Tera Classes Guide

Picking a class is one of the most important things players go through when trying a new game. There are seven different races and everyone has their own reasons for picking one; combine that with 8 different classes, and you get many possible class/race combos, and picking the best one may not just be a matter of personal preference.

Everyone has their own style of play though, so this guide will provide you with a beginners breakdown of all classes in TERA than what you can usually find:, their basic gameplay style, an example of a few abilities and their base stats. Hopefully this guide will help you pick the right one. Before we get to it though, there are two things you should know:

1. Every class has a damage and weapon damage rating. There’s no difference between physical and magical damage making damage resistance items obsolete. Instead, you can build resistances to critical hits, stuns, knockdowns and similar forms of crowd control.
2. All classes except the Priest and Mystic have a “Backstep” skill, which is the main dodge skill.

That being said, there are 4 class archetypes in TERA:

• Tanking: Lancer, Warrior
• Melee DPS: Berserker, Slayer
• Ranged DPS: Archer, Sorcerer
• Support: Mystic, Priest

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Tanking Classes

Lancer

Lancers are the primary tanks in TERA, though as with primary tanks in most games, they are far and few between. They wield a large shield and lance, wear heavy armor, and have the second highest HP pool out of all eight classes. Their damage rating is the third lowest (Priest and Mystic having the lowest damage rating), but this is off-set by their survivability. And of course, they have an AoE taunt.

Lancers are not only sturdy, but one of their skills blocks 100% of all damage taken from the front and, partially, the sides. In general, DPS classes will attempt to skirt around behind the Lancer, but a good Lancer can simply re-position his or her shield block. Lancers also have a self-heal, which obviously can be a life saver.

This class also has an excellent technique for getting away (or catching up), which is their forward-charging dash. This skill seems to have a high knock-down rate when it hits, but it is also worth mentioning that this skill causes the Lancer to run faster than mounted players as well. So if someone mounts up to try and get away, the Lancer can chase them down and knock them off their horse. Alternatively, they can use it to get away, or to catch up to ranged classes.

Base Class Stats

Vitality Stats

• HP: 689
• MP: 100/100
• MP Regen Rate: +5 per second in and out of combat.

Basic Stats

• Damage: 49
• Defense: 29
• Movement Speed: 105 in combat
• Critical Hit: 50

Resistance Stats

• Critical Hit: 80
• Root/Hold: 55
• Poison/Disease: 40
• Addiction: 25
• Confusion: 40

Equipment Stats

• Weapon Damage: 10
• Armor: 33

Basic Attack Info

• Direction: Forward
• Range: 5M
• Target-Type: Line
• Attack Speed: 0.5
• MP Change: +5 per attack.

Abilities

Level	Skill	Description
1	Combo Attack	A series of strikes that escalate in damage and charge up your mana.
1	Stand Fast	Block frontal attacks with your shield for as long as you hold down the key. Better gear blocks more damage. Allies behind you also get damage reduction.
2	Shield Barrage	Move forward, battering targets with your shield. Repeat the attack for a chance to stun them.
4	Spring Attack	Leap at your foe and strike a hard blow. You can quickly launch this skill right after Shield Bash, Shield Barrage, or the fourth consecutive hit of Combo Attack.
6	Shield Bash	Briefly stun one or more foes.
8	Charging Lunge	Charge a short distance and impale your target.
12	Retaliate	Leap to your feet while attacking your target if you’re knocked down.
14	Second Wind	Instantly replenish some of your health.
18	Challenging Shout	Draw the attention of enemies nearby, as well as some aggro.
20	Onslaught	Rush your foe in a series of lunges. While lunging, you’re steadier on your feet and take half damage.
22	Guardian Shout	Your courage massively boosts your party’s endurance. Does not apply to you, and ends if you are knocked down.
26	Shield Counter	Gain a chance to shield-thump your foe while using the Stand Fast skill. You can’t be knocked down or immobilized, and take half damage while using the skill.
26	Leash	Throw a magical hook and chain that drags an enemy toward you. Won’t work on huge opponents.
28	Debilitate	Briefly drain the endurance of your foes. Stacks up to three times.
32	Menacing Wave	Blast a wave that slows the movement and attacks of nearby enemies.
36	Iron Will	You absorb damage through sheer willpower, consuming mana to soak damage.
42	Master’s Leash	Throw another hook to pull the target nearer. You can use this skill only after using Leash.
46	Lockdown Blow	Deliver a crippling attack, hampering your target’s movement.
50	Infuriate	Infuriate all nearby monsters and max out your aggro.
56	Pledge of Protection	Absorb damage done to other group members around you taking it on yourself. Your defense determines how much damage you take.
58	Adrenaline Rush	Speed up your attacks to move in for the kill.

Glyphs

Starting at level 20, glyphs can be applied to customize your lancer’s skills in a variety of ways. Here are some samples:

• Energetic Charging Lunge: Speeds the cooldown of your Charging Lunge.
• Energetic Second Wind: Reduces the skill’s cooldown, so you can recover more quickly.
• Lingering Debilitate: Your enemies are weakened by Debilitate even longer.
• Longshot Leash: Increases the range of your Leash skill.
• Threatening Challenging Shout: Your Challenging Shout draws even more enemy attention.
• Threatening Combo Attack: Your basic attack draws even more aggro.
• Threating Shield Counter: Add insult to injury, and generate more aggro with your Shield Counter skill.

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Warrior

Warrior is the second and last tank in TERA. Warrior’s wield duel swords, wear light armor, and have the highest HP pool and movement speed out of all eight classes. Furthermore, Warrior attacks are an arc – meaning they are not purely single-target characters. If you and your buddy are in the path of the swinging swords, you will both get hit, instead of just one of you. Warrior’s damage rating is higher than a Lancer, making them third lowest; they are positioned between Sorcerer (lower) and Slayer (higher) on the damage rating.

