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I still remember the first time I stumbled upon a rare weapon combination in Avowed - a shimmering sword in one hand and a customized pistol in the other. The way these two weapons complemented each other in combat was absolutely thrilling. I could deal massive damage up close while having the option to create distance when needed. But here's the catch - making these interesting combinations work effectively felt like fighting the game's own systems. You see, the combat feedback in Avowed is genuinely satisfying, making you want to experiment with every weapon type you encounter. The problem? The game makes it surprisingly difficult to actually get your hands on diverse weapons through normal gameplay.

Let me paint you a picture of what I mean. During my first twenty hours playing, I found exactly three different weapon types through chests and quest rewards. That's right - just three. Most of the interesting weapons I wanted to try were locked behind merchants charging what I can only describe as ridiculous prices. We're talking about 2,000 gold for a basic magical staff when quests typically reward you with 150-300 gold. This economic reality forces players to stick with whatever weapons they're lucky enough to find early on, rather than encouraging the experimentation that the combat system seems designed for.

What really bothers me is how the ability upgrade system actively discourages creative weapon combinations. I remember reaching level 15 and facing a crucial decision - should I spread my 12 ability points across multiple weapon types or specialize? The game practically screams at you to choose specialization. When I invested 8 points into one-handed weapons, my damage output increased by 45% and critical chance jumped by 15%. Meanwhile, spreading those same points across three different weapon types gave me measly 5-8% improvements in each category. The math just doesn't support experimentation.

I've tried making some of the more unusual combinations work - like pairing a war hammer with magic spells or using dual daggers with environmental traps. These setups can be incredibly fun when they work, but you're essentially playing on hard mode by choosing them. There were moments when I'd spend 30 seconds setting up an elaborate combination attack that dealt less damage than someone who simply spammed their optimized one-handed sword attacks. It creates this weird disconnect where the most satisfying combat approaches aren't necessarily the most effective ones.

The merchant system exacerbates this problem significantly. During my playthrough, I tracked weapon availability across different vendors and found that only about 15% of available weapons were what I'd consider reasonably priced. The rest required grinding the same content repeatedly or ignoring other upgrades entirely. There was this one particular lightning-infused spear I desperately wanted to try with my shield build, but the merchant wanted 3,500 gold for it. That's equivalent to completing about 12-15 side quests just for one weapon!

What surprises me most is how this design philosophy contradicts the apparent freedom the combat system offers. The actual skirmishes feel amazing - watching different weapon types interact and seeing how they look in action is genuinely compelling. But the progression systems seem determined to funnel you toward traditional RPG specialization rather than encouraging you to discover those "weird but interesting" combinations the combat seems to invite.

I've spoken with other players who've had similar experiences. One friend told me he abandoned his sword-and-magic build around level 20 because the damage numbers simply couldn't keep up with specialized builds. Another mentioned spending hours trying to make a rifle-and-dagger combination viable before eventually respeccing into pure rifle specialization. The consensus seems to be that while experimentation is fun initially, the game's systems eventually pressure you into choosing a lane and sticking with it.

There's this beautiful moment in the early game where everything feels possible - where you're picking up different weapons and testing how they feel together. But as you progress, the reality sets in that the game rewards optimization over creativity. It's a shame because some of my most memorable combat encounters came from those brief periods where I ignored the meta and just played with what felt fun and interesting, even if it wasn't mathematically optimal.

If I could change one thing about Avowed's design, it would be to make weapon acquisition more generous and ability upgrades more flexible. Imagine if instead of getting +5% damage with one-handed weapons, you could get bonuses for successful weapon combinations or style points for mixing attack types. The combat system clearly has the depth to support this kind of play - it just needs the progression systems to catch up with its potential.

As it stands, players are essentially forced to choose between having fun with diverse weapon combinations or playing efficiently with specialized builds. In a game that seems to celebrate combat diversity, this feels like a missed opportunity to truly let players express their creativity through their weapon choices and combat approaches. The foundation for an incredible combat experience is there - it just needs the surrounding systems to better support the experimentation that makes combat so engaging in the first place.