“Think ya could get the drop on us, vampire?!” The bandit's question was rhetoric, dipped in venom and slurred by whiskey. My eyes settled on him as I leaned against the door frame, watching him sway back and forth slightly. Between his labored breathing I could hear the steady drip of blood hitting the floor as it slid off my dagger. “Ya' ain't that good of a thief, are ya'?” It was a pathetic sight. Beyond him, four equally drunk lowlifes grinned at me, anxiously waiting for their boss to order my slaughter. Further still, I saw what I came there for: a chest brimming with weapons and gemstones. The Silver-Hands needed the funds desperately, so naturally I just had to have it for myself.
I couldn't help the sly smile that tugged my lips. From the looks on their faces, I guessed my teeth still dripped with the mead-filled blood. “Oh trust me,” I purred to them. “If I didn't want you to know I was here, you wouldn't know.” It was amusing how quickly their confidence turned to fear.
“What,” he stammered for words, “what are you doing then?”
I twirled the dagger between my fingers, watching it idly as the sounds of heavy breathing and footsteps grew louder. Their eyes shifted past me to look expectantly down the hall as cries of their fellow doomed Silver-Hand tried to warn them of the coming danger. “Dahlia didn't want me to have all the fun,” I told them plainly, glancing up at them again. They couldn't draw their weapons fast enough as the beast barreled through the doorway.
Looming over even the tallest of men, the auburn-colored werewolf darted into the room, her vibrant eyes locked on the leader. He shrieked in fear as vainly raised his weapon against her. Her massive claws wrapped around his skull as if grabbing onto a sword. I audibly heard his neck crack before his skull collapsed, so at the very least he had a painless death.
As the remaining four Silver-Hand found courage to stand against her, I summoned a spell in my freehand. The magic danced between my fingertips, tingling them in a sensation that was almost warmth. I snarled as I launched the red, pulsing magic past Dahlia, letting it find rest in the chest of a Redguard woman. Outwardly, she looked touched, but as her cries turned to screams, I could hear her bones twisting and breaking beneath her skin. Shards finally broke the skin as the woman gave up her soul to the afterlife.
Admiring by the beautiful tragedy of her death, I was unable to stop myself from getting hit with a rather blunt mace. Slammed against the wall, the air was forced out of my lungs. As my eyes tried desperately to adjust, I could taste my own blood mixing with those of the dead Silver-Hand two rooms over. The vile taste was almost distracting enough to ignore the man who lumbered over to me, silver weapon in hand. He sneered as he readied the mace over me, wanting nothing more than to bash my skull into the stone.
My lycan savior wouldn't have it however. Regardless of how much of a pain she was, I had to give her points for keeping me alive. Her powerful arms crumpled the man to the ground as if he were made of sand. There were few sounds that could leave his lips before her massive jaws clamped around his neck, tearing and ripping flesh in a satisfying way. The Silver-Hand went motionless as she withdrew her teeth, and we were left in total silence.
Dahlia stared at me as I pulled myself to my feet again. I looked up at her as a soft growl left her lips. “What?” I asked, tilting my head. Without so much as a warning, her tongue shot from her mouth, licking the fresh blood from my face. I shoved her away as I tried to wipe the drool from my skin. It only drew a giggle-like noise from her throat. “You're disgusting,” I told her, walking towards the chest on the opposite end of the room.
Dahlia panted softly as her hide gave way to soft, freckled skin. Her hulking form shrank in size, but still stood taller than me. Her hair remained the same auburn and her eyes the same forest green. As the lycan returned to her human form, she looked around for clothes to hide her newly nude form. I busied myself examining the spoils of our hunt, only turning to look at her as she called out, “Is my armor still outside, Enoril?”
“Unless someone stole it,” I teased her. She found a simple pair of workers clothes in one of the cabinets, but her body was still a bloodied mess. “You're going to need a bath before we get home. I'm not walking into town with you like that.”
“Aye?” she asked, looking herself over as if she just noticed the dripping crimson that stained her skin and new clothes. She frowned as she noticed my chuckling. “You're almost as bad as I am, with all that blood dripping down your nose.”
She walked over to me and I couldn't help but grin. “Oh, I didn't mean the blood. You smell like a wet dog.” Dahlia gasped, trying desperately to fight the smile that pulled on her lips. She playfully snarled at me before tackling me to the ground. Despite the Oblivion we had been through, we still managed to keep each other feeling like children. After years alone, there were few places I would rather be than alone with Dahlia, acting like childish idiots, bathed in Blood and Moonlight.
To read the first part of this story, check out Blood and Moonlight.
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Hey y'all!
I'm here with yet another build. It seems like with each story I write, more and more build ideas come to mind. It just so happened that one of my more recent stories perfectly coincided with the Sky Forge's newest contest, “Bloodlines”. What better reason to get off my butt and actually post a build of these two lovely ladies! The Blood and Moonlight build is unique for me as it includes not one but two different play-styles for one particular concept. The play-style and perks strongly depend on your initial choice of vampire or werewolf, but quests, factions, and even choices you make in the game stay true for both characters.
I initially made The Blood and Moonlight with “Skyrim Together” in mind, so when/if the mod becomes viable and popularized, this build will be an excellent launching point to start playing with your friends! It has been tested as best I could- with in-game followers- and I've done my best to keep my mods “Skyrim Together” friendly (using their current compatibility modlist). If I ever get a hold of the actual mod however, I will definitely be retesting this!
Without further ado, please enjoy...
Never would one expect to find a pair so different yet compatible as The Blood and Moonlight. A sulking loner, The Blood was always used to depending on herself and making her own way in the world. She lived by the shadows, looting homes and picking pockets by night as her skin burned in the day. Years of practice kept her hunger for blood in check well enough, but every necessary feeding caused her guilt to grow. She lusted for the power Vampirism gave her but loathed the feeling of being labeled a monster. Because of this, she kept to herself, finding that allies of any kind muddied her emotions and weakened her resolve.
By comparison, The Moonlight was a star among men, drawing everyone in by her kindness and charisma. A bard and a warrior, there was no question why so many flocked to see her. She lived selflessly, proclaiming herself a safeguard for the innocent. The laughter and joy of others was great payment in her eyes, but she couldn't turn down the offer of brotherhood found within the Companions. She rose among their ranks quickly, finding herself inducted into The Circle after just a few months. The gift they offered her however was something she never would have asked for. After a terrifying transformation, The Moonlight swore off Lycanthropy. The draw of power and bloodlust was too much for her kind heart to accept.
