Discover how to create the best War Hero build in Avowed, with recommendations for skills, attributes, weapons, companions and leveling progression!

Avowed is a first-person RPG developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by Xbox Game Studios. The War Hero build in Avowed is a powerful melee-focused setup that excels in crowd control and raw damage output. Our build mainly focuses on tanking damage and dealing with devastating melee attacks, leaving enemies vulnerable in combat.
War Hero is the best background for this build as it offers more flexibility during your journey. While you will be vulnerable to magic & ranged attacks, the effective melee attacks make you a battlefield controller. Your one-handed sword brings the most outcome when the Spear fails. In this guide, we’ll cover the best Avowed War Hero build along with the best gameplay tips and gear to equip, so stay tuned with us.
Everything You Need To Know About War Hero Build Guide in Avowed
The War Hero build is excellent for players who enjoy being a frontline powerhouse. However, it requires careful stamina management and good positioning. Our War Hero build includes a Spear as the primary damage-dealing weapon, a Shield serves as a defensive maneuver off-hand, and a One-handed sword as a secondary weapon. Consider swapping your weapons according to the combat situations. Use a skill like Shield Bash to slam your shield forward to Stun the enemies.
Might, Resolve, and Constitution are the main attributes to focus on for this War Hero Build in Avowed. Invest some points in Might for increased melee damage and critical hit potential. Focus on Constitution to improve health and stamina regeneration. Resolve here to mitigate stagger from hits, allowing for better tanking. Wear the heavy armor for maximum protection, but it consumes more stamina. Skills like Charge, Unbreakable, Clear Out, Bleeding Cuts, and Second Wind are essential for the best War Hero Build.
Marius and Kai are your best companions for this build, as they will help you during the intense fights. Players who like to be frontline warriors dealing massive melee damage, so this War Hero build is for you. Keep checking your stamina bar, as it will drain very quickly. Use the shield wisely, as you will be vulnerable in ranged combat.
War Hero Build Pros | War Hero Build Cons |
---|---|
High Durability | Weak Against Ranged Attacks |
Survivability | Stamina Consumption |
Crowd Control | Requires Positioning |
Defensive Versatility |
War Hero Build Features & Mechanics
Below are the essential best War Hero build features and mechanics for Avowed:
- Background: War Hero
- Attribute Points: Might, Resolve, Constitution
- Weapon Choices: Spear, Shield, One-handed Sword
- Best Skills: Unbreakable, Parry, Clear Out, Devastating Criticals, Bleeding Cuts, Charge
- Recommended Companions: Marius and Kai
Background

