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Character Build: The Kingslayer

Tags: #Character Build Summoner  #Character Build Assassin  #Character Build Bound Weapons  #Rank:Legendary  #Hall of Fame Build 
  • December 1, 2013

    Daedric armor; the RP nightmare…

    The main problem with Daedric is that once your character is even capable of forging it through smithing you’ve probably already hit the armor cap wearing lesser armor and don’t even feel the benefit. Another choice is waiting until it turns up in random loot at around level 50 but by that point most characters are already powerful enough without it.

    With this in mind I decided to work on a Daedric build that I could fully enjoy, because with a little imagination, sometimes even a cliché can be very good fun…

    The Kingslayer

    It’s possible that the Kingslayer originally descended from one of the various vampire clans that terrorized the cursed Ashland of Molag Amur, it’s rumoured that Prince Hlaalu Helseth himself once commissioned the services of this ancient assassin.

    During the third era the Tribunal Temple sent over a dozen Ordinators to destroy the Kingslayer at the ruins of Ald Sotha, a daedric shrine to Mehrunes Dagon in southern Vvardenfell. Unable to overcome the Kingslayer in open combat the Ordinators were forced to seal the undead warrior deep in the main shrine with nobody but the Prince of Change for company.

    With Ald Sotha’s destruction during Red Year it’s hoped that whatever may have remained of the Kingslayer is now buried deep under The Scathing Bay...

     

    Race: Dunmer Vampire

    Stone: The Mage/The Steed

    Major Skils: Conjuration, One Handed, Alchemy, Archery.

    Minor Skills: Heavy Armor, Sneak.

    Armor: Enchanted Daedric Armor.

    Weapon: Mystic Sword, Mystic Bow, Mehrunes’ Razor.

    Shouts: Aura Whisper, Marked for Death, Become Ethereal, Soul Tear, Slow Time.

    Recommended Quests: The Dark Brotherhood, The Volkihar, Civil War, The College of Winterhold, Daedric Quests.

     

    The Build

    So for me it’s not just about if you wear daedric, it’s about when. Like all of my creations I don’t like to mess around for hours when it comes to acquiring my chosen armor set and for this build I made no exceptions. This character is customised for people who like the idea of daedric armor but are perhaps put off by the limitations of faction integration and roleplaying what essentially looks like a hulking dremora lord.

    The Kingslayer himself is a vampiric death-knight, highly skilled in conjuration which he relies on for weaponry, armor, raising the dead and summoning minions. He has ties to the Dark Brotherhood of old and is an advocate of the daedric lords, especially those associated with the House of Troubles. The rarest ingredients are often left as offerings at the shrines of the daedra and the Kingslayer has developed a keen understanding of alchemic properties and their combat applications.

    During battle the Kingslayer calls a mystic daedric sword and dominates opponents under endless waves of power attacks, those that can’t be reached are dispatched from range using a mystic daedric bow. If hard pressed the Kingslayer is capable of summoning atronachs and dremora into combat and is well versed in necromancy.

    The character is intimidating, wearing a set of demon armor and wielding a sword that blazes with the souls of Oblivion will do that, but the concept’s been taken further because if there’s one thing more terrifying than a damned hell knight, it’s one that you can’t see coming until its too late…

    As a vampire the Kingslayer is unusually stealthy and this is capitalised on further with use of the Steed Stone which removes the noise and weight from the sinister plates of armor, transforming the Kingslayer into a fast and devastating stealth-knight, well suited to assassination. The shout Aura Whisper is perfect for quickly locating targets and sniffing out radiant encounters while the chaotic power of Marked for Death increases the carnage of the mystic sword and bow.

    Originally a Dunmer, the inherent weakness to fire suffered by all vampires is completely removed by his racial bonus. Feeding on both the life-blood and remains of his enemies bolsters the Kingslayers vitality creating a character with an outrageously high healing factor.

    Conjuration

    Let’s pause for a second to take in the full majesty that is the school of Conjuration! The ability to raise enemies from the dead and tear the souls from men and mer, to materialise weapons that burn with demonic power, to call upon devastating elementals, eventually even the hellish Dremora themselves tear their way into the world…

    …and just when you thought it couldn’t get any better, we get a Sigil Stone!

    Although frequently dismissed the Sigil Stone is in many ways the icing on the cake for this school of magic, completely replacing the need for smithing and enchanting.

    To run the Kingslayer successfully it’s important to learn how conjuration actually works so this stone can be acquired efficiently. Rather than using any of the classic exploits I’m going to disclose some strange truths about this powerful school of magic.

    This characters primary spells during the earliest levels are Bound Sword and Raise Zombie and when used together these spells become very special.

    The humble ‘Raise Zombie’ spell provides more Conjuration experience than any other necromancy or atromancy spell in the game.

    It’s that simple. In terms of raw experience Raise Zombie is far stronger than Reanimate Corpse, Revenant and Dread Zombie and completely wipes the floor with the fire, frost and storm atronach spells. Only the mighty Dremora Lord is capable of out-powering it.

