An effective Sneaky Bow Build?

Tornaad · August 2021

I have loved and played Elder Scrolls games since Elder Scrolls 3 Morrowind first came out, and in the thousands upon thousands of hours I have poured into the various Elder Scrolls games I have played over the years, I have always loved playing some variation of a sneaky bow wielding character. And while right now I have a workable substitute, there is not enough sneak to my build.
Is there a build someone can point me to or help me figure out how to make that would help me create an effective sneaky bow wielding character?

Ideally, I want this to be a bow/bow build, but if I have to take a different set of weapons I could live with dual wielding daggers. And if possible I want stealth to be part of regular combat. I am pretty sure this means a Nightblade, but I just have not been able to put an effective build together yet.

Can anyone offer any suggestions on this?

Edit:
I am a nearly exclusive PVE player, so this build will be PVE focused, and ideally, I would like to be able to do most PVE content with it.

sammeh1991 · August 2021

Hello!

I'm a Stamina Nightblade player who uses dual wielding and a bow. I too am of the sneaky sneak guild and I love it!

First things first, you're going to want to choose Nightblade for it's cool name, and its ability Shadow Cloak that let's you go invisible because that's the best bit!

Then get yourself in the Dark Brotherhood for the assassination skill Blade of Woe. Grab yourself a nice bow for the aesthetic and away you go! This class has the ultimate sneak feel to it especially in the thieves guild/brotherhood attire!

Tornaad · August 2021

sammeh1991 wrote: »

Hello!

I'm a Stamina Nightblade player who uses dual wielding and a bow. I too am of the sneaky sneak guild and I love it!

First things first, you're going to want to choose Nightblade for it's cool name, and its ability Shadow Cloak that let's you go invisible because that's the best bit!

Then get yourself in the Dark Brotherhood for the assassination skill Blade of Woe. Grab yourself a nice bow for the aesthetic and away you go! This class has the ultimate sneak feel to it especially in the thieves guild/brotherhood attire!

@sammeh1991 What kind of content can you tackle with that build?

El_Borracho · August 2021

It really depends on what you are doing. Check out this thread:

https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/514846/so-for-sneaking-are-these-three-the-best-sets-or-are-there-others-thanks

Tornaad · August 2021

El_Borracho wrote: »

It really depends on what you are doing. Check out this thread:

https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/514846/so-for-sneaking-are-these-three-the-best-sets-or-are-there-others-thanks

That looks promising, thank you.

Fennwitty · August 2021

You can go Vampire for the fast entering stealth and movement penalty removal at stage 1. Vampire is mainly for Magicka and doesn't offer much for bows, but that stealth bit alone is helpful.

If you crank up vamp stage, the running and turning invisible can be fun also.

Other ways to boost stealth/stealth speed are in some gear sets and some CP options.

Nightblade cloak is very very useful, but another option is potions of invisibility.

For race choice, something with +speed, +stamina and/or magicka or cost reduction will complement.

Just realize in group dungeons and trials, your ability to utilize stealth will be highly limited by the way many encounters are designed. Also, don't get too far from your group members and try to stay in front of the healer to get the valuable buffs and heals.

Tornaad · August 2021

Fennwitty wrote: »

You can go Vampire for the fast entering stealth and movement penalty removal at stage 1. Vampire is mainly for Magicka and doesn't offer much for bows, but that stealth bit alone is helpful.

If you crank up vamp stage, the running and turning invisible can be fun also.

Other ways to boost stealth/stealth speed are in some gear sets and some CP options.

Nightblade cloak is very very useful, but another option is potions of invisibility.

For race choice, something with +speed, +stamina and/or magicka or cost reduction will complement.

Just realize in group dungeons and trials, your ability to utilize stealth will be highly limited by the way many encounters are designed. Also, don't get too far from your group members and try to stay in front of the healer to get the valuable buffs and heals.

Thank you @Fennwitty

Red_Feather · August 2021

Blackrose bow is interesting for stealth attacks in pve. Since a sneak attack in pve does more damage the Blackrose bow's special effect benefits from it.

https://eso-sets.com/set/virulent-shot

https://eso-skillbook.com/skill/magnum-shot

I used to use this combo on my main back when i wanted to be a sneaky hunter.

Tornaad · August 2021

Red_Feather wrote: »

Blackrose bow is interesting for stealth attacks in pve. Since a sneak attack in pve does more damage the Blackrose bow's special effect benefits from it.

https://eso-sets.com/set/virulent-shot

https://eso-skillbook.com/skill/magnum-shot

I used to use this combo on my main back when i wanted to be a sneaky hunter.

Thank you @Red_Feather I have not done much with the Blackrose Prison. I may have to.

Tornaad · September 2021

Thank you @Dottzgaming I just found your build which is what I was looking for. I will likely modify it a bit, but this gives me an awesome start!
https://dottzgaming.com/build/gloom-solo-stamina-nightblade-build/

Dottzgaming · September 2021

Zuboko wrote: »

Thank you @Dottzgaming I just found your build which is what I was looking for. I will likely modify it a bit, but this gives me an awesome start!
https://dottzgaming.com/build/gloom-solo-stamina-nightblade-build/

Glad it helped