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Character Build: The Ravager of the Sand

Tags: #Character Build Assassin  #Rank:Recognized 
  • Member
    March 10, 2016

    The Ravager was born on the streets and survived childhood scavenging for food and roasting rats over tin can fires. As a young adult, he took to thievery, and he began to create a band of thieves. He trained pickpockets and thieves out of the citizens of Sentinel's lower class.
    In time his lust for power grew. He started sending his thieves to kill people for money. Many of them declined and left the Thieves Guild. Some of them were tracked down and killed for their treachery and others moved to foreign lands to continue their thief lifestyle.
    Many of the would-be assassins died on their missions, and eventually it dwindled down to just a handful of skilled killers loyal to the Ravager. They began to worship Tu'whacca as their patron and became a cult of assassin priests. Their priest would determine Tu'whacca's will and they would perform the kill. One night the Ravager was sent on mission. However when he returned from his mission to assassinate a non-existent person he found the Saints slaughtered and their Sanctuary destroyed. Being the sole survivor of the incident (except perhaps the traitor-priest) he left for Skyrim in search of similar groups.

    Race: Redguard

    Redguards start with excellent numbers in combat skills which can help you get started quicker and easier. Adrenaline Rush is also an essential power to this character.

    Stone: The Lady

    The Lady's boost to health/stamina regeneration is very useful to a character such as this one. Also when using Adrenaline Rush you will have an even faster stamina regeneration rate as well as some health regeneration.

    Shouts: Whirlwind Sprint,Aura Whisper,Slow Time

    Deciding on shouts for this character was i'll admit hard. However I eventually decided on these three,all three of them are for the character's special moves but can be used by themselves for a weaker but simpler effect.

    Spells: Ash Rune/Ash Shell,Telekinesis (For Leveling Alteration.)

    The Ravager relies only on the sands for magical abilities. Ash Rune can be used to demobilize a enemies. This can be used in various situations to either escape said situations or enter them. 

    Stats: 1:2:2

    Stats have a key role in this build. I chose to only put one into magicka(Every 5 levels.) because of how few spells this character uses. Stamina is important for a number of reasons including pulling off power attacks in quick succession. Health is obviously for staying alive. Because this character uses light armor having a good bit of health will help in the long run.

    Skills: One-handed,Archery,Light Armor,Alteration,Sneak,Pickpocket

    One-handed and archery are going to be the damage dealing skills in this build while light armor will be the defensive. Sneak and pickpocket are the stealth skills and will be used frequently. Alteration is the one magic skill for this build and you will only be using one or two spells from it.

    Combat

    Combat with this build is heavily centered around archery and dual-wielding (something I haven't seen paired very often). Sneak attacks are also very important to the gameplay of the character,make sure you use them as often as possble. There are also certain things for tough situations or unexpected disasters,such as: Ash Rune,this can be very helpful for demobilizing multiple enemies at once. Afterwards you can turn this simple move into one of the character's abilities (Sands of Time). Alternatively you could use one of his other moves (Sand Demon).

    Melee combat with this character is fun and pirate-like,there is nothing like dual wielding two magically enhanced scimitars and watching your enemies drop likes flies before you. That being said this character is a stealth character so avoid a situation where you have to fight melee like that (However there is nothing wrong with with the occasional "I'm here to rob your entire Stronghold now hand it all over or your dead!) Try to infiltrate structures and remain undetected the entire time you're there,it adds to the feel of being a stealthy desert assassin. 

    A useful trick for when you are detected but still at enough range to use a crossbow is crouching with a drawn bow, holding sprint, nocking an arrow and immediately sheathing it. Remember to never let go of sprint during the process. After exiting the roll, another can be performed by nocking and sheathing an arrow . This can be done continually until the user runs out of Stamina.It is worth noting that these rolls don't use Stamina. Rather your Stamina constantly drains as if you were sprinting. This actually allows the player more Silent Rolls at a quicker pace when compared to taking the perk and performing the basic Silent Roll.

    As you can already tell archery is vital to the build and should be used generously. Sneak attacks are preferable but using the above trick can bring out the character's skill in using weapons and dispatching foes. Finding higher ground with a bit of concealment is a good option when sneak-archering,and is helpful when infiltrating structures.

    Roleplay

    The Ravager talks to nobody except by choice,avoid long dialogue unless it is with another assassin,thief,or shady merchant. He is low-down and has to prove himself to no man,and he isn't afraid to take what he wants by cunning or by force. Having no use for crude weapons or heavy armor not even to sell,loot only small weapons,potions,gold,and miscellaneous trinkets. I found it fun to limit myself to 50-100 carry weight. Also to balance out constant sneak attacks (which usually end with an instant kill) I recommend setting the difficulty to Expert or Master.

    He wastes no time with tricks or games,get in and get out is his motto. To accomplish this make use of Aura Whisper so you can scout out the enemies before entering the next area. Then decide the best route to avoid detection,using this method you can stay undetected and stay in-character simultaneously.

    You are a ravager,so ravage. Go around to orc strongholds,bandit forts,Stormcloak and Imperial camps/forts,etc. and ravage them. These are the cases/exceptions where you don't use stealth,rather you use your scimitars and agility to destroy small armies single-handedly. Tip: Use your crossbow to take out archers that you can't reach or mages.

