Races | Character Creation & Dev. Oblivion Guide
Last update: 11 May 2016
There are two things you should keep in mind when choosing a race for your hero. The first one, which we can call "visual", can't be clearly classified in such a guide, as it's just a matter of taste. Whether you like lizards, predatory cats, or just ordinary humans - it's up to you. The second factors is somewhat based on math. Practice shows that racial stats and abilities aren't all important in the end, so you probably should just think about what you like.
Three tables follow. The first two of them show you the starting attributes for each race and gender, while the third one points out all the racial abilities and perks.
All in all, you can always take the upper hand in this game, no matter what the initial statistics show. You can make a mage out of an orc, and change a high-elf into a bloodthirsty berserker. Sure, the suggested way is easier and faster, but don't feel too tied with it. Take a loot at the "Bonus Skill Points" column in the third table, it seems somehow the most important in all this, as it can in a way impact our leveling tempo. Just remember - leveling "faster" doesn't mean "better" in Oblivion.
HINT: There's no right way to create a character, but the archetypes are probably Orc-Warrior, Breton-Mage, and Khajiit-Thief.
HINT: Let's repeat once again - think MOSTLY about your own taste in characters here. There's nothing worse than playing with a character that you don't like, now is there?
Table 1.
Race\Attribute | Strength | Intelligence | Willpower | Agility | ||||
M | F | M | F | M | F | M | F | |
Argonian | 40 | 40 | 40 | 50 | 30 | 40 | 50 | 40 |
Breton | 40 | 30 | 50 | 50 | 50 | 50 | 30 | 30 |
Dark Elf | 40 | 40 | 40 | 40 | 30 | 30 | 40 | 40 |
High Elf | 30 | 30 | 50 | 50 | 40 | 40 | 40 | 40 |
Imperial | 40 | 40 | 40 | 40 | 30 | 40 | 30 | 30 |
Khajiit | 40 | 30 | 40 | 40 | 30 | 30 | 50 | 50 |
Nord | 50 | 50 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 40 | 40 | 40 |
Orc | 45 | 45 | 30 | 40 | 50 | 45 | 35 | 35 |
Redguard | 50 | 40 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 40 | 40 |
Wood Elf | 30 | 30 | 40 | 40 | 30 | 30 | 50 | 50 |
Table 2.
Race\Attribute | Speed | Endurance | Luck | Personality | ||||
M | F | M | F | M | F | M | F | |
Argonian | 50 | 40 | 30 | 30 | 50 | 50 | 30 | 30 |
Breton | 30 | 40 | 30 | 30 | 50 | 50 | 40 | 40 |
Dark Elf | 50 | 50 | 40 | 30 | 50 | 50 | 30 | 40 |
High Elf | 30 | 40 | 40 | 30 | 50 | 50 | 40 | 40 |
Imperial | 40 | 30 | 40 | 40 | 50 | 50 | 50 | 50 |
Khajiit | 40 | 40 | 30 | 40 | 50 | 50 | 40 | 40 |
Nord | 40 | 40 | 50 | 40 | 50 | 50 | 30 | 30 |
Orc | 30 | 30 | 50 | 50 | 50 | 50 | 30 | 25 |
Redguard | 40 | 40 | 50 | 50 | 50 | 50 | 30 | 40 |
Wood Elf | 50 | 50 | 40 | 30 | 50 | 50 | 30 | 40 |
Table 3.
Race | Skills | Bonus skill points | Notes |
 Argonian | Disease and poison resistance. Breathing under water. | +5 to Alchemy, Athletics, Blade, Hand-to-Hand, Illusion, Mysticism +10 to Security | Their racial skills are low-level spells you can easily learn as representative of any other race. |
 Breton | +50 Magicka; Dragon Skin once a day; Magicka Resistance 50%. | +5 to Alchemy, Alteration, Illusion +10 to Conjuration, Mysticism, Restoration | Their Magicka resistance is great, and it makes Bretons one of the best races out there to choose. |
 Dark Elf | Ancestor Guardian once a day; Fire resistance 75%. | +5 to Athletics, Blunt, Light Armor, Marksman, Mysticism +10 to Blade, Destruction | Ancestor Guardian is pretty useless, even on lower levels. Fire resistance comes in handy. A pretty good race for thieves. |
 High Elf | Fire, Frost, and Shock weakness 25%; Disease resistance; Magicka +100. | +5 to Alchemy, Conjuration, Illusion +10 to Alteration, Destruction, Mysticism | A typical magic-oriented race. Their elemental weaknesses don't really hurt, and handy bonus skill points tell you clearly what to do with a High Elf. |
 Imperial | Star of the West once a day; Voice of the Emperor once a day. | +5 to Blade, Blunt, Hand-to-Hand, Heavy Armor +10 to Mercantile, Speechcraft | Two weak spells, one absorbing Fatigue and the second functioning as Charm - in other words, nothing special. |
 Khajiit | Eye of Fear once a day; Eye of the Night (Night Visio) for unlimited uses; | +5 to Athletics, Blade, Light Armor, Security, Sneak +10 to Acrobatics, Hand-to-Hand | Just as with Imperials, these spells are just not good enough. They seem to be pointed towards sneaking. |
 Nord | Nordic Frost once a day; Woad once a day; Frost resistance 50%. | +5 to Armorer, Block, Restoration +10 to Blade, Blunt, Heavy Armor | A warrior-style race. Their abilities come in handy only on lower levels. |
 Orc | Berserk once a day; Drain Agility once a day; Magicka Resistance 25%. | +5 to Hand-to-Hand +10 to Armorer, Block, Blunt, Heavy Armor | Probably the best choice for a warrior o any other strictly melee character. |
 Redguard | Adrenaline Rush once a day; Resist Poison spell; Resist Disease spell. | +5 to Heavy Armor, Mercantile +10 to Athletics, Blade, Blunt, Light Armor | Another warrior-oriented race. Their most important perk is the Adrenaline Rush. |
 Wood Elf | Beast Tongue once a day; Resist Disease spell. | +5 to Acrobatics, Alteration, Light Armor +10 to Alchemy, Marksman, Sneak | Beast Tongue is a weak spell functioning as Command Creature. Not very handy. Theoretically they're meant to be good thieves and arches. Turn out to be nothing special, really. |