THE ARTIFICER
Kagrenzel, Skyrim. 4th Era
“We’ve been searching around this ruin for hours, what in the Dagon’s name are you even looking for, Joulie?!” Eirik shouted to the Breton girl only to be ignored by her. “Don’t waste your breath on her, Eirik. We’ve come this far, and the last three fella just double-crosses us and went to Divines knows where” Auffyn advised, Eirik can only huff in anger as he turned his back from the Breton scholar “Besides” Auffyn resumed, while looking towards the young Breton “We have an agreement from that night before, right?” she whispered to Eirik. Eirik, Auffyn, and their three companions are sellswords hired by Joulie, a self-proclaimed Dwemer Artificer. Joulie promised Dwemer treasures that will surely pay them for life, but until today, those promises are anything but fulfilled, no treasuries, no ancient Dwemer treasures that they could sold, only the cold embrace of the stones, cold gazes of the automatons, and the ever-lurking Falmer that they encountered along their way to this ruin. “THAT’S IT!” Joulie exclaimed, breaking the silence and making her two companions quickly approach her.
“Did we finally get the treasure?!” Auffyn exclaimed in excitement “No, but I found another path that would surely lead us to the treasure! Here lo-“ as Joulie turned around to see her companions, she was met with the cold gaze of sword aimed towards her “What do you think your doing Eirik?! We are this close to the unimaginable treasure!” Joulie exclaimed angrily towards him “I had ENOUGH with your whole ‘this close’, ‘that close’, ‘just a little bit’ and any other stalling coming from your mouth! So, I’ve decided that WE will take all of your belongings and get outta this accursed ruin!” Eirik exclaimed, Joulie looked towards Auffyn as she readied her bow “Sorry Joulie, but we need the money more than you need the knowledge” Auffyn said in a soft but menacing tone as she harnesses her spells on both of her hands.
“See that’s where both of you wrong” she said as she slowly walked backwards, her fingers ready to let loose the arrow on her fingers “You should’ve never looked down on a Breton” she said as she set loose the arrow to Eirik’s sword arm and bash Auffyn with her bow, staggering both of them. Both of them angrily charged towards Joulie, Eirik’s the first one to rush towards her and tried to attack, but he soon realized that his attacks are not connected to her as he fell down face first. He looked towards Auffyn only to helplessly witness her demise by the arrow of their contractor, he tried to get up but another arrow found it’s mark to his heart, ending him.
“Told you” Joulie muttered as she tried releasing the bear traps’ from both of her former companions’ mangled foot. “Now then, where is that light orb thingy?”
Hiya, folks. This is the second build I’ve made around here. Now I’ve been wondering “Bretons are known for their resourcefulness and intelligence, what if I implement it more towards crafting and also add a bit of alchemy, a sprinkle of Dwemer autocannons, and some traps?” and presto. I do hope that this build will be fun to try, your critiques, advises, and comments will be valuable for the future builds I’ve planned.
In this build, I’ve used an assortment of mods to make this build even better, especially since Joulie here will implement a lot of skills that involves tinkering and traps. Here are the mods that I personally advise in order to make this builds’ kit viable:
Essential Mods
Ordinator
Imperious
Craftable Crossbows and Bolts- CC Updated
Recommended Mods
Lore Friendly Guns of Skyrim (or Legendary Skyrim Crossbows and Bows, choose between these two)
Torch Arrows and Bolts (pick this IF you pick Lore Accurate Rifles and Handguns)
Ars Metallica
Organized Bandits in Skyrim/OBIS
Advanced Adversary Encounters
Without further ado, this is:
THE ARTIFICER
Personal Info
Name: Joulie Renard
Race: Breton
Birthsign: (Nope, I didn’t put my fate towards stars)
Divines: (And neither to Divines)
Stats Spread: 0/1/2 (Until she got at least 300 stamina, then put all into health)
Joulie is an Artificer, meaning that she will mostly rely on every gizmo she made, ranging from tripwires, bear traps, and even autocannons in combat, but that doesn’t mean she can’t fight back, she can also pepper her enemies with her crossbow (or guns should you have that mod installed) and her highly modified bolts. Aside from those tools, her knowledge on Dwemer’s machinery allows her to tinker with automaton’s system, rendering them useless and further on, turning them against their fellow automatons.