While The Blood wandered the roads of Skyrim looking for a place to wait out the daylight and The Moonlight tried to distract herself from the Call of The Wolf with a hunt, bandit slavers were looking for easy coin. A blood-starved vampire and distracted werewolf didn't stand much of a chance against the hunters by themselves. Intending to sell them to the Dawnguard and Silver-Hand respectively, the bandits made off with the unlikely pair. It didn't take The Blood and Moonlight long to figure out they were much stronger than even an army of mortal men when they worked together. Finding solace in The Moonlight's company, The Blood found her drive stronger when she had someone to protect. Likewise, The Moonlight's beast blood seemed to quell when she reminded herself The Blood was close-by.
The most unlikeliest of friendships, once formed by the primal desire to live, developed into an inseparable bond. They duo made each other stronger in ways they would never be on their own. Further, their need to exact revenge on the groups that hunted them added fuel to the flames. Taking them down in The Blood's subtle art of blackmail and thievery or The Moonlight's more proactive approach of combat and “Great Hunts”, they began to make a name for themselves. With the world full of gold to be had and lives to be protected, there was no telling what lied in store for the femme fatales. As long as they were together though, nothing could overtake them.
Essential Mods:
Alternate Start- Live Another Life: Allows player to start the game in a different location than Helgen.
Amazing Follower Tweaks: Allows player to have multiple followers, edit follower armor and fighting style, and pose followers in different ways.
Andromeda- Standing Stones of Skyrim:Overhauls the Standing Stones in a lore-friendly way.
Classic Classes and Birthsigns: Allows the player to choose a class and birthsign at the beginning of the game to help build the character early on.
Immersive Armors: Adds new, lore-friendly armors to the game as well as modifying some of the older models.
Immersive Weapons: Adds new, lore-friendly weapons to the game as well as modifying some of the older models.
Imperious- Races of Skyrim: Overhauls the racial perks and powers while remaining true to lore.
Moonlight Tales Special Edition: Overhauls the werewolves and werebear abilities to provide more perks and abilities to lycanthropes in beast and human form.
Ordinator- Perks of Skyrim: Overhauls the perk system to expand upon each skill tree in a more in-depth way.
Sacrosanct- Vampires of Skyrim: Overhauls the abilities of all vampires in the game by adding new spells, powers, and quests, as well as improving and extending the abilities of the Vampire Lord skill tree.
Wintersun- Faiths of Skyrim: Adds a new system to the game that allows player to worship a deity, gain their favor, follow their tenets, and get new powers and abilities.
There has always been a rivalry between vampires and werewolves in all types of franchises and medias. Questions about the morality and strength of the races is always at the forefront of every movie: Who are the good guys and who are the bad ones? In a fight between the two, who would win?I wanted to take a much different approach, however. In the Elder Scrolls, both races are formidable opponents, making one wonder how strong they could possibly be together. I sought out to answer that question, in turn creating the beautiful blend that is The Blood and Moonlight.
The vampires of the Elder Scrolls are terrifying and ancient beings, wielding manipulative illusion and profane destruction spells. They are a silent, relatively unseen presence in Skyrim, but when they do attack, the fear is widespread. Contrarily, the Lycanthropes seem to be a seen-yet-unseen danger. They walk among civilians freely, longing for or dreading the next time the call of the beast blood becomes too strong to resist. Their barbaric transformation leads them to pick up more warrior-like trades and lifestyles, ranging from mercenaries to simple hunters. On the surface, the two seem vastly too different to even consider a pair, but digging deeper there are reasons for them to be allied.
As long as there has been fear of the supernatural, there have been groups to combat them. The Vigilants of Stendarr are among the best known fighters of “abominations”. Going after all forms of Daedra and Daedra-worshippers, they would have no problem killing vampires or lycans alike. Similar groups such as the Dawnguard and Silver-Hand specialize in killing the races respectively, but that doesn't mean they would necessarily turn a blind eye to any who threatened a “normal” way of life. Bearing in mind mortal men and women would likely attack supernaturals as well, it seems as though the entire world is unsafe for either group to exist.
These mutual feelings of loneliness and fear of facing an entire world against them are the driving factors of the Blood and Moonlight build. While incredibly strong on their own ways, there are some battles that neither one can win alone. Attacked in the heat of the day, where will a vampire find strength when it's reserves are drained? Assaulted by mages from afar, how can a lycan find themselves on even ground? Together, the Blood and Moonlight bolster each others strengths and cover each others weaknesses. Drawing from strength from The Mage, The Thief, and The Warrior paths, the duo rarely has an enemy they cannot best, and if they fail, at least they fail together.
For this build, I wanted to stay true to the stereotypes assigned to vampires and werewolves, but add my own twists along the way. The build is very open ended, meaning there are few quests that have to be completed. Roleplaying and charting your own course will take up a bulk of this build, making it both challenging and exciting. Regardless, I assigned myself some rules and missions to complete before I could call this build “done”:
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Maintain Vampirism/Lycanthropy. How can I sate my appetite or suppress my urges? Do I take my disease as a blessing or a curse?
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Always travel with allies. Who can I rely on to cover my weaknesses? Who knows my struggles?
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Support and encourage other “outcasts” of society. Are there other lycans or vampires who need aid? Are there mortals who have been labeled “outcast” and would help when needed?
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Take revenge against those who hunt you. What are the groups that harm supernaturals the most? Can you take them down with more ways than bloodshed?
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Finish Companions and Thieves' Guild questlines. What groups can tell me who my enemies are and where they are hiding? Who can support me in case I fail?
As with most roleplay builds, these points can be interpreted as strict or as loose as you wish, so long as the general idea is maintained. I will elaborate more in the Gameplay and Roleplay section.
Race:
Breton, Female. A beautiful mix of man and mer yet superior to both. The Blood has surpassed mortal races, but she still benefits from perks of her Aldmeri-Nedic heritage. A high regeneration of both Magicka and Stamina means she will never be without a way out of any fight. Her mixed blood also allows her to learn more from the Standing Stones than any other race giving her an extra bonus when she attunes to one. A deadly cocktail of mortal and immortal blood, she is definitely no one to trifle with.
Standing Stone:
The Tower. Mysterious and full of riches, The Tower Stone represents everything The Blood wants in life. Attuning to this stone allows The Blood to open any lock up to Adept level easily with a chance to open an Expert level lock once a day. The Tower also reveals a mysterious cache of items sure to bring her fortune if she can attain it.
***The Tower Stone was used a majority of the game, but during the early levels I alternated between The Thief Stone and The Mage Stone often to help boost my sneak and magic skills fairly quickly. If need be you can use one or both the stones throughout the entire game, but I found the Tower Stone to be much more fitting later on.
Birthsign:
The Lady. Those born under the sign of The Lady are said to be kind and tolerant, though the mysterious Blood seems to be the exception. Regardless, she takes advantage of the perks given to her by her sign. A health boost as well as faster magicka regeneration gives The Blood a much needed cushion when fighting during daylight hours.
***I selected 3rd Era Birthsign as it allowed The Blood to still have the perks of The Lady while attuning to whichever stone she chose.