Warriors are classified as the evasion tanks of TERA. They have fewer taunt options than a Lancer, but their higher DPS, as well as an AoE stun, make them a viable option as a tank. Warriors are a similar play style to rogues and assassins in other MMO’s, but lack the stealth feature. Stealth is a skill that the TERA developers did not want to add to the game for any of the classes, as it is too game-breaking in PvP.

Warriors have a great technique for getting away or catching up to someone, although I personally do not believe it is as good as a Lancer’s. Warrior’s dodge is a great way to get away or chase someone; the simple flaw with this is the animation is different for each race. While a Castanic Female Warrior’s dodge is a fancy leap (which can leap over attacks), other races must suffice with a roll or somersault. Because of this, the majority of Warriors are generally Female Castanics; the smaller hitbox of the female Castanic also plays a role in this, as Warriors are a tank that shouldn’t be getting hit by what they are fighting.

Base Class Stats

Vitality Stats

• HP: 903
• MP: 100/100
• MP Regen Rate: +5 per second in and out of combat.

Basic Stats

• Damage: 66
• Defense: 24
• Movement Speed: 120
• Critical Hit: 50

Resistance Stats

• Critical Hit: 80
• Root/Hold: 55
• Poison/Disease: 40
• Addiction: 25
• Confusion: 40

Equipment Stats

• Weapon Damage: 11
• Armor: 17

Basic Attack Info

• Direction: Forward
• Range: 2M
• Target-Type: Arc
• Attack Speed: 0.4
• MP Change: +5 per attack.

Abilities

Level	Skill	Description
1	Combo Attack	Strike one or more targets in front of you, and gain mana (and do more damage) with each hit.
1	Evasive Roll	Dodge forward past your enemy.
2	Rain of Blows	Execute a flurry of sword swings while advancing on your foe, taking less damage while you do so.
4	Vortex Slash	As a chain from Evasive Roll or Death From Above, swing your swords in a wide arc for more damage.
6	Combative Strike	Sacrifice health to deal a decisive attack, weakening the Endurance of your targets.
8	Rising Fury	Whirl out your blades; the lower your health, the greater the damage you do. You take less damage while attacking, and can swing twice if you want.
10	Assault Stance	Feed your strength and chance of critical hits by sacrificing some endurance and mana.
10	Defensive Stance	Raise your endurance and draw more aggro with attacks.
12	Retaliate	After being knocked down, leap to your feet while attacking your target.
14	Battle Cry	Your warlike shout draws high aggro from nearby foes, and may stun them.
18	Torrent of Blows	Swing your swords in a wide arc, drawing high aggro from surrounding enemies. You are also less vulnerable to damage, knockdown and invulnerability.
18	Smoke Aggressor	Sacrifice some health to summon a powerful spirit fighter, who retains your aggro level from enemies.
22	Poison Blade	Your swords poison your foe over time. Does less damage to other players.
22	Pounce	Jump at a foe and slash them, slowing them and taking half damage while you attack.
24	Leaping Strike	Leap on your foe and smash downward. If your opponent’s prone, you may do enormous damage.
26	Death From Above	Your blow catches enemies by surprise. You’re invulnerable while you strike.
28	Traverse Cut	Make three quick lunges, draining your target’s endurance. You can activate this skill faster and attack repeatedly if you chain from Pounce or Combative Strike.
28	Blade Draw	Stab, then slash your target as you draw your weapon from the wound. Faster as a chain from other skills.
30	Charging Slash	Charge your target, drawing high aggro.
32	Mangle	Spend mana, and your fourth Combo Attack cuts your foe’s speed substantially.
42	Backstab	Speed in and make a lethal, immobilizing thrust to your target’s back.
48	Deadly Gamble	Risk critical hits to raise your chance of inflicting them.
54	Staggering Counter	If you’re hit, counterattack and briefly stun your targets.
58	Cascade of Stuns	Slash a target in front of you. If you hit a stunned target, the stun spreads to nearby enemies.

Glyphs

Starting at level 20, glyphs can be applied to customize your warrior’s skills in a variety of ways. Here are some samples:

• Energetic Death From Above: Your skill cools down faster.
• Grounded Defensive Stance: The stance now raises your endurance as well.
• Lucky Battle Cry: Boosts your Battle Cry’s chance of stunning.
• Threatening Battle Cry: Your Battle Cry generates extra aggro.
• Threatening Torrent of Blows: Your Torrent of Blows generates extra aggro.
• Binding Torrent of Blows: Your Torrent of Blows may immobilize those it hits.
• Persistent Evasive Roll: Your Evasive Roll gains a chance to refresh immediately upon use.

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Melee DPS Classes

Berserker

Berserker is the first Melee DPS class I will cover. Berserker’s wield giant axes, wear heavy armor and have the highest weapon damage rating; tied with an Archer. Their damage rating is second only to Archer. Their crit rate is highest; tied with Slayers. Berserkers for some time were mistaken as a third possible tank, due to the fact that they also wear plate armor. This however is certainly not the case, although if pressed a Berserker can tank, it is not a viable options. Berserkers are meant to attack from behind along with the other DPS classes. Despite their heavy armor, they can be blown up pretty quickly whether it’s by a monster or by another player.

Berserkers are the slowest Melee DPS class, with an attack speed of 0.7 which is matched only by Sorcerer. Despite this slow attack speed, Berserkers can crank out a great deal of damage, with their high damage and weapon damage ratings. Their range is only a short three meters, but this is offset by the splash damage effect of their skills, and the spin of their charge-up technique.

Berserkers have become notorious for their ability to one-shot almost every other class, which obviously appeals greatly to many players. Berserkers are quite possibly one of very few classes that can give a Lancer a difficult time, seeing as their heavy armor mitigates much of a Lancer’s already poor DPS, as well as their ability to hit extremely hard.

The splash damage of a Berserker is slightly less than the damage dealt by a full-on hit, but is still absolutely devastating if it crits. As an Archer I personally fought against a Berserker in a 5v5 fight, and was one-shot by the splash damage of a Berserker. This damage hit me for 16,000 which is four thousand HP over what my health would have been if I were at full health. Those who were in the direct path of his hit and were also crit were hit for nearly 20,000 if not higher depending on their armor type.

