Psiberzerker's Build Clinic

[Joker]

Psiberzerker, I am asking for your guidance once again. I am playing a new character, because I cannot get the hang of the Mage style. I truly like the spellcasting, but I cannot quite get the hang of it. So, I did some reading in other threads on this site, and found what I think I can play for a bit.

I am creating a Nord Sentinel, no magicka until I feel that I am not going to get one-shot by mages, if at all. I am going to focus my Perk Points on Archery, Block, 1H, Smith, & Sneak, using Heavy Armor. Faedal has my archery to 50, so I now have to get everything else up to speed. I have cleared the Bleak Falls Barrow quest, and I am headed to Whiterun.

Here is how I am going to start off:
1H – Armsman x3, Fighting Stance
Arch – Overdraw x3, Critical Shot, Eagle Eye
Block - Shield Wall x2, Deflect Arrows, Power Bash
HA – Juggernaut x3, Well Fitted, Fists of Steel
Smith – Steel, Dwarven, Elven
Sneak – Stealth x3, Backstab, Muffled Movement, Deadly Aim. Light Foot

Any suggestions/comments?

 

[Psiberzerker]

HA – Juggernaut x3, Well Fitted, Fists of Steel
Smith – Steel, Dwarven, Elven
Sneak – Stealth x3, Backstab, Muffled Movement, Deadly Aim. Light Foot.

With HA, I usually pick one side, or another, because that tree is perk intensive, and doesn't require as much to maximize your protection. In fact, this is the main reason I don't like Heavy Armor in this game, the tree is so deflicted, and other than high Defense, doesn't offer your character much else besides Stagger Resistance, and Falling Damage. If there were actually more enemies that staggered enough to possibly Stunlock you, I'd consider Tower of Strength more useful, but as it stands, you've got a whole lot more gateway perks. Prioritise Conditioned, because that's what makes you run at normal speed, sprint with only the weapons' weight, and Sneak without having to worry about noise (Not to mention Muffle, and Silence.)

Smithing: Why are you bothering with Elven to start? It does slightly more damage than Dwarven weapons, but you can get Skyforge Steel, and a Foresworn Bow early, fix them up with just Steel Smithing, and just go up the Heavy side of the anvil eventually to Ebony. I will add that this is the point of diminishing returns, where further investment give slight buffs to your damage for progressively more investment once you turn that corner. You can actually get Orcish up to the armor cap with a shield.

Sneak: Not impossible with Heavy Armor, but expect to be a Sniper with some Melee ability until you get up to Silence. Stealth(1) is plenty with light armor, I wouldn't go higher than 3 even in heavy unless you're planning to backstab with daggers relatively early in the game. Just having 100 Sneak without ANY perks is gamebreakingly OP, and kind of make it impossible to forget you're playing a video game.

This looks like a Light Armor build to me. You have the standoff of the Bow at range, while up close you have the added protection, and staggering ability of the shield. so you shouldn't NEED all that much passive protection as your last line of defense. With Sneak, the extra mobility would serve you better than the better initial protection of Heavy, especially with Smithing. If you do, then you don't really have to progress up the light armor side of the anvil any farther than Elven. It's the lightest of all the full suits, relatively easy to get (Level dependent) though a pain to make yourself, and adequate protection with Smithing, and some self preservation. (Meaning don't just stand there, and tank when surrounded, and outnumbered, but use catholic battle tactics.)

 

[Joker]

With HA, I usually pick one side, or another, because that tree is perk intensive, and doesn't require as much to maximize your protection. In fact, this is the main reason I don't like Heavy Armor in this game, the tree is so deflicted, and other than high Defense, doesn't offer your character much else besides Stagger Resistance, and Falling Damage. If there were actually more enemies that staggered enough to possibly Stunlock you, I'd consider Tower of Strength more useful, but as it stands, you've got a whole lot more gateway perks. Prioritise Conditioned, because that's what makes you run at normal speed, sprint with only the weapons' weight, and Sneak without having to worry about noise (Not to mention Muffle, and Silence.)

I chose HA because of the armor available after "Proving Honor". Although I prefer LA, HA was the choice in the build I saw in another thread.

Smithing: Why are you bothering with Elven to start? It does slightly more damage than Dwarven weapons, but you can get Skyforge Steel, and a Foresworn Bow early, fix them up with just Steel Smithing, and just go up the Heavy side of the anvil eventually to Ebony. I will add that this is the point of diminishing returns, where further investment give slight buffs to your damage for progressively more investment once you turn that corner. You can actually get Orcish up to the armor cap with a shield.

I went with both because I usually see both elven & dwarven and no way to improve them.

