Thinking about playing Rift again - new character

Hello all,

Over the last few days I've been reading the forums here and watching a few live streams of Rift as I'm thinking about returning to the game. I'd like to start a brand new character. The last time I played properly was back when Storm Legion was released.

is there still the Rouge class that has the animal pet (i think it was a boar the last time I played) and if I remember was good to level with.

I've noticed there's a few packs that now can be purchased. Do these unlock other skill trees? Does a player miss out on much if they don't purchase any of these packs?

Thanks

Thinking about playing Rift again - new character