Brother/Sister Velen, Knight of Dreams
I know that Vaermina seems like an odd Daedra to worship, but if you look at her tenets - they aren't necessarily evil, just... specific.
“Witness the death of those under your mind affecting spells. Kill people in their sleep. Sleep to pray. Those skilled in Illusion are most deserving of my favor.”
“Witness the death of those under your mind affecting spells." - this is true of even good characters.
"Kill people in their sleep" - if they are bandits or undead... bad people...
As a Dunmer, you have access to the whispers of your Ancestral Guardians. In the MCM you can set who will be possible targets to be innocents, or, not. I mean, what is a "victim" except an enemy...
The Lady Stone - Well, the Lady is Vaermina the Gifter, Weaver of the Panoply...
Ok, this is not a "nice" build. It is a Knight of a wicked Daedra who toys with people's minds.
Gameplay:
Set enemies against each other. Feed off their fear with Soulcrusher.
Encourage your followers.
Steal dreams to gain power and create thralls.
Use Muffle and Invisibility to gain the upper hand. Use Apocalypse spells to move around the battle field and damage enemies.
Use Nemesis and The Reaper Comes for important enemies
Toss calm and rage around in a fight to selectively create battles.
Use the rallying standard to increase your followers abilities
Deity: Vaermina
“Witness the death of those under your mind affecting spells. Kill people in their sleep. Sleep to pray. Those skilled in Illusion are most deserving of my favor.”
Race: Dunmer
Illusion Spells of Note:
Courage/Fury/Calm Fear and all their variants
Novice
Alteration
40 - Spellblade - Whenever you cast a spell with one hand, you deal 20% more attack damage for 4 seconds.
Enchanting
40 - Spellscribe - Grants the "Spellscribe" power: use it to store the spell you are dual casting. Your power attacks and power bashes unleash the stored spell for free, with a cooldown based on Enchanting skill. Only works with spells that affect other targets.
60 - Might and Magic - You are adept at weaving blade and magic. Spells cast with your left hand are 10% more effective if you are wielding a weapon in your right hand. Attacks with a weapon in your right hand deal 10% more damage if you are holding a spell in your left hand.
80 - Twin Enchantment - Can place two enchantments upon the same item.
Illusion
30 - Commanding Presence - In combat, you radiate an aura of mystical nobility that touches allied creatures and people within 40 feet. Those affected gain 20% extra attack damage and have 20% chance of a critical strike.
30 - Imposing Presence - You radiate an aura of mystical charisma that touches all within 40 feet. Any Illusion spell you cast on those affected is 25% more powerful and lasts 30% longer.
40 - Quiet Before the Storm (1) - All spells you cast from any school of magic/, as well as all shouts, are silent to others.
50 - Nemesis - Activate any hostile creature or humanoid in combat to summon an illusion of the target with 1% extra attack damage per Illusion level. The illusion relentlessly attacks the target for 30 seconds. This effect has a 180 second cooldown.
50 - Terror - Those affected by a Fear spell or effect within the radius of Imposing Presence drop their weapon.
60 - Imperious Splendor - Commanding Presence and Crown of the False King are twice as powerful as long as you remain above 75% Health.
60 - Master of the Mind - Mind affecting spells (Calm, Fear, Frenzy, Rally) and Commanding Presence also work on undead, daedra and automatons.
70 - The Reaper Comes - Activate any non-essential humanoid (only) under the effect of a Calm spell to send a wraith to slay the target within 15 seconds. This counts as an assault, if you get seen. This effect has a 180 second cooldown and can only affect one target at a time.
80 - Soulcrusher - Feast upon the minds of those affected by a Fear spell or effect within the radius of Imposing Presence, absorbing 25 points of Magicka per second.
80 - Protect Your God - When struck by a weapon, may compel a nearby ally affected by Commanding Presence to engage your attacker, dealing 250% extra attack damage for 5 seconds.
90 - Blind Guardian - Activate any non-hostile creature or humanoid in combat to summon an illusion of the target. The illusion fights for the target for 60 seconds and the target won't flee for its duration. This effect has a 300 second cooldown.
90 - Dream Geas - Activate sleeping victims to send a dream that compels them to fight at your side until released. You can only have one Dream Thrall at a time. Chance to fail and alert the victim, based on Illusion skill.
90 - Heavy Weighs the Tapestry - Activate any humanoid (only) under the effect of a Frenzy spell to incapacitate the target with magical exhaustion for 30 seconds and drain 500 points of Magicka and Stamina. This effect has a 180 second cooldown and can only affect one target at a time.
100 - Wraithwalker - After using an Activate perk (Blind Guardian, Heavy Weighs the Tapestry, Lamb to the Slaughter, Nemesis, The Reaper Comes), Illusion spells are 50% more powerful and last 50% longer for 10 seconds. The cooldown of Activate perks ends after 8 seconds out of combat.