Base Class Stats

Vitality Stats

• HP: 650
• MP: 0/100
• MP Regen Rate: +10 per second while in combat, -20 per second while out of combat.

Basic Stats

• Damage: 78
• Defense: 26
• Movement Speed: 105
• Critical Hit: 75

Resistance Stats

• Critical Hit: 40
• Root/Hold: 20
• Poison/Disease: 35
• Addiction: 20
• Confusion: 15

Equipment Stats

• Weapon Damage: 14
• Armor: 33

Basic Attack Info

• Direction: Forward
• Range: 3M
• Target-Type: Varies
• Attack Speed: 0.7
• MP Change: +10 per attack.

Abilities

Level	Skill	Description
1	Combo Attack	The berserker’s bread and butter: a series of strikes that charge mana and do more damage with each hit.
1	Axe Block	Block frontal attacks with your weapon. The better your axe, the more damage you can block.
2	Cyclone	Charge up your rage, then release it and spin your axe in a circle, chopping into anyone nearby.
4	Flatten	Pound the ground, stunning those nearby.
8	Thunder Strike	Charge up your axe attack for one deadly stroke.
10	Triumphant Shout	Your battle madness restores your mana and keeps it from decaying.
12	Retaliate	Leap to your feet while attacking your target if you’re knocked down.
16	Vampiric Blow	Charge up a mighty swing that also steals health from your target for yourself.
20	Tenacity	Call on inner reserves to instantly replenish mana.
22	Fiery Rage	Sacrifice endurance to boost your strength.
24	Leaping Strike	Jump at your foe and smash down on them. If they’re knocked down, you can even do extra damage.
26	Mocking Shout	Stun your nearby enemies and knock them down.
30	Unchained Anger	Your anger consumes your health but fuels your mana.
32	Dash	Increase your speed to get to the next fight that much faster.
36	Lethal Strike	A powerful strike that you charge up with health rather than mana.
40	Staggering Strike	A sweeping attack that briefly stuns and turns your target around.
46	Fearsome Shout	Monsters nearby briefly flee from you.
52	Bloodlust	You’re nearly unstoppable, with greater strength and resistance to stuns and trips. If you’re fighting other players, you also do bonus damage.
56	Flurry of Blows	All your attacks are faster while this skill is active.
58	Inescapable Doom	Those nearby you are so frightened they move more slowly. If they’re players, they can’t use their evasion and movement skills.

Glyphs

Starting at level 20, glyphs can be applied to customize your berserker’s skills in a variety of ways. Here are some samples:

• Balancing Tenacity: Greatly boosts your resistance to knockdowns and immobility.
• Carving Combo Attack: Your Combo Attack has greater odds of scoring a critical hit.
• Empowered Vampiric Blow: Boost the damage of your Vampiric Blow.
• Energetic Tenacity: Your Tenacity skill cools down faster.
• Fleetfooted Fiery Rage: You both move and attack faster.
• Hastened Cyclone: Your Cyclone skill charges up faster.
• Mindsparked Axe Block: When you block, you regain some mana.
• Slick Thunder Strike: While charging your Thunder Strike, you can move at your normal speed.
• Spirited Combo Attack: Your combos generate even more mana.
• Swift Flatten: Your Flatten attack lands faster.

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Slayer

Slayers are the second and last Melee DPS class of TERA. Slayer’s wield giant swords, wear light armor, and have the third highest damage rating. They are tied for highest critical hit rate with Berserkers. They also have the second-highest weapon damage rating! Slayers were also for some time thought to be a viable option for tanking in TERA, but lack of a proper taunt means they must out-damage the rest of their group while also attempting to dodge the majority of incoming attacks. Due to the complexity of tanking as a Slayer, and their squishiness, they are not a viable option as a tank. As with Berserker and the Ranged DPS classes, they are meant to flank their enemies and attack from behind or the sides where they will hopefully not be hit.

Slayer’s are in the mid-range of attack speed, a 0.6 which they are tied with Priest and Mystic for. While they are rather squishy if caught, they have greater mobility than a Berserker. With self-buffs for run speed, coupled with a ranged sword strike; they are a worthy opponent for the Ranged DPS classes, in some cases considered the counter class for Archers and Sorcerers.

Slayer’s damage out-put is slightly lower than that of a Berserker, but their faster attack speed, ranged attack, and movement speed buffs more than make up for it. While a great majority of Berserkers can be kited in circles, Slayers are extremely difficult to outrange, seeing as their ranged attack has a range of fourteen meters; this is only one meter less than the range of a Archer or Sorcerer’s base attacks, and four meters longer than the range of a Priest or Mystic.

Slayers are said to be the closest to an Assassin or Rogue as you will get. Despite their lack of dual wield, their feel, damage, and the way they play are more similar to an Assassin than any other class.

Class Base Stats

Vitality Stats

• HP: 648
• MP: 0/100
• MP Regen Rate: +10 per second while in combat, -20 per second while out of combat.

Basic Stats

• Damage: 71
• Defense: 21
• Movement Speed: 110
• Critical Hit: 75

Resistance Stats

• Critical Hit: 40
• Root/Hold: 20
• Poison/Disease: 35
• Addiction: 20
• Confusion: 15

Equipment Stats

• Weapon Damage: 13
• Armor: 17

Basic Attack Info

• Direction: Forward
• Range: 3M
• Target-Type: Arc
• Attack Speed: 0.6
• MP Change: +10 per attack.