Blessing/Divine:
Nocturnal. Despite being the creation of Molag Bal, The Blood finds herself drawing more strength from subtle crimes in the shadows rather than bloodied domination for all to see. For this reason, she has adopted Nocturnal, Lady Luck and Mistress of the Shadows, as her patron. As her follower, she can pray to her god to remove small bounties and become harder to detect. Also while in prayer, The Blood can scry on the nearest enemy within 300 feet, getting a better idea of her surroundings.
Supernaturals:
Vampire. Reborn a daughter of Coldharbor many decades ago, The Blood has the potential to be one of the most terrifying creatures to walk Nirn. Although susceptible to fire, she boosts amazing resistance to frost, poison, and disease- three of the most prevalent killers Skyrim's harsh landscape has to offer. Further, her nearly translucent skin makes her excellent at sneaking and outright disappearing when the need arises. This silent beauty hides in plain sight, able to act out the whims of her heart, and no one is the wiser.
Companions:
Yes. She has lived decades in solitude, so perhaps it's time to find someone to trust. While typically an introverted, lone wanderer, The Blood's mind changed when she realized there are people in the world that are open to her kind. While these people might be outcasts or Daedra-worshippers themselves, it doesn't change the fact they are still willing to serve and fight by her side. In addition to The Moonlight, potential followers include members of the Companions, mercenaries, Daedric priests, drunks, beggars, thieves, and lowly workers.
Factions:
Companions, Thieves' Guild. While the money the Companions pay is good, there's nothing wrong with picking up a few extra septims now and then. Other than assisting The Moonlight, the real reason The Blood sticks around the Companions is to track the movements of the Silver-Hands. She prefers the company of Riften's Thieves' Guild and will regularly pick up side missions from them to complete on her travels.
Archetype:
Nightblade. A master of the shadows and almost entirely unpredictable. The Blood cares little for rules that change so quickly over the years, but rather decides what's right and what's wrong by her own moral compass and the effects her decisions have on others. She also prefers sneaking and striking from the shadows, but isn't afraid to use her magic talents and aggressive strikes if discovered. This combination of muddied morality and shady fighting style makes The Blood as deadly as she is beautiful.
Class: Custom.
Specialization Bonus: Stamina
Combat Skills: One-Handed
Stealth Skills: Light Armor, Lockpicking, Pickpocket, Sneak
Magic Skills: Destruction, Illusion
Secondary Skill: Athletics
The Blood falls nearly in line with the Nightblade class, but has just enough differences to be in a class of her own. As a Nightblade, all three specialties (Combat, Stealth, and Magic) play a role in defining her class. The Thief skills keep her hidden from view while her Combat and Magic skills keep her alive if she is detected. An extra boost in Stamina along with Athletics (faster movement speed and quicker stamina regeneration) make sure The Blood has enough energy to power attack or run away in whatever situation she finds herself.
Weapons:
Skyforge Steel Dagger. Carry light, strike hard. The Blood relies mainly on her sneaking and magical prowess to keep herself alive but she knows there are limitations on her skill. Keeping herself lightly armed allows for plenty of inventory space for what's important. A fast striking weapon forged with the Nordic skill of Eorlund Gray-Mane is just what she needs to keep herself alive.
***If using Immersive Weapons, I enjoyed the aesthetic of the Spearblade. The weapon was a somewhat rare find, however, so I kept the Skyforge Steel Dagger on me most of the time.
Armor:
Thieves Guild Armor set. Lightly armored makes sneaking much easier, even for a vampire. Adding in the enchantments from the Thieves Guild Armor set, The Blood becomes an even deadlier woman. She doesn't care if the guards recognize the set; they won't even see her coming when she actually wants to blend in.
***If using Immersive Armors, the Bosmer Engraved Hood and Boots made her attire blend even better. Additionally, in game armors such as Vampire set can be used as substitutes until retrieving the Thieves' Guild Armor. They usually have decent enchantments as well that help boost destruction magics.
Spells/Scrolls:
Destruction and Illusion. Master of clean getaways and violent ends, each fight depends on The Blood's mood. Proficient in the ancient blood magics, the vampire doesn't have a need for any elemental spells. Instead, she relies on using an enemies own body against them. In delicate situations, The Blood will resort to using a calm or fear spell to move her target where she wants them to go. With her back against the wall, she'll resort to a deadly cocktail of spells to essentially rip her enemies bodies' apart from the inside.
Destruction Spells:
- Vampiric Drain- Novice. Sucks the life force from an opponent and uses it to fuel her own vitality.
- Blood Seed- Apprentice. Creates bone shards that grow and tear through a targets body until protruding through the skin.
- Blood Brand- Adept. Marks a target and drains their magicka reserves for several moments before using their own magicka energy to explode and cause mass damage.
- Blood Scourge- Expert. Creates a disease similar that damages a target for a long period of time. If a target dies, it explodes and infects others in the area, causing a massive chain reaction.
Illusion Spells:
- Calm- Apprentice. Fogs the mind of a target, lulling them into a state of peace.
- Fear- Apprentice. Fills a targets mind with an overwhelming sense of dread, causing them to flee the area for a period of time.
- Pale Shadow- Novice. Creates a spectral image of a target with low health, but high damage output.
Powers:
Vampiric. Embracing her abilities as a Nightwalker, The Blood benefits from many intense powers, both actively and passively. Using abilities strategically, she is able to become one with the night, disappearing and reappearing as she pleases or attacking as an unseen force of darkness.
Active Powers:
- Nightwalk- Able to turn into a fine mist, teleporting her a distance away from her original position.
- Obfuscate- Able to turn invisible for an extended period of time without breaking invisibility with attacks.
- Vampire's Seduction- Bewitches a target to turn them non-hostile for a short while, enabling feeding.
- Vampire's Will- Forces a target in combat to stop detecting her and return to whatever they were doing.
- Vampires Command- Imposes her will on unoccupied targets, forcing them to do whatever she commands.
Passive Powers:
- Blood Bond- After feeding on a sleeping target, they become an ally, willing to follow and marry her.
- Dolmen Haunt- An additional vampire perk added by being a Breton. Allows her to get the effects of feeding by activating a standing stone.
- Dominate- Illusion spells are much stronger and last longer.
- Fortitude- When well-fed, allows her to come back to life if slain.
- Night of the Wolf- Able to feed on targets who do not detect her, but makes them hostile after a few seconds.
- Presence- Intimidation attempts are more likely to succeed.
- Still Heart- Undeath makes her much harder to detect by the living.
- Vicissitude- Blood spells are stronger if the spell “Blood Seed” is cast on them first.
