best smite gods for beginners

Best Smite Gods For Beginners

Latest posts by Shane Martin (see all)

So, you’re new to SMITE. You’re either picking the game up as your first MOBA, or you have experience with other MOBAs, but you’ve decided to give SMITE a fair try. Doesn’t matter.

You open up the game, and lo and behold there’s a massive horde of gods for you to choose from. True, the variety is ungodly (see what I did there?) and can be exceedingly overwhelming at first glance, but don’t panic, because I’m here to help you out.

The gods of SMITE are divided into five key roles: Hunter, Mage, Assassin, Warrior, and Guardian. With that in mind, I will try to help you narrow down the playstyle(s) you want to try and let you know which gods within those specific roles will be the easiest for you to pick up.

That way, you’re focusing less on how to play the god and more on taking the game in as a whole. After all, there are plenty of other elements to SMITE, like the different game modes and the item shop, so becoming comfortable with one or two gods right out the gate is important so you can quickly move on to familiarizing yourself with the rest of the game.

I should also note that, while you’re browsing the many gods available to you, you’ll notice there is a difficulty system in place. With this, Hi-Rez themselves try to help you by labeling each god as either easy, average, or hard to play.

But I’m here to dive a bit deeper than that (and occasionally disagree with their ratings) to narrow down your selection to a more manageable pool of choices. That said, I won’t address Hi-Rez’s difficulty ratings for the most part unless I disagree with them in specific cases.

Key Info Up Front

SMITE has an incredible number of gods to choose from, and that number will only rise as time goes on. As such, if you’re choosing to join the game now, I will offer some suggestions regarding which gods you should play as a beginner.

In addition to my baseline suggestions, I will also offer some slightly more advanced gods that are still relatively easy to pick up if you’re looking for more of a challenge. At the point of writing, the most recent god released is Surtr, so only all the gods up to him will be considered in this article.

Right out of the gate, here are all the gods I will mention in this article. The first two gods in each column (italicized) I would consider easy to learn and easy to master: the perfect choices for new players.

The last three gods in each column I would consider easy to learn but tricky/difficult to master: the perfect choices for new players who also seek a bit of an extra (yet rewarding) challenge without it being too overwhelming:

Hunters Mages Assassins Warriors Guardians
Artemis Anubis Hun Batz Hercules Ares
Medusa Scylla Thanatos Odin Ymir
Neith Ra Fenrir Nike Bacchus
Apollo Poseidon Bastet Vamana Athena
Chiron Hades Loki Chaac Sobek

Feel free to jump to whatever section best suits you.

Hunters

smite artemis god

First, let’s talk about the Hunter class, otherwise known as the ADC (attack-damage-carry) in many other MOBAs. Keep in mind that, since you have to aim all your auto-attacks, playing a Hunter will already have a higher baseline difficulty than its ADC counterparts in other MOBAs that can simply click the target they wish to attack.

With that out of the way, let’s talk about the two Hunters who have easy mechanics and are easy to master:

Artemis

The Greek goddess of the hunt (among other things) is a great god to start with if you’re interested in Hunters. Her kit is extremely simple and useful, as her base abilities consist of traps, an auto-attack enhancer, and an area-of-effect (aoe) ability.

Her ultimate is super straight forward too, as all you do is summon a boar that goes out and stuns some gods. Best of all, you don’t have to worry about her passive one bit, as it’s just a damage buff to crowd-controlled targets.

Oddly enough, SMITE labels Artemis as an average difficulty god, but due to the simplistic nature of her entire kit, I would certainly classify her as easy instead.

Medusa

Artemis’ greatest pitfall is that she lacks the mobility to get herself out of hairy situations, but that’s where Medusa shines. Like Artemis, Medusa has an extremely simple and useful kit since it consists of pretty much the same things (an auto-attack enhancer and an ability that gives some area-of-effect damage).

Furthermore, although her ultimate is slightly different, it still functions similarly as a mass-stun tool. However, instead of traps, she has access to a dash that even roots the first enemy hit if you use it aggressively.

