Originally brought to the Pillars of Eternity in Deadfire, this new feature lets you experience Pillars 1 in a whole new way with combat fully reimagined around turn-based pacing and flexibility. Unlike Deadfire, however, you are able to change between the traditional Real-Time with Pause or Turn-Based Mode gameplay as you see fit during your playthrough, allowing even more control to play your way. For fans of turn-based mode in Pillars II we hope you find this addition to the original game both familiar and improved.

Speaking of improvements, Turn-Based Mode is not the only new addition to come along with this update. Along with a host of fixes to the new mode itself thanks to feedback from those who played it during the beta period, as well as a few bugs getting taken care of, we have also added the ability to change the main menu art by clicking on the base game or DLC icons.

The full list of updates can be found on our forum. We recognize that this is a very large feature and there could be more issues that were not found during the beta period. With that in mind, we will still be supporting this feature based on feedback from you all so please contact us via https://www.support.obsidian.net.

Let’s break down all of the big new additions that are coming to the game with this update.

New Playable Species

Headlining the anniversary update is a major expansion to character creation: three new playable species join the existing Humans and Elves.

• Dwarves – The most well-traveled species in Eora, the stout dwarves are known for their great strength and tenacity.

• Orlans – Their two-toned skin, prominent ears, and hirsute bodies all in the smallest size of Kith make them stand out in Eora.

• Aumaua – Towering, powerfully built, and physically imposing.

With all five of the Eoran kith species now available, players have more ways than ever to define who their envoy is as they decide the fate of the Living Lands. The new species are available for selection at character creation, but for those who are currently in the middle of an adventure and are looking for a change, a mirror has been added to the Party Camp that allows players to change their appearance, including species, at any time!

Not only do the different species change how you look, but the team has also added in stat bonuses for all species adding another layer to character creation.

• Humans
  • +1 Might
  • +1 Resolve

• Elves
  • +1 Dexterity
  • +1 Perception

• Aumaua
  • +2 Might

• Dwarves
  • +1 Might
  • +1 Constitution

• Orlans
  • +1 Perception
  • +1 Resolve

To team up with species specific stat boosts, we have also added a stat boost that comes along with your background choice, adding more to your build variety.

• Arcane Scholar - +2 to Intellect

• Court Augur - +2 to Resolve

• Noble Scion - +2 to Perception

• Vanguard Scout - +2 to Dexterity

• War Hero - +2 to Constitution

Return to the Living Lands Again and Again

New Game Plus is now available after completing the main story. This mode is designed to reward mastery, experimentation, and making the all-powerful build.

When starting a New Game Plus save, players will bring along with them:

• All unlocked abilities (with the exception of godlike abilities which are gained through story progression/world exploration)

• All spent attribute points

• All unique weapons and armors (but they are reset to level 1)

• All unlocked enchantments remain

• All unique gloves and boots

• All necklaces, all rings, and all trinkets

• Any equipped Common Weapons or Armor items are kept (but they are reset to level 1)
  • EDIT: The above detail was incorrect, and all uncommon weapons and armor are removed at the start of New Game Plus. This is to provide players a consistent experience regardless of what items they had in their inventory when they ended the game.

The following are removed from the player at the start of a New Game Plus:

• All common weapons and armor that aren’t equipped

• Companions must be picked up via story progression
  • Companions keep their talent points and start at level 1

• All resources that had been collected
  • Gold
  • Upgrade materials
  • Enchanting materials
  • Food ingredients

• All consumables that had been collected
  • All potions
  • All food

• All quest items

• All god totems/trinkets

• Fast travel points/fog of war

• The aforementioned godlike abilities

To ensure challenge scales alongside player power:

• Enemy stats are increased across the board

• Enemies now have a chance to have modifiers applied to them
  • Elemental Modifiers
    • Fire: Immune to Fire damage and accumulation. Attacks also now deal Fire damage
    • Frost: Immune to Frost damage and accumulation. Attacks also now deal Frost damage
    • Shock: Immune to Shock damage and accumulation. Attacks also now deal Shock damage
    • Poison: Immune to Poison damage and accumulation. Attacks also now deal Poison damage
    • Bleed: Immune to Bleed damage and accumulation. Attacks also now deal Bleed damage
  • Physical Modifiers
    • Haste: Increased movement speed, attack speed, and lowered cooldown timings
    • Glass Cannon: Increased damage dealt and damage received
    • Colossal: Increased maximum health
    • Life Steal: Attacks restore the enemy’s health by a percentage of the damage dealt
    • Crippled: Reduced movement speed and attack speed
    • Sturdy: Increased stability making it harder for them to be stunned
    • Natural Immunity: Immune to all status accumulations
    • Forceful: Increased impact on attacks
    • Vindictive: Increased damage dealt based on the amount of health lost
• Attribute stat cap rises from 15 to 30

An important note for those who have already completed Avowed: Since New Game Plus is being added post release and the game was not initially designed with it in mind, a completion save will be necessary in order to take advantage of the mode. You will need to load a point of no return save or later and beat the game to make a proper New Game Plus save.