***Note that the powers “Blood Bond”, “Night of the Wolf” and “Vissitude” are only available by ranking up as a vampire, or living so many day in game. They are much harder to achieve than any other powers, so make sure you choose their order wisely. To help with progression, I chose “Night of the Wolf” at my first rank, “Vissitude” at my second, and “Blood Bond” at my third. There are more available powers in the game, so be sure to cater addition progression perks to your needs.
Shouts:
None. The Blood is not the Dragonborn and has much more important things on her mind than doing work without getting paid.
Accessories:
Masks. The Blood envies those that stand in the light of Mundus. At its touch, her skin boils. Her armor does well to keep most of her skin hidden, but masks are a much needed accessory to keep her from getting burned.
***Masks are added by a multitude of mods, but for this playthrough I went with the Bosmer Mask from Immersive Armors. Adding masks is purely for roleplay and aesthetic purposes, so choosing to omit this element of her inventory will not change the playthrough.
Stat Placement: 2:2:1
The Blood will rely on a steady supply of Magicka for attacks, but it is always a good idea to have Stamina on hand for defense while her reserves replenish. For this reason, I leveled her up at a 2:2:1 ratio until she reached level 200 on Stamina. I then switched to a 1:2:0, making sure to keep bolstering her health, a much needed element for the lightly armored thief. I ended my playthrough around Level 45, but all perks become available around Level 40.
Major Perks:
Light Armor- Light Armor provides a thief with everything they need for a defense- protection and a light weight. With luck, The Blood will be slipping in and out of situations without too much of a fight, but it never hurts to be prepared. Keen Senses allows her to benefit from the full effects of armor even without wearing a head piece, giving her a full range of vision to keep an eye out for danger. The effects of Annoying Mosquitoes increases resistance against opponents attacks as well. Further, Unhindered makes it feel as though she is wearing nothing at all, able to move freely in the shadows.
Sneak- The lifeblood of a thief is the shadows. Whether to steal some coins or have a quick snack, sneaking allows The Blood to get in extremely close to her enemies without being detected. Right Behind You improves her sneaking the closer she gets to someone, while Clean Escape promises a smooth get away as long as she stands still long enough. When needing to defend The Moonlight, she sneaking prowess is strengthened by Sneak Attack and Assassin's Blade, dealing more damage with daggers when unseen.
Pickpocket- The cities crawl with those that would kill to see The Blood or Moonlight's head on a pike. Pickpocketing subtly harms the wealthiest among them, taking their goods from beneath their noses and causing paranoia. While this tree doesn't have many perks, it is essential to get the perks in place as soon as possible. Thief's Eye allows The Blood to target those passive-aggressive enemies in the cities, marking them and singling out their goods. Additionally, Blood Money makes the more open enemies who fall to The Blood's violent attacks have more gold on them. Sometimes, murder pays in more ways than one.
Lockpicking- Similar to Pickpocket, Lockpicking gives The Blood a subtle way to take down her enemies. Breaking into their homes has a chance to activate Robber's Eye, marking containers of passive enemies who are hoarding great treasures. Her burglary doesn't have to stop with townsmen, however. Storming enemy dungeons such as bandit camps and Silver-Hand lairs can mark containers holding wealth. Next time the lowlifes try to move in, they'll have to start all over again.
Minor Perks:
One-Handed- When sneaking fails, The Blood has to switch to a defensive. One-Handed attacks are a last resort for her, but it is still a good idea to have some perks placed on the skill tree. Carrying only a dagger and relying more on magic, the only perks that need to be placed are on Mastery and Bite Marks. The perks ensure each attack with the dagger does enough damage to hold enemies at bay while her magicka reserves recharge.
Destruction- The Blood wields the power of Blood Magic, manipulating mortal bodies in painful, explosive ways. Despite being a destructive spell, there are very few perks that benefit her magic type. Dual Casting allows her spells to become more powerful when cost less magicka when cast in both hands, providing an almost endless stream of health when casting Vampiric Drain. Harsh Lesson allows her to interrupt others spells by casting her own, useful when up against Shock and Flame Mages.
Illusion- Vampires are known for their Illusion magic, but The Blood doesn't dabble in any of the advanced spells. With Fear and Calm spells being her allies, Imposing Presence and Wilting cause the affects of those spells to last even longer, possibly spreading to nearby enemies. Quiet Before the Storm allows The Blood to maintain her silence in the shadows, even when attacking with spells. With no sound to alert others, The Blood can make a kill and simply slip away.
Magic: As mentioned before, the main offense of this build is The Blood's various Blood Magic spells. As she progresses and learns more spells, she can experiment with ways to cast them. The goal is to deal the most damage with the least amount of magicka lost. When facing weaker enemies, Vampiric Drain is usually the only spell needed. Many times, low-level bandits cannot deal more damage than the Drain can reabsorb. Likewise, wolves and skeevers fall within moments under the affect of the spell. Higher level enemies require more planning. With the effects of “Vicissitude” active, all Blood spells become stronger with targets under the effect of Blood Seed. After unlocking the power, I got into the habit of always casting Blood Seed before choosing one of the other spells. Each combination of spells depends on the enemy. If fighting with allies who could turn against you, it would be unwise to cast a spell with explosion or spreading damage. When fighting multiple enemies, one of those spells could come in handy, however. As reserves run too low to cast any bigger spells, you can always resort back to Vampiric Drain, steadily sapping your enemies health and replenishing your own. Each battle requires quick reaction and knowledge of Destruction spells, so make sure to study up.
Remember, that offense is not always needed for The Blood. She likes to navigate the shadows, sneaking past most if not all of the enemies she comes in contact with. Sometimes, Illusion based spells can do a better job than Destruction. In situations were only one enemy has discovered you, casting Calm is a better option than triggering a fight with multiple enemies in the next room. Likewise, casting fear on a bandit guarding a door would be much easier than trying to combat him. There were times that I needed a simple distraction to get around an obstacle. Using Pale Shadow creates a “phantom” version of the target enemy, forcing them to go into combat. Even if they have low health, the distraction is enough to move an enemy from a location and allow The Moonlight to slip by.
Melee: When magicka reserves run low, it sometimes requires switching a dagger. Used as a last resort, the blade will do little damage to enemies, making for a challenging endgame. To avoid this, it is best to keep an eye on your reserves and work around enemies. Contrarily, the dagger can be used to dispatch enemies who aren't detecting you with sneak attacks. “Sneak Tools SE” adds the option to “slit throats” of enemies when approaching from behind, a very overpowered tweak, but sometimes necessary. When The Moonlight or substitute companion becomes detected, The Blood can sneak to their aid to dispatch the enemy without them even knowing what hit them. This balance between seen and unseen makes The Blood and Moonlight a hightly compatible duo.
Range: None.
