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Character Build: The Nightblood Rogue

Tags: #Character Build Rogue  #Character Build Elementalist  #Character Build Nightblade  #Rank:Recognized  #Race:Altmer  #0 AR  #sneak  #Enchanting  #Blood Mage  #Equilibrium  #Pickpocket 
  • May 1, 2014

    Hey there folks, CounterfeitFrenchman here with my first ever build! I wanted to expand on some of the ideas Jo'daro Zahir touched upon in his fantastic Blood Mage build. As a Dragon Age fan extraordinaire, I wanted to explore Equilibrium and possible synergy with other gear, as well as sneaking and thief skills, to create something truly my own. 

    Now, on to the build...

    "I'm not in this for your Talos, Ulfric--I'm here for the coin, and that's it. You'd do well to remember that."

    The Nightblood Rogue 

    The Nightblood Rogue was once a nobody. An Altmer of Alinor, she was the fourth daughter of a mildly successful family of general-goods merchants. From a young age, she dreamed of standing out and making a name for herself, but was hounded by disappointment. No money, no upward mobility, and magical talent that was mediocre on a good day. But she was strong and healthy, with a keen intuition for how to get people to trust her. With few moneymaking opportunities available, the resourceful young elf turned to crime. With her smooth tongue and quick hands, she made a cunning pickpocket and con artist. While never officially a member of the Summerset Shadows, she wasn't above doing odd jobs for the syndicate once in a while. If a theft went wrong, it was easy to distract the guards with a fireball or illusion spell--or even a well-timed punch--and slip away. It was a fun way to earn coin. But it wasn't enough, so one night she packed her things and set off to make her fortune in Skyrim.

    Sounds romantic, doesn't it? Well it wasn't--with nothing but the clothes on her back and the name of the Shadows' contact in Windhelm (Linwe, was it?), the intrepid young grifter's journey was a disaster from the word go. While sweet-talking a farmer out of his horse, a scrawny little Nord snatched it when both their backs were turned. She and the sucker farmer gave chase, and wound up in the middle of an Imperial ambush. She survived, the farmer did not. Next thing she knew, a bleeding dragon appeared out of nowhere and started killing people, then she and another prisoner escaped through the caves beneath the fort, and she discovered that she was some magical eater of dragon souls destined to save the world. What did that Whiterun guard call her--"Dragonborn?" And why was it so thrice-damned cold out!?! Overwhelmed, she refocused on becoming filthy rich. Thinking that more training in magic (however meager her abilities) might help, she enrolled at the College of Winterhold and became embroiled in the Eye of Magnus crisis. Little did the young thief know that the quest to Labyrinthian would change her life forever...

    In a forgotten side-passage in the bowels of Labyrinthian, she discovered an ancient tome. It told of a forbidden school of magic, a reckless and self-destructive discipline by which a mage could use the power of blood, the very life-force of themselves or their enemies, to fuel their spellcraft...BLOOD MAGIC. The young Altmer was elated. She'd always been physically stronger than most elves, with less innate magical strength than most. But now, using the power of her blood, she could cast the spells that were always beyond her grasp! She had power. And she was going to use it to become the greatest thief Tamriel had ever seen...

    "Archmage or Master Thief? Why not both?"

    Build--Overview

    The Nightblood Rogue is a sneaky and resourceful mage, equally at home slugging it out with Fireballs at long range as she is to pickpocket your battleaxe away and ass-rape you with Chain Lightning before you can say "someone stole my sweetroll." She uses the secrets of blood magic to harness the power of life in the form of blood--be it spilling her own blood to recharge her magicka, bending the blood of others to her will, or draining an enemy's life force. She lurks in  shadows, lashing out with elemental assaults that seem to come from nowhere before quietly re-positioning for another one. Powerful enchantments on her robes bolster her physical endurance--it's rumored that a drop of her own blood goes into every piece. She uses the Thu'um, a gift from Auri'El himself, to its full potential, using it to become literally untouchable in battle. But the Nightblood Rogue is still a rather squishy lass, and relies on remaining undetected, slipping in and out of sight like a ghost. Her childhood swindling travelers in the market has also given her a keen instinct for trading, and her silvery words can charm the septims out of anyone's purse. Speaking of which...if she passes by you, don't bother counting your coin afterwards. She's already taken it all, along with your lucky dagger, your grandmother's locket, and the keys to your house.

