A Comprehensive Guide to Avowed’s Skill Trees and Abilities

Weekly updates, stories from your favorite gaming communities, and more

You’re now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful

Looking to add more newsletters?

Get your weekly dose of everything you need to know about the games you love, upcoming titles we think you’ll enjoy, and stories from the vibrant communities that support them.

Our dedicated GTA 6 newsletter brings you the latest news, insider insights, and rumor breakdowns from seasoned experts.

From the minds behind Edge comes a weekly newsletter focused on the gaming industry, featuring analysis from skilled writers, advice from professionals, and a glimpse into what’s on the horizon.

Tech enthusiasts, join our free tech newsletter for a weekly roundup of the latest innovations, gadgets under review, and much more.

Subscribe to our new Switch 2 newsletter for weekly updates on Nintendo’s upcoming console, including news and game recommendations.

Receive a weekly summary of the most important movie and TV news directly in your inbox, including trailers, interviews, reviews, and in-depth articles.

Get exclusive previews, competitions, and details about special events each month!

Avowed features four distinct skill trees, each offering unique abilities that cater to various playstyles. Whether you prefer melee combat, long-range sniping, or casting spells, there’s a path for you. However, with options like Fighter, Ranger, and Wizard abilities to consider while leveling up, things can get a bit intricate. The addition of the Godlike skillset, unique to your character, further enriches your options with its own divine powers. To help you navigate these skill trees in Avowed, here’s a breakdown of the essential details regarding Fighter, Ranger, Wizard, and Godlike abilities.

Avowed presents three primary skill trees, each featuring Active and Passive Abilities that align with classic RPG themes:

Most active abilities and some passive ones consume Essence when activated before entering cooldown, so you’ll need to stock up on Essence potions and restorative food to keep your combat skills sharp.

As you progress and earn XP, you can enhance your Avowed Attributes and unlock new abilities or upgrade existing ones. Advancing an ability to a new rank improves its effectiveness, often adding extra effects or enhancing its current function. However, these upgrades can yield diminishing returns, so investing three points to reach Rank 3 may not always be the best choice.

Additionally, the Godlike skill tree offers a range of unique abilities unlocked through story progression and exploration rather than traditional leveling.

All abilities are accessible via your Action Radial menu (LB), and you can assign up to four to your Quick Slots on the D-Pad, which is recommended for your most crucial abilities.

Below, I’ve detailed the four main player skill trees in Avowed. If you’re interested in learning more about the Avowed Companions and their skill trees, there’s a separate guide available.

The Fighter skill tree in Avowed is arguably the most straightforward, emphasizing raw power with melee weapons (axes, maces, great swords, two-handed hammers, and your fists), shield usage, and overall resilience. As you level up, you’ll unlock several potent Active Abilities, but the focus will primarily be on Passive Abilities that enhance your overall strength and provide additional combat options.

Your first Active Ability, Charge, allows you to dash forward, interrupting enemies and dealing explosive damage upon impact. This ability can break an enemy’s guard, smash through walls, and shatter frozen foes for bonus damage. At level 5, you can unlock Barbaric Shout, which buffs your attacks with extra Stun and makes them uninterruptable. At level 15, Into the Fray lets you taunt an enemy and draw them in for punishment. Finally, at level 20, you can unlock Clear Out, transforming you into a whirlwind of destruction, hitting everything in your path while remaining uninterruptable.

Fighters also gain various passive buffs, including increased maximum health, health regeneration after taking damage, and enhanced critical hit damage. Some Passives function like Active Abilities but require specific conditions to activate. For instance, Shield Bash allows you to interrupt, push back, and stun an enemy, but only if you attack while blocking with a shield.

The Ranger skill tree emphasizes proficiency with a wide array of ranged and finesse weapons (bows, arquebuses, pistols, daggers, swords, spears, axes, and maces) and highlights stealth and evasive maneuvers. It also includes survival skills that enhance your effectiveness both in and out of combat.

Starting as a Ranger, you’ll have access to Tanglefoot, an Active Ability that summons vines to ensnare an enemy temporarily, providing valuable crowd control in chaotic battles. By level 5, you can unlock Shadowing Beyond, granting you invisibility for as long as your Essence bar allows or until you attack—ideal for stealthy players. If you prefer a more Druidic approach, you can summon a Bear Ally with the Active Ability available at level 10. At level 20, you can unlock Flurry of Blows, which boosts your attack speed, stamina regeneration, and movement speed.

The Ranger skill tree’s Passives offer numerous survival benefits that aid in combat and exploration. For example, Evasive reduces stamina costs for dodging, while Survivalist enhances healing and Essence-restoring effects from food. Players should also consider the Scavenger ability, which increases the chance of finding upgrade materials when gathering herbs, proving invaluable early in the game.

The Wizard skill tree is the most complex, focusing exclusively on wands and grimoires as weapons while offering a vast array of spells that can be permanently unlocked—meaning they don’t require a grimoire to cast. Wizard builds can either specialize in a few powerful spells or adopt a more generalist approach to handle various combat scenarios. Several Passives also enhance spellcasting and elemental damage.

The first Active Ability for Wizards is Minor Missiles, a basic spell that launches seeking explosive projectiles effective against nearly any foe. Beyond that, you can permanently unlock six Level 1 elemental and defensive spells: Chill Blades (Frost), Fan of Flames (Fire), Jolting Touch (Shock), Corrosive Siphon (Poison, converting damage to health), Parasitic Staff (converting damage to Essence), and Arcane Veil (increasing damage reduction and making spellcasting uninterruptable).

To unlock spells of level 5 and above, you’ll need to invest points into the Grimoire Mastery Passive Ability. This grants access to powerful spells like Blizzard at level 5, Missile Salvo at level 10, and Meteor Shower at level 20. If you use a grimoire, this passive also reduces the Essence cost of spells cast from it at higher ranks.

Additionally, casting a spell from a grimoire you’ve already unlocked increases its rank by one, enhancing its power without requiring an extra point to reach Rank 3. Grimoire Mastery is a valuable Passive for Rangers or Fighters looking to add some elemental flair to their arsenal.

The Godlike skill tree in Avowed features a unique set of Active and Passive Abilities that aren’t tied to XP leveling or Ability Points. All players begin with the Divine Thorn ability, which is essential for executing stealth attacks.

To unlock more Godlike abilities, you simply need to progress through the main quest, as many are revealed during key moments of interaction with The Voice. Your choices during these encounters can influence which Godlike powers you receive, such as in the Strangleroot when deciding whether to assist The Voice in Avowed.

Some Godlike powers are also obtained by discovering Ancient Memories, hidden secrets in each region that allow you to explore a past life of your Envoy’s soul and gain power from it. These optional pursuits are worthwhile, as Godlike powers tend to be quite potent and can significantly aid you and your party.