I have always loved holy knights and vampires, and as I pondered what character I wanted to play next, the idea of combining both elements visited my mind. This build portrays a Blood Mage Healer who does not follow the common tropes of using Equilibrium and Drain-Health spells nor becoming a full passive support who can only hide behind their comrade's back. But who can hold such a contradicting role? One particular vampire court from the Elder Scrolls Online: Greymoor fits this role perfectly, the Ravenwatch.
Reimagining a more badass slightly altered version of a forgettable minor character from the Ravenwatch faction, Heloise Menoit, the build follows the journey of a good-natured vampire who wields both Light and Dark Magic, controlling the threats of her kin while trying to restore the night-dwellers' reputation into a better light. This is the story of a once-pure maiden guided by the codes of the Ravenwatch household,
Song: Somnus
Version: Playable in Special & Anniversary Edition
Difficulty: Expert+
Dragonborn: Nope
Mods: Playable in vanilla and with some mods
"Verandis was a good teacher. I'm sad that he's gone. He found me after you let me go. Offered me a chance to be normal again. Or close to normal, as the case may be. I'll never forget him."
~Heloise
Once a medic of the Shornhelm Guard in the second era, Heloise Menoit turned into a Bloodfiend Vampire and unconsciously murdered the head of the Hinault family, a family she was supposed to save and nurture. Regretting her actions terribly, the player (Vestige) may choose whether to kill or spare her. This is Heloise's story should the Vestige give her a second chance where the Ravenwatch household then offered her a new sanctuary, teaching Heloise how to control her hunger and her new night power.
More than a thousand years passed since she became a Bloodfiend - Heloise left the household to embrace her past calling as a medic, wandering the province of Highrock as a healer while masking her night aura. Still upholding the household's codes, Heloise used her night power solely for noble purposes. Fate eventually brought her to the frozen land of Skyrim, where a new vampire threat had awoken from its long slumber, the Volkihar, carrying a sinister plan.
The Northern Mistress holds another bitter memory for the Ravenwatch's history, an unfortunate event that took the life of the first count of the household, Verandis Ravenwatch, who sacrificed his soul to bound and seal the Dark Heart's power in Blackreach. Skyrim left an unsettled parting for the Ravenwatch's Angel as she considered Verandis a great mentor who taught her how one should hold the night power.
"What do you want? Can't you see all these wounded, all this blood? I feel like I'll never be clean again, and I still have so much to do here."
~Heloise
Race:
Heloise's Aldmeri-Nedic blood grants her protection against hostile magic. With Imperious, our Bleak Angel is more powerful as Stones of Galen bestows additional Standing Stone effect, and Shared Ancestry allows Heloise to imitate her target's racial power. The Grail of Betony is a wondrous addition to evoke the urge to traverse the land while bolstering our Angel's attributes.
Blessing:
Heloise spoke the name of Arkay and Stendarr when she was a mortal, hinting at the possibility of her being a believer in the Bretony Pantheon. While she is now a vampire, it is hard to imagine Heloise abandoning her faith, considering her wish to retain her past persona. The blessings of Arkay and Mara reflect her nature as a medic who heals others, where both deities guard her safety and those around her. Wintersun blessings further augment these gifts.
Standing Stone:
The Lover Standing Stone helps the Angelic Raven sharpen her skills, while Andromeda's Undying Love synergizes Arkay's Wintersun to cheat the death's face. The Ritual Stone is the final setup to represent Mara's power and Heloise's hemomancy of controlling the blood and bodies of her slain enemies. The additional effect of the Ritual from the Stones of Galen further bolsters the Divine's blessing efficiency.
"Just because I'm a healer doesn't mean I don't know my way around a battlefield."
~Heloise
Restoration is indeed Heloise's most prominent school. All cost-reduction and Magicka-bosting perks are taken, while Necromage augments the Bleak Angel's various passive stats. Conjuration is roleplayed as a form of hemomancy, allowing one to form a weapon from the fallen target's blood and bend the remaining substance to control their slain bodies. With the bountiful enchantments from her armor pieces, the Raven's Angel needs no Conjuration cost-reduction perks.
Alteration guards Heloise's rather feeble defenses and offers another form of hemomancy art to paralyze her enemies. One-Handed and Heavy Armor are not a priority, yet they might save the Angel's breath during close combat encounters. Alchemy is the second most beneficial and flexible skill, allowing the Undead Healer to brew powerful potions and deadly poisons that can turn the table during lethal encounters.
