The idea for this build came from a three sources: 1) I had never done the Imperial side of the Civil War and wanted to give it a try; 2) believe it or not I had never played as a vampire before so that was past due; and 3) I became entranced with the idea of fleshing out the story of Movarth of Immortal Blood fame with some role-play. Also, I decided to do two things I find lacking in most builds – a vampire with NO magic use and greater emphasis on the Speech skill which is rarely mentioned in builds that I’ve found. The result follows…
Movarth’s Heir: The Story
You were raised in Morthal, son of a merchant of general goods. You were expected to take over the family business until civil war erupted. With the urging of your family and friends, you joined on the side of the Imperials. Through many hardships but in true Nordic style filled with glorious adventures, you gained new skills such as archery, swordsmanship and even enchanting while your merchant background was found helpful as a skilled negotiator. After the war, you returned home with your coin purse filled, expecting to expand your father’s store. But it was not to be…
The war was hard on the economy of Morthal and the town was only a shell of its former self. Your father became ill and died in your absence, his store fell to ruin and your inheritance gone. To add, the Hold was plagued by vampires led by the horrible Movarth. But as an Imperial Legate and hometown hero, you would lead the charge to take down this foe. You delve in to the liar, destroy the beast and return peace to your land. But finally victory was not yours after all, for the spirit of Movarth could not be so easily undone. When he bit you in your encounter, he not only turned you into a vampire, but added his soul to yours …making you the heir to his legacy – a legacy that had begun even before the authorship of Immortal Blood.
The Build
The story of Movarth’s Heir is divided into three parts: 1) the common Imperial soldier early game; 2) the Hero of Morthal - short but integral middle game; and the longest part, the endgame as a vampire who is rebuilding and expanding upon Movarth’s legacy as the mastermind of a coven.
http://www.uesp.net/wiki/File:SR-npc-Movarth.jpg
Race: Nord made sense to me for role play, although the argument could be made for any race as nearly all races have stores throughout Skyrim.
Stone: Warrior Stone through to about level 20, then Lord Stone
Stat Distribution: 0/3/2 You have no more ability in magic after your ‘conversion’ as you did as an Imperial soldier. Your only powers are a result of your vampirism (including the ‘shouts’ which are just powerful vampire abilities). Because you will not use restoration magic while a light-armored swordsman, having much health is essential. You also use but are not reliant upon power attacks, and your weapons light, so a steady dose of stamina is adequate.
Shouts To Acquire:
• Slow Time
• Ice Form
• Marked For Death
• Whirlwind Sprint
• Become Ethereal
• Disarm
• Elemental Fury
Major Skills:
One-Handed: Your Primary method of eliminating your foes. Swords are your passion. The Akavari blade is your favorite. Dual wielding is twice the fun.
Light-Armor: As an Imperial Soldier or later as an agent of darkness you’ve always relied this for defense. You never cared to learn how to block but instead rely on speed and agility.
Enchantment: Enchanting is your only craft and this was only developed because of your time with General Tullius in Solitude (ever notice the enchanters table in the hallway to the war room?) You find it particularly useful for making your blades more powerful (absorb health goes very well with the role play) and the enchantments also makes selling your wares more profitable.
Speech: You were a merchant in life and in undeath. Buying and selling goods is your way of making society believe you are an honest upscale citizen and keeps you connected with the power players. It also supports your extravagant lifestyle.
Minor Skills
Sneak: A minor skill not because it is not used much but with the Vampiric abilities and Shrouded Boots, I found no reason to Perk it.
Archery: With no Magic, some ranged attacks are needed in times when discretion takes precedence. I often used an enchanted leveled bow and the best available arrows.
Equipment
Armor:
Imperial Light Armor for the first part of the game. While pretending to be an upstanding member of society during the day (while you conduct your merchant affairs and hobnob with important people you can don fine clothes). Your most important attire is the Shrouded Armor full set for your night romps.
