Bloodlord's Embrace and bashing

Gegensmith

I've just started to use the mythic Bloodlord's Embrace, which places a blood curse on an enemy if I bash it. If bashed again, the curse is lost and can't be replaced on that enemy until first placed on another enemy (as the tooltip says).
Now I'm confused about what a bash is, exactly, as there seem to be conflicting accounts on the forums.
If I hold block and then press attack, nothing happens: I remain blocking and no attack registers (tried next to a target dummy). I tried changing my keybinds, in case my keyboard couldn't register the two keys together (?) to a key and a mouse click respectively, but still no bash.
I have a separate keybind for Interrupt and some posts here say that's the same thing as a bash (though often in threads that also say hold block and attack?).
So I have two related questions:
(1) why isn't block-and-attack working as a bash?
(2) if I'm fighting only one enemy (a world boss without minions, for example), how can I interrupt a mechanic without losing the blood curse? Or will it only work for the start of the fight until they need interrupting?
Many thanks for your help

Billium813

Very interesting. I'v always wanted to use Bloodlord's Embrace, but just haven't quite found the build since I usually like using the Arena weapons for Tanking and there just doesn't seem to be the room for a Mythic.

It seems to me that there is a bug with Bloodlord's Embrace. I opened something about it here: https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/648558/bloodlords-embraced-bugged

> why isn't block-and-attack working as a bash?

I thought it was the default, but Interrupt should be set to RMB (Hold) + LMB

> how can I interrupt a mechanic without losing the blood curse?

I'm not quite sure WHY the developers decided that bashing the same target again removes Blood Curse, but that is what they did. I would LOVE if they undid that design cause it's super annoying for exactly what you point out! If you need to interrupt a boss, you can then accidentally remove Blood Curse. Super annoying.

Seems like you will need to try using one of the interrupt skills in the game. Crushing Shock from the Destruction Staff skill line will help with that. It costs Magicka, but you should be gaining good mag from Bloodlord's Embrace and it's range. Seems like a good option. For Stamina on Tank, Power Bash from the Sword/Shield skill line works as a melee range interrupt.

Gegensmith

AHH! So it's the default keybinds that mean people say hold attack while blocking. What they really mean is Interrupt (hold block and attack is their keybind for interrupt). So they are the same thing.
I don't use the default keybinds since I play with a controller set-up using custom keybinds (steam controller) -- though when I was testing, I used keyboard-and-mouse.
It wasn't the bug for me, since when I was trying to figure out what bashing was, I wasn't on my character with Bloodlord's Embrace.
I think this means that you've answered my second question too -- when fighting a single boss without other enemies present, it isn't possible to interrupt them during the fight and to retain/regain the blood curse.

Billium813

Gegensmith wrote: »

I think this means that you've answered my second question too -- when fighting a single boss without other enemies present, it isn't possible to interrupt them during the fight and to retain/regain the blood curse.

No, you can still interrupt WITHOUT having to do a bash-interrupt. There are Skills in the game that interrupt too. Bash-interrupt is just the most common method of interrupting a channeled effect since everyone can do it and doesn't require a Skill slotted. If you cannot bash-interrupt (since Bloodlord's Embrace is bugged and poorly designed), you can just use a Skill like Crushing Shock to interrupt instead.