I’ve been working on this build for a long time now, ever since I posted my first build The Pyromancer I wanted to give the same treatment to the other two destructive elements. So, after much research and playtesting in between other builds, I’ve finally finished. Not a new concept, the Cryomancer is meant to be a one stop shop for all things frosty.
-THE CRYOMANCER-
Cryomancy is a specialization of the broader school of Destruction magic, and focuses on the use of extreme cold as a weapon. Gifted cryomancers can form ice out of the ambient water found in the air and shape it to their will be it a deadly projectile or defensive armor. This build will fork down two main paths in the later levels. There are the cryomancers who devote themselves to studying and mastering the power of the winter storm, this is the Path of the Blizzard. Alternatively there are cryomancers who instead study the old Skaal traditions and seek to master the ancient ice magic of stalhrim; this is the Path of the Glacier.
Race: Any race can become a cryomancer though some are more suited than others. My top picks are Altmer for the boost in magicka and the Highborn ability, Nord makes a nice thematic choice with their 50% frost resistance, and Khajiit, because who doesn’t love role-playing a fluffy snow cat.
Stone: Mage to start. Later levels will make good use of the Lord Stone when enemies start hitting harder.
Primary Skills: Destruction, Conjuration, Alteration
Blizzard Path Skills: Destruction, Conjuration, Alteration, Alchemy
Glacier Path Skills: Destruction, Conjuration, Alteration, Enchanting, Smithing, Heavy Armor
Stat Placement: M:4 H:1 S:0 For Altmer put the first five levels into health until it is even with magicka then follow this 4:1 ratio. For other races go 1 to 1 health and magicka until you reach 150 in each then follow the 4:1 ratio. This will give you a very healthy magicka pool in the late game and enough health to prevent you from getting one-shotted by a stray archer, though two shots will still probably kill you.
Weapons: Staves, The Pale Blade, Chillrend, Hoarfrost, stalhrim weapons, and of course cryomancy
Apparel: The path you choose will determine your end game apparel. For the aspiring cryomancer the early levels will see you wearing mage robes like most students at the college, and heavy gauntlets and boots of your choice. Later the Blizzard path will maintain the robes albeit of greater quality, while the Glacier Path will forego the wizard robes for a suit of Stalhrim Armor.
Gear: Necromancer’s Amulet, Ring of the Erudite, Ahzidal’s Ring of Arcana, Dukaan.
Shouts: Ice Form, Frost Breath (Dragonborn Frost)
Followers: Frost Atronachs, Frost Cloaked Spiders, Serana (immune to frost damage)
Perk Spread Level 15 - The Aspiring Cryomancer
Destruction: Probably obvious but the focus of the Cryomancer is frost spells so you should definitely pick up the augmented frost and deep freeze perks. Furthermore, squishy mages are squishy so impact is a must for a “dead is dead” play-thru. Impact, Deep Freeze, and the slow effect of frost make it so very few enemies will be able to get close to you.
Conjuration: The skilled cryomancer is able to form potent elemental servants. You can pass on the cost reduction perks, by the time you can cast the higher level spells you will either have access to enough cost reduction gear or have enough magicka to hard cast these spells.
Alteration: Cryomancer’s are able to sheath their bodies in defensive layers of frost improving their resistance to physical harm. The cost reduction perks go a long way in protracted battles, especially at lower levels when you won’t have as much magicka to spare. Target perk is Stability to reduce subsequent castings.
The School of Cryomancy
The School of Cryomancy isn’t limited to just the frost spells from the Destruction Skill but also includes a smattering of spells from several of the magic skills. Below is a compilation of all the spells that comprise the School of Cryomancy.
Cryomancy Spells:
Destruction: Frostbite, Freeze, Frost Rune, Ice Spike, Frost Cloak, Ice Storm, Icy Spear, Wall of Frost, Blizzard (Our main offense, these spells are your answer to most problems.)
Conjuration: Conjure Familiar (mist wolf), Conjure Frost Atronach, Frost Thrall, Control Daedra, Banish Daedra, Expel Daedra (Creating and controlling elementals. For role-play purposes I only used the Banish and Control spells on Frost Atronachs.)
