Best Character Creation Options

Dive into Conan Exiles character creation! Learn how height impacts gameplay, explore cosmetic options, and discover how to change your look later with the Orb of Nergal.

Alright, let's talk about making your Exile look exactly how you want them in Conan Exiles! When you first boot up the game, you'll be greeted with a ton of options to tweak your character's appearance. If you're the type who loves fiddling with every little detail, you're in luck. You can adjust almost everything about your character's face – think jawline, chin, cheeks, nose, mouth, eyes, and ears. Plus, you can fine-tune their entire physique. There are sliders for width, scale, height, thickness, and angle for each feature, giving you loads of freedom to create someone truly unique.

Now, you might be wondering if all these cosmetic choices actually matter for gameplay. For the most part, no. But there's one big exception: your character's height. This can actually change how you move around the world. For example, a super tall character might not be able to squeeze through tight cave entrances or certain building gaps that a shorter character could easily pass. On the flip side, being smaller means you have less body mass, which can make you a harder target, especially in PvP. Imagine a small character with a big shield – they're just a smaller hitbox to hit!

Don't feel like you're missing out if you go tall, though. Being a giant gives you a slight edge when it comes to peeking over obstacles, giving you a bit more visibility, though it's usually in pretty niche situations. Taller characters also have a slight advantage when aiming for headshots on smaller foes, and it's tougher for a short character to reach the head of a giant with smaller weapons.

So, think about what kind of character you want to be. If you're planning on being a sturdy tank, rarely seen without a shield, that reduced body mass from being small could be a real benefit. If you're more of a reckless melee barbarian, a larger character might give you that extra reach. And if you're a smaller character wielding a bow, you'll be a slightly harder target to hit from a distance compared to a tall character.

Honestly, though, these size differences are pretty minor and only really matter in very specific scenarios. You're most likely to notice them in high-level PvP. For most of your journey, especially if you're just playing with friends against AI, it won't make a huge difference.

What if you've already made your character and are now regretting your choices? Don't sweat it! You can change most of your character's cosmetic features later on. You'll need to craft something called the Orb of Nergal. To get the recipe, you'll need to reach level 45 and unlock it from the sorcery feats. When you go to craft it, don't look in the sorcery tab – it's actually under the 'special' tab. You'll need 100 Insulated Wood, 50 Twine, and 50 Steel Bars to build it. Once you have it, you can use it like a workbench to tweak your voice, head options, face details, and body features.

Beyond just looks, you also get to pick your character's race and religion. There are fourteen races and seven religions to choose from. The race you pick doesn't actually affect any gameplay mechanics; it just changes your character's starting appearance template. However, each race has a bit of background lore that might influence your role-playing choices. You'll notice some clear parallels between these fictional races and real-world cultures!