Possibly the scaling. New characters need to be able to clean up the floor with the old characters. As your character levels up, I think you will see health numbers drop.

reverse progression... you actually get weaker as you level.

It is the scaling. Low levels are buffed across the board. As you level up to CP 160 your stats are more based on where you invested attributes and gear. Your primary stat of Magicka or stamina will be much higher, but health and the other stat will drop as you specialize.

Joromarr wrote: »

I recently made a Sorcerer and noticed that right off the bat I had 17k health, and once I spent my CPs that number went to 20k. Yet my main character only has 13k unbuffed. So I made another character, same race and same class as my main (Argonian NB) and that character also started out with 17k.... So what's with the disparity?

It's because of the way the scaling math works.

When you're lower level, you're scaled up to CP160 via a series of calculations. You typically have higher stats at lower levels to compensate for the fact that you've fewer skills, less utility and thus lower survivability. As you level up and become more versatile, those same equations subtly scale you down which is offset by better gear, better skills and additional utility.

By doing this, it allows low level players to complete content alongside higher level players without being a complete burden, because they hit a little harder and live a little longer which, in theory, compensates for them being largely useless.