Ring:
• Enchanted (Fortify Fire Resistance)
Necklace:
• Amulet Of Talos
Weapons:
Swords
• Oathblade and Fultheim’s Akavari blade proved to be a great early combination, later enchanting Blades swords acquired from Delphine worked well, and although it swung two handed, the Ebony Blade was a fantastic weapon and fit the role of this ‘ninja-like’ character very well.
Gameplay
After Helgen (following Hadvar of course), go with him to Riverwood for the usual starter items and then follow his advice by joining the Legion. Make the long trek to Solitude and begin your journey up the Imperial ranks. Feel free to clear a mine or three, but keep your focus on the Civil War and reuniting Skyrim. Dual wield Imperial Swords, sell your loot and maybe even do a little enchantment training. You should be around level 15.
Along the way, you should pick up Bolaf’s Oathblade as planting a seed for your love of collecting rare swords. Next, ‘return’ to your hometown of Morthal, complete Laid to Rest and destroy Movarth, making sure he gives you Sanquinare Vampiris. You become Thane of the Hold, but also a maniacal ‘Social Evil aligned’ beast who indulges in the world, toys with people, and is bent on establishing new covens emerges from deep within you.
Then, you are going to do the Main Quest up to returning the Horn as well as join the Dark Brotherhood. This will give you your weapons, armor and shouts that become the basis for your continued role and game play experience. From there, the game is open for many possibilities.
• Achieve wealth, power, and fame
• Avoid level 4 vampirism and maintain your good standings with the Holds, leaving your evil activities hidden
• Obsessed with blades – gather famed and powerful blades of all types and display in your luxurious homes
• Establish secret bases in at least three Holds. Non-respawning towers, caves or other residences make good coven locations
• Feel free to add thralls to your journeys as any good Vampire Master would
• Drive out the pretender Master Vampires and other lesser covens. You need living space for your growing secret empire.
Significant Powers/Combos
Movarth’s Speed: Slow Time + Dual Wielding, Whirlwind Sprint + Dual-Wielding, or Elemental Fury + Dual Wielding
Movarth’s Power: Use your Master Vampire powers (Ice Form or Disarm + Seduction) to render your opponent helpless
Movarth’s Presence: Marked For Death or Disarm to make your opponent weak before you
One with the Shadows: Even a powerful Vampire knows when he needs to be stealthy. With Nightstalker’s Footsteps plus Shrouded Boots while sneaking for approach and Become Ethereal or Whirlwind Sprint to get away, the Heir should always choose battles with wisdom.
Important Quests
• Civil War – Imperial Side (essential to the story and serves as a training ground for base skills)
• Laid to Rest and Thane of Morthal (also essential to the story and build)
• Main Quest (for shouts and Blades weapons), return the Horn is far enough
• Dark Brotherhood (for Shrouded Armor and Marked for Death, as well as a role play idea of having everyone believe your murders and conspiracies are part of this organization of ill-repute)
Good Quests for the Character
• Become Thane of _______
• The Whispering Door
• In My Time of Need
• The Pale Lady
• Pieces of the Past
Quests to Avoid
• Mage Guild
• Thieves Guild
• Companions
Final Notes: I know this will not be everyone’s favorite sort of build. It is very role play heavy and in some ways underpowered. I only leveled to 30 as I felt this was far enough to flesh out the story, establish the parameters, and set the stage for anyone to take the build further. I also did no power leveling. I felt the idea ran its course too quickly with no Dawnguard or other DLC’s or mods, so those of you that have those would be able to improve on the build I’m sure. I found the idea of playing an evil character who pretended to look like a model upscale citizen was fine but the actual gameplay within the Skyrim system proved tedious. This is probably a personal problem that many would find to be a healthy challenge. While not my original intention, the typical fighting style of Movarth’s Heir came very close to a ‘Deadpool’ in both look and actions. This did add to the fun a little on my part as I am a Deadpool fan.
