If used well, the Undead Fane can be a great party member in Larian Studios’ Divinity: Original Sin 2. What are some builds for the character?
Fane is arguably one of the most interesting characters in Divinity: Original Sin 2. He’s the only undead option among the Origin characters, and has a deep connection to the story and the lore of the world. As a result, having him on the player’s team makes for a more engaging experience.
Fane also has some interesting quirks and abilities that make him a unique fighter. These can be combined with a number of interesting builds that really expand upon his talents and make him a strong character. Here are some of the better builds players should try out on Fane.
Updated July 20, 2024, by Demaris Oxman: With the runaway success of Baldur’s Gate 3, plenty of players may find themselves interested in Larian Studios’ other flagship series, Divinity. Whether gamers are revisiting the titles or trying them out for the first time, it’s easy to see why Divinity: Original Sin 2 is counted among the best fantasy RPGs of the 2010s.
BG3 players know how important the “origin” characters can be in Larian’s games. Divinity: Original Sin 2 is no different, especially when it comes to the undead Fane. His past deeds turn out to be a major plot reveal, and fans of lore will always want him in their party. His character journey is fascinating, too. Over the course of the story, as players watch his attitude towards the modern world shift from haughty disdain to intrigued fascination. As players take Fane through Rivellon, there are a number of roles he can take on in the party. For players who can’t get enough of this offbeat skeleton, this list has been updated to include more information about how each build’s skills function, and the specs required to make them powerful. 12 Support Mage
Undead characters like Fane aren’t incredibly hardy. Normal healing spells and consumables will damage them; the only way they can heal is through poison. With this build, though, Fane can be responsible for not only his own survivability, but the rest of the party’s as well. The Geomancer combat skill gives him plenty of poisoning opportunities to heal himself and harm enemies. It also includes spells like Fortify, letting Fane make the party’s damage-dealers more durable. Meanwhile, Hydrosophist allows him to heal and support allies with skills like Restoration and Magic Armor.
This build also turns Fane into a master of manipulating surfaces. Ice surfaces from spells like Hailstorm can trip opponents up; Poison surfaces deal damage and ignite when they make contact with fire. When he’s out of Source or his skills are on cooldown, have Fane throw grenades to further manipulate the battlefield, creating a playground of fire, poison, and ice.
Key Attributes
Combat Focus
Weapons
Civil Ability
Best Talents
Intelligence
Memory
Geomancer, with a focus on buffs
Hydrosophist, with a focus on healing
Staff (scales with Intelligence)
Telekinesis: Allows the user to move objects in the world.
Elemental Affinity: Reduces AP of spells when standing in a corresponding surface.
Ambidextrous: Reduces cost of scrolls and grenades by 1AP.
This build gives Fane a core focus on not just restoring health, but maintaining the party’s Magic and Physical Armour. With those defenses in place, enemies will have a much more difficult time damaging the party’s Vitality.
Combat Ability
Skill Name
Effects
Required Ability Level
Source Points
Geomancer
Fortify
Increase Physical Armour; remove certain status conditions.
1
—
Turn to Oil
Turn Water or Blood surfaces into Oil.
1 (plus Polymorph 1)
—
Mend Metal
Allies regenerate Physical Armour.
2
—
Mass Oily Carapace
Allies in range restore Physical Armour.
2 (plus Warfare 2)
1
Hydrosophist
Restoration
Restore Vitality; cure Poisoned and Bleeding
1
—
Armour of Frost
Restore Magic Armour; remove certain status conditions
1
—
Global Cooling
Deal Water damage; set Chilled; freeze surfaces
2
—
Arcane Stitch
Fully restore Magic Armour; remove most status conditions
3
1 11 Master of Minions
Despite DOS2’s flexible class system, Fane is fragile regardless of build. The inherent difficulty in healing Undead can mean that Fane’s deaths are frustratingly frequent. The best way to keep him alive in battle is to keep him away from most of the fighting, letting him aid his companions from afar. And what better way to do that than with an army of minions?
The Summoning and Necromancer skills allow Fane to raise creatures, totems, skeletons, and many more strange yet helpful companions for the party. These summons give the party much more firepower, and can serve as distractions for enemies. The more allies the player has, the more opportunities there are to hit foes where it hurts.
Key Attributes
Combat Focus
Weapons
Civil Ability
Best Talents
Intelligence
Constitution
Summoning
Necromancer, with a focus on summoning
Dual-wielded Wands (scales with Intelligence)
Loremaster: User can identify higher-level unidentified armor and weapons.
Living Armour: Healing also restores Magic Armour.
Far Out Man: Extends the range of spells.
Of the skills below, the Summoning ability is the most important for Fane in this build, since it affects the stats of all summons. In addition, consider elemental infusion skills. These allow a summoned Incarnate to deal damage in the form of Poison, Cold, Fire, etc., as well as gain access to specific spells associated with the respective element. All are useful, but the right choice depends on what enemies Fane is fighting.
Combat Ability
Skill Name
Effects
Required Ability Level
Source Points
Summoning
Conjure Incarnate
Summon an ally.
1
—
Farsight Infusion
Incarnate gains a ranged attack and increased Magic Armour.
1
—
Power Infusion
Incarnate gains Whirlwind, Rush, and increased Physical Armour.
2
—
Door to Eternity
Prevents summons from dying/disappearing.
3
1
Necromancer
Raise Bloated Corpse
Reanimate a corpse as an ally.
1
—
Raise Bone Widow
Summon an ally.
2
—
Totems of the Necromancer
Spawn Bone Totems near every enemy in range.
5
1 10 Ranged Damage Dealer
It’s initially a bit of a stretch for Fane to play as a Ranger build, as he’s more geared towards magic. Over time, though, he can grow into the role of a long-range damage dealer. The key is to combine Fane’s Summoning ability with Ranger skills. This way, he has a few minions to keep enemies busy while he deals damage from afar.
Fane’s special talent, Play Dead, also helps. The Ranger is often a glass cannon build, and Fane can use this talent to fake death whenever an enemy is too close. It helps if he has a pool of poison to lie in as he plays dead, as the healing he takes from poison doesn’t disrupt the special skill.
Key Attributes
Combat Focus
Weapons
Civil Ability
Best Talents
Finesse
Intelligence
Huntsman
Summoning
Ranged
Ranged:
Bows (scales with Finesse)
Crossbows (scales with Finesse)
Choose:
Loremaster
Lucky Charm: Increases the chance to find rare or valuable items when looting chests, boxes, etc.
Elemental Ranger: Arrows deal bonus damage based on the surface the user is standing in.
Arrow Recovery: Chance to recover a special arrow after it is used.
These skills are focused on keeping the user away from the action. Tactical Retreat is especially important to learn as soon as possible, as it allows Fane to easily get to high ground and take advantage of the other skills key to this build.
Combat Ability
Skill Name
Effect
Required Ability Level
Source Points
Huntsman
Tactical Retreat
Teleport
2
—
Elemental Arrowheads
Deal elemental damage based on target surface
1
—
Pin Down
Deal damage; apply Crippled
1
—
Farsight
Increase target’s attack range
3
1
Summoning
Elemental Totem
Summon an immobile totem.
1
—
Conjure Incarnate
Summon an ally.
1
—
Poison Infusion
Incarnate gains a Poison-based attack.
1 (plus Geomancer 1)
— 9 Wayfarer
Wayfarer is similar to the Ranger class, but adds some helpful Geomancer skills to the mix that benefit Fane tremendously.
