Skyrim Character Building » Discussions


Event Build: The Shao'kai

Tags: #Character Build Monk  #Character Build Warrior  #Character Build Assassin  #Rank:Event Legendary  #Race:Altmer  #MM 2016 Winner 
  • February 28, 2016

    I have to say Noodles/Bonelord, you have picked out an awesome armor combo for this char. 

  • Member
    February 29, 2016

    Amazing presentation, guys. Very well done there! And I've said this already, but I love that exploding bolt trick/technique. I'd maybe play this with a Khajiit wearing the Cultist Mask and Ring of the Beast for the aesthetic and unarmed benefits (and because the Ring of the Beast feels more like an artifact to me), but that's just a personal preference.

    I have two pieces of constructive criticism for you guys:

    1. I feel like this could do a better job of adhering to the event theme. I take it the Ebony Blade is "your artifact" here, but it doesn't really feel like your build is designed to support that. Advising one-handed, archery, and unarmed really takes away the significance of that core artifact, and it doesn't really seem relevant to the character's backstory/roleplay beyond just the sentence that she's "married to" it. Normally, this isn't really an issue at all, but in the case of event builds, my philosophy is generally that their #1 purpose should be adhering to the theme.
    2. The skill set just feels too thinly spread. This kind of ties in with my first point; if you'd just remove archery and one-handed, that'd go a long way toward minimizing this issue, while simultaneously putting the Ebony Blade on the pedestal upon which it deserves to be placed. And while I understand the inclusion of Lockpicking and Pickpocketing from a roleplay perspective, and can't really complain about them therefore ... They don't really seem to support the gameplay very much (which is kind of a perennial issue with those skills in Skyrim, honestly).

    Keep in mind, this is just the sort of nitty-gritty CC I only give to builds that are so good that they're worth the time to pick apart. So please don't take this the wrong way -- you've got a great build here, whether or not you take my comments into account. Great work!

  • Member
    February 29, 2016

    Sorry I missed the comment! I don't get the irony... must be my current sleepiness. Anyway, the thing is, in the last couple of years, I've not been able to view character builds as just perks and numbers. I need to know why my character fights the way he/she does, what drives him/her forward and the only way I can do this is by imagining a detailed backstory. Back when I played DotA 2, every time I tried a new hero, I read the backstory immediately after the match was over. 

  • Member
    February 29, 2016

    Thanks! I'm surprised that none of us, character building veterans, managed to find it sooner.

  • Member
    February 29, 2016

    Well, your Infiltrator set the bar pretty high so we had to do a lot of fashion walks. 

  • Member
    February 29, 2016

    Thank you for the criticism, I always welcome and appreciate it. Normally, if this were any other character build done by me or a team that I was part of, I'd make the necessary changes. But seeing that this character represents my identity and favorite things in Skyrim (minus the female gender, I just prefer playing females) and also that I don't expect anyone else other than me and Bonelord to play it, I'm going to leave it as it is. I made sure that the build respected the event's rules by asking Albino if I could get away with only explaining why the ebony blade is the best weapon in the game for this character.

  • Member
    March 1, 2016

    Very good work on this build. Nice concept and flawless presentation. Definitely a well deserved +1

  • Member
    March 1, 2016

    OMG the presentation alone was well worth the like. Gorgeous design and kickass concept!

  • Member
    March 1, 2016

    Thanks man! I am yet to give a read to your event build. I scrolled through it in a hurry and I remembered the awesome screenshots from the photos group. Will read soon! 

  • Member
    March 1, 2016

    Thank you!  It took a lot of effort and research!