    Likewise, ‘Bound Sword’ provides a ton more conjuration experience than the other bound weapon spells, the system basically runs backwards.

    So what happens when we use these two spells almost exclusively during combat? Let’s just say Conjuration was at level 50 by the time I left Bleak Falls Barrow. These two spells carve huge chunks into our chosen school, given that we need 90 in conjuration to access the Sigil Stone they provide the perfect path to greatness. Both spells are novice level and can both be cast with no additional increase to base magicka.

    One Handed awards experience on the base damage of your melee weapon and as a Mystic Sword provides daedric grade damage it shoots up extremely quickly. Archery is the same and therefore a Mystic Bow with its quiver of bound daedric arrows (that can’t be fired back in your face by ranged enemies) is the perfect weapon for improving combat skills.

    Level 50 Perk Placement

    Stat Placement: Magicka - 1 / Health - 3 / Stamina -1

    Perk placement for the Kingslayer is kept tight and pretty specific. During the earliest levels select the mage stone and prioritise conjuration to allow smooth casting of the Kingslayers weaponry and adept level minions. The ring of Namira is an integral part of this character and should be acquired quickly for a health and stamina bonus, a couple of early perks into alchemy to create better healing and resistance potions is also recommended.

    Complete Ironbind Barrow at the earliest opportunity for a set of steel plate armor and if you’re feeling brave killing the dragon priest Vokun for his mask provides an excellent early game look. Any dragons that stand in your way should be torn from the air with the bound bow.

    The death-knight playstyle is always entertaining and through diligent use of Raise Zombie and Bound Sword you’ll have a Dremora by level 18 and access to the atronach forge by around level 22 for the characters true armor. Be sure to break off at level 20 to complete Mehrunes Dagons quest for the Razor, there are four dremora at his shrine and at least two ebony ingots which provides an excellent head start at the atronach forge.

    The steed stone should be selected as soon as the sigil stone has been acquired from the conjuration ritual quest and it’s here that archery and sneak can start playing a bigger part in the Kingslayers playstyle. The upgrade to daedric armor obviously strengthens this character significantly but it can also limit role-playing options, I suggest joining the Volkihar and Dark Brotherhood at this point to permanently remove your character from ‘normal society’ and maybe treat yourself to a red-eyed horse to go with your red-eyed hound…

    It’s very unusual to see all five stealth perks maximised in a build these days but after some testing they make a big difference and I felt it was important that this character was naturally talented at stealth rather than clumsily taking potions. Those five perks combined with the ‘Champion of the Night’ vampire bonus allow the Kingslayer to perform nightmarish acts such as approaching enemies from the front and just looming up in their faces…

    Secrets of the Forge

    The Atronach Forge is located in the Midden beneath the College of Winterhold, in its standard state it can be used to create powerful conjuration staffs and spell tomes but once empowered with the Sigil Stone from the conjuration ritual quest (Lvl 90) it becomes a source of the games most powerful weapons and armor; daedric…

    Daedric armor is the preternatural result of refined ebony combined with the essence of an unwilling lesser daedra. Normally when a daedra is slain its spirit returns to whichever daedric realm it was originally born from where it will eventually re-manifest. You can’t actually ‘kill’ a daedra; it can only be temporarily banished.

    It can therefore be surmised that daedric armor is even more demonic than originally thought; it interrupts this normal cycle by imprisoning the soul of a tortured daedra within the armor during the forging process.  The Dremora are the original creators of daedric armor and with their cruel temperament it’s very easy to believe how they willingly enslave other daedra to craft their signature equipment.

    The forge recipe the Kingslayer uses is for enchanted daedric armor and the ingredients are actually very easy to come by from alchemists and traders.

    1 x Ebony Ingot

    1 x Greater/Grand Soul Gem (Filled)

    1 x Daedra Heart

    1 x Void Salts

    Once these ingredients are collected and placed into the ‘offering box’ you can simply save your game and then gamble for your items. It’s possible to view 4 different daedric items per minute including reloading with this method making it easy to put together the perfect combat suit. We aren’t talking about standard gear here either; these are godly level 55 magical items, on a level 22 character…


    Arms and Armor

    With the full weight of the atronach forge at his disposal this character could have gone a number of ways but I chose to focus on bound weaponry and physical and magical resistance.

    Because the steed stone enables you to carry a high number of daedric items it’s possible to build up a pretty big arsenal but I actually opted for a fairly conservative set of gear for my Kingslayer.

    I wonder if the word conservative can really be used when discussing the atronach forge though...

    The shield is incredible, this character doesn’t even perk the block skill but the shield will stop a charging mammoth. The Daedric Armor of Revival has perfect synergy with the Ring of Namira and saves the expense of countless healing potions, adding the Necklace of Revival at later levels gives this character an impressive base healing factor.

    The helmet and gauntlets provide a 40% boost in damage from the Mystic Bow and Mystic Sword. The Daedric Boots of the Firewalker became default boots but also acted as a switch slot with the Boots of Grounding and Warmth, providing great protection to whatever element plagued the Kingslayer.