The Special Edition, unfortunately, flies the level to 45 as some spell cost-reduction perks are necessary to compensate for the lack of some key items from the Anniversary Edition. The extra perks include Apprentice to Master Conjuration and Expert Alteration. The absence of the Paralysis Rune spell in Special Edition means Heloise needs to rely on the inferior version, the Paralyze spell, which sits as an Expert-level spell.
Ordinator emphasizes Restoration as a much more crucial skill for our Vampire Healer. The top-left perks turn ordinary healing spells into nuclear bombs, damaging the enemies while healing the allies simultaneously. The bottom-left perks govern over poisonous effects, yet Chalice of Tears is the only perk that befits Heloise's moral codes, as it acts as a slightly weaker version of Vanilla Necromage. The top-middle branch grants a passive mechanic to "bless" Heloise's comrades and "curse" her foes, and the top-right perks bestow a way to imbue fire damage and increase the effectiveness against the undead. The right side of the tree augments Mara/Arkay's blessing, further guarding Heloise and her allies.
Conjuration maintains the same roles, focusing on Bound Sword and reanimated corpses. Alteration differs slightly, introducing more traversing objectives with the Wild Shrines and sanctifying Heloise's blade with the Spellblade. One-Handed and Heavy Armor still retain the same premises, while Alchemy is more valuable with Bottomless Cup and Alkahest further strengthens poison efficiency, and Witchmaster may give a powerful additional effect when consuming a potion.
As the number of the modded perks is quite hefty, feel free to add more perks per skill level from the Ordinator add-on. Skyshards is my favored addition to complement Andromeda's Grail of Bretony and Ordinator's Pilgrim and Wild Shrines perks, giving more incentive to explore the land.
"Yet Greybeards from the Tamriel claim that the Dragongirl was there. They say that after many wars, she came to teach them the Dragon Force. They kept her armor right beside a little temple bit to the right."
~Kozakowy in the Story of Saskia
Emphasizing the look of a somewhat matching combination between an angel and a raven, Kozakowy's stunning Falka and Saskia Armor are what Heloise wears as her battle attire in her modded version. The black raven wings from the Animated Wings Ultimate or Morningstar Wings mods present the cherry on top for our Angelic Raven's thematic appearance, albeit at the cost of a slight lore-breaking immersion.
For the vanilla Anniversary Edition look, the combination of Dismal Visage, Vokun, Master Robes of Restoration, Blessed Ebony Spell Knight Gauntlets, any boots, Warlock's Mark, and a Ring of Peerless Restoration offers an opposing yet still fitting look of a traditional mage. More importantly, the combination provides bountiful enchantments, turning the vanilla style into a superior option.
Total Spell Cost-Reduction Boosts:
- Restoration: 75% ---> 94%*
- Conjuration: 75% ---> 94%*
- Alteration: 45% ---> 57%*
- Magicka Regen: 150% ---> 188%*
*With Necromage
The Special Edition outfit differs slightly, with the absence of several valuable pieces taking a heavy toll on the overall spell cost-reduction enchantments. As we no longer need to wear Dismal Visage alongside Vokun, you may trade the robe with the Archmage's Robes should you choose to become the Archmage. Savos Aren's Amulet can replace the Warlock's Mark, and you may also spawn a pair of pre-enchanted Daedric Gauntlets and Boots from the Atronach Forge should you fancy the extra enchantments.
"Long, long ago, before there were any people at all; even before the gods, Tamriel was chosen as a battleground by two - things. I call them the Light and the Dark."
~Book of The Light and the Dark
Few Bretony accounts note the existence of primal forces that predated the Aedras and Daedras, presumably another interpretation of Anu and Padomay. The two forces never resolve, nor do they fit the mortal's understanding of wholly good and evil. And yet, their conflicts create lives and maintain the universe, similar to the concept of Ying and Yang. You might have guessed, implementing the lore above, Heloise's combat premise is to balance her Light and Dark Magic. However, rather than contradicting each other, the two elements complement one another, creating a synergy to portray how a master of Restoration magic would use her vampiric power.
Hemomancy governs the darker side of Heloise's magic, a prowess she obtained after embracing her night power. Blood Magic primarily takes shape by draining one's life force. However, those of the Ravenwatch abide by the strict rules of honor and dignity, even to their enemies. Thus, the Dark Angel will not practice painful Blood Magic arts toward living beings, and her hemomancy only consists of Bound Sword, reanimation, and paralysis spells. If you wish to enhance the roleplay further, creatures like dragurs, atronaches, automatons, spriggans, and ash spawns are not the targets of Blood Magic.
