When I play fiddly role playing games, I usually like to talk my way out of problems. But what’s really surprised me about Avowed is how fun it is to be a wizard with a gun.
Avowed’s combat systems really intimidated me at first. I’m playing a character with high perception and intelligence, which opens up a lot of interesting conversation options. Between that and the simplicity of just hitting things with a sword and blocking them with a shield, I figured I wouldn’t waste my energy fighting when I didn’t have to.
I changed my mind on this once I finally got my hands on a gun, inspired by advice from Chris Person. The novelty of having a gun in a robust fantasy world is hilarious enough—but you can also dual wield basically every weapon, as well as mix and match. Putting a grimoire in my off hand and using a pistol as my main weapon, ranged combat becomes a thrill. As enemies rush at me through a narrow corridor, I trap them in place with a spell, then I open my palm and spray them with fire, burning them and giving them a status effect that delivers damage over time. As if that wasn’t enough, I shoot them in the fucking head.
As a combat-agnostic player, I’ve surprised myself by my willingness to try and re-try combat encounters in Avowed. It isn’t just setting trapped enemies on fire and then putting pellets in their brains, it’s the way that elemental magic works with other characters and on the environment. When you hit enemies with a spell that freezes them, your companions can then shatter them with their own weapons. That same ice spell can also freeze water, giving you temporary platforms to climb to find new vantage points for shooting, burning, freezing and electrifying enemies. The more I play, the more possibilities open up. One unique pistol delivers electric damage, and then can be enchanted to deliver shock damage to nearby enemies. There is nothing that I want more than to be able to add electrocution to my repertoire of trapping, burning and shooting my many enemies in the Living Lands.
Talking your way out of problems is still incredibly fun in Avowed, and I won’t stop trying to weasel my way out of combat if I can. With conversation trees this robust, why not exhaust them? But as Teddy Roosevelt once said—speak softly, and carry a big stick.
