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The best classes in Lords of the Fallen

Choosing your class at the beginning of an RPG is by no means an uncommon task. What makes it especially vital in a soulslike title such as Lords of the Fallen, though, is just how impactful that initial decision is. Your choice of class not only determines what weapons and armor you begin the game with, but even more importantly, your starting stats. Some are easily understood like Strength and Vitality, while Agility is a little more ambiguous. And Radiance and Inferno are downright incomprehensible if you have no prior knowledge of them. What class you want to take is entirely dependent on how you want to focus your build, so we will run through a few picks for the best class no matter what type of player you want to be in Lords of the Fallen.

The best classes in Lords of the Fallen

The class selection screen in Lords of the Fallen.
CI Games

Lords of the Fallen offers you nine classes to choose from by default, or 10 if you have access to the Dark Crusader class, plus three more you can unlock. We’ll focus only on the base nine since those are the only ones everyone will have access to when first starting the game.

Hallowed Knight

For less experienced soulslike players, or those who just want to start off with a reliable, but basic class to get a feel for Lords of the Fallen, the Hallowed Knight is the most friendly class. It starts off with a decent sword and lots of defense thanks to a shield and heavy-class armor that will help you survive some early mistakes, while still staying in the medium equip load range. This is a class most equipped to go for a Strength build with, but you could spec a few points into Radiance as well if you want to have some backup magic on hand. Here are the Hallowed Knights starting stats:

Strength: 12

Agility: 8

Endurance: 15

Vitality: 11

Radiance: 9

Inferno: 8

Udirangr Warwolf

If your plan in Lords of the Fallen is to get by on sheer strength and dodging skills, the Udirangr Warwolf will have you howling in triumph. Boasting the highest starting Strength stat of any class, plus a massive sword that can carry you for quite a while, this class is something of a glass cannon. Your health won’t be terribly low, but you’re basically starting off the game with no armor or defensive options, including not having a shield, meaning you have to be confident in your dodging skills to make this build work. These are the stats you’ll begin with:

Strength: 16

Agility: 10

Endurance: 13

Vitality: 10

Radiance: 8

Inferno: 8

Blackfeather Ranger

Range builds are tricky to get going, and the Blackfeather Ranger isn’t all that appealing on the surface. For one, it starts at a lower level than all the other classes, but this is to its advantage. By starting at level 8, you are given more freedom to choose how to distribute your points early on as opposed to being locked into a build. This class’s stats start off almost flat across the board, but with a tilt toward Agility. While you do get an ax and shield, it’s the bow that will make this class work in the early game. If you can make your shots count and keep enemies at bay, this is a great class to build upon. Here are your starting stats:

Strength: 11

Agility: 13

Endurance: 11

Vitality: 10

Radiance: 8

Inferno: 8

Orian Preacher

Your magic options in Lords of the Fallen will fall into either the Radiance or Inferno categories, with the former being a bit more balanced on defensive and offensive spells while the latter is heavily focused on damage output. We prefer Radiance, which is where the Orian Preacher shines, if you’ll pardon the pun. Thankfully, you will start off with an offensive spell to get you going, but healing and buffing spells will come quickly to round out your options. This also makes this class the best for co-op since you can support your pals by healing and buffing them as well. Here are the Orian Preacher’s starting stats:

Strength: 10

Agility: 8

Endurance: 9

Vitality: 11

Radiance: 18

Inferno: 8

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The best rings in Lords of the Fallen
The Lords of the Fallen trailer.

Magical rings are nothing new to fantasy or games, and Lords of the Fallen makes good use of these little pieces of jewelry. Unlike armor or weapons, rings are an accessory that gives you passive bonuses as long as you're wearing them. While not as immediately noticeable as other gear can be, some of these rings are quite strong and can do a lot to improve your build and playstyle. Some give straight attribute buffs, while others have more conditional effects, but with dozens to pick from and find, you'll be spoiled for choice. No matter what build you're going for, these are the best rings to bling out your character within Lords of the Fallen.
Best rings

