The Elder Scrolls IV Oblivion
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o======================================================================o
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| The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion |
| |
o======================================================================o
Version 1.03
Written by: Nathan Garvin
Email: Theendbringer (at) Hotmail (dot) com.
If you're going to email me about this guide, make sure you put
"OBLIVION" in the title, or I'll probably end up deleting it as junk.
Guide Information
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
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Legal
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
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Table of Contents
o======================================================================o
I. Introduction {INT001}
II. Race/Gender {RNG001}
III. Birthsigns {BRT001}
IV. Class {CLS001}
V. Leveling Up {LVL001}
VI. Attributes {ATT001}
VII. Derived Attributes {DAT001}
VIII. Skills {SKL001|
IX. Trainers {TRN001}
X. Sample Character {CHR001}
XI. Updates/Thanks {UPD001}
o======================================================================o
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| Introduction {INT001} |
| |
o======================================================================o
My Fallout 3 FAQ got quite a few hits, and a number of people e-mailed
me about it.. generally with helpful and positive feedback. I even got
a question asking if I would expand the FAQ to include the expansion(s).
Since Bethesda made both Fallout 3 and Oblivion, and I spent just about
as much time on one as the other, I decided I'd write another FAQ for
Oblivion. I have my own opinions about the game.. obviously.. and I
wont dig quite as deep into the game mechanics as other FAQs might, but
I will tell you how I create characters, my thoughts on the attributes,
skills, birthsigns, and what-not. This is a somewhat completionist FAQ.
I'm incorrigible about min-maxing my stats, so I'll be taking that frame
of mind when writing this FAQ. This is not really for casual gamers,
although I'm confident what I have to say might be helpful to anyone
looking for help. I will order the guide in the same order as options
become available to your in the game.
o======================================================================o
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| Race and Gender {RNG001} |
| |
o======================================================================o
Okay, now for the fun part of actually making your character. You'll
have a number of races to choose from, each with different abilities,
skill bonuses, and starting attributes. You'll also get to be either
male or female.. although the NPC interactions in this game aren't
really too diverse either way, so don't pick for role-playing options..
Ugh.. Know that it hurt me to type that.. But it's true..
Rating: * Playing this race will actually make the game harder.
Rating: ** This race has abilities that become obsolete.
Rating: *** You will have abilities that are useful once in a while.
Rating: **** You will have abilities that are actually boons.
Rating: ***** Constantly useful abilities throughout the whole game.
Which is the "Best"?
o======================================================================o
I hate this term, and I've seen it in too many FAQs, and on too many
boards. Some people call Orcs/Reguards the "best" melee fighters, and
some call Bretons the "best" mages. This is moot. Your starting
attributes and skill bonuses only matter insomuch as they affect
leveling. I do blame Bethesda somewhat for this nuisance, in so much as
they say "such and such tends to favor the warrior class" or "blah blah
make excellent thieves due to their natural agility." Yeah. At level 1,
the playing field is far from level. At level 50..? All classes and
races and genders can max out all attributes at 100. All characters can
reach up to a score 100 in all skills. What's the difference between a
Breton with 100 Strength and Blade fighting a Redguard with 100 Strength
and Blade? Nothing. What does matter then? The following.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Your starting Endurance will determine your maximum Health. A character
who starts with 50 Endurance as compared to a character with 30 will
gain 2 extra Health per level. which is a fairly big deal. Keep that in
mind when looking at the classes, as the 'invisible' Health maximum is
attached to those who start with higher Endurance.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Racial Abilities. These matter. While I find attributes to be mostly
level footing, and skills to be a non-issue except for the convenience
of leveling, your racial ability sticks with you. Picking a race with
a good one matters, and is probably the most important, if not the
sole consideration to be made when choosing a race.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Character Model. Seriously, this can be a long game. Even longer if you
want to min-max. Make a character you like, and one that wont make you
nauseous every time you open your inventory. Pick what you want to play
by your avatar.. and use your imagination. The story of Oblivion is
sadly irrelevant when it comes to your other choices.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The fact that I don't think any race is really much 'better' at any
activity in the long run than any other race doesn't mean that,
objectively, there aren't some bonuses that make certain races better
than others. That doesn't mean I'm contradicting myself. Make an Orc,
make an Orc mage in fact, it doesn't really matter. Hell, make an Orc
who can use all weapons, sneak, haggle, and cast all spells with a
skill of 100. But keep in mind the various abilities of each class,
which no amount of attribute/skill maxing can overcome.
The Races
o======================================================================o
Below I will list the starting attributes of each race by gender.
Following that, I will denote the skill bonuses each race gains, and
after than the special abilities of each race. Finally, I will give my
opinion of the race, and give it an entirely subjective score based
mostly upon their abilities, with bonus points for having high starting
Endurance.
Argonian
o======================================================================o
This reptilian race, well-suited for the treacherous swamps of its
homelands, has developed natural immunities to diseases and poisons.
They can breathe water and are good at picking locks.
Attributes, Female
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
40 50 40 40 40 30 30 50 320
Attributes, Male
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
40 40 30 50 50 30 30 50 320
Skill Bonuses
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Alchemy +5, Athletics +10, Blade +5, Hand to Hand +5, Illusion +5,
Mysticism +5, Security +10.
Abilities
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Resist Disease
Ability: Argonian Disease Resistance (75)
Immune to Poison
Ability: Argonian Poison Immunity (100)
Water Breathing
Ability: Argonian Water Breathing
Opinion
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Argonians are a rare breed in that they have three abilities that are
actually okay. A high disease resistance will help ignore some
annoyances as you play the game, and poison comes up more than you'd
think. Certainly the best disease/poison set out there. Also, water
breathing is a cheap spell, and it can be found on an item fairly
easily, but having it all the time prevents you from ever needing to
worry in the first place. They are, at the least, some abilities you
will get some use out of. The only real downside to the Argonian is
their poor Endurance, which will set them back in the Health
department, and the fact that they really don't have any combat
oriented abilities.
Rating: ***
Breton
o======================================================================o
In addition to their quick and perceptive grasp of spellcraft, even the
humblest of Bretons can boast a resistance to magical energies. They
particularly skilled at summoning and healing magic.
Attributes, Female
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
30 50 50 30 40 30 40 50 320
Attributes, Male
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
40 50 50 30 30 30 40 50 320
Skill Bonuses
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Alchemy +5, Alteration +5, Conjuration +10, Illusion +5, Mysticism +10,
Restoration +10
Abilities
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Dragon Skin
Shield 50% for 60 seconds on Self
Fortify Magicka
Ability: Breton Enhanced Magicka (50)
Resist Magic
Ability: Breton Magic Resistance (50)
Opinion
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Somebody at Bethesda must love Bretons. Really. These are your premier
mages in Oblivion, as they have the second highest Magicka total with
no downside. In fact, they have the best magical resistance as well,
Better yet, they also have the best shielding ability in the game, much
better than the Nordic ability. Undoubtedly the best set of abilities in
the game.
Rating: *****
Dark Elf
o======================================================================o
Also known as "Dunmer" in their homeland of Morrowind, the Dark Elves
are noted for their skilled and balanced integration of the sword, the
bow, and destruction magic. They are resistant to fire and can summon
an ancestral ghost for aid.
Attributes, Female
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
40 40 30 40 50 30 40 50 320
Attributes, Male
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
40 40 30 40 50 40 30 50 320
Skill Bonuses
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Athletics +5, Blade +10, Blunt +5, Destruction +10, Mysticism +5,
Light Armor +5, Marksman +5
Abilities
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Ancestor Guardian
Summon Ancestor Guardian for 60 seconds on Self
Resist Fire
Ability: Dark Elf Fire Resistance (75)
Opinion
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Dark Elves in Oblivion sure aren't like what they are in most other
fantasy settings. Still, that's not entirely a bad thing. Darks Elves
have two abilities that don't explicitly suck. Firstly, they have the
equivalent of a low-level summoning spell. Nothing too special.
Secondly they are 75% resistant to fire damage, by far the most common
element you'll have thrown at you. This makes them an entirely playable
class, with no real downside.
Rating: ***
High Elf
o======================================================================o
Also known as "Altmer" in their homeland of Summerset Isle, the High
Elves are the most strongly gifted in the arcane arts of all the races.
However, they are also somewhat vulnerable to fire, frost, and shock.
Attributes, Female
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
30 50 40 40 40 30 40 50 320
Attributes, Male
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
30 50 40 40 30 40 40 50 320
Skill Bonuses
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Alchemy +5, Alteration +10, Conjuration +5, Destruction +10,
Illusion +5, Mysticism +10.
Abilities
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Weakness to Fire
Ability: High Elf Elemental Weakness (25)
Weakness to Frost
Ability: High Elf Elemental Weakness (25)
Weakness to shock
Ability: High Elf Elemental Weakness (25)
Fortify Magicka
Ability: High Elf Enhanced Magicka (100)
Resist Disease
Ability: High Elf Disease Resistance (75)
Opinion
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Basically your mages in Oblivion, High Elves gain a whopping 100 points
to their Magicka. The maximum Magicka boost is something that really
can't be replicated, because your maximum Magicka determines the
potential potency of any spell you cast (more Magicka = more potent
spells). The disease resistance on the other hand, is very paltry. You
can get Cure Disease spells fairly easily, or potions, or just eat raw
reagents, so there's really not much to celebrate here. On the other
side, they take 25% more damage from ALL elements. I'm not sold on their
positive perks, and they get a massive negative perk? Shouldn't highly
magickal beings be resistant to magic, if anything? After seeing the
Breton, this penalty is harsh, even ridiculous, and completely makes
them redundant as a PC race.
Rating: *
Imperial
o======================================================================o
Natives of the civilized, cosmopolitan province of Cyrodiil, they have
proved to be shrewd diplomats and traders. They are skilled with
heavy armor and in the social skills and tend to favor the warrior
classes.
Attributes, Female
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
40 40 40 30 30 40 50 50 320
Attributes, Male
------------------------------------------------------------------------
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
40 40 30 30 40 40 50 50 320
Skill Bonuses
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Blade +5, Blunt +5, Hand to Hand +5, Heavy Armor +10, Mercantile +10,
Speechcraft +10
Abilities
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Star of the West
Absorb Fatigue 100 points on Touch.
Voice of the Emperor
Charm 30 points for 30 seconds on Target.
Opinion
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Imperials are supposed to be the Elder Scrolls version of Romans,
conquering imperials with combat savvy and a penchant for diplomacy.
They are about as boring of a race as you can make, but everybody must
have their niche, eh? Their Endurance is fair, but their special
abilities are frankly ass. Charm and Absorb Fatigue are both pretty
useless, especially Charm since you can either a) use Speechcraft to
improve someone's disposition. b) bribe somebody to improve their
disposition. Or c) get a spell that does the same thing! And draining
Fatigue? Fatigue regenerates, and all draining it will do is make the
enemies deal less damage. Maybe if you could use it multiple times.. to
keep an enemy drained of fatigue, but it's a once per day thing. It's
not going to change the tide of a single battle. If it has any impact
whatsoever, you used it against an enemy that could not hope to beat you
anyhow. The only reason I can see to play them is if you want to
aesthetically play a generic character. Granted, their features are
some of the least fugly in Oblivion, but is that a good enough reason to
settle? At least they don't have any negatives to them.
Rating: **
Khajiit
o======================================================================o
Hailing from the province of Elsweyr, they are intelligent, quick, and
agile. They make excellent thieves due to their natural agility and
unmatched acrobatics skill. All Khajiit can see in the dark.
Attributes, Female
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
39 40 30 50 40 40 40 50 320
Attributes, Male
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
40 40 30 50 40 30 40 50 320
Skill Bonuses
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Athletics +5, Blade +5, Hand to Hand +10, Acrobatics +10,
Light Armor +5, Security +5, Sneak +5.
Abilities
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Eye of Fear
Demoralize up to level 25 for 30 seconds on Target
Eye of Night
Night-Eye for 30 seconds on Self
Opinion
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Originally I didn't think much of the 'cat-people', in fact, teenage
bias at one point kept me from playing Morrowind due to the
'cat-people' in the Elder Scrolls game. It is a choice I regret, as now
I just can't get into the game, when I probably could have during its
height. What can I say? I was a fairly asininely-biased little guy.
Anyhow, they aren't very good from a gameplay standpoint. Their
abilities are pretty lame. At least Eye of Fear might help out in a
fight once in a while, but their 'ability to see in the dark' is the
equivalent of a low level illusion spell that can be purchased from the
get-go by any other race. At least you can use it as often as you
please, which makes them have some useful abilities, if not any great
ones. Making this ability a toggle ability instead of an activated one
would have been nice, Bethesda.
