What a journey. My Avowed story choices steered me through 70+ hours of gameplay. It became my story and there were things that could have gone completely differently. It wasn’t a perfect game (people an objects not as reactive), but the magic, choices and exploration really made it for me.
Choosing my Avowed Story Character
My first Avowed story choices began with character creation. I decided my character would be a gunslinging wizard. I spent the game with a Grimoire in my left hand and Magic Pistol in my right. My human’s background was Court Augur, which is basically a mystic who advises the Aedyran royalty.
No matter what I chose, the given was the character was a Godlike. As a Godlike, there was a touch of godlike powers, but also facial features unique to Godlikes. I was able to choose the more subtle scaring vs. some people going full on mushroom face.
The plan from the start was for my character to be loyal to Aedyr, but curses the gods at any chance. Godlikes were not always treated well as children, so my character would be happy for the chance Aedyr royalty gave him, but despise the gods for marking him.
The Avowed Story Choices that Define my Journey
There was a pleasing amount of Avowed story choices big and small. Some determined how other groups treated my character or how future conversations played out, but the big ones reshaped major parts of the game.
1. Confronting Ygwulf, My Wouldbe Assassin
One of the earliest pivotal Avowed story choices comes after rebels tried to assassinate my character. Technically they succeeded, but there’s magic and god reasons why I survived. After meeting Marius the hunter, we tracked down the assassin, Ygwulf.
There was an option to attack Ygwulf and trigger a boss fight, but I found documents where he regretted his attempt and reasons around it. That convinced me to not execute him myself. Since my character would be loyal to Aedyr, sparing him and letting him escape was off the table (but an option).
Ultimately, I decided to turn him over to the Steel Garrote, who would most likely kill him, but fit my character’s idea of Aedyr justice. Well I did not need to wait long before I saw him hanging in public, for everyone to see. The remnants of his rebels made not so subtle threats to me soon after.
On my way out of the Paradis area, the rebels left me a message via hanging one of the characters I fought alongside early on. Made me wonder how the other choices would have played out. By the end of the game though, I did sort of reconcile with the rebels as the Steel Garrote became more authoritarian.
2. Betraying the Steel Garrote to Save Fior mes Inverno
After exploring Naku Tadek in Emerald Stairs, I noticed I failed a set of missions by progressing to far with the main mission. I went back to an early save to knock out more side missions before progressing farther. That led me to a tough decision between morality and staying loyal to Aedyr.
I inevitably chose to kill a collaborater and exterminate everyone at the Steel Garrote Camp in their cave hideout. Although betraying them went against Aedyr, my character’s hate for religious zealots took over. My choices saved Fior mes Iverno from flames and ruin.
As the home of the last 2 companions Giatta and Yatzli to join my party, I do wonder how those relationships could have gone if I chose different.
3. Sending Animancers to Thirdborn or Paradis
In Avowed and the Pillars games that came before it, the world of Eora is split between Animancers and those that follow the gods. Animancers are basically the scientists in the game, but their main focus is soul energy. They study and use that essence for reanimating flesh and powering machines.
After the attack on Fior mes Inverno, it fell to me to decide the future home for the Animancers. Thirdborn, was harsh terrain and wildlife surrounding a city full of not so ex-pirates. On the other hand, Paradis, put them very close to the Steel Garrote who just tried to kill them all.
After saving their city, it just made more sense to send them to Thirdborn. It was also convenient that was where I was heading next, an easy way to see how that choice played out. For later choices I made in the game, I was ultimately happy with how this choice turned out.
4. Tough Avowed Story Choice to Destroy Ancient Ruins or Kill Innocent People
While trying to investigate the origins of the Dream Scourge (main mission), I faced two tough choices on how to contain the spread. I could side with the Steel Garrote and destroy the ruins to bury the Dream Thralls underneath it. Or, I could let the Archmage gather enough soul essence (by killing random, likely innocent people) to sever the Adra to end the Dream Scourge in Shatterscarp.
As much as I did not want to side with the Steel Garrote, destroying the ruins seemed the lesser of the 2 evils. There were plenty of other ruins for people to visit/study, and I didn’t want to chance the essence gathering harming characters I liked in Thirdborn.
Many people were not happy with me destorying the ruins, especially Yatzli (the historian of the group), but they could not argue with my logic to save lives.
5. Save Solace Keep or Let it Melt
Another large Avowed Story Choice was deciding the fate of Solace Keep. The outcome hinged on whether I would “Open the Sluice Gates to Save Solace Keep” or “Destroy the Winch Gears to Doom Solace Keep.” By saving the keep, I was also possibly dooming the people that live there to be stuck in their way of life.