Alteration: Oakflesh, Stoneflesh, Ash Shell, Ironflesh, Ash Rune, Ebonyflesh, Paralyze, Dragonhide, Mass Paralysis (The cryomancer is able to sheath himself in protective layers of magical frost increasing his resistance to damage. He is also able to project this onto enemies effectively freezing them solid and removing them from combat until they thaw out.)
Other Powers: Frost Breath, Ice Form, Frost Cloaked Spider Scroll, North Wind
The Frozen Path
There are two major aspects or paths in the School of Cryomancy, the Blizzard and the Glacier. One focuses on the destructive energies found in the storm while the other focuses on the malleable nature of ice. While it is possible to master both approaches most cryomancers will choose to specialize in one path over the other. The next 20 levels will see very different playstyles emerge.
The Path of the Blizzard
This path focuses on the destructive energies found in a winter storm. Cryomancers that devote themselves to this path are capable of creating devastating storms, able to wipeout multiple enemies at once. This path will add Alchemy as a major skill, with the focus being on potions of fortify destruction and the Potent Blizzard Glitch.
Key Spell: Blizzard – What else but the master level spell that this path is named for. However, harnessing the power of a storm should not be taken lightly. Only the most skilled and well prepared mage should attempt such a task lest the storm consume them or be little more than a flurry.
The Blizzard spell is unique among the destruction school in that its damage potential is inversely related to your resistance, meaning that a high frost/magic resistance makes the spell weaker, while a high frost/magic weakness makes the spell stronger. This means that we can directly manipulate the power of the storm through alchemy by poisoning ourselves. See Noodles Potent Blizzard Glitch article on the specific potions and the order in which to use them.
Frosty Beverages: Below are some of my own creations using thematic ingredients for a cryomancer. I avoided carrying more than one of each of the Potent Blizzard Glitch potions since liberal use of this ability removes just about any challenge and becomes boring quickly. I treated it as more of a once a day power and instead relied on the below potions for most encounters.
Wraith Residue: Invisibility, Restore Magicka, Weakness to Frost
Ingredients: Ice Wraith Teeth, Vampire Dust, Elves Ear
The cryomancer taps into the elemental nature of the frost wraith before summoning a powerful storm to match his fury. This is a nice thematic potion that sets up the Blizzard cryomancer for a powerful spell. Casting master level spells leaves us vulnerable so invisibility is welcome, this potion also restores our magicka making sure we have enough to cast the spell, and it strengthens the blizzard spell to boot.
Atronach Essence: Resist Frost, Restore Magicka
Ingredients: Frost Salts, Red Mountain Flower, Snowberries
This potion instills the cryomancer with a bit of a frost atronach’s essence. The mage is able to more easily tap into his magicka pool and obtains some of the atronach’s elemental resistance to frost.
Fryse Hags Secret: Fortify Destruction, Resist Magic
Ingredients: Glowing Mushroom, Tundra Cotton, Wisp Wrappings
A closely guarded secret of the Hags of Solstheim, this potion protects against enemy magic while at the same time boosting your own destructive output, giving the Blizzard mage a distinct edge in wizardly combat.
Perk Spread Level 35 - The Blizzard Mage
Alchemy: The cryomancer who follows the Path of the Blizzard will augment his natural abilities with powerful alchemic mixtures. This is a necessary skill to get the most out of destruction magic. Avoid the Purity perk as it will prevent you from making the necessary potions to for the Potent Blizzard Glitch.
Play Style
This path has a play style that is basically the classic mage. You will rely solely on you spells to handle every situation. A good way to start each encounter is with a flesh spell and a summon, let your summon distract the enemy while you blast them with frost magic from afar. The flesh spell will help keep you alive in case one of the enemies focuses on you instead of your summon.
Many enemies in Skyrim boast some kind of frost resistance; all undead have a resistance to frost and any animals with snow or ice in the name also have some level of resistance. And of course there are the frost dragons to contend with. All of these enemies can be overcome with liberal use of summons and followers and savvy gameplay. Take your time and keep your distance (the slow effect of frost helps immensely) and all of these enemies will eventually fall to your barrage.