Rating: **
Nord
o======================================================================o
Citizens of Skyrim, they are a tall and fair-haired people. Strong and
hardy, Nords are famous for their resistance to cold. They are highly
talented warriors.
Attributes, Female
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
50 30 40 40 40 40 30 50 320
Attributes, Male
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
50 30 30 40 40 50 30 50 320
Skill Bonuses
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Armorer +5, Blade +10, Block +5, Blunt +10, Heavy Armor +10,
Restoration +5
Abilities
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Nordic Frost
Frost Damage 50 points on Touch
Woad
Shield 30% for 60 seconds on Self
Resist Frost
Ability: Nord Frost Immunity (50)
Opinion
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The Vikings of the Elder Scrolls, Nords are supposed to be good
warriors, and their high starting Endurance certainly means they'll have
plenty of Health. Their abilities.. eh.. 50 damage is alright, but doing
frost damage once per day isn't fantastic. Also, they are 50% resistant
to frost damage. Not too many things use frost, and fire would have been
better since it is by far the most common element, but still, a
resistance to anything is not bad. Woad is pretty nice too. 30% damage
resistance for a full minute can really help you weather some tougher
melees, and even taken once per day, it is still a good ability. They
are certainly an interesting-if not overwhelmingly powerful-race.
Rating: ****
Orc
o======================================================================o
The people of the Wrothgarian and Dragontail Mountains, Orcish armorers
are prized for their craftmsanship. Orc troops in heavy armor are among
the finest in the Empire, and are fearsome when using their berserker
rage.
Attributes, Female
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
45 40 45 35 30 50 25 50 320
Attributes, Male
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
45 30 50 35 30 50 30 50 320
Skill Bonuses
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Armorer +10, Block +10, Blunt +10, Hand to Hand +5, Heavy Armor +10
Abilities
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Berserk
Fortify Health 20 points for 60 seconds on Self
Fortify Fatigue 200 points for 60 seconds on Self
Drain Agility 100 points for 60 seconds on Self
Fortify Strength 50 points for 60 seconds on Self
Resist Magic
Ability: Orc Magic Resistance (25)
Opinion
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Orcs are your berserkers.. a staple of any fantasy genre. Of course,
in Oblivion they appear in a fairly unusual role: that of an integrated
and mostly-civilized (if unkempt, unruly, horse-eating) members of
society. Berserk is an interesting ability. The Health bonus is paltry,
but the massive Strength bonus is pretty nice.. if you can manage to
hit things without getting knocked around yourself (the Agility hit
hurts.) Resist Magic is less of a mixed bag, 25% magic resistance is a
very good thing.
Rating: ****
Redguard
o======================================================================o
The most naturally talented warriors in Tamriel. In addition to their
cultural affinities for many weapon and armor styles, they also have a
hardy constitution and a natural resistance to disease and poison.
Attributes, Female
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
40 30 30 40 40 50 40 50 320
Attributes, Male
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
50 30 30 40 40 50 30 50 320
Skill Bonuses
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Athletics +10, Blade +10, Blunt +10, Light Armor +5, Heavy Armor +5,
Mercantile +5
Abilities
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Adrenaline Rush
Fortify Agility 50 points for 60 seconds on Self
Fortify Strength 50 points for 60 seconds on Self
Fortify Speed 50 points for 60 seconds on Self
Fortify Endurance 50 points for 60 seconds on Self
Fortify Health 25 points for 60 seconds on Self
Resist Poison
Ability: Redguard Poison Resistance (75)
Resist Disease
Ability: Redguard Disease Resistance (75)
Opinion
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
If you thought the Orc was nice, behold the Redguard. While 25% magic
resistance is undeniably a good thing, 75% disease and poison resistance
is a healthy bonus, too. But the real winner is Adrenaline Rush, which
significantly raises all the Redguard's combat stats for a full minute
with no downside. This is much better than the Berserk ability of the
Orc, and both genders have a health Endurance to keep them up with the
Nord and Orc in overall Health. Of course, all the Redguards abilities
are significantly less useful if you prefer to stay out of direct
combat, but if you want to mix things up, there's good incentive to play
a Redguard.
Rating: *****
Wood Elf
o======================================================================o
The clanfolk of the Western Valenwood forests, also known as "Bosmer."
Wood Elves are nimble and quick, making them good scouts and thieves,
and there are no finer archers in all of Tamriel. Their ability to
command simple creatures is well-known.
Attributes, Female
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
30 40 30 50 50 30 40 50 320
Attributes, Male
------------------------------------------------------------------------
STR INT WIL AGI SPD END PER LCK TOT
30 40 30 50 50 40 30 50 320
Skill Bonuses
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Acrobatics +5, Alchemy +10, Alteration +5, Light Armor +5, Marksman +10,
Sneak +10
Abilities
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Beast Tongue
Command Creature up to level 5 for 60 seconds on Target
Resist Disease
Ability: Wood Elf Disease Resistance (75)
Opinion
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Okay, if you looked at those abilities, then you should know where this
is going. Wood Elves suck on the ability end. The disease resistance is
nice, but considering that Redguards have that and then some, it comes
hard to recommend. And then the Beast Tongue ability. I don't know why
Bethesda plays favorites with races, but a level 5 command effect?
Care to guess when that becomes useless? How about, level 6? By all
means, amassing a horde-of-one mudcrab and rat appeals to you, then go
for it. The real animals that you could have at your side are
too high of a level, for one, and not in Oblivion, where you might
actually need the help, for two. Still, they have no downside, so they
aren't completely useless.
Rating: **
o======================================================================o
| |
| Birthsigns {BRT001} |
| |
o======================================================================o
You'll get the chance to pick a birthsign fairly early into the game.
This will improve some attributes, and perhaps give you an extra
ability to use. It's a somewhat important decision, but it wont change
the game dramatically.. unless you choose the Atronach, that is.
Rating: * Does more harm than good
Rating: ** Beneficial, but becomes obsolete
Rating: *** Mildly useful over the course of the game.
Rating: **** Very useful over the course of the game.
Rating: ***** Makes you a phenom.
The Signs
o======================================================================o
The Apprentice
The Apprentice ability confers a 100-point bonus to your Magicka
attribute, but gives you a 100% Weakness to Magic.
That's a good bit of Magicka, but it also makes you take twice as
affected by all hostile spells. In a word, that sucks. It's like
choosing to get coated in vomit in exchange for a mint. You're better
off with nothing.
Rating: *
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The Lady
The Lady's Blessing confers bonuses of 10 points to your Willpower and
Endurance attributes.
Willpower is pointless, but the Endurance boost is pretty nice. This
is an okay birthsign.
Rating: ***
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The Mage
The Mage ability confers a permanent bonus of 50 points to your Magicka.
Instead of the Apprentice, you should choose this, if you really must.
It gives you a 50 point bonus to Magicka (one quarter the maximum you
can get from Intelligence) with no downside.
Rating: ***
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The Thief
The Thief ability grants a 10-point bonus to your Agility, Speed, and
Luck attributes.
If you're making a level conservative character, this birthsign is the
way to go, allowing you to gain 10 points of Luck right off the bat,
thus shaving 10 levels off of what you'd need. Plus, 30 points isn't
bad in any event.
Rating: ****
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The Atronach
With the Atronach ability you don't regain Magicka over time. Instead
you have a 50% Spell Absorption to recharge your Magicka. Your base
Magicka is also increased by 150 points.
150 points is a stupendous, whopping amount of Magicka, offset by the
fact that you'll never naturally regenerate magicka. Some people don't
find this to be a significant handicap, as they'll be perfectly happy
brewing themselves potions and finding other ways to recharge their
Magicka. One popular method is to summon a creature that only attacks
with spells and turning it hostile, ensuring that you'll absorb at least
some of the damage as Magicka. In any event, I find this birthsign to be
more of a burden than anything else. I don't play a full mage, so when
I do use spells I use them as support.. and I really don't want to have
to think about where the Magicka is going to come from the next time I
cast a spell. As for full-blown mages, your Magicka regeneration rate in
a fight is usually so poor that this isn't a significant handicap, and
instead of resting between battles you may as well just summon a
creature to recharge your mana. It's a good trade off for the boost to
Magicka it gives, although it is a lot more work than picking a birth
sign like the Mage.
Rating: ****
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The Lord
Being born under the Lord gives you the Blood of the North less power to
regenerate up to 90 points of Health. However, you also gain the
Trollkin curse, a permanent 25% Weakness to Fire.
You can simply use potions, magic, or rest to heal. The 90 point Health
regeration is simply not worth the permanent fire vulnerability,
especially as it's the most common element in the game.
Rating: *
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The Lover
Use the Lover's Kiss power once a day to paralyze an opponent for 10
seconds at the cost of 120 points of Fatigue.
Or just get a spell that does it. 10 seconds is a long time, but there
are better birthsigns.
Rating: **
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The Ritual
Those born under the Ritual use the Mara's Gift power once a day as a
powerful Restore Health spell. The Blessed Word can turn the undead.
A powerful healing spell indeed, Mara's Gift restores 200 Health! And
Blessed word turns up to level 25 undead for 30 seconds. Both are
replicable-but good-abilities.
Rating: **
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The Serpent
Gain the Serpent spell to cause a slow but potent poison on touch, while
simultaneously curing yourself and dispelling magic on yourself.
Casting this spell costs 100 points of Fatigue.
Using this ability on an enemy cures poison on yourself, dispels 90
points, and deals 3 points of damage for 20 seconds on the enemy you
touch. It's interesting, but the 60 points of damage isn't terribly
powerful, and poisons tend to deal their damage immediately, or end
fairly quickly. It's hard to see this coming in handy often.
Rating: **
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The Shadow
Use the Moonshadow power once a day to become Invisible for 60 seconds.
This is a mid-level Illusions spell. You can pick better.
Rating: **
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The Steed
The Steed ability grants a bonus of 20 points to you Speed attribute.
You can level Speed up just fine without the 20 point boost.
Rating: **
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The Tower
With the Tower Key power, once a day open a door or container of average
lock level or less. The Tower Warden reflects five points of damage
for 120 seconds once a day.
Average locks are nothing. That's a mid-level spell, or one lockpick if
you're clumsy. The reflect damage is decent, especially the duration,
but you can get spells and gear that do the same thing.
Rating: **
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The Warrior
The Warrior ability grants a bonus of 10 points to your Strength and
Endurance.
Hit things harder at the word go, and add a permanent boost to your
Endurance-and thus your Health-while you're at it. What's not to like?
Rating: ***
o======================================================================o
| |
| Class {CLS001} |
| |
o======================================================================o
The game throws you into picking a class rather abruptly, and will even
offer you a class based on your play style up until this point.
Unfortunately, you've just started, you hardly know the ropes, and you
are really in no position to pick what you want to do the rest of the
game based upon what you've been doing in this dungeon. I know my first
run through consisted mostly of getting used to the control scheme (I
was a legacy control user) and trial-and-error. Instead of picking what
the game offers you, custom-make your own. It's worth it.
Major and Minor Skills
o======================================================================o
When creating your character's class (which you should do, as opposed to
picking a pre-built class) you must pick seven Major skills. These
skills are the skills that determine when you level up, anytime you gain
10 skill points into any of your seven major skills (spread across all
skills) you increase in level. Controlling when you level up is very
important.. if you level up too soon, you might not be able to get the
bonuses to your attributes that you want and need. Instead of picking
'class skills' that you want to define your character, you should pick
ones you can control.
For example, if you pick Athletics as a major skill, you'll make
progress towards your level level up by simply walking. You could always
not move, but you wouldn't make very much progress then, would you?
Picking major skills you can unerringly control the use of is a huge
part of character creation. You also don't want to pick skills that are
hard to improve, like Mercantile, Speechcraft, Security, or
Restoration. Last but not least, you don't want to pick skills you plan
to use constantly. If you just love swinging a sword, you probably
don't want to pick Blade as a major skill, as you'll only be able to
use it at will when you're trying to level it up.. or when you reach
level 100 in that skill, in which case you can use it as much as you
please. Below are the following skills I typically select for major
skills, and why. (Keep in mind, I tend to play a Breton, so I ignore
a slew of potentially good spell skills in order to reach the highest
level possible.)
Armorer You only need this when you're repairing stuff, and if
you get a few levels in it here or there it will only
supplement the Endurance I tend to be going for with
Heavy Armor anyways.