Heavy Armor
40 - Defiance - You are trained to deflect incoming attacks while wearing all Heavy Armor. Whenever an enemy attacks you, you gain 15 points of armor rating for 10 seconds. This effect stacks.
40 - Rallying Standard - Grants the "Rallying Standard" power. Once a day, place a banner that grants 150 points of armor and 25% melee damage to allies within 25 feet wearing all Heavy Armor (including you) and prevents them from fleeing. Lasts 60 seconds.50 - Born to Fight - Heavy Armor weighs half as much and slows you down half as much when worn.
60 - Never Kneel - If wearing all Heavy Armor, take 30% less attack damage from power attacks.
70 - Reap the Whirlwind - When struck by a power attack or power bash, your attacks deal 125% more damage to the attacker for 5 seconds if wearing all Heavy Armor.
80 - Out of the Inferno - Incoming fire, frost and shock damage reduced by 0.02% per point of armor if wearing all Heavy Armor.
80 - Rise Above - If wearing all Heavy Armor, you intimidate enemies within 15 feet. They lose 5% attack damage and you gain 5% attack damage for each enemy affected.
One-Handed
40 - Furious Strength - Power attack damage with one-handed weapons increased by 15% plus 0.1% per point of Stamina. Unlocks decapitations.
70 - Thundering Blow - Whenever you perform a total of 8 or more one-handed regular attacks in combat, your next one-handed power attack is a Thundering Blow that deals double damage and costs no Stamina, resetting the counter.
90 - Aftershock - After a Thundering Blow, attack speed is increased by 75% for 3 seconds.
Restoration
40 - Respite - Healing spells also restore Stamina equal to their power.
Smithing
0 - Smithing Mastery (2) - You can create Novice (Steel/Bonemold) items at a forge or anvil, and improve them twice as much./All items can be improved 10% more.
30 - Meric Smithing (1) - Choose an item type: Contemporary Meric (Elven/Chitin), Dwarven. You can create items of the chosen type at a forge or anvil, and improve them twice as much. Investing a second perk point lets you choose both./You can create both Contemporary Meric (Elven/Chitin) and Dwarven items at a forge or anvil, and improve them twice as much.
40 - Arcane Blacksmith - You can improve enchanted weapons and armor.
50 - Expert Smithing (1) - Choose an item type: Hard Steel (Scaled/Plate/Nordic), Orcish. You can create items of the chosen type at a forge or anvil, and improve them twice as much. Investing a second perk point lets you choose both./You can create both Hard Steel (Scaled/Plate/Nordic) and Orcish items at a forge or anvil, and improve them twice as much.
70 - Exotic Smithing (1) - Choose an item type: Glass, Crystalline (Ebony/Stalhrim). You can create items of the chosen type at a forge or anvil, and improve them twice as much. Investing a second perk point lets you choose both./You can create both Glass and Crystalline (Ebony/Stalhrim) items at a forge or anvil, and improve them twice as much.
I know that Vaermina seems like an odd Daedra to worship, but if you look at her tenets - they aren't necessarily evil, just... specific.
“Witness the death of those under your mind affecting spells. Kill people in their sleep. Sleep to pray. Those skilled in Illusion are most deserving of my favor.”
“Witness the death of those under your mind affecting spells." - this is true of even good characters.
"Kill people in their sleep" - if they are bandits or undead... bad people...
As a Dunmer, you have access to the whispers of your Ancestral Guardians. In the MCM you can set who will be possible targets to be innocents, or, not. I mean, what is a "victim" except an enemy...
The Lady Stone - Well, the Lady is Vaermina the Gifter, Weaver of the Panoply...
Ok, this is not a "nice" build. It is a Knight of a wicked Daedra who toys with people's minds.
Gameplay:
Set enemies against each other. Feed off their fear with Soulcrusher.
Encourage your followers.
Steal dreams to gain power and create thralls.
Use Muffle and Invisibility to gain the upper hand. Use Apocalypse spells to move around the battle field and damage enemies.
Use Nemesis and The Reaper Comes for important enemies
Toss calm and rage around in a fight to selectively create battles.
Use the rallying standard to increase your followers abilities
Deity: Vaermina
“Witness the death of those under your mind affecting spells. Kill people in their sleep. Sleep to pray. Those skilled in Illusion are most deserving of my favor.”
- Shrine blessing - Fortify Illusion: Illusion spells cost 10% less to cast.
- Follower - Night Terrors: Mind affecting illusion spells work on targets X levels higher (based on favor with Vaermina).
- Devotee - Phantasmagoria: Activate a sleeping person to summon an illusion to accompany you for an hour. Costs 10% favor.
Race: Dunmer
- Ancestral Guardian: When entering combat, expend 1 Spirit Favor to gain 75 points of armor for 120 seconds.
