One of the best features of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is the game's random encounters with NPCs, enemies and animals. However, with limited enemy upscaling, once the player has advanced through the game, there are very few encounters that pose a challenge. However, as part of the Dawnguard DLC, a host of new enemies were added for players to test their skills against, including the mysterious Ebony Warrior.
At level 80, the Ebony Warrior is one of the highest-ranking enemies in the game, ranking just below Karstaag at level 90 and Arngeir and Miraak who are tied at level 150. Wielding a complete suite of Ebony Armor, The Warrior stands at a scale of 1.21 tall, making him taller than the Altmer despite being a Redguard. With high-powered weapons, armor enchantments and the ability to conjure Storm Atronaches, the Ebony Warrior can be extremely difficult to defeat, but the following tips will help gain a competitive advantage.
The Ebony Warrior can only be encountered once the player reaches level 80, at which point he'll wait for the player at one of the main cities. He will start a conversation when approached, saying "the time has come." If the player exits the conversation, they can find him again in the city and ask what he meant previously. He will explain he has met and defeated all his previous opponents and is due a worthy death to get sent to Sovengarde, seeking the Dragonborn as his next challenge. He will then direct the player to the challenge site, his Last Vigil, which is a camp northeast of Fort Greenwall in The Rift.
Upon reaching the Last Vigil, The Warrior will not attack unless attacked first, so this is a prime opportunity to steal his arrows and healing potions should the player have a high pickpocketing level. Depending how far the player stands from him, he prefers melee combat. His Ebony Sword of the Vampire drains 25 points of health per hit, so it's use a Health Regeneration potion to compensate. If the player attempts to flee or prefers using a bow, The Warrior will use the Ebony Bow of Winter, which drains health and stamina by 30 points. This might be the better option, as he is more likely to miss with the bow than with the sword.
Because he is a Redguard and has various enchantments on his armor, the Warrior is 50 percent resistant to fire, shock, frost and poison. Additionally, shouts like Ice Form, Paralyze and Disarm will have no effect. It's generally a good idea to avoid using magic against him, sticking to melee combat instead. The Warrior uses shouts like Unrelenting Force and Disarm, so players should have backup weapons they can select quickly should they lose theirs. He can cast Ironflesh to further improve his already powerful armor, as well summoning Storm Atronaches. Players should be able to cast these as well to make this a fair fight.
Even if the player manages to gain the upper hand in combat, the Ebony Warrior has a select set of powerful perks that shouldn't be ignored. For example, he has Reflect Blows, a Heavy Armor perk that gives the user a chance of reflecting 10 percent of melee damage dealt to them while wearing a full Heavy Armor set. While this sounds like a small amount of damage, it can add up when dealing multiple blows in a row.
Thanks to Deflect Arrow, the Ebony Warrior also takes no damage from arrows hitting his shield, so players need to be particularly skillful to hit him if using a bow. Even when coming into this fight prepared, the Ebony Warrior is designed to be challenging, so players should not underestimate him.
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