10 Best Unique Weapons in Avowed Ranked

Discover everything you need to know about Avowed’s top 10 best unique weapons and how to obtain them while progressing.

10 Best Unique Weapons in Avowed Ranked
10 Best Unique Weapons in Avowed Ranked (Source: Xbox Game Studios)

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. Unique weapons not only enhance your character’s combat abilities but also encourage exploration. Select the unique weapon according to your playstyle and the class you choose. Equipping the best weapons is essential as your gameplay mostly depends on it. However, these weapons consume stamina when you use them in combat. Upgrading these unique weapons is essential to enhance their combat effectiveness, making them more powerful. In this guide, we’ll discuss the 10 best unique weapons in Avowed along with their attributes and how to get them while exploring the world.

Top 10 Best Unique Weapons in Avowed Ranked

Unique weapon in Avowed allows you to customize your playstyle and combat strategies. You can find several unique weapons while progressing, but choosing the best one is important. You can adapt to different combat scenarios by having different unique weapons in your arsenal. When you start the game, you will come across some initial level weapons like Common, Fine, Exceptional, and Superb quality. You will start obtaining powerful unique weapons after the mid-game. Most of these weapons are tied to the quests that urge you to complete these quests. If you’re a Fighter, then you can choose unique weapons like The Philosopher’s Riddle and Hel’s Tongue. Aurochs-Skin Grimoire and Whisper of Exiles are the best choices if you’re a Wizard. Ancient Alacrity is the best bow. This type of weapon is specially designed to melt the bosses and high-level enemies in endgame combat.

The Unique Weapons feature powerful passives that can aid you immensely during your battles. Your character is not locked to a specific class, so you can try out every weapon of your choice. However, you might find the passives of the Unique Weapons not to your taste. Here is where the enchanting feature in Avowed comes into play.

Below are the 10 best Unique Weapons in Avowed ranked from best to worst:

  1. The Philosopher’s Riddle- The best unique weapon that deals the highest damage and stun effect on the enemy in late-game battles.
  2. Whisper Of Exiles- It deals frost damage and can inflict freeze status effects on enemies.
  3. Hel’s Tongue- This damage-dealing sword deals dual-elemental damage, allowing you to dominate the enemies.
  4. Drawn in Winter- One-handed axe dealing frost damage and applying frost accumulation.
  5. Aurochs-Skin Grimoire- This unique weapon offers ice-based spells and essence regeneration capabilities.
  6. Horsecutter- It deals additional damage with full combo attacks in combat.
  7. Heavenstrike- Deals frost damage & slows enemies.
  8. Magic Mistol- This unique weapon offers homing bullets and high stun.
  9. Ancient Alacrity- Slows foes and increases movement speed on power attacks.
  10. Izmatl’s Meteoric Apparatus- Explosive fire damage & knockback.

10) Izmalt’s Meteoric Apparatus

izmalt's meteoric apparatus avowed
izmalt’s meteoric apparatus avowed
  • Physical Damage: 226
  • Stun: 196
  • Stamina Cost: 25
  • Critical Hit Chance: 3%

Izmalt’s Meteoric Apparatus is on the lower tier in our ranked list as it comes with the starting quality of Exceptional and deals frost damage. The Meteoric Burst enchantment allows killing an enemy with low Fire Accumulation to nearby enemies. Meteoric Devastation enchantment allows killing an enemy to deal moderate Fire Accumulation to nearby enemies. Lingering Inferno enchantment allows killing an enemy to create a lingering area of effect that deals high Fire Accumulation to nearby enemies. This makes it excellent for crowd control, allowing you to weaken the enemies and finish them off at once.

It has massive stun damage that can interrupt enemy attacks, allowing you to reposition or reload. Izmalt’s Meteoric Apparatus feels like a shotgun blast that allows for an aggressive playstyle. This arquebus excels in AoE damage and stagger effects. You can combine the AoE fire effect with fire magic to dominate enemies in intense fights. You can purchase it directly from Kampeki in Thirdborn. However, it has low precision and has reduced range for power attacks. You can find the Kampeki in Hirdborn, located in the Shatterscarp region.

Fish in a Barrel is located on the northwest side of the city. You can purchase it for approximately 12,000 gold. Izmalt’s Meteoric Apparatus stands out due to its unique design and enchantments. You need to test the weapon thoroughly to determine if it complements your playstyle. We place this weapon below the Ancient Alacrity due to its AoE fire damage capability and as it can work well with hybrid builds.

