Discover everything you need to know about the best 9 swords in Avowed and what makes them the best and worst ones.
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Avowed is a first-person RPG developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by Xbox Game Studios. Set in the Pillars of Eternity universe, the game occurs in the Living Lands, where you uncover a secret mystery. Swords are one-handed melee weapons that offer high physical damage and stun potential. They can be dual-wielded with shields or another one-handed weapon like a dagger or a mace. Choosing the best sword is essential as your gameplay mostly depends on it. Upgrading these weapons is essential to enhance their combat effectiveness, making them more lethal. This weapon type allows you to stagger enemies and deal heavy damage in tough battles. In this guide, we’ll discuss the best 9 swords in Avowed along with their attributes and how to get them while exploring the world.
Top 9 Best Swords in Avowed Ranked
The one-handed sword can deal melee damage in close-range combat. This weapon in your main or off-hand allows you to eliminate enemies with great physical damage. While facing the enemies in melee combat, your bow is effective, and that’s where your sword comes to save your life. Use the high-level sword for the bleeding effect and piercing the enemy’s armor during intense combat. Each weapon type comes with unique strengths, so selecting the one that complements your playstyle is crucial. The Last Light of Day, for example, is a great early-game sword that has a powerful survivability passive if you are struggling to stay alive. In the third region of Shatterscarp, The Emperor’s Reach can be found at the Ancient Lakebed and its primary passive will boost your attack damage and speed on every enemy kill.
Below are the 9 best Swords in Avowed ranked from best to worst:
- The Emperor’s Reach- The best sword for the endgame fights and has highest physical damage and stun potential along with effective enchantments.
- Last Light of Day- A best sword that has high offensive and defensive capability, allowing you to melt bosses.
- Carnet’s Cutlass- This sword has high offensive capabilities against Kith enemies.
- Ondra’s Offense- Enhanced version of the Meteor Blade with additional defensive enchantments
- Meteor Blade- A unique sword dealing Frost damage and offering defensive capabilities.
- Superb Sword- A solid damage-dealing sword with decent damage and stun value.
- Exceptional Sword- Best early to mid-game sword that deals decent damage if paired with a shield.
- Fine Sword- An upgraded version of the Common Sword with improved stats.
- Common Sword- A basic sword that is best to use for early-game battles.
9) Common Sword
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- Physical Damage: 16
- Stun: 10
- Stamina Cost: 11
- Critical Hit Chance: 3%
Common Sword deals the lowest damage of any other sword in the game, making it the worst weapon in our best sword ranking list. This is your base sword that you can use only in the early game. Upgrading the Common Sword allows you to get better swords. You can find this sword near a corpse on the broken bridge in Fort Northreach. Common Sword is purchasable from Gwyneth in the Market District of Paradis, Dawnshore.
You can also acquire it from some barrels on the beach in Fort Northreach. This sword is less effective initially, but you can pair it with the shield or use Fighter skills Charge, and Parry to deal solid damage. Consider this weapon as your basic temporary sword as you will get better swords as you progress. We place the Common Sword in the lower tier in our ranked list due to its weak damage and lack of unique buffs.
8) Fine Sword
- Physical Damage: 48
- Stun: 40
- Stamina Cost: 11
- Critical Hit Chance: 3%
Fine Sword is the second-last-best sword in our ranking because it deals moderate damage and stun in combat. You can use this weapon from early to mid-game, but not against any high-level enemy. Fine Sword is purchasable from Gwyneth in the Market District of Paradis, Dawnshore. You can also buy it from Marynna, who is located at: Emerald Stair Gatehouse, Dawnshore Region. Upgrade it using Steel Chunk x4 and Hylea’s Talon x2 to make this weapon more effective.
Upgrading this weapon to its full extent allows you to get an Exceptional Sword. Fine Sword is far better than the Common Sword in terms of damage and stun capability. Include this sword in your fighter or DPS build to eliminate the enemies effectively. However, this weapon has lower damage than the Exceptional Sword and has a fast attack speed. Fine Sword stands between Exceptional Sword and Common Sword due to its lower damage and stun that makes it not viable for late game.
