Best Classes for New Players
Disclaimer: My first character in a campaign was a Gnome Bard (Archivist) that I loved but also had a few major complaints about. My first 5e character was a Bear Totem Barbarian. When I started DMing, new players at my table abandonded spellcasters quickly.
This guide is written for players new to both Dungeons and Dragons and mostly new to gaming in general. If you've played a lot of video games, some of the information in here has less relevance but it's still worth reading -- D&D has a few traps and common pitfalls that this article might help you avoid (e.g. casting spells to do damage, especially upcasting spells, probably isn't the correct thing to do unless you know why).
There's a subset of players that are new to Dungeons and Dragons that this guide isn't written for but it's unlikely they are looking for what classes would best suit new players and are looking at how to play a particular class (or role) well instead. If you've played tactical role-playing games (like Final Fantasy Tactics) or turn-based, grid-based strategy games (like XCOM), you're probably well on your way to playing more complicated classes or roles.
Which Classes/Subclasses Should a New Player Try First?
Barbarian - Totem Warrior (Bear)
New players tend to struggle in RP/social settings -- a barbarian plays well into this in two ways: (1) new players can largely ignore social settings as a barbarian, (2) barbarians are supposed to struggle in social situations.
Bear Totem is especially nice for new players because they won't get punished nearly as bad for making tactical mistakes; not only do barbarians have a ton of hit points, they take half damage.
Dealing damage can be an issue for a barbarian. If you're looking to deal tons of damage as a barbarian, pick up the Great Weapon Master feat and pair it with Savage Attacker.
Rogue - Swashbuckler
Who doesn't want to be a pirate? Swashbuckler offers the most reliable way for a rogue to consistently trigger Sneak Attack. Swashbuckler also doesn't rely on stealth, so they're less likely to run into the problems associated with failig stealth checks (like metagaming or starting combat unexpectedly).
It's a great class to be an "off-face" (let your bard, paladin, sorcerer, or warlock do the talking) but as a new player gets comfortable role playing, the bonus emphasis on charisma will help them not fall flat.
Cunning Action is one of the best ways to make use of bonus actions and learning how to use this effectively will make new players feel incredibly effective.
Another bonus, all of the rogue's abilities are unlimited use -- none of them require resting.
All this said, the most important thing to remember when playing a rogue: Don't be a jerk. Rogues can invite players to developing bad role playing habits, don't do this.
Honorable Mention: Thief
Stealth can be a little ackward in Dungeons and Dragons but people love sneaking around (I'm biased, I don't like sneaking or stealth mechanics)... but if you are this way, play a thief. Fast Hands is a nice upgrade for Cunning Action and I love introducing the "Use an Object" action to throw a vial of acid or alchemist's fire.
Fighter - Battle Master
Fighters arguably make the best archers in the game and the battle master gives the fighter class some interesting ways to handle combat situations. Crossbow Expert is a great feat here, too.
It might sound counter intuitive, but this is the class I'd recommend to someone who wants to play a caster. Maneuvers are very spell-like, the list isn't overwhelming, most of them are pretty good, and they can be replaced whenever the player learns a new one. Replacing maneuvers is incredibly friendly to new players as it allows them to try out manuevers on their own and see first hand which ones are the most impactful for them.
Honorable Mention: Champion
Boring but effective. It's boring to the point that I almost don't want to recommend it. It lacks a way to use a bonus action on it's own (feats are needed) and a battle master that doesn't use their maneuvers still plays the same way as a champion.
Warlock - The Fiend
I generally wouldn't recommend a caster to a new player but the warlock is an exception for a few reasons: (1) Eldritch Blast makes combat fairly linear, (2) limited spell slots that refresh on short rest is way less punishing.
New players looking to RP, a warlock is a great option. In combat, the player should ask themselves "Can I do anything better than casting Eldritch Blast?" and the answer will almost always be "No, just cast Eldritch Blast."
Honorable Mention: Hexblade
In all honesty, Hexblade is probably a better choice than The Fiend; the only reason why The Fiend is the first choice is that it's closer to a pure caster.
Hexblade is a gish-style character, more traditionally known as a spellsword and has a ton of fantasy appeal. It's going to be a popular choice but it's also a dangerous choice -- hexblades can get themselves in a lot of trouble in melee combat and don't have the damage reduction or hit point pool that fighters and barbarians have.
Other Factors to Consider
Focus on Action Economy
One of my biggest complaints about character sheets is how it doesn't break down what the character can do in a clear way. I typically give new players a cheatsheet that breaks down their abilities in five ways:
- Actions
- Bonus Actions
- Reactions
- Free Actions (things like Reckless Attack)
- Passive Abilities (Sneak Attack)
If you have the chance to use feats, I strongly recommend Polearm Master. This feature gives any character a bonus action and a reaction (especially important for a class like fighter that doesn't have a consistent way to use bonus actions). Crossbow Expert functions in a similar way for characters that want to play ranged (or psuedo-ranged) characters.
What Should New Players Avoid?
Most casters. Spell lists alone are enough for me to be hesitant if a new player wants to play a caster. Not only do they need to learn their class (and subclass), they need to read about the spells that are available to them. Throw prepared spells and spell slots on top of that and that could turn the player off pretty quick.
I'd also include the half casters (Paladins and Rangers) here for slightly different reasons -- paladins because they can do just about anything and rangers because they are widely considered underpowered. Also, the 1/3 casters (Eldritch Knight and Arcane Tricker) will appeal to new players because of their fighter-wizard hybrid style but both of these classes are played in a way I don't think new players envision seeing their characters this way.
Bards and Other Support Characters
It takes a lot of creativity (and more importantly, time) for wizards and bards to shine. Playing support is typically a thankless job and it's fairly difficult, even for experienced players, to recognize the impact of their support spells and abilities.
What about Clerics and Paladins?
One of my biggest annoyances with getting into TTRPGs (Pathfinder first, then 5e) was the lore, specifically around dieties. Clerics (and argubaly paladins) have fairly strong ties to dieties and I wasn't excited to learn about the world before entering the world.
These classes, along with bards, also have healing spells... and one problem with having access to these spells is that some tables will expect you to be the healer. That's fine if you want to be the healer but I don't think new players should be relegated to the healer role just because they're new. Plus, healing isn't something that should be expect (or encouraged) during combat.