Latest Update: June 26, 2026 – Categories: Avowed
Choosing the right companions in Avowed can mean the difference between a smooth adventure through the Living Lands and constant frustration on harder difficulties. With only four permanent party members available and just two slots to fill at any time, understanding each companion’s strengths becomes essential for building an effective team.
This guide breaks down every companion’s combat role, optimal ability builds, training recommendations, and the best team compositions for each Envoy playstyle.
Table Of Contents
- Best Companions Tier List
- How Companions Work in Avowed
- Best Companion Overall: Kai
- Best Support Companion: Giatta
- Best Damage Companion: Yatzli
- Most Situational Companion: Marius
- Best Team Compositions
- Companion Story Impact
- Frequently Asked Questions
- More Avowed Builds
Avowed Best Companions Tier List
The best avowed companions depend on your build and difficulty, but combat effectiveness clearly separates the roster. Here’s where each party member lands when you need results:
S-Tier:
- Kai – The only true tank in the game. Kai taunts enemies, provides crowd control, absorbs punishment, and keeps fragile builds alive from Dawnshore through endgame. Essential for Wizard and Ranger builds who can’t survive frontline pressure from aggressive enemies.
- Giatta – The only dedicated healer. Her barriers and restoration spells dramatically reduce potion consumption and enable aggressive play on Path of the Damned.
A-Tier:
- Yatzli – Premier damage dealer with explosive AoE spells. Her unique ability to dispel illusions unlocks hidden content no other companion can access. Joins late but dominates once available.
B-Tier:
- Marius – Ranged control specialist with binding roots and finishers. Useful early but his utility falls off sharply once you unlock Yatzli and upgrade your own gear.
Since you can only bring 2 companions at once, most optimal parties revolve around Kai + Giatta for maximum survivability or Kai + Yatzli when you want to prioritize damage and already have solid defenses.
How Companions Work in Avowed
Avowed features exactly four permanent companions: Kai, Marius, Giatta, and Yatzli. As you explore the living lands, you can bring up to two at a time while the rest wait at your party camp. All companions level alongside you automatically, regardless of whether they’re actively traveling with you.
Key Mechanics to Understand:
- Companions gain skill points as you level, reaching 11 total points by level 30. This was increased in Avowed Patch 1.4 as of May, 2025.
- Those 11 points allow you to unlock 3 active abilities and 1 passive, with room for upgrades to each.
- Your choice of traveling companions does NOT affect how many skill points others receive as each companion levels up equally, whether they are in your active party or not.
Point Allocation Guidance:
- Always unlock all 3 abilities plus 1 passive before spending on upgrades
- Optimal builds usually prioritize upgrading passives first, then 1-2 high-impact actives you plan to trigger on cooldown
- Don’t spread upgrades too thin – focus on abilities that define their role
To build your ideal party, simply choose companions that cover your weaknesses rather than doubling down on your strengths. For example, Ranged Envoys should bring a tank and/or healer instead of more ranged damage. Fighters can self-tank more easily, freeing slots for damage or utility picks like Yatzli. Wizards and Rangers benefit heavily from Kai or Giatta protecting them
There’s no penalty for rotating companions, so experiment freely as you progress from Dawnshore to Shatterscarp. Every companion remains available at camp whenever you want to swap.
Best Companion Overall: Kai (Tank & Frontline Disruptor)
Kai is the first companion you recruit in Dawnshore and immediately establishes himself as the backbone of most parties in Avowed. As the only true tank among the Avowed companions, he remains top-tier from early game encounters through challenging late-game areas.
Kai’s Combat Role:
- Frontline protector who specializes in taunting enemies and soaking up damage
- Keeps pressure off fragile casters by forcing enemies to focus him
- Ideal partner for Wizards and Rangers who need space to cast spells or land ranged attacks
Build Strengths:
- Taunt-based abilities that redirect enemy aggression away from your Envoy
- High durability through damage reduction passives and self-healing
- Second wind-style self-revive that triggers once per cooldown, letting him stand back up with significant health when downed
- Creates opportunities for your entire party to unload damage while enemies are locked onto him
Best Team Compositions:
- On high difficulties (especially Path of the Damned), Kai + Giatta is the safest default for most players
- Works extremely well with ranged Envoys investing in frost, lightning, or firearms since he can cluster and hold multiple enemies
- Pairs excellently with Yatzli when you want a “tank + nuker” setup for clearing packs quickly
Kai’s Best Abilities, Upgrades & Recommended Build
Kai’s kit mirrors the Fighter skill tree, focusing on threat generation, gap-closing, and survivability. His abilities work together to create a reliable frontline presence.