- Ashborn: Dunmer blood grants 25% fire resistance. Ancestral Guardian and Spirit Walk each add 25% while active.
- Whispers: Your ancestors periodically indicate an enemy humanoid to slay for +25 Spirit Favor and bonus gold.
- Spirit Walk: 1/day - Expend 2 Spirit Favor to summon 2 random invulnerable Ancestors for 45 seconds.
- Lunar Familiar: When entering combat, summons a Lunar Familiar under your control for 60 seconds.
- Premonition: Pale light marks enemies who can kill you with their next strike, slowing them and reducing armor by 500 points.
- Eclipse: 1/day - Commands your Lunar Familiar to fight the target. It deals 300% more damage and takes 50% less damage.
Illusion Spells of Note:
Courage/Fury/Calm Fear and all their variants
Novice
- Ghostwalk: Caster is invisible for X seconds or until broken, then teleports back to where the spell was cast.
- Pale Shadow: Target enemy is attacked by its own image for X seconds. It deals the same damage but has 1 Health.
- Backlash: Interrupts target spellcaster. If a spell is interrupted, the target is hit by their own offensive spells, while non-offensive spells are cast on you.
- Mind Vision: See through the eyes of target creature or humanoid for X seconds. Sheathe to cancel.
- Blood for Blood: Cast on a corpse, summons the anguish of its death as an avenging force to reduce the Health of the killer to 1.
- Compelling Whispers: Concentrate for 5 seconds to force creatures or people to fight for the caster for 60 seconds.
- Evil Twin: While concentrating, manifests illusions of nearby enemies to attack them. Illusions take extra damage from attacks.
- Figment of Pain: Creates an immobile illusion linked to the target for X seconds. Damage felt by either is felt by both.
- Shadowbond: Caster and target gain invisibility for X seconds. When the invisibility is broken, the caster and target swap places.
- Empathic Agony: For X seconds, when the caster loses Health, target creatures or people lose 40% of this amount.
- Enslave the Weak: Forces a hostile humanoid below 20% Health to serve your will permanently until slain. You can only have one slave at a time. Does not work on quest characters.
- Mimic's Cloak: For X seconds, the caster copies most (non-concentration) spells cast by others within X foot.
- Mind Control: Take control of a humanoid for X seconds. In combat, the target will fight back when attacked. The caster cannot act, but can cast spells. Sheathe to cancel.
- Seidstone: The stone manifests illusions of nearby dead for X seconds. Illusions take extra damage from attacks.
- Vanish: All nearby opponents targeting the caster or searching for the caster leave combat.
- Hidden Cobra: Curses a target for X seconds. The curse reduces Health to 1 if the target leaves combat for 5 seconds.
- Last Word: Interrupts target spellcaster. If a spell is interrupted, any other Illusion spells cast on the target within X seconds last four times longer and are twice as powerful.
- Pull From Eternity: Cast on a corpse to capture its ghost. Cast on a target to release the ghost to attack the target for X seconds. The ghost takes less damage from attacks.
- Shroudwalk: You are invisible for X seconds. When performing an action that breaks invisibility, you immediately regain invisibility, up to 5 times.
- Spectral Warband: Manifests illusions of all allies in combat for X seconds. Illusions take extra damage from attacks.
- Wyrd: The hand of fate chooses a random nearby target. It takes 20% of its current Health for each nearby target as temporary damage that wears off after X seconds.
Alteration
40 - Spellblade - Whenever you cast a spell with one hand, you deal 20% more attack damage for 4 seconds.
Enchanting
40 - Spellscribe - Grants the "Spellscribe" power: use it to store the spell you are dual casting. Your power attacks and power bashes unleash the stored spell for free, with a cooldown based on Enchanting skill. Only works with spells that affect other targets.
60 - Might and Magic - You are adept at weaving blade and magic. Spells cast with your left hand are 10% more effective if you are wielding a weapon in your right hand. Attacks with a weapon in your right hand deal 10% more damage if you are holding a spell in your left hand.
80 - Twin Enchantment - Can place two enchantments upon the same item.
Illusion
30 - Commanding Presence - In combat, you radiate an aura of mystical nobility that touches allied creatures and people within 40 feet. Those affected gain 20% extra attack damage and have 20% chance of a critical strike.
30 - Imposing Presence - You radiate an aura of mystical charisma that touches all within 40 feet. Any Illusion spell you cast on those affected is 25% more powerful and lasts 30% longer.
40 - Quiet Before the Storm (1) - All spells you cast from any school of magic/, as well as all shouts, are silent to others.
50 - Nemesis - Activate any hostile creature or humanoid in combat to summon an illusion of the target with 1% extra attack damage per Illusion level. The illusion relentlessly attacks the target for 30 seconds. This effect has a 180 second cooldown.
