In short: Varkas (1st) is a High Elf melee fighter who trades blows right in the enemy's face, packing huge Strength and huge toughness. It is the perfect class for beginners who want a straightforward character: get close, hit hard, hold the line.

Picture a nimble elf who gives up spells and arrows to settle everything up close, with fists and blades. That is exactly what playing Varkas feels like: you run up to your target, stick to it and keep a non-stop rain of blows coming.

This is not a class that makes you memorize ten buttons. You turn on your buffs, pick a monster and charge in — and your character can take a beating while dishing out double. It is a great first taste of the game.

Overview

Sheet
Race	High Elf
Archetype	Melee combat
Playstyle	Tough brawler
Difficulty	Easy
Main weapon	Fists / blades
Position in the line	1st Class

Varkas (1st) is the second step of your journey in this line: you start as Varkas (Starter) → Varkas (1st) (1st Class). This is the first real profession, where the class gets its own identity and your fighting skills start to shine.

Strengths

Sky-high Strength (STR 41) — among the highest in the game (top 2%). STR is what defines your physical damage, so every hit you land really packs a punch, even with simple gear.
Massive toughness (CON 45) — also at the top (top 4%). CON boosts your health and resistance, which means you stay standing in fights where other classes would already be down.
Solid physical defense (pDef 80) — you take less damage from melee monsters, ideal for someone who stands and hits the same target for a long time.
Good run speed (132) — you reach enemies fast and never fall behind the group, which helps a lot with farming and hunting on the move.
Self-support kit — you have speed buffs, attack buffs and even light heals, so you depend less on others to keep yourself alive while farming solo.

Weaknesses

Very low mana (the lowest in the game) — you drain your MP fast if you spam skills back to back. Tip: use special strikes sparingly and let your normal attacks do the heavy lifting.
Modest total health at end game — despite the high CON, your raw HP number sits near the bottom of the ranking. Tip: keep your armor updated and put HP potions on auto-use.
Low magic power (INT 20) — your few magic skills hit weak. Tip: do not count on magic for damage; your thing is close-range physical attacks.
Very short reach — because you fight up close, you have to touch the enemy, so you take damage from everything around you. Tip: pull one monster at a time when your health is low.

Class-defining skills

Haste — speeds up your attack speed. It is a buff you turn on and leave on: more hits per second means more damage all the time.
Wind Walk — increases your run speed. Turn it on at the start of the hunt to reach targets and move between monster packs faster.
Speed Charge — a strong physical strike (an impactful melee blow). Use it to open a fight or finish off a monster that is almost dead.
Direct Strike — another direct physical strike. Good for stacking extra damage on top of your normal attacks when you have spare MP.
Recover HP — a heal that restores your health little by little over time. Turn it on when you start taking hits so you do not have to stop farming.
Recover MP — restores your mana little by little. Essential for a class with low mana: it helps you keep using special strikes for longer.
Berserker Spirit — a fury buff that raises your attack power in exchange for a bit of defense. Use it when you feel confident and want to drop everything faster.
Magic Barrier — increases your magic defense. Turn it on against enemies who cast spells to suffer less spell damage.
Wild Magic — increases the critical chance of your magic. Useful on the few magic skills you have, adding extra damage now and then.

Attributes: what to prioritize

Varkas is a pure Strength-and-Toughness brawler. Everything that boosts your physical damage and your health is gold to you; magic and mana come last.

STR (Strength) — your number one priority, because it is what makes your physical hits hurt.
CON (Constitution) — second priority: more health and more resistance to hold the front line.
DEX (Dexterity) — helps your critical chance and the accuracy of your hits, a welcome bonus.
MEN (Mentality) — only matters to ease your mana problem a bit; never your priority.

Recommended gear

Since you fight up close with fists and blades, always aim for the best melee weapon you can get. For defense, prefer heavy armor, which suits your tanky style and boosts physical defense.

What to upgrade first: the weapon, always. More attack means killing faster and farming better. Right after that, upgrade your armor to withstand the punishment in tougher zones.

Beginner step by step

Create the character — pick the High Elf race and the Varkas base. Do not worry about perfection now; what matters is to start playing.
Do the first quests of the starting area — they hand out gear, adena and your first levels for free, and teach you the controls.
Turn on auto-hunt — this is the heart of leveling in Essence: your character farms on its own in zones at its level, hitting monsters and gathering experience while you watch.
Follow the professions base → 1st → 2nd → 3rd — each class change unlocks new and stronger skills. You are at 1st Class; keep evolving to unlock the rest of your potential.
Prioritize the right skills — keep Haste and Wind Walk always on, and use Recover HP and Recover MP to sustain yourself on auto-hunt without stopping.
Gather Adena and L-Coin — Adena is the everyday currency for buying potions and upgrades; L-Coin is for special items. Farming with auto-hunt, you accumulate both naturally.
Keep weapon and armor updated — do not let your gear get old. Whenever you free up some money, swap to a better tier; it is what speeds up your progress the most.

Where to farm

Auto-hunt on monsters at your level — the safest and most steady way to level up; the character does the work while you manage.
Move up to tougher zones as you evolve — stronger monsters give more experience and rewards; change areas as your power grows.
Party up for raids and bosses — in a group you face big enemies that drop far better prizes than hunting solo.
Use the Season Pass and daily missions — they are guaranteed rewards every day that speed up your progress a lot.

Common beginner mistakes

Spending all your mana on skills — with the lowest mana in the game, burning it all at once leaves you with no strikes; alternate with normal attacks.
Ignoring your gear — high Strength saves no one with a weak weapon. Upgrading the weapon matters more than anything else.
Facing too many monsters at once — your total health is not huge; pulling a big pack can drop you fast.
Forgetting to turn on buffs — without Haste and Wind Walk you farm much slower; always turn them on before you start.

This class is for you if…

You like direct combat — getting close, hitting hard and taking the beating is exactly this class's style.
You want something simple to start with — few essential buttons and a character that forgives beginner mistakes.
You enjoy being tough on the front line — top-tier Strength and Toughness make you a rock that returns every blow.

Quick summary

Attribute	Value
Archetype	Melee combat
HP at level 85	3124
MP at level 85	975
Base physical attack	4
Base magic attack	6
Attack type	FIST

Varkas (1st) class guide (High Elf) — strengths, skills and step by step