Ability Focus:
- Taunts that redirect enemy aggression (his primary role)
- Leap-style gap-closers like Leap of Daring that also fill stun meters on stunned enemies
- Defensive passives that cut incoming damage and improve maximum health
Best Abilities to Unlock and Recommended Upgrades:
- Fire and Ire: Kai Fires a powerful shot from his blunderbuss, dealing high Stun to a single enemy and Taunting them for 10 seconds.
- Pure Lead: Greatly increases the amount of Stun dealt by Fire and Ire.
- Quick Reload: Reduces the cooldown for Fire and Ire by 50%.
- Unbending Defense: Kai steels his mind to regenerate Health and increase his Damage Reduction by 25%.
- Iron Will: Unbending Defense reduces incoming damage by 50%.
- Indomitable Spirit: Increases Health regeneration of Unbending Defense.
- Leap of Daring: With a mighty leap, Kai crashes down upon the enemy, Stunning and Taunting all nearby enemies.
- Leap of Pride: Doubles the area of effect for Leap of Daring.
- Leap of Faith: Kai gains Temporary Health proportional to the number of enemies hit by Leap of Daring.
- Second Wind: When Kai’s Health is reduced to zero, he revives himself by restoring 50% of his maximum Health.
- Soothing Wind: Increases the amount of Health restored by Second Wind to 75% of Kai’s maximum Health.
- Refreshing Wind: All of Kai’s ability cooldowns are reset when Second Wind activates.
Combat Playstyle Tips:
- Use Leap of Daring to initiate fights and bunch enemies together
- Follow immediately with taunt to lock all grouped enemies on Kai
- While enemies focus him, you and your second companion set up explosive damage or healing abilities
- Save his big defensive cooldown for elite packs and boss phases – don’t waste it on trash
When to Bring Kai
Kai is a must-have from Dawnshore through early Shatterscarp for builds that start squishy, and he becomes essential on higher difficulties where his Second Wind passive can automatically revive him. He shines in any encounter featuring multiple enemies or dangerous elites because his presence helps stabilize fights and buy you time to set up damage, healing, or crowd control.
Kai is less optimal in late game scenarios where heavily-armored Fighters with self-heal and taunt can replace Kai, especially if you want to pair your lineup with Yatzli for more damage. Once you are comfortable surviving without a dedicated tank presence, you can shift Kai out more often to maximize burst and faster clears.
Kai’s Training Details
Kai’s training unlocks in Dawnshore after progressing the main storyline and exhausting his camp dialogue. Kai’s Training offers +2 attribute points in Constitution and/or Might.
Best Support Companion: Giatta (Healer, Shields & Utility)
Giatta is the only true healer in Avowed, and that alone makes her nearly irreplaceable on Path of the Damned. You find Giatta at the Emerald Stair, and she quickly becomes essential for any party prioritizing survivability over raw damage.
Giatta’s Combat Role:
- Party-wide healer and barrier caster who keeps the whole team alive through sustained fights
- Strong passive healing and defensive buffs enable riskier positioning
- The only companion with dedicated support abilities focused entirely on keeping allies alive
Build Strengths:
- Purification-type skills that restore party health while providing soft crowd control like knockbacks
- Reconstruction-style attacks that heal while dealing damage, helpful in longer fights where chip damage accumulates
- Barrier-style shields that absorb incoming damage and can upgrade to also provide healing
- Buff Envoy’s Attack Speed and Mobility
Best Team Compositions:
- Pair Giatta with Kai if your Envoy is a glass-cannon Wizard or ranged build, forming a durable “bodyguard + healer” shell
- Ranged builds benefit slightly less from her raw healing than melee builds but can also take advantage of temporary health and increased attack speed.
- She’s a great character for understanding the game’s soul mechanics, contributing narrative insights about the Dreamscourge.
Giatta’s Best Abilities, Upgrades & Recommended Build
Giatta’s skill set is entirely support-focused with a unique kit designed around keeping your party healthy.
Ability Focus:
- Heals allies and increases Damage Reduction
- Casts barriers that provide temporary Health
- Speed Buffs increase Movement Speed and Attack Speed
Best Abilities to Unlock and Recommended Upgrades:
- Purification: Giatta calls forth an invigorating wave of energy that heals allies by 25% of their maximum Health.
- Boosted Essence: Purification heals allies by 50% of their maximum Health.