Sneak: Not impossible with Heavy Armor, but expect to be a Sniper with some Melee ability until you get up to Silence. Stealth(1) is plenty with light armor, I wouldn't go higher than 3 even in heavy unless you're planning to backstab with daggers relatively early in the game. Just having 100 Sneak without ANY perks is gamebreakingly OP, and kind of make it impossible to forget you're playing a video game.

This looks like a Light Armor build to me. You have the standoff of the Bow at range, while up close you have the added protection, and staggering ability of the shield. so you shouldn't NEED all that much passive protection as your last line of defense. With Sneak, the extra mobility would serve you better than the better initial protection of Heavy, especially with Smithing. If you do, then you don't really have to progress up the light armor side of the anvil any farther than Elven. It's the lightest of all the full suits, relatively easy to get (Level dependent) though a pain to make yourself, and adequate protection with Smithing, and some self preservation. (Meaning don't just stand there, and tank when surrounded, and outnumbered, but use catholic battle tactics.)

I thought LA was the way to go, but the build that I saw was HA. I usually go LA because of the mobility & less carry weight. I think I will stick with LA, and maybe just put one point in smithing then. Or, one in Elven, and then head up the heavy side to Ebony, and be done with that skill. Thanks as always for your insight.

 

[Psiberzerker]

I went with both because I usually see both elven & dwarven and no way to improve them.

You don't have to have the material specific skills to improve weapons and armor with Smithing, it just limits how much you can improve them. If you stockpile (use a good pack mule Follower, who doesn't use up their capacity with a lot of Heavy Armor, Faen works fine, since he starts with clothes) you can actually improve these peice twice. Once, before you get the Perks, then again when you do, and have collected the Ingots for another pass at it. This raises your Smithing skill a lot faster, especially when transitioning to a new tier, where the old Armor may actually be more effective at any given level. This is because Experience is linear (1,2,3...) while material tiers are incremental (15, 30, 50, 70...) so when you first get say Ebony Smithing, you can only improve it to Superior, while you may already have Exquisite, or better Orcish.

 

[Joker]

You don't have to have the material specific skills to improve weapons and armor with Smithing, it just limits how much you can improve them. If you stockpile (use a good pack mule Follower, who doesn't use up their capacity with a lot of Heavy Armor, Faen works fine, since he starts with clothes) you can actually improve these peice twice. Once, before you get the Perks, then again when you do, and have collected the Ingots for another pass at it. This raises your Smithing skill a lot faster, especially when transitioning to a new tier, where the old Armor may actually be more effective at any given level. This is because Experience is linear (1,2,3...) while material tiers are incremental (15, 30, 50, 70...) so when you first get say Ebony Smithing, you can only improve it to Superior, while you may already have Exquisite, or better Orcish.

I just learned something new, again......Thanks Psiberzerker, you make this game easier to understand all the time.

 

[Niq]

Thanks for your post on Role playing Necromancer, i thought i would come here to seek further sound advice.

as you know i have just started an Orismer, who specialises in 2H, HA with the backup of block, and i am very interested in him evolving into a "death/dread" knight.

Will i be able to spread perks over frost destruction and Conjuration? (if not both then i do prefer Conjuration)
And how would i progress this charecter evenly without becoming too OP or under?

*Would i also be able to include smithing?

 

[Nighthiker77]

Can you explain how the shield damage reduction is calculated from a practical perspective? I've seen the formula but i can't make sense of it because they don't define the variables. Does it block a flat percentage up to the cap regardless of the power of the strike, or does it block a certain number of heath points up to 85%, capping at 85% of weak strikes and only blocking a certain amount of harder strikes like zero% after strike damage exceeds calculated shield block/(1-.85)?
What would it take to get 85%? I'm assuming the enchantments and perks that block a certain % more are based on the part your shield blocks and not the whole strike.

 

[Nighthiker77]

Also, dual wielding with Windshear and Mehrunes Razor, it there any reason to use the offhand dagger in open combat, or just use the speed increase to swing windshear faster by itself?

I decided to take the steel smithing perk and my smithing is 100, so my Blade of Woe is doing maybe 7 more damage than Mehrunes Razor, but I've been using it because it's way lighter.

 

[Xaintrix]

I was wondering if I could get some build help?

I guess my vision really is like a kamen rider japanese superhero. Heavy armor and could summon weapons (and reinforcements) to suit the situation. (1-h/archery/conj with the occasional flashy (not really OP) dest or illusion ability for flavor) I guess this fits the Sorcerer type? I just am really lost how to start building him to not run into leveling pitfalls and whatnot. Any suggestions? Last time I used any magic was back in Morrowind. ;-;

 

[Joker]

Keep an eye out of Steel Ingots, and improve it some more on the grind stone whenever your Smithing goes up (If you can.)

You'll be fine, skip the main quest until you can shoot down a Dragon before it kills you.

