New Player, saying hello with an inquiry!

[spoil]

Hey there! Basically spell casters use spells, while pure melee classes are only as good as their equipment. A naked necromancer for example is maybe 70% as effective as one with good gear, but a warrior twink with a good weapon, haste and a fungi tunic (health regeneration) is going to hit way harder and have way less downtime than a beginner.

Paladin is obviously a hybrid, so you're not basically entirely gear-dependent like a warrior. Paladins have really useful spells like root, lull, stun and flash of light (great low-cost, high-aggro spell for tanking in groups). Those are just the spells you'd commonly use pulling/tanking in groups, you also have heals, buffs, undead nukes, etc. And you have an ability to Lay Hands and save yourself or a friend with an instant heal. So paladins have a ton of utility, clearly the better option in my opinion. Dwarf is a great choice, lacks charisma (important for the lull spell line) but more than compensates with the best physical stats and a BIS barrel roll jumping animation.