Or you could just dual-cast Firebolt/Fireball at him until he dies.

Just because you have 100 Destruction Skill doesn't mean the only spell you are suppose to use are the "Master" spells.

With really good minus destruction cost enchantments, you can dual-cast incinerate all day long.

I know its hard, but a little more thought that than "Rush in and cast biggest BOOM" might help you survival a little.

Defense shouldn't be considered because ANYBODY can wear armor. If I wanted to I can fling spells from a distance and have the best armor ever! Difference is - your sword will still kill the enemy before my spell does. And for the life of me, I still cannot understand why this is even an issue for anyone in a single player game? Don't like it? No one would be forcing you to use it.

As for defense, yeah. You can wear anything from robes to Daedric armor and everything in between and be a mage.

I do understand the complaints with spell damage, like you might still want to use flames at a high level but it becomes far too weak.

Destruction does need to be fixed... but don't forget what we gained in destruction!

Constants
Runes
Cloak spells
Wall spells

SHHH THEY'LL HEAR YOU! You cannot speak of added features, you can only complain about missing ones!

Well, you guys wants to bring up destruction so that it becomes possible, easy maybe, on master.
I want to improve difficulty on everything else, especially on higher levels, to make the game more enjoyable to those who like a challenge, maybe some of us even enjoy what some refer to as "tedious".

Dear Bethesda: I plea to you - Don't listen to destruction fanatics, even if you touch magic as a whole (if that is out of whack). Instead bring down the easiness of going dagger/archer crazy (as single skill, according to some here) on the highest difficulty so those of us who "plays the game" still have a challenge. This feels fine to me (near impossible) on lower levels, but become far too easy far too early. I'm only lvl 53, in what, 280 or so hours? outrageous.

So, don't adjust what is already hard. Adjust what is already easy.

Reduce stagger chance to 50% (mod does this, it owns)
Reduce destruction spell costs so that people stop telling me to "use enchanting or go home"
Scale spells or give new ranks of cloaks, walls, flames, and rune which should scale the DPM up to expert spells.
Drastically reduce master spell magicka cost and cast time. Reduce damage to compensate. Give them all 1hand versions.

fixed. this doesn't make things easier, it just gives you more options for enchanting and actual combat.

IN THE NAME OF AKATOSH! STAY YOUR TONGUE AND QUIT WHINING!

Here's the thing that makes it obvious that destruction svcks. It's not that destruction needs the other schools to support it, it's that a pure mage would be more powerful WITHOUT EVEN BOTHERING WITH DESTRUCTION.

You argue that a destruction mage needs to use summons, and paralyze, and illusion. I argue if you have summons, paralyze, and illusion then why bother with destruction at all when your useful magic schools could be even more powerful without wasting perks in a weak school. If you absolutely need direct damage, you're better off using archery or one handed.

Good points, and don't get me wrong: I agree that destruction is completely gimped in its current form. But even just picking up some random enchanted weapon is not the end all; that enchantment has to be maintained with soul gems and the base damage of even daedric weapons will only go so far once you get higher level.

They ought to add in some sort of mageblade that allows you to cast while wielding that also boosts a particular school of magic, or add in a weapon enchant that does the same and allow you to receive the benefit while not actually wielding the weapon (many MMOs go this route to help balance the melee/caster weapon scaling issue.)

Of course it should be considered. It's a major part of the fighting and survivability equation. If a mage wears armor he probably sacrifices something in order to get that (armor is just about worthless without the perks).

As for single player game, I don't understand why you can't simply lower the difficulty when you want to play as a gimped character by playing something "pure". Without any other perks, a fighter would be dead before he could even get close to his targets, while you guys can fire away from a distance. At low levels, we have to manage stamina because our weapons don't do any damage at all without power attacks. It took me a significant amount of reloads to clear out a room of several death lords plus their helpers. Frustrating and "tedious" as hell, but that's part of my enjoyment.

But now, at high levels, that challenge, and thus much of the fun, is gone. You guys still have it if you want to. We fighters have to nerf our gaming and not utilize what the game has to offer in order to achieve that. Why the hell would you envy us for getting it easy? All I can do now is wait for hardcoe mods to show up to put the challenge back in the game, while still being able to use what the game has to offer.

Why should it be considered? A player using destruction as damage can wear armor and go into the various armor trees while a warrior with swords can go pick up the various mage survivability perks as well. All defense options are available to all players, so it can essentially be considered a non-issue. The problem is, a destruction user with any combination of those skills will always lose to a 1h/2h/archery user with the same combination of those skills. That's where the problem is.

