I did not realize that it was said that the Barbarian would be the only returning class from D2. Kind of a relief, but I'm curious as to where you read that.
The Barbarian is not the only class to return. It is the only class to return as a playable class. The Paladin, Necromancer, Druid or any of the other classes may return as either a NPC or an Enemy.
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-Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be lost. That is alchemy's First Law of Equivalent Exchange. In those days, we really believed that to be the world's one, and only, truth.
Diablo 3 will have 5 classes, same as Diablo II did (pre LOD)
The classes essentually, A Melee class, a ranged class a heavy spell caster, a second line melee class/Light Caster, and a Light Caster/Summoning class.
So in Diablo II we have the Barbarian (melee), Amazon (ranged), Sorceress (Heavy Caster), Paladin (second line melee class/Light Caster) and Necromancer (Light Caster/Summoning class)
This sort of 5 man team works quite well. It is an expansion of the 3 man team found in Diablo I. Melee, Ranged and Heavy Caster. Warrior, Rogue and Sorcerer.
So one would be inclined to think the 3 remaining classes that are yet to be announced for Diablo III would be a ranged class, a heavy spell caster and a light caster/second line melee class.
As the Melee class is taken by the Barbarian, and the Light Caster/Summoning class posistion is taken by the Witch Doctor.
So what (base) choices does that leave us with. As it has been stated that the Barbarian is to be the only class returning as aplayable character, I guess the Sorceress, Paladin and Amazon are out, at least in their D2 forms.
-So we need a ranged Chracter, someone who will primarily use a bow, Prehaps the Hunter Ranger. This architype is almost always synmonynous with a bow (primarily to stalk their prey). Definitely going to be some ranged class, though I would imagine it will have a name other than Hunter or Ranger, or Archer.
-Blizzard did say that the Barbarian is (supposedly) the only class to be returning as a playable class, but there are few mage types that are plausible as a decent class other than the "Sorcerer". A class which has appeared in both previous titles. One male one female naturally, but still largely the same class.
What other mage classes are there? Well there is the most basic type, Mage. Fairly vague but it would work, lots of Mage clans in Diablo, the class could be from anyone of them. The Sorcerer in Diablo 1 was from the Vizjerei, while the Sorceress in Diablo II was ofthe Zann Esu. So the "sorcerer" class is not clan specific. And neither is a vague term like mage. However the class lore always refers to one. So Mage might be too vague, so what do we have left.
Illusionist. A mage who specializes in creating illusions to confuse and mislead., While creating Mirror images and other false images is fun, I do not see a full class being made out of it. Also you have that horrible connectation with stage magicians.
Diviner: A mage who specializes in detection and divining magics. Now I enjoy Far Sight and True Sight as much as the next, and they no doubt come in handy, but much like the Illusionist, I do not see a full class being made out of it.
Transmuter:A mage who specializes in magic that alters physical reality. Polymorph (and Polymorph Other) Shapeshift, Morph and Transform. That is what this type of spell caster specializes in. Either turning himself (or herself) into something else, or turning someone or something into something else. Definitely fun, but again I don't see a full range of say 30 skills out of this class.
Abjurer: A mage who specializes in protective magics. Well that role in generally taken by the Light Caster and Second line Melee class. It is usually them that offers the protective bonuses not a mage. Mages are far more cooler unleashing hellish firestorms. So this class is most likely out.
Conjurer: A mage who specializes in creating creatures and objects to assist him. Much Like the Abjurer, this role is pretty much taken by another class. The Light Caster/Summoning. And in Diablo III we have the Witch Doctor for that.
Invoker: A mage who specializes in Invocation/Evocation magic. Well for those of you who don't really know what Evocation magic is, it is essentially Anything to do with large displays of Elemental mastery. And I do think such a class will appear again, it's quite the staple of the series. Both times the "Sorcerer" has appeared they have had a whole host of elemental spells. So this one is probably highly likely, Those not with that name.
-Second Line Melee/Light Casters are great, they offer some killer buffs, and are full capable of handling themselves should the get surrounded.