Blunt I prefer Blade to Blunt.
Hand to Hand You don't need a weapon for it, when you want to level
Strength, just set the difficulty to highest and go
beat up some Mud Crabs.
Heavy Armor You only level up Heavy Armor when you wear Heavy Armor.
It's a quick and easy way to get Endurance levels, and
when it hits 100, I can wear all the armor I want. A
priority skill for me.
Light Armor Just like Heavy Armor, but Speed can wait, Endurance
cannot, so it gets delayed in favor of Heavy Armor.
Marksman Again, a weapon, there's no way you're accidentally
going to level it.
Sneak Sneak isn't very useful early on as the enemies just
aren't strong, and at low skill levels it rarely works.
After Heavy Armor I tend to focus on Sneak.
Any Spell Spells are easy to level for the most part, and only
(Besides increase when you cast them.
Restoration)
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Pick seven skills that are easy to level up, and most importantly,
that you can control.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
If going for an absolute build, don't pick racial skills, or skills that
are part of your class specialization. For example, if you pick Magic
as your class specialization, don't pick any spells as major skills.
This will help maximize your leveling.
Class Specializations
o======================================================================o
When you pick your class (which is just a selection of seven major
skills) you also get to pick an area of specialization for that class.
This is essentially a gameplay style you want to focus on, and it
includes combat arts, magic arts, and stealth arts. Specialized skills
increase faster, and gain a +10 bonus right off the bat.. these are not
skills you want as Major skills if you're making an absolute build. You
also get to pick two attributes, which are the focus of said class and
recieve a flat +5 bonus. These can be any two attributes, and do not
have to be in any way related to your skills. Luck and Endurance are
easily the best two-Endurance because it is the only attribute whose
benefits are not retroactive-and Luck because it's just slow to level.
Combat Skills: Armorer, Athletics, Blade, Block, Blunt, Hand To Hand,
Heavy Armor.
Magic Skills: Alchemy, Alteration, Conjuration, Destruction, Illusion,
Mysticism, Restoration.
Stealth Skills: Acrobatics, Light Armor, Marksman, Mercantile, Security,
Sneak, Speechcraft.
o======================================================================o
| |
| Leveling Up {LVL001} |
| |
o======================================================================o
Leveling in Oblivion is a bit awkward, the mechanics of which have been
enough to scare my fiance away from all but the most casual of gaming.
I'll try to explain the leveling system as simply and matter of factly
as I can. I feel it is apt to talk about the leveling system early,
since you'll be building your character around this system. I'll have to
talk about skills, attributes, and various other items that I'll
eventually go over later.. but it needs to be done, so ignore the
redundancy. It's not as complicated as it sounds.
Leveling Up
o======================================================================o
Simply put, out of all the skills you have, you pick seven to be major
skills. These level up quicker than minor skills (all the rest of your
skills count as minor) and when you get a total of 10 levels in any
combination of major skills, you level up. You can level up one skill
ten times, ten skills one time, or anywhere in between. Your minor
skill don't matter when it comes to gaining a level, but they are still
important when it comes to how much you gain from each level.. anyways
more on that later. That's simple, now to complicate things a little
bit.
Maximum Level
o======================================================================o
There are two ways to approach leveling up, the absolute method, and
the relative method. I've made a character based around both, and I
haven't really noticed a huge difference, but here we go.
Absolute Build
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Every time you level up, you gain a bonus number of health equal to your
Endurance/10, so the more levels you gain, the more hitpoints you gain.
If you want more health, get more levels, period. Now, since you gain a
level every time you get 10 points in major skills, your maximum level
is the number of times you can gain ten points in your major skills. All
your major skills are set to a minimum of 25 (Novice level), higher if
your class focus is the same as any of your skills (more on this later),
and if your race gets a bonus to those skills (again, later.) So if you
want to max your levels all you have to do is pick major skills that are
different from your class focus, and your racial skills (harder than it
sounds..)
Now for the math, calculate the maximum level you can reach with your
build by doing the following: (The example will show the maximum level
you can attain in Oblivion, naturally.)
Add up your starting ranks in your major skills. (25 x 7 = 175)
Subtract the total from the maximum level you can reach in each skill.
(700 - 175 = 525)
Divide the total number of points left over by 10 to determine how many
times you can level up.
(525 / 10 = 52.5 = 52)
Using this min-maxing build, you can see that this character can gain a
total of 52 level-ups. Starting at level 1, this makes the maximum level
in Oblivion 53.
Relative Build
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
In opposition to the absolute method, which produces the highest leveled
characters with the most health is the relative build. As you level up,
so do the monsters in Oblivion, some of which gain considerably more
health per level than you do. The goal of the relative build therefor
is to max your character out at fast as possible in order to make the
most powerful character (relatively). Get it? No matter your race,
specializtion, or major/minor skill concentrations, the most hampering
obstacle to leveling up quickly is your Luck. The base luck for all
characters is 50. You can raise your Luck by 10 points with The Thief
birthsign, but that's still only 60. The maximum level (for a power
build where all your attributes are 100) is therefore 40 for the
relative build. The relative build is a little more constrictive than
the absolute build as you have less levels to play around with. Still,
I reccommend the same kind of build for both. The only difference is
you'll want to max all your attributes out at 100 as soon as possible
to finish the relative build, whereas with the absolute build you want
to maximize your attributes only upon attaining your ultimate level.
Of course, if you were to let Luck slide you could probably max out all
your other attributes sooner, but there's nothing like a fat list of
three digit numbers on you attribute sheet to say 'power gamer.'
Attribute Increase by Level
o======================================================================o
Every time you level up you can improve three different attributes. Each
attribute you select gains one point, but may potentially gain more..
Each of your skills is tied to an attribute (except Luck, which has no
skills tied to it.) When you increase a skill, the attribute tied to
that skill gains bonuses that can increase the number of points you
raise an attribute when you level up.
For example, if you get points in Armorer, and select to increase
Endurance next level, you may gain +2, +3, +4, or +5 to Endurance
instead of the normal +1, depending on how many skill increases you got
in Endurance-related skills.
Of course, you're going to want the +5 attribute points in each of the
three attributes you get to select each level, right? Right. Now keep a
few things in mind..
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Getting 10 points in any skills that are related to the same attribute
will get you a bonus of +5 to that attribute when you level up if you
select it. Getting more will not get you a higher bonus than +5, so
there's no point in it.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
These attribute point modifiers DO NOT carry over different levels. If
you get 10 skill increases in Speechcraft at level 2, and don't improve
Personality when you level up, the next level you will not receive any
modifiers to Personality unless you gain more ranks in Personality
related skills.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
You need to plan what attributes you want to level up, and get ten
skill increases per attribute each level. If you wanted to level up
Strength, Endurance, and Speed for example, you'd want 10 skill
increases in the following skills: Strength = Blade, Blunt, and Hand To
Hand. Endurance = Armorer, Heavy Armor, Block. Speed = Light Armor,
Acrobatics, Athletics. This is just like leveling up.. you need 10
point total in the same attribute related skills. Whether that's ten in
one skill, five in two skills, or three, three, and four, as long as it
adds up to ten.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Since you gain Health at a rate of Endurance/10 per level, you want to
raise Endurance by five points per level each of your early levels until
you have 100 Endurance. This will maximize your Health gain overall.
Once you have 100 Endurance, you no longer need to worry about what you
level up, but you need to give Endurance priority treatment. Get your
Endurance to 100 as fast as the game allows!!
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
You can only increase your Luck by one point per level.. depending on
your starting Luck, you may need to start putting points into Luck at
different points to ensure you get it to 100. If you start out with
50 Luck, you'll need to level up 50 times and select Luck to get it to
100. Keep an eye on your Luck, and ensure that when you begin boosting
it when appropriate.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
If you run out of attributes to increase, you will stop leveling up,
regardless of how many major skills you have left to raise. If all your
attributes are 100 at level 42, you will not increase beyond level 42!!
Now that you have that in mind.. Luck is a great 'control' attribute.
You can only increase it one point per level, so if you save it until
you reach the last level you can possibly begin leveling it up and reach
100 Luck, you'll ensure you can max your level. For example: If you
begin play with 60 Luck, and have a build that lets you reach level 50,
you need 40 level ups to max Luck at 100. So simple math 50 - 40 = 10.
When you reach level 10 be ready to put a point into Luck on your next
level up (from L.10 to L.11) so that on your 50th and final level, you
get your Luck up from 99 to 100. Of course, if you're making a relative
build, Luck is probably the attribute that will be holding you back.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Pretty obvious but.. if you run out of skills to increase for an
attribute, you cannot increase that attribute more than +1 per level.
So don't go maxing skills arbitrarily until you have their related
attribute up to 100.
Summary
o======================================================================o
So that's the goal of leveling, but to summarize by steps for your
convenience:
1) Pick three attributes each level to increase.
2) One of those three should be Endurance if your Endurance is not 100.
3) One of those three should be Luck if you are at a level at which
you need to increase Luck to reach 100 when you reach you level cap.
4) Level up skills related to those attributes by a cumulative total of
10 points.
5) Do not waste skill increases until the related attribute of said
skills is at level 100.
That's an extremely power-gamey way to play the game, but if you want
to play that hardcore, those are the mechanics of the game, to be
nit-picked at your leisure. The REAL important steps are to raise
Endurance to 100 ASAP and to ensure you begin leveling Luck before you
get too high of a level to max it.
o======================================================================o
| |
| Attributes {ATT001} |
| |
o======================================================================o
Your attributes affect your derived attributes, including Health
Magicka, and Fatigue. They also affect a great number of things about
you character, like how fast you move, how much damage you deal, and
so on. Maxing all your attributes to 100 is the purpose of this guide.
o======================================================================o
| Strength |
o======================================================================o
Related Skills: Blade, Blunt, Hand to Hand
Affects how much you can carry, how much Fatigue you have, and how
much damage you can do with melee weapons such as swords and axes.
Governs the skills of Blunt, Blade, and Hand to Hand.
Strength will increase the melee damage of all your melee weapons,
which is nice enough in itself. It also adds five points to your
encumbrance maximum, which is good for all you folks who like to
carry lots of stuff (I know I do!) And last and probably least,
Strength will improve your Fatigue on a point-for-point basis.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
There's only one way to raise Strength.. go destroy things in melee
combat. Whether you do it with your fists, swords, axes, or maces is
irrelevant. Slide the difficulty slider up to the maximum and go
slaughter Mud Crabs. Spread the leveling love around all three related
skills, and you'll be on your way.
o======================================================================o
| Intelligence |
o======================================================================o
Related Skills: Alchemy, Conjuration, Mysticism
Affects your total Magicka and magic use. Governs the skills of
Alchemy, Conjuration, and Mysticism.
Intelligence also raises your Magicka total by two points per point of
Intelligence.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
You can improve your Intelligence by leveling your Alchemy, Conjuration,
and Mysticism skills. Go pick flowers, mash them up with a mortar and
pestle, and sell the potions you make, that way you're leveling up
Mercantile too. Or summon things. Or cast Mysticism spells. Intelligence
is easy to level up, but I never make it much of a priority, considering
how little it does.
o======================================================================o
| Willpower |
o======================================================================o
Related Skills: Alteration, Destruction, Restoration
Affects how quickly you regenerate Magicka, and how much Fatigue you
have. Governs the skills of Destruction, Alteration, and Restoration.
Willpower increases your Magicka regeneration, although how much so I'm
not entirely sure. Also it improves Fatigue on a point-for-point basis.
Naturally, a high Willpower goes hand in hand with a high Intelligence,
although having a higher Magicka is better than having a faster
regeneration rate any day.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Of the three spells that level Willpower, Alteration is probably your
best bet. It's much easier to level than Destruction and especially
Willpower. If you get access to the Arcane University, you can make
spells that damage your own equipment to raise Destruction easily, but
I generally prefer to wait until I have 100% chameleon gear to level
Destruction more conventionally-by throwing fireballs at people.
o======================================================================o
| Agility |
o======================================================================o
Related Skills: Marksman, Security, Sneak
Affects your ability to maneuver and balance, your total Fatigue, and
damage done by bows. Governs the skills of Security, Sneak, and
Marksman.