Not true, without mana a mage doesn't do any damage, without stamina a sword still does damage. Therein like the problem I've said. For melee weapons or arrows do MORE damage AND do damage without any "energy" cost at all is why pure magic is at a serious disadvantage.

That still doesn't make sense, because Destruction can do AOE with single casts, sustained AOE damage with spells and trap type damage with runes. I'm not sure if some effects can be layered, like cloak + wall of flames + lightning storm, which would be something like 200 dps, some of that AOE. Plus whatever lingering damage the fire effects have. Plus stagger. Throw in a 75 damage rune next to you as well.

...and then people would still want a bonus because warriors can still swing a sword without stamina, while mages need mana to cast... ugh. No, I don't see any need for Destruction to be as hideously OP as the other playstyles, especially considering the additional DPS offered by summons and other effects like paralyze--even though.. I. Do. Not. Use. Summons. And everything is just fine for me.

thats why I am a battle-mage - Destruction is now 100 and it RAYPS - but took a long time to get there.

O__________________________O

Except without scaling, adept level aoe spells hit for next to nothing once you level up higher and encounter the hardest enemies in the game, and the sustained aoe of master spells is laughable given the cast time and the fact that they are master spells, not apprentice or anything like that. Runes hit for pitiful damage as well.

All because of non-scaling damage. A world of possibilities (compared to what we have now), gone.

I play pure mage on master. Conjure dremora lords, then watch as they 2 hit everything. Pure mage doesn't svck. Pure destruction svcks, just like going any pure would.

No, it doesn't do useful damage without power attacks (at low levels before fancy weapons are obtained), and we are out of options (can't run away) when cornered/surrounded. You probably didn't spend that stamina and could try to evade.

You may be at a disadvantage as a pure destruction mage, but according to others here, not at all when you start mixing things smartly. Also, remember I said being at a disadvantage is for you actually an advantage, at least you have the option to make the game harder if you want. We're still out of luck.

Also, some complain being one shotted by archers as a pure destruction mage not wearing armor.
We're getting one shotted by mages if not actively protecting ourselves against it. I don't see the difference.

Pure any-damage-type-but-destruction + all appropriate perks = strong.
Pure destruction + all appropriate perks = weak.

Conjuration is another damage type btw. One that is still superior to destruction.

I'd like to see Master-tier AOE spells for sure, along with one or two Master-tier perks that enhance damage to 75/100. But very, very few enemies really need that much DPS, and everything else would be even more laughably easy than they are already.

Actually, I'd be happy with just 500 damage runes.

You mean using (in my opinion) stupid exploits/mechanics to try and get around a broken Destruction system. I downloaded a mod that will do it properly (Closer to at least.) for my play style than cheap tactics. (Even if they are in the game, from the developer, doesn't mean they are not cheap.)

I'm going to have to agree to disagree with you folks. I'm not going to change my mind and I am right as far as I am concerned, and the same can be said for most here I would assume.

Destruction in it's current state is broken/sub-par, and nothing will change my mind.

P.S.



At least it does some damage, no mana, 0 damage spells.

Destruction is close to useless, it's simple math. Let's compare 1H dmg with destruction dmg:


Destruction dmg:
- 2 updates in the perk tree for each element offering 50% dmg increase
- higher dmg spells negated to a high degree by higher mana costs and casting time
= 100% dmg increase from lvl 1 to lvl 50+ at best

1H dmg:
- 5 updates in the perk tree offering up to 100% dmg increase
- increasing weapon dmg with higher tier weapons (up to ~100% dmg increase ?)
- smithing up to 200% dmg increase?
- 1h dmg enchantments (up to 80% dmg increase?)
= ~ 500% dmg increase between lvl 1 and 50 (2h weapons and bows pretty much the same)

Balancing is something else.

Conjuration somehow seems inherently overpowered - if this game were more challenging, I'd consider it a must-have skill for any combat discipline, the way smithing and enchanting are now. I'd sort of like to see it have a negative effect on your combat skills - maybe 30% less damage or a 30% onehanded/twohanded/destruction/archery skill level penalty for each summoned minion, reduced slightly by high level conjuration perks.

Blasting things 20 feet away from you and off cliffs, summoning your own weapons, enchanting your items to make you more powerful, being the faceless man (For me when I put on the Merokei face mask) for a little while, and the best part...Summoning/bringing creatures back from the dead to fight for you while you just sit back in relax? I think being a pure mage is AWESOME! Though I am training in one-handed.

Edit: AND scaring people off with a fear spell, or calming them to attack them, or furying them to attack their buddys...Yeah being a mage is awesome. Gotta love manipulating people into doing your work for you.