Underkeep Skills: Every Active and Passive
Every Underkeep skill by class, with unlock level, resource, and the ones worth taking first. Covers all seven classes and free actions.
Underkeep has seven class skill lists, each with actives, passives, and a few free actions that do not consume the turn. This page lists every skill by class and marks the ones worth taking first. Values are the level 1 to level 5 ranges reported by the Steam community guide.
How do skills work?
Each hero gets one action per round. Active skills consume that action and usually cost stamina, mana, Zeal, or HP. Passives are always on. Free actions, such as Champion's Grip or Evasive Roll, do not consume the action, which makes them far stronger than their numbers suggest.
Skill unlocks are tied to class level, and several skills require a specific weapon. A skill you cannot use is worse than no skill, because it occupies a slot you could have spent on a passive.
Warrior skills
Warrior runs on stamina and covers every common melee weapon. The classes page→ lists the weapon locks in one table.
| Skill | Type | Unlock | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flurry Thrust | Active, sword | 1 | Two hits, cheap, reliable |
| Skull Rattle | Active, mace | 1 | Damage plus stun chance |
| Slice and Dice | Active, axe | 1 | Ignores armor per level |
| The Flow of Life | Passive | 1 | Max HP and elemental resist |
| Provoking Shout | Self buff | 2 | Redirects attacks, core tank tool |
| Shield Bash | Active, shield | 2 | Stun plus passive armor |
| Riposte | Active, one-handed | 3 | Counters after a hit |
| Cleave | Active, two-handed | 4 | Hits two enemies |
| Champion's Grip | Free action | 4 | Damage buff and stun immunity |
| Battle Roar | Party buff | 5 | Party damage and crit |
Take one weapon line, then Provoking Shout, then Battle Roar. Champion's Grip is a free action and belongs in every build.
Paladin skills
Paladin runs on Zeal, which it builds with Righteous Strike and spends on heals, stuns, and damage.
| Skill | Type | Unlock | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stun Undead | Active | 1 | 20% stun per Zeal |
| Lay on Hands | Active heal | 1 | Cheap direct heal |
| Divine Guard | Passive | 1 | Armor every time Zeal is spent |
| Flame of Conviction | Active | 2 | Fire damage per Zeal |
| Righteous Strike | Free action | 3 | Builds Zeal, boosts next attack |
| Zealous Resolve | Passive | 3 | Melee damage per Zeal held |
| Sacred Bulwark | Passive | 4 | Adds WIS to armor |
| Consecrated Ground | Party buff | 5 | Armor and elemental resist |
| Judgment | Active | 6 | Heavy hit scaling with Zeal |
Divine Guard is the passive that makes the class work. Without it, Zeal spending is pure offense; with it, every heal also protects.
Thief skills
Thief runs on stamina and wants a dagger or sword.
| Skill | Type | Unlock | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bleeding Dash | Active | 1 | Applies bleed |
| Nightshade Mastery | Passive | 1 | Random poison, bleed, blind, or burn |
| Backstab the Weak | Active, dagger | 1 | Crit scales with negative effects |
| Cloak of Swiftness | Passive | 2 | Evasion, ranged hit, crit |
| Evasive Roll | Free action | 3 | Evasion burst |
| Mark the Dead | Active | 3 | Target takes more damage |
| Smoke Bomb | Active | 4 | Blind up to two enemies |
| Shadow Instinct | Passive | 5 | Crit and armor pierce |
| Shadow Lunge | Active, dagger | 6 | Bonus damage to bleeding or poisoned |
The Thief's damage is a combo, not a single button. Apply bleed, then use Backstab or Shadow Lunge. Against undead, skip the bleed setup and rely on raw crits.
Ranger skills
Ranger runs on stamina and wants a ranged weapon.
| Skill | Type | Unlock | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quickshot | Active | 1 | Chance for a second shot |
| Aimed Shot | Active | 1 | Damage and crit bonus |
| Cloak of Swiftness | Passive | 1 | Evasion, ranged hit, crit |
| Deadly Shot | Passive | 2 | Ranged crit |
| Skirmisher's Step | Free action | 3 | Evasion and next attack bonus |
| Barbed Arrows | Active | 3 | Bleed at range |
| Runebound Arrows | Passive | 4 | Random elemental damage |
| Stillstrike | Active | 4 | Paralyze chance |
| Hunter's Prey | Active | 5 | Party damage bonus on target |
| Execution Shot | Active | 6 | Bonus damage vs marked target |
Hunter's Prey is a party skill disguised as a Ranger skill. Use it on the boss before the Wizard opens.
