Wartales is a tactical RPG about leading a band of mercenaries through a medieval world, and every one of them belongs to a class. The classes are the Archer, Brute, Crossbowman, Pugilist, Ranger, Spearman, Swordsman, Thaumaturge and Warrior. A class sets the weapons a mercenary can use, the skills they can learn and the role they play in battle, so it shapes how they fight. The original classes come with the base game, while the Pugilist, Crossbowman and Thaumaturge came later in free updates, so you don't need to buy an expansion to play them.
Class
Items
Archer
Deals damage from range with a bow and can support allies.
- Role
- Ranged damage, support
- Main Attribute
- Dexterity
- Weapon Types
- Bows
- Origin
- Base game
Brute
Breaks armor and hits groups with heavy mace or hammer attacks.
- Role
- Area damage, armor breaker
- Main Attribute
- Strength
- Weapon Types
- Maces and hammers (one-handed with a shield or two-handed)
- Origin
- Base game
Crossbowman
Uses a crossbow for bursts of ranged damage.
- Role
- Burst ranged damage
- Main Attribute
- Dexterity
- Weapon Types
- Crossbows
- Origin
- Free update with The Skelmar Invasion
Pugilist
Switches between offensive and defensive stances to fight at close range.
- Role
- Single-target damage, stance fighter
- Main Attribute
- Dexterity
- Weapon Types
- Katars (dual blades)
- Origin
- Free update with Pirates of Belerion
Ranger
Flanks enemies with light weapons and can weaken them with debuffs.
- Role
- Assassin, flanker, debuffer
- Main Attribute
- Dexterity
- Weapon Types
- Daggers, knives, and short swords
- Origin
- Base game
Spearman
Supports the warband from reach and controls space with polearms.
- Role
- Mid-range support, area denial
- Main Attribute
- Strength
- Weapon Types
- Polearms (spears, halberds, and glaives)
- Origin
- Base game
Swordsman
Takes a frontline role and supports the group with sword skills.
- Role
- Tank, group buffer
- Main Attribute
- Strength
- Weapon Types
- Swords (one-handed with a shield or two-handed)
- Origin
- Base game
Thaumaturge
Supports the group with healing, debuffs, and concoctions.
- Role
- Support, healer, debuffer
- Main Attribute
- Dexterity
- Weapon Types
- Censer and flask
- Origin
- Free update with The Curse of Rigel
Warrior
Fights on the front line with an axe as a damage dealer or tank.
- Role
- Frontline melee, damage and tank
- Main Attribute
- Strength
- Weapon Types
- Axes (one-handed with a shield or two-handed)
- Origin
- Base game
What Wartales Classes Do
A class is the role a mercenary is built around. It sets the weapons they can use, the skill tree they draw from and the specializations they can take later. A Brute swings maces and hammers, while an Archer uses a bow, so the same spot in your band can look completely different depending on the class you choose.
Armor is different. It's set by specialization rather than by class, so the path a mercenary takes later decides what they can wear. Mercenaries with the same gear can still fight very differently if their classes differ, which is why a strong band mixes roles instead of filling every spot with one favorite.
How Wartales Classes Level Up and Specialize
As a mercenary gains experience, you pick new skills from their class tree. Active skills are chosen and used in combat, and they cost Action Points or other resources such as Valour Points. Passive skills work on their own, giving steady bonuses or triggering when a set condition is met.
Specializations come as the mercenary grows. Each class offers several regular specializations, and you choose one, which narrows the mercenary toward a particular job. It helps to know what job you want from a mercenary before you reach that choice. The top step is the master class, which opens at level 15.
How to Get Wartales Classes
Every mercenary comes with a class already set, whether you hire them at a tavern or win over a prisoner. The Pugilist, Crossbowman and Thaumaturge arrived later, each in a free update released alongside an expansion: the Pugilist with Pirates of Belerion, the Crossbowman with The Skelmar Invasion, and the Thaumaturge with The Curse of Rigel. The updates are open to every player, so you don't need to buy any of those expansions to use these classes. This is worth knowing before you decide whether an expansion is worth buying for a single class.
How to Choose Wartales Classes by Role
There isn't a single best class, because each one solves a different problem in battle. A better question is which job your band is missing. Filling that gap will do more for your fights than adding another fighter just like the ones you already have.
The front line is held by the Swordsman, Warrior and Brute. The Swordsman is flexible, fighting with a shield or a two-handed weapon. The Warrior can take on one enemy or a whole crowd while guarding allies, and the Brute is the heavy anchor of the line.
Spearmen attack with reach, without stepping into melee, and their knockbacks give close-range allies room to work. Archers soften enemies before they reach your party, while Crossbowmen shoot from range but need to reload after each shot. Rangers are easy to mix up with Archers, but they fight with daggers, moving around to flank targets and poisoning them.
The Pugilist is a single-target damage dealer that fights up close with katars. The Thaumaturge is the support pick, healing allies, buffing the group and weakening enemies with its censer and flask.
A balanced party usually has a front-line anchor, a second fighter, a damage or flanking class, a ranged unit, and support where it fits. Keep Archers and Rangers out of contact whenever the map allows, since they're better at striking than at holding a line.
How to Unlock Hidden Specializations in Wartales
Most classes have a hidden specialization that sits alongside their regular ones. You unlock it by beating the champion of a region's arena, then speaking to a specific character in that same region who teaches the path. Because a hidden path can take a class in a different direction, it's worth checking once your band needs that role.
FAQ
Which Wartales classes can wear heavy armor?
Only the Brute, Swordsman and Warrior can, and only in certain specializations. The Brute gets it through Destroyer, the hidden Brawler and the Titan master class, the Swordsman through Protector and Fighter, and the Warrior through Sentinel. The Spearman, Pugilist, Crossbowman and Thaumaturge stop at medium armor, and the Archer and Ranger stay in light armor.
Which Wartales classes have a hidden specialization?
Every class except the Crossbowman and Thaumaturge has one. The Archer's is Marksman, the Brute's is Brawler, the Pugilist's is Tyrant, the Ranger's is Assassin, the Spearman's is Halberdier, the Swordsman's is Duellist and the Warrior's is Barbarian.
How does the Thaumaturge's censer work?
The Thaumaturge breathes in smoke from its censer to build up Inhalation stacks, up to two by default. Enhanced Lung Capacity raises that limit. Its concoction skills get stronger as the stacks rise, and Purge releases the stored smoke over an area as a buff or a debuff.
How do the Pugilist's stances work?
The Pugilist switches between an Attack stance and a Defense stance, and it can switch only once per round. Its Focus skill at level 5 makes the first attack apply the effects of both stances. Stance Mastery at level 8 adds a permanent toggle worth 20% more damage in Attack or 20% less damage taken in Defense.