So, if you’re looking for a tad bit more safety (either because you don’t trust your positioning yet or you don’t trust your teammates to help you), Medusa is a great starter god.

Now, let’s look at the Hunters that are easy to pick up but have a little more complexity as you attempt to master them:

Chiron

There are a couple of aspects to Chiron that offer some spicy gameplay. One of his abilities allows him to charge forward in a full gallop (because he’s a horse), and you’re allowed to auto-attack during this gallop, which can take some games to get used to.

Using his ultimate as a defensive ability can take some practice, and his passive, while not the most impactful thing in the world, can be useful in many situations when used effectively. There’s also the matter of keeping track of who you can hit with your Masterful Shot, which isn’t hard at all but does require some extra awareness.

Neith

Neith is classified as easy, but while I wouldn’t necessarily stick her at average difficulty either, I think she’s slightly more complex than just “easy.” The reason for this is her passive. Sure, her overall kit is simple and safe, having access to a root, an area-of-effect ability that heals her, and some mobility (backflip), her passive, Broken Weave, allows for more advanced gameplay.

Apollo

The two most complex things about him are his passive (not how it works, but how to time its use correctly) and his ultimate, which is essentially a global ability. Having a global is invaluable, but there is always a high skill curve when it comes to using it effectively.

Mages

smite anubis god

Next up is the other ranged class: Mages. This class has the most diversity and number of gods at the time of writing, so narrowing this down to only five suggestions was a bit tricky. Nonetheless, let’s look at the two all-around easy Mages first:

Anubis

Anubis’ kit is remarkably straightforward: he has a stun and three area-of-effect abilities. His combo is super easy to get the hang of (hit the stun and drop all your abilities on that unfortunate victim), and he’s got some serious lifesteal and stat-stealing packed into his kit through his passive, making him quite forgiving even without a mobility spell. Definitely a god to try.

Scylla

Scylla is a mage with some of the heaviest-hitting abilities in the game, with one of them being a root and another, a slow. Her ultimate resets on kills, and she has mobility, giving her a reliable escape from sticky situations.

All around a wonderful god to pick up as a beginner, as she allows you to be safe, deal big damage, and even help out your team with some crowd-control (cc) all at the same time without having any glaring complexities other than positioning well.

Now, for the three Mages that, while easy to learn, have some extra layers.

Ra and Poseidon

I’m sticking these two gods in the same entry because the reasons they’re here are essentially the same. They are both gods with no mobility spells and hard-hitting, straightforward abilities. That said, they also both have passives that increase their movement speed under certain conditions.

So, if you want to be as fast as possible to make up for their lack of mobility spells, you need to be conscious that said conditions are always met to keep your speed boost alive, lest you become food for enemy Assassins.

An important note: Ra is considered average by Hi-Rez, which I disagree with. I don’t think the gameplay around his passive is difficult enough to warrant getting bumped up from easy to average difficulty.

Hades

Hades is my favorite and the god I have played the most. He is a great beginner god due to his mobility and crowd-control. However, his passive (Blight) forces you to think a bit more about your actions, as it adds an additional effect to each of his abilities, which can benefit you at different times.

Bonus Suggestion for Support Players

Some mages are also known as enchanters or, in other words, ranged supports. These guys usually hang back and help their teammates from afar with various buffs and healing, while also tossing out some crowd-control to aid in locking down enemies.

While most of the enchanters available to you have a bit of a learning curve, I recommend picking up Chang’E as your first one.

Her kit is incredibly straightforward, and she is a very forgiving god to play if you make a mistake, as her 2 ability (Moonlit Waltz) makes her immune to damage and crowd-control, while also being a short dash at the same time. It’s a get-out-of-jail-free card that’s up every 10-20 seconds. Yay.

Assassins

smite hun batz god

On the whole, Assassins are the hardest role to play, and consequently, most Assassins in SMITE are pretty complex and tough to master. However, there still are a couple of easy ones to learn if you’re interested in the role:

Hun Batz

This howler monkey is arguably the easiest assassin of the bunch, as he has high damage, a poke ability, mobility, and great crowd-control. The most complex thing about him is using his passive (Infused Strikes) correctly, which isn’t the biggest challenge in itself. Just make sure you know your first auto-attack after every ability is enhanced.

