Character development | Character and its development Dragon's Dogma Guide
Last update: 11 May 2016
Gaining levels happen in two planes. You receive a classic experience level for completing quests and killing monsters. It will impact such parameters of your character like number of health points, resistance to damage and attack strength. The second plane is experience level in specific profession/vocation. This level is obtained separately from character's level and it can be gained only by fighting. Each profession has a maximum rank (9 levels) that you can reach. By unlocking new levels you will receive new abilities to buy - but only in the profession you are currently using.
When you change vocation you can still use skills of other class in which you have progressed. There is only one condition - you must use the same weapon. For example, if first you played as Strider and unlocked dagger attack, you can use the same attack when playing as Assassin. Some abilities are same both in the base and derivative classes. It's similarly with passive abilities (Augments). However, in that case you can assign abilities independently from the classes - the weapon you use will matter instead (for example: Strider can unlock double jump - you will be able to use it as long as in other profession you will also use daggers). There are also such augments (like increased durability) that will be active for every class and weapon that you will have.
There is no best scheme that would tell you how to develop character of a specific profession. Character's attributes are assigned automatically as you gain levels and the availability of the equipment depends only on story progress and access to the gold. The only thing you can focus on is selection of the abilities. Each of them is described with details and attacks skills have two levels. First one is cheap: you can buy even all cheap abilities and test them on enemies. If you decide that they fit your play style, develop them whenever you have chance to. If you are disappointed with ability, simply select another one. You can assign 3 active abilities to each weapon (basic and secondary one).
Advice: it is a good idea for your main offense character (if not you, then your pawn) to have at least one magic ability. In the whole game fire is most widely used and effective (it is almost the only way of fighting undead and is also effective against many bosses like Chimera). Mages are able to cast spells that will enchant your weapon to deal more fire damage - a very useful thing.