It's been a very long time since I've posted a build. I don't even wanna think how long. Either way, I'm back with a shiny new Khajiit build with tons of lore and roleplay. Check out my profile for the rest of my builds.
Special thank you to Teccam for making the headers and giving it one last one over.
Mafala, you are the Clan Mother, for what is more secretive than the ways of the Clan Mothers?
Race: Khajiit
Stats: 3 magicka / 2 health / 0 stamina
Birthsign: Advanced Atronach
Alignment: True Neutral
Major Skills: Destruction, Alteration, Restoration, Sneak
Minor Skills: Alchemy, Conjuration, One-handed, Illusion
Quests: Civil War (Stormcloaks), Main Quest, Dawnguard, town side-quests, quests for Mehrunes Dagon, Kynareth, Mara, and Mephala
While other races almost wholly separate the governing of the state and the worship of the gods, to the Khajiit, they are but one and the same. The almighty ruler, which has alternatively been dictator and peace-loving king through the ages, is the Mane, a high king of the kings and city-states of Elsweyr as well as being the high priest and ultimate authority on their religion. All know of the Mane and all Khajiit speak in hushed tones of his power, both as politician and diplomat as well as being favoured by the gods and chosen by the Twin Moons. They know where he lives and his motions are common rumour. The particularly ambitious Khajiit may even have audience with him, though his Warrior Guard may prove unnerving.
The same cannot be said for the Clan Mothers. Kept as secret as any widely-known order can be out of respect for Mafala of Secrets, the Clan Mothers are the greatest force among the Khajiit and stand above and outside the law. It is they who watch the moonbeams and order the right times for the gathering and harvesting of Moon Sugar. Each city has a Temple to Mafala, where the Clan Mothers live and outsiders are not allowed, though they do go to common temples to make sermons and pass along the oral traditions of the Khajiit to the kittens of this cycle.
All know them to be a secret, sacred order but none know what it is they do during the months without harvest. Gossip of Mafala’s Secrets is not done in polite company, but many Khajiit enjoy the guesswork after a few drinks. Perhaps they sit in the Temple and pray for enlightenment, like the House of the Mother Cat, or these slight robed female cats train in the arts of war like Alkosh’s Claws. Like Magrus’s Star-Gazers maybe they watch the heavens and the Tides for motions of the greater future. The innate feline curiosity of all Khajiit brings them to speculate what the Secrets potentially are and what greater role the Clan Mothers might hold.
All know the Clan Mothers when they walk the streets all give them a wide berth, stepping aside in equal parts awe and fear. For when the High Mother points her long claw at some unsuspecting young Khajiit none shall argue when she is led away to the Temple of Mafala.
Major Skills
Destruction : Our primary form of dealing damage, both near and far, with the thunderous crack and bright shining light of Shock.
Alteration : Flesh spells, blood magic, utility, Alteration is probably my favourite magic school and almost everything it offers is useful one way or another.
Restoration : Our method of healing and throwing sun magic around, as a more effective way of battling undead.
Sneak : A nightblade bereft of blade, sneaking is our common approach to combat, though it is not our only one.
Minor Skills
One-handed : Our non-stealth approach to combat revolves around the use of Mehrunes Dagon’s Dagger and a flurry of attacks, to provide it the best chance to trigger its insta-death effect.
Alchemy : What is a nightblade or servant of Mephala the Spider without poisons? Fortification formulae also find their place here.
Conjuration : Raising the dead provides a solid distraction for the Clan Mother, when she rushes into close combat.
Illusion : Taken for solely Quiet Casting and the silent use of Shouts and spells.
Gear
Since we use a powered version of the Atronach Stone, granting us 100 magicka, full spell absorbtion, which means immunity to magic and diseases, we’re going purely for aesthetics.
Alikr hood + Vaermina robes + Mythic dawn gloves + amulet of talos + stealth ring
Mehrunes Dagon’s Dagger + Steel->Ebony Dagger
Secrets
When the universe was new there was Fadomai and Ahnurr and together they had two Litters. The First Litter was of light, protection, and the glory of true cats. The Second Litter was dark, temptive, and provided balance in the land. But to each kitten they spoke a Secret to make their shape and nature. The third of the Second Litter, Mafala, is the Great Cat of Secrets, the personification of secret might. In each cycle, she chooses her servants among the Khajiit and gifts them each with shades of the knowledge Fadomai and Ahnurr gave to their First Litter. It are these Secrets the Clan Mothers guard, holding them for the days the Khajiit have need of them.
