Obsidian Entertainment is back with a sprawling high-fantasy adventure in Avowed. If you’ve read or watched our coverage of the game, you’ll know we’re pretty big fans of what the makers of The Outer Worlds have accomplished and we can’t recommend it enough if you’re in the mood for a solid Skyrim/Baldur’s Gate-esque romp. But before you begin creating your Godlike and head off into the treacherous Living Lands, let us give you some starting pointers. 

1. Don’t Buy Gear 

Like any good RPG, you’ll come across various merchants throughout the Living Lands, many of whom will sell you an assortment of weapons and armour. Your gamer mind may push you to spend your hard-earned Skeyts to purchase their wares, but we suggest you hold your coin. You see, some of the best gear in Avowed can be found by simply exploring out into the wilderness; on corpses, or inside the many chests littered around the world. 

Furthermore, every piece of weapon and armour is upgradeable. So a Common Spear can be upgraded all the way to a Superb Spear if you have the necessary materials, negating the need to purchase that spear at a shop–not to mention buying higher-classed gear will cost you thousands of Skeyts, which you can instead use to purchase raw materials for future upgrades. 

2. Be Like Dora–Explore!

The Living Lands is a beautiful and vibrant place. One that anybody can spend dozens upon dozens of hours exploring. And we suggest doing so, not just because of the breathtaking vistas and colourful landscapes, but because of how much Avowed rewards you for doing so. From encountering random NPCs and side-quests to finding winding caves that lead to surprising enemy encounters and hidden treasures, the Living Lands offers so much that it’d be a shame for one to simply beeline the main quest without seeing all that each region has to offer. 

3. Enchant Weapons 

Like any RPG, Avowed has quite a few systems and mechanics. As such, when running through the game’s tutorial in the first handful of hours, it’s easy to get overwhelmed and miss some key systems. One of which is the ability to enchant weapons. Many of the “unique” weapons in the game have a “primary enchantment” that gives them some additional perks and buffs. These enchantments can be upgraded at campsites. We highly suggest doing so once you’ve acquired a “unique” weapon as the upgrades are well worth it and offer significant advantages in combat. Just know that whichever upgrade path you choose for your weapon is final and irreversible.

4. Talk To Your Friends 

One of the criticisms Avowed has received from other critics is its story and characters. Though we agree to an extent that the narrative Obsidian has constructed is fairly tame and by the high-fantasy grimoires, we also believe that not enough people have taken the time to truly delve into the depths this narrative has to offer. Because doing so requires some patience and effort on the player’s part–more specifically going out of your way to talk to NPCs and your crewmates. But that tedious bit of effort can go a long way to build a deeper bond with these characters as the writing surrounding their dialogue is genuinely decent; at times even great. This is why we suggest you take every opportunity at a campsite to exhaust the new dialogue options with each cast member, listening to their thoughts and seeing how they feel about each other and the grander plot.

5. Bored? Change Things Up!

Most high-fantasy RPGs push you to stick with a certain class throughout your playthrough. Meaning if you choose to be a long-distance mage, that’s your identity for the entire game. In Avowed, however, though there are some benefits to keeping with a certain playstyle, its combat is so free-flowing and open that you shouldn’t feel the need to be attached to one particular approach. I, for instance, went from an offensive close-range mage with a sword in one hand and a grimoire in another, to completely shaking things up a dozen hours later with a greatsword/arquebus combo. So don’t be afraid of switching things up if you feel you aren’t feeling a certain loadout or are curious about another. 

We hope you found this guide helpful and wish you luck on your journey throughout the Living Lands!