Abilities

Level	Skill	Description
1	Combo Attack	Strike one or more targets in front of you, and gain mana (and do more damage) with each hit.
1	Evasive Roll	Dodge forward past your enemy.
2	Whirlwind	Spin with your sword, hitting any enemies in reach.
4	Knockdown Strike	Bowl your enemy over with a mighty swing of your sword.
8	Headlong Rush	Charge forward, and make your next attack with much greater speed while the adrenaline lasts.
10	Triumphant Shout	Stoke your spirits, restoring mana and retaining it for longer than usual.
12	Retaliate	After being knocked down, leap to your feet while attacking your target.
16	Overhand Strike	Swing downward for a massive blow. You swing faster if you use this right after one of your other melee attacks.
18	Startling Kick	Batter and briefly stun your target with a kick, then leap backward.
20	Tenacity	Call on your inner reserves to instantly recover some mana.
22	Distant Blade	Strike at a target nearby up to three times with a magic extension of your sword.
24	Leaping Strike	Pounce on your foe and smash downward. If the target had been knocked down, you do massive bonus damage.
26	Stunning Backhand	Batter your foes with the flat of your sword, briefly stunning them.
30	Fury Strike	Lash out with your sword; the lower your health, the greater the damage.
32	Dash	Temporarily increase your movement speed.
38	Heart Thrust	Step forward, driving your blade into any enemies in front of you.
44	Exhausting Blow	Strike a painful blow that slows other players’ reactions by increasing their skill cooldowns.
50	Overpower	Gather your might for a decisive blow on your next attack.
56	Backstab	Sprint in and make a lethal, immobilizing thrust to your target’s back.
58	In Cold Blood	Summon greater strength. Does bonus damage against other players.

Glyphs

Starting at level 20, glyphs can be applied to customize your slayer’s skills in a variety of ways. Here are some samples:

• Brilliant Leaping Strike: Your Leaping Strike costs less to use.
• Empowered Knockdown Strike: Your Knockdown Strike does extra damage.
• Energetic Tenacity: Reduces the cooldown of your Tenacity skill.
• Fleetfooted Evasive Roll: Gain a chance of raising your movement speed whenever you use Evasive Roll.
• Grounded Triumphant Shout: Fortifies your endurance.
• Lingering Startling Kick: Enemies hit by Startling Kick stay stunned longer.
• Persistent Evasive Roll: Your Evasive Roll gains a chance to refresh immediately upon use.
• Powerlinked Knockdown Strike: Substantially increases the damage of your Whirlwind skill when used after Knockdown Strike.
• Restorative Overhand Strike: Recover some health whenever you use Overhand Strike.
• Spirited Triumphant Shout: Your Triumphant Shout regenerates more mana than usual.

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Ranged DPS Classes

Archer

Archers are what I like to call the snipers of TERA. Their play style is very reminiscent of snipers, seeing as in PvP and boss fights they tend to snipe the primary target with their charge up shots; Penetrating Arrow and Radiant Arrow. As is typical of Archer classes, Archers wield a bow, and wear light armor. But here is where Archers differ from the norm; they do not require ammo. Archers in TERA have unlimited ammunition, which is explained by the developers as the arrows technically being “magic”. Due to this, bows are classified as magical weapons when it comes to crafting.

Archers have the highest damage rating, weapon damage rating, and range (fifteen meters), but have the second lowest HP pool of all eight classes. Despite their low HP pool, they are not quite as fragile as other ranged/support classes due to the fact they wear light armor, and not cloth. Their use of light armor, as well as their dodge skills increases their survivability greatly; but as always in TERA it is up to the player to make proper use of these defenses.

It is worth mentioning that the 15 meter range applies only to their base attack (left click by default). Skills such as Penetrating Arrow have a range of 17-19 meters, and can have their range increased by Glyphs. At maximum, Penetrating Arrow’s range can be increased to roughly 21 meters with Glyphs. That being said, the farther away you are the less damage you deal.

Archers are a single-target DPS class, although they do have a minor Lock-On AoE. In later levels they will have one or two more AoE options, but the majority of their skills are single-target. That being said, their initial charge up skill that they acquire (Penetrating Arrow) can damage multiple targets if they are bunched closely together or are stacked on top of each other. Thus the “Penetrating” in the skill name. Penetrating Arrow is the first of two charge up skills that Archer gets, the second being Radiant Arrow, which is nearly identical but is purely single-target unlike its predecessor. Due to being purely single-target, Radiant Arrow is capable of putting out even more damage than Penetrating Arrow, but its range is slightly shorter as well to compensate.

As in other MMO’s, Archers in TERA have a variety of Traps. Originally, there were four different trap skills available to Archer. However, with the incredible strength of Poison Arrow on their side already, Archer’s poison trap was removed. The first trap an Archer gets is called Cobweb Trap. As you might imagine, this trap is an AoE snare. The second trap that an Archer acquires is called Incendiary Trap. This trap is pretty simple; it does AoE damage, and that’s about it. Our third and last trap, is Concussion Trap; quite possibly my favorite. Concussion Trap is an AoE stun, and with the use of glyphs, the duration of the stun can be increased by 40%.

Archers are a very mobile class due to their ranged nature. Albeit squishy, their ability to kite, dodge, and their high DPS makes them a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield. An Archer’s role both in PvE and PvP are to focus the main target; generally whatever the tank is occupying. Due to their single-target nature, they are very useful for quickly blowing up a single target. Coupled with their debuff (Mark of Velik) which causes the Archer to deal 10% more damage to the marked target, and Sniper’s Eye which increases strength by 50, and adds an additional 25% damage in PvP (though decreases attack speed by 30%) they can increase their damage against the main target by a significant amount.

If there is a Lancer in the Archer’s group, the Lancer can use one of his skills to further decrease the target’s defense. This lethal combination can result in the Archer critical hitting PvP targets for all of their HP. Warrior also has a similar skill known as Combative Strike, which is acquired at LV6.

And of course with Close Quarters (melee-range AoE stun), Backstep (dodge), and Breakaway Bolt (dodge with damage), Archers have a wonderful slew of abilities they can use to outrange or escape their foes.

Class Base Stats

Vitality Stats

• HP: 598
• MP: 50/50
• MP Regen Rate: +5 per second in and out of combat.

