Summary

  • Races like Imperial and Breton offer unique advantages for creating powerful Spellblades in Oblivion Remastered.
  • Nords and Orcs are excellent choices for Spellblades focusing on melee skills, with high survivability stats.
  • Choosing the right race like Argonian or Dark Elf can greatly enhance the Spellsword experience in The Elder Scrolls 4.

The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered provides players with a lot of variety when creating their character. During the start of the game, players don't only decide the race and appearance of their character in the character customizer, but also the birth sign their character was born under as well as the class they are while adventuring through the underground tunnels of the Imperial Prison.

Your character and choosing a birthsign in The Elder Scrolls 4 Oblivion Remastered
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While players can create their very own custom class, there is also an abundance of pre-made classes to choose from that each has their own major skills and favored attributes. While almost any race in The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered can fulfill these classes, those hoping to be a Spellsword that mixes heavy armor with magic should look no further than playing these races for the best head start.

8 Argonian

Great For Illusion-Based Spellblades

  • +10 Blade
  • +10 Illusion

While there may be an assortment of races that look similar to humans, The Elder Scrolls franchise also has some more bestial races for the players to adventure across Cyrodill. The Argonian is not only a great choice for aesthetics, but also due to being one of the few races for the Spellsword that has a buff to its Illusion skill.

Even though the Argonian has the worst endurance, no matter which background they select for them, this slower start compared to the other races doesn't put the Argonian down, as this race has the potential to make for a great Spellsword, especially with it having a decent number of points in both Blade and Illusion.

7 Imperial

Play As The Main Race Of People In Cyrodill

  • +15 Heavy Armor
  • +10 Blade

While the Spellsword class does mainly focus on the magic specialization, the races that don't have a starting buff in any sort of magic still have the potential to be one of the best races for players to start their adventure, as in Oblivion Remastered, while also hoping to create a Spellsword.

Besides the class having major skills in the schools of magic, such as Destruction, Alteration, Illusion, etc. A Spellsword, unlike other magic users, wears heavy armor and is also willing to fight with a sword. Those who wish to buff their combat prowess with the blade are sure to find benefit with the Imperials, as they start with a +15 for Heavy Armor and a +10 with Blades.

6 Dark Elf

Mixing Magic And Melee

  • +15 Destruction
  • +15 Blade

Dark Elves, also known as the Dunmer, are another great choice of race for those hoping to use the Spellsword class. This race of people is known well for how they have balanced the integration of the sword, the bow, and destruction magic.

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Both the Arcane School of Destruction and the skill of the Blade are major skills found within the Spellsword class in The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered. With both of these starting at +15, players will be able to balance both a sword and a simple fire spell the second they start the tutorial area of the game, even before choosing their class.

5 High Elf

An Incredible Buff To Magic

  • +15 Alteration
  • +15 Destruction

While the Altmer may not have the mix of skills that is seen with the Dunmer of having both skills in magic and melee, the High Elf is perfect for those who wish to make sure their Spellsword continues to have a magic focus.

By being incredibly gifted in the Arcane Arts, High Elves not only start with a boost in both Alteration and Destruction, which are both major skills of the Spellsword, but they also start the game with a boost to their Magicka that no other race receives. This, therefore, allows players to cast even more spells at the start of the game without running out of Magicka as quickly.

4 Redguard

Incredibly Versatile Fighting Styles

  • 50 Endurance
  • +15 Blade
  • +10 Heavy Armor

As seen with Imperials, some of the best races for the Spellblade class in Oblivion aren't those that have an advantage when it comes to the different schools of magic. Redguard is a perfect starting race for this class due to its high Blade and Heavy Armor skills, which allow players to hold their own without relying on the weak magic that the player likely starts with.

Although Redguards have a high Endurance stat in The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered, which improves the player's heavy armor stat further as well as their fatigue, which are both important things for a Spellblade. Redguards, unfortunately, start with a lower-than-average Willpower attribute. While this can be fixed, it does mean that Redguard Spellblades are at a slight disadvantage when it comes to magic at the start of the game.

3 Nord

They Make For Spellswords With High Survivability

  • +15 Blade
  • +15 Heavy Armor
  • +10 Restoration
  • +10 Block

Players may be surprised to see Nords considered so highly as one of the best races for the Spellsword class. However, while they may be on the weaker side when it comes to the arcane arts, they are incredible warriors from Skyrim who therefore see them instead excel in the more warrior-themed skills found within the Spellblade class. This includes having a buff in the likes of Blade, Heavy Armor, and Block.

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Nords do still possess some advantage in magic, as Nords are also known for being a hardy race. Therefore, Nords are also skilled in one form of magic known as Restoration, which gives them a head start when looking for healing magic.

2 Orc

Perfect Melee Start To Focus Spells Later

  • 50 Endurance
  • 50 Willpower
  • +15 Block
  • +15 Heavy Armor

Another surprise race choice that makes for a potentially great start as a Spellblade is the Orc. Unlike Nord, this race provides no arcane arts at all when a player begins the game as one of them. However, the Orc does have one of the highest Willpower starts as well as having a high Endurance start if the player chooses the Stronghold background for their Orc.

Besides this high Willpower, which determines how quickly a player's Magicka regenerates, Orcs also have incredible skills such as block and heavy armor under their belts. As a Spellblade combines magic with melee, being able to have an easier time wearing heavy armor without the penalty to their magic, as well as blocking further damage, makes an Orc a promising choice for any player.

1 Breton

A Magical Start For Any Promising Spellsword

  • 50 Willpower
  • +15 Restoration
  • +10 Alteration
  • +10 Illusion

Out of all the races that can be selected at the start of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered, one of the best for those hoping to play as a Spellblade is none other than the Breton. As the race that is best known for its skill with a variety of magics, picking the Breton when hoping to make a Spellblade gives players the best advantage for their magic.

Even though the Breton doesn't have any buffs to the other major skills needed for the Spellblade, such as Blade, Block, or Heavy Armor, the Breton is still a must for any Spellblade as it even comes with a boost to their Willpower to allow players to use better spells earlier in the game while gradually improving their melee and armor choices.

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Top Critic Avg: 82 /100 Critics Rec: 87%
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Released
April 22, 2025
ESRB
Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Sexual Themes, Violence
Developer(s)
Virtuos, Bethesda
Publisher(s)
Bethesda
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WHERE TO PLAY

SUBSCRIPTION
DIGITAL
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Engine
Unreal Engine 5