These lines finally made sense last night during my game. These, and getting Bound Bow, are amazing, now that I have a better understanding as to what I am doing.

I started an Altmer Warrior over the weekend. I decided that he would learn combat skills first, so he headed west towards the reach. Hunting, cave diving, and looting. I made it to a fort in the reach, then got the beacon. I went north to do that quest, and did well up to the last set of stairs. After getting smacked down by Malkoran for 30 minutes, I left that quest. I went and levelled up to add health, and got the Wolf Armor from Eorland after I proved my honor. The smithing skill is an amazing one to have. I carry a full set, flawless I believe, and adept robes that I took off a dead mage. This game is a lot more fun once you know what is going on..... to you Psiberzerker, for sharing your knowledge.

 

[Joker]

Psiberzerker

If, IF, IF, I wanted to play a pure mage, no weaponry, only light armor if any at all, primarily robes, how would the build look?

 

[Psiberzerker]

Wizard:

Race: Altmer or Breton.

Destruction at lower levels when it's most effective. Augmented Element perks enhance damage from other sources. Impact to stagger with Bolts. I usually cap this at around 60, or 70 for Disintegrate.

Alteration: Defence, and utility spells, good perks to protect against Magical damage. Up to Expert, Dual Casting, Mage Armor (3) Magic Resistance, Stability. Don't get the Atronach Perk, because you can't turn it off.

Restoration: Healing, Wards for Dragon Breath, and Perks to manage your Magicka/Stamina/Health. Recovery, Respite, Regeneration, Ward Absorb.

Illusion: Crowd Control, and at higher levels, defensive Stealth. Add perks as needed to overcome more powerful foes, but keep in mind, if a whole bunch of Bandits attack their Chief, who's too powerful for Frenzy, the end result is the same.

Conjuration: Late game, this is your most effective damage dealers. Novice-Expert (Master spells can be cast Loooong beforehand.) Summoner, Atromancy, Elemental Potency, Twin Souls.

A Vampiric Dagger is very handy, but don't invest in 1H. In close quarters, drop in Ebonyflesh, and a Flamecloak, and just slash away for healing/DPS. Don't bother with Power Attacks, this is a damage race only when you can't run, or manuver.

Alchemy over Enchanting for Potions that enhance your spellcasting, rather than make them cheaper. Robes, best you can get, I usually go with Destruction, because that's what you have to spam repeatedly to be effective. Otherwise, let your Summons, and turned enmies do the damage dealing while you defend yourself.

 

[Joker]

Psiberzerker, so the perk calculator would look like.......

 

[Nighthiker77]

Btt

 

[Ryokozan]

would you reccomend block on a battlemage?

 

[Dirty Mac]

Are you familiar with the ACE combat mod? and it's perks? I have a Sword and Shield 1 hand warrior at lvl 20 that just dies way too easily. every fight is hard, it's getting to the point where archery is just so much stronger. I can't block attacks, i just lose far too much health and die in 2 hits. it's really just a hassle playing this type of character.
Please help.

 

[Bury Ted]

Oh great-wizard Psiberzerker, I was wondering ifn' you might get the chance, you could take a gander at this: ​

​

http://skyrimcalculator.com/295738​

​

And let me know what you think... Please. You may now return to your regularly scheduled program.​

 

[Nighthiker77]

I think its way overkill on damage reduction, with mage armor perks, block, heavy armor, and crafting. If this is a necromage vampire, you could drop the magic resistance too and go for pure absorption if you stick to necromancy. Mage armor perks are useless in any armor so they really aren't compatible.

If you are going for armor cap, you could drop block altogether and use Windshear to stagger. You wouldn't need any 1h perks or skill or stamina for that.

If you are going heavy with robes, I would drop the whole right side and do 5/5 instead. If you wear all heavy, you could reach the cap with several less perks in smithing or juggernaut. If you aren't wearing robes, I would also switch to light armor for windwalker and deft movement, and leave stamina at 100.

Id take rage in illusion for sure, especially since you have no weapon skills or destruction. And master conjuration unless you are enchanting down the casting cost. If you aren't going necromage vampire, I'd think about atromancy instead of necromancy unless you think you can get away with the forever it takes to cast dead thrall.

If you want to save a whole lot of perks in smithing, your followers will do just fine with elven/skyforge /Nord Hero weapons, and you'll still be able to cap elven and steel armor.

There is plenty of wiggle room though, since your damage dealers (conjuration and illusion) aren't affected by difficulty setting.

I would use some leftover perks to get silence because I don't feel like casting muffle all the time, especially once illusion is already maxed.

 

[Psiberzerker]

would you reccomend block on a battlemage?

What kind of Battlemage, that's a pretty broad class, across all the games, and all the Builds I've seen. Generally, and tentatively, yes, but I'd need more information to go on...