The Regenerator
The trend in character builds nowadays is towards complexity. Be it through in-depth gameplay mechanics or intricate roleplay, builds have become increasingly multifaceted. Not so with this character, however. This is a build that is single-mindedly focused on one thing and one thing only: Health Regeneration. Now then, let's get on with the build!
Race: Only one proper choice here: Argonian. Histskin is the best power this build could ask for. No useful skill boosts here but the 50% Disease Resistance and Waterbreathing are decent added bonuses. Also, Tae-Rai told me to make more Argonian builds so there’s that too. :P
Stone: While the Lady gives a boost to health regeneration, I found the Lord to be a more practical choice. Both the AR and Magic Resistance boosts are quite helpful.
Stats: 0/1/0. That’s right; everything goes into Health. Magicka is entirely unnecessary, and Stamina is covered through enchantments.
Shouts: Become Ethereal to safely close in on ranged opponents, Marked For Death for general damage-boosting, and Unrelenting Force for crowd control. You’ll also want to pick up the word for Slow Time found in Hag’s End, as it’s used for a particular combo.
Quests: The Whispering Door (to get the Ebony Blade), The Man Who Cried Wolf and The Wolf Queen Awakened (to get the Shield of Solitude), Unfathomable Depths (to get the Ancient Knowledge ability), Destroy The Dark Brotherhood (for charging the Ebony Blade and getting a word for Marked For Death), and the Main Quest up to the completion of The Horn of Jurgen Windcaller (for some useful shouts).
Skills
Two-Handed: The Regenerator’s weapon of choice is the Ebony Blade, so perking this skill is a necessity to deal adequate damage. Grab all of the perks in this tree except for the battleaxe and warhammer ones. In particular, the Sweep perk is nice for absorbing health from multiple foes simultaneously.
Block: This skill isn’t strictly necessary, but it does help to make combat more interesting than simply swinging your sword like a madman. Perk Quick Reflexes and up the right side of the tree to Shield Charge, only grabbing the first rank in Shield Wall. While perking Shield Charge with a build that doesn’t use a shield may seem counterintuitive, it’s still possible to use it by sprinting into an enemy and pressing the block button the moment you make contact.
Heavy Armor: All the health regeneration in the world won’t do you much good if you’re taking damage faster than you can regenerate it. Thus, a suit of heavy armor is essential for reducing incoming damage. Grab all of the perks in this tree. Also, note that due to a glitch, Ancient Knowledge boosts the effectiveness of all non-Dwarven heavy armors by 25%.
Enchanting: This skill is essential for shoring up some weak spots (magic resistance, the Ebony Blade’s low base damage) and further bolstering health regeneration. Perk your way up the center tree to Extra Effect.
You should be at level 40 once the build is completed.
Equipment
Let’s talk a little about the Ebony Blade. As of the 1.9 Patch, it operates solely off the Two-Handed skill, but it still has the speed and reach of a one-handed sword. The faster swing speed is particularly useful for making the most out of the Ebony Blade’s enchantment (30 points of Absorb Health once fully powered), and better yet, it doesn’t need to be recharged. Take a look at this UESP page for some suggestions on powering it up. The low base damage and inability to be smithed is a bit of a letdown, but nothing that some fortify two-handed enchantments can take care of. Speaking of which, here are my recommendations for armor enchantments:
Rahgot (Pre-enchanted with 70 Stamina)
Regenerator’s Necklace (Magic Resistance/Health Regen)
Regenerator’s Armor (Health Regen/Stamina)
Regenerator’s Gauntlets (Two-Handed/Block)
Regenerator’s Ring (Magic Resistance/Health Regen)
Regenerator’s Boots (Two-Handed/Stamina)
The heavy armor set that you choose to enchant is up to you; I went with Orcish Armor (since I think it looks good with Rahgot) and Bone Hawk Jewelry. I do advising disenchanting the Shield of Solitude though for its more powerful version of the Magic Resistance enchantment. Finally, I’d like to make a quick note regarding the Ring of Namira; while its boosts, particularly its health regeneration boost, are useful for the build, by endgame I found the self-enchanted ring to be more useful. Feel free to use it before you get Extra Effect though.
Gameplay
Combat with the Regenerator begins and ends with the Ebony Blade, so basic two-handed fighting strategies apply here. There are, however, some specific tactics to keep in mind, namely the Quick Reflexes + Slow Time combo which I have become very fond of as of late. By using one word of Slow Time immediately after the slowdown effect of Quick Reflexes ends, Slow Time’s duration is extended significantly. This is particularly useful for the Regenerator since the Ebony Blade can’t be used with Elemental Fury.
Quick Reflexes also works nicely for dodging too; since its slowdown effect lingers a little after disengaging block, with good timing, you can disengage the block and use the lingering slowdown effect to dodge the power attack instead by sidestepping it, or better yet, circling around to the enemy’s back. This is particularly easy to do against opponents performing a charging power attack. Once you’ve dodged the attack, you can easily launch into the aforementioned Slow Time combo.
I'd also like to make a note regarding health regeneration potions. I actually almost perked Alchemy because of them, but decided it was a little too superfluous. Regardless, health regeneration is the name of the game, so be sure to pick up any you find, or purchase them in apothecaries.
As you might've noticed, I didn't mention anything about roleplaying. That's because, to put it simply, I didn't really roleplay this build. For me, going from dungeon to dungeon slaying things with the Ebony Blade was enough. If you are looking for roleplay though, usage of the Ebony Blade lends this build nicely to a more villainous sort of character.
Replies
Simplicity at it's finest.
Aye, I agree with Ramses Albino - that and simple builds can be - at least for me - rather difficult to pull off. Great job! +1 from me, and don't forget your Rank: Adept