Basic Stats

• Damage: 81
• Defense: 27
• Movement Speed: 110
• Critical Hit: 25

Resistance Stats

• Critical Hit: 30
• Root/Hold: 20
• Poison/Disease: 35
• Addiction: 20
• Confusion: 15

Equipment Stats

• Weapon Damage: 14
• Armor: 17

Basic Attack Info

• Direction: Forward
• Range: 15M
• Target-Type: Single Target
• Attack Speed: 0.5
• MP Change: -4 per attack.

Abilities

Level	Skill	Description
1	Arrow	A basic arrow that’s strongest at close range.
1	Backstep	Quickly dodge back out of harm’s way.
2	Arrow Volley	Lock onto and hit several targets with one shot.
4	Penetrating Arrow	An arrow that does more damage the longer you charge it, piercing whoever it hits.
6	Slow Trap	Drags down the movement speed of anyone near it when it goes off.
8	Close Quarters	Bash an enemy with your bow, potentially stunning it.
10	Breakaway Bolt	Fire an exploding arrow at your feet, leap clear, and then watch the fireworks.
12	Retaliate	Leap to your feet while attacking your target. You can use this skill only when knocked down.
14	Rapid Fire	Quickly fire up to seven arrows off in succession.
15	Radiant Arrow	A very powerful single shot that does more damage the longer you charge it.
22	Poison Arrow	Shoot an arrow dripping with lethal poison. Does less damage to far-off targets and other players.
24	Final Salvo	As a chained skill from Radiant Arrow or Penetrating Arrow, you rapid-fire up to five arrows at whoever’s still standing.
26	Stunning Trap	Set a trap that briefly staggers the victim. The trap lasts for 20 seconds or until triggered.
26	Incendiary Trap	A magical landmine that blasts anyone near it when it goes off.
30	Velik’s Mark	Mark a single opponent and do extra damage whenever you hit it.
38	Feign Death	Deceive monsters by pretending to be dead. Resets your aggro and buys you some breathing space.
42	Web Arrow	Tangle your targets, slowing them down.
48	Sniper’s Eye	Slow down your attacks but greatly increase their damage, especially against other players.
54	Restraining Arrow	Drag down your opponent’s speed and do damage at the same time.
58	Rain of Arrows	Exactly what it sounds like. Anyone in the area better have a steel umbrella.

Glyphs

Starting at level 20, glyphs can be applied to customize your archer’s skills in a variety of ways. Here are some samples:

• Slick Penetrating Arrow: You can charge your Penetrating Arrow skill and still move at full speed.
• Energetic Breakaway Bolt: Your Breakaway Bolt skill’s cooldown time decreases.
• Lingering Poison Arrow: Increases the duration of your Poison Arrow skill tremendously.
• Persistent Close Quarters: When you use Close Quarters, there’s a chance it will have no cooldown time.
• Spirited Rapid Fire: If you hit your target with Rapid Fire, there’s a chance your mana regeneration will increase.
• Fleetfooted Breakaway Bolt: When you use Breakaway Bolt, there’s a good chance it boosts your movement speed.
• Blazing Final Salvo: If you chain to it from Final Salvo, your Penetrating Arrow skill will charge a lot faster.
• Empowered Incendiary Trap: Your Incendiary Trap does more damage.
• Lingering Slow Trap: Your Slow Trap impedes affected targets a lot longer.
• Piercing Arrow: Your basic Arrow skill has a chance of doing double damage each hit.

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Sorcerer

Sorcerer is the AoE Ranged DPS class of TERA. Although they do have a wide variety of single-target spells, many of their skills are AoE or splash damage, and as such their damage and weapon damage ratings are slightly lower. In fact, a Sorcerer’s base damage rating is only fourth highest (behind Archer, Berserker, and Slayer in that order), and their weapon damage is higher only than a Warrior and a Lancer. Their range however, is fifteen meters.

Sorcerers, surprisingly, have a higher HP pool than Archers, but this is countered by the fact they wear cloth armor. Sorcerers are incredibly squishy, making it imperative that they dodge, outrange, and when necessary; run away. This class is extremely kite-based, and as such they have not only a snare available to them, but also an AoE sleep. This sleep is easy to dodge however, but can be extremely useful in team fights. 1v1 the AoE isn’t as useful, though some people are stupid and can’t dodge.

Despite the fire and ice elements shown in Sorcerer skills, there once again is only one type of damage: Damage. Because of this, there is no need to match certain elements vs. certain enemies. While you would think using a skill like Fireblast against a lava monster would be a bad idea… there is no penalty for using such skills against monsters. There are no elemental attacks or resistances!

Sorcerers start off fairly weak in PvP at the lower levels, but as they get higher in level they become more and more dangerous. Sorcerer only has one truly offensive charge up skill, which is known as Arcane Pulse (formerly named Blastball). While this skill can do a great amount of damage, it is very slow moving and easy to dodge. Because of how easy it is to dodge, it is usually released early in order to catch enemy targets by surprised; still doing a decent amount of damage when released early. Especially since this skill will hit all targets within a twenty-one meter line.

Sorcerer has of course Backstep, as do nearly all classes, but they also have a skill known as Glacial Retreat. Glacial Retreat is similar to an Archer’s Breakaway Bolt, but on top of doing damage, it has a 70% AoE snare as an added effect. This helps greatly with outranging both melee classes and other ranged classes on the battlefield.

Sorcerer also has two traps at its disposal; Painful Trap, which simply does damage, and Lightning Trap, which is an AoE Paralyze.

Base Class Stats

Vitality Stats

• HP: 582
• MP: 200/200
• MP Regen Rate: +10 per second in and out of combat.

Basic Stats

• Damage: 64
• Defense: 12
• Movement Speed: 110
• Critical Hit: 25

Resistance Stats

• Critical Hit: 30
• Root/Hold: 20
• Poison/Disease: 35
• Addiction: 20
• Confusion: 15

Equipment Stats

• Weapon Damage: 12
• Armor: 10

Basic Attack Info

• Direction: Forward
• Range: 15M
• Target-Type: Single Target
• Attack Speed: 0.7
• MP Change: -1 per attack.