    He does not bargain. The price you want is the price you gets or the trade is off,never sell something for less than you think it is worth. Find someone who will buy it closer to your price.Threats and bribes are nothing new to him,as such he will gladly stare you down or slip you a few coin to accomplish his goal,you should never pass up an opportunity to do so.

    The Ravager doesn't wait for night to do his dirty work,if it can be done successfully in the daylight do it. He is used to grabbing and running from growing up on the streets (just make sure when you do this you get away and clear your bounty with the Thieves Guild.)

    Alternate between factions and questlines,for example: Do a Dark Brotherhood Quest,then a Thieves Guild quest,then a Dark Brotherhood,and so on and so forth. Because he has and still does lead a varied lifestyle he can go from breaking into a museum and stealing a rare gem to busting in somebody's window and massacring their family,leaving them to suffer. If you get bored doing one switch to the other for a while.

    Recommended Quests/Factions

    Dark Brotherhood,Thieves Guild,Dawnguard,Deathbrand,Main Quest

    I liked to start with the Thieves Guild and then move on to the Dark Brotherhood (like in the backstory) maybe stopping in between to do the Dawnguard questline. It isn't really required to go past getting Whirlwind Sprint for the Main Questline. During the Dark Brotherhood quest "Hail Sithis" you can obtain Windshear which is nice as a temporary/third sword. (Dual Wielding Windshear and Ash Rune/Shell can be very demobilizing to your enemies.) As soon as possible you should get Bloodscythe and Soulrender (through the Deathbrand quest(s)).

    Up until about level 5 you wont be using any archery. Focus entirely on one-handed because it wont be used as often later and will need early training. However since Redguards start with good one-handed once you reach level 6 pick up a bow and start using it to take out enemies from a range. It is important to remember that during this time you should still be using your sword(s).

    From level 20^ just finish perking out Agile Defender,Bladesman,Armsman,Overdraw etc. Also I recommend getting stability and backstab,deadly aim,and muffled movement. Only 5 perks should be put into light armor (agile defender 1-5). I tried not to make this build all about perks and power play so just take what perks make sense after completing the above guidlines (or just stop getting perks).

    An assassin's equipment is vital to the success of every mission. His armor must be light yet protective and his weapon's must be swift and silent. He must keep it in top-notch condition because a malfunction could jeopardize both the safety and the goal of the mission.

    An assassin must utilize all of his equipment to its fullest. He must also carefully select his bolts. Using something strong,silent,and fast is best for his job,no need for fancy elemental bolts.

    I'll do a quick overview of the items listed and then we will move on.

    The chitin armor is both aesthetic and protective as well as being light enough for sneaking. The Redguard hood is almost entirely for appearance but weighs little to nothing so is good for sneaking around in. 

    The weapons for this build are Bloodscythe,Soulrender,and the enhanced Dwarven crossbow. Bloodscythe and Soulrender are great when surrounded by enemies and also make decent sneak attack weapons,also they have a unique enchantment that only works when dual wielded together. They absorb health and magicka and lower your enemies magical and physical defenses. The enhanced Dwarven crossbow is for ranged sneak attacks and stopping enemies before they get close.

    A few notable weapons that can optionally be included are: Windshear (great for if you get cornered or just need to hit and run.),The other crossbows from the Dawnguard dlc (temporarily until you get the enhanced Dwarven crossbow.),and the plain scimitars for until you get the better ones (Bloodscythe,Soulrender,and Windshear.)

    So to summarize up what you've read this build is about stealth,archery,and dual wielding. When making this build I wanted a variety of things to work out. They all did which made me happy and proud to present this to the community. The underused unique scimitars was one thing I knew I wanted to be in this build because they fit so well and needed some attention and recognition. I hope that this build will inspire others to use these amazing swords in some of their builds.

    Inspiration for this build came from  Assassin's Creed,Star Wars,Dishonored (another game by Bethesda),and Pirates of the Carribean. 

    Thanks to Dragonborn1721,Elysium, and Karver Gro-Karves for constructive criticism,advice,and helpful tips.

  • Member
    March 10, 2016

    Alright got the tags done and did some formatting.

  • Member
    March 10, 2016

    The presentation looks better but the build still seems to be lacking in actual substance. I love roleplay heavy builds, but all you give us is try to get behind being a hardened dessert assassin. If your not going to sell your build on power play, then you have to make your character come alive for us. The concept is cool but the execution is poor,

  • Member
    March 10, 2016

    Perk Spread kinda looks jumbled together. Might wanna space out the perks a bit.

  • Member
    March 10, 2016

    I edited the roleplay section. Tell me what you think.

  • Member
    March 10, 2016
    How does the Sands of Time move work? You've given us a rather vague description to work with, and the listed abilities themselves don't synergise with each other. Special moves shouldn't just be thrown in for no reason.
  • Member
    March 10, 2016

    I made them when the character was in earlier stages and honestly looking at it now they are pointless to this type of build.

  • June 18, 2016

    Hmm, decent presentation, good effort trying to fix what is wrong, at least you listened to the advice given. +1

  • Member
    June 18, 2016

    You can't get the Redguard hood and windshear. What happened?

  • Member
    June 18, 2016
    Reminds me of Prince of Persia: Warrior Within! :D