There are two particularly dangerous enemies you need to be aware of, dwemer automatons and nord vampires. These enemies are completely immune to frost magic. The dwemer automatons can be avoided by simply avoiding dwemer ruins. In the event that you have to enter one of these dungeons be sure to bring a follower and make liberal use of the frost atronach summon. The nord vampire is more dangerous since vampire attacks can happen anywhere. If you run into one of these guys when you are without a follower be sure to use your summon to distract them and then run for your life. The frost atronach may be able to handle some of the lower level vampires but a nord master vampire will make short work of the elemental and then of you. In the event you have to slay one of these beasts be sure to bring a follower preferably someone versed in fire magic and again rely heavily on your frost atronach.
The Path of the Glacier
This path focuses on crafting enchanted ice into powerful weapons and armor, namely Stalhrim weapons and armor. As such it will add Smithing, Enchanting, and Heavy Armor as skills to focus on.
While the Blizzard mage focuses on offense, the Glacier mage focuses on defense. Those who follow the path of the glacier craft ice into powerful suits of enchanted armor and create devastating ice weapons. They are devotees of old traditions that date back to before the empire, traditions that involve the creation of stalhrim. The secret of stalhrim is closely guarded by the Skaal. The cryomancer will seek out the Skaal and attempt to learn the secret of how this enchanted ice is forged.
The Glacial Armor of Dukaan: Dukaan was a powerful cryomancer who served Miraak and followed him in his betrayal of the dragons. Looting his tomb will get you his mask but the rest of the armor has been lost over the centruies. In the end it will have to be crafted by you. Horde all the stalhrim samples you mine until you are able to craft this suit of armor.
Head: Dukaan – The ebony mask of the ancient and powerful cryomancer Dukaan. This helm will both augment your frost damage and increase your frost resistance. Challenge Dukaan and take his mask as soon as you are able.
Body: Glacial Mail - Heavy Stalhrim Armor enchanted with Fortify Heavy Armor and Health. The ancient stalhrim mail of Dukaan forged anew. This powerful armor is as redoubtable as a glacier, and instills its wearer with supernatural vitality. The cryomancer becomes an immovable bulwark of enchanted ice.
Hands: Glacial Fingers - Heavy Stalhrim Gauntlets enchanted with Fortify Heavy Armor and Magicka. These gauntlets forged of ancient stalhrim have an ever present shield that reinforces the armor already being worn. Addiitonally they are quick with aetherial energies and increase the magical potential of their wearer.
Feet: Glacial Treads - Heavy Stalhrim Boots enchanted with Resist Frost and Fortify One-Handed. These ancient boots are instilled with the deep cold of the northern glaciers and inure their wearer to the effects of the biting cold and blizzard winds. They also steady him, rooting him to the land, in combat the wearer is always surefooted able to land devastating blows when others would be caught off balance.
The Mace of Aevar Stone-Singer: Aevar is the hero of a popular Skaal fable. His mace used to be passed down by leaders of the Skaal, unfortunately it is no longer in their possession. Perhaps you can learn the secret of how this legendary weapon was forged.
Stalhrim Mace enchanted with Frost Damage and Absorb Magicka. The mace of Aevar Stone-Singer is possessed with the soul of the north wind able to freeze the blood of those it strikes. The mace is even said to sap an opponent of their magical aptitude and transfer it to the mace’s wielder.
Perk Spread Level 35 – The Glacier Mage
Smithing: Part of the mastery of cryomancy involves the crafting of ice into weapons in much the same way a smith crafts metal. The key perk is Ebony Smithing allowing you to craft stalhrim weapons and armor.
Enchanting: The cryomancer is skilled at imbuing his ice formed weapons and armor with powerful enchantments associated with his elemental focus. Extra Effect is very powerful and will allow the creation of your end game gear. Frost Enchanter is thematic and synergizes with stalhrim’s natural boost to ice based enchantments.
Heavy Armor: The goal of this path is to emulate the redoubtable glacier. The only perks of interest are the Juggernaut and Well Fitted perks since we want to get as much armor rating out of our gear as possible. Fists of Steel may be attractive if you chose to be a Snowy Saber Cat.
Play Style
The Glacier Path uses a battle mage play style with a frosty theme. The Glacier mage will open each battle in a similar method to the blizzard mage summoning a frost atronach and casting a flesh spell to stack on top of his stalhrim armor. Then equip your mace in one hand and your favorite cryomancy spell in the other. I prefer to put the mace in the left hand this allows it to be drawn instantly and emulates a cryomancer forming the mace out of thin air, which I think is cool. I chose to stand my ground with this build instead of closing the gap. I was more than happy to blast enemies while they ran at me in slow motion the few to make it to melee are easily dispatched by the mace which handily replenishes some magicka perpetuating my barrage.
