The Best Skills To Unlock First In Avowed

Avowed doesn’t break the mold of RPG conventions, but it handles them all well enough to create a compelling adventure. For example, players will earn EXP upon defeating enemies, discovering new locations, and completing side quests. It’s not an easy game to grind as most mobs are finite, meaning that players have to be careful about what attributes they raise and what ability points they unlock.

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While not the biggest skill tree ever included in an RPG, Avowed does offer players three main class choices from the start, including Fighter, Ranger, and Wizard. Godlike is another available path, but those abilities are rewarded through specific interactions. So, how should players spend their skill points in the early hours? This list will cover just that.

8

Barbaric Shout

Increased Stun Capacity And Invigorates Your Envoy

Avowed borrows from the best action RPGs around, like The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim. That game was filled with draconic shouts, and Avowed has the Fighter ability Barbaric Shout.

While it’s not as fun to yell as “Fus Ro Dah!” was in Skyrim, Barbaric Shout is still useful. It will throw surrounding enemies off guard, giving players a greater chance to stun them, especially if they are larger creatures. It’s a great ability to use against ogres, for example, and makes the game’s toughest early fights a lot more manageable.

7

Bristling Frost

Surround Yourself With Ice

Bristling Frost requires a separate ability to unlock it. First, players need to unlock Grimoire Mastery, which just unlocks a second level of Wizard spells, and then players can purchase this spell. Bristling Frost will surround players with an aura of ice, giving them a boost to defense, and enemies who touch it will be harmed.

It’s useful in battle, but it’s a better spell to use for exploration. Avowed has a unique physics system with options like freezing water, which can be done with ice magic, allowing players to run across large water bodies with ease thanks to Bristling Frost.

6

Fan Of Flames

Burn Baby Burn

Fan of Flames is another great Wizard spell that will summon flames to shoot out of the player’s hand. It essentially turns their hand into a fire-breathing dragon. Once upgraded, players can use both hands to spray fire, or there is a workaround option.

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If players have a Grimoire equipped with the Fan of Flames cast inside, that will unlock the second tier of the spell, thus bypassing the need to spend more ability points to upgrade it. It’s a hack that works for all spells, so be a diligent book collector.

5

Parasitic Staff

Restore Essence With A Conjured Weapon

Parasitic Staff is the last Wizard-focused spell worth mentioning. It will conjure a red magical staff that players can use as a melee weapon for about thirty seconds. It won’t do much damage, but it will siphon magical energy, or Essence, to refill the player’s meter.

It’s a cheap and easy way to bypass buying a lot of Essence potions from the market. If players want to be a powerful mage in Avowed without wasting a lot of money, then a spell like Parasitic Staff is essential.

4

Pick A Weapon, Any Weapon

From Blades To Wands

There are a lot of weapons in Avowed, and each skill tree can enhance the strength of a particular weapon or a group of weapons. For example, in the Fighter skill tree, players can purchase Brawn to enhance two-handed weapons like Greatswords. Under Ranger, players can unlock Marksmanship to boost the attack power of bows and guns. For Wizards, wands can be enhanced with Wand Mastery.

Players should know what type of weapons they like in their RPGs by this point, so check them all out in Avowed and then go and get the best ability to fit the job.

3

Survivalist

Food Restores 20% More Health And Essence

Players will find health potions in the world, but they will find a lot more food. From eggs to cucumbers, The Living Lands is full of edible goodies. The nice thing about the inventory system in Avowed is that food, whether it is cooked or not, will not take up space.

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So, hypothetically, players could have a hundred eggs on them, and it would not matter for their carry weight. For food enthusiasts like this, Survivalist is a good ability to have, as it will cause food to restore more HP and Essence upon consumption.

Root Enemies In Place

When players level up for the first time, they will be forced to choose one ability between Charge, Minor Missiles, and Tanglefoot. Once players choose, all three skill trees will be unlocked. Of those three choices, Tanglefoot will be the most useful.

Players will channel their inner Poison Ivy and summon a bunch of vines to ensnare their enemies. Tangled enemies cannot move for a few seconds, giving players time to charge up their weapon or cast a powerful spell like Fan of Flames on a group of enemies.

1

Toughness

Increase HP By 20%

Single-player RPGs like Avowed can make players worry about their health when there are no co-op allies around. There are a few ways to heal in the game, from potions to spells, but health can also be boosted to make players last longer in battle. Toughness, for example, is a Fighter ability that will permanently boost HP by 20%.

It’s a classic enhancement for health in an RPG, but just because something is expected doesn’t mean that it’s bad. A similar Fighter ability players may also enjoy is called Constant Recovery, which will heal a certain percentage of HP after players take damage and rest between enemy attacks.

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Systems

Released

February 18, 2025

ESRB

Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Strong Language, Violence

Publisher(s)

Xbox Game Studios