Thanks,
Doug S
The idea for this build came from a three sources: 1) I had never done the Imperial side of the Civil War and wanted to give it a try; 2) believe it or not I had never played as a vampire before so that was past due; and 3) I became entranced with the idea of fleshing out the story of Movarth of Immortal Blood fame with some role-play. Also, I decided to do two things I find lacking in most builds – a vampire with NO magic use and greater emphasis on the Speech skill which is rarely mentioned in builds that I’ve found. The result follows…
Movarth’s Heir: The Story
You were raised in Morthal, son of a merchant of general goods. You were expected to take over the family business until civil war erupted. With the urging of your family and friends, you joined on the side of the Imperials. Through many hardships but in true Nordic style filled with glorious adventures, you gained new skills such as archery, swordsmanship and even enchanting while your merchant background was found helpful as a skilled negotiator. After the war, you returned home with your coin purse filled, expecting to expand your father’s store. But it was not to be…
The war was hard on the economy of Morthal and the town was only a shell of its former self. Your father became ill and died in your absence, his store fell to ruin and your inheritance gone. To add, the Hold was plagued by vampires led by the horrible Movarth. But as an Imperial Legate and hometown hero, you would lead the charge to take down this foe. You delve in to the liar, destroy the beast and return peace to your land. But finally victory was not yours after all, for the spirit of Movarth could not be so easily undone. When he bit you in your encounter, he not only turned you into a vampire, but added his soul to yours …making you the heir to his legacy – a legacy that had begun even before the authorship of Immortal Blood.
The Build
The story of Movarth’s Heir is divided into three parts: 1) the common Imperial soldier early game; 2) the Hero of Morthal - short but integral middle game; and the longest part, the endgame as a vampire who is rebuilding and expanding upon Movarth’s legacy as the mastermind of a coven.
http://www.uesp.net/wiki/File:SR-npc-Movarth.jpg
Race: Nord made sense to me for role play, although the argument could be made for any race as nearly all races have stores throughout Skyrim.
Stone: Warrior Stone through to about level 20, then Lord Stone
Stat Distribution: 0/3/2 You have no more ability in magic after your ‘conversion’ as you did as an Imperial soldier. Your only powers are a result of your vampirism (including the ‘shouts’ which are just powerful vampire abilities). Because you will not use restoration magic while a light-armored swordsman, having much health is essential. You also use but are not reliant upon power attacks, and your weapons light, so a steady dose of stamina is adequate.
Shouts To Acquire:
• Slow Time
• Ice Form
• Marked For Death
• Whirlwind Sprint
• Become Ethereal
• Disarm
• Elemental Fury
Major Skills:
One-Handed: Your Primary method of eliminating your foes. Swords are your passion. The Akavari blade is your favorite. Dual wielding is twice the fun.
Light-Armor: As an Imperial Soldier or later as an agent of darkness you’ve always relied this for defense. You never cared to learn how to block but instead rely on speed and agility.
Enchantment: Enchanting is your only craft and this was only developed because of your time with General Tullius in Solitude (ever notice the enchanters table in the hallway to the war room?) You find it particularly useful for making your blades more powerful (absorb health goes very well with the role play) and the enchantments also makes selling your wares more profitable.
Speech: You were a merchant in life and in undeath. Buying and selling goods is your way of making society believe you are an honest upscale citizen and keeps you connected with the power players. It also supports your extravagant lifestyle.
Minor Skills
Sneak: A minor skill not because it is not used much but with the Vampiric abilities and Shrouded Boots, I found no reason to Perk it.
Archery: With no Magic, some ranged attacks are needed in times when discretion takes precedence. I often used an enchanted leveled bow and the best available arrows.
Equipment
Armor:
Imperial Light Armor for the first part of the game. While pretending to be an upstanding member of society during the day (while you conduct your merchant affairs and hobnob with important people you can don fine clothes). Your most important attire is the Shrouded Armor full set for your night romps.