Again there are many enemies in Skyrim who boast some level of frost resistance; however the physical aspect of the Glacier Path makes dealing with these enemies manageable. Take your time and use your summon to split the focus of your enemies. Once again dwemer automatons and nord vampires pose a significant threat to the cryomancer. However the Glacier Path has an answer, mace to face. While these enemies are immune to our magic they will take damage from our physical attacks. I still suggest you bring a follower when you know you’ll be facing these enemies and rely on your summons to tank while you attack the flanks.
The Arch Cryomancer
The Arch Cryomancer is a master of both paths unifying the power of the blizzard and the glacier. For those who wish to put in the time and effort to truly master cryomancy this is it. The arch cryomancer has attained mastery of all that is ice magic. He is able to summon epic winter storms through the use of the Potent Blizzard glitch, and he can magically sheath himself in the strongest glacial armor (stalhrim armor with dragonhide). He is both the raging blizzard and the immovable glacier.
Perk Spread Level 55 – The Arch Cryomancer
Destruction: Novice-Master, Dual Casting, Impact, Augmented Frost 2/2, Deep Freeze
Conjuration: Novice-Adept, Summoner ½, Atromancy, Elemental Potency, Twin Souls
Alteration: Novice-Master, Mage Armor 3/3, Stability
Alchemy: Alchemist 5/5, Physician, Benefactor, Poisoner
Smithing: Steel, Dwarven, Orcish, Ebony
Enchanting: Enchanter 5/5, Fire, Frost, Insightful, Corpus, Extra Effect
Heavy Armor: Juggernaut 5/5, Well Fitted
This is the final perk spread of the cryomancer for one who has pursued all avenues and mastered all aspects of the cold. A true battle mage without compare the arch cryomancer makes short work of most enemies. Even the dwarven automatons and nord vampires stand little chance when faced with a pair of frost atronachs and the cold wrath of this wizard’s mace.
Notable Cryomancy Locations
Below is a list of locations that a cryomancer would be interested in exploring, in no particular order they are…
White Ridge Barrow: This is the location of Dukaan’s tomb. It also has the crafting station for spider scrolls allowing you to make some Frost Cloaked Spiders (albino spider pod, salt pile, sapphire.)
Kolbjorn Barrow: This is where you’ll eventually find Ahzidal’s Ring of Arcana which contains the Freeze spell, as well as Ahzidal’s armor set which is useful for enchanting. Furthermore, Ralis Sedarys carries the Hoarfrost, an ancient Nordic pickaxe that seems to be custom made for a Glacier Path cryomancer.
Frostmere Crypt: The Pale Blade is located in this ruin a useful sword for the early levels. A notable perk to this weapon is that it can be recharged for free by placing it back on its pedestal. One of the words to the Ice Form shout is also located here, the other two can be found in Saarthal and atop Mount Anthor.
The Inner Sanctum of the Forgotten Vale: There are two staves located in this area that possess frost magic one is a Staff of Ice Spikes and the other is a Staff of Icy Spears. Unfortunately the utility of these items is limited considering how far down the Dawnguard questline you need to go to access this area.
Yngol Barrow: The powerful Helm of Yngol is located here. This is my favorite helm to give to a follower.
Mercer Frey’s House in Riften: The powerful sword Chillrend is kept under lock and key by Mercer Frey.
Folgunthur: One of the words to Frost Breath is located in this dungeon. The other two are located at Bonestrewn Crest and Skyborn Altar.
Skaal Village: Befriending the people of this village will reward you with the knowledge of how to forge stalhrim into powerful weapons and armor.
Conclusion
Thank you all for reading. This was a long one coming but was a truly enjoyable build to play. The weaknesses inherent in focusing only on ice magic creates a dynamic that was very fun, and made overcoming difficult situations all the more satisfying. I have to thank all the contributors of Tips and Tricks, especially Noodles and Ponty for their discussions on blizzard and quick leveling smithing respectively. Thanks again for reading and if you liked this build then check out my page for other Skyrim Character Builds.