The more Agility you have, the less often you'll get knocked silly in
combat, although I'm not sure exactly how much of an effect it has
(except to say that it's noticable!) Agility also improves your damage
with bows, and improves Fatigue on a point-for-point basis.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Of the three skills that level Agility, Sneak is by and far the easiest
to increase. Security becomes a chore VERY quickly, and Marksman is
always somewhat of a chore. I'd suggest you don't waste easy early
levels in Marksman or Security, and boost your Agility with them. After
I get 100% chameleon, I can level Marksman at will, but until then,
Sneak is pretty much my go-to skill for Agility.
o======================================================================o
| Speed |
o======================================================================o
Related Skills: Acrobatics, Athletics, Light Armor
Determines how fast you move. Governs the skills of Athletics, Light
Armor, and Acrobatics.
What the man says, it makes you move faster. Over the days you spend
leveling Speed, you might not notice it, but get your Speed up to 100
and start a new character, and it'll be agonizingly slow.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
When you level Acrobatics and Athletics, be ready to put points into
Speed. Other than those two skills, Light Armor is the only skill that
levels Speed, and thankfully Light Armor is pretty easy to improve.
o======================================================================o
| Endurance |
o======================================================================o
Related Skills: Armorer, Block, Heavy Armor
Affects how much Fatigue you have, your Health, and how much your Health
will increase when you sleep and raise levels. Governs the skills of
Block, Armorer, and Heavy Armor.
Endurance is the only attribute in the game that has priority, like
Intelligence in Fallout 3, none of the other attributes matter in terms
of when you raise them. You gain Health equal to 1/10th of your
Endurance score per level. The higher your Endurance, the faster, the
more Health you end up with. A character who starts with 30 Endurance
will gain 2 less Health per level than a character who starts with 50.
Considering it will take that character at least 14 levels to max out
Endurance, that equates to 26 less Health, provided both characters
focus on maxing their Endurance early. That's not a killer amount of
Health, but keep in mind that if you DON'T get your Endurance to 100
ASAP, that total difference could end up significantly higher. It's just
free Health points you're throwing away when you ignore Endurance,
simple as that.. and also, Endurance raises your Fatigue on a
point-for-point basis. But that's not important.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Block is pretty easy to level up to level 50, and in the process of
leveling Block and Heavy Armor, you'll get plenty of chances to
supplement a few ranks of Armorer. Heavy Armor is incredibly easy to
level, and should probably be your vehicle of Endurance supremacy.
o======================================================================o
| Personality |
o======================================================================o
Related Skills: Illusion, Mercantile, Speechcraft
Affects how much people like you, which leads to better information-
gathering. Governs the skills of Speechcraft, Mercantile, and Illusion.
Personality affects the disposition of others, and it will make getting
quests, information, and cheaper prices easier. Fortunately, this is
only much of a problem early on in the game, when money still matters,
and when buying a house is a priority. There are other ways to improve
dispositions, for that matter, which makes Personality nice to have,
but not imperative to get.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Speechcraft is fairly easy until level 50, when it becomes a chore, so
don't waste those levels. Mercantile is always a pain, and if you
supplement your Mercantile with training sessions, make sure you don't
waste those points. Other than those two skills Illusion makes your life
pretty easy.
o======================================================================o
| Luck |
o======================================================================o
Luck has an effect on everything you do, but governs no skills.
It has an effect on everything you do.. what effect, and how much? Hard
to say. Maybe it affect critical hits, or damage rolls, or stun chances.
Who knows? In any case, I'm too paranoid to ignore it!
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Luck can only be raised by one point per level, so make sure you start
leveling it early, or else you wont be able to max it! It makes a very
good attribute to pick as a class focus, considering how slowly it
grows through leveling.
o======================================================================o
| |
| Derived Attributes {DAT001} |
| |
o======================================================================o
These are derived from the primary attributes, and are affected by
changes to your primary attributes.
o======================================================================o
| Health |
o======================================================================o
Health is the amount of damage you can take before you die. Your
maximum Health increases every time you gain a level. Endurance affects
how much Health you gain per level. Your starting Health is twice your
Endurance. Sleeping, potions or spells can restore your Health.
Health is pretty much the only attribute that varies permanently
depending on how you level.. which pretty much determines the entire
leveling build. The formula is as follows:
Base Endurance x2 + 1/10 Endurance per level
o======================================================================o
| Magicka |
o======================================================================o
Magicka is used to cast spells. You start with Magicka equal to double
your Intelligence. Choosing certain races and birthsigns will give you
Magicka bonuses that increase your Maximum Magicka. Magicka regenerates
based on your Willpower. Sleeping, potions or spells can restore your
Magicka more quickly.
It doesn't matter when or how you choose to deal with your Magicka, it
will hit the same maximum, regardless. The only point to having a high
Magicka-besides from being able to cast more spells, which is moot
because you can just wait, or use a potion-is being able to cast more
powerful spells. For example, one spell you can get in the game,
Finger of the Mountain, has a Magicka cost of 710 with a Destruction
score of 100. The only conceivable way to cast this spell is to pick
a Magicka-rich race, a Magicka birthsign, and wear gear that improves
your Magicka. Frankly, I just dont think it's worth the effort. I'd
rather cast multiple weaker spells. The formula for Magicka is:
Intelligence Score x2
o======================================================================o
| Fatigue |
o======================================================================o
Fatigue is how tired you are. Low Fatigue hurts your effectiveness,
especially when doing melee attacks. Fighting hand-to-hand, swinging a
weapon, or jumping may reduce your Fatigue. If your Fatigue falls below
zero due to a spell or other special effect, you are knocked down.
Walking, resting, waiting, potions, and spells can restore your Fatigue.
Your Maximum Fatigue is the combined values of your Strength, Agility,
and Willpower.
Well, they left out Endurance, but who is keeping score? Fatigue isn't
that big of a deal. The lower your Fatigue, the less damage you'll do
with attacks. Still, when you're a higher level it becomes less
important, as blocking and running won't fatigue you. At a lower level,
you'll be out of Fatigue often in bigger fights.. but you're not really
losing all that much damage anyways.
Endurance Score + Strength Score + Agility Score + Willpower Score
o======================================================================o
| Encumbrance |
o======================================================================o
Encumbrance is the total weight of items you can carry. You cannot move
at all when fully encumbered. Maximum Encumbrance is equal to five times
your Strength.
The higher your Encumbrance, the more stuff you can carry. Maximum of
100 Strength equals a maximum of 500 Encumbrance. Sounds like a lot, but
when some swords weigh 50 'pounds', and warhammers can approach 100,
it's a rather low amount. Frankly, I prefer the Fallout 3 system, where
you walk at snail speed. It forces you to engage the burden, not simply
discard excess loot. Having 'feather' armor is nice, as it will let you
carry all the goodies you could want.
o======================================================================o
| |
| Skills {SKL001} |
| |
o======================================================================o
And finally, to your skills. Some skills are useful because they change
the way the game works. Mastering Armorer allows you to repair without
ever breaking a repair hammer, for instance. Most just give you special
attacks or access to more powerful spells. In any case, the most
important thing about skills is that they help raise your Attributes.
Below I will talk about what the skills do, and how to level them.
o===============o===============o
| Attribute |Related Skills |
o===============o===============o
| | Marksman |
| Agility | Security |
| | Sneak |
|---------------|---------------|
| | Armorer |
| Endurance | Block |
| | Heavy Armor |
|---------------|---------------|
| | Alchemy |
| Intelligence | Conjuration |
| | Mysticism |
|---------------|---------------|
| Luck | N/A |
|---------------|---------------|
| | Illusion |
| Personality | Mercantile |
| | Speechcraft |
|---------------|---------------|
| | Acrobatics |
| Speed | Athletics |
| | Light Armor |
|---------------|---------------|
| | Blade |
| Strength | Blunt |
| | Hand to Hand |
|---------------|---------------|
| | Alteration |
| Willpower | Destruction |
| | Restoration |
o===============o===============o
o===============o===============================o
|Specialization | Skills |
o===============o===============================o
| | Athletics, Armorer, Blade, |
| Combat | Block, Blunt, Hand to Hand, |
| | Heavy Armor |
|---------------|-------------------------------|
| | Alchemy, Alteration, |
| Magic | Conjuration, Destruction, |
| | Illusion, Mysticism, |
| | Restoration |
|---------------|-------------------------------|
| | Acrobatics, Light Armor, |
| Stealth |Marksman, Mercantile, Security |
| | Speechcraft, Sneak |
o===============o===============================o
Skill Mastery Levels
o======================================================================o
Every 25 ranks in a skill, you will gain a new 'mastery level', as the
book puts it. This typically gives you a passive benefit attached to
the skill, or allows you to use it in a different way. Just keep these
plateaus in mind as you level up your skills.
o===============o===============o
| Mastery Level | Skill Scores |
o===============o===============o
| Novice | 0-24 |
|---------------|---------------|
| Apprentice | 25-49 |
|---------------|---------------|
| Journeyman | 50-74 |
|---------------|---------------|
| Expert | 75-99 |
|---------------|---------------|
| Master | 100 |
o===============o===============o
o======================================================================o
| Acrobatics |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Speed
Specialization: Stealth
Jump long distances and avoid damage when falling great distances.
The higher your Acrobatics, the farther you can jump. The father you
can jump, the better you can reach high ground, which stumps the
computer AI a bit. It also allows you to reach higher objects and take
alternative routes. The 'take less damage' thing is a little misleading.
You might take less damage from falling, but since you can jump higher..
you'll fall further, taking more damage. In the end, it evens out. As
you level Acrobatics you'll be able to do defensive rolls, perform jump
attacks, and jump off the surface of water (or lava).
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
After long, arduous hours of practicing jumping and controlling your
falls, you have become an Apprentice of Acrobatics. You can now attack
while jumping or falling. However, you cannot use power attacks while in
mid-jump or mid-fall, only regular attacks.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
After long, arduous hours of practicing jumping and controlling your
falls, you have become a Journeyman of Acrobatics. You now have the
Dodge ability. Blocking while jumping makes you dodge in the direction
of the jump. You will do a tumbling roll and possibly avoid an attack.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
After long, arduous hours of practicing jumping and controlling your
falls, you have become a Journeyman of Acrobatics. Now it costs half as
much fatigue to jump.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
You have become a Master of Acrobatics. You gain the Water Jump ability.
Jump just as you touch the water, and you can jump again just as if it
were a solid surface. Miss your timing.. and fall into the water. With
practice, you can jump several times in a row all the way across a body
of water.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Acrobatics is a bit faster than Athletics, as you get progress every
time you jump. Mind you, the distance of the jump does matter, and if
you just jump in place, you're not going to be leveling much (so no
jumping into a wall.) The real kicker is, if you take damage from a
jump, you level up more! Yep, fall distance counts towards leveling your
Acrobatics. You'd think that being, I don't know, graceful would matter,
but that's besides the point. One fun-if inefficient-way to level is to
jump off bridges (into the water, of course, you don't level very well
if you splatter.) The best method of leveling I've found is to go Sercen
north of the Imperial City and jump up the hills there to Agna. From
Agna, I jump down the hills (trying to maximize my fall distance each
jump) and eventually jump down to the Roxey Inn. There is a ravine east
of Agna that will facilitate your suicidal ambitions. As I level more,
I cut the trip back up and just fast-travel back to Agna. You can get to
level 70 fairly easily this way, and higher if you're patient, but I
generally choose to train the last 20 levels or so. Note that if you're
trying to level Restoration, you can do that while you level Acrobatics.
Since you're going to be taking damage anyways, why not heal in between
jumps to boost your Restoration?
o======================================================================o
| Alchemy |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Intelligence
Specialization: Magic
Create potions and gain benefits from alchemical ingredients more
effectively.
This skill is useful as it not only provides you with useful items, but
selling potions is a great way to make money early on.. if you spend the
time gather ingredients and are willing to raise Intelligence early.
This skill is especially useful for those who have the Atronach birth-
sign, as Magicka potions are going to be valuable. The higher you get
in the Alchemy skill, the more potential properties you will be able
to 'recognize'. This will make your alchemy skill more versatile. Once
you master it, you can make potions from a single ingredient, which
will double your productivity.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Your stained fingers attest to your diligence in mixing potions and
learning their secrets. You are now an Apprentice of Alchemy. All potion
ingredients have four potential effects. You can now automatically
identify the first two effects.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Your stained fingers attest to your diligence in mixing potions and
learning their secrets. You are now an Journeyman of Alchemy. All potion
ingredients have four potential effects. You can now automatically
identify the first three effects.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Your stained fingers attest to your diligence in mixing potions and
learning their secrets. You are now an Expert of Alchemy. All potion
ingredients have four potential effects. You can now automatically
identify all of the effects.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Your stained fingers attest to your diligence in mixing potions and
learning their secrets. You are now a Master of Alchemy. Normally it
takes two or more ingredients to make a potion. As a master Alchemist,
you can create a potion from a single ingredient.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Get food, flowers, mushrooms, anything that can be made into a potion,
and a mortar and pestle. Once done, create potions. As with most
Oblivion skills, it's the quantity, not the quality that matters. Going
from a skill level of 11 to 100 required 2036 potions.. which means I
had to gather 4062 ingredients. Alchemy was not a specialized skill, or
a major skill, so for most characters, you can ballpark a safe figure of
2000 potions to max-give or take a hundred, depending on your starting
level and all that. On the plus side, when I sold those 2036 potions, I
made a tidy profit of 95704 gold.
o======================================================================o
| Alteration |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Willpower
Specialization: Magic
Cast spells to breathe or walk on water, open locks, shield from
physical and magical damage, and alter encumbrance.