Power Attacks:
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A Quick Bite- “Sneak Feed”+“Clean Escape”. Sometimes you need a light snack. Sneaking close to an enemy, The Blood can feel the lust for blood growing. Silent as ever, she can sneak feed off of a target and immediately return to sneaking again. Dazed, it take a target a few seconds to realize what has happened, giving The Blood a few moments to escape. As soon as she stands still however, she disappears again. Before long, the target will give up the pointless chase, letting paranoia set in.
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Eyes of the Avenger- “Thief Eye”+“Robber Eye”. The city is flowing with gold and bad blood against Vampires and Lycans alike. It's time to put the mortals in their place. Entering a city highlights an individual set on destroying her kind. Picking his pocket and hurting his wallet privately warns him to watch his back. Further, breaking into homes and strongholds of her enemies leads to treasures untold. Breaking their wallets is just as fun as breaking their noses.
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Boiling Blood- “Destruction Dual Casting”+“Blood Seed”+“Blood Brand”+“Blood Scourge”. Make them feel what it's like to burn. Using her knowledge of blood, The Blood knows just the right way to make mortals suffer. Casting first Blood Seed to break and shard their bones is only the first step in their torment. Slamming targets with a barrage of spreading, exploding plagues like Blood Scourge and Blood Brand deals massive amounts of pain over multiple parties. If they don't die, they'll wish they did.
Race:
Nord, Female. A race as old as the land itself. The Moonlight has become used to the harsh Skyrim landscape, giving her a high resistance to frost magic. Her Nordic tendencies also give her the ability to increase attack damage as her health depletes. It becomes increasingly useful when paired with her Avatar ability (fast regeneration of Stamina). Finally, at certain levels, she can choose certain races to do extra damage towards, a way to exact revenge on those who hunt her kind.
***When choosing the races, I went with Nord, Orc, and Redguard, as they were the most prevalent races I came across when fighting the Silver-Hands. You may choose whichever races you want however, as the race of bandits/Silver-Hands spawned changes from game to game.
Standing Stone:
The Lady. Strong in spirit and heart, The Moonlight is the physical manifestation of The Lady Stone. Under the effects of this stone, The Moonlight is able to summon a Lunar Familiar whenever she enters combat, adding another member to her growing pack. Further, The Lady's gift of Premonition allows her to see which enemies can kill her within the next few strikes and act accordingly. Time slows for her during those moments and she feels as though she can rip through even the toughest of armors. Her blessing is a gift to the strongest of hunters.
***The Shadow. I cycled through the Lady and the Shadow Stones often during this build. Since no perks are placed on sneak, I found the increased speed and sneak bonuses to be very helpful. For times that involve sneaking- hunting or following The Blood around- the Shadow stone will be invaluable.
Birthsign:
The Warrior. A fierce, warrior spirit gifted to her by the Divines. The Moonlight has always been one to fight for what she believes in, and she accredits that to her Birthsign. Born in Last Seed, The Moonlight is granted a boost to damage performed with weapons. Whether with sword or bow, her ferocity is unmatched in combat.
Blessing/Divine:
Hircine. The Lord of The Hunt and Father of Manbeasts smiles upon The Moonlight and she delights in serving him. Although once seeing her beast blood as a curse, The Moonlight readily uses her power invoke hunts and, on rare occasions, purges in her patron's name. By fulfilling his tenets and wishes, her favor gains her double damage on opponents with weakening health. The combination of her Nordic and Lycan blood means The Moonlight becomes increasingly stronger as her opponents fall to her- the dream of a powerful hunter.
Supernaturals:
Werewolf. The Hunters shall become the Hunted. As Hircine's elite, The Moonlight possesses all the skills of the wolf- endurance, strength, camaraderie. With her gift, she is allowed to take the form of werewolf one per day if she pleases but is forced to turned on full moon nights. Her roars have the ability to call her allies, send enemies running, and even alert her to unseen dangers in the area. Feeding heals her and makes her more in-tune with her senses, unlocking even more deeper power. However, her bloodlust can become overwhelming and she can loose her self to the predator within. Despite the negative drawbacks, The Moonlight has learned to control her urges with the help of The Blood, turning what she has once seen as evil into a force of good.
Companions:
Yes. The Moonlight has always been able to persuade a crowd, making her many more allies than most. Still, with her new blessing, she wishes to keep her circle small, only selecting her traveling companions from her closest friends. Her fellow Companions make for great shield-siblings, but she prefers the company of The Blood above all others. Traversing the wilds may call for the aid of animals- wolves and dogs- to join the hunt with her as well.
***With “Amazing Follower Tweaks”, it is possible to have 3 dogs and one wolf companion with The Moonlight at any given time- Meeko, Vigilance, Stray Dog, and a wolf of your choice added by “Speak with Animals”. Add in the Spirit Wolf from the Lady Stone, you have a very intimidating pack. On missions requiring stealth, I left the pack at home, but on “Hunts” there was no greater team.
Factions:
Companions, Thieves' Guild. Honor among Thieves. While she doesn't necessarily agree with the lifestyle of the thieves, The Moonlight can't argue that some of their methods are a sound way to take down more docile enemies. Taking quests of blackmail and burglary are as deep as she is willing to go however, preferring the methods of her fellow Companions above the others. She will take any quest they offer, but is particularly fond of the Silver-Hand hunts.
Archetypes:
Scout. Sneaky enough to get in close, yet strong enough to take a few hits, The Moonlight is a very unique class. Finding herself wielding sword, shield, and bow, her fighting style is diverse yet refined. As a hunter, she finds herself needing to sneak just close enough to her enemies for a good shot but no closer. Her heavy armor ensures she stands a good chance in any fight. A true predator that never backs down.
Class: Custom.
Specialization Bonus: Stamina
Combat Skills: One-Handed, Heavy Armor, Block, Smithing
Stealth Skills: Archery, Speech, Sneak
Magic Skills: None
Secondary Skill: Athletics
A unique woman such as The Moonlight requires a unique class. Early on, her combat skills give her a nice advantage, putting her one step ahead of her opponents. Similarly, boosts from her Athletics and Stamina Specialization means she can move faster and strike harder. Her charisma is boosted by Speech as well, giving her the ability to talk her way out of any situation or persuade the furious of beasts to back down.
***”Classic Classes and Birthsigns” requires 7 skill trees to be selected. While no points are placed on Smithing or Sneak for this build, boosting them initially will help with improving armors and getting closer to enemies very early on.
Weapons:
Skyforge Steel Sword, Hunting Bow, Steel Arrows. Only the best steel for the Companions. The Moonlight takes pride in knowing her weapons are forged in the best forge in all of Tamriel by the best smithy. Her sword was gifted to her upon joining the Circle, so it holds a very special place in her heart. Her bow and arrows rarely leave her as well, though their use is for game rather than human flesh.
Armor:
Wolf Armor set. There are few armor sets as well crafted as the Companions' Wolf Armor. Protecting her from sword and mace alike, the set keeps her safe from outward danger while the engravings stand as a constant reminder of the danger within.