-Vargr
I’ve been working on this build for a long time now, ever since I posted my first build The Pyromancer I wanted to give the same treatment to the other two destructive elements. So, after much research and playtesting in between other builds, I’ve finally finished. Not a new concept, the Cryomancer is meant to be a one stop shop for all things frosty.
-THE CRYOMANCER-
Cryomancy is a specialization of the broader school of Destruction magic, and focuses on the use of extreme cold as a weapon. Gifted cryomancers can form ice out of the ambient water found in the air and shape it to their will be it a deadly projectile or defensive armor. This build will fork down two main paths in the later levels. There are the cryomancers who devote themselves to studying and mastering the power of the winter storm, this is the Path of the Blizzard. Alternatively there are cryomancers who instead study the old Skaal traditions and seek to master the ancient ice magic of stalhrim; this is the Path of the Glacier.
Race: Any race can become a cryomancer though some are more suited than others. My top picks are Altmer for the boost in magicka and the Highborn ability, Nord makes a nice thematic choice with their 50% frost resistance, and Khajiit, because who doesn’t love role-playing a fluffy snow cat.
Stone: Mage to start. Later levels will make good use of the Lord Stone when enemies start hitting harder.
Primary Skills: Destruction, Conjuration, Alteration
Blizzard Path Skills: Destruction, Conjuration, Alteration, Alchemy
Glacier Path Skills: Destruction, Conjuration, Alteration, Enchanting, Smithing, Heavy Armor
Stat Placement: M:4 H:1 S:0 For Altmer put the first five levels into health until it is even with magicka then follow this 4:1 ratio. For other races go 1 to 1 health and magicka until you reach 150 in each then follow the 4:1 ratio. This will give you a very healthy magicka pool in the late game and enough health to prevent you from getting one-shotted by a stray archer, though two shots will still probably kill you.
Weapons: Staves, The Pale Blade, Chillrend, Hoarfrost, stalhrim weapons, and of course cryomancy
Apparel: The path you choose will determine your end game apparel. For the aspiring cryomancer the early levels will see you wearing mage robes like most students at the college, and heavy gauntlets and boots of your choice. Later the Blizzard path will maintain the robes albeit of greater quality, while the Glacier Path will forego the wizard robes for a suit of Stalhrim Armor.
Gear: Necromancer’s Amulet, Ring of the Erudite, Ahzidal’s Ring of Arcana, Dukaan.
Shouts: Ice Form, Frost Breath (Dragonborn Frost)
Followers: Frost Atronachs, Frost Cloaked Spiders, Serana (immune to frost damage)
Perk Spread Level 15 - The Aspiring Cryomancer
Destruction: Probably obvious but the focus of the Cryomancer is frost spells so you should definitely pick up the augmented frost and deep freeze perks. Furthermore, squishy mages are squishy so impact is a must for a “dead is dead” play-thru. Impact, Deep Freeze, and the slow effect of frost make it so very few enemies will be able to get close to you.
Conjuration: The skilled cryomancer is able to form potent elemental servants. You can pass on the cost reduction perks, by the time you can cast the higher level spells you will either have access to enough cost reduction gear or have enough magicka to hard cast these spells.
Alteration: Cryomancer’s are able to sheath their bodies in defensive layers of frost improving their resistance to physical harm. The cost reduction perks go a long way in protracted battles, especially at lower levels when you won’t have as much magicka to spare. Target perk is Stability to reduce subsequent castings.
The School of Cryomancy
The School of Cryomancy isn’t limited to just the frost spells from the Destruction Skill but also includes a smattering of spells from several of the magic skills. Below is a compilation of all the spells that comprise the School of Cryomancy.
Cryomancy Spells:
Destruction: Frostbite, Freeze, Frost Rune, Ice Spike, Frost Cloak, Ice Storm, Icy Spear, Wall of Frost, Blizzard (Our main offense, these spells are your answer to most problems.)
Conjuration: Conjure Familiar (mist wolf), Conjure Frost Atronach, Frost Thrall, Control Daedra, Banish Daedra, Expel Daedra (Creating and controlling elementals. For role-play purposes I only used the Banish and Control spells on Frost Atronachs.)