50 - Terror - Those affected by a Fear spell or effect within the radius of Imposing Presence drop their weapon.
60 - Imperious Splendor - Commanding Presence and Crown of the False King are twice as powerful as long as you remain above 75% Health.
60 - Master of the Mind - Mind affecting spells (Calm, Fear, Frenzy, Rally) and Commanding Presence also work on undead, daedra and automatons.
70 - The Reaper Comes - Activate any non-essential humanoid (only) under the effect of a Calm spell to send a wraith to slay the target within 15 seconds. This counts as an assault, if you get seen. This effect has a 180 second cooldown and can only affect one target at a time.
80 - Soulcrusher - Feast upon the minds of those affected by a Fear spell or effect within the radius of Imposing Presence, absorbing 25 points of Magicka per second.
80 - Protect Your God - When struck by a weapon, may compel a nearby ally affected by Commanding Presence to engage your attacker, dealing 250% extra attack damage for 5 seconds.
90 - Blind Guardian - Activate any non-hostile creature or humanoid in combat to summon an illusion of the target. The illusion fights for the target for 60 seconds and the target won't flee for its duration. This effect has a 300 second cooldown.
90 - Dream Geas - Activate sleeping victims to send a dream that compels them to fight at your side until released. You can only have one Dream Thrall at a time. Chance to fail and alert the victim, based on Illusion skill.
90 - Heavy Weighs the Tapestry - Activate any humanoid (only) under the effect of a Frenzy spell to incapacitate the target with magical exhaustion for 30 seconds and drain 500 points of Magicka and Stamina. This effect has a 180 second cooldown and can only affect one target at a time.
100 - Wraithwalker - After using an Activate perk (Blind Guardian, Heavy Weighs the Tapestry, Lamb to the Slaughter, Nemesis, The Reaper Comes), Illusion spells are 50% more powerful and last 50% longer for 10 seconds. The cooldown of Activate perks ends after 8 seconds out of combat.
Heavy Armor
40 - Defiance - You are trained to deflect incoming attacks while wearing all Heavy Armor. Whenever an enemy attacks you, you gain 15 points of armor rating for 10 seconds. This effect stacks.
40 - Rallying Standard - Grants the "Rallying Standard" power. Once a day, place a banner that grants 150 points of armor and 25% melee damage to allies within 25 feet wearing all Heavy Armor (including you) and prevents them from fleeing. Lasts 60 seconds.50 - Born to Fight - Heavy Armor weighs half as much and slows you down half as much when worn.
60 - Never Kneel - If wearing all Heavy Armor, take 30% less attack damage from power attacks.
70 - Reap the Whirlwind - When struck by a power attack or power bash, your attacks deal 125% more damage to the attacker for 5 seconds if wearing all Heavy Armor.
80 - Out of the Inferno - Incoming fire, frost and shock damage reduced by 0.02% per point of armor if wearing all Heavy Armor.
80 - Rise Above - If wearing all Heavy Armor, you intimidate enemies within 15 feet. They lose 5% attack damage and you gain 5% attack damage for each enemy affected.
One-Handed
40 - Furious Strength - Power attack damage with one-handed weapons increased by 15% plus 0.1% per point of Stamina. Unlocks decapitations.
70 - Thundering Blow - Whenever you perform a total of 8 or more one-handed regular attacks in combat, your next one-handed power attack is a Thundering Blow that deals double damage and costs no Stamina, resetting the counter.
90 - Aftershock - After a Thundering Blow, attack speed is increased by 75% for 3 seconds.
Restoration
40 - Respite - Healing spells also restore Stamina equal to their power.
Smithing
0 - Smithing Mastery (2) - You can create Novice (Steel/Bonemold) items at a forge or anvil, and improve them twice as much./All items can be improved 10% more.
30 - Meric Smithing (1) - Choose an item type: Contemporary Meric (Elven/Chitin), Dwarven. You can create items of the chosen type at a forge or anvil, and improve them twice as much. Investing a second perk point lets you choose both./You can create both Contemporary Meric (Elven/Chitin) and Dwarven items at a forge or anvil, and improve them twice as much.
40 - Arcane Blacksmith - You can improve enchanted weapons and armor.
50 - Expert Smithing (1) - Choose an item type: Hard Steel (Scaled/Plate/Nordic), Orcish. You can create items of the chosen type at a forge or anvil, and improve them twice as much. Investing a second perk point lets you choose both./You can create both Hard Steel (Scaled/Plate/Nordic) and Orcish items at a forge or anvil, and improve them twice as much.
70 - Exotic Smithing (1) - Choose an item type: Glass, Crystalline (Ebony/Stalhrim). You can create items of the chosen type at a forge or anvil, and improve them twice as much. Investing a second perk point lets you choose both./You can create both Glass and Crystalline (Ebony/Stalhrim) items at a forge or anvil, and improve them twice as much.