***The Wolf Armor is the vanilla variant I chose for this particular build, though I played most of the game with my “Immersive Armors” substitutes. The Blood wore a Primative Nord Helm and Cuirass and a matching set of Dragonbone Ebonsteel Gauntlets and Boots. These armors allowed her to feel free to roam as a primal wolf, and helped maintain the aesthetic.
Spells/Scrolls:
None. The Moonlight was never one to pick up magic, but her counterpart, The Blood, makes up for her shortcomings.
Powers:
Lycanthropic. A light in Hircine's eyes, The Moonlight's powers are drawn from the Prince himself. As a werewolf, she posesses extreme, primal powers and energies that effect not only her feral form, but her human one as well. As she grows in her new life, The Moonlight has to learn to use her gifts without losing herself in the process.
Active Powers:
- Battle Cry- As a Nord, she can give a cry in the midst of battle, potentially scaring away enemies.
- Beast Form- Invokes Hircine's gift, shifting her into a terrifying, awe-inspiring werewolf.
- Hunter in the Night- Allows her to see all living creatures in her surrounding area while in human form.
- Perform- Draws enemies and neutrals in, forcing them to stop attacking and listen her beautiful song and voice. Friendly characters pay for such a performance.
- Roar of Terror- While in her Beast form, scares away enemies to invoke a true hunt.
- Roar of the Pack- While in her Beast form, calls wolf and werewolf allies to help her fight.
- Roar of the Predator- While in her Beast form, detects all life in the area to make planning attacks easier.
Passive Powers:
- Bitter Mercy- Makes targets with a certain percentage of health fall victim to double damage from her attacks.
- Posting of the Hunt- While praying to Hircine, reveals a living target that she can hunt.
- Ring of Hircine- While wearing, it gives her the ability to shift one extra time per day.
Shouts:
None. More concerned with the affairs of those around her, The Moonlight isn't the Dragonborn leaves their life behind to save Tamriel. Still, she won't turn her nose up at taking down a few dragons.
Accessories:
Shields. An essential to every great warrior. The Moonlight will use any heavy shield she can find, but is partial to the ones crafted and refined at the Skyforge. As a shield for others, it only makes sense that she should have a way to defend herself as well.
***Any heavy armor shield will work, but for those using “Immersive Armors”, I used the Nordic Ebony Shield. It gave her look a more rustic and ancient feel while the stats were a great boost to her rating.
Stat Placement: 0:1:2
Strong and resilient, The Moonlight requires a far less complicated stat placement than her counterpart. With the use of her heavy armor and shield, there is less of a need to put placement on Health allowing her to focus mostly on her Stamina reserves. Similarly to The Blood, I ended my playthrough at Level 45, but all available points can be achieved around Level 40.
Major Perks:
One-Handed- One-Handed is the primary offense of The Moonlight. Wielding only a sword, there are not many perks what are placed on this tree. Still, most of these perks should be added as they become available as they help defeat enemies much more easily. Perks such as Disciplined Fighter reduce the stamina of power attacks, allotting a bigger reserve for power-bashes with the shield.
Heavy Armor- In the midst of a fight, The Moonlight needs the strongest protection. Heavy armor provides a tough barrier between her and the world, letting her take more hits than her light armored companion. Perks such as Born to Fight help reduce the heavy weight of the armor, and give her a better sneaking advantage when on a hunt, while Defiance grants additional protection and the chance to damage any enemy that strikes her.
Speech- Being a bard as well as a warrior means The Moonlight has to have a way with words. Her charm is expressed on both the Performer and Speak with Animals trees. Among people, she is able to play music and sing, collecting gold from those that listen, calling for an Encore that allows her to perform multiple times a day. Even on the battlefield her voice is strong enough to force all those in combat with her to become entranced. Among beasts, the Lycan is able to make friends with even the toughest of predators while the Gift of Kynareth strengthens the animal she chooses.
Minor Perks:
Block- The main defense of The Moonlight, a shield in the midst of a fray. Still, the perks on the Block tree are not nearly as important as those listed above and should be added as needed. Deflect Arrows is one of the most important perks, allowing her to almost completely negate the damage dealt by pesky archers. It's rival, Block Runner, is a much harder perk to attain, but can be used to barrel into combat, knocking back and staggering opponents to give her allies a chance to recover and get on the offensive again.
Archery- Archery is a staple of any hunter, but isn't necessary for the heat of battle. With perks focusing on refining a shot and killing quick, the uses of archery are primarily for downing game and other predators. Steady Hand allows shots to be taken at greater distance by focusing in on a target and slowing time. Clean Kill increases the damage dealt, ensuring targets go down quickly and easily. Calling her pack to her, The Moonlight can summon a spirit wolf to charge after a target with the Hunt Together perk. A pursuit until the end.
Werewolf Tree Perks:
In addition to the Skill Trees offered to The Moonlight in human form, she possesses entire new abilities under the influence of Hircine. These perks and powers require feeding on human corpses, and each point requires more and more feedings to reach the next level. For this reason, it's important to plan where to invest points and when. Ultimately, the goal would be to fill the entire tree and become the strongest predator, but I chose to keep it fairly simple.
Here are some of the more readily used perks:
- Hircine's Blessing- Grants greater damage to enemies and health gained by eating.
- Savage Feeding- Able to feed on animals to regain health and extend bloodlust, but doesn't help with perk point advancement.
- Break Entry- Able to open doors and locks on chests, leaving no one safe from your bestial form.
- Juggernaut- Additional armor in werewolf form.
- Revert Form- Change back to human form at will.
- Call of the Wild- Able to summon more wolf and werewolf allies in human form, strengthening your pack.
- Dragon Bane- Roar becomes powerful enough to force a dragon to land.
Magic: None.
Melee: Fighting comes as a second nature to The Moonlight. Her drive to defend others causes her to become a shield, taking most of the hits for her weaker armored companions. This is not to say she is a pushover, however. The Moonlight should be able to give as much as she takes. Her strikes should be given without prejudice, hitting any and every opponent rather that focusing on just one. If she can take attention off of her Companions, they will have time to heal and join the fight even stronger.
The use of a shield is another key factor in her fighting style. With perks from the Block tree, she is able to deflect arrows and bolts that would otherwise wear her and her allies down. Further, The Moonlight has developed a method of Timed Bashing that staggers opponents right before their power attacks, making them extremely vulnerable to great amount of damage. The method has worked on everything from bandits to dragons, but it is up to you to study the fighting styles of each enemy and determine when and how their power attacks can be stopped.
When the fighting gets too hot and even she needs a moment to catch her breath, The Moonlight can give an impromptu concert. While singing or playing her instruments, all hostile and neutral characters in the area have to stop and listen. Enthralled by her song, they refuse to fight, giving both The Moonlight and her allies a moment to regenerate health. So long as her allies are already in combat with the enemy, they won't give up their assault. The last thing some bandits hear is The Moonlight's music in their ears.
