Thrall Thread : Living with the dead

[Yungafrika]

Ooops! Bite my tongue! Orchendor is using my crossbow that I gave him while I was testing stalf (who was pretty decent by the way) orchendor pulled out the crossbow and stated shooting it! This adds to the list of the things that make him great!!!

 

[Kalin of High Rock]

I encounters a Volkihar Vampire the other day while visiting Red Water Den. I was in the neighborhood and the skooma addicts are an easy feed. I didn't play Kalin through as one of Harkon's goons, so I never did visit the whole den. I decided to clear it out and maybe wrangle a nice high level vampire as a thrall.

Well, I got the Volkihar, and she's not a moaner! Which is amazing. No moaning..great. However, she keeps muttering to herself! Creepy vampire stuff in an angry, hushed voice. "That last kill was soooo good, just the right amount of struggle!*heavycerealkillerbreathing*"...I might have preferred the moaning.

On top of her lack of moaning, I'm not getting "That spell looks dangerous!" dialog from -every NPC I encounter-. So she's looking like a keeper, to me. If it means I can have a thrall out without every merchant I talk to telling me my spell looks dangerous, I can get used to her being a chatty Kathy.

 

[Adam Warlock]

I encounters a Volkihar Vampire the other day while visiting Red Water Den. I was in the neighborhood and the skooma addicts are an easy feed. I didn't play Kalin through as one of Harkon's goons, so I never did visit the whole den. I decided to clear it out and maybe wrangle a nice high level vampire as a thrall.

Well, I got the Volkihar, and she's not a moaner! Which is amazing. No moaning..great. However, she keeps muttering to herself! Creepy vampire stuff in an angry, hushed voice. "That last kill was soooo good, just the right amount of struggle!*heavycerealkillerbreathing*"...I might have preferred the moaning.

On top of her lack of moaning, I'm not getting "That spell looks dangerous!" dialog from -every NPC I encounter-. So she's looking like a keeper, to me. If it means I can have a thrall out without every merchant I talk to telling me my spell looks dangerous, I can get used to her being a chatty Kathy.

ANYTHING`S better than the moaning imho.
your new thrall sounds like a fabulous find !
the muttering can get tiresome after a while , but to have the most powerful thrall with no moan is a necromantic win all around.
The male counterpart will be a Master Vampire (beard tied in knot).
different lines but same behavior.
the unique combat taunts of both add to the fun

I`m going to see if my permanent Vampire Scout has the trait you`ve observed re: NPC comments and will look for other vamps like that. thanks for the tip

 

[Kalin of High Rock]

It's the annoying, repetitive "That spell looks dangerous!" line that leads me to eventually abandon thralls after a while. Because a dead and ambulatory -yet otherwise perfectly normal looking person- is totally dangerous! But this giant floating woman made of living fire and armored in molten lava is totally safe.

Business as usual, everyone. It's just a flame woman. Go back to your highly flammable thatched roof cottages, nothing to see here.

 

[Yungafrika]

It's the annoying, repetitive "That spell looks dangerous!" line that leads me to eventually abandon thralls after a while. Because a dead and ambulatory -yet otherwise perfectly normal looking person- is totally dangerous! But this giant floating woman made of living fire and armored in molten lava is totally safe.

Business as usual, everyone. It's just a flame woman. Go back to your highly flammable thatched roof cottages, nothing to see here.

Lol right or a giant evil demon looking thing with a flaming sword is alright... But I kinda like the spell looks dangerous lines it makes me feel dangerous and threatening to others like they're afraid that I might use it on them it's kinda satisfying that type of fear... But after awhile it does get annoying though

 

[Adam Warlock]

Just some notes on thralls i`ve tested.

Returned to Nightcaller Temple and found it chock full of permanent corpses.
Tested 7 Vaermina Devotees and 2 of them didn`t moan !!
These two male Elves are completely silent , not even battle taunts.
Squishy like all mages but their robes are unenchanted so you can give them some more Health and/or Stamina there and some elemental magic protection on their boots.
They cast mainly sparks but some lightning too.
1h weapons but don`t use shields often , prefer wards
No idea what level they are but guessing it`s in the 20`s.

