Homestuck Classes- an Attempt at Explanation

Each title has two parts; a class and an aspect. The aspect can be one of twelve ‘essential Elements’ that make up the universe. The class channels the aspect & limits it to certain abilities, which the player may have before the ascension to Godtier. The classes are Knight, Maid, Page, Mage, Rogue, Sylph, Seer, Thief, Heir, Bard, Prince, & Witch.

There are two categories of classes: passive & active. The passive classes use their abilities to benefit their teammates, whether it is protecting them by exploiting their aspect, or by being the conductor. The active classes use their abilities to benefit themselves, often at the expense of their team.

Knights are the protectors of their team, often exploiting their aspect as a weapon to do so. For example, Dave, the Knight of Time, reset the entire timeline to save the lives of his friends, while Karkat, the Knight of Blood, was able to calm a psychopathically-murderous clown, saving the lives of his remaining friends. In both cases, the Knight assisted the Hero of Space in breeding the Genesis Frog and were trying hard to be something. For Dave, it was being a cool kid, and Karkat was trying to be a leader. Rogues are the Robin Hoods of their aspect, stealing it from their opponents & spreading it among their teammates. Roxy, the Rogue of Void, will end up blocking her entire session from outside view –which includes omniscient beings. Rogues also seem to have an affinity for cats and some role-playing. Sylphs are healers, often able to undo what has been done to cause the harm. Aranea, the Sylph of Light, was able to help others see things by either helping them sort through memories to find the root of the damage or by literally restoring their sight. Sylphs also have a tendency to speak very formally. Seers are conductors, leading their team through the session while benefiting said teammates with their knowledge. As a Seer of Mind, Terezi knew what choices would have which consequences, while Rose, as a fully-realized Seer of Light, knew the most fortuitous path. Seers also seem to have an affinity for what we call ‘mythical creatures’ like dragons and horror terrors. Bards are wild cards, able to destroy their team’s only chance of winning or causing their team to win when there is no chance. Gamzee, the Bard of Rage, was able to go into a ‘berserker mode’, enabling his team to defeat the Black King. Before Karkat calmed him, he started murdering his teammates while enraged. If we go by the only example, they also seem to really like clowns & attempt to help their teammates. Witches have complete mastery over their aspect, allowing them to use it whenever & wherever. For instance, Jade’s first act as the fully-realized Witch of Space was to slow down & shrink a meteor, then shrunk Skia & the four planets she & her friends had inhabited. A dead Feferi had reached god-tier as a Witch of Life & fully restored life to one of the exiles through a dream bubble. Witches are also very bubbly. However, they can be a little mean when provoked.

Maids often use their aspect to prolong their own survival. Aradia, the Maid of Time, was able to freeze Bec Noir in time, allowing her to escape, while Jane, the Maid of Life, can heal her own mortal injuries. Maids seem to be okay with a lot of things, often offering an optimistic opinion to whatever problem their friends bring them. Thieves steal their aspect from anyone and use it to achieve what they believe to be the best outcome. For example, Vriska, as a fully-realized Their of Light, stole any luck Terezi might have had & forced the coin-flip to reveal what she believed to be the more favorable outcome. She could also read minds & see into magic cue balls, therefore stealing knowledge. Heirs are often protected by their aspect without them knowing. John, the Heir of Breath, was saved by the breeze twice before he learned how to harness his potential & Bec Noir was unable to trace his scent, suggesting that the breeze was still protecting him. Equius, as an Heir of Void, couldn’t be seen by Doc Scratch, who was an omniscient being. Heirs also have a habit of not being the leader, intentually or otherwise. Princes are destroyers, either using their aspect for destruction or eliminating it from the session. Eridan, the Prince of Hope, killed Kanaya & Feferi, along with destroying the Matriorb, which was the troll’s only way to resurrect their race. Princes also seem to care about their appearance & to be among the more aggressive of their teammates, Eridan with his genocidal-complex & Dirk’s skill at building [& destroying] robots.

While there are very few things that are actually confirmed by the author, there are many, many things that are strongly implied. Unfortunately, the author is still being illusive about a few things. The following classes are among them.

Pages have undiscovered poteinal & are probably the passive counterpoint to Maids, given that they spread their aspect to others. Both Tavros, the Page of Breath, and Jake, the Page of Hope, have come into constant contact with the lusii, Tavros through his ability to commune with them & Jake every time he steps out of his door. Both are also very naïve. When Jane’s dreamself finally woke up, the inhabitants of Prospect were carrying Jake’s dreamself’s dead body, chanting the phrases “The Page is dead. Our Hope is lost.”

Mages may be the active counterpoint to Seers, since they use their own knowledge (or visions) to benefit themselves & seem to be protected from their aspect. However, it is possible that they are the active counterpart to Witches. Granted, Sollux was the only Mage, and he was a bi-polar hacker. If we take everything else into perspective, than we could assume that the voices of the soon-to-be dead, along with the visions of death & disaster would count as knowledge, while his multiple dream selves & ability to escape dream bubbles could be protection from the harmful sides of Doom, if it is what it name implies.

This merely states what is currently known (or thought) about the Classes. One must keep in mind that the comic is unfinished, so the information can and will change as Homestuck continues. However, I hope you found this to be informative.