The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind

Class selection in The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind involves dividing the 27 available skills into three categories: five major skills, five minor skills, and the remaining miscellaneous skills. Your major skills level up the fastest, so they should be the ones you intend to use most frequently. For example, a mage should prioritize magicka skills as majors, while a warrior should select at least one weapon and one armor skill. Minor skills are those you will use less often, leveling up slower than major skills but faster than miscellaneous skills. All other skills fall into the miscellaneous category, which can still be leveled but at a significantly slower pace.

Beyond skill distribution, your class has a central specialization (Stealth, Combat, or Magic). Choosing a specialization grants a +5 bonus to all skills within that class, making them easier to level. Additionally, you can select two favorite attributes, and each skill governed by those attributes will receive a +10 bonus. For a detailed list of skills and their governing attributes, refer to section 2.3, Skills and Levelling Up.

When you first meet Socucius Ergalla in The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, you have three options for class determination: answering a series of questions (not recommended), choosing from a pre-defined list of example classes, or creating a custom class by specifying your own major/minor skills, specialization, and favorite attributes. Creating your own class or selecting from the provided list is generally advised over the question-based method.

The game offers several example classes to illustrate specialization:

• Acrobat: Specializes in Stealth. Attributes: Agility, Endurance. Major Skills: Acrobatics, Athletics, Marksman, Sneak, Unarmoured. Minor Skills: Speechcraft, Alteration, Spear, Hand-to-Hand, Light Armour. Described as agile burglars and second-story men who rely on stealth and mobility.
• Agent: Specializes in Stealth. Attributes: Personality, Agility. Major Skills: Speechcraft, Sneak, Acrobatics, Light Armour, Short Blade. Minor Skills: Mercantile, Conjuration, Block, Unarmoured, Illusion. Operatives skilled in deception and avoidance, trained in self-defense.
• Archer: Specializes in Combat. Attributes: Agility, Strength. Major Skills: Marksman, Long Blade, Block, Athletics, Light Armour. Minor Skills: Unarmoured, Spear, Restoration, Sneak, Medium Armour. Fighters specializing in long-range combat and rapid movement.
• Assassin: Specializes in Stealth. Attributes: Speed, Intelligence. Major Skills: Sneak, Marksman, Light Armour, Short Blade, Acrobatics. Minor Skills: Security, Long Blade, Alchemy, Block, Athletics. Killers who rely on stealth and mobility to approach victims undetected.
• Barbarian: Specializes in Combat. Attributes: Strength, Speed. Major Skills: Axe, Medium Armour, Blunt Weapon, Athletics, Block. Minor Skills: Acrobatics, Light Armour, Armorer, Marksman, Unarmoured. Savage warriors who excel in fierce, frenzied single combat.
• Bard: Specializes in Stealth. Attributes: Personality, Intelligence. Major Skills: Speechcraft, Alchemy, Acrobatics, Long Blade, Block. Minor Skills: Mercantile, Illusion, Medium Armour, Enchant, Security. Loremasters and storytellers who crave adventure and depend on various skills for preservation.
• Battlemage: Specializes in Magic. Attributes: Intelligence, Strength. Major Skills: Alteration, Destruction, Conjuration, Axe, Heavy Armour. Minor Skills: Mysticism, Long Blade, Marksman, Enchant, Alchemy. Provides example spells: Shield (Shield, 5 pts, 30 seconds on self), Water Walking (Water Walking, 60 seconds on self), Bound Dagger (Bound Dagger, 60 seconds on self), Summon Ancest.

There are thirteen different birthsigns to choose from, each with distinct advantages and disadvantages.

The Apprentice

• Abilities: Elfborn (Fortify Maximum Magicka, 1.5x INT, Weakness to Magicka, 50%)
• Description: Tailored towards novice magic users with a magicka bonus, but the weakness to magicka makes you vulnerable to mage opponents.

The Atronach

• Abilities: Wombburn (Spell Absorption, 50 pts, Fortify Maximum Magicka, 2.0x INT, Stunted Magicka)
• Description: The only starsign for a true mage, designed for experts who understand that their hefty magicka will not regenerate by resting due to stunted magicka. Paired with the Breton race and a magic-oriented class, this can create a very powerful character.