7) Exceptional Sword
- Physical Damage: 80
- Stun: 70
- Stamina Cost: 11
- Critical Hit Chance: 3%
Exceptional Sword is the 7th best sword in our ranked list because it deals decent physical damage in early to mid-game combats only. This is a versatile choice for the players who prefer a mix of speed and damage in tough fights. Exceptional Sword is purchased from Merchant Stephan who is located at: Essence of War in Fior mes Iverno in Emerald Stair. You can also buy it from Kampeki who is located at: Leviathan Market, Thirdborn, Shatterscarp Region. Upgrading the Fine Sword allows you to acquire the Exceptional Sword.
You can increase the damage and stun capabilities of this weapon by upgrading it on the workbench. The materials required to upgrade the Exceptional Sword are White Steel Chunk x4 and Admeth’s Wyrt x2. Use the Exceptional Sword until you obtain the better sword in the game. This one-handed sword offers balanced stats along with fast attack speed. This allows you to kill the enemies fast without taking much damage if you use a shield on the other hand. We place the Exceptional Sword below the Superb Sword and above the Fine Sword because it lacks unique enchantments and lower damage.
6) Superb Sword
- Physical Damage: 112
- Stun: 100
- Stamina Cost: 11
- Critical Hit Chance: 3%
Superb Sword stands below the Meteor Blade because it only offers a balance of speed and good physical damage. You can use this sword in the endgame, but we recommend you use the better options. Superb Sword is purchased from Ihaka, who is located at: In a cave west of Deadfall Highlands, Shatterscarp Region. You can also get it from the Kampeki who is located at: Leviathan Market, Thirdborn, Shatterscarp Region. The other NPC who sells this one-handed sword is Forgemaster Dela who is located at: Main Hall, Solace Keep, Galawain’s Tusk Region.
Upgrade the Superb Sword to increase its physical damage and stun value. The materials required to upgrade this sword are Living Iron Chunk x4 and Cave Coral x2. Each upgrade increases its combat effectiveness, allowing you to dominate the enemies. However, it swings slower and consumes more stamina per attack. It’s best to pair it with Fighter skills like Devastating Criticals to deal additional damage in tough battles. We place this weapon below the Meteor Blade and above the Exceptional Sword because it lacks unique enchantments and has lower damage than the other unique swords.
5) Meteor Blade
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- Physical Damage: 120
- Stun: 100
- Stamina Cost: 11
- Critical Hit Chance: 3%
Meteor Blade stands on the fifth position because it deals solid frost damage and has decent attack speed. This weapon has a Freezing Lash passive ability that allows you to deal 10% more bonus frost damage in combat. The base enchantment of Meteor Blade is Lamenting Flurry. This enchantment allows you to gain the hit enemy -20% damage for 15 seconds while completing a full combo attack. You can further upgrade the Meteor Blade into further upgrades like Tidecaller’s Revenge and Crashing Tide. The first upgrade allows you to stun and build frost accumulation after parrying an enemy attack. Crashing Tide offers -40% damage for 15 seconds when completing the full combo.
Complete the Forged of Star-Stuff side quest to progress in completing the Meteor Blade. Progress through the storyline to get into the Solace Keep, located east of Galawain’s Tusks. You can find the Fragment of Starmetal at Godless Altar on top of a table in a Dawnshore. Collect the Fragment of Starmetal and bring them to the Forgemaster Dela, and tell him to forge a sword. Forging a sword allows you to receive the Meteor Blade by exchanging Fragment of Starmetal.
Meteor is a good choice for the players till they get their hands on Ondra’s Offense. It has lower offensive and defensive capabilities than the Ondra’s Offense. Despite being less effective than its upgraded version, this is the best sword you can acquire after Superb Sword. Moonstrike Arquebus confuses a lot of players as to which one to craft. We place this Meteor Blade below the Ondra’s Offense and above the Superb Sword due to its physical damage and stun value.