- Essence Shielding: Increases Damage Reduction of allies by 20% for 15 seconds.
- Barrier: Giatta grants all allies a shield that provides Temporary Health for 20 seconds.
- Greater Barrier: Increases the amount of Temporary Health granted by Barrier.
- Medic Shielding: When Barrier ends, allies are healed in proportion to the amount of Temporary Health remaining.
- Acceleration: Giatta increases the Move Speed and Attack Speed of all allies for 15 seconds.
- Evade Attacks: Allies empowered by Acceleration use their speed to gain 15% Damage Reduction.
- Extended Acceleration: Increases the duration of Acceleration by 10 seconds.
- Time Shift: Any abilities activated while Acceleration is active will have their cooldowns reduced by 50%.
- Reconstruction: Giatta’s attacks heal all allies by a small amount.
- Overcharge: Reconstruction grants Temporary Health to allies that are already at maximum Health.
Combat Playstyle Tips:
- Pre-cast Barrier before pulling large packs or bosses to absorb initial burst damage and Acceleration to buff Attack Speed for the party.
- Treat Purification as both a heal and a way to create breathing room when swarmed
- Her healing abilities work best when you’re actively fighting rather than retreating
When to Bring Giatta
Giatta is essential for Emerald Stair content and encounters involving the Steel Garrote where mixed damage spikes unpredictably, and she is highly recommended in late game zones if you’re not comfortable face-tanking or perfectly dodging boss mechanics. She is a core pick for any party on Path of the Damned difficulty, especially when you want steadier survivability and a safer margin for error in long fights.
There are edge cases where very defensive Fighters sometimes drop Giatta for more damage once their survivability is self-sufficient, but this is a high-skill, build-dependent choice that most players shouldn’t attempt until they’re familiar with encounters and consistently handling incoming damage.
Giatta’s Training Details
Giatta’s training unlocks in Shatterscarp after advancing the main storyline and exhausting her dialogue at camp. Giatta’s Training grants +2 points in Intellect and/or Resolve.
Best Damage Companion: Yatzli (Explosive AoE Sorceress)
Yatzli joins your party later in the campaign as a history-obsessed orlan Wizard specializing in elemental explosions and crowd nukes. Once she’s available, she’s the premier damage dealer for parties that already have survivability covered. Yatzli is also the only companion who can dispel illusions, opening hidden paths and treasures in end-game regions, though the Envoy can now do this with consumables as well. Both Yatzli and your Envoy benefit from her revelations during exploration.
Yatzli’s Combat Role:
- High AoE magical DPS through spells like Essence Explosion and missile battery-style abilities
- Excels at softening or outright deleting clustered enemies, especially after Kai groups them up
- Her attacks naturally build elemental accumulation for more damage over time
Build Strengths:
- Yatzli’s burst damage and elemental mechanics reward players who plan around cooldowns and positioning
- She offers less direct control and survivability than Giatta, so she’s best paired with a durable tank
- Requires more active management than other companions to maximize her damage output
Best Team Compositions:
- Best alongside Kai when you want a “tank + nuker” setup for clearing packs fast
- Very strong with Fighter or Ranger Envoys who can occupy enemies while she channels her spells
- Most players swap Marius out for Yatzli as soon as she joins
Yatzli’s Abilities, Upgrades & Recommended Build
Yatzli’s abilities mirror Wizard-style AoE magic, focusing on dealing explosive damage to groups and applying elemental effects.
Ability Focus:
- A signature explosion spell (Essence Explosion-type) for clustered packs
- A missile battery-style spell for multi-hit ranged damage against single enemy targets or spread groups
- A debuff or slow enemies ability that enhances control and party survivability
Best Abilities to Unlock and Recommended Upgrades:
- Essence Explosion: Yatzli invokes a strange arcane power that explodes upon hitting an enemy, releasing a burst of Essence and Exposive Damage.
- Concentrated Essence: Increases the size of the blast caused by Essence Explosion.
- Scrappy Casting: Reduces the cooldown for Essence Explosion by 33%.
- Minoletta’s Missile Battery: Yatzli conjures a volley of arcane missiles that seek out nearby enemies.
- Arduous Delay of Motion: Yatzli manipulates the arcane energy around an enemy, slowing them for 10 seconds.
- Energy Sap: Arduous Delay of Motion intensifies its slowing effect on enemies.
- Exhausting Field: Arduous Delay of Motion creates an area of effect that afflicts all enemies within its radius.