War Hero is the best background for a War Hero build, providing a strong foundation in key physical attributes. Select the War Hero background to unlock unique dialogue options that reflect the character’s military history and esteemed position within the emperor’s forces. War Hero offers a robust foundation for players seeking a formidable melee combatant. The War Hero initiates with a spear, showing their specialized training and combat experience. This background has more health, stamina, and resistance to status effects. This is the best background to choose if your playstyle favors a direct, aggressive, and resilient warrior.
Background plays a pivotal role in shaping your role-playing experience. It affects your dialogue options and determines your starting weapon during the tutorial. Your initial allocation of attribute points across six stats is also influenced. However, they do not restrict your access to any equipment or abilities as the game progresses. Regardless of your background, you can use any equipment and abilities. Avowed enriches your character’s backstory and provides initial attribute distributions and dialogue options by selecting the background.
Attribute Points
Might, Resolve, and Constitution are the best attributes to invest in for War Hero build in Avowed. Focus on these attributes to maximize the effectiveness of this build. Might increase your damage, enhancing your melee attacks. A higher Might allows you to carry more loot while exploring the world. Resolve enhances your maximum stamina, enabling more sustained combat actions. It also improves the effectiveness of your Second Wind ability.
Investing points in Constitution allows you to boost your maximum health, making you withstand more damage. You gain more resistance to poison and bleeding effects in intense battles. This setup will increase damage, critical potential, and stamina while also providing highly effective magic in your build. You can earn additional attribute points upon leveling up, offering opportunities to customize your build. Also, you can enhance your attribute points by using the consumables you acquire while progressing. You can select 27 attributes at a max level of 30. Below are the attribute points distribution for the War Hero build.
- Might: 11
- Constitution: 4
- Dexterity: 3
- Perception: 1
- Intellect: 1
- Resolve: 7
Weapon Choices
A spear, Shield, and One-handed sword are the best weapons to choose for the best War Hero build in Avowed. Selecting the best weapons is crucial to maximize the effectiveness of this build. Spear is your best primary weapon for the War Hero build, allowing you to engage enemies from a safer distance. Its balanced damage and stun capabilities make it a reliable choice. It offers a unique combination of reach, critical hit potential, and adaptability. You can also use the spear to keep the enemy at a distance, reducing the risk of close-quarters combat. Spears can be paired with the shields for added defense, allowing for flexible combat styles.
Shields provide additional defense, enabling you to block incoming attacks and maintain durability in close combat. It provides damage reduction against melee and ranged attacks. However, timing is crucial here as it helps mitigate the damage. It also helps you better manage stamina by allowing you to absorb hits without depleting it. You can also use it as stagger resistance because it prevents you from being easily knocked back or stunned. Certain shields may offer protection against magic, so choosing the best one is important here.
The one-handed sword is your secondary weapon, dealing massive damage in close-range combat. This weapon type is highly effective when managing high-level enemies on a battlefield. They’re not as effective as two-handed swords, but they still make a huge difference when your spear isn’t working in combat. The one-handed sword has a substantial stun effect, making it practical for crowd control. You can swap the weapons at any level, giving you more flexibility in the game. Equip the best weapon according to the current combat situation.
Shield Bash
Shield Bash is a skill within the Fighter class that you can unlock while progressing. This increases your defensive tactics by enabling offensive maneuvers. You perform a shield slam that stuns, pushes back, and interrupts enemies when you attack while holding the block button. You need to invest skill points as your character levels up in order to unlock and upgrade Shield Bash. Shield Bash is effective for players using a one-handed weapon and shield combination. It allows you to control the battlefield by disrupting enemy attacks. During Rank 1, you unlock the Shield Bash ability, and in Rank 2, you increase the stun effect. Rank 3 allows you to increase the distance enemies are pushed back.
Perfect Block
The Perfect allows you to parry enemy attacks, knock back targets, and immediately counterattack. It staggers the attacker, creating an opening for a follow-up strike. You can also perform a perfect block or parry using a spear, allowing you to counter your opponent. To execute a parry, press the right mouse button just as an enemy’s attack is about to land, deflecting the strike and staggering them. However, parrying requires your off-hand to be empty or equipped with a shield. Additionally, you can unlock the Parry ability from the Ranger skill to enhance your effectiveness further.
Skill Selection
The game allows you to unlock skills at each level, starting at 2. One level gives you one more skill point to place in one of three skill trees. You can mix and match skill trees, but Fighter and Ranger synergize. Moreover, you can reset skills at any time with gold, though it gets more expensive the more levels you increase.
Levels 1-10 Skills

Charge, Shield Bash, Parry, Bleeding Cuts, Devastating Criticals, and Quik Switch are the best skills at this level. Invest skill points to gain the skills that can keep you alive in the initial stages of the game. Passive skills are used to increase damage or survivability, while active skills require essence, and you can’t use them due to their cost.
Below is a list, in order, of the skills for the Best War Hero Build for Avowed from levels 1 to 10:
Level | Skill Name | Tree | Description |
---|---|---|---|
1 | None | ||
2 | Charge Rank 1 | Fighter | Dash forward and smash into anything in your way, interrupting enemies and dealing Explosive Damage to break enemy Blocks, destroy walls, and shatter frozen enemies for bonus damage. |
3 | Shield Bash Rank 1 | Fighter | Attacking while holding Block slams your shield forward to Stun, push back, and interrupt enemies. |
4 | Constant Recovery Rank 1 | Fighter | After taking damage, slowly regenerate 50% of the last amount of Health lost. |
5 | Parry Rank 1 | Ranger | Time a perfect Block against a melee attack to knock the enemy back and gain an immediate counter-attack. |
6 | Evasive Rank 1 | Ranger | Reduces the Stamina cost of Dodge by 25%. |
7 | Shadowing Beyond Rank 1 | Ranger | Channel the Beyond, becoming Invisible and draining Essence until your next combat action. |
8 | Bleeding Cuts Rank 1 | Fighter | Power Attacks with axes and great swords deal Bleed Accumulation. |
9 | Devastating Criticals | Fighter | Critical Hits with melee weapons deal 30% more damage. |
10 | Quick Switch Rank 1 | Ranger | Increases your Equip Speed by 50%. |
Levels 11-20 Skills

