Gamers who plan on tryingDivinity: Original Sin 2might feel slightly overwhelmed in as early asCharacter Creation. After all, thisLarian Studiosgame weaves the core narrative with personal stories of not just its pre-made characters, but also a story dedicated to a custom character the player creates. Additionally, the wealth of options to choose from can make the RPG seem oddly complex for both newcomers and veterans to the genre.
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However, fans of the game know that choices in Character Creation can help define a player’s intended experience. Moreover, players can find concepts of Attributes, Abilities, and Talents easier to comprehend with a bit of dissection. After reading this Guide,Original Sin 2players may find it much easier tocreate outstanding charactersfor the beloved title.
Updated on August 07, 2025 by Rhenn Taguiam:WithDivinity: Original Sin 2approaching its sixth-year anniversary this September, fans of the acclaimed RPG might want to give this a replay while waiting for its developers to finish makingBaldur’s Gate 3.
And for players who want to create their own character via Custom Origin, they might want to follow some tips to ensure their characters get the most advantages in the game. These considerations include choosing the right Classes, the right Abilities to invest in, and considering whether it’s truly optimal to consider creating their own character to begin with.
Character Creation: An Introduction
As with any RPG, a journey of a thousand miles starts with Character Creation. InOriginal Sin 2, this Character serves as the player’s “avatar” in the world of Rivellon. Granted, players can easily switch perspectives of different characters when talking with each other or with NPCs.
However, it’s always the player’s Character (premade or custom) that the story builds its narrative around. In turn, Character Creation more or less dictates the “central figure” of a player’sOriginal Sin 2playthrough. Before players officially start their playthrough, they need to get through certain elements of Character Creation. These details are the following:
The Numbers
Step One: On The Origin Of Divinity
Players praiseOriginal Sin 2for its deep take on narrative - and newcomers might slowly get to understand this reasoning within the first few minutes of the game. In fact, others say Larian Studios proves its mastery of narrative as early as character creation.
As players might remember, the Origin serves as the primary way for a character to “enter” the world of Rivellon. Essentially, the Origin is theOriginal Sin 2equivalent of an RPG Background. This determines how they see the world and how the rest of the world sees them.
The Point Of Origin
Unlike other Backgrounds in RPGs, the Origin inOriginal Sin 2can determine the overall path a character will take in the game’s narrative. Of course, “determine the path” doesn’t mean a character can’t divulge from it. However, this is to sayan Origin in the game is a complete storysolely dedicated to that type of character. Here are other things to consider:
Choosing A Custom Origin
Of the two Origin types, it’s perhaps theCustom Originthat can appeal to the new player. After all, what better way to experience the game than with a character to call their own, right? Unlike a Pre-Made Origin, getting a custom character lets players experience Rivellon from an outsider’s perspective. Here are some considerations:
Choosing A Pre-Made Origin
Of the kinds of Origins, it’s thePre-Made Originthat will tickle the imagination of lore lovers. After all, this allows them to dictate what exactly they want to happen to the story of the “real” cast ofOriginal Sin 2. Unlike a Custom Origin, a Pre-Made Origin sends players straight into the intense interpersonal drama these characters have that directly tie into the fate of Rivellon. Here are some considerations:
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Pre-Made Origin: Who’s Who?
Step Two: Select A Starting Class
After selecting an Origin, players might wonder what exactly theClasslabel entails regarding their character. Does this meanOriginal Sin 2has some form of multi-class or class selection system? Not necessarily! In fact,Original Sin 2placed Classes as part of Character Creation to help players get a quick start instead of starting from scratch with all the variables in the game. Here are some factors:
A Class Rundown
Shadowblade:A stealthy magician, the Shadowblade can tap into stealth through magic (Chameleon Cloak) and deal extra sneak attack damage (Backlash). And if an enemy is annoying enough, transform them into a chicken (Chicken Claw).
The Nature Of Playstyles
It’s not necessarily important “what” Class a player chooses as they can change almost any aspect of their stats anyway. Rather,these Classes determine what sort of playstylea player is likely comfortable with. In turn, it might help players to understand what their Class choice says about their playstyle - or what their preferred playstyle says about their Starting Class. Here are some things to consider:
Step Three: Play With The Presets
Players who want to study the intricacies of their chosen Starting Class might want to tinker with thePresetsavailable for their character. Essentially, Presets simply declare the kind of stats presently attached to their character. Once players agree on their Preset, their characters begin with these stats. Here are some considerations:
Attributes: A Sound Mind In A Sound Body
Like in most RPGs,Attributesrepresent the innate qualities of a character in the game. Unlike Skills that can be learned, Attributes are naturally embedded into the body and mind of the person. In turn, training these Attributes more or less improves a lot of aspects in a character’s life. InOriginal Sin 2, improving Attributes can affect certain aspects of a character as well. Here are considerations:
Combat Abilities: Throw A Hard Punch
As the name implies,Combat Abilitiesrepresent a character’s specialization in any field of combat. Increasing any Ability under Combat Abilities can grant a variety of effects for characters. Moreover, Combat Abilities also influence the way characters perform weapon-related Skills. Here are considerations:
Civil Abilities: Get Talking
As the name implies,Civil Abilitiesrepresent a character’s way of socializing with people. Increasing Civil Abilities can help characters heavily in terms of dialogue, loot acquisition, and even when it comes to selling items. Here are considerations:
Step Four: Select The Skills
Aside from Presets, all characters gain access to what is known asSkills.These serve as the catch-all term for all sorts of special attacks a character can do, be it from their training in martial combat or their mastery of the magical arts.