Thanatos

Thanatos is pretty much just as straightforward as Hun Batz, with little to no complexity about his abilities. The glaring difference is that he lacks mobility outside his ultimate, which is a long cooldown and therefore isn’t too reliable a way for him to escape a hairy situation.

The best advice I can give is that I see many players hold onto his ultimate until they can use its execute, but I’m here to tell you: don’t. It’s a great engage tool since it stuns all gods hit, making it easy for you to land the rest of your abilities. And, as mentioned, it’s also your only way to escape death if you find yourself stuck between a rock and a hard place.

On to the Assassins that are easy to pick up and hard to master:

Fenrir

Similar to Hades, Fenrir has a very simple and easy-to-learn kit, but his passive (Unbound Runes) creates enhanced effects to three out of four of his abilities under certain circumstances. So, you just need to pay attention to what those enhancements are and when you want to use them.

Bastet

This annoying cat-goddess is one of the more obnoxious gods to deal with, all thanks to her extreme mobility (and constant meowing). Her Pounce allows you to jump to a target location, and within four seconds of landing, you can jump back to your original location. Once you learn how to use this to poke effectively, you’re golden. Other than this, she’s easy to pick up.

Loki

The infamous trickster himself has a very simple kit. The most difficult part about him doesn’t really lie in that per se (although learning to use his 2 ability effectively can be a challenge), but rather how patient you have to be to play him. Like Thanatos, his main mobility comes from his ultimate, but he also has a stealth ability to help him escape bad situations.

Bear in mind that this isn’t a dash, jump, or blink, so you won’t instantly escape danger upon stealthing. As such, when you find yourself going for a kill, always make sure you have a way out. Loki is the best god to pick up if you truly want to learn the assassin playstyle.

Warriors

smite hercules god

Now, for the infamous class that can both take and dish out heaps of damage, Warriors:

Hercules

This son of Zeus has a very simple kit, making him quite easy to pick up. The hardest thing about him is learning how to do his combo correctly: use his 2 ability (Earthbreaker) to knock enemies up and behind you, and then quickly turning around to use your 1 ability (Driving Strike) to shove them even further back. Other than that, you’ve got a self-heal and a giant boulder toss. Sweet stuff.

Odin

Similar to Hercules, the most difficult thing about Odin is learning his combo, though it is arguably even easier to get used to than Hercules’. All you need to do is use your 2 ability (Raven Shout) which summons a shield, then your 1 ability (Lunge) which is your leap.

Once you land, your shield will explode and deal big damage. Besides this, you’ve got a single-target stun and a giant cage, so have fun imprisoning your enemies!

Now for Warriors that can get a little more complex but are still pretty easy to pick up:

Nike

At face value, Nike has a simple kit, but all her abilities have an extra little detail about them that can make learning how to master them effectively a bit of a time sink. For example, her 3 ability (Valiant Leap) is her gap close, but it is also a knock-up. Unfortunately, this is her only form of hard crowd-control, so you need to make sure you not only hit enemies with it but that you use it wisely.

Vamana

The more you play Vamana (or against him), the more you’ll realize how darn annoying he is. More importantly, unless he’s got his ultimate up, he’s not very good at doing an all-in, so it’s crucial that you learn how to get in, poke, and get out efficiently without taking too much damage in the process.

Chaac

The fun part about Chaac comes with how his 2 ability (Torrent) and 3 ability (Rain Dance) interact with his 1 ability (Thunder Strike), the latter of which has him throw his ax at a targeted location.

More interestingly is how you can teleport to the location of your ax after you throw it by using your 2 ability, and this can be used as an engage, disengage, or some really cool jukes, so play around with it!

Guardians

smite ares god

Guardians are the big beefy boys that have access to a great deal of crowd-control and can sustain a lot of damage but don’t deal very much of it (unless you itemize them with damage items, of course).