So what do we have available to us to fill this role. This role is primarily if not stereotypically, filled by some sort of healer. Even is it is only one skill (eg Holy Bolt)
First one that comes to mind is the cleric. The cleric is a generic priest who tends to the spiritual needs of a community. He is both protector and healer. He is not purely defensive, however. When evil threatens, the cleric is well suited to seek it out on its own ground and destroy it. Based on how big a part religion (the Zakarum) and the two polar opposites, The High Heavens and the Burning Hells, plays in Diablo, this class is not such a farfetched as it prehaps seems. clerics are generally battle-hardened warriors who are also able to tap into the higher powers and cast a wide assortment of either offensive or defensive spells. I imagine such as class will make an appearance, sort of a d3 version of the Paladin. Clearly.
Similar to the Cleric is the Priest. But this class tends to be much more spell oriented rather than skill oriented, that is buffs and healing magics, rather than being able to do any real damage themselves, why bother when can heal the crap of a barbarian and a host of summons. But that largely defys the point of second line Melee.
The other sort of class that comes to mind is actually the Paladin, or rather the various sub classes there of.
First you have the Cavalier. This class represents the most common picture of the knight; the gentlemanwarrior who epitomizes honor, courage and loyalty. Seems to be a popular choice around here from what I have seen. So perhaps it is something we want to see. One that work I think.
Another common subclass of the Paladin is the Inquistor. The Inquisitor has dedicated his life to finding and eliminating practitioners of evil magic and defeating the forces of darkness. This is your holy warrior of light type guy. He is bound by the doctrine he follows religiously. The convert the heathens, purge the land of it's taint type people. Inquisitors do appear in Diablo, So I think they are quite likely to appear as a playable class.
Essentually an extension of the Inquisitor is the Undead Hunter type Paladin. While the Inquisitor focuses on almost anyone they deem unholy, this holy avenger has honed his abilities towards the destruction of the undead and other unnatural creatures and is immune to many of their more devastating abilities. A fun type to play it is hard to get a full class out of it, it fits better as say a class build build around a few skills. Though focusing on one monster leads to problems, much like a sorceress who concentrates too heavily on one element.
I guess I am looking at the "Invoker" the "Ranger" and "Inquisitor" or "Cleric" Not really sure which, both seem plausible as the D3 equivalent of the Paladin.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
-Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be lost. That is alchemy's First Law of Equivalent Exchange. In those days, we really believed that to be the world's one, and only, truth.
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The Barbarian is not the only class to return. It is the only class to return as a playable class. The Paladin, Necromancer, Druid or any of the other classes may return as either a NPC or an Enemy.
The classes essentually, A Melee class, a ranged class a heavy spell caster, a second line melee class/Light Caster, and a Light Caster/Summoning class.
So in Diablo II we have the Barbarian (melee), Amazon (ranged), Sorceress (Heavy Caster), Paladin (second line melee class/Light Caster) and Necromancer (Light Caster/Summoning class)
This sort of 5 man team works quite well. It is an expansion of the 3 man team found in Diablo I. Melee, Ranged and Heavy Caster. Warrior, Rogue and Sorcerer.
So one would be inclined to think the 3 remaining classes that are yet to be announced for Diablo III would be a ranged class, a heavy spell caster and a light caster/second line melee class.
As the Melee class is taken by the Barbarian, and the Light Caster/Summoning class posistion is taken by the Witch Doctor.
So what (base) choices does that leave us with. As it has been stated that the Barbarian is to be the only class returning as aplayable character, I guess the Sorceress, Paladin and Amazon are out, at least in their D2 forms.
-So we need a ranged Chracter, someone who will primarily use a bow, Prehaps the Hunter Ranger. This architype is almost always synmonynous with a bow (primarily to stalk their prey). Definitely going to be some ranged class, though I would imagine it will have a name other than Hunter or Ranger, or Archer.
-Blizzard did say that the Barbarian is (supposedly) the only class to be returning as a playable class, but there are few mage types that are plausible as a decent class other than the "Sorcerer". A class which has appeared in both previous titles. One male one female naturally, but still largely the same class.