This spell school contains a number of useful, if not essential spells.
Water breathing is always nice to have, just in case, and opening locks
magically spares you the hassle of using lockpicks. Shielding physical
and magical damage are obvious pluses, and the feather spell effect is
fun for the pack rat in.. well, in me.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
You have unlocked more arcane secrets of Altering the fabric of reality.
You can now cast Apprentice level Alteration spells.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
You have unlocked more arcane secrets of Altering the fabric of reality.
You can now cast Journeyman level Alteration spells.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
You have unlocked more arcane secrets of Altering the fabric of reality.
You can now cast Expert level Alteration spells.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
You have unlocked more arcane secrets of Altering the fabric of reality.
You can now cast Master level Alteration spells.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Get a shield or feather spell and cast it repeatedly. It's a fairly easy
skill to level, just like conjuration and illusion. The best trick is to
weigh down your 'cast' button, and your 'block' button. If you have a
weapon readied (even your fists) and you block and cast at the same
time, you'll cast spells significantly faster. Useful for all spell-
leveling excursions.
o======================================================================o
| Armorer |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Endurance
Specialization: Combat
Maintain weapons and armor at top efficiency. Worn weapons and armor are
less effective.
You should use Armorer all the time, if you're wearing any kind of armor
or wielding any sort of weapon. Repairing your gear yourself is much
cheaper than paying somebody to do it for you, especially with magical
items. And once you can repair to 125%, you'll be able to over-condition
weapons and armor to make them that much more effective. Needless to
say, this is a good skill for any armor or weapon, and for those who
;ike money and convenience. At the master rank you can repair
indefinitely with one repair hammer. This is definitely a money-saver
here, and worth paying attention to.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Long days and nights at the forge make you strong and tough. You are now
an Apprentice of Armorer. Your repair hammers now last twice as long.
You cannot repair magical items yet.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Long days and nights at the forge make you strong and tough. You are now
an Journeyman of Armorer. Using repair hammers, you can now fully repair
magic weapons and armor.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Long days and nights at the forge make you strong and tough. You are now
an Expert Armorer. Using repair hammers, you can repair items up to 125%
of their normal health. Weapons with health above 100% do extra damage.
Armor with health above 100% provides extra protection.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Long days and nights at the forge make you strong and tough. You are now
a Master Armorer. A Master Armorer does not wear out repair hammers
while repairing weapons and armor. One repair hammer lasts you a
lifetime.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Repair stuff as you level up Light and Heavy Armor, Block, and Blade,
Blunt, and Marksman. Save all the loot you get from foes so that when
you hit level 75 you can repair it all to 125%, and give yourself a good
boost. Kill enemies, repair their stuff, and leave it or sell it. Repair
everything you can get your little paws on! Or, if that's too much,
create a spell at the Arcane University that damages your own armor or
weapons, and repair them. It might help if you hotkey a repair hammer.
That way, you can repair on the fly. Personally, I have quick save at
F5, quick load at F9, and my repair hammer keyed at 7. I save, repair,
and if I broke too many hammers, I reload.
o======================================================================o
| Athletics |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Speed
Specialization: Combat
Run and swim faster, and regenerate lost fatigue faster.
Run and swim speed are nice, and if you slouch, you'll be surprised by
some of those arena contestants in the Imperial City who didn't (I know
I was!) Other than that.. it just reduces your fatigue regeneration
penalty when running, which is a petty consideration. You'll level
Athletics because you really can't avoid it more than for any other
reason.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
'Why walk when you can run' has always been your motto. Now the miles of
running and hours of swimming have paid off. You are an Apprentice of
Athletics. Your rate of fatigue regeneration when running is increased
by 25%
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
'Why walk when you can run' has always been your motto. Now the miles of
running and hours of swimming have paid off. You are a Journeyman of
Athletics. Your rate of fatigue regeneration when running is increased
by 50%.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
'Why walk when you can run' has always been your motto. Now the miles of
running and hours of swimming have paid off. You are a Expert of
Athletics. Your rate of fatigue regeneration when running is increased
by 75%.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
'Why walk when you can run' has always been your motto. Now the miles of
running and hours of swimming have paid off. You are a Master of
Athletics. Running never reduces your rate of fatigue regeneration.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Athletics can be slow.. very slow.. as in, it'll take days of continuous
leveling (real time) to max it. Do you hear that..? Trainer! But the
first 50-60 levels aren't bad, and you shouldn't waste them. Because
you'll level Athletics without intending to, especially at first, you
might as well make Speed one of your initial attributes to raise.
Athletics levels faster when you run as opposed to walking, and faster
still when you swim. The best thing to do is tie down your controller
or hit auto-walk and swim into a bridge post (I tend to do this right
outside of the Imperial City, at the bridge that connects Weye to the
Imperial City isle. Once done, go to work, school, sleep.. something.
It'll be a while. The problem with these methods? I've had this game
installed on four computers, and not one of them would play for hours on
end without crashing at some point-crashes are infrequent, and when
you're playing if the game crashes once every several hours-well, that's
to be expected with PC games, but when you're sleep-grinding, it's a
bother. On the Xbox 360, the controller will shut itself off if idle too
long, limiting the duration you can do this. Maybe on the PS3 it's more
feasible?
o======================================================================o
| Blade |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Strength
Specialization: Combat
Deliver the slashing and thrusting attacks of dagger and sword weapons
more effectively.
My favorite weapons in the game, they're faster, just about as powerful
as blunt weapons and, they've got the best reach. Swords anyways,
daggers kinda suck.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The cuts and nicks from long practice sessions with all manner of blades
has its benefits. You are now an Apprentice with Blade weapons. You have
a new Standing power attack, which does extra damage. Press and hold
Attack to use this power attack.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The cuts and nicks from long practice sessions with all manner of blades
has its benefits. You are now a Journeyman with Blade weapons. Your
Sidestep power attack now has a chance to disarm your opponent. Press
and hold Attack while moving left or right to use this power attack.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The cuts and nicks from long practice sessions with all manner of blades
has its benefits. You are now an Expert with Blade weapons. Your
sweeping power attack now has a chance to knock down your opponent.
Press and hold Attack while moving backwards to use this power attack.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The cuts and nicks from long practice sessions with all manner of blades
has its benefits. You are now a Master with Blade weapons. Your Rushing
power attack now has a chance to paralyze your opponent. Press and hold
Attack while moving forward to use this power attack.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
These tips apply to all melee skills, and thus to all Strength-related
skills. You level up based on the number of hits you score, not the
damage inflicted. The best way to level this skill up early is to set
the difficulty meter up to the highest and attack mud crabs by the
shores. Boars also work too, anything that is slow and has a limited
attack range. Using weaker weapons also speeds things up. When you get
100% chameleon, you can go around striking enemies at the highest
difficulty at your leisure, making attaining level 100 much, much
easier.
o======================================================================o
| Block |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Endurance
Specialization: Combat
Parry melee attacks with shields and weapons. Successful blocks reduce
damage.
If you want to have any success in melee combat without a) reducing the
difficulty, b) using 100% chameleon, c) sneak attacking, then you'll
need to block from time to time. Blocking reduces the damage you take,
but more importantly it'll break up the attacks of an enemy, giving you
time to go on the offensive. As you level up block you'll eventually
get access to a shield-bash move that randomly (but frequently) occurs
when you block, giving you extra time to counter-attack. Eventually
you'll even be able to disarm opponents with this shield-bash, which
makes using shield a very worthy consideration, indeed.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The truly skillful fighter learns to block with both shield and weapon.
Diligent practice has made you an Apprentice at Blocking. Blocking with
your shield or weapon no longer drains fatigue.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The truly skillful fighter learns to block with both shield and weapon.
Diligent practice has made you a Journeyman at Blocking. Blocking no
longer damages your weapon or shield. Blocking with your bare hands will
cause enemies to recoil a bit, although you take full damage from the
attack.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The truly skillful fighter learns to block with both shield and weapon.
Diligent practice has made you an Expert at Blocking. Blocking with a
shield can now be used like an attack to knock back and stagger your
opponent.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The truly skillful fighter learns to block with both shield and weapon.
Diligent practice has made you a Master at Blocking. Blocking with a
shield now has a chance to disarm your opponent.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Like with Heavy Armor and Light Armor, decrease the difficulty and find
a bowman to provoke. Get them to dagger you up, and you're all set. This
goes even faster if you block with your fists. You won't stop any
damage, but you wont knock them back, either. This will speed up the
process IMMENSELY until level 50, when you start actually deflecting
when unarmed. Afterwards, this skill goes pretty slow.. so slow, that
the last 30 levels or so are probably better spent with a trainer.
o======================================================================o
| Blunt |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Strength
Specialization: Combat
Deliver the crushing blows of mace and axe weapons more effectively.
You know.. making axes 'blunt' weapons.. Just.. It's wrong, lets leave
it at that. If you like axes, hammers, and maces, go blunt.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
You have lumps and bruises from long practices sessions with all kinds
of maces and axes. You are now an Apprentice with Blunt weapons. You are
now an Apprentice with Blade weapons. You have a new Standing power
attack, which does extra damage. Press and hold Attack to use this
power attack.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
You have lumps and bruises from long practices sessions with all kinds
of maces and axes. You are now a Journeyman with Blunt weapons. Your
Sidestep power attack now has a chance to disarm your opponent. Press
and hold Attack while moving left or right to use this power attack.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
You have lumps and bruises from long practices sessions with all kinds
of maces and axes. You are now an Expert with Blunt weapons. Your
sweeping power attack now has a chance to knock down your opponent.
Press and hold Attack while moving backwards to use this power attack.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
You have lumps and bruises from long practices sessions with all kinds
of maces and axes. You are now a Master with Blunt weapons. Your
Rushing power attack now has a chance to paralyze your opponent. Press
and hold Attack while moving forward to use this power attack.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Same as with blade, and hand to hand. For up to level 50 set the
difficulty slider on the highest setting and beat up mud crabs. Once you
get 100% chameleon, go do that trick with everything.
o======================================================================o
| Conjuration |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Intelligence
Specialization: Magic
Cast spells to summon otherworldly creatures, summon magical weapons and
armor, and turn the undead.
Summoning is useful when you need a distraction for your enemies, or
when you want to beat up on/soul trap enemies without the bother of
finding one. You need a Xivilai to fill up a Grand Soul Gem? Summon it.
Bound weapons and armor are useful.. mostly because they are weightless.
They'd be more useful if they were all light or heavy armor. You can
make Bound items permanent by repairing them to 125% and dropping them.
Leave them until their duration wears out, and ta-da, a very powerful,
bound daedric claymore with no weight. Turning the undead.. well, it's
not an entirely useful school.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Through steady practice you have discovered more creatures to summon
from the planes of Oblivion. You are now an Apprentice of Conjuration
magic and can cast Apprentice level Conjuration spells.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Through steady practice you have discovered more creatures to summon
from the planes of Oblivion. You are now an Journeyman of Conjuration
magic and can cast Journeyman level Conjuration spells.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Through steady practice you have discovered more creatures to summon
from the planes of Oblivion. You are now an Expert in Conjuration magic
and can cast Expert level Conjuration spells.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Through steady practice you have discovered more creatures to summon
from the planes of Oblivion. You are now a Master of Conjuration magic
and can cast Master level Conjuration spells.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Summon scamps, or skeletons. A lot. Rest, repeat. Any summon with a
(relatively) low Magicka cost. You won't get as many reps out of this
skill as many other skills, but fortunately, you wont need them.
o======================================================================o
| Destruction |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Willpower
Specialization: Magic
Cast spells to inflict magical fire, frost, and shock damage, or
reduce resistances to magic attacks.