9) Ancient Alacrity

Avowed Unique Bow Ancient Alacrity tooltip
10 Best Unique Weapons in Avowed Ranked
  • Physical Damage: 162
  • Stun: 182
  • Stamina Cost: 12
  • Critical Hit Chance: 9%

Ancient Alacrity in Avowed is in the 9th place, comes with exceptional attributes and enchantments along with high physical damage. This bow feels almost alive in the wielder’s hands. This bow is the perfect choice for agile fighters. It allows them to lower enemies while gaining mobility in combat. Alacrity bow stands out as one of the most coveted for end-game players. Obtaining this weapon can significantly impact gameplay due to its formidable abilities and unique stats.

The Time-Stealing Arrow enchantment allows you to slow the hit enemy by 15% for 5 seconds. This debuff works on stronger bosses in intense combat. Parting Shot enchantment enables your power to attacks to increase 20% movement speed for 5 seconds. This bow benefits players focusing on ranged combat, offering high damage output and beneficial effects.

Location

You can obtain this weapon from the Galawain’s Tusks. Follow the main quest to Solace in the fourth region of Galawain’s Tusks. This quest is called ‘Our Dreams Divide Us Still,’ and the city leader Mihala will send you into the Lava Tubes to find Kostya. Follow the quest marker down to the entrance to the Lava Tubes and go inside. Keep moving until you reach a large open room, glowing purple, with an altar in the center. You will encounter a spellcasting boss called Sibelius. Equip your best weapon to defeat this boss. Take the stairs at the back of the room and you’ll find a series of doors. You need five lockpicks to open the first door. Once you enter the room, you’ll find the Ancient Alacrity bow.

Ancient Alacrity starts at Legendary quality and can be further enhanced. Upgrading improves its Physical Damage and Stun attributes. For instance, upgrading from Legendary +0 to Legendary +1 increases Physical Damage from 162 to 171. Upgrades require specific materials and gold, which can be applied to a workbench.

Best skills

Fighters can use this weapon as a backup weapon, allowing for quick ranged attacks. You can unlock skills like Steady Aim, Marksmanship, Sniper, and Staggering Shot from the Ranger skill tree to make them more effective in combat. The high physical damage, Strong Stun Effect, low stamina consumption, and decent Crit Chance make this bow the best one in our ranked list. This is a viable option for stealth players who rely on bow attacks. This is an essential weapon if you’re playing Ranger or critical build.

8) Magic Mistol

magic mistol avowed
magic mistol avowed
  • Physical Damage: 173
  • Stun: 200
  • Stamina Cost: 20
  • Critical Hit Chance: 3%

Magic Mistol lies below the Heavenstrike as it has shedding capabilities and significant stun potential. This pistol comes with enhanced accuracy and crowd control in battle. Magic Mistol has a unique passive ability called For-Seeker, allowing bullets to seek and target enemies. Infused Shot enchantment allows your power attacks to deal high stun. Unstable Shot enchantment will enable you to attack to deal moderate stun to close foes in combat. Pistoleer’s Grace enchantment allows you to gain +50% reload speed for 10 seconds. You can find the Magic Mistol in a hidden room at Ekidan Workshop.

This Workshop is available in the Galawain’s Tusks region, northwest of the Slumbering Fields. Travel west from the Southern Warden Tower to get to the Ekidan Workshop. Move inside the Workshop and turn right after jumping down. Destroy the wall to get into the hidden room over there. There you can see a chest with a Magic Mistol. Upgrading the Magic Mistol allows you to increase its damage potential and stun capabilities. This weapon is useful for players who prefer ranged combat but may struggle with precise aiming. Use its stun potential for crowd control, allowing the player to immobilize the nearby foes in combat. We place this weapon on the top tier in our ranked list due to its homing bullets, high base damage, and high stun potential. Magic Mistol is an easy-to-use pistol with auto-targeting and strong stun potential.

7) Heavenstrike

heavenstrike avowed
10 Best Unique Weapons in Avowed Ranked
  • Physical Damage: 361
  • Stun: 308
  • Stamina Cost: 25
  • Critical Hit Chance: 3%

Heavenstrike is in the 7th position in our ranked list as it has exceptional frost-based abilities and formidable damage output. The frost effects can slow or freeze multiple foes, providing a tactical battle approach. Heavenstrike excels in both single-target and area damage due to its substantial base damage and frost enhancements. Ondra’s Anger enchantment allows your power attacks to deal high Frost Accumulation to nearby enemies. Lunar Champion enchantment will enable you to gain +5% Damage Reduction for 10 seconds when killing an enemy. This is a Moonstrike but with improved stats and dark color.