    I was also able to acquire the helmet and gauntlets of peerless alchemy as well, providing a 50% strength bonus to my potions. Alchemy itself can be a fairly burdening profession but with the steed stones increase to encumbrance it’s easy to house vast quantities of ingredients and a very healthy poison and potion stock.

    Alchemy and Abilities

    Although there are many clever combinations of ingredients I tend to favour the simple potions that can be easily farmed for and provide direct use in combat. Potions that restore health are critical as are any that can protect against dragons.

    As a vampire the Kingslayer stalks the world of Skyrim at night and so many of his favoured ingredients are nocturnal in nature like Luna Moths, Torchbugs and the glowing Nirnroot. Some potions can even be used in synergy with daedric items and shouts or to directly support summoned daedra in battle.

      

    Darksider

    The Kingslayers unique form of assassination is brutal and empowering. By utilising the Vampires Seduction greater power to temporarily calm a target he can quickly feed and finish them off with a slice of his weapon.

    A fortify Illusion potion will increase the power of Vampires Seduction making it available for targets upto around level 20.

    Requires: Vampires Seduction, Assassins Blade. Fortify Illusion.

     

     

     

    Hellshaft

    All dremora lords come pre-equipped with a Daedric Greatsword of the Inferno which means a large portion of their damage is actually fire based.

    This can be capitalised on by increasing an enemies weakness to fire and poison with the following recipe and taken even further with the concentrated poison perk.

    Juniper Berries + Bleeding Crown + Deathbell

    Requires: Bound Bow, Dremora Lord, Concentrated Poison.

     

     

     

     

    Final Wounds

    Mehrunes' Razor is potentially the most powerful item in the game, capable of instantly slaying anything with a single stike. The chance of death is 2%, by manipulating time it's possible to increase the odds of an instant kill and if that target is a legendary dragon you'll simply feel like a god...

    With a fortify alteration potion the effects of the slow time shout can be almost doubled.

    Requires: Mehrunes Razor, Slow Time Lvl 3, Fortify Alteration.

     

     

     

     

    "There could be no other end."

    The Kingslayer integrates nicely with the Dark Brotherhood and of course the legendary artefact Mehrunes Razor is one of the most coveted items of this dark faction. The blade was a pleasure to use during assignments and even without smithing instantly drops most enemies when combined with the assassins blade perk.

    Remember that although the bound swords damage may sometimes appear low it uses 50% less stamina than a normal daedric sword which allows for twice as many power attacks during combat which in turn doubles damage output. When combined with Marked for Death or Slow Time it won’t let you down.

    The Steed Stone ultimately saved this character a total of seven perks, three from the heavy armor tree and four from the stealth tree. It takes all of the stress out of inventory management which is important for those wearing heavy armor and perfect for alchemists.

    Credits

    Royal Daedric Armor by GaryG

    Ben C - Continued Support

  • December 7, 2013

    No music with this one, people find enough to complain about around here without giving them more excuses...

    Thanks mate!

  • December 7, 2013

    Seems everything you post is a Legend in its own right.  I like it. +1

  • December 7, 2013

    Wow... I have such a hard time playing an "evil" character. Especially with (in my opinion) the over the top Daedric armor. When I started reading your back story about the ruins of Ald Sotha I was sold. Morrowind memories began to flood in! I remember walking into those daedric temples in Morrowind and wondering what the life of those residing within would be like... now I can find out for myself! If Skyrim just had those unique daedric masks...

  • December 7, 2013

    Ha! Very very good WTSL, it takes someone with a good understanding of Morrowind to 'get' this characters backstory...

    Ald Sotha was originally the ancient city of Sotha Sil, destroyed by Mehrunes himself and then converted into a shrine by daedra worshippers. It also served as the chief stronghold for the Dark Brotherhood on Vvardenfell.

    Prince Hlaalu Helseth used the Dark Brotherhood exclusively in many of his more sinister dealings, he ascended to the throne after King Llethans abrupt death which was never fully solved...

    It's here that my own characters history becomes a little more obvious...

  • December 8, 2013

    Right! This character's backstory is very inspiring. You say, "It’s possible that the Kingslayer originally descended from one of the various vampire clans that terrorized the cursed Ashland of Molag Amur". I wonder if The Kingslayer has roots in Galom Daeus...

  • Member
    December 8, 2013

    I thought it was going to be a Game of Thrones build

  • Member
    December 9, 2013

    Taking him down with this build was probably the fastest takedown of any build for me.

    It was like artillery, with two flame atronachs(one from Eola), the bound bow, and Eola firing firebolts.

  • December 9, 2013

    Hehe! What level are you now Phoenix? Do you have another grand update ready yet?

  • Member
    December 9, 2013
    Mason, I have one thing o say about this build. If this build were a person in Skyrim, The Black Centuion would marry it, that is, if a wraith of vengeance could marry an Dunmeri vampire