    In short, this build is for you if you like explosive arcane ambushes, draining health from all and sundry to fuel your spells, and RP-ing as a charming rogue with a dark secret.

    Build--Details

    Race: Altmer, either gender will do. This is mostly for the extra 50 magicka, although Highborn can really save your ass if you're running low on magicka and don't want to risk draining your health. In most cases, though, stick to Blood Magic (more on that below). Your robe enchantments should take care of health regen.

    Stone: Thief or Mage Stones first, then switch to whichever one you want. Think outside the box! I went with the Tower Stone because I liked to imagine her opening up an Expert-level chest with a wave of the hands and an exasperated sigh. But you could also make a solid case for the Lord, Lady, or Shadow as well. 

    Stat Distribution: Divide yourself between health and magicka with a bias towards health, since we'll need a lot of it for Equilibrium to be effective. Being an Altmer, you already have an advantage here. Building a blood mage means walking a fine line. Too much in magicka, and you'll kill yourself before Equilibrium can recharge it all. Too much in health, and you won't have the magicka for late-game Destruction spells. A ratio of about 1.5 magicka for every 1 health works nicely, especially since you'll be doing everything in your power to fortify both health and health regen.

    Perk Overviews: Lv. 30, Lv. 60

    Gameplay: The core mechanic of this build is Blood Magic, AKA Equilibrium. Blood magic is risky and self-destructive--you can die while recharging if you're not careful. That's where stealth comes in. By setting up devastating first strikes undetected, you can slink off to find a new angle of attack, casting Equilibrium in safety. If they're getting too close, cast Invisibility and gain some distance. Or move in close and pickpocket their weapons. Then you can roast your newly-disarmed friends in arcane fire at your own leisure. 

    The Nightblood Rogue is NOT a vampire build, even if they do share a blood theme and vampirism compliments the build's skills. Vampirism doesn't fit for RP reasons. You'll want to be haggling in the marketplace during the day, not snoozing in a coffin. So instead you'll use Nightingale Strife and the Drain Vitality shout. Nightingale Strife absorbs 100 points of damage from an enemy once a day. It only heals you 100 points, but does a lot more damage in AoE. Since the Thieves Guild questline is mandatory for this build you can go adventuring for one day, then spend the next selling your wares and picking pockets. That keeps Nightingale Strife ready to go at all times.

    The Nightblood also relies heavily on Drain Vitality, which does 150 points of damage to health, stamina, and magicka. It doesn't absorb it, but if you interpret the shout as you using the Thu'um to blast the life-force from enemies, it works for our purposes. Coupled with Silent Casting, Drain Vitality is also a pretty nice way of causing DoT to enemies. Since it doesn't drain magicka, it's an excellent opening volley in your arcane ambushes.

    But a fast health regeneration rate doesn't mean you can get cocky. You're still a 0 AR glass cannon. If you're forced into open combat, misdirect them with Illusion and melt back into the shadows. Unless the odds are undoubtedly in your favor, do not engage in open combat without a backup plan. Standing and fighting is for meatheads, not creative scoundrels like yourself. If they see you without you wanting them to, you have failed as a Nightblood Rogue, and your license will be revoked.

    Goddammit, Jowan.

    Gear: Since you'll be using stealth for protection, we can focus on aesthetics. I went for the hooded Mythic Dawn robes, since the style and color just screams "I can do things with my blood so profane it would give Molag Bal nightmares." Don't go for the full set; grab some Dunmer Shoes from Solsthiem instead. They classify as "Torso" during enchanting, which makes up for the slot you lost with the robes' enchantment.

