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Races

Ragnarok Online 2 introduces 2 new races for players to play as. In addition to the Normans (from Ragnarok 1) you can now play as an Ellr or Dimago. Each race has advantages to it that make it a viable choice when a new player is creating their character. Little is known as of now on how these races will affect the game, but announcements have made some info clear about them.

Norman
Height comparison of the Norman and Ellr.
Height comparison of the Norman and Ellr.

The Norman race has a human appearance and is the race that was played in RO1. They use the job System, allowing them to switch their job at will and take advantage of specialty skills. The original appearance of the Norman, a very childish look, was re-designed for a more mature look. The race's name may likely be a reference to the historical Normans or Norsemen, given the game's focus on Norse mythology. It could also be a portmanteau of the words "normal" and "human."

[edit] Ellr

The Ellr are a half-breed, born between an interracial relationship between the Normans and the Elves. They inhabit their own land known as "Alfheim". After participating in the war between the eastern and western Normans, they returned to Alfheim, but have recently returned to Midgard to investigate why their "Mother Tree" fell silent. The power of an Ellr comes from the magical stones they possess, called "Stones of Ancestors". These stones influence their skills, and as such the Ellr has no professions or classes. They may only equip two stones at a time, however. The original model of the concept Ellr appeared as a super deformed art style. It was later redesigned to appear more normal in proportions, although still very childlike.

Dimago

The Dimago are the rejected offspring of a relationship between the Colossus and Norman. They have apparently been under an enchanted sleep, and have no memory of their previous lives. They "fight with style" and are able to make use of dynamic skill trees. The characters are designed to be 7-8 heads tall in height (that of an average human.) This, compared to the Ellr which are 2~3 heads tall or the Normans which are 4~6 heads tall, means that the Dimago will be the tallest playable race in the game.


Classes

At this time, only the classes for the Norman race have been announced. It is unknown if the other races will have a class, or job, system. With lack of information, excluding the official descriptions, similar classes from Ragnarok Online have been used as a basis for determining the main purpose of the new classes by several RO communities. Please also note that it is unknown at this time if these are all the classes for the Norman race, as more may be announced.

Novice
The Novice class is the starting class for every new Norman player. It has the ability to advance to the other classes and offers new players a chance to learn the game and decide what course they want to take before committing to a class. They are generally a weak and short-lived playing class, but have potential and skills to make them just as viable as other classes later on. They have an interesting repertoire of utility and combat skills suiting their adventurous nature and Play Dead makes a return. It is unconfirmed if the Super Novice, an advanced form of the Novice with the ability to learn the basic skills of every 1st job class, will be carried into RO2 as well, though it is estimated Gravity will implement this class in a later update instead of having it available on release.

Swordsman
The identified "tank" of RO2, the Swordsman class is a melee class dependent on close range battles. They are generally the first person to take damage and deliver damage in a battle, fighting on the frontlines of a battle. A Novice can become a Swordsman after a certain requirement, at this time unknown, is met. They are tanks and need a lot of HP. The Swordsman relies on damage skills, though it also has several powerful defensive skills. It can successfully fight high level monsters much higher than its level due to its high HP and damage ratio. Most of its attacks center around dealing damage, though some are geared towards dealing damage towards more than one target at the same time. It is severely limited in ranged attacks, however. In RO1, a swordsman could advance to either a Knight or Crusader at job level 40-50. The Knight, which is an improvement on the Swordsman's damage dealing ideal, relies on high damage skills. A Crusader, who is more of a battlemage, relies on a balance of both damage skills and buff skills. It is unknown at this point if the Knight or Crusader will be introduced into RO2.

Enchanter
The main magic user in RO2, the Enchanter supports the other players in battle to maximize damage and keep players alive. They have access to very powerful healing abilities, as well as resurrection skills to bring life back to a dead combatant. Their skills also allow them to buff, or power up, a player in the game to increase his skills or status. They can even debuff, or sabotage, an enemy by slowing them down or making them weaker to specific elements. Enchanters also have access to damage dealing skills, ranging from elemental skills, such as Fire Bolt and Ice Arrow, to skills that rely on stats, such as Shadow Strike. They also have a few damaging holy spells, however they also have the ability to support other players. Enchanters could best be described as a mix of the RO1 classes Priest, Sage and Mage.

Recruit
The Recruit is the supposed replacement of the Archer from RO1. Yet, from the official description, its role varies from the Archer and more like the Gunslinger class from RO1. Regardless, the Recruit is the long-range attack master, with many of its skills using long-range attacks to deal damage. The Recruit more closely resembles the Gunslinger, a new class released in RO1. Unlike the Archer, the Recruit uses weapons similar to modern day guns, rifles, and gatling cannons. This weaponry is known as a "Dampf Flinte" in the RO2 world. The Norman race advanced heavily in technology to attain guns to make up for their shortcomings in their physical and mental abilities. A large difference from the RO1 Archer is that Recruits can also engage in melee effectively. Footage has been released of a Recruit attacking an enemy using their gun as a melee weapon, hitting them with the butt end of the gun. The advanced Archer classes, Bard/Dancer and Hunter, are again unknown of continuance in RO2. The Hunter advances on the abilities of the Archer, increasing use of damage skills with long-range attacks and enabling the player to use traps to trick enemies. It has been concluded that Bards and Dancers will not journey to RO2, as the Clown class will receive their abilities.

Thief
The Thief class in RO2 specializes in causing chaos and disorder for their enemies, as well as stealing items and money. Unlike their RO1 counterparts, which were a more direct attack class, the RO2 Thief is more centered around confusion-type skills designed for silent strikes and mayhem. Thief skills will revolve around causing problems with their enemies. Attacks that poison or inflict other aliments are said to be their main way of attacking, though they can also use skills to hide or disorient the enemy. Abilities such as the double attack ability from RO1 may also make a transition into RO2. The Thief is weak in long-range attacks, like the Swordsman, due to it not having any long-range abilities to counterattack with. It is significantly less able to defend itself, but balances itself out with high agility, making them a hard target. The Thief advanced classes, Assassin and Rogue, are undetermined as to being in RO2. The Assassin improved on killing moves, while Rogues move into more mayhem causing skills or even using a bow. There is good support for their existence, however, as the official description makes a note of citizens employing Thieves to use their skills.

Clown
The Clown class is mainly derived from the Bard and Dancer in RO1. Their skills are in the same general area: Singing songs and supporting in combat. Though the official description is very vague, the idea is that the Clown will relax and increase players' stats for battle. They will sing during battle too, "soothing" front line fighters. The Clown's combat abilities are not defined well, though there is an example of the Clown employing deadly poison on its enemies when they least expect it. In RO1, bows are the weapon-of-choice for the Bard and the Dancer, using the skills they learned as an Archer to supplement their damage. They also need a musical instrument in order to use their bardic skills. Because their description is so vague, not much can be said for the Clown class until more announcements are made.

From:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragnarok_Online_2:_The_Gate_of_the_World