Sovereign Tower How to Recruit Oliver
Spare the opening attacker, wait for Cycle 19, then hire the Angelorian clerk
Oliver of Angelor is the easiest Act 2 recruit to miss forever, because the gate sits in the first minutes of Sovereign Tower. Wild Wits asks whether you spare or execute the person who attacks you during the prologue. Spare him and he later wanders into the Tower asking for a job. Execute him and that candidacy never exists on this save. Curve Games launched the full campaign on August 6, 2026; mid-August community lists still treat mercy as the hard requirement.
This page is spoiler-light on late acts and spoiler-heavy on the opening choice. If you already executed him, only a Demon rewind that reaches the prologue — or a new reign / New Game Plus — can reopen the seat.
What Oliver offers
Community stat sheets place Oliver around Strength 2 / Agility 8 / Charisma 3 / Magic 3 / Wits 9 / Luck 6 with armor 7 at level 6. He is a flexible Wits specialist, not a front-line hammer.
- Overworked — score penalty that grows with quest duration. Keep him on short cards.
- Angelorian — Diplomacy penalty. Do not send him to charm a county court alone.
- Office Worker (hidden) — longer quests can raise rewards even while Overworked hurts the score. That tension is the joke: he works overtime and still looks miserable.
- Magic Degree evolution — completing his studies (Steam’s Graduated! achievement) can jump Magic from 3 to 11.
- Favourite meals — Galette-Saucisse and Croque-Monsieur (Cooking).
- Romance — Oliver is a confirmed affinity target with a reported multi-romance penalty around −7. His ending slide also changes with romance and with your main Act 3 ending (Romance, Endings Guide).
He will not replace Victoria on endgame checks. He will save Scholar-flavoured cards and investigation weeks when Gwendan is injured or away.
Step-by-step recruitment
- In Act 0, when the attacker confronts you, let him live. Do not choose the execution line.
- Play the campaign normally through Act 1. Oliver is not a Cycle 2 walk-in.
- Around Cycle 19 (early Act 2 in most reports), he arrives as a candidacy audience and asks for work.
- Accept him with a free Round Table seat. Act 2’s cap is eight; you cannot dismiss anyone to make room (Recruit Knights).
- Feed Galette-Saucisse or Croque-Monsieur on the next Kitchen visit so affinity does not start the Act 2 murder week already thin.
Some players report flaky timing — he arrives a cycle later if emergencies clog the audience queue. If Cycle 20 passes with no Oliver and you are sure you spared him, finish the current emergency, then check the next morning audience before rewinding in panic.
Why the prologue choice is easy to fumble
The opening teaches tone. Tyrannic or Audacious players often execute the attacker for a joke and a style point, then wonder why the Angelorian clerk never appears. Sovereign Archetypes still accumulate later; you do not need a Kind first impression to spare one life. Spare him, then be as tyrannical as you like in Act 1 audiences.
If you already executed him and the Demon crypts are unlocked, rewind only if you still sit inside Act 0 or an early Act 1 window that includes that scene. Mid-Act 2 rewinds do not recreate a dead prologue flag.
Using Oliver after he joins
Short Wits cards: Investigation, research, and one-cycle help quests. Avoid three-cycle pirate escorts — Grest Pirates wants durable raiders after Patch 1.0.8 added a cycle, not an Overworked clerk.
Studies: When the Magic Degree thread appears, treat it as both a power spike and the Graduated! trophy. Park him on liked Scouting / Magic Ritual cards (hidden likes in community sheets) while that quest is active.
Murder week: Oliver can become a romance target. The Act 2 traitor prefers your lowest-affinity starter, but a courted Oliver still dies if you ignore Stop the Act 2 Murder. Do not start his heart events the same week Alwena reports midnight noise.
Common failures
- Executed the attacker — no Oliver on this timeline.
- No free seat at Cycle 19 — he talks, then leaves. Plan chairs before Act 2 walk-ins (Map Room Hiring).
- Sending him on long Duels or Hunts — hidden dislike on Hunt plus Overworked makes Critical Failures cheap.
- Confusing him with Gideon — Gideon is the Cycle 13 glory-seeker with a 25-fund fallback. Oliver is mercy-gated and has no early Map Room listing in current guides.
Related pages
- Act 2 Walkthrough — where Cycle 19 sits among murder and joust gates.
- Get Childeric — the other mid-act hire that steals a seat the same month.
- Knight Roster — full name list and caps.
- Guides Hub — PC dropdown shows seven guides plus View all.
Oliver is the reminder that Sovereign Tower starts judging you before you own a Round Table. Spare the clerk, leave a chair, and let Angelor send you a tired specialist who actually reads the paperwork.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers to the most common questions.
How do you recruit Oliver in Sovereign Tower?
Spare the prologue attacker instead of executing him. He later asks for a job around Cycle 19 if you have a free Round Table seat.
Can I still get Oliver if I killed the attacker?
Not on that timeline. Rewind to the prologue if the Demon still allows it, or start a new reign / New Game Plus.
What meals does Oliver like?
Galette-Saucisse and Croque-Monsieur. Kitchen tables live on the Cooking guide.
Is Oliver good on long quests?
His Overworked trait punishes duration even though Office Worker can raise rewards. Prefer short Wits cards unless you are chasing his Magic Degree.