    When enchanting, focus on maximizing your health, magicka, and health regeneration. If you can regenerate health quickly post-Equilibrium, you'll be in better shape to use it again later. Here's what I ended up with:

    Nightblood's Robes (Mythic Dawn Robes, hooded variant): Fortify Magicka Regen +75%

    Nightblood's Circlet (Copper and Ruby Circlet): Fortify Illusion, Fortify Destruction

    Nightblood's Gloves (Mythic Dawn Gloves): Fortify Magicka, Fortify Unarmed

    Nightblood's Moccasins (Dunmer Shoes): Fortify Health, Fortify Healing Rate

    Nightblood's Wellspring (Gold Ruby Necklace): Fortify Health, Fortify Healing Rate

    Ring of Namira: This ring is PERFECT for RP-ing as a character who uses flesh and blood to power their spellcraft. The extra +50% health regen. after eating a corpse stacks with your armor to boost your health regeneration to truly ridiculous levels. Plus, the cannibalism can be RP-ed as the Nightblood Rogue consuming the flesh and blood of defeated enemies to enhance their own power. 

    Goldenfang (Elven Dagger): Absorb Health, Chaos Damage

    (There's a glitch that greatly increases the power of Absorb Health when combined with Chaos Damage. I couldn't resist.)

    Keep Goldenfang to siphon blood from an enemy stupid enough to close with you. This creates a very interesting dynamic: since I had no other means of healing, often I found myself running after weaker enemies when I was low on health so I could steal their blood. It's a fun challenge. But don't focus on this too much. You're a Nightblood, not a Nightblade

    Sure, this chick's got a blade, but that's not what you're scared of, is it?

    Major Skills:

    • Destruction: This is your primary mode of attack. Get Dual-Casting, Augment and Impact perks as soon as you can and work up to Master Destruction. Nothing else is needed, although I must admit I find Disintegrate extremely fun. 
    • Illusion: Your second most important school of magic. Get Dual-Casting right away. Focus on pacifying enemies and using Muffle until you get Quiet Casting, and then gradually fill in the rest of the tree except Master Illusion.
    • Sneak: This shit'll keep you alive. Get all the perks on the left side of the snake--we won't be backstabbing. Shadow Warrior plays a key role in some of the special moves later on.
    • Pickpocket: The Nightblood Rogue uses this skill both to make money and nerf harder opponents like Bandit Chiefs. Focus on Light Fingers at first, but your goal is Misdirection.
    • Enchanting: Every blood mage worth her salt is a capable enchanter, using her arcane robes to maximize the rate she heals herself from her Blood Magic. Focus on the middle perks, getting all the ranks in Enchanter and ending on Extra Effect.

    Minor Skills:

    • Speech: Nightblood Rogues are master swindlers, able to talk the shirt off your back and have you thank them for the privilege. Get a few ranks in Haggling, followed by Allure, Bribery, and Persuasion.
    • Restoration: With health regen like this, you'll barely need Restoration. Just go up to Adept for wards and Poison Rune.
    • Conjuration: I liked having a Frost Atronach on call in case melee enemies got too close. A few more points in here may prove useful depending on your playstyle, but I barely touched it.

    Abilities+Powers: Highborn, Tower Stone, Mora's Agony, Nightingale Strife, Secret of Arcana, Black Market, Meditation on the Words of Power: Force Without Effort* 

    *Some very clever folks have informed me that due to a glitch, Ethereal Spirit does nothing at all-- it's actually Force Without Effort that gives the extra health regen. while ethereal. Get that one instead.

    Shouts: Become Ethereal, Marked For Death, Throw Voice, Drain Vitality, Slow Time, Whirlwind Sprint, Soul Tear

    "Blood grants us life, but now it shall be the instrument of your death..."

    Special Moves:

    Blood Magic (Dual-Casted Equilibrium+Become Ethereal+Force Without Effort): Tear open your veins and let the blood flow, it only makes you stronger.

    The Guns of Alinor (Highborn/Secret of Arcana+Slow Time+Dual-Casted Fireball+Impact): What could be more satisfying than becoming a siege weapon in mer form? Also available in frost or lightning variants.

    Sucker-Punch (Sneak+Marked For Death+Unarmed+Waiting about 50 seconds): Tricks you learned on the mean streets of Alinor still have their place. Turn his blood against him, then stalk him as he weakens, striking him in the back of the head when he is at his most vulnerable. 

    Arcane Surge (Sneak+Highborn/Secret of Arcana+ Lightning Storm): Your blood temporarily surges with magicka, destroying from hiding like a lightning bolt in a clear blue sky. Shouting "POWAARR! UNLIMITED POWAAARRRR!!!" is encouraged, but optional.