Abilities

Level	Skill	Description
1	Fireball	Shoot a fireball at a target, doing more damage if the target is nearby.
1	Flame Pillar	Summon a column of flame directly in front of you that burns any enemies within it.
2	Mana Infusion	Replenishes some of your mana over several seconds.
2	Backstep	Take quick steps backward and out of harm’s way.
4	Magma Bomb	Arc a fiery projectile several meters away, where it explodes, damaging anyone nearby.
6	Painful Trap	Set a trap that explodes in all directions when stepped on. Trap lasts ten seconds.
8	Time Gyre	Freezes any targets you lock onto in place and prevents players from dodging or teleporting.
10	Ice Needle	Launch an ice shard that briefly slows the movement speed of each target it pierces.
12	Retaliate	Leap to your feet while attacking your target. You can use this skill only when knocked down.
14	Painblast	Several targets within a circle several meters in front of you writhe in agony and take damage for several seconds. This skill inflicts less damage on other players.
14	Mana Siphon	Charge up and absorb mana from the targeted nearby foe.
16	Glacial Retreat	Freeze the ground before you as you leap backward, damaging and briefly decreasing the movement speed of those nearby.
18	Arcane Pulse	You charge up a slow-moving but deadly energy ball that plows through multiple enemies inflicting damage.
20	Flaming Barrage	Lock onto several nearby foes and un-erringly fire bolts of white-hot flame at them.
22	Teleport Jaunt	Teleport a short distance in the direction the camera faces.
24	Mindblast	Briefly put to sleep any targets in a circle centered several meters in front of you.
26	Fireblast	Blast any targets in a large flaming circle a few meters in front of you.
28	Lightning Trap	Set a trap with a ten-second duration that briefly paralyzes anyone in its area of effect.
32	Overchannel	Your next attack within a few seconds does more damage.
36	Void Pulse	Launch a powerful sphere at a single target.
40	Mana Barrier	Cast a magical shield that absorbs up to a fixed amount of damage, burning mana to do so.
44	Burning Breath	An ember of energy locks onto and drills into targets, burning them slowly. This skill does less damage to other players.
48	Burst of Celerity	Your attack speed increases briefly.
52	Hail Storm	Summons an ice storm in front of you that damages and progressively slows everyone within it.
56	Nerve Exhaustion	Lock onto and hex nearby players so that they can’t use the basic attacks that recharge their mana.
58	Mana Volley	The target players you lock onto slowly bleed mana, which you drink in.

 

Glyphs

Starting at level 20, glyphs can be applied to customize your sorcerer’s skills in a variety of ways. Here are some samples:

• Persistent Magma Bomb: Gain a chance for Magma Bomb’s cooldown to refresh as soon as you cast it.
• Longshot Fireball: Increases the range of your Fireball spell.
• Spirited Mana Infusion: Your Mana Infusion replenishes more of your mana.
• Numbing Ice Needle: Your Ice Needle skill slows its targets even more than normal.
• Multiplicative Time Gyre: Capture even more targets in your Time Gyre skill.
• Lingering Ice Needle: When your Ice Needle skill slows a target, the chill lasts even longer.
• Lingering Glacial Retreat: Your Glacial Retreat skill slows your opponents down even longer.
• Numbing Painblast: Adds a chance that your Painblast skill may slow the movement speed of those it hits.
• Shared Fireblast: If your Fireblast skill hits more than one target, it does bonus damage.
• Hastened Fireblast: Cast your powerful Fireblast spell faster.

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Support Classes

Mystic

Mystics are a strange support class; sporting pets, debuffs, heals, and buffs. I consider them to be a sort of hybrid, although in Korean release they have managed to often take the role of main healer in some groups. This is strange seeing as they only have two or three skills that heal. Mystics use Wands, and wear cloth armor. They have the lowest HP pool, lowest damage (tied with Priest), lowest Critical Hit (tied with Priest), lowest weapon damage (also tied with Priest). Their squishiness of course is offset by the fact they can heal themselves, and their teleport skill.

Mystics are a strange class, in a way they are a jack of all trades, but for the most part their skills are unique to themselves. Mystics have four different pets, known as Thralls. The first Thrall they acquire is the Thrall of Protection, which is a tank pet. The cooldown on the Thrall of Protection is ten minutes, and it lasts for ten minutes unless of course it dies. The Thrall of Protection generates quite a bit of threat, and can knock down the enemy it is fighting. The second is Thrall of Vengeance. This spirit of Lightning is a moderate DPS thrall, with a twenty-two second cooldown.

After this, comes the Thrall of Life. This cute little fairy has the same skills as a Priest as far as heals go; including AoE Heal and AoE Dispel. Meaning, this little fairy can not only heal you, but can also heal your team mates. That being said, it only stays for twelve seconds, and is on a thirty-five second cooldown. Lastly, is Thrall of Obliteration. This thrall will attack once and disappear, which may seem odd for its ten minute cooldown, but one would assume it does a good amount of damage.

Besides the lovely Thralls, another thing Mystics love about themselves (and everyone else hates), is their escape technique; Teleport Jaunt. This skill has a ten second cooldown, and teleports the Mystic fourteen meters away in the camera direction. Already an annoying skill, Mystics can acquire a Glyph which has a 25% chance to reset the cooldown on Teleport Jaunt after being used. Personally, when fighting a Mystic; the Mystic’s cooldown reset three times in a row and it is next to impossible to guess which direction they are teleporting in.

Also at the disposal of a Mystic, are snares, poisons, debuffs, buffs, Summon Group, Resurrect, and the ability to bestow Vow of Rebirth on allies; which means once the ally dies, they can resurrect automatically.

I spoke a little of one of Mystics “heals”; Thrall of Life. Another option they have for healing is acquired at LV1, and is called Arun’s Vitae. Tis skill is on a 5 second cooldown, and they simply drop red orbs on the ground which allies can pick up to heal themselves. In later levels, they also acquire Arun’s Tear, which is the same concept; except is blue and restores mana.