Wizard skills
Wizard runs on mana and has no weapon requirement.
| Skill | Type | Unlock | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fire Spark | Active | 1 | Fire damage, burn chance |
| Static Shock | Active | 1 | Hits two enemies in front |
| Ice Shard | Active | 1 | Ice damage, freeze chance |
| Shielding Barrier | Self buff | 2 | Absorbs damage |
| Feel the Flow | Passive | 2 | Max mana |
| Dragon Arcana | Passive | 3 | Boosts all elemental damage |
| Arcane Lock | Active | 3 | Paralyze chance |
| Invisibility | Party utility | 5 | Party invisible for a few rounds |
| Fireball | Active | 6 | Fire damage to two enemies |
| Ice Tower | Active | 6 | Ice damage to all enemies ahead |
| Storm Chain | Active | 6 | Lightning, chance to recast |
Dragon Arcana is the best passive in the class. Feel the Flow solves the early mana problem.
Voidcaller skills
Voidcaller runs on mana and is the party's support engine. The best party page→ shows where it fits in each composition.
| Skill | Type | Unlock | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Void Mend | Active heal | 1 | Heals and removes status at higher levels |
| Power of the Void | Passive | 1 | Void spell power |
| Aura of Blades | Aura | 1 | Party melee attack bonus |
| Aura of the Void | Aura | 1 | Periodic party barrier |
| Aura of Thorns | Aura | 1 | Reflect melee damage |
| Void Veil | Ally shield | 2 | Absorbs damage |
| Void Lance | Active | 3 | Ignores defenses |
| Fade into Nothingness | Passive | 4 | Armor and void resist |
| Unholy Convergence | Debuff | 5 | Lowers enemy damage and resist |
Only one aura can be active at a time in practice, so pick the one that matches the party. Aura of Blades for physical parties, Aura of the Void for fragile caster parties.
Blood Mage skills
Blood Mage spends HP and bones.
| Skill | Type | Unlock | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blood Pact | Active | 1 | Reflects damage taken to target |
| Blood Lance | Active | 1 | Blood damage, bleed chance |
| Exsanguinate | Active | 1 | Extends bleed on a bleeding enemy |
| Mark the Dead | Active | 2 | Target takes more damage |
| Crimson Renewal | Active heal | 2 | Heals an ally |
| Omen of the Veins | Passive | 3 | Blood crit |
| Scarlet Shackles | Active | 4 | Paralyze and bleed a group |
| Leechcraft | Passive | 5 | Blood damage heals the caster |
| Bloodfall | Active | 6 | Multi-hit blood damage |
Leechcraft is the skill that makes the HP economy sustainable. Before level 5, the Blood Mage needs a healer.
Which skills should you take first?
Prioritize free actions and passives that work every round. Champion's Grip, Righteous Strike, Evasive Roll, and Skirmisher's Step cost no action, so they add value without competing with your attack.
A skill with a weapon lock is only as good as the weapon in your bag. Check before you spend a level on it.
FAQ
How many skills does each class have?
Between eight and eleven, split between actives, passives, and free actions. The exact count depends on the class.
Can you learn every skill?
The game does not advertise a skill-point cap, but weapon locks and action economy make some skills mutually exclusive in practice. Build for one role.
Do passives cost anything?
Passives are always on and do not consume an action. That makes them the safest early investment.
Community source: Steam community player guide ↗
Official source: Underkeep on Steam ↗
Official source: Underkeep news hub ↗
More Underkeep Guides
All seven Underkeep classes explained: main stat, resource, front or back row, weapon requirements, and the race that fits each one.
How Underkeep combat works: one action per hero, free actions, damage and armor math, crit and evasion formulas, status effects, and turn order.
What is confirmed about Underkeep endings: multiple outcomes, the quests that matter, why special dialogue is not always best, and how to save for branches.
Underkeep equipment explained: weapon types per class, armor slots, how armor and sharpness change damage, which tools share the budget, and when to upgrade.
How Underkeep exploration works: which tools open which obstacles, how to search walls and graves, food and resting, and Waystone fast travel.
The Underkeep first party for a blind run: four heroes, race picks, early skills, gear priorities, and the first purchases that keep the run alive.
How Underkeep front row and back row positioning works: who can melee, when Reach bypasses the rule, what swapping costs, and the safest four-hero layout.
What to do when the four gargoyles get stuck in Underkeep Gravewood Crypt, why there is no reset lever yet, and how to recover without losing the run.