What other mage classes are there? Well there is the most basic type, Mage. Fairly vague but it would work, lots of Mage clans in Diablo, the class could be from anyone of them. The Sorcerer in Diablo 1 was from the Vizjerei, while the Sorceress in Diablo II was ofthe Zann Esu. So the "sorcerer" class is not clan specific. And neither is a vague term like mage. However the class lore always refers to one. So Mage might be too vague, so what do we have left.
Illusionist. A mage who specializes in creating illusions to confuse and mislead., While creating Mirror images and other false images is fun, I do not see a full class being made out of it. Also you have that horrible connectation with stage magicians.
Diviner: A mage who specializes in detection and divining magics. Now I enjoy Far Sight and True Sight as much as the next, and they no doubt come in handy, but much like the Illusionist, I do not see a full class being made out of it.
Transmuter:A mage who specializes in magic that alters physical reality. Polymorph (and Polymorph Other) Shapeshift, Morph and Transform. That is what this type of spell caster specializes in. Either turning himself (or herself) into something else, or turning someone or something into something else. Definitely fun, but again I don't see a full range of say 30 skills out of this class.
Abjurer: A mage who specializes in protective magics. Well that role in generally taken by the Light Caster and Second line Melee class. It is usually them that offers the protective bonuses not a mage. Mages are far more cooler unleashing hellish firestorms. So this class is most likely out.
Conjurer: A mage who specializes in creating creatures and objects to assist him. Much Like the Abjurer, this role is pretty much taken by another class. The Light Caster/Summoning. And in Diablo III we have the Witch Doctor for that.
Invoker: A mage who specializes in Invocation/Evocation magic. Well for those of you who don't really know what Evocation magic is, it is essentially Anything to do with large displays of Elemental mastery. And I do think such a class will appear again, it's quite the staple of the series. Both times the "Sorcerer" has appeared they have had a whole host of elemental spells. So this one is probably highly likely, Those not with that name.
-Second Line Melee/Light Casters are great, they offer some killer buffs, and are full capable of handling themselves should the get surrounded.
So what do we have available to us to fill this role. This role is primarily if not stereotypically, filled by some sort of healer. Even is it is only one skill (eg Holy Bolt)
First one that comes to mind is the cleric. The cleric is a generic priest who tends to the spiritual needs of a community. He is both protector and healer. He is not purely defensive, however. When evil threatens, the cleric is well suited to seek it out on its own ground and destroy it. Based on how big a part religion (the Zakarum) and the two polar opposites, The High Heavens and the Burning Hells, plays in Diablo, this class is not such a farfetched as it prehaps seems. clerics are generally battle-hardened warriors who are also able to tap into the higher powers and cast a wide assortment of either offensive or defensive spells. I imagine such as class will make an appearance, sort of a d3 version of the Paladin. Clearly.
Similar to the Cleric is the Priest. But this class tends to be much more spell oriented rather than skill oriented, that is buffs and healing magics, rather than being able to do any real damage themselves, why bother when can heal the crap of a barbarian and a host of summons. But that largely defys the point of second line Melee.
The other sort of class that comes to mind is actually the Paladin, or rather the various sub classes there of.
First you have the Cavalier. This class represents the most common picture of the knight; the gentlemanwarrior who epitomizes honor, courage and loyalty. Seems to be a popular choice around here from what I have seen. So perhaps it is something we want to see. One that work I think.
Another common subclass of the Paladin is the Inquistor. The Inquisitor has dedicated his life to finding and eliminating practitioners of evil magic and defeating the forces of darkness. This is your holy warrior of light type guy. He is bound by the doctrine he follows religiously. The convert the heathens, purge the land of it's taint type people. Inquisitors do appear in Diablo, So I think they are quite likely to appear as a playable class.
Essentually an extension of the Inquisitor is the Undead Hunter type Paladin. While the Inquisitor focuses on almost anyone they deem unholy, this holy avenger has honed his abilities towards the destruction of the undead and other unnatural creatures and is immune to many of their more devastating abilities. A fun type to play it is hard to get a full class out of it, it fits better as say a class build build around a few skills. Though focusing on one monster leads to problems, much like a sorceress who concentrates too heavily on one element.
I guess I am looking at the "Invoker" the "Ranger" and "Inquisitor" or "Cleric" Not really sure which, both seem plausible as the D3 equivalent of the Paladin.