Sometimes, it is the Secret of Hermorah the Tides, to know the best of times to order the sugar harvest. Other times, it is the Secret of the Hungry Cat, called upon in the lean times or the Secret of the Runt to learn the truth during times of grave injustice. The cat-folk of Elsweyr never know how the Clan Mothers guard and protect them in times of need, for being a Mother is a thankless task.
Once training has begun and a new Clan Initiate has communed with Mafala, she will impart the Secrets of the First Litter. It is only after many years of contemplating the meaning of these Secrets and becoming a Clan Mother that Mafala will personally choose a Secret of the Second Litter to bestow and create a Clan Mother’s shape and nature.
The Secret of Alkosh the First Cat
"Alkosh, to you we give Time, for what is as fast or as slow as a cat?"
The Secret of Time is that it always passes, sometimes very quickly, sometimes so slowly we think it doesn’t pass at all. The Secret is in the shaping and bending of it.
While fairly limited in scope of what we can do to affect time, the Clan Mother can still both speed it up (Whirlwind Sprint, Elemental Fury) and slow it down (Slow Time, enhanced with the Stability perk).
The Secret of Khenarthi the Winds
"Khenarthi, to you we give the sky, for what can fly higher than the wind?"
The Secret of the Winds is in the howls and whistles it carries, all the way from the Sands Beyond the Stars to Khajiit ears.
The Clan Mothers practice from their earliest days to master the Voice of the Winds, though their powers are limited to the shouts that fit their beliefs, which include: Unrelenting Force, Become Ethereal, Cyclone, and Disarm.
The Secret of Magrus the Cat’s Eye
"Magrus, to you we give the sun, for what is brighter than the eye of a cat?"
The Secret of the Cat’s Eye is in the light in the darkness, that which the enemies of the Khajiit may look upon while Khajiit hide in the shadows.
The best and brightest abilities available to us are Lightning Destruction magic and, most fittingly, Sun spells from the Dawnguard.
The Secret of Mara the Mother Cat
"Mara, you are love, for what is more loving than a mother?"
The Secret of the Mother Cat is of the promise of sacrifice always being worthy, of guarding against the Darkness of the dro-m’Athra, the evil spirits and enemies of Khajiit, without asking for thanks or recognition.
The guardianship of the Mother Cat is exemplified in Alteration flesh spells, which bring us up to a healthy armor rating when necessary, but also protection from magic. After proving herself, even full magical immunity is available through a Powered Atronach Stone.
The Secret of S’rendarr the Runt
"S'rendarr, to you we give mercy, for how does a runt survive, except by mercy?"
The Secret of the Runt is the need to be realised, the sick to be made healthy, the hungry belly to be filled, the enemy to be made dead.
Restoration is a perfectly valid school of magic and, despite the alchemy, is our preferred way of healing. It’ll also let us heal our undead as well as fully manipulate our attributes according to our needs.
The Secret of Merrunz the Kitten
"Merrunz, you are the Ja'Khajiit, for what is more destructive than a kitten?”
The Secret of the Kitten is in the easy charm with which it rends its world, the careless but purposeful damage, and the balance of destruction and creation.
Gifted with the Secret of the Kitten, this Clan Mother has unlocked the beneficial side of his destruction, weaving blood magic to sustain herself in combat and borrow the corpses of her fallen enemies to create allies when none are around.
Combat
Using all these Secrets together, the Lone Clan Mother is able to hold herself in both open and stealthed combat.
Stealth and Ranged -- The Clan Mother of Mafala
Our standard approach to combat, from the shadows as a nightblade without the blade. A stealthy Destruction mage with lightning bolts shot from the shadows. Slow Time can be helpful to let off several shots in a short amount of time, especially if you can’t use a mod to add sneak attack damage for spells. Silently cast Lightning Runes are always great, especially when they discover you. Whirlwind Sprint lets us dash through the shadows far better than Silent Roll. Magicka is restored using a powered version of Equilibrium. The Restoration perk Regeneration enhances it by 50% to 37pts and dual-casting improves it to 81pts/sec. A few shots of Close Wounds quickly recovers our falling hit-points and leaves us dancing on the knife’s edge between our attributes.
Open and Close -- The Destruction of Merrunz
Using Mehrunes Dagger to quickly fell one body, only to raise it and charge their fellows, the Lone Clan Mother slides around to dual-wield Mehrunes Dagon’s Dagger and a Steel (Ebony) Dagger, enhanced with Elemental Fury. Dual-wield power attacks with the Concentrated Poison perk lets off both poison uses with one fell swoop. Stamina can be restored with Restoration’s Respite for more dual-wielding prowess, while flesh spells and Become Ethereal serve to protect us from wayward warhammers and the Atronach Stone from all magic.
