Dragon’s Dogma 2 Character Creation Guide - Arisen and Pawn Making

Character creation is very important in Dragon's Dogma 2. Choices regarding race, height, weight, and even gender have significant implications for various gameplay mechanics, including movement speed, carry capacity, stamina recovery rate, and plenty more. 

All of that will be explained in this Dragon’s Dogma 2 Character Creation guide so that you can make a character that will best enable the playstyle and experience of your choosing.

Picking a Race in Dragon’s Dogma 2 - Humans, Beastren, and Elves

We'll start with the race. Both the Arisen or main character and main pawn can be either a human or beastren. Given that beastren are an entirely new addition to Dragon's Dogma 2, there is less information available.

However, based on what developers have said, we know that there is a sentiment of distrust between humans and beastren. In addition, developers have confirmed that NPCs will act differently towards players depending on if they are beastren or human. 

That being said, the extent to which this will impact gameplay, whether it will be limited to simple changes in dialogue, or more meaningful changes, such as those involving quest opportunities and rewards, remains to be seen.

As far as physical aspects go, it appears that there are no differences in height and weight between humans and beastren. One last note regarding race. Elves are also in the game, but it appears that they are not a playable race.

The closest we can get to playing as an elf is by customizing a human character to have elf-like traits such as pointed ears and a lithe frame. This will mostly just be for flavor though as NPCs will still treat your character as if they were human. Next up is gender.

Gender in Dragon’s Dogma 2 - Masculine vs Feminine 

Players can choose either masculine or feminine. Unlike race, we do have an understanding of how gender affects certain aspects of gameplay in the original Dragon's Dogma, which we can then extrapolate to Dragon's Dogma 2. 

It should be taken with a grain of salt, however, as it is always possible that certain gameplay affecting aspects of gender from the first game will not carry over to Dragon's Dogma 2.

With that said, here are all how we can expect gender choice to affect gameplay. First, in the original Dragon's Dogma, feminine characters had lower height and weight minimums and maximums than their masculine counterparts.

However, that is not the case in Dragon's Dogma 2. Character height and weight minimums and maximums are the same regardless of gender. We should also talk about armor and clothing. In Dragon's Dogma 1, certain armor and clothing were designed to be worn by a specific gender.

The armor or clothing in question would often be restricted to a specific gender, only being equippable by characters of that gender. In other cases, the armor could be equipped by either gender but would only look appropriate on one. There were even certain feminine armor sets that could be equipped by masculine characters to disguise them as female.

This is a good segue into the next game affecting the aspect of gender in that it determined how certain NPCs or monsters reacted towards the player. 

Feminine characters were preferentially targeted by ogres and we know this holds in Dragon's Dogma 2. On the other hand, masculine characters were preferentially targeted by elder ogres and they also caused hostility from a specific NPC by the name of Ophys.

Height in Dragon’s Dogma 2 - Tall, and Short

With that covered, let's move on to height in our Dragon's Dogma 2 Character Creation guide. This is one of the most important factors to consider when creating a character, as it governs many aspects of gameplay. Height can range between 160 and 215 cm.

It is one of the biggest influencers of character weight, so if you want a tall character, expect them to be fairly heavy as well, and we'll get into why that matters soon. 

Height also determines other important traits. While it does not affect sprint speed, it does affect walking and jogging speed.

According to this chart, at least in Dragon's Dogma 1, a very tall character could jog nearly 50% faster than a very short character. Taller characters also have a longer reach with melee weapons, and a larger hitbox, which means they are easier to hit, and cover longer distances with evasive moves such as a forward roll. 

There were also some more nuanced interactions with height in Dragon's Dogma 1 that we may or not see in the sequel.

For example, tall characters could wade out further into deep water without their lantern going out. Now, there are some benefits to making a short character. The biggest advantage is that short characters are harder to hit, thanks to their smaller hitbox.

Certain attacks will often miss them just by their short stature, whereas taller characters will have to either actively avoid or block the same attack to prevent getting hit. 

In addition, shorter characters can get under and between the legs of larger monsters such as Cyclops and Ogres, providing a useful means of evasion. On top of all that, there were goblin holes in a specific area of Dragon's Dogma 1, and only very short characters could make use of them.

The advantage was fairly trivial, as it basically served as a shortcut and not much else, but still, we might see something similar in Dragon's Dogma 2. 

Weight in Dragon’s Dogma 2 - Light/Small, and Heavy/Large

One of the other very important factors to consider when creating a character is weight. 

The main traits governed by weight class are base stamina, stamina restoration, or recovery rate, and max encumbrance. Dragon's Dogma 1 had 5 weight classes for characters falling within different weight ranges.

Heavier characters have a higher base stamina, but they recover it more slowly. A very small or SS weight class character will recover stamina at a rate that is over 70% faster when compared to a very large or LL weight class character. 

The downside for very small weight class characters is that their maximum encumbrance will be less than half of those that are in the very large weight class.

This is, at least for me, one of the biggest factors governing my character creation. The amount of encumbrance a character has is determined not only by what they are wearing but also by what they are holding in their inventory. 

Also, rather than being able to carry up to the encumbrance limit before receiving a deficit in movement speed or other traits, think of games like Skyrim or Fallout, there are gradual reductions as characters approach their encumbrance limit.