- Frost Aspect: Arduous Delay of Motion periodically deals Frost Accumulation to afflicted enemies.
- Blast: Yatzli’s attacks burst into a small area of effect when they hit an enemy.
- Explosive Blast: Blast deals Explosive Damage breaking enemy Blocks, destroying walls, and shattering frozen enemies for bonus damage.
- Force Blast: Blast has a 5% chance to inflict Frozen, Ignited, or Shocked.
Combat Playstyle Tips:
- Time her biggest spells right after Kai taunts or your Envoy immobilizes enemies
- She should stay at mid-to-long range while Kai or your Envoy occupies the frontline
- Position her carefully – she’s fragile if enemies slip past your tank
When to Bring Yatzli
Yatzli joins around the time you start tackling more illusion-heavy and high-level regions, and her late recruitment is offset by immediately high impact once she’s available. Because she arrives when the game ramps up in complexity and threats, she fits naturally into parties that are ready to capitalize on damage and utility without needing a full early-game ramp.
For recommended usage, bring her for the rest of the game once she joins if your party already has solid survivability, and she’s especially good for speedier runs where fights are decided by burst rather than attrition. She is also essential for accessing hidden areas blocked by illusions, since no other companions work to bypass those illusion barriers.
Yatzli’s Training Details
Her training session unlocks in Shatterscarp after exhausting her camp dialogue and advancing the main quest. Training grants +2 points in Intellect and/or Perception
Most Situational Companion: Marius (Ranger, Roots & Finishers)
Marius is the second companion you meet in Dawnshore, a gruff Pargrunen dwarf ranger who specializes in single-target ranged damage and light crowd control. While useful early, he struggles to compete with other companions as the game progresses. His Special ability that highlights nearby loot can make exploring slightly more efficient.
Mariusi’s Combat Role:
- Provides Binding Roots-style immobilization and debuffs for crowd control
- Finishers that excel against low-health or most stunned enemies
Build Strengths:
- Can lock down multiple enemies at once, while also increasing stun and Bleed accumulation
- “Sniper” playstyle that can take down weaker enemies more quickly
- Can also play as a “Rogue” type with Shadow Step and Assassinate options.
- His passive Wounding Shots is one of the best passives in Avowed, greatly weakening enemies
Best Team Compositions:
- Best for builds lacking ranged capabilities, especially early-game Wizards or Fighters before Yatzli arrives
- Can synergize with melee-heavy teams by rooting enemies and allowing safe engagement with his piercing shot abilities
- Consider him a placeholder until you complete your ideal late-game lineup
Marius’ Abilities, Upgrades & Recommended Build
Marius’ abilities mimic a Ranger tree with emphasis on immobilization, damage-over-time, and execution.
Key Abilities:
- Binding Roots for crowd control and holding targets in place
- Damage-over-time shots that stack debuffs on single targets
- A Shadow Step-style finisher that can instantly kill most stunned or low-HP targets
- Wounding Shots passive greatly debuffs enemies
Best Abilities to Unlock and Recommended Upgrades:
- Binding Roots: Marius uses his wilderness lore to Root an enemy in place for 8 seconds.
- Constricting Roots: Binding Roots deals Stun to trapped enemies.
- Grasping Roots: Binding Roots traps multiple enemies in a small area of effect.
- Thorny Roots: Binding Roots deals Bleed Accumulation to trapped enemies.
- Heart Seeker: Marius takes aim and fires a piercing shot that always hits it mark, passing through any obstacles in its path.
- Sharpshooter: Increases the amount of damage dealt by Heart Seeker to enemies that are below 50% Health.
- Twinned Shot: After hitting the original enemy, Heart Seeker also hits the next closest enemy.
- Shadow Step: Marius vanishes into a cloud of smoke, then reappears near an enemy and slashes them with his daggers. He repeats this up to 3 times.
- Assassinate: Shadow Step instantly kills most stunned enemies.
- Wounding Shots: Marius attacks deal Bleed Accumulation.
- Exposing Shots: Marius’s attacks reduce enemy Damage Reduction.
- Impeding Shots: Marius’s attacks slow any hit enemies.
Combat Playstyle Tips:
- Use Marius primarily as a “cleanup specialist” finishing off enemies with full stun meters
- Coordinate his roots with Kai’s taunts or your control spells to keep dangerous targets pinned
- Use the Twinned Shot upgrade for Heart Seeker to debuff multiple enemies at once
Marius Training Details
His final training becomes available in Galawain’s Tusks after completing key quests and exhausting dialogue. Training offers +2 points in Dexterity and/or Constitution.
