I'm not sure that the original designers were interested in class balance, in the way people usually think of it. They seem to have instead tried to create a variety of possible experiences, many appealing to very different player types and personalities.
They also had a (much-maligned) "vision", which called for (among other things) rarity for certain race/class combinations; and it appears they utilized the game mechanics to attempt to make that happen.
Although balanced classes are the expectation on entering a modern MMO, Everquest was my first MMORPG and I had no such expectations when I started playing it.
I miss the RPG part...
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