Nightfarers are roles, not costumes
Each Nightfarer changes what you can do in a fight and what your team expects from you. The differences are large enough that switching classes can feel like learning a new game, which is the point.
Read a Nightfarer by three things. How safely you can deal damage, whether your skills protect the group, and how much of your value needs your teammates to be alive.
Reading what a class brings
Some Nightfarers are built to hold ground and take hits. Others deal damage from range and need someone else to hold attention. A few are support-shaped, trading raw output for keeping the expedition going.
Look at what a class gives up, not only what it gains. A Nightfarer that deals huge damage but cannot escape usually needs teammates who can rescue it.
Fitting into a trio
A trio works best when the roles do not overlap completely. Three identical builds will score the same targets and struggle with the same threats.
Before the expedition starts, agree who takes what. Deciding mid-run is usually too late, because targets do not wait.
Solo changes the maths
Playing alone removes teammates and changes how the expedition scales. A Nightfarer that depends on teammates covering its weakness becomes a harder pick solo, while self-sufficient ones rise.
If you plan to run both, learn one Nightfarer that works in each setting rather than forcing one choice everywhere.
Switching later
Do not treat your first Nightfarer as permanent. Most players settle into a class after trying a couple, because expedition pressure reveals which habits suit you.
Learn the map first, then optimise your class choice.