There are well over 50 rings in Lords of the Fallen, and despite your character having 10 fingers, or at least 8 if you don't count thumbs, to wear them on, you have to choose only two at a time. Rings can be found either in chests or by beating special enemies or bosses.
Ring of Nourishment
Health is your most valuable resource in Lords of the Fallen, as is the case with all Soulslikes. You have limited healing options normally, so getting through a tough or new area can wear your character down over time as you run out of healing. The Ring of Nourishment can't replace your default healing but is a great supplement to keep you going and save a few charges. Each enemy you kill while wearing this ring will restore a bit of your health. If you play carefully and smartly, you can use it to completely undo some mistakes. This ring won't do you much good in boss fights, though.
Ring of Gnawing
For the more spell-focused builds, mana is always tough to manage. Unlike stamina, which will automatically replenish itself over time, but require you to rest at a checkpoint or use a consumable item. If you have the Ring of Gnawing, you can get a bit of mana back every time you hit an enemy with a normal attack. This is ideal for builds that spec in both strength or agility and a magic focus since you can swap back and forth as you regain and spend your mana.
Ring of Duty
This is a somewhat boring pick, but if you're a more traditional build focused on hitting things hard and fast, then the Ring of Duty is an easy one to slap on. This simply buffs both your VIT and END attributes to make you that much harder to kill.
Queen Verena II's Ring
If the Ring of Nourishment is a bit too risky for you, you can always fall back on the Queen of Verena II's Ring. This is a simple HP regen ring that slowly ticks up your health over time. If you are patient enough, you can take a break after each encounter to get back to full health before moving on, though that can be quite boring.
Ring of Bones
Lords of the Fallen breaks down your equipment load into four categories: light, medium, heavy, and overburdened. Most players will feel most comfortable at either medium or light burden levels for a more fluid feeling combat flow, but keeping yourself that light is tough without forgoing some armor or weapons. The Ring of Bones can help you sneak under these thresholds by increasing your character's maximum equip load.
Mineowner's Ring
As an alternative to the Ring of Duty, or complement to it if you wear both, the Mineowner's Ring is focused only on stamina. Not only is it a better stamina buff, but it also increases the rate your stamina recovers so you can get back on the offensive as fast as possible.

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How to unlock the Dark Crusader class in Lords of the Fallen
A warrior stands in an Umbral hallway in Lords of the Fallen.

While not a universal rule, most games that fall into the soulslike genre feature different starting classes that dictate how your character will play -- at least early on. In Lords of the Fallen, you will choose between a list of nine default classes, but there are a couple more that aren't immediately available to you. The Dark Crusader is an interesting one, as there are technically two ways to get it, but only one that lets you do your first playthrough as this brooding soldier. This isn't an overpowered class to pick, but it is a great choice if you want a strength and radiance build. Here are the two ways in which you can unlock the Dark Crusader in Lords of the Fallen.
How to unlock the Dark Crusader
The easiest way to unlock this class, and the only method where you can have access to it before playing the game at all, is to have purchased the Deluxe Edition of Lords of the Fallen. While it is disappointing for the game to withhold a class from players who didn't pay extra, the silver lining is that there is a natural way to get the class without spending any extra cash.

If you're playing on a normal copy of the game, unlocking this class will take a bit of work. You must access and fully complete Issac's side quest chain. This involves finding and examining four Umbral stigmas, followed by defeating Issac and claiming his gear from the Umbral realm. The last step is to summon Issac to help you during the boss battle against the Lightreaper. After you've finished this questline, you will be able to select the Dark Crusader when starting a new character.

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Is Lords of the Fallen cross-platform?
A knight with a large sword prepares to stab a dragon in Lords of the Fallen.

If there's one thing you can count on in nearly any Soulslike game, it's that you're going to face some hefty challenges along your journey. That rings as true as ever in Lords of the Fallen, which tasks you with exploring treacherous locales and facing off against horrifying and deadly creatures around every corner. As such, you may find yourself wanting to bring a friend along for some cooperative play, and you can do exactly that by simply inviting them to your world, where they can stay for as long as they'd like. However, if you're wondering what options you have available if your friend is playing on another platform, we'll tell you whether Lords of the Fallen has crossplay below.
Is Lords of the Fallen cross-platform?

The quick and easy answer to whether Lords of the Fallen has crossplay is yes, it features crossplay. However, this only works between PC and each console individually, meaning that PS5 and Xbox players can't connect with one another. For those on either platform looking to connect with PC players, though, you can freely invite someone for co-op (or invade them for PVP) with no issues whatsoever.

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