~ Blood Sword
A Blood Sword is formed by draining the blood from a nearby corpse. Soul Trap spell should be cast on the corpse first to roleplay the blood-draining process before forming the Bound Sword, and the spell also fastens the Conjuration skill leveling. Recolor Bound Weapons enhance the immersion further, providing the crimson color for the Angelic Raven's talon. While the Bound Sword is a formidable weapon, Heloise can only form one when a dead body is nearby. Thus, carrying an additional sword is a wise decision.
~ Blood Control
Controlling the remaining blood of the corpses, the Bleak Angel can raise their body temporarily to aid her. All reanimation spells and their progression are crucial. Dread Zombie and Twin Souls are the end goals, allowing Heloise to blood-bend an additional stronger corpse. Dead Thrall spell is a viable option, yet with its tendency to break the immersion when you stroll along the town with a dead body at your side, you may dismiss the corpse after clearing the area. The Ritual Stone power is the Angel's other prowess, allowing her to control multiple corpses once per day. With Ordinator, Heliose can only control a single corpse as the blessing of Andromeda's Ritual Stone and her far more powerful Restoration magic are more than a fair trade.
~ Blood Domain
Disrupting the blood flow of her enemies to paralyze them temporarily is Heloise's only hemomancy that applies to living beings, a far less sinister blood magic practice than using Illusion spells to disrupt the blood flow and Oxygen level in their brain, causing the state of panic, manic, or dementia. This blood magic practice is done by casting the Paralysis Rune or Paralyze spell, Heloise's most reliable method of crowd control.
Restoration is the main face of Heliose's Light Magic, something she is always prominent with. Restoration spells govern Heloise and her allies' defenses and offenses as their magical shield and spear. As the Raven's Angel is first and foremost a healer, Heloise never travels alone. A follower and her undead ally will always aid her.
~ Healing Light
Further enhancing her passion after becoming a vampire, the Undead Angel's radiant light can heal living and non-living beings. All healing spells are Heloise's main prowess, and with Regeneration and Dual Cast perks, even a humble Heal Other spell can easily tend the mightiest companions. Bolstered by Mara's grace, Heloise's party will never fall on their knees. Ordinator's Sacred Guardian and Warrior's Flame push Heliose's healing prowess even further, emitting a sacred aura that nurtures gravely wounded allies and periodically blesses them with stronger defenses. The Apotheosis perk allows the Raven's Angel to cast Warrior's Flames on all nearby targets once per day.
~ Blazing Light
Just like how the light still emits in Heloise's Dark Magic by not inflicting painful hemomancy, a hint of darkness also exists in her Light Magic. Not only does her light heal the wounded, but it also burns those who wish to harm her. While Turn and Repel Undead spells are quite reliable as undead crowd controls, Vanilla's offensive Restoration spells are underwhelming, with only Sun Fire, Stendarr's Aura, and Vampire Bane damaging the non-living targets. However, Ordinator manages to turn a healer into a far deadlier role. False Light is the prioritized key perk, allowing normal healing spells to also damage hostile targets while healing allies in the radius. Necromantic Healing and Heal Undead, of course, damage undead enemies, while the rest harm the living ones. Other perks also significantly bolster Heloise's light spear, with Exorcist granting three new spells to fight the undead more effectively, and Warrior's Flame and Sacred Guardian now also damage nearby foes.
~ Venomous Light
The more infamous practices of Restoration schools are the spells that inflict toxic effects periodically. While these spells can be beneficial, we will simply ignore such Restoration spells. Remember, Heloise even refuses to practice the more sinister hemomancy arts. A medic is her true calling, one who heals and nurtures others. If a battle is unavoidable, the Angel's spear must quickly end her foe's life, and this roleplay also applies to her selection of alchemical concoctions.
Just as a prominent medic should be, Heloise also possesses a vast knowledge of alchemical recipes. With her strict codes, the Vampire Healer's poisons only weaken the targets and do not directly harm their health. Beneficial poisons grant positive effects when applied to Heloise's comrade and her revived corpses. While the Blood Sword is the Raven's favored talon, you may use a Blood Bow (Bound Bow) to deliver the poisons from afar should the front line become too dangerous. If you wish to stay strict with her morality, Field Magic mod helps you distribute potions and poisons to your comrade to avoid using the beneficial poisons and harming them.