    Blood Slave (Throw Voice+Frenzy+Marked For Death): Incite your foes to anger. While they tear each other to pieces, help the process along by turning their very blood against them.

    Grim Sacrifice (Follower/Enemy+Goldenfang+Pacify): In dire straits, anything goes. Another must sacrifice their blood to sustain you. If they survive, be sure to apologize.

    Tainted Blood (Mora's Agony+Wall Spell): Spray the dungeon floor with your tainted blood, and leave your enemies trapped and suffering.

    Blood Maim (Throw Voice+Poison Rune+Nightingale Strife+Marked For Death): Unleash your Thu'um and the rage of Lady Nocturnal to boil the blood within their veins. 

    Recommended Quests:

    • College of Winterhold: Do this as soon as possible to grab Equilibrium
    • Pieces of the Past: For your badass Mythic Dawn Blood Mage robes.
    • Thieves Guild (entire questline)
    • Main Quest
    • Dragonborn
    • Dawnguard (Vampirism synergizes really well both skill-wise and thematically, but I went with the Dawnguard instead in order to emphasize that this is not a vampire build)
    • Dark Brotherhood/Destroy the Dark Brotherhood!: Depends on whether you see your Nightblood Rogue as the kind of person who would kill for money. Either one works, but you need to pick one to get the final word of Marked For Death
    • Civil War: Go with whatever side you think will pay more.

    Conclusion: Playing as the Nightblood Rogue was definitely a challenge at first, but it was also the most fun I've had in Skyrim in a long time. Also the most in-depth I've ever gone with RP-ing in a video game.

    Of course, none of this would have been possible for the initial spark provided by Jo'daro Zahir, as well as all the other fine folks of the Character Build forum. Thank you for the amazing builds you've put out there and the incredible attention to detail you've inspired in us all.

    ...and with that, I think that's really all that needs to be said about the Nightblood Rogue. I hope you enjoy it.

    Good Hunting, Gentlemen.

  • May 1, 2014
    So much Red. The red text is really distracting and bright I know that's the only Red which you have access to unless you use the HTML editor but it's just to bright and annoying especially in the big block of text early on. I like the idea behind this but I think you need to expand a little on the Gameplay and add some more elements around blood because at the moment it seems like a high health Regen Night-Blade and nothing really original but what you do have is great. I really liked the set out and the pictures (most of them at least) and SpecialMoves were pretty good just work on the other things and It would be a really Great build.
  • Member
    May 1, 2014
    I agree with Dragonborn. I like the red text but perhaps you could stick it to the titles. I thinks it's a great first build though, even if it's a little long
  • May 1, 2014

    I did go a little oveboard on the RP section, I guess. I'll see what I can do about the red.

  • May 1, 2014

    I got rid of the red in the beginning and am fixing a few spelling errors. As for more "blood-themed" elements, part of the problem is I wanted this to be something separate from the vampire builds on the blog, and of course the vampires get all the good blood-themed spells. The closest thing to Vampiric Drain non-vampires get is either Nightingale Strife or Drain Vitality, which rather limits one's options.

    Ah, if only this glitch worked after you cured yourself of vampirism...http://theskyrimblog.ning.com/group/glitches/forum/topics/how-to-use-vampiric-grip-in-human-form

    As a veteran, what would you suggest?

  • May 1, 2014
    I do get your point and I agree with it sadly their aren't many spells that are non-vampiric.I'll get back to you if I can think of anything that is blood related and could go well with this build.
  • May 1, 2014

    Also, I have no idea what's wrong with these tags.

  • May 1, 2014
    Tags are tricky as he'll but all the information for adding them in properly should be in the Character Build Archive.
  • May 1, 2014

    Got the tags working at last. Also, I expanded the gameplay section to expand upon Nightingale Strife and Drain Vitality.

  • May 1, 2014

    I thought of one: perhaps an Elven Bow enchanted with Absorb Health and Chaos Damage. The use of the bow could be RP-ed as the Nightblood Rogue infusing the arrows with her power and tapping into their blood from afar. On the other hand I also don't really want this to become a Witch-Hunter build so probably not. The only other thing that comes to my mind is Alchemy, and trust me when I say that one crafting skill is plenty of non-adventuring for me.