The best Avowed builds take advantage of the games generous equipment and skill systems that essentially allow you to create a custom class. While youll be pulling from the basic ability and stat pools, the ways you combine those core character concepts with all the items youll find enable an incredible number of possibilities.Thankfully, getting started is much simpler. Today, were going to focus on the best builds for the early parts of the game (the first 10 levels). While these builds are designed around the background options youll choose when you create your character (and thus your starting stats), please note that they dont limit you in the long run. For that matter, you have quite a bit of flexibility when it comes to the order you acquire your skills and the equipment you use, though well point you in the right direction in those areas.And while well talk about late-game builds another day, these builds do offer ideal starting points for optimal styles of play that can carry you to the end of the RPG. Just dont forget to play around with the possibilities or youll risk losing out on half of the fun of the game.Best Arcane Scholar Build Grimoire WizardWeapons: Grimoires and WandsPrimary Stats: Intellect, Perception, DexterityFirst 10 Abilities:Minor MissilesGrimoire MasteryArmored EssenceConstant RecoveryGrimoire MasteryWand MasteryGrimoire MasteryBounceGrimoire MasteryWand MasteryAs a pure wizard, the best thing you can do for yourself early on is focus on leveling up your Grimoire Mastery ability. Doing so will allow you to access more powerful spells earlier in the game and help manage the often daunting resource requirements that otherwise limit magic users early on.So, the basic idea is to buy or loot a better Grimoire as soon as possible and start chipping away at those Grimoire Mastery upgrades. Doing so will allow you to rely on your spells earlier and more often, though itll take some wand upgrades early on for when you need to conserve Essence. Still, youll be surprised by how quickly you become a true spell slinger.Armored Essence is highly recommended for resource management, but Constant Recovery and Bounce are flex spots. The former is a nice health regeneration ability from the Fighter tree and the latter makes your wands more viable in fights against larger groups of enemies (typically the most dangerous kinds of fights). If you find yourself longing for more spells (or other Fighter and Ranger abilities), you can swap those as needed.Best Court Augur Build Magical GunfighterWeapons: Pistols and GrimoiresPrimary Stats: Perception, Dexterity/Resolve, IntellectFirst 10 Abilities:EvasiveSteady AimCorrosive SiphonParasitic StaffArmored EssenceMarksmanshipGrimoire MasteryMarksmanshipGrimoire MasteryHarvest EssenceIf youve ever dreamed of wielding a pistol and a spell book well, I have a few questions for you if youd like to reach out and talk about your interests and background. Until then, this build is what youre looking for.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!First off, youre going to want to acquire Beothels Grimoire as soon as possible to make this build work. Fortunately, thats pretty easy to do relatively early in the game. Youll also want to find a decent pistol. I recommend going out of your way for Caerocs Pride early on, but anything will do until you can snag an upgrade.With your core components in place, youll be relying on the Corrosive Siphon and Parasitic Staff abilities to both deal damage and help you restore your Essence and Health. Those siphoning abilities pair perfectly with your pistol, which allows you to stay on the edge of a fight and will be buffed by Marksmanship and Steady Aim. Youre ultimately working your way towards Harvest Essence which makes it much easier to rely on your spellsthough your pistol will carry a surprising amount of weight through the leveling processBest Noble Scion Build The RenegadeWeapons: One-handed melee weapons and a Pistol/BowPrimary Stats: Might, Perception, Resolve/DexterityFirst 10 Abilities:TanglefootChargeEvasiveSteady AimMarksmanshipPiercing ThrustsFinesseConstant RecoveryDevastating CriticalsPower SlideNoble Scions offer a nice blend of combat abilities that allow them to easily dance between the incredibly valuable early abilities found in the Fighter and Ranger skill trees.The basic idea here is to use a bow/pistol power attack to open most fights. Steady Aim and Marksmanship will help enhance the effectiveness of those attacks. When the opportunity presents itself, youre going to finish those fights with (preferably) dual-wielded one-handed melee weapons that are bolstered by Piercing Thrusts and Finesse. All the while your high Critical Strike chance (combined with the Devastating Criticals abilities) ensures the effectiveness of every blow.Tanglefoot and Charge make this build especially enjoyable. The former allows you to root an enemy for a follow-up power attack while Charge lets you easily transition from ranged to melee combat. By the time you get to Power Slide, youll be able to weave in and out of melee range while dealing a steady stream of damage all the while.Best Vanguard Scout Build The Stealth ArcherWeapon: Bows/GunsPrimary Stats: Dexterity, Perception, MightFirst 10 Abilities:TanglefootSteady AimEvasiveArmored EssenceShadowing BeyondMarksmanshipEvasiveTanglefootShadowing BeyondMarksmanshipWhile I dont necessarily recommend going the stealth archer route until youre a little later in the game, this early version of that build does take advantage of the Vanguard Scouts starting stats and will get you through a lot of early fights.This build is all about unleashing devastating ranged attacks with a bow or rifle (thematically, I prefer a bow). While its not the most exciting playstyle early on, Shadowing Beyond takes this strategy to the next level. That skill lets you turn invisible and unleash a melee backstab or simply escape to a safe distance. When combined with Tanglefoot (which lets you trap enemies) and Evasive (which greatly reduces the Stamina cost of your dodges), Shadowing Beyond allows you to transform into a sniping ghost during most fights.Ideally, this build will take Parry, Arrow Deflection, and Quick Switch to weave in melee counter-attacks/blocks while allowing you to operate at a distance. Since its kind of hard to grab all the skills you need to make that strategy work in the first 10 levels, though, I recommend respeccing around Level 11 or 12 to start incorporating melee counters.Best War Hero Build The BarbarianWeapons: Two-Handed Axe/SwordPrimary Skills: Might, Constitution, ResolveFirst 10 Abilities:ChargeArmored GraceToughnessConstant RecoveryBleeding CutsEvasiveBrawnBleeding CutsChargeBrawnPlaying a straight-up bruiser in Avowed (aka a two-handed weapon weilding tower of strength) is not only surprisingly fun but is one of the best ways to get through the early parts of the game with little trouble.Charge is the engine that makes this two-handed beast go vroom. Its one of the best overall abilities in Avowed, and it shines when you pair it with one of the buffed two-handed weapon strikes youll be building towards with the rest of this set-up. Charge into battle, disrupt your enemies, deal massive damage with an equally large weapon, and dodge when needed at a reduced Stamina cost.You will want to rely on an axe or greatsword early on to take advantage of the Bleeding Cuts ability. Later, you can swap to a mace or hammer when Stunning Blows becomes a bit more valuable. You could spec into a shield with this build, though it doesnt feel nearly as valuable as killing the enemies outright at this point in the game. Barbaric Shout is also a viable early option if you find yourself longing for another skill, though not having to manage your Essence quite as much early on is a blessing in disguise.