The Best Class in Warhammer Darktide

When choosing a class in Warhammer 40,000: Darktide, everyone has a favorite. You’ll find entire war parties of Ogryn barreling through Poxwalker hordes. Or, from a distance, a high-level Veteran player picks off a Dreg Tox Flamer before it may cause any damage to the team. The point is every class in the game is ideally suited to a specific style. Choosing the best class in Warhammer 40,000: Darktide proves challenging. We need to factor in playstyles and preferences, skills, weaponry, and survivability, among other factors. But we did it!

The Best Class in Warhammer 40,000: Darktide

Of the four main classes in the game, we have to recommend the Veteran as the best class in Darktide. It’s a well-rounded, easy-to-learn but hard-to-master class that newcomers will likely try out first, sometimes even before the mountainous Ogryn. Why?

The Veteran is the staple of any squad. While certainly not the strongest fighters in the game, they provide support and relief against some of your more formidable enemies. When your team is tumbling with a specialist, like the Shotgunner or Trapper, when everyone else is too slow or has their hands tied (literally!), the Veteran can pick off the specialist from a distance.

Furthermore, the Veteran is the DPS specialist of Darktide. Their ability, Volley Fire, specifically targets strong enemies, highlights them for additional damage, and unleashes hellfire. It’s a fantastic way to take down a mob quickly.

And lastly, unlike Vermintide 2, Darktide took a more firearm-heavy approach to combat. The new ranged weapon system is excellent and feels robust, and the Veteran has access to more and better weaponry than any other class in the game.

Related: Is Warhammer 40K: Darktide on Game Pass?

Recommended Skills for the Best Class in Darktide

With the most recent update to Darktide overhauling how classes work and including a new skill tree, the Veteran now has unique abilities that can deal additional damage to specialists or further help the team. Here are a few of the recommended skills for a Veteran:

• Shredder Frag Grenade
  • A frag grenade that explosives after a short delay. Deals 6 Stacks of Bleed to all injured enemies, causing damage over time.
• Shock Trooper
  • Critical hits with Las-weapons do not consume ammunition.
• Always Prepared
  • +25% ammunition.
• Superiority Complex
  • Deals +10% base damage against Elite Enemies.
• Demolition Stockpile
  • Replenish one grenade every 60 seconds.
• Grenadier
  • Carry an additional grenade.
• Serrated Blade
  • Applies 1 Stack of Bleed to a target on melee hit.
• Trench Fighter Drill
  • +15% melee attack speed.
• Born Leader
  • Allies in Coherency Replenish 15% of any Toughness that the Veteran replenishes.
• For the Emperor!
  • Your Combat Ability gives you and your allies Cohenercy +20% Melee Base Damage and +20% Ranged Base Damage for 5 seconds.

As you can see, many of the chosen skills aim to benefit the team by bolstering weapon damage, increasing and replenishing Toughness, and taking down targets more efficiently.

Tips for Playing the Best Class in Darktide

• Do not hesitate to purchase and test various weapons, especially at early levels, to find one that suits your playstyle.
• On lower difficulties, the Autogun MK VII is a recommended powerhouse that, while not as strong as Lasguns, deals enough damage to take down mobs satisfyingly.
• When playing with a squad of players, focus on taking down specialists and unique enemies from afar to free up your team to deal with mobs unhindered.
• Do not neglect melee skills or attacks just because the Veteran focuses on ranged weapons.
• Use the ping function to mark essential targets for the entire team.

Related: How to Parry in Warhammer 40,000: Darktide

All Classes in Warhammer 40,000: Darktide

Warhammer 40,000: Darktide features four classes: Veteran, Zealot, Psyker, and Ogryn. They each play a role in the team, from melee attackers and defenders to ranged specialists. The one you choose may not be considered the “best” in the game by the community, but it will likely suit your playstyle and personal preferences. And hey, that’s just fine!

Veteran

• Playstyle: Ranged
• Starting Weapons: Shovel and Lasgun
• Ability: Volley Fire — Swaps to the ranged weapon, highlights priority targets, and increases ranged damage by 50%.
• Description: The Veteran is the ranged weapons expert who takes down specialists and elites from a distance while the rest of the team focuses on basic mobs. He brings increased weak spot damage to the table, which makes tackling more formidable enemies less of a chore. Unfortunately, his weakness is also his ranged weaponry. The Veteran runs out of ammunition constantly, requiring a top-up frequently.

Zealot

• Playstyle: Fast-Moving Melee
• Starting Weapons: Combat Axe and Autopistol
• Ability: Chasise the Wicked — Perform a forward dash, increasing melee hit damage by 25% and ensuring a critical hit. It also replenishes 50% Toughness.
• Description: Straight out of the gate, the Zealot brings increased melee attack speed, damage output, and invulnerability passives to the table. They’re more focused on Toughness over Health Points, making them somewhat squishy in close encounters. But their speed and damage-per-second abilities keep them in the fight. It’s best to hit hard and kite enemies.

Psyker

• Playstyle: Ranged
• Starting Weapons: Sword and Laspistol
• Ability: Psykinetic’s Wrath — Decreases Peril by 50% and staggers enemies.
• Description: Think of the Psyker as a tech-based mage of the future with unique abilities like Brain Burst and Lightning. The Psyker excels at tackling elite enemies, as their powers focus on a single entity to simultaneously deal a ton of damage. However, the Psyker’s downside is in their HP and Toughness. While their damage output is high, they are a glass cannon build and playstyle.

Ogryn

• Playstyle: Heavy Tank
• Starting Weapons: Club and Shotgun
• Ability: Bull Rush — Charges forward, knocking down enemies and increasing movement and attack speed by 25% for five seconds.

• Description: The Ogryn is a tool—a weapon to be unleashed upon hordes of enemies much simpler than he. As a frontline fighter capable of dishing out and taking a ton of damage, the Ogryn is the stalwart protector of the squad. Their charge attacks can pile through entire mobs of enemies, leaving an opening for the rest of the team to capitalize on. The downside, however, is in their size and speed. The Ogryn is a walking, talking target.

Gamer Journalist is excited to bring you guides and coverage of Darktide, including the Top 10 Best Warhammer 40,000: Darktide Memes!