The best class for new players?

[Largomad]

In second or first edition i would said "fighter"; but taking account of how many feats and small skills a fighter has in 3 edition my vote goes to barbarian.

Pretty decent skills selection, great combat abilities straitgh and direct.

And with some direction from the GM it could be a great roleplaying character...

 

[Darkness]

If ease of play is the criteria I would pick barbarian. He's similar to a fighter but without all of the bonus feats (and thus extra combat options) to worry about.

Agreed.

 

[Victim]

I voted barbarian.

Preparing a second set of modifiers for when the barbarian rages is easy and speeds up play - even for experienced players. A barbarian's powers are set at each level, so leveling will be relatively painless. On the other hand, a fighter's power depends almost exlusively on use of feat chains, which can be csomewhat compliacated. Even if a barbarian chooses crappy feats, rage and other powers will add some power. On the other hand, a fighter with poor feats doesn't add much.

 

[Bass Puppet]

Well, The Barbarian at 1st level receives Rage and Fast Movement.

The Fighter at 1st level receives a Bonus Feat.

I believe Feats are more important than Special Class Features and should be one of the first things a new character should learn because of it's importance to all classes (some more than others). So instead of being "easy", I think the Fighter is the Best Class for new players.

 

[Jaligard]

Ranger.

At low levels, they are essentially Fighters, except their feats are already chosen for them (Two-Weapon Fighting, Ambidexterity). They get a little bit extra in the way of skills, allowing the newbie to experiment with some of the rogue abilities (Move Silent, Hide). When they progress to higher levels, when the newbie has gotten used to the combat and skill system, they get spells.