Base Class Stats

Vitality Stats

• HP: 580
• MP: 200/200
• MP Regen Rate: +10 per second in and out of combat.

Basic Stats

• Damage: 32
• Defense: 14
• Movement Speed: 110
• Critical Hit: 20

Resistance Stats

• Critical Hit: 25
• Root/Hold: 70
• Poison/Disease: 90
• Addiction: 70
• Confusion: 90

Equipment Stats

• Weapon Damage: 7
• Armor: 10

Basic Attack Info

• Direction: Forward
• Range: 10M
• Target-Type: Single Target
• Attack Speed: 0.6
• MP Change: -3 per attack.

Abilities

Level	Skill	Description
1	Sharan Bolt	Unleash a bolt of disruptive Sharan energy at a target.
1	Arun’s Vitae	Gather Arunic power into a mote that, when picked up, restores health and removes all harmful effects.
2	Mana Infusion	Replenishes your mana for several seconds.
2	Metamorphic Blast	Project a cone of energy that damages nearby enemies.
4	Thrall of Protection	Summon a Thrall of Protection that draws aggro from monsters and makes melee attacks.
6	Metamorphic Smite	Blast any enemies directly in front of you.
8	Teleport Jaunt	Teleport a short distance in the direction the camera faces.
10	Corruption Ring	Drain health from targets nearby, storing it as spiritual energy. After you cast Corruption Ring, it becomes Infusion Ring. Cast Infusion Ring to release the stored energy as mana for you and your party.
12	Retaliate	Leap to your feet while attacking your target. You can use this skill only when knocked down.
12	Thrall of Vengeance	Summon a Thrall of Vengeance that makes ranged attacks against your enemies.
14	Volley of Curses	Lock onto your target and inflict a curse that does constant damage. Effect stacks up to three times.
14	Sonorous Dreams	Lock onto your foes and put them briefly to sleep.
16	Arun’s Cleansing Touch	Select your allies and purge all harmful effects from them.
16	Thrall of Life	Summon a Thrall of Life that heals you and removes harmful effects.
18	Titanic Favor	Immediately heal allies you select, then heal them further over time.
18	Resurrect	Restore life to a nearby dead party member.
20	Aura of the Swift	An aura emanates from you that increases group members’ movement speed.
22	Summon: Party	Teleport any of your group members within the same province to your side.
24	Regression	Remove all beneficial effects on nearby enemies.
26	Aura of the Unyielding	An aura emanates from you, greatly increasing group members’ resistance to critical hits.
26	Titanic Wrath	Energy pours into you and nearby party members, increasing your strength.
28	Arun’s Tears	Gather Arunic power into a mote that, when picked up, instantly restores a large quantity of mana.
32	Mire	Select several targets and cripple their movement.
36	Aura of the Tenacious	An aura emanates from you, restoring mana to your nearby group members.
38	Thrall of Wrath	Summon a Thrall of Wrath armed with a powerful area attack.
42	Ancient Binding	Hurl a magical bolt that slows down its target.
42	Vow of Rebirth	Form a bond between you and one group member, who will now resurrect if killed.
46	Curse of Exhaustion	Select and curse enemies, increasing their cooldown times for all their skills by 20%.
50	Aura of the Merciless	An aura emanates from you, doubling the critical hit rate of group members.
50	Shara’s Lash	Cast a caustic bolt of Sharan energy that explodes at range or on contact, briefly stunning foes.
56	Curse of Confusion	Select several enemies and terrify them into running away.

Glyphs

Starting at level 20, glyphs can be applied to customize your mystic’s skills in a variety of ways. Here are some samples:

• Brilliant Sonorous Dreams: Sonorous Dreams costs less mana to cast.
• Empowered Sharan Bolt: Your Sharan Bolt does more damage.
• Energetic Metamorphic Smite: Speeds up the cooldown of your Metamorphic Smite.
• Fortified Thrall of Protection: Strengthens the armor of your Thrall of Protection pet.
• Hastened Mana Infusion: Mana infusion restores your mana more quickly.
• Influential Metamorphic Smite: You can chain-cast Metamorphic Blast for less mana.
• Lingering Volley of Curses: Your curse hangs on your enemies even longer.
• Multiplicative Arun’s Cleansing: Increases the number of targets so you can help more of your friends.
• Persistent Teleport Jaunt: Adds a chance to refresh the cooldown of Teleport Jaunt when you cast it.
• Trebling Corruption Ring: Hugely increases your resistance to knockdown and immobility.

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Priest

Priest is the main healer in TERA. They have the lowest HP pool, lowest damage (tied with Mystic), lowest Critical Hit (tied with Mystic), lowest weapon damage (also tied with Mystic), wield Staffs, and wear cloth armor. Their squishiness of course is offset by the fact they can heal themselves (and of course, others).

Surprisingly, Priests are capable of DPSing as well as healing, although it is advised that unless you are a very skilled Priest you only stick to healing. Priests also have an ability which I personally find pretty broken; Ishara’s Lullaby. Ishara’s Lullaby, quite simply, is a Lock-On sleep. With a cooldown of only thirty-five seconds, this is more than enough time for Priest to use it in order to interrupt an enemy’s charge up skill, heal themselves, then begin damaging their enemy again. Priest DPS is a combination of ranged (ten meter) and melee-range skills.

Priest has six different heals currently at its disposal. However, only one of these skills is a self-heal. All other heals (except for HoT’s) do not affect the caster. Priest’s self-heal, which is the first heal they acquire, is called Heal Thyself. From here, you get Sanctuary of Regeneration, which creates a circle on the ground in front of you that regenerates the HP of your allies who are on or in the circle. After this, they acquire Focus Heal, which is a lock-on heal for up to two targets (and you cannot lock-on to yourself). And then, you get Regeneration Circle, which also (obviously) creates a circle on the ground; this one however is a HoT. After this comes Healing Circle, which is a small circle on the ground before you, but is a massive heal for those you manage to hit with it; although it is perilous to use it, so you must time it correctly. And finally, there is Blessing of Balder, which is another (weaker) HoT.