Ring:
• Enchanted (Fortify Fire Resistance)
Necklace:
• Amulet Of Talos
Weapons:
Swords
• Oathblade and Fultheim’s Akavari blade proved to be a great early combination, later enchanting Blades swords acquired from Delphine worked well, and although it swung two handed, the Ebony Blade was a fantastic weapon and fit the role of this ‘ninja-like’ character very well.
Gameplay
After Helgen (following Hadvar of course), go with him to Riverwood for the usual starter items and then follow his advice by joining the Legion. Make the long trek to Solitude and begin your journey up the Imperial ranks. Feel free to clear a mine or three, but keep your focus on the Civil War and reuniting Skyrim. Dual wield Imperial Swords, sell your loot and maybe even do a little enchantment training. You should be around level 15.
Along the way, you should pick up Bolaf’s Oathblade as planting a seed for your love of collecting rare swords. Next, ‘return’ to your hometown of Morthal, complete Laid to Rest and destroy Movarth, making sure he gives you Sanquinare Vampiris. You become Thane of the Hold, but also a maniacal ‘Social Evil aligned’ beast who indulges in the world, toys with people, and is bent on establishing new covens emerges from deep within you.
Then, you are going to do the Main Quest up to returning the Horn as well as join the Dark Brotherhood. This will give you your weapons, armor and shouts that become the basis for your continued role and game play experience. From there, the game is open for many possibilities.
• Achieve wealth, power, and fame
• Avoid level 4 vampirism and maintain your good standings with the Holds, leaving your evil activities hidden
• Obsessed with blades – gather famed and powerful blades of all types and display in your luxurious homes
• Establish secret bases in at least three Holds. Non-respawning towers, caves or other residences make good coven locations
• Feel free to add thralls to your journeys as any good Vampire Master would
• Drive out the pretender Master Vampires and other lesser covens. You need living space for your growing secret empire.
Significant Powers/Combos
Movarth’s Speed: Slow Time + Dual Wielding, Whirlwind Sprint + Dual-Wielding, or Elemental Fury + Dual Wielding
Movarth’s Power: Use your Master Vampire powers (Ice Form or Disarm + Seduction) to render your opponent helpless
Movarth’s Presence: Marked For Death or Disarm to make your opponent weak before you
One with the Shadows: Even a powerful Vampire knows when he needs to be stealthy. With Nightstalker’s Footsteps plus Shrouded Boots while sneaking for approach and Become Ethereal or Whirlwind Sprint to get away, the Heir should always choose battles with wisdom.
Important Quests
• Civil War – Imperial Side (essential to the story and serves as a training ground for base skills)
• Laid to Rest and Thane of Morthal (also essential to the story and build)
• Main Quest (for shouts and Blades weapons), return the Horn is far enough
• Dark Brotherhood (for Shrouded Armor and Marked for Death, as well as a role play idea of having everyone believe your murders and conspiracies are part of this organization of ill-repute)
Good Quests for the Character
• Become Thane of _______
• The Whispering Door
• In My Time of Need
• The Pale Lady
• Pieces of the Past
Quests to Avoid
• Mage Guild
• Thieves Guild
• Companions
Final Notes: I know this will not be everyone’s favorite sort of build. It is very role play heavy and in some ways underpowered. I only leveled to 30 as I felt this was far enough to flesh out the story, establish the parameters, and set the stage for anyone to take the build further. I also did no power leveling. I felt the idea ran its course too quickly with no Dawnguard or other DLC’s or mods, so those of you that have those would be able to improve on the build I’m sure. I found the idea of playing an evil character who pretended to look like a model upscale citizen was fine but the actual gameplay within the Skyrim system proved tedious. This is probably a personal problem that many would find to be a healthy challenge. While not my original intention, the typical fighting style of Movarth’s Heir came very close to a ‘Deadpool’ in both look and actions. This did add to the fun a little on my part as I am a Deadpool fan.
Thanks,
Doug S