Increases your damage potential when you get into level 11 by using skills like Shadowing Beyond, Build to Destroy, Retribution, and Clear out. Upgrade your skills like Parry, charge, and Shadowing Beyond to enhance your combat effectiveness.
Below is a list, in order, of the skills for the Best War Hero Build for Avowed from levels 11 to 20:
Level | Skill Name | Tree | |
---|---|---|---|
11 | Parry Rank 2 | Ranger | Increases Parry efficiency by 25 %, dealing greater Stun when Parrying enemies. |
12 | Arrow Deflection Rank 1 | Ranger | Melee weapons Block arrows or similar projectiles when Parrying. |
13 | Unbreakable Rank 1 | Fighter | Decreases the Stamina cost when Blocking by 30%. |
14 | Shadowing Beyond Rank 2 | Ranger | While Invisible, gain increased Stealth Attack Damage and Move Speed. |
15 | Built to Destroy Rank 1 | Fighter | Destroying things restores a small amount of Health and Essence. Melee Power Attacks can break destructible walls. |
16 | Charge Rank 2 | Fighter | Increases the distance traveled during Charge by 100% |
17 | Reflect Rank 1 | Fighter | A perfectly timed Block with a shield or wand reflects arrows and similar projectiles at the attacker. |
18 | Bleeding Cuts Rank 2 | Fighter | Increases the Bleed Accumulation dealt by Bleeding Cuts. |
19 | Retribution Rank 1 | Fighter | After taking damage from an enemy, your next attack within 5 seconds deals +70% of the original damage you received. |
20 | Clear Out Rank 1 | Fighter | Spin in a dangerous whirlwind, becoming Uninterruptable and hitting all nearby enemies with your currently equipped melee weapons. |
Levels 21-30 Skills

At levels 21-30, you want to increase your physical damage along with increased survivability. You can use a high-level spear with an advanced shield to manage the group of enemies. Upgrade your skills like Clear Out, Parry, Unbreakable, and Devastating Criticals.
Below is a list, in order, of the skills for the Best War Hero Build for Avowed from levels 21 to 25:
Level | Skill Name | Tree | Description |
---|---|---|---|
21 | Flurry to Blows Rank 1 | Ranger | Gain maximum Attack Speed, rapid Stamina regeneration, and increased Move Speed for 10 seconds. |
22 | Unbreakable Rank 2 | Fighter | Decreases the Stamina cost when Blocking by 50%. |
23 | Parry Rank 3 | Ranger | Increases Parry efficiency by 50%, dealing greater Stun when Parrying enemies. |
24 | Clear Out Rank 2 | Fighter | Clear Out lasts for two full rotations. |
25 | Devastating Criticals Rank 2 | Fighter | Critical Hits with melee weapons deal 50% more damage. |
26 | Unbreakable Rank 3 | Fighter | Decreases the Stamina cost when Blocking by 60%. |
27 | Flurry of Blows Rank 2 | Ranger | Flurry Of Blows grants lifesteal to your weapon damage. |
28 | Retribution Rank 2 | Fighter | After taking damage from an enemy, your next attack within 8 seconds deals +100% of the original damage you received. |
29 | Charge Rank 3 | Fighter | Increases the Stun dealt by Charge by 50% |
30 | Bleeding Cuts Rank 3 | Fighter | Greatly increases the Bleed Accumulation dealt by Bleeding Cuts. |
Best War Hero Skills Explained
Unbreakable, Parry, Clear Out, Devastating Criticals, Bleeding Cuts, and Charge are the best skills to use for the War Hero builds in Avowed. Unbreakable is a passive ability that mitigates the stamina cost when blocking attacks. Parry is a passive ability that enables you to deflect melee attacks, stagger enemies, and execute counterattacks. Clear Out is an active ability that deals significant AoE damage. Devastating Criticals is a passive ability that enhances the damage output of your melee weapon critical hits. Bleeding Cuts is a passive ability that increases your offensive capabilities by inflicting bleed damage on enemies. Charge is an active ability that enables you to dash forward, colliding with enemies to interrupt their actions and deal explosive damage.
- Charge- It allows you to dash forward, smashing into enemies to interrupt them, break their blocks, and destroy walls.
- Unbreakable- Reduces the stamina cost when blocking.
- Parry- Allows you to knock back enemies and counterattack after a perfect block.
- Clear Out- It allows you to spin in a whirlwind to hit all nearby enemies.
- Devastating Criticals- Boost the damage of critical hits with melee weapons.
- Bleeding Cuts- Your power attacks with axes and great swords leave a bleeding effect on the enemy.
Companions
Marius and Kai are the two best companions for the War Hero build in Avowed. Marius can crowd control and deal damage over time. Marius’s ability to control the battlefield by immobilizing enemies allows the War Hero to focus on high-priority targets. What makes him the best companion for the War Hero build is his damage-over-time effects that weaken the enemies over time, making them easier to eliminate. Marius’s Bleeding Cuts ability inflicts damage over time, weakening enemies before direct engagement. His Thorny Shield reflects the damage to attackers.
Kai serves as a frontline tank, drawing enemy attention and absorbing damage. This is beneficial for unarmed fighters, providing support in managing multiple enemies. Kai becomes available after completing the “Message from Afar” quest in Dawnshore. This companion can manage enemy aggression, allowing you to focus on close-quarters combat. Including Kai as your companion can increase the effectiveness of your War Hero build by providing a reliable tank and crowd control.
Marius