In beast form, The Moonlight completely disregards her “shield” stance. While a much faster and stronger target, she lacks severely in armor and health. With regeneration out of the question as well, an easy fight with a bandit chief in human form could possibly turn into a life-or-death battle for the beast. Keeping this in mind, The Moonlight limits herself to taking targets out one by one. Using strategic power attacks to keep higher level enemies at bay, she can wear down weaker ones fairly quickly. The use of Roar of the Pack and Roar of Terror can be used as well to keep enemies occupied and even the odds. Saving the feeding until the end of a fight or when health begins running dangerously low is a something she has to be mindful of as well. Though she is a beast, she needs to keep her head about her.
Range: The Moonlight's take on archery is a much less proactive one than for melee combat. In truth, her arrows rarely taste human flesh, instead finding rest in the game of the wilds. For roleplaying purposes, I made sure to give this hunter a life outside of skirmishes. Some evenings The Moonlight prefers peacefully hunting elk and deer in plains. The use of Hunterborn makes this pastime viable for both her and The Blood, yielding ingredients for blood potions and pelts for some quick coin. In fact, the only time ranged was used against a human opponent is when facing a group of mages. At a disadvantage against their ranged spells, arrows were used until The Moonlight got in close enough to switch over to melee weapons. She enjoys a fair, clean fight much more than her Blood counterpart.
Power Attacks:
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Song of the Defender- “Perform”+Companion. A voice as sweet as any songbirds, it compels the living to stop and listen. Her love of music takes to the battlefield when using her “Perform” ability. As she sings, men, elf, beast, and dead are entranced by her music, refusing to attack or flee. During this time, The Moonlight's allies can move in for the kill or take a moment to catch their breaths.
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Call of Sister Wolf- Meeko+Vigilance+Stray Dog+“Lunar Familiar”+“Speak With Animals”+“Hunt Together”+“Call of the Pack”. Blood on the wind today; a good hunt ahead of us. Taking down an entire fort of Silver-Hands will require the help of many. With a roar into the night, The Moonlight can call upon her pack to summon the strength needed for such a feat. With an additional 9 members joining the hunt, the Call of the Sister Wolf will have her enemies trembling in fear.
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Tooth and Claw- Shield+“Block Runner”+Skyforge Steel Sword+“Premonition”. Canine reflexes can make for a savage attack. Charging into battle with her shield raised high, The Moonlight barrels into her opponents staggering them with her force. Each moment they recover they find death drawing nearer as her blade swipes tear through armor. If her enemies happen to take the advantage, Premonition allows her to attack far more quickly, bashing them again before allowing the blade to deliver a final bite.
One of the biggest challenges in creating this build was trying make two vastly different characters and play-styles actually work well together. Without having my hands on Skyrim Together- and keeping in mind that many of you likely do not either- I had to rely on already established characters in the game to simulate either The Blood or the Moonlight respectively. Subbing in characters like Farkas or Aela in place of The Moonlight was an easy fix, but I struggled to find characters to put in place of The Blood. Without taking the Vampire Lord form from Harkon and unwilling to side with the Dawnguard, Serana didn't seem like quite the right fit. I ended up using Amazing Follower Tweaks to invite Hert/Hern on my travels with The Moonlight and they were a fairly easy fix. Any in-game vampire should do the trick, however. Should you choose to use Serana in your playthrough, nothing will change; it was just my personal preference.
Another issue I faced is trying to maintain vampirism and lycanthropy. For the latter, the fix was fairly simple: avoid populated areas on the nights of full moons. Transforming was often sudden and violent, and regardless of telling myself I wasn't going on killing sprees, I couldn't help it. Running around in werewolf form, feral and hungry for blood, it was near impossible to stop myself from raiding every bandit camp that I discovered. The thrill of the hunt, feasting on the dead, and additional transformations from Hircine's ring was enough to sate the Call of the Beast, but sussing out the whispers of Vampiric Bloodlust was a whole new struggle.
I had three different methods to combat The Blood's hunger. First, I tried to only feed on and drain hostile or enemy NPCs. The land of Skyrim is full of those that would want to kill any supernatural they came across. It was a fun game to go on “hunts”, feeding on bandits, Vigilants, Dawnguard, and Silver-Hands that crossed my path. When The Blood had her fill on blood, the Moonlight allowed herself to charge in in Beast Mode, taking advantage of the weakened adversaries. The hunts often spanned over the course of the night as the duo jumped from stronghold to stronghold, slaughtering and feasting for hours.
In more desperate situations, I had feed on neutral or friendly NPCs. While running errands for the Guilds, there were nights I went without seeing a game-labeled enemy. The Blood's hunger grew regardless, meaning I had to occasionally take a bite out of whoever I was stealing from. I made it a rule to never drain or overfeed on those characters however, not wanting to kill anyone who wasn't outwardly against me. Feeding only when they were asleep and limiting myself to one feeding per night helped keep the bloodlust in check. Finally, I made sure to stock up on potions of blood every time I found them. They are extremely rare potions unless crafted or added into the game by mods, so be sure to use them sparingly or in extreme cases.
I wanted to make sure to find allies in every city, giving The Blood and Moonlight a place to stay should one of their adventures go south. With nobles turning their noses up, I found acceptance in the ranks of other “outcasts”. Befriending the unwelcome- beggars, thieves, Elves, Argonians- proved to be the right choice, often placing me in situations where I could profit. Joining up with the Thieves Guild gave more reason to deal monetary and reputation damage to “enemies”, while the Companions paid me to go out and kill some of my more dangerous foes.
With The Blood and Moonlight being a strong roleplay build, many of the quests are up to you to determine. Will you be known for your deeds of valor, hearing your name in songs across Skyrim? Or will you be sitting upon piles of gold, saying yes only to the jobs that promise a good payoff? Regardless of your choices you make and the people you meet, here are some quests to get you started:
The Main Questline (Unbound to Dragon Rising). Neither The Blood or Moonlight are Dragonborn, but completing the Main Quest until “Dragon Rising” allows the added challenge of Dragons in the game.
The Thieves' Guild Questline. The Blood is valued, long standing member with the Thieves' Guild, so completing this storyline is a must. While The Moonlight is likely to do the bare minimum for the Guild, sticking more to a sense of honor, The Blood will delve deeply into the opportunities to pick up some extra gold and cause damage to those against her.
The Companions Questline. As a member of the Circle, The Moonlight has an obligation to take on as many quests and opportunities for glory as the Companions have to offer. The Blood plays along, but prefers to take on jobs that require a more hands-off approach. Still, she won't turn down any of Aela's quests to hunt down the idiotic Silver-Hands.
