Dragon's Dogma 2 has a cracking character creator that lets you fine-tune your Arisen and pawn to such a degree that you can even remove specific teeth. You can create the most stunning hero imaginable, or something right out of your worst nightmares, smeared head to toe in muck and sporting unnaturally long limbs. I spent my first hour with the game just fiddling around with it. 

In an RPG of this size, however, and with extra options being unlocked after you've already made your character, you're probably going to want to change your appearance. Maybe even more than once. Thankfully, doing this is pretty simple.

How to change your appearance in Dragon’s Dogma 2

After you reach Vermund's capital of Vernworth, which the main quest will direct you towards very early on, you can hit up Clovis's Barberie whenever you want. Clovis's services don't come cheap, though. She'll let you change your hairstyle, adjust your makeup or add new markings (scars and tattoos), but it'll cost you 10,000G a pop. When you first arrive in Vernworth, it's unlikely you'll be able to afford this. You're much better off spending your cash on gear, and at this point in the game it will actually cost you less. Yes, a haircut costs more than a sword. 

If you want to change more than one thing at the same time, you'll be looking at 25,000G. That's better value if you're looking to tweak your hair, makeup and markings together, saving you 5,000G. Still, the cosmetics industry is clearly a rip off.

You'll also notice a greyed-out option at the bottom of the list: modify appearance. This lets you completely remake your character, with the exception of your name and vocation. Clovis won't tell you how to access this option, but it's actually super straightforward. Head to the Vernworth Pawn Guild in the Merchant Quarter and hit up Neomith. He sells a variety of goods, including items that change your pawn's inclination and a bunch of fancy spectacles. You're looking for a book, though, called the Art of Metamorphosis. It'll set you back 500RC. That's not cheap if you're still early in the game, but there are fewer things to spend your rift crystals on (mostly just hiring pawns that are a higher level than your character), so don't worry about cleaning out your bank account. 

With Art of Metamorphosis in your inventory, head back to Clovis and you'll be able to select the final option, allowing you modify every aspect of your appearance for no extra cost. The book is one-use only, but you can buy it multiple times. 

How to unlock more cosmetic options in Dragon’s Dogma 2

It's also possible to expand the character creator's options. While it's undeniably robust right out the gate, it's a bit lacking in the colour department. Even though it looks like you can pick unnatural skin and hair colours like blue or green in the default tab, they come out looking more like grey and brown. When I designed my pawn, Gorbo, to look like a goblin, I had to cover him in dirt to create a greenish hue, and even then it never really looked quite right. This can be rectified with a quick trip to Battahl. 

You'll be directed to Battahl after you've completed the main quests in Vernworth, but you can actually make your way there whenever you want. While the guard at the Checkpoint Rest Town won't let you through without proper credentials, which you'll get in the main quest, there's another more dangerous route that takes you through caves and then down the coast. I don't recommend it, though. It's a long journey and you'll face some pretty tough monsters. 

Whatever route you take to Battahl's capital of Bakbattahl, you can now pay a visit to the Bakbattahl Pawn Guild. This is where you can do some dye shopping. Each dye actually unlocks a whole new tab of colours in the character creator, so when you buy the individual dye, you get a huge selection of different tints, tones and shades. For 500RC each, you can unlock red, green, blue, yellow and purple dyes. This way, you can finally make orcs, goblins, drow and a whole bunch of other fantasy races. 

These new colours can be applied to your skin, hair, eyes, teeth, makeup and tattoos, and this goes for both your Arisen and pawn. Expect to spend a ridiculous amount of time tinkering around, but don't forget you've got monsters to slay. 

Conveniently, you don't need to hoof it back to Vernworth after you grab the dyes. Bakbattahl has its own style guru in Mettefere's Cosmetics. Indeed, going back to Clovis will be a waste of time because you won't be able to use the extra dyes in her shop. Even though the options will show up in the character creator, showing you how they'll change your appearance, you can't actually apply them unless you're at Mettefere's Cosmetics. The exception to this rule is when you use the character creator at the start of a new game. So once you finish Dragon's Dogma 2, you'll be able to make a new character and pawn, or edit your existing ones, with all the extra colours available. 

Mettefere's Cosmetics also gives you access to an additional set of unique colours not found in Clovis's Barberie. These can be found in the Battahli Colors tab, and you'll be able to use these without purchasing any dyes. It's worth noting, however, that these new colours can only be applied to hair, makeup and tattoos. These colours can also be used when you start your second playthrough. 

Does Dragon’s Dogma 2 let you dye your gear?

While it would be wonderful to have the ability to dye your gear, this feature doesn't currently exist. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the blacksmiths will eventually up their game and start offering this service, though. Fashion is just as important as a sharp sword. 

In the meantime, you can still upgrade every weapon and piece of armour. You'll find this option in the enhancements section available in each shop selling gear. You can upgrade each piece of gear four times, with different merchants offering different types of upgrades.

Can you hide your helmet in Dragon’s Dogma 2?

If you've found a killer helmet that sadly looks hideous, there's unfortunately no way to hide it yet. Hiding your helmet would definitely be a welcome feature, so hopefully  it will be added eventually, but Capcom hasn't indicated that it will ever be introduced.