For each set of full moons, the Council of Clan Mothers looks over their order and determines where the new Mothers may do the most good for the Khajiit. Most of them are assigned to Temples of towns and cities, but some, those with more damaging Secrets, may best serve by wandering the roads of their fellow Khajiit and listening to the voice of Mafala to tell them where they’re needed the most.
The Lone Clan Mother found herself in one such a wandering band when her Secret of the Kitten was revealed. They followed the traveling Khajiiti caravans through Cyrodiil, jumping from camp to camp as Mafala decreed, until they found themselves in the frigid wilderness near the Skyrim border -- and then in a confusing, disordered battle with an Imperial Legion unit. One by one, the Khajiit fell to the Imperial steel, until only one was left and, in a moment of weakness, she surrendered.
Swearing vengeance upon the Empire for their wanton slaughter of such true cats, the Lone Clan Mother leaves behind the destruction of Helgen, tail between her legs, and flees to Windhelm (Civil War - Stormcloaks). Mafala feels her anger and spurns her ever onward through the peaks and valleys, through the peaceful and rageful devotion into a balance (Whispering Door, The Book of Love, Pieces of the Past, The Blessing of Nature). Though she wanted to return to the south and the Council, the Lone Clan Mother’s paws stroked the blackest ebony of Mafala’s blade and she knew she was to stay in Skyrim. That same unknowable knowledge guided her to the Khajiiti trade caravans, where she waited for a sign.
One night, as the Lone Clan Mother shared a camp and fire with Ma’dran, a weatherbeaten and out-of-breath courier fell before them with a letter for her -- delivered to her hands only. The court wizard of Whiterun had discovered she was the last survivor of the dragon disaster of Helgen and with a potential dragon in the hills, he wanted an interview. Breaking ties with the caravan, she rode to Whiterun and, with the assistance of the city guard, brought down an ancient dragon. A few moments of silence before the Nords began to cheer in disbelief and one went forward to pull off a talon as a trophy, but then the Lone Clan Mother felt the inner smile and vicious pride of Mafala and she knew there was still a Secret to be taught. A whispering wind of foreign magic wove through her, tearing the flesh from the dragon with it, and Mafala was glad. Though she was perhaps the only one. (Main Quest).
Following the rumours in the towns the caravans travel to (The Forsworn Conspiracy, Laid to Rest, Unfathomable Depths, The Man Who Cried Wolf), the Lone Clan Mother hones her skills in the wild, seeking adventure and focusing her instincts of destruction to evil, sometimes bringing the mighty warrior Kharjo as a bodyguard and close friend.
Resting at Ankhari’s tent, the Lone Clan Mother saw a powerful Orcish warrior leave the Riften gates in a foul mood, a bundle of flyers in his arms. Mafala’s instinct pounded in her heart and the Lone Clan Mother stood and asked him for one of them. “The Dawnguard is looking for new recruits to fight against the growing vampire menace,” he said in a tired voice, looking over the small robed cat with disdain (Dawnguard).
After battling Harkon in his ancient palace, the Lone Mother returned to the caravans of her people for some time. But, as days and weeks passed, Mafala’s driving urge grew fainter and fainter and she knew her time in Skyrim had come to an end. Kharjo asked her where she would go next, where Mafala directed her. Tasting the unspoken word in her mouth, the Lone Clan Mother said, “West.”
Some overhauls have mods that benefit stealthy mage characters, but I don't necessarily perscribe one over the other. The only mod I really recommend for either SE or Oldrim is Khajiit Speak. It's a complete dialogue overhaul of the game that makes all your speech options have the same sort of Elsweyr flair that the other Elsweyr Khajiit have.
Replies
I love it. Awesome lore and union between roleplay and gameplay. The Khajiit have some really unique culture and religion and you really bring that to life here. Stealth mages are an under-explored and interesting play style. So good to see a new build from you, Ely!
Thanks! I had a lot of fun with the playstyle, it was much more sneaky than I'm used to. I'm glad to be back!
I was a bit worried when I saw that perk spread packed with 8 different skills but it sounds like you've made this one work! As Teccam mentioned the lore and roleplay really help to elevate this build. Great presentation and images as always too.
Thanks, Ponty! It did feel a little daunting, but the lore was a lot of fun to delve into.
I think I have a newfound appreciation for Khajiit lore. Wonderful build as always Ely.
Well hot damn Ely, time away hasn't duo your skills. This is a really well done Khaj. I like how she tows the thin grey line, nice
I'm playing an ordinatorized version of this build but using Kharjo instead of Zombies and adding in ordinator shout perks because I've never used them before. Hedge Mage Robes looks great on a Khajiit.