If you're a magey-type, and like to hurt things, this is the skill to
consult. It's got all your fireballs, your harm, disintegrate, and
reduce-resistances-so-all-the-other-stuff-hurts-them-more spells.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Fire, frost, and lightning have flowed from your fingertips. You are now
a Apprentice in Destruction magic and can cast Apprentice level
Destruction spells.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Fire, frost, and lightning have flowed from your fingertips. You are now
a Journeyman in Destruction magic and can cast Journeyman level
Destruction spells.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Fire, frost, and lightning have flowed from your fingertips. You are now
a Expert in Destruction magic and can cast Expert level Destruction
spells.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Fire, frost, and lightning have flowed from your fingertips. You are now
a Master of Destruction magic and can cast Master level Destruction
spells.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Unlike most spells, you actually have to affect something with
destruction spells. Having a self-targeting Destruction spell isn't
terribly healthy, either. Find an enemy and blast them.. especially with
100% chameleon. There's a cave south of the Imperial City on the way to
Bravil known as 'Robber's Glen Cave'. Inside you'll find a minotaur
(or minotaur lord, depending on your level) inside a room it's too
large to fit out of. You can use that as target practice.. but be wary,
as it will occasionally 'clip' through the wall and teleport to you.
When that happens, just run to the other side of the cave entrance, and
repeat. Or failing that, go to the Arcane University and make a self
targeting disintegrate spell that damages your gear. cast it repeatedly
and repair your damaged equipment. This will level up Armorer, too,
although it isn't very cost-effective if you aren't already a master of
Armorer and have to provide repair hammers.
o======================================================================o
| Hand to Hand |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Strength
Specialization: Combat
Attack without weapons to damage and fatigue opponents.
The more skill you have with Hand to Hand, the more melee damage you
will do. In any event, you'll never be able to reach the same damage
with Hand to Hand as with the other skills. For one, you can't improve
the condition of your fists to 125%, and you wont get magical properties
to add. Still, it doesn't cost anything to whack enemies with your
fists, so that's good.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Thick calluses cover your knuckles and joints from long hours of
punching and kicking. At long last you are an Apprentice in Hand to
Hand fighting. You have a new Standing power attack, which does extra
damage. Press and hold the attack button to use this power attack.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Thick calluses cover your knuckles and joints from long hours of
punching and kicking. At long last you are a Journeyman in Hand to Hand
fighting. Your Sidestep power attack now has a chance to disarm your
opponent. Press and hold Attack while moving left or right to use this
power attack.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
You are an Expert in Hand to Hand combat. Your sweeping power attack now
has a chance to knock down your opponent. Press and hold Attack while
moving backwards to use this power attack.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
At long last you are a Master in Hand to Hand fighting. You now have the
Rushing power attack, which has a chance to paralyze your opponent.
Press and hold Attack while moving forward to use this power attack.
Blocking has a chance to disarm your opponent.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Same as with Blade and Blunt, pick on mud crabs at a high difficulty
setting. Hand to Hand works well with leveling because, well, it deals
little damage, and repetition is the key.
o======================================================================o
| Heavy Armor |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Endurance
Specialization: Combat
Make more effective use of Iron, Steel, Dwarven, Orcish, Ebony, and
Daedric armors.
Heavy armor is good stuff. For one, it prevents an incredible amount of
damage. For two, it looks cools. What more are you looking for? It's
armor. I tend to raise it as soon as I get out of the sewers, and
continue improving it in order to max my Endurance at 100. Also, if I
get Heavy Armor up to 100, I can wear it all the time without it
weighing a thing. As you level, you'll also have it take less damage.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Days and weeks of constant use make wearing heavy armor tolerable, but
not comfortable. You have learned to adapt to its weight and use it in
combat. As an Apprentice of Heavy Armor, your plate mail is no longer
damaged as swiftly from combat.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Days and weeks of constant use make wearing heavy armor tolerable, but
not comfortable. You have learned to adapt to its weight and use it in
combat. As a Journeyman of Heavy Armor, your plate mail is no longer
damaged as swiftly from combat.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Days and weeks of constant use make wearing heavy armor tolerable, but
not comfortable. You have learned to adapt to its weight and use it in
combat. As an Expert of Heavy Armor, your plate mail no longer
encumbers you as much when you are running or swimming.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Days and weeks of constant use make wearing heavy armor tolerable, but
not comfortable. You have learned to adapt to its weight and use it in
combat. As an Master of Heavy Armor, your plate mail no longer
encumbers you at all when you are running or swimming.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Like leveling weapons, but the opposite. The more hits you take while
wearing heavy armor the faster it will level. Also, the more pieces of
armor you have on, the faster you'll level. So get any old shield,
helmet, boots, gloves, greaves, and cuirass, set the difficulty slider
all the way to the easiest level, and go find something to hit you.
Bandits and Marauders, especially ones with bows, make great grinding
buddies. Get up to them in close combat until they draw their daggers
and let them carve you up. Keep in mind, this is also the best way to
level Block and Light Armor. You don't need to keep your armor repaired
while doing this, either.
o======================================================================o
| Illusion |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Personality
Specialization: Magic
Cast spells to charm, conceal, create light, silence, paralyze, command
or affect morale or aggressiveness.
Illusion contains a variety of good spells, and early on, the ability
to create light with magic is a decent enough way to use the skill.
Later on, invisibility and especially chameleon spells become
available. If you've ever played D&D, you'll understand how
invisibility works all too well. Nothing can see you until you attack,
cast a spell, or something of the sort.. Chameleon on the other hand,
doesn't go away when you act. Chameleon comes in percentages, and
ideally makes you harder to detect (in conjunction with Sneak). However,
if you get 100% chameleon, it counts as invisibility.. except you can
act and not lose your cover. The ultimate goal? Create an outfit with
chameleon pieces totalling up to 100+%. As long as you wear gear
providing you with 100% chameleon, you'll be completely invisible,
and able to attack and cast spells at will. Enemies wont be able to
detect you, and the AI doesn't know what to do. If you start doing
this, you can basically kill enemies at your leisure. Particularly
handy for leveling up Blade, Blunt, Destruction, Hand to Hand, and
Marksman.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
As a new Journeyman of Illusion, you know what is and isn't real, and
how to fool the minds of your opponents. You can now cast Apprentice
level Illusion spells.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
As a new Journeyman of Illusion, you know what is and isn't real, and
how to fool the minds of your opponents. You can now cast Journeyman
level Illusion spells.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
As a new Expert of Illusion, you know what is and isn't real, and how to
fool the minds of your opponents. You can now cast Expert level Illusion
spells.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
As a new Master of Illusion, you know what is and isn't real, and how to
fool the minds of your opponents. You can now cast Master level Illusion
spells.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Illusion levels pretty quickly. Just get a low-level light generating
spell, and cast it repeatedly. Moonlight is a good example, and it can
be purchased in the Imperial City.
o======================================================================o
| Light Armor |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Speed
Specialization: Stealth
Make more effective use of Fur, Leather, Chainmail, Mithril, Elven, and
Glass armors.
Like Heavy Armor, Light Armor improves your defense and your aesthetics.
At least, as long as it's not Fur or Leather. It get similar bonuses
as it goes up in rank, but it's not the equal of Heavy Armor until it
reaches master rank. At which time you'll gain a 50% bonus to the
defensive stats of your armor, making the difference between Light and
Heavy Armor a matter of preference, so long as you go fully heavy or
fully light. Since Heavy Armor raises the ultra-important Endurance
attribute, it gets the nod.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Your light armor is like a second skin after all those days and weeks
wearing it. As an Apprentice of Light Armor, your gear is no longer
damaged as swiftly from combat.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Your light armor is like a second skin after all those days and weeks
wearing it. You have learned to move easily with it in combat. As a
Journeyman of Light Armor, your gear is no longer damaged as swiftly
from combat.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Your light armor is like a second skin after all those days and weeks
wearing it. You have learned to move easily with it in combat. As an
Expert of Light Armor, your gear no longer encumbers you.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Your light armor is like a second skin after all those days and weeks
wearing it. You have learned to move easily with it in combat. As a
Master of Light Armor, your gain a 50% increase in protection if wearing
all light armor.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Just like Heavy Armor, set the difficulty down and go get attacked by an
archer (make them use their dagger.)
o======================================================================o
| Marksman |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Agility
Specialization: Stealth
Deliver more deadly ranged attacks with bow and arrow weapons.
You deal more damage as you level up Marksman, simply put. You also
get the ability to zoom with your bow (which significantly improves
the range of your arrows.) Unfortunately, arrows just don't do enough
damage by themselves, and even if you're a good shot from far away,
you only get off a handful of shots before the enemy closes. Using
poison and Sneak helps matters a bit, but bows still feel under-powered.
You also gain the ability to knock down and paralyze enemies with
arrows as you improve your skill. Holding the bow drawn back increases
the damage the shot will deal.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The twang of the bow and the scraping of arrow fletchings are quite
familiar to you. As a new Apprentice of Marksman, holding the bowstring
with a knocked arrow no longer fatigues you.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The twang of the bow and the scraping of arrow fletchings are quite
familiar to you. As a new Journeyman of Marksman, your vision focuses
in on the target if you hold block with an arrow nocked.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The twang of the bow and the scraping of arrow fletchings are quite
familiar to you. As a new Expert of Marksman, your arrows now have a
chance to knock down your opponent.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The twang of the bow and the scraping of arrow fletchings are quite
familiar to you. As a new Master Marksman, your arrows now have a
chance to paralyze your opponent.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Leveling Marksman can be a real chore.. not only do bows have wear and
tear to deal with, but they also have ammunition. And since they attack
much slower than melee weapons, it's going to take that much longer to
raise it. Get what you can out of it, and if you get to level 90, you're
a trooper. Keep in mind that it takes about 150 arrows or so to go from
level 87 to 88. The process becomes simpler when you hit level 75, as
your arrows gain the ability to knock down enemies. Once down, if you
immediately shoot them again they will stay down, and remain as long as
you keep shooting them. 100% chameleon helps, and picking on the
minotaur in Robber's Glen Cave works too. Frankly though, I end up
training the last 10-20 levels of Marksman on any typical play-through.
o======================================================================o
| Mercantile |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Personality
Specialization: Stealth
Mercantile affects your ability to buy and sell things.
The higher your Mercantile skill, the better you can haggle, and the
higher prices you can get for your ill-gotten gains. Most importantly
though, you'll be able to invest in a shop, and at master rank you'll
get a flat 500gp bonus to the amount stores are willing to sell you.
Mix this with the fact that as you progress shops will stop caring what
items you're selling and buy anything (non-stolen) from you, and the
condition of items won't matter, and this becomes a fairly lucrative
skill. Being able to sell that Daedric Cuirass for 2200gp is much better
than settling for 1200gp.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Negotiation, bargaining, dickering, haggling, they're all means to an
end... getting the best price for your goods. You are now an Apprentice
of Mercantile. The damaged condition of an item is no longer a factor
when you sell it.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Negotiation, bargaining, dickering, haggling, they're all means to an
end... getting the best price for your goods. You are now a Journeyman
of Mercantile. You can buy and sell any object to any vendor, even if
they normally do not deal in that type of wares.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Negotiation, bargaining, dickering, haggling, they're all means to an
end... getting the best price for your goods. You are now a Expert
of Mercantile. Give the merchant money to permanently increase his
shop's available gold by 500.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Negotiation, bargaining, dickering, haggling, they're all means to an
end... getting the best price for your goods. You are now a Master
of Mercantile. All shops in the world now have 500 more gold available
for barter.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Unfortunately the only way to level this skill naturally is to buy and
sell items. It doesn't matter how much money it's worth, or how many you
sell at once, what matters is how many transactions you make. With that
in mind, the most efficient way to level up this skill is to sell cheap,
easy to find objects one at a time. Arrows are good candidates because
they're cheap to buy and common. When you hit around level 30 in this
skill, you'll realise that this approach will take quite a while. I
seriously suggest training this skill higher if you're going to use it
at all. Fortunately, it's easy to get the first trainer, as Seed-Neeus
is easy to get to and doesn't require you to go on a quest.
o======================================================================o
| Mysticism |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Intelligence
Specialization: Magic
Cast spells that absorb, reflect, and dispel magic, move objects, sense
life, and bind souls.
I never used mysticism much, except for Soul Trap, which in conjunction
with Azura's Star lets you recharge your magical items on your own.