~ Potions
- Amphetamine: Garlic + Salt Piles + Abecean Longfin ---> Fortify Restoration & Regenerate Magicka
- Astragalus: Blue Mountain Flower + Lavender + Tundra Cotton ---> Fortify Conjuration & Resist Magic
- Acetaminophen: Bear Claws + Charred Skeever + Rock Warbler Egg ---> Fortify One-Handed, Restore Health, and Restore Stamina
- Aspirin: Snowberries + Hawk Beak + Bone Meal ---> Resist Frost, Fire, and Shock
~ Poisons
- Tetrodotoxin: Butterfly Wing + Hanging Moss + Nightshade ---> Damage Magicka, Damage Magicka Regeneration, and Lingering Damage Stamina
- Tetanospasmin: Bone Meal + Crimson Ninroot + Deathbell ---> Damage & Ravage Stamina
- Neurotoxin: Creep Cluster + Large Antlers + Salt Pile ---> Damage Stamina Regeneration, Slow, and Weakness to Magic
~ Beneficial Poisons
- Adrenaline: Blue Mountain Flower + Nightshade + Wheat ---> Damage Magicka Regen, Fortify Health, and Restore Health
- Stimulant: Creep Cluster + Histcrap + Red Mountain Flower ---> Damage Stamina Regen, Fortify Magicka, and Restore Magicka
With all her prowess noted, Heloise's combat flow is simple, utilizing her Light and Dark Magic as the Angelic Raven's "sword" and "shield". Unless a dead body is already lying around, the combat typically starts by relying on the aid of Heloise's comrade to tank the damage while she supports them with her Light Magic and conventional sword. Once the first enemy falls, the Bleak Angel's Dark Magic begins, forming the crimson blade and raising the fallen body to aid her. Heloise's Light Magic continues a pivotal role to support her party by healing them while burning the nearby foes. Her various alchemical concoctions further increase the party's prowess.
Should some enemies manage to break through the party's defense and target our Angel, Heloise knows how to defend herself. Instead of holding a physical shield, her Ward is Heloise's magical shield, and her Flesh spells and racial power guard the Angel's defenses. Vanilla's Recovery and Ward Absorb and Ordinator's Descending Light perks help maintain the Ward, and with some perks sanctifying her blade, the Bleak Angel's power attacks pack quite the punch. If the situation spirals out of control, Paralysis Rune and Paralyze spells are your ace cards.
The most noticeable difference between the vanilla and modded combat is how powerful Ordinator's Restoration is as an offensive magic. This may turn some encounters into unbalanced ones. I suggest cranking up the difficulty if you play the modded version and/or installing some combat overhaul and difficulty mods. Wildcat paired with EEOS and SCAR will revolutionize the experience, as enemies will behave more cleverly and use your installed animation and spell mods, making every encounter more challenging yet still engaging.
"The bonds of friendship weave a net that will catch you when you fall. May you always be surrounded by those who will catch you when you need them most."
~Verandis
In a nutshell, the Angelic Raven's roleplay combines the ideas of my older builds, the Night Agent and the Maran Knights. After wandering her birthplace and the dune of Hammerfell to ease the suffering of the Great War aftermaths, Heloise chose Skyrim as her next stopping point. Where the screams of the wounded and the prayers of the helpless echo, the Dark Angel's light shines in that region. The frozen land makes for a fitting place with the ongoing Civil War and the many threats that soon reveal themselves.
Heloise's journey focuses on three objectives: to heal the wounded, investigate Blackreach, and eventually lead the Volkihar clan on a better path. To give a better context, the first count of the Ravenwatch, Verandis Ravenwatch, believed that the vampires and mortals could live together peacefully, and his household is proof of his vision. Unfortunately, Verandis died during his heroic act in Balckreach to save the Reach people. His ideology becomes Heloise's driving force for her actions throughout the journey, as the Bleak Angel shares the same wish as the first Count.
Before diving further, shall we discuss one of the most important aspects of this build? Yes, a follower. As Heloise is a healer, it only makes sense to have someone who needs her healing spells and can provide reliable assistance. A warrior-class follower will complement the battle strategy pleasantly, as they fit the role of a rear guard, and the mod Follower Can Die will make you appreciate their fellowship even more. While you are free to choose and swap between different followers or even install a multiple followers mod, I highly suggest keeping a single follower throughout the journey, as their bond with the Dark Angel plays a crucial roleplay in fulfilling Heloise's vampiric need, feeding.
Perhaps one of the most iconic things that differentiate the Ravenwatch from other night dwellers is how they feast upon their hunger, feeding only on willing servants. Unlike other vampire courts, who treat their servants like cattle, the Ravenwatch members and their servants are bound by a mutual relationship. As the vampires provide for their servants' needs and safety, the servants, in turn, willingly share their blood. Abiding by this rule, Heloise will only feed on her loyal companion. Thus, keeping a single follower by your side enhances the roleplay, as Heloise can safely reveal her true identity when the blood-carving visits her. The mod Better Vampires offers a more dynamic approach to fulfill Heloise's hunger.
