They are only modified warriors. They are like DPS warriors, but more fail.

A real Assassin is that of Assassin's Creed, or the thief games (the older ones anyway)

A fake Assassin has imaginary stealth or some fake cloaking ability.

So...why the heck include them at all? 

Now this is all personal opinnion but MMORPG's should have no need. Heck even a basic MMO should have no "need" for an assassin.

The assassin class (again imho) is just a play to make gankers feel needed. People think of assassins in terms of solitary uber killers, that is the kind of class that really isn'y needed in a Co-op style game. Then again most MMO's are "easy-button" 1 player games in a world of 1 player gamers rather than groups.

Classes like the assassin are (imho) hurting the grouping/cohesiveness of an MMO.

Originally posted by TheScavenger

They are only modified warriors. They are like DPS warriors, but more fail.

A real Assassin is that of Assassin's Creed, or the thief games (the older ones anyway)

A fake Assassin has imaginary stealth or some fake cloaking ability.

So...why the heck include them at all? 

There's some extensive threads that already exist with your answer, TheScavenger. Here's links to some great resources!

The many lives of Ishida 

PyroMan52134

Ranger101

charmander9

12science34 and Physics799 (12Physics34 on other forums)

As a shadow priest, I'm all for eliminating those fuckers...

:-)

In D&D 3.5 ruleset the Assassin class is pretty explicitly ladded out as different and having a unique set of abilities compare to Fighter or Rogue.

Firstly, Assassin is an prestige class, hence you can't go into it without certain perconditions.

Secondly, Assassin has abilities unique from Rogues. They Assassin specific "spells" which they can cast (very limited, but absolutely class related such as Invisibility)

Thirdly, they do paralyzing attacks as well as having a high save throw, so they are better at dealing with traps and magic even compare to rogues. At higher levels their saving throw makes them almost invulnerable to magic.

It all just depends on the implementation of the class in the game, but the one that I know of (in D&D and Pathfinder) they do it properly.

One of the funnest character's I've played in an mmo was a rogue in WoW.

A rogue/assassin is about burst/critical damage and being stealthy.You get in and overwhelm an opponent and get the job done,nice and sweet.You also can sneak and stun an opponent,taking them out of a fight until you or your group are done killing another.Very fun class to play and experiment with.

A warrior just does dps over a sustained period of time and can also be built to tank.

Why do MMOs include an Assassin class?

Because some people like to play them and enjoy the mechanics that come with the class? Kind of a silly question, seeing as the exact same question can be made for every single class ever made.

Reducing options is already becoming a bane in the MMO market, I think it would be wiser to request more optionsin every facet.

Originally posted by Psychow

As a shadow priest, I'm all for eliminating those fuckers...

:-)

^^^lol :)

Originally posted by Distopia
DDO has a strictly PVE design, making it a must to have such mechanics available to rogues and the like. In a PVP game they have many uses, mainly taking out casters, detecting other stealth classes and recon. Without such a class casters would dominate group pvp dynamics, which in many cases they already do, think how it would be without stealth classes.

 I would imagine they could add utility to the existing pool of mele classes to close the gap, because in most games melee roles always spec the highest dps for pvp.

DDO has a prestige build for an assassin rogue using stealth and an assassination ability, but since it's still a theif based class the stealth abilities as well as utility skills all use the same base stats. That style class could still work in a game with pvp because it's damage is based on sneak attack and flanking bonuses.

I can't tell if this is a serious thread or not, the answer seems so obvious.  The reason, the "need" for the class's existence in MMOs is simply because there's such a huge player demand for the archetype.  The class adds gameplay variety through stealth mechanics, however magically unrealistic.  And they very often play nothing like warriors at all.  

It's just a type of gameplay and character archetype that appeals to a LOT of people.  Developers would be downright fools to not include them.  Doing so risks losing the interest of a large group of people.  

Originally posted by Cochran1

Originally posted by Distopia
DDO has a strictly PVE design, making it a must to have such mechanics available to rogues and the like. In a PVP game they have many uses, mainly taking out casters, detecting other stealth classes and recon. Without such a class casters would dominate group pvp dynamics, which in many cases they already do, think how it would be without stealth classes.

 I would imagine they could add utility to the existing pool of mele classes to close the gap, because in most games melee roles always spec the highest dps for pvp.

DDO has a prestige build for an assassin rogue using stealth and an assassination ability, but since it's still a theif based class the stealth abilities as well as utility skills all use the same base stats. That style class could still work in a game with pvp because it's damage is based on sneak attack and flanking bonuses.

 

The thing you're forgetting is a well played caster will see that melee class coming from a mile away. In a group PVP situation there's a lot of ground to cover to reach that caster, he has the advantage not to mention allies that are in your way.. Hence the stealth ability allowing a certain class to sneak behind that line and deal the blows needed to at least distract the casters in the rear.

Originally posted by TheScavenger

They are only modified warriors. They are like DPS warriors, but more fail.

 

A real Assassin is that of Assassin's Creed, or the thief games (the older ones anyway)

 

A fake Assassin has imaginary stealth or some fake cloaking ability.

 

So...why the heck include them at all? 

Why does any fantasy game include any class?

Hows that for mind being blown?