Hi Josh I`m not entirely sure if dual wield staves is new or not,as its something I personally haven`t explored in Skyrim yet.The reason I mentioned is: until Dragonborn was released I have never seen an opponent attack me with 2 staves before - ever! That changed when looking for the deathbrand treasure and I was attacked by a Pirate using two staffs of flames .So it seemed new to me xD