Oblivion Remaster Attributes Explained: Your Guide to Character Building

The Seven Core Attributes

Before diving into the individual attributes, it’s important to understand how they function within the overall game. Each attribute functions as a modifier that affects various skills, stats, and gameplay elements. The choices you make during character creation and the leveling process will determine how these attributes shape your character’s abilities. Maximizing certain attributes allows your character to perform better in specific situations. Understanding this interplay is crucial for creating a character that complements your preferred playstyle.

Strength: The Foundation of Physical Prowess

Strength is the attribute that defines your character’s physical power. It dictates how much weight your character can carry, the damage they inflict in melee combat, and the effectiveness of ranged attacks using bows. A high Strength attribute translates to more carry weight, enabling you to haul more loot, armor, and equipment without becoming encumbered. In combat, Strength directly influences the damage you deal with weapons, particularly blades, blunt weapons, and bows. A character with a high Strength attribute will inflict significantly more damage with each swing of their sword or each arrow fired. Moreover, Strength contributes to your character’s Athletics skill, which governs running speed and overall movement.

• Impact: Carry Weight, Melee Damage (Blades, Blunt), Bow Damage, Athletics Skill
• Increasing Strength:
  • Train your Blade, Blunt, or Heavy Armor skill.
  • Use fortify Strength potions, enchantments, or birthsigns.
  • Choose a race with a high starting Strength bonus.

Intelligence: The Crucible of Magical Might

Intelligence governs your character’s magical abilities, determining the size of your magicka pool and the effectiveness of your Alchemy skill. A high Intelligence attribute is essential for spellcasters, as it directly increases your magicka reserve. This means you can cast more spells before needing to replenish your mana. Intelligence also impacts your character’s ability to brew potent potions through the Alchemy skill. Higher Intelligence allows you to create more effective potions with enhanced effects.

• Impact: Magicka Pool, Alchemy Skill
• Increasing Intelligence:
  • Train your Alchemy, Mysticism, or Conjuration skills.
  • Use fortify Intelligence potions, enchantments, or birthsigns.
  • Choose a race with a high starting Intelligence bonus.

Willpower: The Resilience of the Mind

Willpower reflects your character’s mental fortitude and resilience. It governs your magicka regeneration rate, which is how quickly your magicka replenishes after casting spells. A higher Willpower attribute ensures faster magicka recovery, making you a more effective spellcaster. Furthermore, Willpower contributes to your character’s resistance to fatigue, which is important for sustained combat and general physical activity.

• Impact: Magicka Regeneration, Fatigue Resistance
• Increasing Willpower:
  • Train your Restoration or Alteration skills.
  • Use fortify Willpower potions, enchantments, or birthsigns.
  • Choose a race with a high starting Willpower bonus.

Agility: The Essence of Dexterity

Agility defines your character’s dexterity, influencing accuracy in combat, stealth capabilities, and reflexes. A high Agility attribute increases your chance to hit opponents in combat. This attribute helps ensure your attacks connect with your target. Agility also impacts your sneak skill, making you harder to detect while sneaking. Additionally, higher Agility will improve reflexes.

• Impact: Accuracy, Sneak Skill, Reflexes
• Increasing Agility:
  • Train your Sneak, Marksman, or Light Armor skills.
  • Use fortify Agility potions, enchantments, or birthsigns.
  • Choose a race with a high starting Agility bonus.

Speed: The Swiftness of the Runner

Speed determines your character’s overall movement speed, directly affecting how quickly you can move across the environment. A higher Speed attribute allows you to traverse landscapes faster and gain a tactical advantage in combat by closing distances or retreating from danger. Speed also contributes to the Athletics skill.

• Impact: Movement Speed, Athletics Skill
• Increasing Speed:
  • Train your Athletics skill.
  • Use fortify Speed potions, enchantments, or birthsigns.
  • Choose a race with a high starting Speed bonus.

Endurance: The Bastion of Vitality

Endurance determines your character’s physical stamina and health, directly impacting their survivability in combat. A high Endurance attribute translates to a larger health pool, making you more resistant to damage and able to withstand more attacks. Endurance also increases your fatigue, which governs stamina.

• Impact: Health, Fatigue
• Increasing Endurance:
  • Train your Block, Armorer, or Heavy Armor skills.
  • Use fortify Endurance potions, enchantments, or birthsigns.
  • Choose a race with a high starting Endurance bonus.

Personality: The Art of Social Grace

Personality influences your character’s ability to interact with others, governing how NPCs perceive you and influencing the effectiveness of your Speechcraft skill. A higher Personality attribute makes it easier to persuade and charm NPCs. This attribute helps you successfully complete social interactions, negotiate better prices with merchants, and gain valuable information.

• Impact: NPC Disposition, Speechcraft Skill
• Increasing Personality:
  • Train your Speechcraft skill.
  • Use fortify Personality potions, enchantments, or birthsigns.
  • Choose a race with a high starting Personality bonus.

Attribute Bonuses and Skill Interaction

Beyond the core attributes and their direct effects, the system features a complex interplay between attributes and skills. Each skill in Oblivion is governed by a specific attribute. When leveling up, you can increase your skills. Skills directly influence the effectiveness of their associated attribute, allowing you to gain attribute bonuses.

For instance, if you want to increase your Strength, you should prioritize leveling skills like Blade, Blunt, and Heavy Armor. Leveling these skills unlocks opportunities to raise the Strength attribute when you level up your character. The amount your attribute increases depends on how many skill increases you’ve gained in skills governed by the attribute. When you level up, you can increase up to three attributes.

Leveling Up: Maximizing Your Potential

When your character levels up, you have the opportunity to increase up to three attributes. To maximize attribute gains, focus on leveling skills related to the attributes you want to improve. For example, if you want to improve your Strength, make sure you level Blade, Blunt, and Heavy Armor frequently. To earn a full 5-point increase in an attribute at level up, you need to increase at least ten levels in skills governed by that attribute. This system creates a strategic element to character building, allowing players to create builds that are geared to specific playstyles.

Birthsigns and Race Selection

When creating a character, you must also choose your race and your birthsign. Race selection directly impacts your starting attributes and offers skill bonuses. For instance, a Nord will start with a higher Strength attribute and have bonuses to skills like Blade and Block. Similarly, birthsigns grant unique abilities and attribute bonuses that further influence your character’s strengths. These factors, combined with your chosen class and playstyle, provide a wide array of customization options.

The Remastered Perspective

The potential for a remastered Oblivion has players and fans excited, but many are also curious about how the system might change. If a remaster is released, it would still be essential to understand the attributes system. Though the core mechanics are likely to remain the same, the developers might adjust attribute balancing, tweak skill interactions, or add new gameplay elements. Even with changes, a solid understanding of attributes will be invaluable for creating effective characters and navigating the world.

Conclusion

Understanding the core attributes is the foundation of a successful journey through Cyrodiil. From shaping your combat prowess to influencing social interactions, the attributes determine how your character will be experienced. Experiment with different attribute combinations, tailor your character to suit your personal preferences, and dive into the world. Whether you are a stealthy assassin or a mighty warrior, the attributes will shape your experience. By knowing and understanding how these core characteristics work, you can create a hero perfectly suited to survive and thrive in the lands of Oblivion. As you build and shape your character, consider the impact of each attribute, and prepare yourself for adventure. The choices you make will determine your fate.