Solace Keep had a culture of accepting no outside help and the residents never leaving. The arguments towards destroying it revolved around Solace Keep being a makeshift prison for its people. People in the keep would escape and be forced to travel elsewhere, against their tradition, but freeing, in a way.
I decided to save Solace Keep. It’s their home and I’d leave it up to them how they’d live their lives. Some, like Marius left, so it was eventually possible for others to do the same. Destroying the keep would have stole any choice from them.
6. Choosing to Free or Destroy Sapadal
Throughout Avowed, the voice in my head, Sapadal, guided and maybe even manipulated me. My choices were my own, considering Sapadal often got mad at some of those choices. By the time I finally reached its garden prison, I had already decided to free it.
The Avowed story choices and commentary from companions or other NPCs make it a very tough choice. There are for sure some very bad things that Sapadal did and could do, but there’s also room for compassion. Lock up even the nicest person and they could lash out.
I fought so hard and searched so many chests to get to that moment of choice. When I finally freed Sapadal, I figured the credits would roll or maybe there’d be a surprise boss fight, but not so. It was also a nervous time as to how it would react to finally being free. My talks with it helped avoid disaster.
How Avowed Story Choices Changed the Ending for Me
Upon freeing Sapadal, I was thrust into one final battle for the fate of the Living Lands. I was impressed just how the ending was handled. There is an ending boss fight available, but is avoidable based on story choices from earlier in the game.
Before the final fighting began, I was able to meet with all the different factions and people I didn’t kill along the way. I enjoyed the little conversations that played out due to choices I made all the way back from the first time I explored Paradis. It’s definitely a “the friends we made along the way” type of moment.
After all my catching up with the other characters old and new, it was time for a big ending choice. All the major factions offered their opinion on how the Living Lands should be governed. They wanted me to decide the best course of action. Those choices ranged from:
1. Side with the Steel Garrote
After all my anti-zealot choices, I could choose to side with the Steel Garrote and help them put the Living Lands under their boot heel. My character, Nimus, would have none of religious zealots, so this option would make no sense for my playthrough. The companions I grew attached to would also likely not enjoy that.
2. Reject the Steel Garrote, but Make the Living Lands a Colony of Aedyr
All the people from the Living Lands didn’t exactly like this option for obvious reasons. No one really wants to be occupied. Aedyran soldiers everywhere was not going to be an option for the alliances I built. All their varied tradition would be replaced by those of Aedyr.
3. Attempt a Grefram in the Living Lands of Avowed
It would require a ruler chosen by Aedyr to serve as Emperor of the Living Lands. The good thing there is it would likely be my character, the Envoy. It aligned with my character’s loyalty to Aedyr, while allowing my Living Lands allies some measure of freedoms.
The people would have to be loyal to Aedyr and pay taxes still. Some were open to the idea only if I led them. From a roleplaying perspective, it’s an interesting choice for my character.
4. Fight for a United Living Lands
The Living Lands would not answer to anyone, but themselves. They’d fight together, but their settlements would follow their own rules. It felt like this was the “good” ending, but did go a bit against my character’s allegiance to Aedyr.
Since my character was a diplomat at heart, I decided to let my allies vote on what they wanted. The Emperor sent me to investigate the Dream Scourge, not conquer the Living Lands. In the end, they chose a United Living Lands. With that settled, I was off to confront the Steel Garrote Inquisitor Lodwyn.
Ending My Avowed Story by Fighting Faith
In a great little side choice carrying over to the end, an Ogre I helped earlier joined me on my battle to Lodwyn. I was so overpowered with my magic and equipment, we made easy work of all the Steel Garrote soldiers in my way.
When I finally confronted Inquisitor Lodwyn for my final battle, I expected a tough fight. Instead, I won via a battle of wits. Through my Avowed story choices throughout the entire game and upgrade choices, I battled with my words. I broke her faith so badly, she basically defeated herself.
I’m still not sure if I convinced Lodwyn or angered her god, but instead of a big boss battle, she burst into flames right in front of me. It was like spontaneous combustions and I couldn’t help, but laugh at how all my story choices culminated into something unexpected. I’m not one of these people obsessed with big boss fights, so I love narrative ways to get around them.
With the final battle won, Avowed treated me with comic style art prints explaining the results of all my choices on people I met and the Living Lands. It felt like a great ending, except maybe for Yatzli, but I have a feeling she only has badish endings.
Many games with multiple endings entice me to replay them another way later, but it often fizzles by the ending. Even after all my hours in Avowed, I’m very tempted to start another playthrough as a Steel Garrote zealot all the way through.
I could then skip a lot of the “help” side missions and no need to redo all that exploration. That could feel like a much different story. It’s a game I’ll definitely recommend to any RPG fan and I look forward to hearing how other’s Avowed story choices end up for them.
Next I’ll finish up some smaller games before I dig into Expedition 33.