Xbox 360 Volkihar Vampire build?

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Wauten Dayhil

Demon Hunter and Wordplay Extraordinaire
I know I want to use necromancy, Vampire Royal Armor, and eventually take minimal part in combat, but I don't know how to go about it, what else I should wear, spells I should use, etc. etc.. So...

Race?

Stone(s)? (Hopefully you can work the Aetherial Crown into it)

Primary Skills? (Conjuration is a must)

Secondary Skills?

Enchantments? (I expect it will be included in your builds, this is Skyrim, after all)

RP aspects?

PS: I would like to use a Silver sword, but may switch to Ebony when possible.
 

xsneakyxsimx

Well-Known Member
Okay, so Altmer, Dunmer, and Breton are probably decent choices to start. Altmer has the +50 magicka which is something that no other race can compete with, Dunmer have the innate fire resist which counters the Vampire's weakness, as do the Bretons but not as much. Apart from that, any race can really work as the skill bonuses are really a mute point. By the time you get to about Level 15 - 20 you have all your skills leveled and chosen appropriately.

To start, the Mage or Lover Stone to help boosting your Magic skills or all of them if you plan to use a lot of others, and after that it really depends on your playstyle, preference, and the bonuses. If you were to go with a Breton for example, the Lord Stone (+25% Magic Resist, +50 Armour Rating) has a good synergy, where as something like the Atronach Stone (+50 Magicka, +50% Spell Absorption, +50% Weakness to Magicka) or the Apprentice Stone (+100% Magicka Regeneration, +100% Weakness to Magicka) offer greater utility to your spellcasting, but at a cost that is fairly detrimental if unheeded.

Let's look at a Vampire for your Primary Skills, what do they get bonuses to? Stealth, and Illusion. Which help strengthen the idea of staying out of the action for as long as possible. A rule of thumb I like is one offensive skill (in this case, Conjuration), one defensive (Stealth), and optionally one utility (Illusion) that is used to assist your offensive, defensive, or both. As for secondaries, try skills that while are useful for you, don't require a lot of effort that is opposing to your character (e.g. Two Handed). You mentioned Royal Vampire Armour so we can add Light Armour as a secondary. It's a passively leveling skill that doesn't need great attention to detail. Restoration is another possible choice if you prefer to not use potions.

With enchantments, try not to fret on them in the early game, establish your character and play them until about... Level 25. Then think about what you are using a lot, having trouble with. Are you running out of Magicka, or health? Being seen too much, or don't have enough squishy meat shields between you and your enemies? In time you'll learn about the nuances of your character and how you can either boost your strengths or reinforce your weaknesses. And I'm no RP expert so I don't have any advice on that, but that doesn't mean you can't just work on it as you play. No matter what, if you enjoy it, work with it.
 

Wauten Dayhil

Demon Hunter and Wordplay Extraordinaire
Alright, that's pretty much along the lines of what I was thinking.

Also, I tend to... not level. Like, I'll get the experience necessary, I just won't do it until I'm at, say, 100 in my major skills, so I can turn into a VL and wreck low level bandits in order to level it up, and when it's at the maximum level, I will level myself up with the perks available. Is that actually a good idea?
 

xsneakyxsimx

Well-Known Member
For a mainly magic based character, I don't think so. A lot of spells that you'll end up wanting to use as you progress though the skills will cost a lot more than 100 - 180 magicka, so you'll be stuck with low level spells that won't give you as much experience as the Adept or Expert level ones will, especially at levels above 50.
 

Wauten Dayhil

Demon Hunter and Wordplay Extraordinaire
Well, I'm no stranger to getting massive amounts of money quickly (I could just do the Thieves Guild city quests and stuff), and since I'll be a fairly stealthy character, it'll be pretty simple. What I've thought of so far is like this:

Aetherial Crown with Lord/Lady
Vampire Royal Armor
Boots with Sneak/One handed
Gauntlets with Lockpick/PIckpocket
Ring with Illusion fortify/magic resist
necklace with Conjuration fortify/magic resist

My only real problem is that I don't intend to get in CQC, so OH is probably wasted, and I don't know what to do instead of it.
 

xsneakyxsimx

Well-Known Member
I... don't think I ever mentioned anything to do with acquiring large sums of coins. Also, boots can have resist enchants on them so if you don't plan to use One Handed you can move an resist element onto it and use the ring with a Fortify Magicka/ Magicka Regen.
 

Wauten Dayhil

Demon Hunter and Wordplay Extraordinaire
Yeah, but if I level as I go, and do my usual 3:1:1, it shouldn't take long. After a while, I can just give myself health and stamina... oh, and is Conjuration even useful late game? Like, when I'm a level 70, can I still resurrect people?

EDIT: I mean resurrect anything, not counting thrall/ritual stone
 
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