While technically her whole background story is not that far-fetched from what Bretons can be seen as, knowing their love in questing to the point some race would call it an obsession, but her whole kit will definitely beg to differ, especially knowing that we won’t use any magic on her, even though Alchemy is borderline part of the wizardry and roguery path I envision it as how she will combine her basic knowledge in Alchemy with her tinkering skill, resulting in a simple, yet effective potions. Also, this is borderline Adventurer without magical abilities.
Skills & Perks
Archery
Joulie learnt that pre-emptive actions are better than a sudden decision, this skill goes well with that mindset alongside her other kit, especially since she’ll most likely delve into Dwemer ruins wherever that is… Except if the said Dwemer ruin are part of a certain Daedric Prince of Pestilence’s quest.
Smithing
A must-have skill for every Artificer, what kind of Dwemer enthusiast are Joulie if she didn’t know how to temper her arms and armours, especially if those were made from Dwarven metals, we will also use this skill to make two autocannons for extra firepower. A bit of note for this perk, if you get the Lore-Accurate Handguns of Skyrim, pick Expert Smithing (and choose the hard steel one to get yourself a Dwarven Handgun).
Heavy Armour
Joulie also noticed that there are many people that would actually kill her just to get her fortune, and also creatures that would absolutely love to have a soft meat of a Breton lady for their meal so she’ll need a bigger armour for those that’s for sure. Also, what kind of Dwemer enthusiast she is if she didn’t have a set of Dwarven armour?
Lockpicking
While technically this skill is not really used by Artificer in general, with Ordinator you can actually use this skill to make traps for faster and more robust enemies, and also to make it easier to hack into an automaton system and use them to do your bidding.
Alchemy
Artificers are also known for their knowledge in potions and Joulie here will ensure that this knowledge will be put to a good use to help her delve deeper to find the Dwemer’s secret knowledge, although this time, she’ll only use it to get a more effective and efficient healing potions.
Sneak
Another skill that are rarely used by Artificer. We are definitely not turning into stealth archer, because we’ll only pick two points in this skill for dealing with fast-approaching enemies
Autocannon Overcharge
This is the first time I’ve found this (accidentally found it when I’m trying something), if you activate free camera (tfc 1) while your Autocannons are firing and then wait for at least a minute or two, your Autocannons will turn into a portable minigun that would melt almost anything that stands in front of them, especially if the said target is staggered! This will help you deal with some of the most robust enemies like Dwarven Centurions, Giants, Mammoths, hell, maybe even Dragons if you wish to go for main quest (imagine Reign of Fire, but you got yourself two AA cannons), this will also help you out in clearing some dungeons should you found yourself low on bullets or bolts.
Questline
While this is not quite mandatory to follow, it’ll enhance her whole ‘lore’ on exploring Skyrim’s Dwarven Ruins. She will definitely help the Dawnguards though, just because a fellow Dwemer enthusiast is there and some sort of ‘magical malaise’ needs to be routed, it is up to you if you wish to have Serana cured or not however. There are also quests from CC that you can follow to further enhance your roleplaying as the Skyrim’s Tomb Raider (in a way), though some of the artifacts you’ve discovered will not be used (specifically Sunder and Wraithguard) in this build. For the Sanctuary and Manufactory, you will have yourself one of the best house CC can offer, and it fits Joulie’s background story with some of her expedition team/sellsword went separate ways to ‘gods know where’. Without further ado, here are the quests that Joulie may or may not take during her solo exploration:
Unftahomable Depths
Dawnguards
Lost to the Ages
The Lost Expedition
The Sanctuary and Manufactory CC
Forgotten Seasons CC
Legends Lost CC
Equipments
As an Artificer and Dwemer enthusiast, Joulie will definitely want to have Dwemer armour set and weaponries, many of which can be obtained or easily crafted. While Joulie may discover so many Dwemer Artifacts with enchantment put on it, I’d like to argue that Dwemer’s tinkering abilities are such that they can actually make those artifacts have abilities akin to enchanted items.
Armours
Dwemer Full Set, you can get the whole set early on while investigating Nchuand-Zel’s Lost Expedition teams, just beware of Nimhe, Falmers, and do NOT touch the chest in the middle. But, if you have CC on, be sure to pick Ward of the Seasons and Dwarven Crown of Spring because those two will increase your chance of survivability, or if you want really want a different type of armour, try the Dwarven Plate Armour and Boots.
