With just under two weeks to go before the release of Elden Ring, From Software has taken to Twitter to reveal two more of the game’s starting classes. The shadowy Bandit and the mystical Astrologer make their debut following the reveal of the Warrior, Vagabond, Hero, and the surprisingly creepy-looking Prisoner classes earlier in the month, and each comes with brief backstories elucidating some of the lore hiding in the wider world of The Lands Between.The Bandit is described as a dangerous character who stalks enemies in search of ideal opportunities and obvious weak points. They are also said to excel in ranged combat, suggesting that bows may be far more reliable than they were in the Dark Souls trilogy. Additionally, the Astrologer is said to be the “heir to the school of glintstone sorcery” and is likely to be adept in magics and sorceries, abilities which were heavily emphasized during Elden Ring’s network test.While they roughly align with the rogue and cleric fantasy archetypes, these classes both represent interesting new gameplay elements present in Elden Ring that weren’t very well fleshed out in previous From Software games. Along with their skills with a bow, the Bandit class in Elden Ring will likely be given to stealth, a mechanic that was central to Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice but virtually non-existent in Demon’s Souls, Dark Souls, and Bloodborne. Meanwhile, the mention of glintstone sorceries in association with the Astrologer may indicate more advanced spells that could potentially be crafted or are otherwise more complex than what’s been seen in the Souls titles.
These classes differ significantly from Elden Ring's previously-revealed Vagabond and Hero, both of which were fairly standard starter classes likely suited for strength builds. The Vagabond was more or less described as a standard armor-clad knight class, while the Hero seemed a variation of that same idea, albeit with a penchant for great axes.
Community reaction to the reveals on Twitter has been positive, but just about everything Elden Ring-related is met with incredible fanfare. The title is doubtlessly one of the most anticipated games of the year, and, more than two years after it was initially announced, many From Software fans can scarcely believe that the release month is finally here. There doesn’t seem to be a definite consensus among fans concerning the optimal starting class, and, with ten from which to choose, it’s ultimately up to the player’s preferred playstyle. Of course, those looking for a distinct challenge may choose the Wretch, which is objectively the hardest class to play as in Elden Ring.
Elden Ring is set to release on February 25 on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
