Skyrim Character Building » Discussions

Character Build: The Regulator

• Teccam

  

  Member
   

  November 29, 2013

  Good luck. I definitely went through my stock of potions at a pretty brisk clip. Luckily I was making around 35 new potions every couple of days in my HF home, so even if I used 10-15 in a dungeon, I never ran low. Those potions really do make a world of difference in the endgame, but at lower levels your bow and claws are quite viable on their own.

  Good luck. I definitely went through my stock of potions at a pretty brisk clip. Luckily I was making around 35 new potions every couple of days in my HF home, so even if I used 10-15 in a dungeon, I never ran low. Those potions really do make a world of difference in the endgame, but at lower levels your bow and claws are quite viable on their own.

• Teccam

  

  Member
   

  November 29, 2013

  Haha, he said on the first page of comments that his next build will be up today. I've been refreshing constantly for the last half hour.

  Thanks, Ben. 

  Haha, he said on the first page of comments that his next build will be up today. I've been refreshing constantly for the last half hour.

  Thanks, Ben. 

• Teccam

  

  Member
   

  November 29, 2013

  Interesting, I'll have to give that a try. Thanks for the tip, Anderson. Glad you like the build! 

  Interesting, I'll have to give that a try. Thanks for the tip, Anderson. Glad you like the build! 

• Mason

  
   

  November 29, 2013

  Ha! Still got a perk spread to make! It should be here this weekend though...

  Ha! Still got a perk spread to make! It should be here this weekend though...

• Anderson

  

  Member
   

  November 30, 2013

  I'm glad to tell\confirm you that, after many tests (on ps3), i saw that unarmed deadly bash do (low)damagex5 and disarming bash works well.

  I'm glad to tell\confirm you that, after many tests (on ps3), i saw that unarmed deadly bash do (low)damagex5 and disarming bash works well.

• James

  

  Member
   

  November 30, 2013

  Perhaps the best compliment I can give is that I am extremely happy with my decision to not make a character build for my Monk playthrough because you've done a far betterjob with this than I ever could have, it really is wonderful. We spoke this past week about synergy and how great builds have a true sense of progression and this is a build that is, at it's core, a perfect reflection of these ideas.
  
  Anyone that has ever played as a Khajiit will be familiar with how powerful their claw attack is at the start of the game (stronger than any sword, even most 2H weapons!) so the key to this build is keeping ahead of the power curve so you never start feeling underpowered. Just as your base claws begin feeling weak you should have 'fists of steel' coming online to keep you going. Around the time your enemies are getting powerful you should be unlocking shouts and all three words for 'Marked' are fairly easy to get. Then ring of the beast comes online and all the while you're continuously growing your Alchemy skill and finding new fortify alchemy gear to boost your potions! This is truly one of the most streamlined characters I've ever played and if for nothing else, I would encourage people to try this build out just to get a feel for the progression a great build should have.
  
  I don't want to hijack this thread so I just want to add a few optional ideas that may help someone:
  
  1.) I used Alteration spells for my defence instead of armour. It is absolutely viable on Master difficulty and I never put a single point into magicka (straight health actually). I told Teccam that if I were to play it again I would go the route of heavy armour and fists of steel. This build is better in my opinion, but for anyone wondering...alteration can be viable.
  
  2.) I used Drain Vitality combined with Ravage poisons (with a bow) to serve as a sort of 'curse' which I felt was Monkish. I enjoy this playstyle but it is absolutely not necessary. Teccam places a premium on simplicity with this build which I think is fantastic. It's also probably a lot easier for console players to not have to switch shouts and apply poisons.
  
  3.) I relied on Lydia a fair amount to draw aggro. This can be risky with Marked for Death because if you hit your follower you can really ruin their day. Summoned atronach's do not have this problem (zombies do, however). A way around this is to get the black book power that allows you to not harm followers with shouts and spells. As long as the game is registering you as being in combat you can hit your follower with Marked and they should be unaffected.
  
  This really is a wonderful playstyle and this build does an absolutely perfect job showcasing it. I believe this is the first build to provide an unarmed character build that doesn't use bugs like resto loop or gauntlet stacking so I'm happy to see such a positive response. Can't recommend this enough.

  Perhaps the best compliment I can give is that I am extremely happy with my decision to not make a character build for my Monk playthrough because you've done a far betterjob with this than I ever could have, it really is wonderful. We spoke this past week about synergy and how great builds have a true sense of progression and this is a build that is, at it's core, a perfect reflection of these ideas.
  
  Anyone that has ever played as a Khajiit will be familiar with how powerful their claw attack is at the start of the game (stronger than any sword, even most 2H weapons!) so the key to this build is keeping ahead of the power curve so you never start feeling underpowered. Just as your base claws begin feeling weak you should have 'fists of steel' coming online to keep you going. Around the time your enemies are getting powerful you should be unlocking shouts and all three words for 'Marked' are fairly easy to get. Then ring of the beast comes online and all the while you're continuously growing your Alchemy skill and finding new fortify alchemy gear to boost your potions! This is truly one of the most streamlined characters I've ever played and if for nothing else, I would encourage people to try this build out just to get a feel for the progression a great build should have.
  
