From arduous to glorious: How Oblivion Remastered saved the Siege of Kvatch

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In the gloomy confines of a jail cell, there comes an unexpected visit from Emperor Uriel Septim VII. He bestows upon you some royal jewels and tasks you with a challenging mission: “to seal the maw of Oblivion.” That’s the start of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered. Not much time passes before you are dispatched to the city of Kvatch, which has been invaded by demons due to an opened gateway to Oblivion.

This scenario seems to offer a mix of unfortunate and exhilarating moments, right? Having lived through the Siege of Kvatch in both the original Oblivion and its Remastered edition, across early and late stages of the game, I can assure you that this segment of your Cyrodiillian journey could prove to be either the most thrilling or mundane experience you’ll encounter in this game. The level of challenge it presents – exciting or dull, easy or difficult – is greatly influenced by character development.

Cursed Kvatch

As a gamer, my earliest recollection of Kvatch isn’t exactly something I’m proud of. It was a humbling experience during my initial foray into Cyrodiil. With my underpowered character, blind to the town’s devastation, I marched towards the ominous Oblivion Gate. All that separated me from the remaining Kvatch citizens were a couple of scamps, or so it seemed. Little did I know, those seemingly harmless critters would turn the tables on me. Long story short, they gave me quite the beatdown.

Initially taken aback, I persisted in multiple attempts, yet the outcome remained unchanged; my assaults scarcely dented the enemy’s health bar, while they had the potential to quickly end my life. Sustaining losses at the hands of grotesque minions became entertaining for a while, but eventually, I grew tired of it. I decided to explore Oblivion’s progression system and discovered that the problem was indeed skill-dependent. Although my character level was suitable for the Siege of Kvatch, some of my skill levels were not, and rectifying this required considerable effort and time.

During character creation, you selected major skills that would be the basis for your character’s progression. As you enhance these major skills, reaching certain milestones will result in your character leveling up, even if you haven’t touched the minor skills. Furthermore, the attribute points (stat points) earned upon leveling up are determined by the leveled major skills. For instance, skills like Security, Sneak, and Marksman fall under the ‘Governing Attribute’ of Agility, so improving these skills will boost your character’s Agility stat.

In summarizing the intricate leveling system of Oblivion, it becomes apparent that I made some mistakes during my initial Siege of Kvatch. Initially, I believed I had found a clever trick when I consistently elevated my Sneak ability by hiding behind a blissfully unaware Goblin during the tutorial. Additionally, I became overly enthusiastic about alchemy and neglected all skills related to Endurance. Interestingly enough, Endurance was Oblivion’s key attribute as it granted additional HP with each character level advancement.

In numerous games, disregarding efficient character development often isn’t problematic; simply overleveling your character can usually resolve the issue. However, this strategy doesn’t apply in Oblivion because enemy difficulty is tied to character level. Consider a player entering Kvatch with an extraordinarily high Sneak skill, underdeveloped minor skills, abysmally low health, and a collection of useless potions… Suddenly, the seemingly harmless Scamps become formidable opponents.

A sleepy siege

In my initial playthrough of Oblivion Remastered, I failed to focus on character levelling once more, which led me to discover that my second Siege of Kvatch was unexpectedly devoid of action. Ready to engage in a fierce battle against those Scamps and put forth maximum effort, I was taken aback to find that all it took was a mere 15% of my effort, with just a couple of accurately aimed arrows being enough to bring them down.

In the updated version, there have been substantial alterations to the character progression system in Oblivion. The level of challenge remains consistent, but the system that governed attributes like Endurance and governance has been eliminated. Now, players are given more flexibility with free Attribute Point distribution. Furthermore, every skill, even minor ones, now plays a role in character development. In essence, it’s less likely for players to end up with a poorly designed character as I did back then.

It seems like I should be happy, given that this Siege of Kvatch was a victory for those who aren’t statistically advanced in the game Oblivion. However, instead of feeling triumphant, I found myself feeling more dissatisfied than with the initial siege. When I observed others celebrating their epic battles of Kvatch online, it became clear that I was yet to master Oblivion’s leveling system adequately.

To grasp the peculiarity of the distinct Kvatches, it’s crucial to recognize a feature about Oblivion’s difficulty adjustment that hasn’t been altered. Unlike simply increasing the toughness of opponents as your character progresses, the types of enemies alter. Consequently, attempting to rescue Kvatch early in the game would encounter weak Scamps, but if you postpone this task until mid- to late-game… Well, I can attest to that personally.

During my second gameplay of Oblivion Remastered, I intentionally delayed visiting Kvatch until I had reached level 36. Let me tell you, it was nothing short of magnificent. The moment I got close, hordes of creatures, each more monstrous than the last, emerged from the Oblivion Gate. Daedroth, Spider Daedra, Storm Atronachs, Xivilai – these were not ordinary beasts but rather formidable demons befitting a disaster of epic proportions.

Indeed, before I earned the title ‘Hero of Kvatch’, I experienced death numerous times, just like the other nearby soldiers (oops!). However, perishing at the hands of Daedric forces offers a unique thrill compared to falling prey to a Scamp. In the original Oblivion, conquering Kvatch at such a high level required intricate level planning in my progression, which is what I appreciate most about the Remastered version – aside from its stunning visual enhancement.

As a gamer, I can tell you that cracking open the finest edition of the Siege of Kvatch isn’t a speedy process – even characters level 20 and above will need some patience. But it’s your call when and how to become the Kvatch Hero. If you’re after an unforgettable adventure, though, you know the drill!

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2025-06-04 16:10