Also in Priest’s arsenal of group-friendly skills, are a group summon skill, and a teleport that takes yourself and your group members to the nearest Campfire. As well as these useful teleports, Priest has a non-combat movement speed buff, a strength buff, an endurance (defense) buff, and a buff that increases resistances to harmful effects for your whole group! And of course there is Resurrect, a damage-absorbing shield, and a skill to make knocked-down group members rise to their feet again.

As I said at the beginning of this extremely long article, Priests do not have Backstep. This was replaced by their self-heal. That being said, Priests do have an escape known as Fiery Escape. This is very similar to Sorcerer’s Glacial Retreat; right down to the 70% snare.

A skilled Priest can keep their entire group alive and maintain a good amount of DPS in PvE scenarios. This does of course also rely on your team’s ability to dodge and stay out of AoE skills. If your team is dumb and gets hit by every skill the mob uses, you may want to consider yelling at them or sticking to just healing.

Base Class Stats

Vitality Stats

• HP: 527
• MP: 250/250
• MP Regen Rate: +10 per second in and out of combat.

Basic Stats

• Damage: 32
• Defense: 13
• Movement Speed: 110
• Critical Hit: 20

Resistance Stats

• Critical Hit: 25
• Root/Hold: 70
• Poison/Disease: 90
• Addiction: 70
• Confusion: 90

Equipment Stats

• Weapon Damage: 7
• Armor: 10

Basic Attack Info

• Direction: Forward
• Range: 10M
• Target-Type: Single Target
• Attack Speed: 0.6
• MP Change: -3 per attack.

Abilities

Level	Skill	Description
1	Divine Radiance	Project a pulse of energy at an enemy.
1	Heal Thyself	Restore health to yourself, modified by your heal bonus.
2	Mana Infusion	Replenishes your mana for several seconds.
2	Metamorphic Blast	Project a cone of divine energy that damages nearby enemies.
4	Triple Nemesis	Cast a vengeful pulse at a nearby target. You can use this skill three times before its cooldown begins.
6	Fiery Escape	Fly backward on a gout of flame that damages enemies near you.
6	Restorative Burst	Create a burst of healing in front of you. All allies in the burst regenerate health for several seconds.
10	Focus Heal	Lock on and restore health to nearby allies, modified by your heal bonus.
10	Final Reprisal	After using your Shocking Implosion or Triple Nemesis skills, follow up with a blast of energy from your staff that damages nearby enemies.
12	Retaliate	If you’ve been knocked down, leap to your feet while attacking your target.
12	Mana Charge	Charge up the spell, then release it to restore some of your mana.
14	Shocking Implosion	Produce an electrical burst in front of you.
14	Ishara’s Lullaby	Lock onto several targets and put them briefly to sleep.
16	Purifying Circle	Instantly remove all harmful effects from several nearby allies.
18	Regeneration Circle	Several allies near you heal their wounds over the next several seconds.
18	Resurrect	Restore life to several nearby dead group members.
20	Blessing of Zenobia	Boost the non-combat speed of you and your nearby allies.
22	Summon: Party	Teleport all group members within the same province to your side. You cannot teleport group members who are in other provinces.
24	Arise	Instantly stands knocked-down group members and increases their knockdown resistance.
24	Plague of Exhaustion	Call up a plague that inflicts constant damage every several nearby targets. Against other players, the damage decreases, but their cooldown time for melee attacks doubles.
26	Healing Circle	Heal several nearby group members other than you, modified by your heal bonus.
26	Blessing of Shakan	You and your nearby allies receive a blessing that increases your strength.
32	Homeward Bound	Teleport yourself and group members nearby to the nearest campfire.
34	Blessing of Seren	Increase the endurance of up to nearby allies, including you.
36	Prayer of Peace	Nullify your aggro from nearby enemies.
36	Blessing of Balder	You and several nearby allies heal for several seconds, modified by your heal bonus.
40	Energy Stars	Fires an energy bolt at a nearby enemy you select. The bolt damages the target, but it increases nearby group members’ strength and attack speed for several seconds.
42	Kaia’s Shield	Cast a barrier that absorbs damage on several nearby allies and makes them immune to knockdown and immobility.
46	Blessing of Arachne	Increase resistance to all harmful effects for you and your nearby allies.
50	Guardian Sanctuary	Decreases damage from distant enemies and increases your resistances to harmful effects.
56	Divine Respite	Replenish a percentage of your health over the next several seconds.
60	Grace of Resurrection	Grants a blessing enabling the priest to resurrect immediately with 100% HP and MP.
60	Healing Immersion	Lock on a target within 19m and fire a healing light to restore HP (modified by your heal bonus) to all party members within 7m of the locked target. Press the skill button once and mouseover to lock on the target, then press the skill button again or left-click to heal all targets.

Glyphs

Starting at level 20, glyphs can be applied to customize your priest’s skills in a variety of ways. Here are some samples:

• Boosted Zenobia’s Gift: Reduces the casting time of your Zenobia’s Gift spell.
• Brilliant Resurrect: It costs you less mana to resurrect your fallen friends.
• Energetic Arise: Reduces the cooldown time of your Arise skill.
• Lingering Regeneration Circle: Your Regeneration Circle skill’s health-restoring effects last longer.
• Longshot Focus Heal: You can reach your allies from further away with your Focused Heal skill.
• Multiplicative Focus Heal: Your Focused Heal skill can touch more allies at once.
• Numbing Final Reprisal: Your Final Reprisal gains a chance to slow your target’s movement.
• Powerlinked Triple Nemesis: Greatly increases the damage of your Metamorphic Blast skill if you use it after casting Triple Nemesis.
• Restorative Healing Circle: Improves the healing power of your Healing Circle skill.
• Spirited Mana Infusion: Increases the mana recovery of your Mana Infusion skill.

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I hope this guide helps you make the right class choice. If you have any questions or any information to add, you’re welcome to post in the comments below.