Your Game, Your Way

For players who want even finer control, Avowed now includes custom difficulty modifiers, allowing you to tune the game’s systems to your preferred experience. These new options are found by scrolling down through the “Game” tab of the settings menu.

Adjust player:

• Damage dealt

• Health, stamina, and essence resources

• Elemental status effect threshold

• Health and essence regeneration rates

• Potion and food restoration rates

• Interrupt or knockdown ease

• Second Wind cooldown time

• Carry capacity

• Parry window

Adjust enemy:

• Damage output

• Health pool

• Stun, interrupt, or knockdown ease

• Attack speed

• Elemental status effect threshold

• Aggro threshold

Adjust companion:

• Damage dealt

• Health max

• Elemental status effect threshold

• Aggro threshold

As well as general adjustments:

• Merchant prices

• Equipment upgrade material costs

• Fall damage

• Trap damage

• Item quality damage reduction

Custom game options allow you to better play the game your way. These options can be changed and adjusted at any time during the game so be sure to mix and match all you’d like. Some also add in XP modifiers to boost your gains further.

Important note: While changing these options will not negate most achievements that you may be hunting down, they will invalidate a Path of the Damned achievement. That achievement must be done without use of the custom game options.

New Weapon Type: Quarterstaff

A brand new weapon type is joining the arsenal with the quarterstaff. Designed with the archmage fantasy in mind, the quarterstaff is a new bludgeoning weapon that comes complete with wand style stun finishers. Unleash brutal physical combos along with a fury of spells that would make even Concelhaut jealous.

Photo Mode and Quality-of-Life Enhancements

While far from completing everything that is coming in the anniversary update, there are a few more notable callouts:

• Photo Mode – Capture your envoy, companions, and the Living Lands from any angle and share your journey

• Improved lighting and visual polish throughout

• The ability to skip previously unskippable conversations with a certain god
  

A World Built for Return Visits

For those who are making their return to Avowed to check out the anniversary update, welcome back. If this is your first time in the Living Lands, you are about to enter a world of wonderous flora and fauna, exceptional exploration, and satisfying combat.

This is just a touch of what is in the update as the full patch notes go into more detail.

Be sure to check out the previous updates to see what else the team has added in case you’ve missed it.

• 1.3 Patch Notes
• 1.4 Patch Notes
• 1.5 Patch Notes

The fate of an island is up to you; forge it to your will.

We’re excited to announce that Avowed is officially coming to PlayStation 5. Set in the rich world of Eora, this first-person fantasy RPG places you in the role of an envoy sent to investigate a spreading plague—one that threatens not only the land, but something far more personal.

Explore a dangerous and beautiful land shaped by ancient magic. Traverse its wilds, reveal hidden truths, and delve into secrets buried beneath its surface. Play your way by experimenting with a wide range of weapons, abilities, and powers in combat that rewards creativity and adaptability. Shape your journey through the choices you make, from how you fight and explore, to how you answer the Living Lands when they push back.

Pre-orders for Avowed on PlayStation 5 are now live! Visit the PlayStation Store to secure your copy and prepare to shape the fate of the Living Lands on February 17, 2026.

The Standard Edition is available for $49.99, with the Premium Edition priced at $59.99. These prices will be reflected across all other storefronts where Avowed is available to purchase.

Forge Your Destiny.

The wait is over — the Turn-Based Mode Public Beta for the original Pillars of Eternity is now live on Steam and Xbox PC.

This new feature lets you experience Pillars in a whole new way, with combat fully reimagined around turn-based pacing and flexibility. If you enjoyed experimenting with the system in Deadfire, we hope you’ll find this version both familiar and improved — and we can’t wait to hear what you think.

As a reminder:

• This is a public beta, so please expect bugs.
• The beta will run for some time as we continue to incrementally update it in preparation for a full release.
• We’ll be collecting your reports, issues, and suggestions throughout the beta and doing our best to integrate that feedback into the final version.

To opt in to this current update, use the Public Beta branch in Steam.

1. In your Steam Library Right click on Pillars of Eternity, and select "Properties"
2. Select the "Beta" Tab, and click the Drop Down for labeled "NONE" - Select "public_beta"

Close the Window, and you should have a download ready. Attempting to play the game should automatically trigger the download.

