Building a versatile, well-rounded character in a game can be highly rewarding. An all-rounder has a wide range of abilities to handle various situations, rather than specializing in just one playstyle. This gives you more flexibility and options during gameplay.
Crafting an all-rounder does require some strategic planning though. You need to spread your skill points, gear choices and character progression across multiple areas. Here is a step-by-step guide to help you create a jack-of-all-trades type of character.
Table of Contents
Choose a Flexible Base Class
The first step is selecting a class that has inherent versatility. Some examples of good all-rounder class options include:
- Bard – Can fight decently, while also providing support magic and skills
- Ranger – Competent in combat with some spellcasting as well
- Battlemage – Balances fighting prowess with offensive magic
- Spellsword – Mixes weapons skills with magic
Classes that are too specialized like pure Warriors or Mages make suboptimal all-rounder builds.
Consider multiclassing as well for more flexibility. Starting as a Fighter then multiclassing into a Mage class later is a common all-rounder build.
Spread Out Your Attribute Points
All-rounders need to invest attributes across different areas:
- Health and stamina for survival
- Physical stats like strength and dexterity to boost weapon damage
- Mental stats such as intelligence and wisdom for spellcasting
- Charisma for social interactions
Don’t hyper-specialize by dumping all points into just your main combat stat. Have at least decent scores in your secondary stats too.
Learn Skills from Multiple Categories
Getting skills from various trees is key for versatility:
- Pick combat skills using different weapon types
- Take magic skills covering attack spells, buffs, debuffs and healing
- Invest in crafting skills like alchemy, enchanting and smithing to better equip your character
- Take speech, mercantile haggling and pickpocket skills for out-of-combat usefulness
Use a Hybrid Mix of Gear
Your equipment loadout should enable different playstyles:
- Carry both melee and ranged weapon sets
- Have armor providing protection without fat rolling
- Equip an amulet boosting your spellcasting
- Keep potions on hand for healing, magicka recovery, curing poisons, etc
Carry gear to handle numerous scenarios. Swap loadouts based on the situation.
Level Up Carefully
As you level up, look for perks across different trees to build into:
- Combat perks like weapon specializations
- Magic perks to bolster spells
- Crafting perks to improve gear
- Social perks for better prices at shops
Don’t neglect taking perks for non-combat abilities. Resist the urge to put all points into just your favorite combat style.
Quest Widely Across the Game World
All-rounders benefit from exploring the world extensively:
- Take quests spanning the main story, factions, side quests and miscellaneous objectives
- Experience diverse encounters testing the full range of your abilities
- Gain wider access to loot and gear to support your versatility
- Earn more gold and items to craft better equipment
Venture out across the lands rather than just camping in one place.
Recruit Companions to Cover Weaknesses
Round out your character’s capabilities by traveling with companions. Recruit those filling gaps in your skills:
- Bring a pure warrior if lacking melee skills
- Add a priest for healing support
- Hire a thief for lockpicking and stealing needs
- Take a wizard to handle any magic shortcomings
With the right companions, you can build a well-balanced party able to handle anything even if your main is more of a generalist.
Building an all-rounder versatile character takes more foresight than a specialist build hyper-focused on one thing. But in return, you gain significantly more options, flexibility and ability to handle surprises during the game. Your swiss-army knife of a character will have a tool for every situation.