***Note: Joining the Companions will remove Vampirism from The Blood when completing “The Silver Hand” quest. To bypass this, review the “Other Mods and Hints” section below.
Kyne's Trials. Becoming a true hunter has become a quest for The Moonlight, so a test as challenging as Kyne's Trials was right up her alley. While she enjoys the spiritual side of the hunt, The Blood takes advantage of the Trials to hone her skills.
Laid to Rest. The Blood found the Morthal murder super distasteful, especially when she learns how one of her own kind planned the entire event. Any nest of murderous, power-hungry vampires ruins the name of her kind, making her very presence less tolerated by the living. “Laid to Rest” is just one example of one of the various quests and dungeons The Blood can clear out to irradiate the more evil of her kind, making it easier for her to blend in among her true enemies.
Ill Met by Moonlight. The distress of any one who needs her aid always tugs on The Moonlight's heart, but others that share her wolf blood are at the forefront of her mind. Sinding and his unpredictable transformations immediately draws her attention and the lycan makes it her mission to help him in anyway she can. Completing the quest in his favor pays off in the end, giving her Hircine's Ring and extra transformations. Any mission involving lycanthropes will draw her in, so be on the lookout for any who need aid.
Blue Blood (The Blood Only). The Blue Blood quest is added by Sacrosanct and only available to The Blood. Upon feeding the first time, the quest will tempt you to feed upon powerful blood. This nagging desire will lead The Blood to travel all across the land in search for the strongest blood she can taste. It unlocks several powers with each feeding, making her even stronger than before.
***Note: the Mytherceria added by this quest becomes incompatible to mods like AFT. I ended up disabling this ability through console commands, but not disabling the power is not game-crashing.
Sommelier (The Blood Only). Sommelier is the other quest added by Sacrosanct and requires The Blood to drain victims in return for learning some intense spells. While The Blood finds draining sickeningly barbaric, the promise of being even stronger is a call she cannot resist. I opted to only drain “enemy” NPCs, finding them when they were asleep. It was a super long process, but if The Blood can stomach draining a few non-essential characters, the process speeds up significantly.
In addition to the Essential Mods listed at the beginning of this build, I wanted to list some additional mods that you might consider playing with. While they don't dramatically change the overall gameplay of the build, they help with immersion and roleplay and I enjoyed having them on my list.
Better Vampires: Overhauls the vampire abilities of the player by allowing forced feeding, creation of thralls, turning of NPCs to vampires, and new and improved spells. I preferred using Sacrosanct over Better Vampires, but as of right now, only Better Vampires is compatible with “Skyrim Together”. Both mods work very similarly, but I noticed several problems with this particular mod. If choosing to run it over Sacrosanct, only enable this mod. DO NOT RUN BETTER VAMPIRES AND SACROSANCT TOGETHER.
Enhanced Blood Textures SE: Makes the blood from attacks have a more realistic look and splatter. It was used to help determine which dead had been fed on in both werewolf and vampire form. I do not recommend for those who don't like gore.
Familiar Faces: Makes created characters portable to a current playthrough. Using this mod, it is possible to port The Blood into The Moonlight's game as a follower and vice versa. While I never had a chance to test it out for myself, I want to give Curse-Never-Dying a big shout out for opening my eyes to this amazing mod.
Hunterborn SE: Overhauls the hunting/harvesting system for creatures in the game to add realistic prepping (cleaning, skinning, harvesting) as well as scrimshaw (creation of tools from remains).
Hunterborn- Animal Blood Potions for Vampires: Allows player to create blood potions to use as a substitute for feeding on people.
Sneak Tools SE: Overhauls the sneaking elements of the game by adding in new sneak kills, craftable arrows, and escape routes.
Bypassing Lycanthropy for The Blood
A major obstacle I encountered for keeping The Blood a Vampire but still having her work with the Companions was getting pass Lycanthropy. After several different methods, I have narrowed it down to two definite ways:
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“Skyrim Companions No Werewolf Option” Mod- Allows you to refuse Lycanthropy and retain Vampirism while continuing in the quest like normal. This mod isn't available to everyone however.
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Completing Companions before Contracting Lycanthropy- This method works 100% of the time, but is super immersion breaking. The Blood lives with Vampirism throughout the entire playthrough, so completing an essential part of the build with out the disease isn't a great option. Still, for those of you unable to get this mod and wanting to complete the Companions Questline, it might be the better option. No amount of console commands or spells/potions was able to completely remove Lycanthropy and add Vampirism without crashing the game.
And so ends another build in my writing career. It was quite a long one, both writing and playing for two vastly different characters taking on the world together. I hope you enjoyed the read and will check out their origin story over in The Story Corner! I would like to give a massive thank you to Curse, Lee, and Furrion for helping me out of some tough spots and providing amazing feedback throughout the entire building process. Most of the images used in the build were taken by Curse as well, so THANK YOU 1000 TIMES FOR THESE AMAZING SHOTS.
As always, if you have any questions, comments, or concerns, let me know in the comments below. Let me know how your own builds are doing! Talos Guide You!
Replies
Hey Kendrix!
You’ve done an amazing job here combining both Lycanthropy and Vampirism into a dual build plus catering for the eventual/possible Skyrim Together! The short little story though, 10/10. Great job once again, only criticism I’ve got is with the Moonlight’s Perkspread it is a tad hard to read for me. Maybe add a stroke around the text?
I'll get those sheets fixed as soon as possible. I'm not great with making them, but I think Curse is going to help me out with it! Thank you so so so much for your input, Lee! You were an amazing help and encouragement.
Im glad I've finally gotten the chance to sit down and read this build in full, and I must say it was well worth the wait. The short introductory story alone absolutely sold the build. I've read hundreds of character builds and nobody has come up with a concept this unique, ever. However this build fairs in the contest you deserve so much props and respect for taking a chance on something new like this.
If I may offer my services one last time, I'd like to tinker with the perkspreads to make them more aestehtically pleasing. As Lee pointed out the text is a bit hard to see against the backgrounds.
I'm so glad you enjoyed it Curse. I try to offer unique ideas as much as I can. Blood and Moonlight is one of my favorite stories I've ever written, so I'm glad I could make a build to showcase them for others to see.
Anything you need to do to make the Build more Aesthetic please do! I can resend you the images and the one I used for the Werewolf spread, or you can use any thing you think would fit better. Thank you so much again for your help and for these amazing screenshots.
As promised here are the perk spreads. Hope you like them.
THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH CURSE. IT MADE THE BUILD LOOK 100000x BETTER.
Really glad you like them. Also I think it’s a it time you slap that master rank tag on this build. You’ve earned it.
Wow. Amazing work here, Kendrix.
Thank you, Torynn!! I'm glad you enjoyed it!
This was an amazing read, with one of the most unique concepts I've ever seen. Fantastic work!
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