Easiest class?

[Zelous]

Just bought the game, no looking to be all sweaty but enjoy myself. Whats the easiest build

[Vinnolo]

class doesnt matter, but arcane/bleed build is stupid easy, except for a few bosses that you cant bleed

[zero]

int based magic is cheap effective and strong, along with being safe in the back gives you more time to pelt.

[Ragu]

Plus 1 for Arcane bleed being the easiest, but strength colossal is pretty easy and fun too.

[Xengre]

All classes can be built the same basically. The only difference is the initial starting skew of stats and equipment.

[Sam]

Blasphemous blade faith build is super easy. that art of war destroys everything easily.
And heals you on top of that

[~♪]

Every build have advantages and weak points. It's more about what clicks with your personal playstyle.
Many say Samurai is a good newbie lvl class. But honestly the classes doesn't matter this much as later you'd be able to respec your stats anyway and starting gear is not unique and can be found later.
If you played souls games and have good reflexes to dodge; magic (INT + DEX) caster build is very strong (at least in base game) at distance but lacks defenses a bit, especially when you find a moonveil katana.
The easiest starting-friendly thing would be to keep VIG modestly leveled to 40 (first soft cap) so you can learn more without being too punished for your mistakes.
And fike few said above, bleed inducing weapons can be super strong vs a lot of bosses.
Experiment and have fun, Tarnished!

[Nihrahk]

Class doesn't matter, but the easiest overall to start with is vagabond.

[aoi-dabu D]

From the starting classes...
Vagabond has good armor and good mobility if you unequip one of the weapons.

Confessor Starts with a good shield and healing spells which mean you don't have to return to checkpoints as often

Samurai probably has the best all around kit, with a good bow and a strong melee weapon that can do burst damage. The samurai also has good armor but a good shield would be procure in world.

The Astrologer and the Prisoner both allow you to plink from a distance with magic but neither is particularly good in melee, though Prisoner is better in melee.

If you don't care so much about your defenses, Warrior and Hero will do good damage.

Prophet is okay but also has ♥♥♥♥ defenses.

Bandit is not good if you are a total noob.

DO NOT PICK Wretch

[Lord Bob]

The most versatile starting class is probably Samurai, in my opinion. You get a ranged option, and up close your weapon deals decent damage, while it's Ash of War hits like a truck. Also you apply bleed with each hit of your sword. On top of all that, this class starts with a shield which can be used to parry.

As others already suggested, starting classes don't really matter outside of minmaxing your character for the late game. Every build will carry you until the end, but be advised that some skill is needed to properly beat and enjoy the game, at least in my opinion.

It's not about the destination, but about the journey

[Vagrant]

Vaguabond because you start with an Halberd.

[~♪]

However, I have to also say; If you plan on min-maxing later for the late game someone wrote a comparison what classes are best for specified builds so you won't waste levels.

Quality (Strenght+Dex) - Vagabond
Strength/Int - Prisoner
Strength/Faith - Confessor
Dex/Faith - Confessor
Dex/Int - Prisoner
Int/Faith - Confessor
Strength/Arcane - Hero
Dex/Arcane - Bandit
Int/Arcane - Astrologer
Faith/Arcane - Prophet
Pure Strength - Hero
Pure Dex - Warrior
Pure Int - Astrologer
Pure Faith - Prophet
Pure Arcane - Bandit

[aoi-dabu D]

As far as build is concerned, Look up The Marais Executioner's Sword and all the things that synergize with it. Just stack all the different "quick successive attack" buffs. You can kill the final boss of the DLC with like 4 or 5 uses of its weapon skill.

[LuckyCheshire]

I'll ditto the majority, you can have a very easy or a very hard time with any class or build depending on how you play, but Bleed or pure strength bonking are the easiest approaches. As for the starting classes, they really don't matter that much, but the Samurai has the best armor going by stats/weight, and a very good starting weapon.

[Alby]

You didn’t beat the game unless you played as a wretch.


Kidding lol, could you imagine somebody being a gatekeeper to a video game? Hahaha ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ cringe.

Anyway, probably the tankiest class, but they’re all pretty solid, friend

[Ironwu]

Originally posted by Zelous:

Just bought the game, no looking to be all sweaty but enjoy myself. Whats the easiest build

Samurai for sure.

Here is the first of a 3 part complete build guide to go all the way to Elden Lord.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQmQUOzGzcM&list=WL&index=2&t=1826s

Note that the author is an experienced player and does not directly guide through the story and required quest lines. So here is a guide to the main story line questing and activities:

https://www.shacknews.com/article/129749/main-story-walkthrough-elden-ring

Explore the world. Learn your weapon moves. Have fun! :)

Good Luck