Arms
Unenchanted Enhanced Dwarven Crossbow and a variety of bolts, be sure to stock up your elemental bolts to deal with any kind of situation. If you have Lore Friendly Guns of Skyrim on, then pick Dwarven Handgun (this weapon needs Advanced Smithing to craft) and get both Dwemer Burrowing Bullets and some elemental salt-tipped bullets such as Enhanced Bullets and/or Stalhrim bullets, both of these needs two skill points on Exotic Smithing, it may be a chore but hey, you’re an Artificer, nothing can stop you from getting your gears up and running. She’ll also have one of the Aetherial artifacts once she finished Lost to the Ages, I advise you go for either Aetherial Shield or Staff since we didn’t use any Standing Stones (Personally, I choose the Staff for the minions).
Miscellaneous
Joulie will always have her gizmos at her disposal, ranging from simple adventurer’s kits like torches, lockpicks, and a bunch of handmade Potion of Fortify Health, to her gadgets such as Dwemer Autocannons and some modified Bear Traps. Again, if you got CC, pick Dwarven Drone Fly for that extra poison resistance and some nifty stamina regeneration.
Gotta hand it to the Dwemer, this is some fine getup
Special Moves
Artificer’s Ingenuity
Artificers are well known for their inventions, many of which are an upgrade to their last inventions. Joulie knew too well that ingenuity results in an ever-appearing chances to invent and it shows on how she can make her heavy armour sturdier than before, yet she can move tirelessly while donning a full set of heavy armour.
Born to Battle + Break Upon Me + Bedrock + Never Kneel + Advanced Workbench + Dwarven Drone Fly
Bashful Teeth
When an enemy ever came close to her, Joulie can bash them with the butt of her crossbow or rifle, then quickly put a bear trap right between them, the enemy then move groggily towards her and got their leg struck by a bear trap, making them vulnerable for a finishing shot, or giving Joulie a breather to set up her other trap.
Wingstrike + Bear Trap
End of the Line
While the enemy trying to recover from the stagger caused by the bear trap, Joulie can choose to make her shot counts by bashing them yet again, then end them with a shot to the head.
Bashful Teeth + Wingstrike + Hawk Eye
Three Musketeers
In a fight, Joulie can add even more firepower thanks to her autocannons and automatons, combine it with her Overcharge, the cannons can surely help her clear her path while she can provide supporting shots from a safe distance
Dwarven Autocannons (2/2) + Firing Line + Autocannons Overcharge + Spin Up + Remote Control + Aetherial Staff (You can also perform it after Bashful Teeth)
Fishes in a Barrel
When there’s a lot of mobs approaching, Joulie can set a tripwire right behind her to make them trip and fall, then set the autocannons in such positions while repositioning herself to a vantage point, the enemies won’t stand a chance against this combo if it’s done correctly
Tripwire + Three Musketeer
Gameplay
Joulie is an Artificer, one of an unorthodox class in Skyrim, but applicable in a way or two, she will most likely rely on her traps and gizmos, but can still pack a punch if the situation rises. In Skyrim vanilla, she will definitely use the hell out of potions she made and starts pelting the whole battlefield with either fire or ice bolt all by herself, then saving the electric bolt for the mages and any other enemy that can’t handle shocking retaliation, but this time, she will have her Autocannons, traps and even some drones to help her explore the ruins of Skyrim.
Start off with Three Musketeers to get their attention and to put them in a disarray while keep on dodging and shoot them once you have a clear vision, especially since the smoke from the autocannons can also block your vision so I advise you find some vantage point to shoot, but should there be any stragglers approaching you and the Autocannons are off, fend them with Fishes in a Barrel, Bashful Teeth and End of the Line when there’s one annoying enemy (especially the boss). Once they’re done, use Three Musketeers once more to pick off the rest of the ranged threats if there’s anything left.
Her kit is a bit straight-forward, but the challenge lies in how you aim the autocannons because the autocannons will follow your camera directions (if you look to your right, they’ll fire to the right, and so on), so be sure to look into the enemies you wish to barrage with Three Musketeers.
Closing & Credits
So, hello again everyone, it’s me Agni. I know I’ve promised to release some regular build later on, but… Yeah, IRL stuffs happened and I’m currently trying to find job around here and there. Anyway, since this is the second build I’ve posted here, I do wish that later on maybe, just maybe, I could post some regular builds.
I would like to thank EnaiSiaion for making the overhauls of almost everything in Skyrim without even making it alien to the Elder Scrolls lore and one of the reasons why I wanted to pick modding after seeing mods popping out here and there for a long time (especially the newest overhaul set one… Man, can’t wait to see it fully released).
Well, with that out of the way, this is Agni, signing out
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