Character Creation immediately gives players access to certain Skills that characters can use as soon as they start the game. Here are some considerations:
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The Skill Schools
Unlike other RPGs, all characters inOriginal Sin 2can use all the available Skills in the game - provided they have the training for it. In terms of technicalities, players learn Skills via Skill Schools. As players level up in Skill Schools, they can choose better Skills in their repertoire of attacks.
While all Skill Schools offer a great selection of Skills,some of these Schools do perform better in certain aspects of combat. In the considerations below, Skill Schools will be followed by (,).
Spellcaster Archetypes
These Skill Schools serve as the conventional Spellcaster “elements” or “schools” in other classic RPGs. In turn, they mostly rely on taking advantage of an element or a natural occurrence in nature.
Weapon Specialists
As the name implies, Weapon Specialists rely on certain weapons to boost their damage output. The strength of their attacks need both their special Attributes and their weapons of choice to be in-sync.
Special Gimmicks
These Skills rely on special gimmicks to gain the advantage in combat. They have unconventional attacks or abilities that usually enable them to hold off on their own. However, their reliance on these gimmicks make them a bit more technical than usual to master.
Tricks Up The Sleeve
Given the many number of Skill Schools inOriginal Sin 2, it might take too long to provide the tactical advantages and disadvantages of each available Skill. However, players don’t necessarily have to go blind when it comesto choosing favorable Skillsfor their character in Character Creation.
Players shouldn’t rely on the technical statistics for Skills. Rather, players need a change of perspective and choose Starting Skills based on these criteria:
Step Five: Determine The Talents
Aside from Preset Attributes and Abilities, characters also gain access to aTalentduring Character Creation. Essentially, these Talents give players a unique perk or quality that can give them a huge advantage in some areas of the game - be it in socialization, in combat, or even specific aspects of combat. Here are considerations:
Recommended Talents
While players can treat Talents as a “personal” process for their characters, those who want to gain instant benefits may want to take advantage of great Talents early on. Here are the most recommended Talents for newcomers to the game:
Step Six: Tinker With Tags, Instruments
The last part of the Character Creation process is perhaps more personal for both the player and their character of choice. In this part of the process, players have to check theirTagsand theirInstruments. Unlike other parts of the Character Creation process, these are both placed at the end of the selection tabs due to their rather “miscellaneous” roles when creating a character.
However, they do contribute in some form or fashion towards further personalizing the player’s character. Tags serve as “qualities” that determine the nature of the character being created and the view they have of the world. In turn, these Tags also influence the way they respond to certain dialogue options and give extra dialogue depending on the NPCs they talk to. Meanwhile, Musical Instruments add a bit of flair to the game’s overall music.
Tags: Born This Way
Players might be wondering how Character Creation can influence the overall narrative they’ll experience throughout the playthrough. Thankfully,Tagsare an efficient way of giving subtle hints to players as to what sorts of things they have to go through given the starting Tags their character possesses. Here are the kinds of Tags attached to the character:
Gender Tag:Simply put, the Gender Tag labels whether a character is Male and Female of the Race they’ve chosen. NPCs perceive the character as the label they have chosen.
Race Tag:The Race Tag essentially provides the cultural dimension of the character being created. There are five (5) Race options - that being the Human, Elf, Dwarf, Lizard, and their Undead varieties. Players might want to read what’s inside their respective Race Tags, as the culture of the races in Rivellon vary greatly from stereotypical fantasy races of popular literature.
Origin Tag:If players choose a Pre-Made Origin, they have a special Origin Tag associated with them. This essentially gives players a quick backstory of the Pre-Made character and where they’ve “come from” when they start the game. There are six (6) Pre-Made Origins, namely Beast, Fane, Ifan, Lohse, the Red Prince, and Sebille - each with unique personalities and narrative goals.
Aspiration Tag:Players need to choose Aspiration Tags for their characters, regardless if they’re Pre-Made or Custom Origin. Essentially, these Aspiration Tags influence the “attitude” of their characters, adding a bit of personality to their dialogue. In turn, for Pre-Made Origins, this might even give them an alternate personality that can be radically different from their intended demeanor. There are seven (7) Aspiration Tags, namely the Barbarian, Jester, Mystic, Noble, Outlaw, Scholar, and Soldier.
Instruments: Jukebox Select
A unique feature ofOriginal Sin 2’s Character Creation process is an instrument option available for characters. Essentially, players have four (4) options ofMusical Instrumentsthat can accompany their character. These are theBansuri, Tambura, Oud,andCello. Here are some important considerations:
They have no statistic significance.For players wondering about the statistical significance of these instruments - there are actually none. Rather, the instruments just serve as a background addition that can add a subtle personal twang to the overall game experience.
They enhance the background with a unique flair.As players might notice, previewing each Musical Instrument will feature a sample background music with a small twist. Aside from the main score, the Musical Instrument chosen will add some special notes or variety to the music. They’re not “big” enough to change the music completely, but they’re not subtle or unnoticeable. As a result, each instrument can do enough to subtly change the “mood” of any music in the game.
Divinity: Original Sin 2was released for the PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4, and Xbox One.
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