use almost all types of equipment. When a nice axe, for example, drops and no one in the group can use it the warrior probably can and if it is better to what they are currently using they will.

Verdict: Very desirable in groups, strong “meat-shield” but, takes a little longer than other classes to really shine.