Help a beginner pick a class/build for Path of Exile

[Cr1chton]

Not only am I late to the party in regards to the game at hand, but I am also quite new to the (sub)genre itself. I haven’t even played Diablo. The only reason I didn’t say absolute beginner is because I’ve done some research on the game, and being familiar with other rpgs and mobas, builds and leveling aren’t concepts I find too obscure.
I posted this because as far as I have found, all of the offered builds are at least a year old; and people inquiring about their viability at present have gotten no useful answers.

My dilemma is between Templar and Duelist. I have heard that in these types of games the most entertaining classes are either melee warriors or casters. So the class that makes most sense should be the Templar; then again, I prefer damage over endurance. From what I’ve seen the Templar is more akin to a support tank/bruiser, whereas the Duelist is like a melee adc (I’m thinking Ullr from Smite).
And how viable are online builds, anyway? I don’t have enough time on my hands to go into the unforgiving skilltree of PoE and spend time creating my own build. But the rating of online builds confuses me. There’s a ton of them, yet only two or three per class get the highest scores. So why cripple oneself and pick a lower-rated build?

I am eager to start the game, as it will be an absolutely new experience to me; just need some help making some critical decision for a fun playthrough.


Thanks