Even then, I rarely used magical items with charges. Other than that,
Detect Life can allow you to see where enemies are ahead of time, even
through walls, provided you have enough range on the spell.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The mysteries of magic are slowly revealing themselves to you. You are
now an Apprentice of Mysticism and can now cast Apprentice level
Mysticism spells.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The mysteries of magic are slowly revealing themselves to you. You are
now an Journeyman of Mysticism and can now cast Journeyman level
Mysticism spells.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The mysteries of magic are slowly revealing themselves to you. You are
now an Expert of Mysticism and can now cast Expert level Mysticism
spells.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The mysteries of magic are slowly revealing themselves to you. You are
now a Master of Mysticism and can now cast Master level Mysticism
spells.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Another spell that levels fairly fast, just spam a low level detect life
spell to improve your skill.
o======================================================================o
| Restoration |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Willpower
Specialization: Magic
Cast spells to restore, fortify, or absorb physical and magical
attributes, cure disease, and resist magical attacks.
This is obviously a useful spell school, as curing diseases, poisons,
restoring health and damage attributes are all good things. Doing so
with spells is significantly simpler than finding/making potions.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The secret energies of the human body have not surrendered their
energies easily to you. You are now an Apprentice of Restoration and can
cast Apprentice level Restoration spells.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The secret energies of the human body have not surrendered their
energies easily to you. You are now an Journeyman of Restoration and can
cast Journeyman level Restoration spells.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The secret energies of the human body have not surrendered their
energies easily to you. You are now an Expert with Restoration and can
cast Expert level Restoration spells.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The secret energies of the human body have not surrendered their
energies easily to you. You are now a Master of Restoration and can
cast Master level Restoration spells.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Restoration levels like most of the other spell schools. Pick a simple
healing spell, and abuse it, using the block/cast method. There's only
one difference.. Restoration levels slower. If you're on the PC you can
still brute level it with the block/cast method, but on consoles, you
may want to get a trainer for the last 20-30 levels. Since the trainer
involves Kvatch though.. Yeah, I wait a while before bothering with
Restoration, and it doesn't really fit into my attribute-leveling plans
too much. Healing seems to level Restoration faster if you are actually
restoring some Health. It's worth-while to consider leveling Restoration
in tandem with Acrobatics. If it help anybody out, on my most recent
playthrough I leveled Restoration manually up to 100. I can't account
for how long it took me to reach level 60, but to go from level 60 to
100 took about eight hours.. weighing down the 'C' button with an XBox
controller, and the block button on my mouse with a box of dice (does
it get any more nerdy than that?) It was not part of a specialization,
nor was it a major skill, so this is as long as it should possibly take.
Set up your PC before you go to work or school or something, and let it
go.. or better yet, let it level itself up while you play another game.
o======================================================================o
| Security |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Agility
Specialization: Stealth
Use lockpicks to open locked doors and containers.
Simple enough. When you interact with locked objects, you'll prompt a
mini-game to start where you have to raise a number of tumblers with
your lockpick and secure them into place. The process is MUCH more
intuitive on consoles than on the PC, but it's a minor gripe. If you
break into the Armory near the prisons in the Imperial City, you can
get your hands on some Steel and Legion gear pretty early. Your only
other option is using Alteration, so you might as well become good at
this mini-game.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The subtle rattle of lockpicks and falling lock tumblers is music to
your ears. Your increased skills have made you an Apprentice of
Security. When you pick locks, only three tumblers will fall when you
break a pick.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The subtle rattle of lockpicks and falling lock tumblers is music to
your ears. Your increased skills have made you a Journeyman of Security.
When you pick locks, only two tumblers will fall when you break a pick.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The subtle rattle of lockpicks and falling lock tumblers is music to
your ears. Your increased skills have made you an Expert of Security.
When you pick locks, only one tumbler will fall when you break a pick.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
The subtle rattle of lockpicks and falling lock tumblers is music to
your ears. Your increased skills have made you a Master of Security.
When you pick a lock, no tumblers will fall when you break a pick.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Security levels SLOW. You make progress towards the next level every
time you successfully engage a tumbler, and the easiest way to improve
(for me) has been to find very hard locks and keep picking the first
four. Leave, and repeat. Still, I only tend to have the patience to
reach level 30-40. There are other options though. Training, for one,
and obtaining the Skeleton Key, for two. Do Nocturnal's quest
(the shrine is north-east of Leyawiin, and you must be level 10) for
the Skeleton Key. This gives you an unbreakable lock pick, which you
can use to auto-attempt all the locks you come across. You'll succeed..
eventually, and you'll never have to worry about lock picking again.
You can also level up Security while doing this.. on the Xbox 360
version I swear it didn't level up, but on the PC (with a newer patch)
the Skeleton Key does indeed level up Security, so I don't know. The
only catch? It improves your Security skill by 40 points, so the
process will be slow-if mindless. You can always level this skill by
visiting cities at night and picking locked doors at random, but there
is a quicker method. In the Castle Skingrad Dungeon, there is a locked
door leading to the cells. You can pick this locked door, head to the
end of the hallway and activate the 'Strange Candle' on the wall. Every
time you do this the locked door closes and relocks, allowing you to
go pick that lock again, repeat as necessary. If you've got plenty of
lockpicks you can just auto-attempt the lock as often as you please.
It's much simpler than walking around looking for locks to pick.
o======================================================================o
| Sneak |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Agility
Specialization: Stealth
Pick pockets and move unseen and unheard by observers.
Picking pockets will come into play once in a while, but the real
treat is avoiding conflict (which is difficult) or better yet, getting
the drop on enemies. It's not as powerful as on, say, Fallout 3, where
stealth was the way I played, but damage multipliers are a great way
to begin a fight. Especially with a bow. A poisoned bow. As you become
more sneaky you'll eliminate running and encumbrance penalties, and
gain sneak attack damage bonuses.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Stepping softly, hiding in the shadows, you do everything in your power
to remain undetected. You have become an Apprentice of Sneaking. When
you are sneaking, you now do extra damage while attacking a character
that does not detect you.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Stepping softly, hiding in the shadows, you do everything in your power
to remain undetected. You have become a Journeyman of Sneaking. The
weight of your boots no longer affects your ability to remain
undetected.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Stepping softly, hiding in the shadows, you do everything in your power
to remain undetected. You have become an Expert of Sneaking. You can now
move silently. Running or walking no longer affects your ability to
remain undetected.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Stepping softly, hiding in the shadows, you do everything in your power
to remain undetected. You have become a Master at Sneaking. While
sneaking, any attack on an opponent that does not detect you ignores
their armor.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Sneak is also easy to level, which is good news for Agility. All you
have to do is go around NPCs (hostile or friendly) and sneak around
without being observed. This is fairly hard if you start out with a
Sneak skill of 25, and you'll need to go about fairly unladen (wearing
boots is a no-no at early levels, as it makes you less stealthy.) Stay
out of lights, don't cast spells, avoid their field of view, and move
slowly. My personal technique? At the Imperial City Waterfront, by the
wall there will be two bedrolls, one Amusei will use, and another will
belong to a beggar named Puny Ancus. During the night, Ancus will sleep
in his bedroll, while Amusei will go play with the thieves. While Ancus
is sleeping, you can sneak next to him, running into the wall. As he is
alone and sleeping it'll be very hard for him to detect you, and since
he wont move around at all, you can do this for hours (game time). If
you're on the PS3 or Xbox 360, get a rubber band and engage the joystick
so that you keep running into the wall. If you're on the PC, just hit
the 'autowalk' button. Easy as pie.
o======================================================================o
| Speechcraft |
o======================================================================o
Attribute: Personality
Specialization: Stealth
If you want to raise an NPC's disposition towards you without using
magic or bribing them, Speechcraft is the way to go. When you start up
a Speechcraft attempt, you'll be given a circle with four wedges,
each of which are filled a certain amount. These wedges are labeled
'Admire', 'Boast', 'Coerce', and 'Joke', and represent various ways
to communicate with that NPC. All you do is slide the cursor over the
four wedges and look at their facial reactions (which are sometimes
rather hilarious) to determine what they like and don't like. To improve
their disposition of you you try and pick the wedges they like when they
are more filled, and the wedges they dislike when they are less filled.
After each selection, the wedges shift clockwise. It's simple, and
silly, but it gets the job done. As you level the skill, you will be
able to slide the 'wedges' without picking a choice, lose less
disposition over time while performing Speechcraft, lose less
disposition when you pick bad options, and cut down the cost of bribing.
Apprentice
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Persuasion, wheedling, cajoling, and coercing are all tools of
Speechcraft. They are tools you seek to excel in. You are now an
Apprentice of Speechcraft. When persuading a character, you now get one
chance to rotate the response wedges without having to select an action.
Journeyman
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Persuasion, wheedling, cajoling, and coercing are all tools of
Speechcraft. They are tools you seek to excel in. You are now a
Journeyman of Speechcraft. When trying to persuading a character, his or
her disposition now decreases much slower.
Expert
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Persuasion, wheedling, cajoling, and coercing are all tools of
Speechcraft. They are tools you seek to excel in. You are now an Expert
of Speechcraft. When trying to persuade a character, you suffer less
disposition penalty from the most disliked action.
Master
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Persuasion, wheedling, cajoling, and coercing are all tools of
Speechcraft. They are tools you seek to excel in. You are now a Master
of Speechcraft. When trying to persuade a character, bribery costs half
of what it normally would.
Leveling Tips
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Improving this skill is as simple as repeatedly using it on an NPC, for
better or worse. It doesn't matter how low their disposition drops
during the process either, as you can always simply raise it to a
suitable level when you're done. It levels relatively quickly at first,
but becomes a real chore around level 50, and might be worth training
in should you wish to max it. Frankly, your personality score is good
enough to get the NPC's disposition high, so you don't need a stellar
Speechcraft, and later on you can always bribe the NPCs when it really
matters.
o======================================================================o
| |
| Trainers {TRN001} |
| |
o======================================================================o
Since I mention the use of trainers so much, it would be irresponsible
of me to not include a list of them in my FAQ. There are five trainers
per skill, two of which can raise your skills to level 40, two who can
raise them to level 70, and one who can take you all the way up to 100.
I will only include the level 40+ trainers, since you should be able to
get your skill up to the minimum level required to train with them on
your own. Remember, this is a character build FAQ, it's wasteful to
train at lower levels, since it's often fairly easy to just do it
yourself. I also wont include trainers for every skill. It might be
lazy, but some skills just don't need to be trained. If you need a
trainer to improve your Illusion skill, you're just wasting a training
opportunity.
In order to train with the level 100 trainers, you'll usually
need to do some simple quest or another, which I will also include. To
even get the dialogue for most of the master trainers, you'll have to
ask an intermediate trainer about 'Training'. They'll only tell you
about the master trainer when you've reached the maximum skill level
they can teach you. Training costs 10 gold per level. So being trained
to go from level 54 to 55 costs 540 gold. Make sure you've got the cash.
For more information, check out Eldin2003's Trainer FAQ, which is much
more detailed than the information I'll be giving you.
Acrobatics
o======================================================================o
Level 40-70 Trainer
Ganredhel (Cheydinhal)
An elf lady with blonde hair wearing a burlap vest and sack cloth pants.
You can find her wandering near the west gate at about 12:00 to 1:00
in the afternoon, or at her house in the south-eastern part of the city
from 8:00am onwards.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 40-70 Trainer
Tsrava (Leyawiin)
A Khajiit wearing a blue & green outfit, she lives in J'Bari's house
near the center of Leyawiin.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 70-100 Trainer
Torbern (Aerin's Camp)
You'll find Torbern in Aerin's Camp (Aerin is who everybody tells you to
talk to for master training.) Aerin's Camp is north and slightly east
of Cheydinahal, or due east of Azura's Shrine. He's a Nord wearing fur
armor, and he doesn't require you to perform a quest to receive training.
Athletics
o======================================================================o
Level 40-70 Trainer
Hauls-Ropes-Faster (Anvil)
You'll find this half-naked Argonian either in his room in the Fo'c'sle,
or out on the road besides the docks. I've never gotten him to train me,
the best he'll do is refer you to the master trainer.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 40-70 Trainer
Honditar (Chorrol)
A blonde elf wearing a dark green shirt and huntsman leather pants. He
lives around Chorrol, and you can find him at his home or hunting deer
outside. The best place to find him is outside the Mage's Guild in
Chorrol during the day.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 70-100 Trainer
Rusia Bradus (Anvil)
A brunette imperial lady wearing a burgundy linen shirt and burgandy
linens. She lives lives in Silgor Bradus' house west of the Mage's
Guild in Anvil, and tends to come out of the house at about 4:00pm,
so just wait until then. You have to find 30 locations on the world
map before she'll train you, so get marching!
