What background should you pick in Avowed?

Your background in Avowed is the baseline on which you’ll role-play for the duration of the game. Each background has unique dialogue choices, and also affects other parts of the early game in minor ways, including your weapon and your attribute points.

In this Avowed guide, we’ll explain what background to pick and break down exactly what each background starts with.

What background to pick in Avowed

When creating a character in Avowed, you choose from one of five backgrounds:

• Arcane Scholar
• Court Augur
• Noble Scion
• Vanguard Scout
• War Hero.

It’s presented as if you’re selecting a class as you would in a typical RPG, but for the most part, what background you pick is mostly just a role-playing choice.

Primarily, the background you choose determines some of your dialogue options, but in our testing, these dialogue options have no bearing on the game. You similarly won’t be locked into committing to specific stats, abilities, or weapons depending on the background you pick. So, for instance, if you choose Arcane Scholar, you might get to fire off a quip when talking about magical stuff with an NPC — but you’ll still be able to wield a broadsword and use traditionally “thief”-class abilities.

One of the only things that does change with your background selection is the starting weapon you’ll find in the tutorial. While all backgrounds can wield all weapons, it’s the primary weapon you’ll use for the first part of the game before soon getting access to the full kit. (Everyone gets a shield during the tutorial as well.) Avowed features two-handed melee weapons, but every melee weapon at the start is one-handed.

Finally, your background allocates a baseline of ten attribute points across six stats: Might, Constitution, Dexterity, Perception, Intellect, and Resolve. But the distributions per background are mere suggestions. You can reset and assign these attribute points as you see fit before starting the game.

With all of this in mind, we’d suggest choosing a background based on the weapon you want first.

All weapons and stats per background in Avowed

As mentioned, each of the five backgrounds in Avowed come with their own starting weapon (which can’t be changed) and starting attribute allocations (which can be changed). Below, we’ll give you a brief breakdown of each.

Arcane Scholar

• Summary: As an Arcane Scholar, you’re a magic nerd — but, like, a cool magic nerd who got in trouble for how radical your research was. Now you’re in with the emperor, but everyone you meet still sees you as a nerd.
• Starting Weapon: Dagger
• Base Attributes: +2 Might, +2 Dexterity, +2 Perception, +3 Intellect, +1 Resolve

Court Augur

• Summary: A clairvoyant mystic who came from humble beginnings, you’re now in the employ of the emperor. Use your silver tongue to persuade (or lie) your way to success.
• Starting Weapon: Mace
• Base Attributes: +2 Dexterity, +3 Perception, +3 Intellect, +2 Resolve

Noble Scion

• Summary: Born a noble, your family fell into scandal and you were personally granted mercy by the emperor. You’re now a close ally of his at court.
• Starting Weapon: Sword
• Base Attributes: +2 Might, +1 Constitution, +2 Dexterity, +2 Perception, +2 Intellect, +1 Resolve

Vanguard Scout

• Summary: Born to roam the wilderness but low on funds, the emperor saved you from a life of crime. Now you act as one of the emperor’s agents out in the wild, tracking, spying, and hunting your way through the world.
• Starting Weapon: Axe
• Base Attributes: +1 Might, +2 Constitution, +2 Dexterity, +3 Perception, +1 Intellect, +1 Resolve

War Hero

• Summary: A hero from a recent conflict, you’ve been honored by the emperor and added to an elite squadron of spearmen. You serve as one of his important military assets.
• Starting Weapon: Spear
• Base Attributes: Might +3, Constitution +2, Dexterity +1, Perception +1, Resolve +3

For more Avowed guides, see our full Avowed walkthrough, plus learn the best attribute points to assign, how to unlock all companions, and how to play in third-person.