  I don't want to hijack this thread so I just want to add a few optional ideas that may help someone:
  
  1.) I used Alteration spells for my defence instead of armour. It is absolutely viable on Master difficulty and I never put a single point into magicka (straight health actually). I told Teccam that if I were to play it again I would go the route of heavy armour and fists of steel. This build is better in my opinion, but for anyone wondering...alteration can be viable.
  
  2.) I used Drain Vitality combined with Ravage poisons (with a bow) to serve as a sort of 'curse' which I felt was Monkish. I enjoy this playstyle but it is absolutely not necessary. Teccam places a premium on simplicity with this build which I think is fantastic. It's also probably a lot easier for console players to not have to switch shouts and apply poisons.
  
  3.) I relied on Lydia a fair amount to draw aggro. This can be risky with Marked for Death because if you hit your follower you can really ruin their day. Summoned atronach's do not have this problem (zombies do, however). A way around this is to get the black book power that allows you to not harm followers with shouts and spells. As long as the game is registering you as being in combat you can hit your follower with Marked and they should be unaffected.
  
  This really is a wonderful playstyle and this build does an absolutely perfect job showcasing it. I believe this is the first build to provide an unarmed character build that doesn't use bugs like resto loop or gauntlet stacking so I'm happy to see such a positive response. Can't recommend this enough.
• James

  

  Member
   

  November 30, 2013

  Should also add that I found out you had posted this build because I read about it on Reddit! Goes to show people like it.

  Should also add that I found out you had posted this build because I read about it on Reddit! Goes to show people like it.
• Teccam

  

  Member
   

  November 30, 2013

  Wow James, thank you so much. For the great reply as well as for the knowledge and advice that helped this to come to fruition.

  Your comment about Khajiit claws being so powerful from the tutorial onward is spot-on. And apart from the ring and Fists of Steel, the methods that buff unarmed damage also apply to the Bound Bow (or the Crossbow for those first few levels until you grab the Ring of the Erudite). And since the same tactics support both forms of damage output as your character develops, it's such a natural sense of progression to keep the character, as you say, ahead of the curve.

  By all means, hijack away. The way I see it, this is as much your build as mine — if not more so. I'd like to give it a play through with more of your influences (unarmored or very light armor, incorporate Drain Vitality, etc.). Maybe also go a bit into of the TES monk archetype with Sneak, Lockpicking, etc. as explored in No snakes aLive's Master Monk.

  I think with Enchanting, you could go 0 AR and still make it work on Adept. Or at least just the 50 AR from the Lord Stone, supplemented by Health Regen enchantments and potions. Would be higher maintenance, but the challenge would be a ton of fun. Plus, with Enchanting too, you can open up more powerful potions with 100% Fortify Archery gear (4 pieces, 25% each). I don't usually like having two crafting skills as major skills, but for a 0 AR unarmed build I think you can justify making that exception. 

  Wow James, thank you so much. For the great reply as well as for the knowledge and advice that helped this to come to fruition.

  Your comment about Khajiit claws being so powerful from the tutorial onward is spot-on. And apart from the ring and Fists of Steel, the methods that buff unarmed damage also apply to the Bound Bow (or the Crossbow for those first few levels until you grab the Ring of the Erudite). And since the same tactics support both forms of damage output as your character develops, it's such a natural sense of progression to keep the character, as you say, ahead of the curve.

  By all means, hijack away. The way I see it, this is as much your build as mine — if not more so. I'd like to give it a play through with more of your influences (unarmored or very light armor, incorporate Drain Vitality, etc.). Maybe also go a bit into of the TES monk archetype with Sneak, Lockpicking, etc. as explored in No snakes aLive's Master Monk.

  I think with Enchanting, you could go 0 AR and still make it work on Adept. Or at least just the 50 AR from the Lord Stone, supplemented by Health Regen enchantments and potions. Would be higher maintenance, but the challenge would be a ton of fun. Plus, with Enchanting too, you can open up more powerful potions with 100% Fortify Archery gear (4 pieces, 25% each). I don't usually like having two crafting skills as major skills, but for a 0 AR unarmed build I think you can justify making that exception. 

• Paws

  

  Member
   

  December 1, 2013

  I really like this build. Never been tempted with a monk before, although I did like the idea of them in Oblivion but this I can see myself playing.

  I really like this build. Never been tempted with a monk before, although I did like the idea of them in Oblivion but this I can see myself playing.

• Teccam

  

  Member
   

  December 1, 2013

  Cheers, Phil. Not sure it's really a true monk, since he's using heavy armor rather than flesh spells, and no Sneak/Security (Lockpicking). James version is closer to a true monk, especially with his uses of alchemy and shouts to create "curses."

  Look at his comment above yours; if you want to play a true monk, those ideas are worth noting. His post got my head churning with ways to adapt this into a traditional monk build with those techniques and maybe a few others. The prospect of playing a 0 AR unarmed build is so bloody tempting.... 

  Cheers, Phil. Not sure it's really a true monk, since he's using heavy armor rather than flesh spells, and no Sneak/Security (Lockpicking). James version is closer to a true monk, especially with his uses of alchemy and shouts to create "curses."

  Look at his comment above yours; if you want to play a true monk, those ideas are worth noting. His post got my head churning with ways to adapt this into a traditional monk build with those techniques and maybe a few others. The prospect of playing a 0 AR unarmed build is so bloody tempting....