Heavenstrike is of Superb quality and can be upgraded to Legendary, significantly boosting its physical damage and stun capabilities. You need to give the Fragment of Starmetal to the Forgemaster Dela. He is available in the Solace Keep in the Galawain’s Tusks region. Provide the Fragment of Starmetal to craft the Moonstrike arquebus. Get more fragments to enhance Moonstrike into Heavenstrike. Heavenstrike is great against fast enemies that rely on mobility. You start with Superb quality but can upgrade to Legendary.

Heavenstrike has higher damage per shot than most arquebuses in the game. You can combo it with the frost magic or use melee weapons like daggers or one-handed swords. This weapon is great for sniping & precision shots and is effective for crowd control. However, this weapon has a slower fire rate than some ranged weapons. This is not the best weapon in the game due to the slower fire rate.

6) Horsecutter

horsecutter avowed
10 Best Unique Weapons in Avowed Ranked
  • Physical Damage: 284
  • Stun: 260
  • Stamina Cost: 20
  • Critical Hit Chance: 3%

Horsecutter is slightly less effective than the Aurochs-Skin Grimoire as it only deals additional damage with full combo attacks in combat. This damage-dealing weapon can eliminate any enemy coming in their path. Horsecutter has a Bleeding Slash passive ability to deal 10% bonus bleed damage. The base enchantment of this sword is Horsecutting Strokes which allows your full combo attack to deal high stun to the nearby foes. Pair the Horsecutter with the Fighter skills to make it more effective in challenging encounters. You can acquire the Horsecutter from the Wavesculpt Hollow. This area is located in the Emerald Stair region, just south of Maxim’s Claim. Move south from the Fior mes Iverno to get to the Wavesculpt Hollow. Defeating all the enemies in the area allows you to bring the Horsecutter.

This sword is held by the skeletons that you can easily obtain. So, equip the best weapon and defeat the skeleton to claim the weapon. Horse Cutter is a great weapon for players who prefer damage-over-time effects and heavy melee combat. Its high stun potential and bleed damage over time capability make it the best sword you can use after Unmaker. You can use this Great Sword for crowd control, especially in fights with a cluster of enemies. However, this weapon requires a full combo for maximum stun and it lacks elemental damage. Horsecutter stands between the Aurochs-Skin Grimoire and Heaven Strike due to its offensive capability and lack of fire and frost damage.

5) Aurochs-Skin Grimoire

aurochs-skin grimoire avowed
10 Best Unique Weapons in Avowed Ranked
  • Ability Cost: -65%
  • Cooldown: -45%

Aurochs-Skin Grimoire is also the best unique weapon that you can acquire to cast damage-dealing spells. This Grimoire enables a variety of Spells to be Cast or unlocked in the Wizard Ability Tree. Use this Grimoire to for the high-tier spells, making it the best weapon to use in late-game content. You can obtain the Aurochs-Skin Grimoire from Ryngrim’s Domain at Shatterscarp. You need to move to the Shark’s Teeth party camp to get to this domain. Make sure you’ve Yatzli as your companion. Head outside the camp and move into the Ryngrim’s Domain to the north. You will encounter skeleton enemies here at the domain’s entrance. Take out your best weapon to eliminate them.

Keep moving in the frozen cavern path until you see a statue to your right. Yatzli will teleport the party to the Ryngrim’s Tower after you interact with the statue. Turn right after you move into the tower. Get closer to the bookshelf and press the button to open a door next to it. Move inside the secret room and pick up the Aurochs-Skin Grimoire from the altar. Aurochs-Skin Grimoire allows you to get access to the spells like Blast of Frost, Missle Silo, and Freezing Pillar. Upgrading the Grimoire on the workbench allows you to increase its effectiveness by reducing ability costs and cooldowns. You can equip the Grimoire in the off-hand and the Wand in the main hand to deal massive damage by high-level spells.

4) Drawn in Winter

drawn in winter axe avowed
drawn in winter axe avowed
  • Physical Damage: 189
  • Stun 182
  • Stamina: 25
  • Critical Hit Chance: 3%

The Drawn in Winter is a unique one-handed axe with a frost attribute. You can acquire this weapon early in the game, making it a valuable asset for a Frost build. Its Rising Chill enchantment allows your power attacks to deal moderate Frost Accumulation to nearby enemies. Freezing Lash enchantment allows you to hit an enemy with an additional 10% bonus Frost Damage. Upgrading the Drawn in Winter increases its physical damage and stun capabilities. Use the Workbench to improve the weapon’s quality.