Another minor roleplay to enhance the immersion is presenting the contradicting nature of Heloise's vampiric blood and her holy magic, as the Dark Angel also uses spells that harm other undead creatures. While the spells have no negative impact in-game, having a penalty for using such self-harming spells is indeed charming and engaging. The mod Wielding Sun Stuff Hurts Vampires is the answer to turn Turn, Repel, and sun-based spells into a dual-edged sword, harming both Heloise and her undead enemies.
If you are playing vanilla Anniversary Edition, the negative effects of the Divine Crusader's relics is a great replacement, nullifying Heliose's Health and Stamina Regeneration. None of the Divine Crusader pieces fit the overall aesthetic except the boots, as the robe covers the boots partially. Moreover, the boots' enchantment further augments the Restoration spell cost-reduction boost. Sadly, no similar negative effect is present in the vanilla Special Edition. :(
As the Angelic Raven investigates the depth of Dwemer's ruins and soon learns of the Volkihar's rising from the Dawnguard's fine specimen, Mr. Durak, Heloise also travels the land of Skyrim as a healer, fulfilling her primary reason in the frozen region. One easy way to roleplay this is by visiting the Imperials and Stormcloaks' tents and the Temple of Kynareth to heal the injured soldiers and citizens. Here To Help mod truly enhances the experience as it grants actual objectives to nurture the wounded in those locations. Helping the injured Valdr outside of Moss Mother Cavern and offering a Potion of Cure Disease to an infected hunter are another minor moments to spice up the Healer's roleplay.
Other minor and radiant quests are to work the various good-morality quests the Vampire Healer encounters during her journey. The quests The White Phial, The Book of Love, Frostflow Abyss, and Return to Your Root and a generous act of giving the homeless and offering a parentless child a warm place to sleep will grant Heloise's helpful passive abilities. The College of Winterhold is another explorable faction to progress the Angel's arcane talents. You are free to decide whether Heloise will climb the Archmage position or roleplay that one of her classmates is the actual chosen Archmage. The mod At Your Own Pace offers an alternative route to join the College without being a student.
The two final objectives are simple. The Angel's reason to traverse deep into Blackreach is to meet Verandis' soul, who guards the Dark Heart, and Dwemer's dungeons delving could make for a fun change of pace. The Volkihar part is quite straightforward - join the clan, ignore any sinister radiant quests, and finally kick Harkon's ass. You may progress these two objectives hand-in-hand while working the healer role and exploring the land. I ventured into the Blackreach first, as meeting with Verandis and learning about his decision would make a good resolution for Heloise to tame the Volkihar court.
Unfortunately, roleplaying the Balckreach part is impossible, as the ESO event never happened in Skyrim. Perhaps a bitter truth might serve as a better resolution. Rather than successfully meeting Verandis' spectre, the Count's soul has vanished from Blackreach, failing Heloise's second objective. Similar to how reality works, sometimes, the answer we seek simply does not exist, regardless of how hard we try to find it. Still, the Dark Angel understands that his sacrifice was necessary to create a peaceful time, even if it was only temporary. The Raven's Angel will still carry the first Count's wish to bring peaceful days between the day and night creatures.
Once Harkon truns into pile of bloody goo, the Angelic Raven's guide ends with her sitting on the Volkihar's throne, leading the clan to a better path. However, Heloise's journey in Skyrim does not simply end here, as a new challenge to rebuild the vampire's reputation awaits her. Many other activities are still viable, and among them is to continue working on good-morality quests and becoming the Thane of each hold, gaining the citizens' trustworthiness and proving that not all night dwellers are savage, blood-thirsty creatures.
Heloise may also switch her follower to Serana, as the duo vampires represent the brighter side of the night fangs. With the Volkihar court in better hands, perhaps Verandis' wish is not a naive, silly dream. Perhaps the days when mortals and vampires can live side-by-side without killing each other are not a mere illusion. And perhaps you are the one who will bring those days closer.
"We all have to eat. But unlike your meals, my sustenance voluntarily allows me to sup. And then it gets to walk away and go on with its life. When was the last time a deer or a rabbit approached you and gladly died so that you could have your fill?"
Well, thank you for reading! If you have any questions or comments, feel free to write them down below. Credits also go to the mod authors for always upgrading the game and, of course, to Bethesda for being a caring developer who still updates this 12-year-old game periodically. :) This build will be my last one for a while, as my work schedule will get crowded after the new year. But with all that said, hope you have a wonderful day!
Replies
Awesome work as always Jazz. Love the presentation as per usual
Hey Jazzy, for some reason some of the images are appearing as their file name and a link to Imgur
Hey, man. Yea, I embedded the pics on Imgur first for a clearer resolution. Are there broken images?
OK reloading it fixed it