Also found 2 Orcish Invaders there with typical Orc moans.
Each wears 3 pieces of light armor.
I have one in Scaled Bracers and Boots with the long-sleeved Fur Armor and the other is in Studded Armor with Hide Bracers and Fur Shoes.
Both seem to favor a 2h weapon even though one of them will sometimes respawn a shield.

They will use crossbows but seem to prefer regular bows.(no default bow)
also appears that crossbows will not shoot bolts if they also have regular arrows in their inventory.
They are pretty tough , guessing @ Bandit Chief lvl 28.

These Invaders always hold their equipped weapons at the ready and will drop them if they are killed or deactivated
the Devotees also share this trait

 

[Yungafrika]

Right now I am plagued by the problem that necromancers have faced since the beginning... Recently I lost orchendor and this Orc vampires from doing the diplomatic immunity quest I was being stupid thinking that they would find their way to me after the quest unfourtunately they did not... So I will ask does anyone no an efficient way to recover lost thralls that doesn't involve going to a past save? I'm asking this because I really want orchendor back the other guy is replaceable but not orchendor... If anyone provides any information that is helpful that would b great and I would very much appreciate it.

 

[Adam Warlock]

Does your Active Effects in the Magic menu show active Reanimate Thrall(s) ?
If so , perhaps fast-traveling to the Thalmor Embassey will draw them to you.
Be sure to wait an hour to let them find you if they are around there.

If no Reanimate Thrall is showing , then the bodies may be somewhere on the outside of the Embassey walls where they were trying to follow you when they died. Use Detect Dead spell to help spot them.

If they have indeed vanished into the ether , then I`ve only heard of computer commands to return them although some players have reported old Thralls may spontaneously return.

If fast-travel or a search doesn`t turn them up, then reloading an old save may be your only solution.
Orchendor shouldn`t return to his home since he doesn`t respawn

 

[Yungafrika]

Does your Active Effects in the Magic menu show active Reanimate Thrall(s) ?
If so , perhaps fast-traveling to the Thalmor Embassey will draw them to you.
Be sure to wait an hour to let them find you if they are around there.

If no Reanimate Thrall is showing , then the bodies may be somewhere on the outside of the Embassey walls where they were trying to follow you when they died. Use Detect Dead spell to help spot them.

If they have indeed vanished into the ether , then I`ve only heard of computer commands to return them although some players have reported old Thralls may spontaneously return.

If fast-travel or a search doesn`t turn them up, then reloading an old save may be your only solution.
Orchendor shouldn`t return to his home since he doesn`t respawn

Hmmm ok thanks a lot I'll try this It doesn't show on my active effects that I have reanimated but I need to first get the detect undead spell and I also I really appreciate your help Adam u are very informative and insightful plus u have good taste in marvel characters Adam warlock is one my favorites... I'm coming for you orchendor!!!!

 

[Yungafrika]

Huzzzahhhh!!! Through diligent time and effort I have finally recovered orchendor after 7 hours of searching in game and online I found someone with a similar problem and the found out when your thralls disappear during the diplomatic immunity quest u can find at the spot you either dead thralled them at or you fist encountered them after spending hours at the thalmer embassey to no avail I decided to check bthardamz arcanex where I fought and thralled him and there he was lying there dead ready to be thralled again with all his gear available i want to thank every necromancer out there that helped with their info into recovering my orchendor!

 

[Adam Warlock]

Playing at level 81 Master settings with Dawnguard DLC has provided a great deal of challenge for this Thrall master.
The level 30-50 Thralls like Orchendor , Illia , Legate Rikke ,etc. are still pretty useful but the lower level ones have been having difficulty with the new tougher opponents.

Those that are level 20 or lower die more often now and many have been converted to Ash Piles by rogue Vampires and Mages who raised them during attacks on my strongholds.
I have moved all such Thrall bodies to interior locations in order to avoid losing more .
Current ash piles include Dro`marash , Angi , Ulfir the Blind , and Zaynabi.
Since the bodies were permanent apparently so are the piles.