Location

You can find the Drawn in Winter unique one-handed axe in the Watcher’s Mirror location of Dawnshore. Walk north-east from Paradis just to the right of the Shrine of Woedica. Here, walk through a big white arch and head to the middle of the pond. Interact with the Ancient Memory to gain a powerful passive ability named Remembrance of Kishamal; this permanently increases your health by 10%.

Go back, and you can now spot the Drawn in Winter unique axe stuck on a rock pedestal in the middle of the pond. Do note that picking it up immediately starts a fight sequence where waves of skeletons appear from the pond to kill you. Additionally, you can open your inventory to equip the axe and try it out immediately. The enemies are quite easy to defeat, and all you need to do is watch out for ranged attacks from the skeletons, which are quite easy to dodge.

Take the help of your allies to separate the skeletons and quickly finish off the mages and archers first. Then, you can easily focus on the melee skeletons and defeat them easily. Finally, once the waves stop spawning, you can leave the area with the Drawn in Winter Unique Axe in your inventory.

189 Physical Damage and 182 Stun make it one of the most potent one-handed axes. The stun value is crucial for staggering enemies. This makes your follow-up attacks much more manageable, allowing you to dominate enemies in combat. Drawn in Winter remains relevant in the end game as the frost damage increases with frost-related builds. Pair the Drawn of Winter with skills like Chill Blades, Blizzard, and Bristling Frost to make it more effective in combat. This is the best one-handed axe due to its damage potential and stun value, so we place it in the higher ranks.

3) Hel’s Tongue

hel's tongue avowed
10 Best Unique Weapons in Avowed Ranked
  • Physical Damage: 284
  • Stun: 260
  • Stamina Cost: 20
  • Critical Hit Chance: 3%

Hel’s Tongue is the third-best unique weapon because it deals dual-elemental damage, allowing you to dominate the enemies. This Great Sword comes with a unique passive ability called Emotional. Use this passive to deal +10% bonus Fire Damage against enemies above 50% Maximum Health, Hits deal +10% bonus Frost Damage against enemies below 50% Maximum Health. The base enchantment of Hel’s Tongue is Soul Reaver which allows you to restore 10% of your maximum essence with the power attacks. This unique weapon offers support utility to your kit for getting back power skills. You can combine it with the fire and frost-based spells to make a perfect combo.

You can acquire Hel’s Tongue from the win Offerings Overlook in Shatterscarp. Ascend the nearby slope once you defeat the bounty target, Chieftain Grithin. You can also get several consumables in this area. This is an easy-to-acquire weapon in the game, making it perfect for players ready to jump into the late-game combats. Upgrading this weapon allows you to increase its physical damage and stun potential. The more you upgrade this weapon on the workbench, the more Hel’s Tongue becomes effective. Pair the Hel’s Tongue with the Fighter skills like Bleeding Cuts and Brawn to deal additional damage against difficult bosses. We place this weapon below Whisper Of Exiles due to its slightly less effective enchantments, lack of status effects, and combat effectiveness.

2) Whisper Of Exiles

whisper of exiles avowed
whisper of exiles avowed
  • Physical Damage: 116
  • Stun: 104
  • Stamina: 12
  • Critical Chance: 6%

Whisper of Exiles is the second-best unique weapon in our list due to its ability to eliminate enemies with its overpowered charged attacks. This is a top choice for Wizards due to its ability to harness ice’s power in combat. Whisper of Exiles comes with a passive ability called Freezing Lash. Use this passive to allow your hits to deal +10% bonus frost damage in combat. The base enchantment of this weapon is Flight in Autumn. Unlock this enchantment to let your full combo deal low Frost Accumulation to nearby enemies. This Wand is a freezing machine that allows you to disrupt enemy attacks.

Location

Whisper of Exiles is obtained from a treasure chest located in the center of the Great Sand Sea in Shatterscarp. However, it requires 5 lockpicks to unlock the chest. You can get the chest in the rocky area plagued by Dreamscourge, guarded by Dreamthralls.

This unique Wand deals high physical damage and stun in challenging encounters, making it crucial to obtain if you choose to be a Wizard. The physical damage and stun increase as you upgrade the Whisper of Exiles. The more you upgrade, the better it becomes and the more it deals damage in combat. The Frost Accumulation allows you to slow or freeze enemies, making it excellent for crown control. Collect the required materials for upgrading this Wand on a workbench. Pair the Whisper of Exiles with skills like Chill Blades and Blizzard for additional freezing damage.