Skill 1 | Skill 2 | Skill 3 | Skill 4 |
---|---|---|---|
Binding Roots | Heart Seeker | Shadow Step | Wounding Shots |
Entangle enemies | Increases damage dealt to low-health enemies | Devastating Blow | Damage over time |
Kai

Skill 1 | Skill 2 | Skill 3 | Skill 4 |
---|---|---|---|
Fire and Ire | Unbending Defense | Leap of Daring | Second Wind |
Fires a powerful shot from his blunderbuss | Regenerate Health and increase his Damage Reduction by 25% | Crashes down upon the enemy, Stunning and Taunting all nearby enemies | Revives himself when his health is reduced to zero |
War Hero Gameplay & Tips
Select Marius and Kai as your companions to dominate the enemies in combat. Might, Constitution, and Resolve are the best attributes to focus on for the War Hero build. Might allow you to increase your melee damage output and Constitution boost your health and overall durability. Resolve, on the other hand, enhances stamina and resistance to status effects. Equip the best shield in your off-hand to protect your character from incoming attacks. Abilities like Charge are very crucial as they allow you to dash forward to engage enemies swiftly, interrupting their actions and dealing explosive damage.
Use the Shield Bash ability to stun enemies, breaking their defenses and providing crowd control. A spear is your primary weapon that provides high critical hit potential. Swap to the one-handed sword to deal great physical damage when the spear is ineffective during battle. Equip heavy armor to maximize damage mitigation. Maintain Constant Recovery to ensure continuous health regeneration. Use the Kai to share the burden of enemy aggression, making opportunities to attack them back.
Weapons and Armor
Beginner Weapon and Armor
Slot | Item | Bonus |
---|---|---|
Weapon 1 | Last Light of Day | Restore health on kill |
Off-Hand | Unflinching Duty | Chance to avoid melee damage |
Secondary Weapon | The Philosopher’s Riddle | +10% Poison damage |
Armor | Stelgaer’s Pride | Reduce the incoming damage and maximum stamina +10 |
Gloves | Death Knight Gloves | -10% Stamina cost while blocking |
Boots | Durable Greaves | +10% resistance to Poison and Bleed Accumulation |
Trinket | Gilded Skull | Reduces the cooldown for Second Wind by 15% |
Ring | Ashfall’s Legacy | +10% attack damage and +20% critical hit damage with pistols and arquebuses |
Ring | Vailian Dueling Ring | 7% chance to avoid melee damage |
Endgame Weapon and Armor
Slot | Item | Bonus |
---|---|---|
Weapon 1 | The Emperor’s Reach | Kill buffs attack and movement |
Off-Hand | Bastion of Solace | +75 Maximum Health, +50 Maximum Stamina |
Secondary Weapon | Unmaker | Power Attacks deal +15% bonus Attack Damage |
Armor | Berserker Scale | +25% damage and +50% critical hit damage while below 30% maximum health |
Gloves | Magran’s Force | +15% Fire damage |
Boots | Wavebinder Boots | +15 Maximum Essence |
Trinket | Painter’s Brush | +5% Critical Hit Chance |
Ring | Sigil of the Arcane | +20% ability cast speed -20% ability essence cost |
Ring | Ring of the Founder | +10% damage against targets with full health |
Consumables
Fruitful Wine is the best consumable to use as it grants +2 Constitution and +5% Damage Reduction. Grog is another effective consumable because it cures Poison, Bleed, and Elemental Accumulations. and restores Health based on the amount cured, +70% Poison, Bleed and Elemental Damage Resistance. Wild Mushroom Stew provides you +2 Resolve and +5% Maximum Stamina. You need to take three points into the survivalist skill in the ranger tree. Once unlocked, you can craft advanced food and buffs that drastically increase your survivability, damage, and regeneration.
FAQs about War Hero in Avowed
What is the best War Hero build in Avowed?
The best War Hero build uses a Spear as a primary weapon, a Shield as an off-hand weapon to avoid enemy attacks, and a one-handed sword as a secondary weapon when your Spear fails to perform. Might, Resolve, and Constitution are the main attributes of the War Hero build.
Which is the best Background for a War Hero build?
War Hero is the best background for the War Hero build, providing a strong foundation in key physical attributes.
Which are the best skills for War Hero build?
Unbreakable, Parry, Clear Out, Devastating Criticals, Bleeding Cuts, and Charge are the best skills for the War Hero build in Avowed. These abilities not only allow you to deal massive damage but also provide more survivability in the game.
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