The Lady

• Abilities: Lady's Favour (Fortify Personality, 25 pts), Lady's Grace (Fortify Endurance, 25 pts)
• Description: A simple star sign with good bonuses for beginners. Personality makes interactions easier, and endurance increases fatigue and encumbrance.

The Lord

• Abilities: Trollkin (Weakness to Fire, 100%)
• Spells: Blood of the North (Restore Health, 2 pts, 30 seconds on self)
• Description: Avoid this sign; Blood of the North is a weak spell easily replaced, and the 100% weakness to fire is a significant drawback.

The Lover

• Abilities: Mooncalf (Fortify Agility, 25 pts)
• Powers: Lover's Kiss (Paralyze, 60 seconds on target; Damage Fatigue, 200 pts on self)
• Description: A double-edged choice. Mooncalf is great for stealth specialists, but Lover's Kiss can be risky, paralyzing an opponent while depleting your own fatigue, which prevents fighting.

The Mage

• Abilities: Fay (Fortify Maximum Magicka, 0.5x INT)
• Description: A straightforward magicka bonus, not as strong as The Apprentice but without the magicka weakness. Suitable for spellswords or nightblades that use magic but don't solely rely on it.

The Ritual

• Spells: Blessed Word (Turn Undead, 100 pts, 30 seconds on target), Blessed Touch (Turn Undead, 100 pts, 30 seconds on touch)
• Powers: Mara's Gift (Restore Health, 100 pts on self)
• Description: Mara's Gift is a strong restorative spell, but the sign lacks other significant benefits compared to better choices.

The Serpent

• Spells: Star-Curse (Poison, 3 pts, 30 seconds on touch; Damage Health, 1 pt, 30 seconds on self)
• Description: Considered useless, as it sacrifices 30 points of health to deal 90 points of poison damage. Its utility is questionable even for characters with high health.

The Shadow

• Powers: Moonshadow (Invisibility, 60 seconds on self)
• Description: Invisibility is limited, usable only once a day. It might be a choice for stealth enthusiasts if other options are exhausted.

The Steed

• Abilities: Charioteer (Fortify Speed, 25 pts)
• Description: A simple speed bonus that, when combined with races like Argonian or Khajiit, significantly increases speed, though speed is not a primary attribute.

The Thief

• Abilities: Akaviri Danger-Sense (Sanctuary, 10 pts)
• Description: Less beneficial for a thief than other signs. Agility and speed would be more useful choices.

The Tower

• Spells: Beggar's Nose (Detect Animal, 200 ft, 60 seconds on self; Detect Enchantment, 200 ft, 60 seconds on self; Detect Key, 200 ft, 60 seconds on self)
• Powers: Tower Key (Open, 50 pts on touch)
• Description: The Open power would be more useful as a spell. It's good for bypassing lockpicking, but its once-a-day use is insufficient. Beggar's Nose has limited utility.

Hey there! So, you're diving into Morrowind and wondering about all those ranks and stats you see floating around? Don't sweat it, it's not as complicated as it looks. Think of it like this: the game keeps track of how you're doing with a few key numbers, and these numbers determine your 'rank' within certain groups, especially the Blades. You'll see stats like INT (Intelligence), PER (Perception), S1, S2, and Rep (Reputation). As you do things and gain experience, these stats go up, and so does your rank. It's basically the game's way of saying 'You're getting pretty good at this!'

Let's break down what these ranks mean. The game uses a tiered system, starting from 'Novice' and going all the way up to 'Grand Spymaster'. Each rank requires certain levels in those stats we just talked about. For example, to become a Novice in the Blades, you need a certain base INT and PER. As you progress, you'll need higher and higher stats to climb the ladder. It's a neat way to see your character grow and unlock more opportunities within the game's factions.

Here's a quick look at how the ranks and their associated stats stack up. Keep in mind, these are the base requirements, and your actual stats will go up as you play and train. It's all about putting in the work and seeing those numbers climb!

Pro Tip: The Blades, which is where these ranks are most prominent early on, really value skills like Speechcraft, Marksman, Light Armour, Sneak, Restoration, and Long Blade. Focusing on these will help you climb the ranks faster and impress Caius Cosades!