Newb Questions re: classes, builds

[DreadWulf]

I am starting to play this game and enjoying it so far but I keep reading (sources may be outdated, unsure) that magic is OP and melee is not so viable. Like most others, I went the "sneaky stabby archer" route in Skyrim for first playthrough and I enjoyed it. Magic was underwhelming in vanilla Skyrim and I never really messed around with a pure Juggernaut type (2-hander, heavy armor, massive health pool, etc) although the concept sounds appealing.

So my question is, what are some good baseline builds to aim for in this game because I cant seem to decide what path I want to follow. I am trying to familiarize myself with the lore and terminology so bear with me. I am fine with difficulty being somewhat ramped up a bit in early and even midgame but a build that really shines at the end is what I am looking for. As for personal preferences, I have none really. All styles suit my tastes although I was never big into crafting, smithing, alchemy and enchanting (which may be a detriment to me in this game). That's not to say I cant learn to like them, just that they are not my first usual choices.

Sneaky stabby Archer still a thing? Is melee viable? Dual-wield, 2-hander, etc get any kind of love or is magic and ranged basically OP? Hybrid class trumps pure build? Knowing all that you know now (those of you who have invested hours into the game), if you had to start a new playthrough fresh off the boat, what class or build would you aim for? Thanks for taking the time to read. Any advice, input, suggestions are appreciated. Cheers.

[Karina]

There is no such thing as "hybrid" classes in Skyrim because you cant cast spells while holding a weapon. In enderal however you can invest into the skill tree without increasing skills associated with it. Meaning- you can play 2h heavy armor brute with no investment into magic but you can still have couple of spell like abilities like Lightning Nova, this abilities also replace shouts and dont occupy your hands.

Sneaky stabby is still a thing, im playing one right now and from my experience it was heavily nerfed (thanks god). Although im playing on the hardest difficulty- your experience might differ. I have to use my activated abilities, kite and run away a lot, i cant simply one shot everything from steath. Im seriously considering investing into Elementalist tree just for activated abilities (once i take all the good stuff from Trickster and Vagrant).

Not sure about melee because i did not played melee yet but im guessing its viable too.

Magics is gut.

[DreadWulf]

Thanks for your reply! Good to know.

[EbonHawk]

Originally posted by Esteban Failsmore:

There is no such thing as "hybrid" classes in Skyrim

I consider the ability to cast effective spells and shoot effectively and open locks and hack the crap outta something up close with dual-wielded daggers to be pretty hybridized, so we must have different definitions of the term.

It all depends what you choose to work on, how good you get it in it. Each skillset is balanced quite well and lets me change things up for different situations.

I am just now starting to use buff spells so I can be a more effective archer and melee fighter. Let the magic cloak spells do some damage while I poke 'em in the eyes. Or, increase my armor while doing it. Kinda fun!!

I haven't even touched on the whole souls-gathering thing with the Net of Souls ability and other stuff, in the Phasmalist and Sinistrope fields. I don't even want to think about learning even more abilities and how to use them. So, Enderal is a mixed-bag of hybridization. Let loose and experiment!!

[DreadWulf]

Thanks for your reply! Yes, I am getting the feeling that its good to have a few different options without wearing myself too thin. Enjoying the game so far. Its a lot of fun.

[DreadWulf]

Good feedback, thanks for your reply! I have settled on two different builds atm. Both saves are currently at the same point in terms of questing but play very different from each other. One is more spell based and the other is more melee focused. I will play both so I can get a good feeling for which one I want to invest most of my time in. Cheers!

[Eternie]

The other thing to take into account is the class affinities.
https://en.wiki.sureai.net/Enderal:Classes and the affinities

This took me quite a while to wrap my head around, you get definite and permanent benefits from gaining an affinity. Which is from a combination of two memory trees. If the two memory trees you first selected don't make an affinity ... you won't get an affinity and miss out on extra benefits.

I initially started with one handed and elementalism to play like a spell sword for Enderal nope No affinity .. once I added enough keeper points I enabled Battlemage although I had one handed and not two handed. (one handed sucks as the talents are hopeless) Elementalism is fantastic!

Anyways my advice is look at the skills you currently have, select which affinity appeals for you and work the memories toward getting it as soon as you can. Once you unlock the top talent the affinity should pop. So read up and know what you want to select.

[DreadWulf]

Oh... thats good to know. Thanks for the advice. I may have to resort to a slightly earlier save (luckily I made many lol) to before I chose my first memory investment. Much obliged, cheers.

[Karina]

Archery REQUIRES enchanting, or else your damage will be very luckluster. Without enchanting you will also rely heaving on Fire Arrows which are quite visually noisy, especially if you unlock Swashbuckler.

Damage while wearing handcrafted and enchanted armor and jewellery
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1862749873

Damage while wearing full Tracker set (endgame'ish armor) and some random jewellery
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1862753375

[DreadWulf]

Thanks for the screenies and info, cheers.