I was testing level 25 Agmaer in an effort to improve his damage output and stumbled upon a new technique that I recommend.
You can create an incredibly fast and furious dual-wielding whirling dervish of death by equipping your 1h warrior thrall with a dagger and a shiv !
If you don`t add a shield or torch , this will force them to dual-wield in melee.

Left hand = Shiv with Paralyze/Fire Damage
Right hand = Legendary Dragonbone or Daedric Dagger with Absorb Health/Fire or Elemental Damage of choice

Faster than duel-wielding with a Forsworn sword , this technique also benefits from reduced Stamina costs for Power Attacks.

When I tried this with Agmaer , he took on a Volkihar Master Vampire one-on-one and beat him !
If you think Forsworn Ravagers can do a fast spinning move , wait until you watch this weapon combo in action !
IDK what the Damage per Second is but the number`s gotta be way up there

Tested and it also works for 1h Followers as well.

 

[Adam Warlock]

Just some notes on thralls i`ve tested.

Returned to Nightcaller Temple and found it chock full of permanent corpses.
Tested 7 Vaermina Devotees and 2 of them didn`t moan !!
These two male Elves are completely silent , not even battle taunts.
Squishy like all mages but their robes are unenchanted so you can give them some more Health and/or Stamina there and some elemental magic protection on their boots.
They cast mainly sparks but some lightning too.
1h weapons but don`t use shields often , prefer wards
No idea what level they are but guessing it`s in the 20`s.

Also found 2 Orcish Invaders there with typical Orc moans.
Each wears 3 pieces of light armor.
I have one in Scaled Bracers and Boots with the long-sleeved Fur Armor and the other is in Studded Armor with Hide Bracers and Fur Shoes.
Both seem to favor a 2h weapon even though one of them will sometimes respawn a shield.

They will use crossbows but seem to prefer regular bows.(no default bow)
also appears that crossbows will not shoot bolts if they also have regular arrows in their inventory.
They are pretty tough , guessing @ Bandit Chief lvl 28.

These Invaders always hold their equipped weapons at the ready and will drop them if they are killed or deactivated
the Devotees also share this trait

They may last in the Temple but these bodies all disappeared after being moved to another location

 

[Kalin of High Rock]

Well, I'm a little upset. Me and my Volkihar Vampire thrall were getting along great. I had her well trained, enchanted out her gear with top of the line stuff! Then while exploring some ruins, she got caught up in a lightning storm blast and evaporated

We always hurt the ones we love. I'll have to go back to Red Water Den soon and see if I can't "befriend" one of her sisters.

 

[Adam Warlock]

Well, I'm a little upset. Me and my Volkihar Vampire thrall were getting along great. I had her well trained, enchanted out her gear with top of the line stuff! Then while exploring some ruins, she got caught up in a lightning storm blast and evaporated

We always hurt the ones we love. I'll have to go back to Red Water Den soon and see if I can't "befriend" one of her sisters.

I also love to use Lightning Storm and have even turned a Legendary Dragon into an Ash Pile !
Put a Resist Shock enchantment on your Volkihar`s boots to help prevent disintergration.
This also can benefit if you use Storm Call Dragon Shout.

IMHO the Resist Shock enchants/potions got a huge boost in usefulness with Dawnguard due to the heavy reliance on lightning attacks by the new vampire bosses

 

[Kalin of High Rock]

I'll have to put lightning resist on the next one. I normally load them with Fire/Ice resist for dragon hunting.

 

[Adam Warlock]

^good move.
resist frost is less useful for vampires since they have some built-in resistance anyway.
same situation with your thralls who are nords.
I`ve seen both deal effectively with frost dragons without enhancement
i think it`s like half the damage ?
For vampires and mages , Resist Shock will also protect their pool of Magicka and increase their attack capabilities against lightning casters

as you raise levels many earlier enemies will begin to favor lightning over frost attacks.
I`ve noted this with various Vampires , Briarhearts , Falmer , and spell-casting Bandit Marauders.