We’re thrilled to bring this beta to the community and look forward to seeing your feedback. Dive in, test it out, and let us know how Turn-Based Mode feels in Pillars of Eternity.

We'd love to hear your feedback, please join our official Discord Server (discord.gg/obsidian) and help us shape the update together.

Thank you for helping us make the game even better.

Patch Notes

Major Features

• Turn-Based Mode has been added to Pillars of Eternity.
  • Turns are now influenced by character speed, combat pacing has been adjusted for increased lethality, and certain actions (such as swapping weapons, drinking potions, or enabling modals) are now classified as free actions with per-turn limits. Players can select Turn-Based Mode when starting a game or swap between real-time with pause and turn-based combat in the options menu.

General

• Added support to change to the original Pillars of Eternity main menu art by clicking base game and DLC icons.

Visual and Audio

• Fixed characters sometimes being stuck in a running animation during cutscenes.
• The title screen background should no longer appear with a delay.

User Interface and Interaction

• Fixed Player-controlled characters sometimes being unable to attack if any Class Behavior is active.
• Fixed an issue that allowed summoned Concelhaut to be looted after death.
• Fixed cursor changing to the default one while hovering over party members outside of combat.
• Fast mode now can now be enabled without toggling off slow mode first.

We’re excited to announce that a new public beta will open on November 5th for players on Steam and Xbox PC. This beta introduces a major new way to play the original Pillars of Eternity: Turn-Based Mode.

Fans who enjoyed experimenting with Turn-Based Mode in Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire will find familiar ground here, but with key improvements shaped by your feedback:

• Unbound Turns: All turns are now influenced by a character’s overall speed, improving the value of Real-Time with Pause attributes and mechanics.
• Smarter Free Actions: Actions like swapping weapons, drinking potions, or enabling modals are now free actions. Each free action is limited to one per turn per type for balance.
• Faster Pacing: Combat lethality has been significantly increased for both enemies and players to keep battles tense and impactful.
• Mode Flexibility: You can choose Turn-Based Mode alongside difficulty when starting a new game — or swap freely between Real-Time with Pause and Turn-Based Mode in the game options. We’re also investigating a direct HUD toggle for even more convenience.

As this is a public beta, please expect bugs and ongoing adjustments. The beta will run for some time as we continue to roll out updates and prepare for a full release.

We’re also excited to share a special message from Josh Sawyer, the Game Director, with his thoughts on what Turn-Based Mode means for Pillars of Eternity and how community feedback helped shape this update.

Your feedback will be vital as we refine and polish turn-based mode — we’ll be collecting reports, issues, and suggestions from the community throughout the beta.

Thank you for helping us continue to grow and evolve Pillars of Eternity. We’ll see you in the beta on November 5th!

Coming in 2024. Explore the Living Lands, a mysterious island filled with adventure and danger. As an envoy of Aedyr, you are sent to investigate rumors of a spreading plague with a secret that threatens to destroy everything. Can you save the island and your soul from the forces threatening to tear them apart?

From Carrie Patel, Game Director, and the team:

"The last few months at Obsidian Entertainment have been fast-paced and exciting. Since we saw you at the Xbox Developer Direct this past January, we’ve been busy with Avowed. Today, we’re thrilled to have revealed our first-ever story trailer at Xbox Games Showcase 2024, and to talk with you more about what we’ve shared."

To read more on Avowed, visit the Xbox Wire post here.

Set in the fictional world of Eora that was first introduced to players in the Pillars of Eternity franchise, Avowed is a first-person fantasy RPG from the award-winning team at Obsidian Entertainment. You are the envoy of Aedyr, a distant land, sent to investigate rumors of a spreading plague. You discover a personal connection to the land itself and an ancient secret that threatens to destroy everything. Can you save the island and your soul from the forces threatening to tear them asunder? 

From Feargus Urquhart, Studio Head of Obsidian Entertainment:

"We at Obsidian Entertainment know players have been anticipating an updated look at Avowed and we’re excited to show off what we’ve been working on with a first-ever gameplay trailer today at Xbox Games Showcase 2023. Expanding the universe that we created for the original Pillars of Eternity games, Avowed brings a new perspective, a new way to fight, and a new land to explore in the world of Eora. The Pillars games are near and dear to us and we can’t wait to share Avowed with everyone next year. "

To read more on Avowed, visit the Xbox Wire post here. 

Pillars of Eternity: Complete Edition is available now on the Nintendo Switch eShop. Take your journey wherever you want to go!

We are very happy to announce that the adventure made possible by over 70,000 backers, the original Pillars of Eternity, is coming to the Nintendo Switch on August 8! Come explore the world of Eora for the first time with the ability to easily take your party and venture forth wherever you go.