Alteration: Oakflesh, Stoneflesh, Ash Shell, Ironflesh, Ash Rune, Ebonyflesh, Paralyze, Dragonhide, Mass Paralysis (The cryomancer is able to sheath himself in protective layers of magical frost increasing his resistance to damage. He is also able to project this onto enemies effectively freezing them solid and removing them from combat until they thaw out.)
Other Powers: Frost Breath, Ice Form, Frost Cloaked Spider Scroll, North Wind
The Frozen Path
There are two major aspects or paths in the School of Cryomancy, the Blizzard and the Glacier. One focuses on the destructive energies found in the storm while the other focuses on the malleable nature of ice. While it is possible to master both approaches most cryomancers will choose to specialize in one path over the other. The next 20 levels will see very different playstyles emerge.
The Path of the Blizzard
This path focuses on the destructive energies found in a winter storm. Cryomancers that devote themselves to this path are capable of creating devastating storms, able to wipeout multiple enemies at once. This path will add Alchemy as a major skill, with the focus being on potions of fortify destruction and the Potent Blizzard Glitch.
Key Spell: Blizzard – What else but the master level spell that this path is named for. However, harnessing the power of a storm should not be taken lightly. Only the most skilled and well prepared mage should attempt such a task lest the storm consume them or be little more than a flurry.
The Blizzard spell is unique among the destruction school in that its damage potential is inversely related to your resistance, meaning that a high frost/magic resistance makes the spell weaker, while a high frost/magic weakness makes the spell stronger. This means that we can directly manipulate the power of the storm through alchemy by poisoning ourselves. See Noodles Potent Blizzard Glitch article on the specific potions and the order in which to use them.
Frosty Beverages: Below are some of my own creations using thematic ingredients for a cryomancer. I avoided carrying more than one of each of the Potent Blizzard Glitch potions since liberal use of this ability removes just about any challenge and becomes boring quickly. I treated it as more of a once a day power and instead relied on the below potions for most encounters.
Wraith Residue: Invisibility, Restore Magicka, Weakness to Frost
Ingredients: Ice Wraith Teeth, Vampire Dust, Elves Ear
The cryomancer taps into the elemental nature of the frost wraith before summoning a powerful storm to match his fury. This is a nice thematic potion that sets up the Blizzard cryomancer for a powerful spell. Casting master level spells leaves us vulnerable so invisibility is welcome, this potion also restores our magicka making sure we have enough to cast the spell, and it strengthens the blizzard spell to boot.
Atronach Essence: Resist Frost, Restore Magicka
Ingredients: Frost Salts, Red Mountain Flower, Snowberries
This potion instills the cryomancer with a bit of a frost atronach’s essence. The mage is able to more easily tap into his magicka pool and obtains some of the atronach’s elemental resistance to frost.
Fryse Hags Secret: Fortify Destruction, Resist Magic
Ingredients: Glowing Mushroom, Tundra Cotton, Wisp Wrappings
A closely guarded secret of the Hags of Solstheim, this potion protects against enemy magic while at the same time boosting your own destructive output, giving the Blizzard mage a distinct edge in wizardly combat.
Perk Spread Level 35 - The Blizzard Mage
Alchemy: The cryomancer who follows the Path of the Blizzard will augment his natural abilities with powerful alchemic mixtures. This is a necessary skill to get the most out of destruction magic. Avoid the Purity perk as it will prevent you from making the necessary potions to for the Potent Blizzard Glitch.
Play Style
This path has a play style that is basically the classic mage. You will rely solely on you spells to handle every situation. A good way to start each encounter is with a flesh spell and a summon, let your summon distract the enemy while you blast them with frost magic from afar. The flesh spell will help keep you alive in case one of the enemies focuses on you instead of your summon.
Many enemies in Skyrim boast some kind of frost resistance; all undead have a resistance to frost and any animals with snow or ice in the name also have some level of resistance. And of course there are the frost dragons to contend with. All of these enemies can be overcome with liberal use of summons and followers and savvy gameplay. Take your time and keep your distance (the slow effect of frost helps immensely) and all of these enemies will eventually fall to your barrage.
