Grim Dawn

About Grim Dawn

Grim Dawn is a dark action RPG by Crate Entertainment set in the shattered world of Cairn, where you fight two otherworldly forces — the Aetherials and the Chthonians. The game uses a dual-class system that lets you combine two mastery classes, build your skills and gear, and take on three difficulty tiers and a wealth of endgame content.

Grim Dawn is a dark action RPG developed by Crate Entertainment, a studio founded by a veteran team that previously worked on Titan Quest, and built on the studio's own enhanced Iron Lore engine. The game is set in Cairn, a world torn apart by otherworldly forces. Its once-prosperous empires now lie in ruins and humanity is on the brink of extinction. Two powers from beyond wage an eternal war here: the Aetherials, who seek to take human bodies for themselves, and the Chthonians, who want to wipe out humanity before it can be used against them. The survivors are scattered across hidden strongholds around the world, and the few who endured the otherworldly influence gained supernatural abilities — you are one of them. You explore the shattered world of Cairn, fight otherworldly creatures, complete quests, and build relationships with different factions. The core system is Dual Mastery: you choose your first mastery at level 2 and may add a second at level 10, combining it with the first to create a unique hybrid class. The current version offers 11 masteries, including Soldier, Arcanist, Shaman, Nightblade, Demolitionist, and Occultist, plus Inquisitor, Necromancer, Oathkeeper, and Berserker, which require purchasing expansion packs to unlock. The game features three difficulties — Normal, Elite, and Ultimate — along with Hardcore permadeath mode, the Ascendant mode restricted to level-100 characters, and an optional Veteran challenge mode. Eleven factions can unlock rewards, bounties, and equipment blueprints through their reputation systems, and hostile factions can trigger special Nemesis boss encounters. Endgame content includes the Crucible DLC, a standalone arena survival mode where offerings can summon defenses and blessings, and the Shattered Realm, an infinitely scaling dungeon mode introduced with the Forgotten Gods expansion. The base game launched on Steam in February 2016; the Xbox console version, delivered as the Definitive Edition, includes all expansion packs and updates.