Best Classes in Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake, Ranked

In true JRPG fashion, although picking the right personalities is a must in Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake, nothing in the game will be more vital than investing in the right classes, or vocations.

But which among the game’s comprehensive list can be considered the best? To help you pick the right jobs for your party, here are the best vocations (or classes) in Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake and how to get each of them.

Best Classes in Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake

10. Gadabout

• How to Get: By creating a party member with it at Patty’s Party Planning Place. You can also switch to it at Alltrades Abbey.

The game’s “joke” vocation, Gadabouts are as useful as you can expect, given their ability to ignore your commands 75% of the time in favor of performing random abilities, which can more often than not leave your party in a tight spot.

But there’s a silver lining here, as in what seems to be a reward for your patience, characters with the Gadabout vocation are the only ones capable of becoming Sages without the need to acquire a copy of the Words of Wisdom scroll.

9. Merchant

• How to Get: By creating a party member with it at Patty’s Party Planning Place. You can also switch to it at Alltrades Abbey.

A vocation that brings way more to the table when off the battlefield, the Merchant stays true to the craft and puts its customers (or in this case the party’s needs) above all else. Although that can be seen in their ability to boost your gold acquisition, the vocation’s biggest differential lies in how they can give the party immediate access to merchants, as well as to both a temporary inn and a member of the church by performing Service Call.

Their ability to appraise items also makes the class a godsend when gearing up for battle.

8. Thief

• How to Get: By creating a party member with it at Patty’s Party Planning Place. You can switch a party member’s vocation to it at Alltrades Abbey.

As you can expect, Thieves have their high overall agility their biggest weapon, as it allows them to both get the upper hand in encounters and avoid attacks with ease. Even if not game-changing in the field, they also have access to some of the most valuable passive abilities in Dragon Quest 3.

Among these, Padfoot (unlocked by reaching level 17) is a lifesaver early on and allows you to lower the chances of encountering monsters when exploring dungeons. The ability can then be paired with Nose For Treasure and Snoop to guarantee you won’t leave a single treasure or item behind when exploring.

7. Mage

• How to Get: One of the game’s initial party member vocations. Can also be acquired by creating a party member with it or switching to it at Alltrades Abbey.

One of the game’s initial vocations, the Mage is in all possible ways a glass canon, as they are capable of bringing unimaginable ruin to the opposition through devastating spells —such as the always overpowered Kaboom— at the expense of being extremely easy to one-shot. True to that, and like most spell-oriented classes, using a mage will more often than not demand the use of a Warrior capable of shielding them from damage.

6. Warrior

How to Get: One of the game’s initial party member vocations. Can also be acquired by selecting it while creating a character or by switching to it at Alltrades Abbey.

Speaking of, the Warrior brings forward everything you can expect of a staple tank by pairing a high HP pool with a considerable amount of Resilience. Although many might prefer to go with the Martial Artist later in their playthroughs, the Warrior’s ability to hit hard while also shielding your more fragile party members with Whipping Boy makes them both a necessity in the early game and an optimal pick for any well-balanced party.

5. Martial Artist

How to Get: By choosing it while creating a party member or switching to it at Alltrades Abbey.

A class that personifies the principle of striking fast and true, the Martial Artist boasts the highest Agility among all in Dragon Quest 3, which when paired with their also high overall Strength and Luck stats, allows them to perform easy criticals before their opponents can even process the situation.

The above, however, comes at a cost, as they cannot wear any kind of sturdy defensive garments and have their optimal weapon options limited to claws. Nevertheless, if you can mitigate their lack of equipment-related defense by either using the right personality or picking it as a second vocation for your Warrior, a well-leveled Martial Artist will be a welcome addition no matter the fight.

4. Monster Wrangler

How to Get: By creating a party member with it or switching to it at Alltrades Abbey.

Exclusive to Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake and a late-game walking nuke, Monster Wrangler is one of the most versatile classes in the game, given their ability to heal and buff the party in equal measure while still having access to many multi-hit weapons and to three of the game’s most destructive abilities: Call of the Wild, Monster Pile-On, and Boulder Toss. If that was not enough, they also get the ability to attack twice per turn by using Wild Side.

3. Priest

How to Get: One of the initial party member vocations. Can also be acquired by creating a party member with it or by visiting Alltrades Abbey.

The game’s main supporting vocation and the lifeblood of any party, the Priests are —together with the Hero— the only non-multi-class spellcasters in the game capable of providing both substantial healing and buffs/debuffs. They also get access to Zing early on, which allows you to revive party members at any time (if you are lucky). Keep in mind that, like the Mage, Priests are as fragile as you can expect and will demand a lot of care.

2. Sage

How to Get: By talking to the Alltrades Abbey Abbot. As mentioned earlier, you will need to have the Words of Wisdom scroll in your item bag to perform the vocation switch for all classes but Gagabout. No matter their vocation, only Lv.20+ characters can become Sages.

The strongest spellcasting-focused vocation in Dragon Quest 3, the Sage can access pretty much all of the game’s non-Hero exclusive spells, all while mitigating the biggest weakness of both the Mage and Priest classes through their respectable HP and massive MP pools, the latter of which allows them to rain destruction and bring salvation on equal measure. On an unrelated note, did you notice that the female Sage and Priest are the only Dragon Quest 3 vocation artworks that seem to feature the same character?

1. Hero

The exclusive class locked to our valiant protagonist, Hero stays true to the game’s lore by being in all possible ways the best class in Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake. More specifically, apart from being extremely balanced, the vocation has access to a wide array of devastating abilities, as well as to both high-tier offensive and supporting spells, such as Kazap and Omniheal. Keep in mind, however, that although the spells can be game-changers, the Hero shines the most as a physical damage dealer. To bring out the best in them, we recommend using either the Paragon (if male) or Vamp (if female) personalities.