There are two particularly dangerous enemies you need to be aware of, dwemer automatons and nord vampires. These enemies are completely immune to frost magic. The dwemer automatons can be avoided by simply avoiding dwemer ruins. In the event that you have to enter one of these dungeons be sure to bring a follower and make liberal use of the frost atronach summon. The nord vampire is more dangerous since vampire attacks can happen anywhere. If you run into one of these guys when you are without a follower be sure to use your summon to distract them and then run for your life. The frost atronach may be able to handle some of the lower level vampires but a nord master vampire will make short work of the elemental and then of you. In the event you have to slay one of these beasts be sure to bring a follower preferably someone versed in fire magic and again rely heavily on your frost atronach.
The Path of the Glacier
This path focuses on crafting enchanted ice into powerful weapons and armor, namely Stalhrim weapons and armor. As such it will add Smithing, Enchanting, and Heavy Armor as skills to focus on.
While the Blizzard mage focuses on offense, the Glacier mage focuses on defense. Those who follow the path of the glacier craft ice into powerful suits of enchanted armor and create devastating ice weapons. They are devotees of old traditions that date back to before the empire, traditions that involve the creation of stalhrim. The secret of stalhrim is closely guarded by the Skaal. The cryomancer will seek out the Skaal and attempt to learn the secret of how this enchanted ice is forged.
The Glacial Armor of Dukaan: Dukaan was a powerful cryomancer who served Miraak and followed him in his betrayal of the dragons. Looting his tomb will get you his mask but the rest of the armor has been lost over the centruies. In the end it will have to be crafted by you. Horde all the stalhrim samples you mine until you are able to craft this suit of armor.
Head: Dukaan – The ebony mask of the ancient and powerful cryomancer Dukaan. This helm will both augment your frost damage and increase your frost resistance. Challenge Dukaan and take his mask as soon as you are able.
Body: Glacial Mail - Heavy Stalhrim Armor enchanted with Fortify Heavy Armor and Health. The ancient stalhrim mail of Dukaan forged anew. This powerful armor is as redoubtable as a glacier, and instills its wearer with supernatural vitality. The cryomancer becomes an immovable bulwark of enchanted ice.
Hands: Glacial Fingers - Heavy Stalhrim Gauntlets enchanted with Fortify Heavy Armor and Magicka. These gauntlets forged of ancient stalhrim have an ever present shield that reinforces the armor already being worn. Addiitonally they are quick with aetherial energies and increase the magical potential of their wearer.
Feet: Glacial Treads - Heavy Stalhrim Boots enchanted with Resist Frost and Fortify One-Handed. These ancient boots are instilled with the deep cold of the northern glaciers and inure their wearer to the effects of the biting cold and blizzard winds. They also steady him, rooting him to the land, in combat the wearer is always surefooted able to land devastating blows when others would be caught off balance.
The Mace of Aevar Stone-Singer: Aevar is the hero of a popular Skaal fable. His mace used to be passed down by leaders of the Skaal, unfortunately it is no longer in their possession. Perhaps you can learn the secret of how this legendary weapon was forged.
Stalhrim Mace enchanted with Frost Damage and Absorb Magicka. The mace of Aevar Stone-Singer is possessed with the soul of the north wind able to freeze the blood of those it strikes. The mace is even said to sap an opponent of their magical aptitude and transfer it to the mace’s wielder.
Perk Spread Level 35 – The Glacier Mage
Smithing: Part of the mastery of cryomancy involves the crafting of ice into weapons in much the same way a smith crafts metal. The key perk is Ebony Smithing allowing you to craft stalhrim weapons and armor.
Enchanting: The cryomancer is skilled at imbuing his ice formed weapons and armor with powerful enchantments associated with his elemental focus. Extra Effect is very powerful and will allow the creation of your end game gear. Frost Enchanter is thematic and synergizes with stalhrim’s natural boost to ice based enchantments.
Heavy Armor: The goal of this path is to emulate the redoubtable glacier. The only perks of interest are the Juggernaut and Well Fitted perks since we want to get as much armor rating out of our gear as possible. Fists of Steel may be attractive if you chose to be a Snowy Saber Cat.
Play Style
The Glacier Path uses a battle mage play style with a frosty theme. The Glacier mage will open each battle in a similar method to the blizzard mage summoning a frost atronach and casting a flesh spell to stack on top of his stalhrim armor. Then equip your mace in one hand and your favorite cryomancy spell in the other. I prefer to put the mace in the left hand this allows it to be drawn instantly and emulates a cryomancer forming the mace out of thin air, which I think is cool. I chose to stand my ground with this build instead of closing the gap. I was more than happy to blast enemies while they ran at me in slow motion the few to make it to melee are easily dispatched by the mace which handily replenishes some magicka perpetuating my barrage.