Block
o======================================================================o
Level 40-70 Trainer
Lum gro-Baroth (Chorrol)
A shirtless Orc who spends his time in and around the Fighter's Guild
in Chorrol. You can find him in the basement on his bedroll at night,
or behind the guild shooting at targets during the day.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 40-70 Trainer
Ambroise Canne (Skingrad)
A brown-haired man wearing a coarse linen shirt and huntsman leather
pants, you can typically find him in his house in the south western part
of Skingrad after noon.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 70-100 Trainer
Adragail (Bravil)
An elf in a brown shirt and tan linens.. with a big hammer across her
back. She stays in her house in Bravil across from the Fighter's Guild.
You'll have to endure a beating from her before she'll train you. Set
the difficulty level down if she deals too much damage.
Marksman
o======================================================================o
Level 40-70 Trainer
Reman Broder (Skingrad)
A balding Imperial man wearing a collared shirt and coarse linens. You
can find him at his home in the south western part of Skingrad, right
next door to Ambroise Canne. A marksman trainer and a block trainer
living next door? I wonder if they get along..
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 40-70 Trainer
Pinarus Inventius (Anvil)
Am Imperial man in leveled Heavy Armor, he lives next to Silgor Bradus
in Anvil.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 70-100 Trainer
Alawen (Troll Candle Camp)
You can find this auburn haired elf in leather armor east of Anvil in
Troll Candle Camp. Get her the bow she wants, and she'll train you.
You can find an elven bow in the Archer's Paradox store in Bravil.. or
from appropriately leveled bandits and Marauders.
Mercantile
o======================================================================o
Level 40-70 Trainer
Margarte (Leyawiin)
Margarte is a grey-haired woman whose house is right across from the
Great Temple of Zenithar in Leyawiin.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 40-70 Trainer
Seed-Neeus (Chorrol)
Seed-Neeus is an Argonian who runs Northern Goods and Trade near the
Chorrol south gate. She's the trainer I go to from level 1 until I hit
rank 70 in Mercantile.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 70-100 Trainer
Palonirya (Imperial City, Market District)
She runs the Divine Elegance shop in the Imperial city. She'll train you
if you get 10,000 gold together, which is no easy task at lower levels.
Restoration
o======================================================================o
Level 40-70 Trainer
Marz (Bravil)
An Argonian in a blue & green outfit who lives at the Great Temple of
Mara in Bravil.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 40-70 Trainer
Ohtesse (Cheydinhal)
A brunette elf who wears a quilted doublet and light brown linens and
lives in the Great Chapel of Arkay.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 70-100 Trainer
Oleta (Kvatch)
This Redguard lady wears a Russet Felt Outfit, and can be found in the
Great Chapel of Akatosh in Kvatch. The only problem is that.. well..
lets just say it's not the nicest of places. She wont train you until
you complete the quest "The Battle for Castle Kvatch."
Security
o======================================================================o
Level 40-70 Trainer
Dro'Shanji (Bravil)
A Khajit who has a house in Bravil, across from the Fighter's Guild,
under Andragail's house. He'll leave his house around 9:00am, after
which he'll go stand outside the entrance to Castle Bravil until about
noon before heading to Silverhome on the Water. After spending an hour
or two there he'll head back to the Castle again. He'll head home for
the night around 7:00.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 40-70 Trainer
Mandil (Imperial City, Elven Garden District)
This blonde elf wears a brown shirt and light brown linens and lives in
Othrelos' House in the Imperial City Elven Gardens District. You'll be
able to enter the house to chat with her at about 8:00 in the morning.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 70-100 Trainer
J'Baana (Imperial City, Prison District)
You'll find this Khajit male on the business side of the Prison
District. In order to gain training from him, you'll have to go to
Bravil and talk to S'krivva, and then deliver her message to him.
Speechcraft
o======================================================================o
Level 40-70 Trainer
Varon Vamori (Bravil)
This dark elf lives north east of the Great Chapel of Mara in Bravil,
and wears a burgandy linen shirt and burgundy linens. You can find him
in his house after 10:00pm.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 40-70 Trainer
Gruiand Garrana (Cheydinhal)
You'll find this brunette Imperial in the Great Chapel of Arkay in
Cheydinhal, wearing a black and burgundy outfit. You can find her pretty
much any time during the day (roughly between 8:00am and 5:00pm.)
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Level 70-100 Trainer
Tandilwe (Imperial City, Temple District)
You can find Tandilwe in the Imperial City Temple District, in the
Temple of the One. She's a blonde elf wearing a blue and green outfit.
She will only train you when you have talked to the 19 beggars around
Cyrodiil, which I have included in the list below.
---------Anvil---------
Imus the Dull
Penniless Olvus
---------Bravil---------
Cosmus the Cheat
Wretched Aia
---------Bruma----------
Fetid Jofnhild
Jorck the Outcast
-------Cheydinhal-------
Bruccius the Orphan
Luckless Lucina
--------Chorrol---------
Lazy Kaslowyn
Nermus the Mooch
-----Imperial City------
(Talos Plaza District)
No-Coins Draninus
(Elven Gardens District)
Fralav the Faker
(Market District)
Simplicia the Slow
(Temple District)
Ragbag Buntara
--------Leyawiin--------
Deeh the Scalawag
Rancid Ra'dirsha
--------Skingrad--------
Foul Fagus
Nigidius the Needy
o======================================================================o
| |
| Sample Character {CHR001} |
| |
o======================================================================o
This is the last character I played through Oblivion with, the one I
based this guide around. Following (most) of my own suggestions and
ratings, this is what I consider to be a 'power game' character. Of
course, this is without using any mods, exploits, hacks, or anything
that otherwise breaks the 'rules' of the game.
Absolute Build
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Race: Breton
Sign: The Lady*
Max Level: 53
Derived Statistics
Health: 690
Magicka: 250
Fatigue: 400
Attributes
Strength: 100
Intelligence: 100
Willpower: 100
Agility: 100
Speed: 100
Endurance: 100
Personality: 100
Luck: 100
Major Skills Level Trained
Armorer: 100 No
Blunt: 100 No
Hand to Hand: 100 No
Heavy Armor: 100 No
Light Armor: 100 No
Marksman: 100 Yes, 20
Sneak: 100 No
Minor Skills
Athletics: 100 Yes, 40
Blade: 100 No
Block: 100 Yes, 20
Alchemy: 100 No
Alteration: 100 No
Conjuration: 100 No
Destruction: 100 No
Illusion: 100 No
Mysticism: 100 No
Restoration: 100 No
Acrobatics: 100 Yes, 40
Mercantile: 100 Yes, 70
Security: 100 Yes, 25
Speechcraft 100 Yes, 50
*The Warrior would work just fine as a substitute. The Thief would
allow me to max out Luck easier for a more leisurely leveling pace,
albeit at the cost of a few points of Health. The Mage would provide a
significant bit of extra Magicka, but at the cost of some Health points
and a slightly tighter leveling build.
o======================================================================o
| |
| Hints/Tips {HNT001} |
| |
o======================================================================o
Here are just some hopefully helpful tips and hints that may help get
you started.. or give you some idea of what to do in this big world
you get to explore. Some of it might be repetition.. but.. well, just
ignore it.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Spend time PLANNING your characters before you actually make them. Use
this guide, it's alright. I made spreadsheets for this game, myself.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Max out Endurance first. Your Health points will thank you later.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Make sure you begin leveling Luck early so you can max it.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Pick THREE attributes to raise each level, and focus on increasing
the related skills of those attributes by TEN points. That's the way
to power level on Oblivion.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Train 5 skill ranks a level. They are quick level ups without the
hassle. Pick difficult skills that you don't want to level. Level skills
high enough to get to the hard levels, and then train them. I might be
a bit neurotic..
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
If you find skill books, don't read them early. Leave them alone or
store them away until that skill is a high level. It'll save you some
aggravation.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Play with the difficulty slider. It'll make leveling easier if enemies
do less damage, or have more Health. Don't listen to 'hardcore' players
talk about beating the game on the highest difficulty. All they do is
use summons and poison anyways.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Get gear totaling to 100% chameleon. This will let you kill enemies
at your leisure. On higher difficulties, you can attack powerful foes
with weapons and spells to level them with no fear of reprisal. It's not
much of a way to get through the game, but it sure helps with leveling.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Get an armor skill to 100 fast, so you always have something protective
to wear. Also, this makes that armor weightless when you have it
equipped.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Join the Mage's Guild and Fighter's Guild early. Fighter's guild will
get you access to weapons and armor you can use/sell. Rob the glass
counters in Mage's Guild locations for valuable alchemy gear. Sell it,
wait a couple of days, and repeat. It's a safe and easy way to get
money early on.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Along the roads that ring the Imperial City isle you can find three
great places to explore for arms and armor. Sercen contains bandits,
which will drop you light armor. Fort Alessia and Fort Homestead both
contain Marauders which drop heavy armor. Especially seek out Marauder
Warlords and Bandit Ringleaders for top quality gear.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Robbers Glen Cave, along the road south of the Imperial City leading to
Bravil contains a number of interesting and useful features. First,
there are a number of chests that can contain very powerful gear. These
are only guarded by imps, making their retrieval trivial. Second, there
is a minotaur/minotaur lord in the cave in its own chamber that is too
small for it to escape from. It makes for excellent target practice.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Don't complete any quests until you're a high level.. Some of the
rewards level with you.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Be careful around vampires. Curing Vampirism is no picnic, and you
wont get rid of it with simple cure disease effects. If you want to be
a vampire, be ready for how drastically the game will change, first.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Sigil Stones, attained from closing Oblivion gates can be used to
enchant weapons and armor with modifiers higher than usual. Save the
game before activating a Sigil Stone, and when it is added to your
inventory, see if it provides bonuses you want. If not, reload until
you get a good one. It's worth closing Oblivion gates just to load up
on some of these stones.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Be a completionist. There's no reason to be a 'fighter', or a 'mage' or
a 'thief'. Do it all, see everything there is to see. Roleplay, have
fun.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Almost every supernatural creature and animal has a small chance to
inflict your character with a disease of some sort or another. While
individually your characes of contracting a disease are slim,
considering the sheer number of creatures you'll face, it's inevitable
that you'll contract Swamp Fever or Hell Join at some point. To a new
gamer this can be obnoxious, since the game gives you no real clue how
to cure such afflictions (speaking from experience, here.) Near Bravil
you can find Mandrake plants just off the road, which cure disease if
consumed. Now if you get diseased, you won't have to fret the way I did.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Attribute drain is another common, frustrating, effect that you'll
certainly get afflicted with at some point. It most commonly occurs when
you are poisoned (Bandits will coat their weapons from time to time),
when affected by the magical properties of an enchanted weapon, or via
the innate attacks of some creatures (most notoriously, the
Will'o'Wisp.) Many ingredients you'll find can restore lost attribute
points if you consume them raw, although advanced alchemists will have
an easy time making potions that restore attributes. Alternatively,
picky eaters can purchase 'Restore [Attribute]' from priests at the
various temples scattered throughout Tamriel.
<---------------------------------------------------------------------->
Don't be afraid to download and use custom mods, especially aesthetic
ones. Oblivion made a wonderful game with hideous characters. Don't
be afraid to get mods to make your character less fugly.
o======================================================================o
| |
| Updates/Thanks {UPD001} |
| |
o======================================================================o
Version 1.00 to 1.01 changes:
o=o Fixed the Magicka Resistance description error under the Breton
and Orc racial descriptions.
o=o Included an alternative leveling method for relative power
levels. Thanks Alex. You know who you are.
o=o Fixed numerous typos. Forgive me folks, I work on Notepad, so I
don't get spellcheck. Still, thanks to blryans for checking this
FAQ for me. I really don't have any good excuse for not popping
these things on another program to spell check.
o======================================================================o
Version 1.01 to 1.02 changes:
o=o Fixed many problems with the description of the Breton's Magicka
Resistance and the Atronauch Birthsign's effects. I should have
really done more in-depth research here, but I stand well
corrected by my readers, whom as usual help make these guides
better for every one.
o=o Included an alternate low-level build character.
o======================================================================o
Version 1.02 to 1.03 changes (2/19/2012) (145,773 bytes)
o=o Made numerous aesthetic changes to the FAQ to make it more
readable.. and to make it look more like the rest of my FAQs.
o=o Reorganized the 'Skills' section of the guide and added the
in-game notices recieved at every level (i.e. Apprentice,
Journeyman, Expert, Master.)
***END OF FILE***
Amazing Games. Many Cheats. Such Wow.