You can also equip Grimoire on your off-hand for more deadly spells. If you want to increase your defense, equip Shield off-hand to reduce the incoming damage. Whisper of Exiles is the best choice if you prefer cold-based spells and enchantments. Your main goal is to manage the fight and this Wand is your Bread and Butter. We place the Whisper of Exiles on the top tier in our list due to frost-based enchantments, high physical damage, and the stun effect.

1) The Philosopher’s Riddle

Unique Great Sword The Philosopher's Riddle in Avowed
10 Best Unique Weapons in Avowed Ranked
  • Physical Damage: 284
  • Stun: 260
  • Stamina Cost: 20
  • Critical Hit Chance: 3%

The Philosopher’s Riddle is the best unique weapon in our ranked list because it deals the highest damage and stun effect on the enemy in late-game battles. This Great Sword is specially designed to melt the high-level bosses. This sword comes with the passive ability called Poison Lash that allows you to deal +10% bonus poison damage. Its base enchantment is Aggressive Debate which lets you gain +15% attack speed for 10 seconds after completing a full combo. The high stamina cost urges you to manage your energy wisely. The primary enchantment, Aggressive Debate, can be upgraded on your Workbench in camp.

You’ll need to find the island of Castol’s Folly southeast of Paradis to get the Philosopher’s Riddle great sword in Avowed. Get to the top of the structure on the island’s northwest side. You will find the high-level enemies Castol’s Folly, so ensure you are well-equipped with the best gear. Use the health regeneration consumables and potions before heading out.

Location

You can find the other POI on Castol’s Folly, including a bounty mark and one of the pieces of the Woedica Totem. Travel to the island, fight, and explore your way to the western side. You need to climb up and find some platforms that will lead you over to the structure on the northwest side. Jump and climb until you get to the top. The Philosopher’s Riddle will be plain to see when you reach the central stone platform. The sword is placed near some large mushrooms.

Upgrading The Philosopher’s Riddle allows you to increase its physical damage and stun value. This makes your weapon more effective, especially while fighting against high-level enemies. This Great Sword offers a high attack speed bonus and poison damage, making it suitable for poison build. The Philosopher’s Riddle fast attack speed makes it useful in fast-paced combat. Inflicting poison damage on the enemies deals damage over time. However, this weapon lacks elemental effects, and two-handed means you cannot equip a shield with it. This Great Sword’s highest damage potential and stun capability make it the best unique weapon in our ranked list.

How to Enchant Unique Weapons

You need to set up a party camp to enchant any weapon. Use the Adra Waystones found all across the overworld in every region. Interact with these blue crystals, and the game automatically sets up a party camp around it. You can take advantage of many useful features around the camp, including the ability to use the Enchanting Station. Go to the blue-colored station indicated by a diamond-like symbol to initiate the enchanting process.

Choose the unique weapon of your choice from the left side of the screen. You can select between two enchanting paths from this point. Unique weapon comes with two enchantment paths you can choose from. Choosing a path does not upgrade but changes the passive effect of the weapon.

One thing to note about enchanting any unique weapon is that this process is irreversible and can only be done once. You cannot change it back in any way for that playthrough when you enchant a unique weapon for your chosen path. Only one enchantment path can be chosen for a unique weapon, so choose carefully. Make sure to have enough enchantment material in your inventory and confirm the enchantment process.

Any process in the game can not enchant Unique Armours. However, you can just upgrade them to increase their stats and effectiveness in combat. Accessing the enchantment station only shows Unique Weapons and not any Unique Armor. You can also obtain enchantment materials throughout the overworld from various sources. Additionally, these materials are weightless, so you can carry as many as you want.

FAQs about 10 Best Unique Weapons in Avowed Ranked

What are the unique weapons in Avowed?

Unique weapons in Avowed offer enchantments and abilities, offering enhanced combat effectiveness. You can find them while completing specific quests, exploring secret locations, or progressing.

Which is the best unique weapon in Avowed?

The Philosopher’s Riddle is the best unique weapon because it deals the highest damage and stun effect on the enemy in late-game battles. This Great Sword is specially designed for melting the high-level bosses.

Which is the best unique Grimoire in Avowed?

Aurochs-Skin Grimoire is the best Grimoire in Avowed that you can acquire to cast damage-dealing spells. This Grimoire enables various Spells to be cast or unlocked in the Wizard Ability Tree.


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