Again there are many enemies in Skyrim who boast some level of frost resistance; however the physical aspect of the Glacier Path makes dealing with these enemies manageable. Take your time and use your summon to split the focus of your enemies. Once again dwemer automatons and nord vampires pose a significant threat to the cryomancer. However the Glacier Path has an answer, mace to face. While these enemies are immune to our magic they will take damage from our physical attacks. I still suggest you bring a follower when you know you’ll be facing these enemies and rely on your summons to tank while you attack the flanks.
The Arch Cryomancer
The Arch Cryomancer is a master of both paths unifying the power of the blizzard and the glacier. For those who wish to put in the time and effort to truly master cryomancy this is it. The arch cryomancer has attained mastery of all that is ice magic. He is able to summon epic winter storms through the use of the Potent Blizzard glitch, and he can magically sheath himself in the strongest glacial armor (stalhrim armor with dragonhide). He is both the raging blizzard and the immovable glacier.
Perk Spread Level 55 – The Arch Cryomancer
Destruction: Novice-Master, Dual Casting, Impact, Augmented Frost 2/2, Deep Freeze
Conjuration: Novice-Adept, Summoner ½, Atromancy, Elemental Potency, Twin Souls
Alteration: Novice-Master, Mage Armor 3/3, Stability
Alchemy: Alchemist 5/5, Physician, Benefactor, Poisoner
Smithing: Steel, Dwarven, Orcish, Ebony
Enchanting: Enchanter 5/5, Fire, Frost, Insightful, Corpus, Extra Effect
Heavy Armor: Juggernaut 5/5, Well Fitted
This is the final perk spread of the cryomancer for one who has pursued all avenues and mastered all aspects of the cold. A true battle mage without compare the arch cryomancer makes short work of most enemies. Even the dwarven automatons and nord vampires stand little chance when faced with a pair of frost atronachs and the cold wrath of this wizard’s mace.
Notable Cryomancy Locations
Below is a list of locations that a cryomancer would be interested in exploring, in no particular order they are…
White Ridge Barrow: This is the location of Dukaan’s tomb. It also has the crafting station for spider scrolls allowing you to make some Frost Cloaked Spiders (albino spider pod, salt pile, sapphire.)
Kolbjorn Barrow: This is where you’ll eventually find Ahzidal’s Ring of Arcana which contains the Freeze spell, as well as Ahzidal’s armor set which is useful for enchanting. Furthermore, Ralis Sedarys carries the Hoarfrost, an ancient Nordic pickaxe that seems to be custom made for a Glacier Path cryomancer.
Frostmere Crypt: The Pale Blade is located in this ruin a useful sword for the early levels. A notable perk to this weapon is that it can be recharged for free by placing it back on its pedestal. One of the words to the Ice Form shout is also located here, the other two can be found in Saarthal and atop Mount Anthor.
The Inner Sanctum of the Forgotten Vale: There are two staves located in this area that possess frost magic one is a Staff of Ice Spikes and the other is a Staff of Icy Spears. Unfortunately the utility of these items is limited considering how far down the Dawnguard questline you need to go to access this area.
Yngol Barrow: The powerful Helm of Yngol is located here. This is my favorite helm to give to a follower.
Mercer Frey’s House in Riften: The powerful sword Chillrend is kept under lock and key by Mercer Frey.
Folgunthur: One of the words to Frost Breath is located in this dungeon. The other two are located at Bonestrewn Crest and Skyborn Altar.
Skaal Village: Befriending the people of this village will reward you with the knowledge of how to forge stalhrim into powerful weapons and armor.
Conclusion
Thank you all for reading. This was a long one coming but was a truly enjoyable build to play. The weaknesses inherent in focusing only on ice magic creates a dynamic that was very fun, and made overcoming difficult situations all the more satisfying. I have to thank all the contributors of Tips and Tricks, especially Noodles and Ponty for their discussions on blizzard and quick leveling smithing respectively. Thanks again for reading and if you liked this build then check out my page for other Skyrim Character Builds.
-Vargr
