Request for help: Is there a way to make this character idea work?

xerasia · June 2016

I would like to create a character with the following attributes and am looking for a little help:

- Dark Elf
- Nightblade
- Vampire
- destro staff & bow

Is there a decent way to build this? I would like the character to be viable in PvP and PvE, understanding that it won't ever be the best. I know dark elf passives are heavy on the magicka and I'm okay with using magicka abilities (preferably fire, but I don't want another DK) but am not really sure where to go from here as far as abilities, armor, sets, champ points. Is this one a lost cause due to the conflicting desires vs what is available in terms of passives, skill lines, and abilities, or does anyone with nightblade experience think they could help me make it work?

SolarCat02 · June 2016

The bow is really the only thing out of place in your thoughts here, since everything else responds really well to magicka.

You could make it work, as long as you are not relying on one of your bars for dps. If it's your buff bar, or your roll-dodge-for-a-speed-buff bar or something, you could rock it.

There is a new crafted armor set in the Gold Coast that sets your spell and weapon damage equal to the highest value between the two, but in my opinion that one requires too many sacrifices elsewhere to truly shine. (It's too "generic" and doesn't buff other useful things.) But maybe you can prove me wrong there, who knows?

The vampire works better for magicka but it does have the sneaking speed and the boost to stamina regeneration, so still useful on that side.

Nightblade does well as magicka or stamina, so the class itself is open to either.

Dark elf is a magicka class, but I have a magicka vampire khajiit nightblade right now, so who am I to judge?

The biggest issue is your weapons will be relying on two different stats, and so you will be making sacrifices to hybridize, or else not fully utilizing one of your weapons.

xerasia · June 2016

Thanks, SolarCat! Yeah, I was thinking it's the bow that was really a problem so I guess the better question is about hybrid builds. I've never used a bow on any of my characters and I'm wondering if it makes sense to keep it on my back bar and slot one or two bow abilities, keep a few points in stam, and the rest of the abilities on both bars mag based with the majority of points in mag?

Would it also make sense to use medium armor?

Giraffon · June 2016

You've basically got a magic build here so lose the bow and go with light armor. If it were me I'd run Destruction/Healing staves.

If I was going to take advantage of that special set armor in DB, then I would likely go stamina build in medium armor and then let the armor buff my class skills since they tend to be magica...in fact, this is already on my list of things to do. ;-)

SolarCat02 · June 2016

I think you are going to need to pick one state (magicka or stamina) to be your primary, and spec for that kind of damage and weapon. Max this resource pool then to get the most out of it.

Then use the other for buffs/debuffs and such. Don't focus on max for this one, but get a good regeneration rate for it. You could also use those fancy glyphs that give you a boost to all three resource pools instead of just one, although this doesn't give you as much in a single pool as just going for one resource.

It sounds like you want magicka to be the primary stat, so...

Hasty Retreat is a passive on bow that temporarily boosts your speed for a few seconds after you roll dodge with a bow equipped.
Venom Arrow (morph of poison arrow) is an interrupt in addition to the damage. Destruction staff has good interrupts, though, that will do more damaging you go magicka, so it's not the best option.
Scatter shot has a knockback in addition to the damage. Destruction staff does, too, though, so same as above.
Bombard (morph of Arrow Spray) has a snare and an immobilize. This one could be useful to slot, as I can't think of a good group immobilize for nightblade or destruction skills.
Lethal Arrow (morph of Snipe) also adds a Major Defile effect, reducing healing taken. I don't think nightblade has one of these? I do know the destruction staff does not.

It won't be good damage, but you do have some control and debuff options with the bow, so you could use it for those effects.

Shields will also scale off your health, not your magicka or stamina, so they will be unaffected as long as you have the resources to cast them.

You have options. It won't be a min/max character, but you can work around it and play a bit of a controller role. I will warn you, of course, that a mixed character like this does require skills to play well, so if you intend to play challenging content with this character you are going to learn more about the game mechanics than the average player!

Nothing wrong with that, of course! Just be aware of what you are getting into.

EDIT: Your armor question, if magicka is your primary, I would stick with light armor 5 pieces. The other two, take a look at the passives for armors. You may want two medium (medium passives, undaunted mettle), or a medium and a heavy (higher armor, undaunted mettle, heavy passives).

PS4_ZeColmeia · June 2016

So I'll take a different tack, I'm going with a hybrid build utilizing pelinals set. You're slightly weaker than a pure stam build. That said, you can effectively utilize the best morphs of every skill and every type of skill which makes you have more utility than a stam build and more damage than a magic build

So you can do it but I feel it's an endgame build. Unless you're in a top tier PVE guild you will be farming gold until you get 500k+. In the meantime you have to pick one

xerasia · June 2016

Thanks for the input, all. I think I'm going to move forward with it (along with your excellent advices) and keep the bow. It's kind of funny, the only min/max character that I have, I never play. I guess I like them all a little weird, haha.

I'm thinking that I'll do 5 light, 2 med as suggested above, and would it make sense to use champion points to help the stam along, or pretty much keep them all where I would for a mag build?

Ghettokid · June 2016

Orc

SolarCat02 · June 2016

xerasia wrote: »

would it make sense to use champion points to help the stam along, or pretty much keep them all where I would for a mag build?

Champion Points have a diminishing return as you add more to the same tree. Personally for what you want, if you are sticking with magicka as primary, I would prioritize the magicka ones, but put a single (as in, just one) point into anything that would help your character (for example, reduced dodge roll cost), and 27 points into the stamina regeneration (27 points is 2/5 of the effects, so for example if 100 points gets you a 25% buff you get 10% with 27 points).

Make sure you put at least 30 points into The Apprentice for the 12% spell critical bonus, and perhaps 30 into The Ritual for the 12% weapon critical as well. (Thaumaterge is a big buggy at the moment, but probably your best bet for this tree if they fix it,as it will help with both magicka and stamina DoTs).

Pay attention to the passives for each CP tree, and compare them to your playstyle. Some you will discover will be a great use, and may be worth spending CP where you otherwise wouldn't as a result.