4) Ondra’s Offense
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- Physical Damage: 168
- Stun: 130
- Stamina Cost: 11
- Critical Hit Chance: 3%
Ondra’s Offense is far better than Meteor Blade in our ranked list due to its high defensive capabilities and synergy with frost build in Avowed. This unique sword has a passive ability called Freezing Lash. Use this passive to deal+10% bonus frost damage. The base enchantment of Ondra’s Offense is Lamenting Flurry. This enchantment allows you to gain the hit enemy -20% damage for 15 seconds while completing a full combo attack. You can further upgrade Ondra’s Offense into further upgrades like Tidecaller’s Revenge and Crashing Tide. The first upgrade allows you to stun and build frost accumulation after parrying an enemy attack. Crashing Tide offers -40% damage for 15 seconds when completing the full combo.
In order to acquire the Ondra’s Offense you must turn the Meteor Blade using the Fragment of Starmetal. You need to first forge the Meteor Blade and then speak to the Forgemaster Dela to refine it. Forgemaster Dela is located at the Solace Keep, east of the Galawain’s Tusks region. We recommend you complete the Forged of Star-Stuff side quest and forge Meteor Blade. Make sure you have a Fragment of Starmetal to refine the Meteor Blade and modify it into Ondra’s Offense.
Increase the offensive and Defensive potential of Ondra’s Offense by upgrading it on the workbench. Make sure to collect all the required materials for upgrading the Ondra’s Offense. Ondra’s Offense is a must-have weapon for the freezing builds. You can use this sword for sustained fights, especially against tough enemies or bosses. It’s best to pair it with the shield to make it more effective in combat. However, the damage requires a full combo, which might be harder against mobile enemies. Unlike Last Light of Day or Carnet’s Cutlass, this weapon has no direct healing or attack speed buffs. We place this weapon below the Carnet’s Cutlass and above the Meteor’s Blade due to its damage potential and stun capabilities, and less useful enchantments.
3) Carnet’s Cutlass
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- Physical Damage: 168
- Stun: 130
- Stamina Cost: 11
- Critical Hit Chance: 3%
Carnet’s Cutlass is ranked below the Last Day of Light because it only has high offensive capabilities against Kith enemies. This sword comes with a passive ability called Kith Slaying. Use this passive to deal +20% additional damage against Kith in tough encounters. The base enchantment of Carner’s Cutlass allows you to gain 15% attack speed for 10 seconds by killing an enemy. You can upgrade the base enchantment up to the Reinforce the Line and Press the Attack. The first upgraded enchantment allows you to recover 3% of your maximum health and essence after successfully parrying enemy attacks. Press the Attack enchantment is somehow the same as the base enchantment but comes with better attributes.
You can get your hands on Carnet’s Cutlass by attacking Captain Carnet during the Debt of Blood side quest in Emerald Stair. Speak with the Vemas Rogera to initiate the quest. You can find him in the Abandoned Farms after a major event in Fior mes Iverno during Ancient Soil. Make sure not to attack the Steel Garrote in Waterfall Cave while completing the Steel Resolve side quest, attacking these two enemies can create consequences as the Debt of Blood side quest will not appear for you.
Upgrade this weapon to its extent to make it more effective in tough battles. You start with the Fine tier 2 quality with the Carnet’s Cutlass to the Legendary quality. This one-handed sword is a strong choice for players who prefer additional damage to Kith and attack speed buffs. Paring this sword with the shield increases your defense, allowing you to dominate the enemies. Use the skills like Devastating Criticals and Built to Destroy to demolish the enemies in combat. However, this weapon has a situational damage bonus and is hard to acquire in the game. We place this weapon below the Last Light of Day due to its low offensive capabilities and lower effective enchantments.
2) Last Light of Day
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- Physical Damage: 168
- Stun: 130
- Stamina Cost: 11
- Critical Hit Chance: 3%
Last Light of Day is the 2nd best sword in our ranked list because it delivers fire damage and health restoration abilities. This damage-dealing sword has the unique passive, Dawn’s Remembrance. Use this passive ability to allow your hits to deal +10% bonus fire damage, dealing damage over time. Last Light of Day has a base enchantment called Golden Sun’s Ascent. This base enchantment allows you to restore 3% of your maximum health by killing an enemy. You can further upgrade the Golden Sun’s Ascent into the Blinding Daybreak and Golden Sun’s Zenith. Blinding Daybreak allows you to stun enemies after successfully parrying. Golden Sun’s Zenith allows you to gain a +10% increase in health recovery.