 

[Yungafrika]

For the past couple days I've been testing out the summon durnehviir shout and I've so far whenever I have used it has caused my single thrall orchendor to fall down so appearantly you have to rethrall all your people everytime you call him so no luck to those who are fond of there thralls over lvl 40 but on the plus side you can call durnehviir inside places as long as there is enough room to summon him but yeah guess I'm gonna have to stick to the call odaving shout

 

[MyNameIsJon]

Playing at level 81 Master settings with Dawnguard DLC has provided a great deal of challenge for this Thrall master.
The level 30-50 Thralls like Orchendor , Illia , Legate Rikke ,etc. are still pretty useful but the lower level ones have been having difficulty with the new tougher opponents.

Those that are level 20 or lower die more often now and many have been converted to Ash Piles by rogue Vampires and Mages who raised them during attacks on my strongholds.
I have moved all such Thrall bodies to interior locations in order to avoid losing more .
Current ash piles include Dro`marash , Angi , Ulfir the Blind , and Zaynabi.
Since the bodies were permanent apparently so are the piles.

I was testing level 25 Agmaer in an effort to improve his damage output and stumbled upon a new technique that I recommend.
You can create an incredibly fast and furious dual-wielding whirling dervish of death by equipping your 1h warrior thrall with a dagger and a shiv !
If you don`t add a shield or torch , this will force them to dual-wield in melee.

Left hand = Shiv with Paralyze/Fire Damage
Right hand = Legendary Dragonbone or Daedric Dagger with Absorb Health/Fire or Elemental Damage of choice

Faster than duel-wielding with a Forsworn sword , this technique also benefits from reduced Stamina costs for Power Attacks.

When I tried this with Agmaer , he took on a Volkihar Master Vampire one-on-one and beat him !
If you think Forsworn Ravagers can do a fast spinning move , wait until you watch this weapon combo in action !
IDK what the Damage per Second is but the number`s gotta be way up there

Tested and it also works for 1h Followers as well.

Adam Warlock, you consistently have the most interesting posts on this board, not to mention the most interesting thread.

I do not understand half of what you and your conjuring cohorts are talking about, but it certainly sounds fun. Perhaps some day, I will become an expert conjurer like you and get to experience some of these things.

 

[Adam Warlock]

Tested the Shiv/Dagger combo with my new perma-thrall Vampire Scout and she will dual-wield but rarely.
Like the mages , she prefers to use her left hand for spells especially Life Drain.

She is still a great Thrall even though she moans and because she won`t disappear I prefer her over the speaking Master and Volkihar Vampires that are now commonplace in my game.

She usually casts Shock and Frost spells from range but will use a bow or a crossbow(not the Dwarven ones)
She will also use Magic Staffs

I`m naming her Gudridur after the famous female Norse explorer

 

[Adam Warlock]

Further experiments with Thrall gear revealed I was neglectful in failing to equip them with a useful enchantment.

Most of you are already aware of the fact that just like Followers , many enchants will not work with a Dead Thrall.

Of course , I`ve always added extra Health , Magicka , Stamina , and Elemental Magic Resistance on every spot I can.


Usual set-up if apparel available :

Head = Magicka for Mages
Waterbreathing if you want thralls to remain underwater when you dive

Chest = Health and Stamina

Feet = Muffle for the rare sneaking thrall and/or
Resist Fire/Shock for Mages , Nords , and Vampires
Resist Fire/Frost for non-Nord Warriors
Resist Frost/Shock for Dunmer

Hands = Magicka for Mages

What I had missed until now was Fortify Heavy/Light Armor enchantment as a useful addition to gauntlets/gloves if a Warrior/Mage thrall will wear them.

Very few NPC have high armor skills to begin with so any boost you can give to their Armor Rating will help them absorb more damage

the character who will benefit most from this is the Mage who wears Gauntlets.
Add Magicka and Fortify Heavy Armor to the hands of Orchendor , Haldyn , Sulla Trebatius , etc.
Switch to Fortify Light Armor for Forsworn Ravagers or Briarhearts