Best Team Compositions by Envoy Build
Optimal companion choices depend heavily on your own class and build. Here’s what works best for each Envoy archetype in this action RPG:
For Wizard / Mage-Style Envoys:
- Your fragile build makes Kai nearly mandatory as a party member
- Path of the Damned: Kai + Giatta for maximum survivability – Kai tanks, Giatta heals, you nuke from safety
- Experienced players: Kai + Yatzli for maximum DPS if you’re confident avoiding damage
For Ranger Envoys:
Rangers in Avowed have more flexibility but still benefit from frontline protection
- Early game: Kai + Marius doubles down on ranged damage while Kai gathers enemies
- Mid/late game: Kai + Giatta for survivability, or Kai + Yatzli if your build has snares and kiting tools
For Fighter / Melee Envoys:
Your daring ability to survive frontline combat opens more aggressive compositions
- Path of the Damned beginners: Giatta + Yatzli since you can self-tank while they provide heals and AoE
- Confident or well-geared Fighters: Giatta + Yatzli or Giatta + Marius for extra control and finishing power
General Team-Building Rules:
- Always cover three roles between you and your companions: frontline control, healing/mitigation, and at least one strong AoE source
- As you approach Shatterscarp and the Dreamscourge climax, most top parties settle on Giatta plus either Kai or Yatzli
- Play close attention to what’s killing you – this tells you which companion to bring
Companion Story Impact, Appearances & Long-Term Planning
In terms of story impact, all four companions comment on major story beats, especially in areas tied to their background. Giatta provides insights at Emerald Stair, and Marius has more to say at Galawain’s Tusks, so rotating your party can change the feel of key moments. You also cannot permanently lose companions during normal play, which makes long-term party planning much easier. That said, siding with the Steel Garrote at the end can create negative outcomes with all that matters for relationships, so if you care about companion reactions, you will want to plan around that.
Exploration utilities are another big reason companions matter outside of combat. Kai burns flammable obstructions like cobwebs and brambles with fire, which makes certain routes and shortcuts easier to clear. Marius highlights nearby loot through his special ability, which is useful when resources are tight and you are trying to stock up on materials. Giatta electrifies devices to unlock certain doors or mechanisms, and Yatzli dispels illusions blocking secret paths and late-game treasures. Yatzli is the only companion with this power, but you can also do the same with consumables.
Appearances are straightforward but still nice for long runs. Premium Edition owners can change appearances for all four companions at the Main Camp Tent near the Adra Waystone, and cosmetics do not affect stats or abilities, so it is purely visual customization. Each companion has alternate looks that can refresh their visual appeal, especially if you are spending dozens of hours with the same endgame duo.
For long-term planning, rotate companions periodically to see training arcs and earn attribute bonuses, aiming to fully train each companion for maximum payoff. Try to finish training for your most-used endgame duo before pushing the hardest encounters, and keep allies alive through proper rest cycles and potion management at camp so you are not limping into boss fights. Understanding each companion’s role, upgrades, and synergies lets you tailor the perfect party for curing the Dreamscourge in the Living Lands.
Frequently Asked Questions for Avowed Companions
1. How many companions can I bring at once?
You can take two companions with you on a mission. Everyone else waits at camp so you can swap your lineup whenever it makes sense.
2. Can you miss or lock yourself out of companions?
Not in a normal playthrough. The four core companions are recruited through main story progression, so you will naturally pick them up as you advance.
3. Who is the best early-game companion?
Kai tends to feel “best” early simply because you get him first, and he covers a lot of early mistakes by tanking and controlling fights. If your build is squishier (wizard or ranger leaning), Kai usually makes the opening zones noticeably smoother.
4. Can companions die permanently?
In standard play, companions can be downed in combat, but they are not permanently gone. You either revive them (via a revive option/ability) or they get back up after the fight if you survive.
5. Are there romance options with companions?
No. The game does not include companion romance paths, and the developers have talked publicly about choosing to focus on non-romantic relationship depth instead.
6. What is companion training and is it worth doing?
Companion training is a camp conversation sequence that rewards permanent attribute points. Each companion can grant a one-time training bonus, and your dialogue choice determines whether you get +2 to one attribute or +1 to two attributes. It is absolutely worth doing because it is free power that carries your whole run.
More Avowed Builds
Looking for the best Avowed Builds? We’ve got you covered! Check out our best Avowed Builds below, with detailed skill explanations, gear loadouts, and leveling guides.