These guys are typically taken into the support role thanks to their crowd-control abilities and can either be used to hang back and protect your squishy teammates in the backline or to charge forward and be your team’s primary engage. If those sound like things up your alley, here are some good suggestions for new-player-friendly guardians:

Ares

Ares has a very straightforward kit, however, the one additional thing to note here is his 1 ability (Shackles). It shoots a chain out, and if it hits an enemy god, you can shoot out another chain for free, and another, so if you hit a god on the first cast, spam that thing until you can’t anymore, even if you’re hitting the same god with each additional cast.

He’s a massive playmaker thanks to his ultimate, so if you want the awesome feeling that comes with setting up an ace for your team, Ares is the way to go.

Ymir

Ymir doesn’t have as much crowd-control as Ares, but he is still very effective at what he does. The hardest thing about him is not trolling your own teammates with your 1 ability (Ice Wall) which summons a wall. In all seriousness though, while it can be tricky to use this ability effectively, he’s a very basic yet powerful god.

Finally, we arrive at the Guardians that have a bit of a learning curve after you learn their kits:

Bacchus

As you would expect from the god of wine (among other things), he gets himself drunk and other people drunk. While his kit is easy to learn, the number one thing to always keep track of is his Drunk-O-Meter, which is his passive.

You want to ensure this is as high as possible at all times (by using your 1 ability, Chug) for the damage mitigation it grants. Hi-Rez classifies Bacchu as average in difficulty, but I don’t agree with that in the slightest. He might be barely more complex than easy due to his passive, but not complex enough to make the jump to average.

Athena

Athena’s basic abilities are simple, but what puts her on the hard-to-master list is her ultimate, which gives her global presence. As I said with Apollo, having a global is invaluable, but there is always a high skill curve when it comes to using it effectively.

Sobek

This crocodile (no, he is not an alligator) is one of the more obnoxious guardians to play against. He’s got a simple kit that consists of some great crowd-control and self-sustain through healing and damage reduction. There are two things to keep in mind with him, though.

First is his passive (Blessing of the Nile), which grants extra protections to him but can only be activated with auto-attacks. So, while it’s easy to spam your abilities, make sure you’re connecting some auto-attacks every few seconds.

Trust me: it’s easy to forget. Second is his 1 ability (Charge Prey), which tosses an enemy god behind you. In most cases, you won’t have to think twice about this. But do take care that sometimes you don’t want to throw, for example, the enemy Ares into your entire backline. If you do that, then chances are your backline won’t be alive much longer.

FAQs

Question: What if I don’t Want to Only Focus on Learning One God?

Answer: While I would still counter this by saying you should still try focusing on one god, if you really, really want to play others, try to stick within the same role so that the playstyle doesn’t vary too drastically.
For example, if you’re playing Neith, give someone like Apollo or Medusa a spin to stay in the Hunter role instead of taking a hard left turn and playing Bacchus.

Question: Which Game Mode should I Play to Learn New Gods?

Answer: Either Arena or Slash. If you care nothing for laning, hop into Arena for a straight-up, all-out brawl. If you want to dabble in some laning to try preparing yourself for Conquest, then hop into Slash. Stay away from Conquest and Joust early on, as those two game modes can get a bit sweaty, even when they’re not ranked.

Question: Which Role is the Easiest to Play?

Answer: At the end of the day, it comes down to your own playstyle and preference, and that dictates what’s easiest to play.
However, from my experience, I’d say Warrior is the easiest because you don’t have to worry too much about positioning (as you do when playing a ranged class like Mage or Hunter), you can take some punishment without dying instantly (as would happen when playing Assassin), and you can still dish out a fair amount of damage (as you can’t typically do as a Guardian).

Best Smite Gods for Beginners: Conclusion

SMITE has plenty of new-player-friendly gods to choose from, each with their own quirks and skill caps. At the same time, there are many gods to choose from, which can be overwhelming. So here’s my final advice: if you don’t know what role you want to play upon starting the game, dabble in all of them until something clicks.

But once that click happens, try sticking with it for a little while, at least until you can confidently learn the other aspects of the game. Once that happens, feel free to branch out and learn other gods, for being able to play other roles is an invaluable skill in any MOBA.

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