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Character Build: Zealot of Y'ffre

Tags: #Character Build Archer  #Character Build Alchemist  #Race:Bosmer  #Rank:Recognized 
  • August 21, 2012

    Zealot of Y'ffre

     

    Inspiration

    This is a build inspired by the indigenous peoples of the Amazon, who make heavy use of arrows dipped in the toxic secretions of the poison dart frog.

    Description

    The Zealot of Y'ffre is a savage Bosmer archer who zealously reveres nature; he respects the Green Pact even outside Valenwood, and has zero tolerance for those who upset her balance. Hence, all the poisons and salves which he is heavily dependent on to survive are concocted strictly from animal parts.

    He is a cannibal, like all Valenwood Bosmers. He will not let any animal parts go to waste, so all the hide he obtains he turns into leather which he either sells to the Khajiit caravans or crafts into garments.

    He is distrustful of and will avoid anyone that is not a Bosmer, although he tolerates the beastly races. This makes towns and cities out of bounds (but not caravans). This is not a problem for the Zealot of Y'ffre as he is self-reliant (requires Dawnguard or a mod for arrow crafting). He also abhors creatures which he considers unnatural, such as demons and the undead, and will stop at nothing to eradicate them.

    He is not necessarily evil, though he will seem as such to others. He will not hesitate to slay anyone found disrespecting nature, such as hunting for sport or felling trees. In his eyes, it is they who are evil, not he.

    His background story is entirely up to the player (how he became such an ardent defender of nature, and why he traveled to Skyrim). Perhaps he was a member of a Valenwood contingent of overzealous archers, who were persecuted and driven out of the province. It's all up to your imagination.

     

    Fundamental Gear

    Long bows, iron arrows, very light or no armor (fur, hide, cloth), ring of Namira.

     

    Alchemy

    Being restricted to animal parts and insects presents an interesting challenge. Curiously, it greatly restricts the availability of the most potent (dare I say overpowered) poisons such as Paralyze and Slow, which is a nice side effect. A list of the most important poisons and potions and their respective brewing materials follows.

    • paralysis: briar heart, human flesh
    • slow: large antlers, salt pile, river betty
    • fortify marksman: elves ear, spider egg
    • damage health: falmer ear, troll fat, human heart, river betty, ectoplasm, skeever tail, small antlers, void salts
    • lingering damage health: orange dartwing, slaughterfish egg, slaughterfish scales
    • restore health: butterfly wing, daedra heart, eye of sabre cat, charred skeever hide, blue dartwing, rock warbler egg.

    For other recipes, check out RuneRed's Green Pact Alchemy or visit this site.

    Smithing

    As the Zealot of Y'ffre is self-reliant, smithing is a must, as it is the only reliable way for him to acquire arrows (Khajiit caravans don't carry them). It is also recommended to temper the long bow. Coupled with the adept difficulty, this should make the long bow viable.

    Gameplay

    The Zealot of Y'ffre is a pure archer (no sneak, no melee, no magic). As such, it is a skirmishing build and relies heavily on stamina for sprinting and poisons for keeping NPCs away from you. Bow tanking is not viable due to a very low armor rating. Adept difficulty is recommended.

    Most NPCs can be easily kited without poisons provided you have enough stamina for sprinting, but anyone that can also sprint or is naturally fast (beasts) is a threat. That is where slow poisons come in handy. You should spend a considerable amount of time hunting elk for their antlers which, together with salt piles, allows you to brew these poisons. You should also check streams and lakes for river betty. For once in Skyrim, hunting and fishing will be of real importance to your character's survivability!

    You should use the hides to level up your smithing so you can temper the long bow to more usable levels. Sell the bracers to the khajiits and check their inventory for useful enchanted hide armor.

    Special Moves

    Neurotoxin Overdose: Weakness to Poison + Lingering Damage Health + Damage Health. For when stuff needs to die, fast.

    Shutdown: Bullseye + Serpent Stone + Paralysis poisons.

    Suggested Perks

    PC (mouse & keyboard): http://skyrimcalculator.com/#178904 (health:stamina 1:1 until 200 stamina)

    PC (extra challenge): http://skyrimcalculator.com/#178905 (health:stamina 1:1)

    Console (controller): http://skyrimcalculator.com/#178902 (health: stamina 1:1 until 200 stamina)

    Standing Stone

    The Serpent Stone is obligatory for this character, even if it's a little underpowered. Paralysis poisons will be really tough to make (requires briar hearts), but with this stone you will have an emergency paralysis at your disposal once a day.

    Conclusion

    The Zealot of Y'ffre is ideal for fans of archery who enjoy roaming the wilds, hunting, and fishing, and want those things to have a real impact on their character. It offers an interesting twist to the alchemy system which will breathe new life into it as well as provide more challenge.

    Enjoy your savage Bosmer! For Y'ffre!

    edit: changed build's name at request of a member with a similarly themed build.

  • Member
    August 21, 2012

    Interesting build. I like the idea, I'd just add some Special Moves/Combos.

  • August 21, 2012

    I'm not sure but I think someone on this site compiled a list of alchemy potions/ingredients suitable for the green pact. +1

  • August 21, 2012

    Aye, I did put together this Green Pact Alchemy list, in case someone wanted to play a Bosmer true to the green pact.  (+1 btw)  A good read is Vix's "Bosmer Part 2: Culture and Identity", if someone wants to learn more about the green pact, (and more about the Bosmer).

  • August 21, 2012

    I knew I'd forgotten something! Updating in a bit.

  • August 21, 2012

    Very cool! I'll add a link to your list.

  • August 21, 2012

    I checked your build and there are indeed similarities. You even mentioned using bows to spit poison on your enemies. If you really want to I can change the name, but I'm having a hard time coming up with an alternative.

  • August 21, 2012

    You might want to check out my Aetherial Crown glitch to be able use the Serpent Stone indefinitely. Also I really like it, it's simple yet heavy roleplaying build. +1 like.

  • Member
    August 21, 2012

    Hey, Asgard!  I know you from the Bethesda forums (I'm Jaberkatyshusband over there).  Great to see a build of yours over here.

    I've been wanting to try something like this for a long time.  Great roleplay value, nice limitations to keep things interesting.  Easy +1 from me.  (It helps that I love Archery in this game, and non-sneak archery in particular)

    Any suggestions for particular quests this guy could pursue?  That's where I usually fall down when trying out a cool new playstyle - I just can't think of anything to "do". 

  • August 22, 2012

    That sounds incredibly game-breaking :P.