Avowed's classless RPG system is designed to allow players to experiment, and it's been obvious from early on that just about anything goes. Showcases of Avowed's combat, for example, have shown how players could dual-wield wands, use a gun and a wand, and possibly any imaginable combination. Grimoires can also be wielded in combat, combined with a wand, a sword, or whatever the player wants.

Grimoires have been shown for Avowed before, but many may be curious about how they work compared to a wand. When Game ZXC sat down with Avowed director Carrie Patel and art director Matt Hansen at the Xbox Games Showcase, we asked about these Grimoires, and it's clear they could go a long way in helping a player define their playstyle.

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Avowed's Grimoires Give Players New Powerful Spells

In many ways, Avowed's Grimoires work the way any Pillars of Eternity player would expect them to. The key difference is that Grimoires were locked to Wizards in Pillars of Eternity, while any Avowed player could presumably use one thanks to its classless system. Grimoires grant players access to magic they couldn't utilize otherwise because there are a lot of powerful spells in Avowed, such as the returning Fan of Flames. As Hansen explained, the Wizard skill tree does have some spells in it, but many may only be found in Grimoires. This goes a long way because players could invest in the Wizard tree and invest in the Grimoire for tons of spells. At the same time, someone could adopt a Battlemage playstyle by using a sword in one hand and the Grimoire in another. In Hansen's own words,

"There's this Wizard tree that you have, and that comes with some spells baked into it. There are a lot of spells, like in Pillars, where you can't acquire them unless you have a grimoire. And once you have a grimoire, it expands your options. If you want to be more of a battlemage, you don't want to focus too much on the Wizard tree, but you still want to be able to cast Fan of Flames or whatever, you can have your sword in one hand and the Grimoire in the other. You can use those interchangeably."

It remains to be seen how Avowed adopts the "pen is mightier than the sword" mantra, but it's clear Grimoires add a lot of power to a player's build. The spell Hansen references, Fan of Flames, is an incredibly powerful AOE spell in Pillars of Eternity, with its drawback being how tricky it can be to use. How that translates to Avowed exactly remains to be seen, but it seems powerful spells will be found throughout the Living Lands.

No matter what, Avowed's classless leveling system ensures players can invest in their character however they wish. If Grimoires are not their speed, then guns might just be, and of course, there's nothing wrong with a classic sword and shield character either. What matters is players can express themselves however they wish, and that'll go a long way come Avowed's Fall 2024 release date.