Running stamina use, running speed, jogging speed, climbing stamina use, and other factors are all affected, and the deficits start becoming pretty dire once players get into the heavy category of encumbrance. Very small-weight class characters can only carry 30 units of weight before crossing over into the heavy encumbrance category, suffering from slower stamina recovery, a significant increase in stamina use while running, and much more. 

Meanwhile, very large weight class characters will still be in the light encumbrance category at that same amount of inventory weight and can carry up to 70 units of weight before crossing into the heavy encumbrance category.

In short, if your playstyle involves wearing heavy armor, using heavy weapons, or carrying lots of tools, it is very much worth making your character heavy. 

Also, if you want your main pawn to be able to carry lots of loot, they too should be on the heavier side. If we extrapolate character weight class ranges from the first game to Dragon's Dogma 2's character creator, we'll see that a character with max height can have a minimum weight class of M or Medium and that achieving a max weight class of LL or Very Large is quite easy.

Meanwhile, a character with minimum height can achieve any weight class depending on how their other physical attributes are adjusted. 

Vocations in Dragon’s Dogma 2 - Character Creation and Building

The last category of importance in our Dragon’s Dogma 2 Character Creation guide is vocation. It's important to know that while we have to pick from one of four vocations to start, vocation can be changed later on within the game, and there are also more advanced and even hybrid vocations that can be unlocked.

Fighter

In any case, one of the biggest factors that will guide character creation is preferred playstyle which in turn will influence the choice of vocation. For example, if we want to play a character that gets up close and personal with enemies, such as the fighter, we may want that character to be tall to increase reach with melee weapons. 

They will be easier to hit with the larger hitbox, but the ability to block and counter attacks with a shield should compensate for that weakness.

In addition, the fighter uses heavy armor. Because of this, it will be smart to customize them so that they are in the Very Large or LL weight class so that they can wear heavy armor without becoming encumbered. 

Archer

Next, we have the Archer vocation.

This class does not require long reach with melee weapons, so height is not super important in that regard. However, being taller will allow them to keep their distance from enemies without sprinting, which uses stamina. 

In addition, archers wear medium armor and use bows, which are not as heavy as the gear used by a fighter.

Because of this, they can probably get away with being in a middle-ground weight class, somewhere between small and large, which will give them better stamina recovery. 

Mage

Up next is the Mage. Most of their useful attacks are spells, which consume considerable amounts of stamina.

This, combined with their relatively light gear load, makes them ideal candidates for the small and tall combo. We'll want to make them as tall as possible while staying within the small weight category. This will allow them to move relatively fast without sprinting, conserving stamina for spellcasting.

In addition, the smaller weight category will allow for faster stamina recovery, allowing for faster spellcasting. Just don't expect them to carry too much outside of the bare minimum. 

Thief

Finally, we have the Thief in our Dragon’s Dogma 2 Character Creation Guide.

They get up close and personal like the fighter but are also meant to be played evasively. A shorter height and lower weight will allow them to slip through enemy guards and avoid attacks. Once again though, the consequence is that they won't be able to carry much weight before they start getting slowed down.

In addition, being on the shorter side means that traversal will be impacted. Jogging speed will be fairly slow, so using stamina for sprinting will often be required to travel efficiently or quickly reposition in combat. 

Note: The problem with most of these recommendations is that they ignore the issue of encumberment and just how debilitating it can be. While a low encumbrance limit can be managed with a few specific vocations, it is downright detrimental for others. Because of that, it's my opinion that the best all-around character that will do the best with switching between various vocations is one that is both very tall and very large in terms of weight class.

Characters of that nature will be able to carry and use lots of different pieces of equipment without being over-encumbered, move fairly quickly without the need of sprinting, and have great reach for melee combat. 

Pawn Selection in Dragon’s Dogma 2

Likewise, having your main pawn be tall and a very heavyweight class will ensure that they can carry plenty of items and also keep up during long bouts of travel. That being said, it's understandable to make some mechanical sacrifices to ensure that you like the look of both your Arisen and main pawn.

Now there is also one final factor to consider when making a pawn, and that is their inclination. This will determine how they behave in and out of combat, and also determine what voices they can have. If you want a pawn that keeps a healthy distance from danger and is quick to aid allies, then go for kind-hearted.

If you want a pawn that is danger-avoidant, choose calm. If you want a pawn that is somewhat daring and also adventurous, you can choose simple. And finally, for an eager frontline that draws enemy attention, go with straightforward.

Editing/Changing Character in Dragon’s Dogma 2

Given how important character creation is in Dragon’s Dogma 2, the developers were wise enough to add an item that allows players to change Arisen and the main pawn's appearance. 

It is called the Art of Metamorphosis. In Dragon Dogma 1, this item could be purchased from a Rift shop for 5000 Rift Crystals or RC.

The cost was somewhat prohibitive and we can expect a similar cost of acquiring it in Dragon Dogma 2. We know this item will be available in Dragon Dogma 2 because it shows up as one of the items that players will receive for purchasing the Deluxe Edition of the game. 

Now the description states that it can also be purchased at shops in-game, cannot be used to change race or body type, and may only be used once before being consumed. In Dragon Dogma 1, there was also a similar item that allowed for unlimited customization of Arisen and pawn appearance.

It was called the Secret of Metamorphosis. It was only available after completing a major milestone in the main quest line with a cost of 10,000 RC. That's how you can change your appearance in Dragon's Dogma 2.