What Life should you choose first in Fantasy Life i?

One of Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time's most important mechanics is its Life system. Lives, also known as professions, let you choose classes that help you gather resources, craft objects, and hunt monsters more easily. They all have specialties, and thus, they have their pros and cons.

This begs the question—are some Lives better than others? Which one should you choose first? Let's dive into which Life you should pick first in Fantasy Life i, alongside a complete breakdown of each option and their features.

Best starting life in Fantasy Life i

The best starting life to choose in Fantasy Life i will depend largely on your preferred playstyle. Generally speaking, though, your best bet is to pick a Combat Life to start before diving deeper into Gathering and Crafting Lives.

Most of your playthrough will depend on slaying monsters for resources, gathering materials from the world, and transforming them into refined goods through crafting. Combat Lives are great stepping stones for this, as they'll help introduce you to the game's combat systems and make the main storyline's progression feel more natural before transitioning over to Gathering and Crafting later.

That said, picking Magician, Mercenary, Hunter, or Paladin depends on what attack style you feel more comfortable using. If you like casting spells, Magician will be your go-to choice. Paladin or Mercenary are your best bet if you want to slice and dice your enemies from close range.

You'll eventually unlock every Life throughout Fantasy Life i's story, making your starting one more of an introduction to the mechanic than anything. Nonetheless, let's discuss each Life in detail so you know what to expect before trying it out.

All Fantasy Life i lives explained

Paladin

Paladin is a standard sword and shield-wielding warrior who protects the innocent and defeats those who threaten the lives of others. If you want to slash enemies while also having a shield as a defensive measure, Paladin is the way to go.

Mercenary

Our second melee option is Mercenary, a greatsword-wielding lone wolf that inflicts massive damage to enemies at the cost of slower attack speeds. If you can outmaneuver your enemies and land some hits despite slower movement, the Mercenary may be a fun alternative for you.

Hunter

If you prefer long-range attacks, Hunter is your first option to pick. With a bow and arrows in hand, you can easily poison and paralyze your foes, setting up combos for any Paladin, Mercenary, or Magician friends you may have by your side. Since Hunters are weaker defensively than the previous two options, knowing how to avoid attacks is the key to surviving with this Life.

Magician

Our last Combat Life option is Magician. With a wand equipped and long-range elemental abilities at your disposal, your only downside is your lack of defenses that enemies can exploit. Over time, you'll unlock elemental spells that you can swap between depending on an enemy's weaknesses, or utility spells to heal yourself and others.

Miner

Miner is our first Gathering Life in this list. If you want to spend more time underground mining for precious minerals than above ground slaying enemies, this is a great option to pick. Miner pairs particularly well with the Blacksmith Life, letting you acquire ores as raw resources before transforming them into weapons and armor later.

Woodcutter

Chopping down trees is one of the best ways to get into Carpentry so you can make some furniture. If this is your goal, the Woodcutter Life is the option to choose. With an axe in hand and a world full of trees, the Woodcutter's job is to cut down trees, which you can refine later if you combine this with the Carpenter Life.

Angler

Next up is Angler, whose main focus is fishing. Your goal is to fish to your heart's content so you can acquire the rarest fish in the world and eventually transition into Cooking. You'll even get to try out Fantasy Life i's special fishing minigame, which can easily turn into hours of relaxation if you clear your mind and focus on grinding this profession.

Farmer

Farmer is one of two Lives in Fantasy Life i that require advancing through the game's main storyline questline before you can unlock it. You'll gain access to this Life after completing The Polturnip and The Leafe. Once you finish this quest, you can return to the Guild Office to change into the Farmer Life, letting you plant crops and use them in cooking.

Cook

They say the way to someone's heart is through their stomach. By far, the best way to test this is by trying out our first Crafting Life on this list and becoming a Cook. Using resources gathered through farming and fishing, you can make delicious meals that you can sell or eat for stat boosts.

Blacksmith

The Blacksmith is one of the most important Crafting Lives you'll experience in Fantasy Life i. Using the Blacksmith's abilities, you can craft armor, weapons, and tools to help improve your other Lives. If your equipment is old and needs some upgrades, changing into a Blacksmith and using ores you acquire from the Miner Life is the way to go.

Carpenter

Remember when I mentioned the Woodcutter's affinity with the Carpentry Life? The Carpenter life is all about making furniture, from chairs and tables to weapons and tools. If you like interior design and want to make any wood-related object, including entire houses, this class is for you.

Tailor

It's time to get our Fashion Life i side going with the Tailor Life. While many of the Tailor's clothes are purely for fun, fashionable moments, you can also make armor for yourself and others, giving this class some much-needed utility alongside the rest.

Alchemist

The Alchemist is an interesting Life, turning various materials you find around the world into potions, flasks, and even bombs you can use in battle. The Alchemist Life is perfect for anyone looking for some chaos.

Artist

The Artist is the second class that requires advancing through Fantasy Life i's main story missions. After completing The Artist's Treasure Hunt during Chapter five, you can head back to the Guild Office to receive an Artist's License, giving you free rein to practice this Life and create some beautiful artwork.

Can you change lives in Fantasy Life i?

Yes, you can change your character's Life shortly after picking your first option. After picking your first option and completing some main story missions and personal quests to familiarize yourself with the mechanic, you'll eventually return to the Guild Office, letting you talk to Auntie Anne to change your Life.

The only requirement you need to acquire a new Life license is reaching Fledgling with your initial class. After reaching Fledging in your starting class and progressing through the main story, return to Auntie Anne to change your Life for no extra cost. From here, you'll need to advance to Fledging to acquire a third Life, and so on.

You can also swap freely between them once you acquire extra licenses from Auntie Anne. You can switch Lives by opening your main menu, picking Life, and choosing whichever options you've unlocked. However, even though it doesn't cost extra money to access them, you will need to complete enough guild quests to Fledging with each Life before receiving a license for a new one. In short, you won't unlock every option in your first hour of playing, but you can obtain them all with enough patience and dedication to questing.

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