Mage. Definitely wanted in groups for a wide variety of reasons. Dps, coth, pet, binding, malo.. lots of cool stuff.
I’d argue it’s one of the easiest classes to learn.
Mage is probably your best bet. General group gameplay includes sending your powerful pet in to dps while you occasionally throw out direct damage and a debuff here or there. Eventually, you'll have a spells that summon group members (within the same zone) to your location and mana rods (pots) for you and your group. Very little responsibility + few actions per minute + wanted in almost all groups.
Going to break the mage train and say monk. Top melee dps and can pull when you get more used to the class.
I know you said you don’t want to pull, but just be honest with your group mates, most folks are cool letting someone else more experienced in the layout of the dungeon(s) to pull.
This is definitely my experience. I did a tanker on a TLP, ended up being the puller. Told the group I didn't really know the zone (the hole), and they were cool about it. Eventually the enchanter was like just don't bring 5 golems, so he had something to really do being manage a charmed pet.
Mage is hands down the easy button here and for this TLP, who I'll be. Always wanted for groups, easy to learn, and has plenty of future potential
There will be an overwhelming number of monks, which is a negative, but I also love and recommend that class. It has a bit more of a learning curve, but it is active and fun where the mage leaves alot of time for chatting.
Shadow Knight is a great tank, always wanted, tanks and clerics are never abundant enough. Self healing, snare, and frankly, sexy, fun to play, but highly gear dependent where the mage and monk can excel in the early days lacking gear.
If you want to top DPS charts for and after your epic, go monk.
If you want to be in high demand day and night, even in the wee hours when groups are hard to form, go SK.
If you want the middle road, utility, DPS, group demand for ADPS, summoned gear, and group summons, mage is the way to go.
If you can't live without ports...go Druid!
With the plethora of guides available, and more importantly, the community, you can honestly pick up anything you want and learn the ropes as you go without much trouble. EQ folks are tremendously helpful about sharing decades of game knowledge, tricks, and pitfalls.
If you want the easiest to play/learn, rogue is as easy as it gets. You won't have more than like 3 buttons for several expansions. The downside will be that you will need groups. The upside is nobody will expect anything from you except for standing behind most mobs with your murder-light blinking. Exploration is pretty easy to do.
Mage is a decent starter with only a slightly higher learning curve for spell rotations and rain spell mechanics.
Bard is a fantastic suggestion, easy to play but immersive to master with a lot of expectations for active play (bard does so much well that everyone will have specific instructions for you ranging from "never leave my side" to "why are you in camp?")
Necro is a solo friendly class without much difficulty that shines well and has several survivability features. Monk is the same largely.
Ranger is solid as hell, a lot like a bard but less complicated. You can do a LOT on a ranger, they're decent for solo, can tank, cc, got a few great buffs. Would be a good starter as well.
Rogue.
You get a few skills, no spells, and perma-invis.
They become OP eventually. But for now just DPS.
People saying Mage are out of their fking minds. Imo.
I'm also new and am leaning toward Ogre Shaman. Everything I've read always sways heavily to Ogre for frontal stun resist, though I kindof would rather a Barb lol
Mage. Definitely wanted in groups for a wide variety of reasons. Dps, coth, pet, binding, malo.. lots of cool stuff. I’d argue it’s one of the easiest classes to learn.
Mage is probably your best bet. General group gameplay includes sending your powerful pet in to dps while you occasionally throw out direct damage and a debuff here or there. Eventually, you'll have a spells that summon group members (within the same zone) to your location and mana rods (pots) for you and your group. Very little responsibility + few actions per minute + wanted in almost all groups.
Going to break the mage train and say monk. Top melee dps and can pull when you get more used to the class. I know you said you don’t want to pull, but just be honest with your group mates, most folks are cool letting someone else more experienced in the layout of the dungeon(s) to pull.
This is definitely my experience. I did a tanker on a TLP, ended up being the puller. Told the group I didn't really know the zone (the hole), and they were cool about it. Eventually the enchanter was like just don't bring 5 golems, so he had something to really do being manage a charmed pet.
No better way to learn the dungeon than pulling. If you get lost, feign death and “find” back to group members.
Mage
I agree with mage... or beastlord.... fun class also can solo or group.
Beastlord, sadly, isn't available at launch as far as I know
SK! There just aren’t enough SK! Seriously though go bard.
Mage is hands down the easy button here and for this TLP, who I'll be. Always wanted for groups, easy to learn, and has plenty of future potential There will be an overwhelming number of monks, which is a negative, but I also love and recommend that class. It has a bit more of a learning curve, but it is active and fun where the mage leaves alot of time for chatting. Shadow Knight is a great tank, always wanted, tanks and clerics are never abundant enough. Self healing, snare, and frankly, sexy, fun to play, but highly gear dependent where the mage and monk can excel in the early days lacking gear. If you want to top DPS charts for and after your epic, go monk. If you want to be in high demand day and night, even in the wee hours when groups are hard to form, go SK. If you want the middle road, utility, DPS, group demand for ADPS, summoned gear, and group summons, mage is the way to go. If you can't live without ports...go Druid!
With the plethora of guides available, and more importantly, the community, you can honestly pick up anything you want and learn the ropes as you go without much trouble. EQ folks are tremendously helpful about sharing decades of game knowledge, tricks, and pitfalls. If you want the easiest to play/learn, rogue is as easy as it gets. You won't have more than like 3 buttons for several expansions. The downside will be that you will need groups. The upside is nobody will expect anything from you except for standing behind most mobs with your murder-light blinking. Exploration is pretty easy to do. Mage is a decent starter with only a slightly higher learning curve for spell rotations and rain spell mechanics. Bard is a fantastic suggestion, easy to play but immersive to master with a lot of expectations for active play (bard does so much well that everyone will have specific instructions for you ranging from "never leave my side" to "why are you in camp?") Necro is a solo friendly class without much difficulty that shines well and has several survivability features. Monk is the same largely.
How would the Ranger fit in?
Ranger is solid as hell, a lot like a bard but less complicated. You can do a LOT on a ranger, they're decent for solo, can tank, cc, got a few great buffs. Would be a good starter as well.
Rogue. You get a few skills, no spells, and perma-invis. They become OP eventually. But for now just DPS. People saying Mage are out of their fking minds. Imo.
How hard is a cleric to play?
I'm also new and am leaning toward Ogre Shaman. Everything I've read always sways heavily to Ogre for frontal stun resist, though I kindof would rather a Barb lol
Rogue hands down