Complete the optional missions with Sargamis in the Dawntreader side quest to get your hands on the Last Light of Day. You can grab this weapon from the Sargamis’ corpse. You can either kill him or convince him to sacrifice. Make your way into the Eothasian Temple while completing the Dawntreader side quest. Get to the end to pick Splinter of Eothas on the altar. You need to speak with the Sargamis, but retrieving the Splinter doesn’t activate his generators. After speaking with the Sargamis, you need to place the splinter on the statue.
A cutscene will trigger after the lever. The statue fails to activate, so you need to speak with the Sargamis again. You can either attack him or convince him. A fight will initiate once you attack him, and you can loot the sword from his corpse. The alternate method of getting this weapon is convincing him. Make sure to select the 3 Intellect / 3 Perception. This way you can easily convince him to walk away from the device without engaging in a fight.
Upgrading Last Light of Day increases its damage potential and stun capabilities. Collect all the materials required to upgrade this deadly sword. This is the best weapon for dealing fire damage and getting a heal on killing the enemy. We recommend you use this weapon if you love an aggressive playstyle. However, its raw damage is not the highest in the game. We place Last Light of Day below the Emperor’s Reach due to its slightly lower offensive attributes, and you need to kill for healing.
1) The Emperor’s Reach
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- Physical Damage: 168
- Stun: 130
- Stamina Cost: 11
- Critical Hit Chance: 3%
The Emperor’s Reach is the number one sword due to its devastating massive damage and stun capability in combat. This one-handed sword comes with a unique passive called Bend the Knee. This passive ability allows the special attacks to stun the nearby enemies Kith so they don’t get chained. The Emperor’s Reach has the base enchantment called Rightful Annexation. This enchantment allows you to gain +10% attack damage and +10% move speed for 6 seconds when you kill an enemy. Upgrade this enchantment up to the Imperial Rebuke or Triumph of Conquest. The Imperial Rebuke enchantment allows you to stun the nearby foes after parrying the enemy attacks. Triumph of Conquest enchantment allows you to gain health burst after eliminating the enemy.
You can acquire The Emperor’s Reach from the Ancient Lakebed in Shatterscarp. This one-handed sword is placed on a corpse in the center of the lake. However, the lake is surrounded by the Dreamthralls. There will be a group of basic enemies that you will have to clear out of this area before you can grab the weapon. The Emperor’s Reach highlighted in gold, sticking up out of the stomach of a soldier.
The Emperor’s Reach in Avowed works best when equipped by either a sword-and-shield Fighter or a dual-wielding Ranger. Its passive bonus to attack damage and movement speed makes it an excellent choice for characters focusing on these skill trees. Upgrading this sword increases its physical damage and stun capabilities, allowing you to dominate enemies. Make sure to collect the required materials to upgrade this unique sword. The Emperor’s Reach has the highest damage and stun potential along with the speed and damage buffs.
The enchantments are the major reason this is the best sword to use in Avowed. Make sure that your Fighter build has The Emperor’s Reach. Keep in mind that the enchantments require killing an enemy to get activated. This is the best sword if you prefer fast-paced combat and aggressive playstyle. We place The Emperor’s Reach on the top tier in our ranked list due to its unique enchantments, damage potential, and stun capability.
FAQs about 9 Best Swords in Avowed Ranked
What is Sword in Avowed?
Swords are one-handed melee weapons that offer high physical damage and stun potential. They can be dual-wielded with shields or another one-handed weapon like a dagger or a mace.
Which is the best Sword in Avowed?
The Emperor’s Reach is the best sword in Avowed because it deals devastating massive physical and stun damage in combat. This one-handed sword comes with a unique passive called Bend the Knee.
Can you upgrade the Swords in Avowed?
Yes, you can upgrade the swords to make them more effective in combat, enhancing their physical damage and stun values.
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