Lichdom: Battlemage

Lichdom: Battlemage is a first-person PC action RPG from Xaviant and Xaviant Games that replaces swords and firearms with a customizable arsenal of elemental magic. The current Steam and GOG listings still use the original name, with no verified PC rebrand or replacement edition. Its appeal rests on direct spell control, tactical movement, and an unusually deep crafting system.

First-Person Combat Built Around Magic

Lichdom: Battlemage puts the player in the role of a powerful mage serving Roth, fighting through hostile fantasy environments filled with demons, undead enemies, and other supernatural threats. The camera stays in first-person perspective, making every projectile, shield, teleport, and area attack feel like a direct extension of the player’s hands.

There are no conventional weapons to rotate through. Your entire combat kit consists of spells, and successful encounters depend on aiming accurately, choosing the right sigil, and switching between offensive and defensive tools before enemies overwhelm you.

The combat loop combines ranged attacks, close-range spell effects, crowd control, and evasive movement. A shield can protect you from incoming attacks, while Blink provides a short-range teleport that helps create distance or reposition around dangerous enemies.

Instead of relying on a traditional mana-bar rhythm, the game emphasizes casting speed, spell behavior, charge timing, and battlefield positioning. That makes combat feel closer to an action-focused caster than a menu-driven fantasy RPG.

Sigils, Patterns, and Augments

The defining system is spellcrafting. Every spell is assembled from a Sigil, a Pattern, and an Augment, allowing the same magical school to produce attacks with very different roles and behaviors.

Sigils represent the game’s schools or elemental powers. The available schools include Fire, Ice, Kinesis, Lightning, Phase, Corruption, Delirium, and Necromancy. New sigils are discovered through Reliquaries as the campaign advances.

Patterns determine how a spell is delivered. The main pattern types are Targeted, Area of Effect, and Nova. Targeted spells are useful for precision damage, area spells control groups of enemies, and Nova effects are tied to defensive timing and close-range retaliation.

Augments shape the spell’s specialization through three core focuses: Destruction for direct damage, Control for disabling or disrupting enemies, and Mastery for effects that improve the impact of later attacks. These are not simple color-coded upgrades; each sigil interacts with the focuses in its own way.

The system rewards experimentation, but it also demands attention. Spell components can differ in damage, control, critical effects, and other modifiers, so creating the strongest setup involves comparing results rather than automatically equipping the newest item.

Only three sigils are active at a time, which gives the loadout structure a practical limit. You can change the equipped selection at checkpoints, turning each section of the campaign into a test of whether your current combination handles the enemies ahead.

Progression, Loot, and Replay Structure

Progression is tied to both the story and the quality of the spells you create. Enemies provide materials and loot, while Reliquaries expand the range of magical schools available to the mage.

The most meaningful upgrades are not traditional armor sets or weapon drops. They are new Patterns, Augments, shield options, and combinations that alter how your attacks behave in real combat.

After completing the main storyline, New Game Plus extends the mastery loop with stronger opposition and higher-level spellcrafting goals. The game also includes challenging combat encounters and difficulty options such as Battlemage and Badass, giving experienced players reasons to refine their builds.

This structure suits players who enjoy testing a build, discovering why it works, then rebuilding it when a tougher encounter exposes a weakness. It is less about collecting a fixed set of legendary weapons and more about understanding how different magical components interact.

Who Should Play Lichdom: Battlemage?

Lichdom: Battlemage is a strong fit for players who want a dedicated spellcaster rather than a sword-and-sorcery character who happens to know a few spells. Magic is not a secondary skill tree here; it is the entire combat language.

It should appeal to players who enjoy build experimentation, first-person action, manual aiming, enemy control, and combat systems that reward preparation. If you like the idea of designing a spell for a specific tactical purpose, the crafting menu has real depth.

The game is less suitable for players expecting a large open world, party-based role-playing, online co-op, or a broad selection of conventional weapons. Its campaign is primarily a linear sequence of combat-focused environments, and the narrative supports the action rather than replacing it.

Players who enjoy magical experimentation in a more chaotic cooperative format can compare it with spell-combination action RPGs such as Magicka, although Lichdom: Battlemage is strictly solo on PC and uses a first-person combat model.

PC Features, Stores, and Localization

The Steam edition is listed as a single-player game with Steam Achievements, Steam Trading Cards, Steam Cloud, Family Sharing, and Remote Play on TV. Steam also identifies full controller support, so the game can be played with a gamepad as well as keyboard and mouse.

GOG lists controller support and single-player functionality as well. Its edition is DRM-free, does not require GOG Galaxy, and supports an offline installer, making it the clearest choice for players who want to keep the launcher optional.

The current storefront information identifies English for interface, subtitles, and full audio. No broader official localization set is listed for the PC editions, so English should be treated as the supported language for menus, text, and voice work.

No multiplayer campaign, split-screen mode, dedicated server feature, mod-support system, or anti-cheat requirement is identified in the current PC storefront information. The practical PC feature set is therefore centered on input flexibility, achievements, cloud functions on Steam, and offline ownership options on GOG.

Commercially, the game is presented as a standalone paid title. The current Steam listing does not show a gameplay expansion pass or a large DLC catalog, so the core campaign, sigils, spellcrafting, shield system, and New Game Plus structure belong to the main game rather than a live-service content model.

Similar Magic-Driven PC Games

The closest comparisons depend on which part of Lichdom: Battlemage interests you most. For first-person spell combat, the game occupies a relatively unusual niche, while its build experimentation connects it to several top-down and action-RPG alternatives.

Fast spell-based roguelites like Wizard of Legend share the focus on elemental abilities, movement, and combining offensive and defensive magic, but Wizard of Legend is top-down and run-based rather than a linear first-person campaign.

Players looking for fantasy first-person combat with a larger role-playing framework may also consider other magic-heavy action RPGs, but Lichdom: Battlemage remains distinctive because it removes ordinary weapons and makes crafted spell behavior the center of progression.

Lichdom: Battlemage FAQ

The following answers address the most common PC questions about the current storefront versions and the game’s actual structure.

Has Lichdom: Battlemage been renamed on PC?

No verified PC rebrand was found. The current Steam and GOG storefront listings continue to use Lichdom: Battlemage, and no replacement name or definitive PC edition is currently presented as the main product.

Is Lichdom: Battlemage single-player?

Yes. The PC storefront listings identify it as a single-player game. There is no verified online co-op, competitive multiplayer, or split-screen campaign attached to the current PC versions.

What is the main gameplay loop?

You explore combat-focused fantasy environments, defeat demons and undead enemies, collect spell components, craft improved abilities, and adjust your active sigils at checkpoints. The long-term loop is built around learning enemy behavior and refining a reliable magical loadout.

How does spellcrafting work?

A spell combines a Sigil, a Pattern, and an Augment. Patterns define delivery types such as Targeted, Area of Effect, and Nova, while Augments specialize the result toward Destruction, Control, or Mastery. The outcome depends on the interaction between those parts, not just their individual rarity.

Does the PC version support a controller?

Yes. Steam and GOG list controller support, and Steam identifies full controller support. Keyboard and mouse remain available, but a gamepad is a supported option for players who prefer analog movement and dedicated spell inputs.

Is Lichdom: Battlemage DRM-free?

The GOG edition is listed as DRM-free and can be installed and played without GOG Galaxy or a required online connection. The Steam edition uses the Steam ecosystem and provides Steam-specific features such as achievements, cloud support, and Remote Play on TV.