This mod is no longer being supported, use Antiquary instead.



OVERVIEW


Relics of Legend is my attempt at improving artifacts which I felt needed improvement. I've tried to balance the power of the artifacts I've changed so that they aren't made irrelevant by Enchanting, nor make the Enchanting skill irrelevant.

==========================


THE GAULDUR AMULET (& FRAGMENTS):


Mikrul's Fragment grants you Gauldur's Strength. (+50 Health, 50% health regen increase, +50 Armor Rating, fortifies warrior skills by 10 points.)

Jyrik's Fragment grants you Gauldur's Wisdom. (+50 Magicka, 50% magicka regen increase, +10% Resist Magic, fortifies mage skills by 10 points.)

Sidgis' Fragment grants Gauldur's Cunning. (+50 Stamina, 50% stamina regen increase, fortifies thief skills by 10 points.)

The reforged amulet grants you Gauldur's Legacy. (Effects of all three fragments combined)

You’re telling me that the amulet that was SO IMPORTANT AND POWERFUL to seal away gives me just an extra 30 points of health, magicka and stamina? No, this thing should actually be worth a damn.


JYRIK'S STAFF

Enchantment is identical to Lightning Bolt staves, but does twice the Magicka damage (Scales with effects increasing staff power)

Charge increased to 2000

Now actually looks like a Destruction staff

Jyrik's Staff is unique, so I felt like it could use a little buff.


NECROMANCER'S AMULET:

+100 Magicka, Conjuration spells cost 35% less, +100 Armor Rating, -100 Health, +100% Health regen, 20% spell absorption

Ah, the Necromancer's Amulet. You know, an artifact made by Mannimarco? Lore says that it protects like plate armor, yet Oblivion and Skyrim both omit any effect of the sort! No mod I've seen improving artifacts has even done anything to make the amulet more lore-friendly (and as consistent as possible to older games), so I took it upon myself to do so. Yes, the amulet lowers your health. Oblivion's version decreased strength and endurance. If you have low health, you will die if you put it on. Not every mortal can handle the power of the King of Worms.



DIADEM OF THE SAVANT:

All spells cost 10% less to cast. +50 Armor Rating.

Now flagged as clothing

The Diadem of the Savant is a unique item associated with Shalidor. I felt it fitting to give it a little buff.



LOCKET OF SAINT JIUB:

Now flagged as clothing

Added +25 Armor Rating effect

This is an oddity, a jewelry item that's considered armor. All I've done is set it as clothing and give it a little armor bonus to make up for it.



HARKON'S SWORD ("VOLKIHAR BLADE")

Base damage increased to 14 (Same as a Daedric Sword)

Now has the Daedric keyword

Absorb all attributes works for non-vampire characters, effect is doubled for vampires

Added 15 points of Frost Damage

Added Soul Trap for 10 seconds

Recharges on kills

Harkon's sword is pretty neat. I wanted to buff it to fit a balance of it being an "early endgame" tier item at best, considering Dawnguard works either before or after finishing the main quest.


ARCHMAGE'S ROBES

Both the hooded and unhooded versions are identical and can be disenchanted

Spell cost reduction increased to 25%, Magicka regeneration increased to 200%


The Archmage's Robes are IMHO some of the best looking robes in the vanilla game. Unfortunately, they're outclassed by Master Robes... And that simply will not do!


STAFF OF MAGNUS

Magicka/Health absorb increased to 40

Now has infinite charge


Why does the staff of magic-eating require recharging?


RELICS OF AHZIDAL

Cuirass weighs 27 points with 45 Armor Rating, everything else weighs 5 points with 19 Armor Rating


Oh right, this set exists. The effects are implemented differently so I wasn't able to change them. Apologies.



RINGS OF BLOOD MAGIC

The Beast:

+100 Health, +20% One-Handed and Two-Handed damage, +100% health regen, +50 armor rating

The Erudite:

+100 Magicka, spells cost 10% less to cast, +100% magicka regen


The Rings of Blood Magic are really nice artifacts, and the Ring of the Erudite has one of the best enchantments for mages. I felt it fitting to give it a bit of a buff and make the Ring of the Beast a warrior-centric counterpart (which goes really nicely with Hevnoraak!).



GHOSTBLADE

Deals 10 pure damage (can't be resisted) and soul traps the target.

The Ghostblade is a really unique weapon. Felt it was deserving of a little buff to make it more than a unique sword you'll never actually use.



THE WHITE PHIAL

"I want to resist the forces of magic." - 50% Magic Resist for 300 seconds.
"I want to be tougher in battle." - +100 Stamina for 300 seconds.
"I want to be better hidden in the shadows." - 50% Fortify Sneak for 300 seconds.
"I want to strengthen my magical skills." - +100 Magicka for 300 seconds.
"I want to deal more damage in battle." - Now gives 50% Two-Handed damage as well.
"I'd like it to have the power of healing." - Completely restores Health, exactly like Ultimate potions.

Ah, the White Phial. A legendary alchemical artifact that pales in comparison to even the best stock potions in vanilla. No more boring, now this is an item worth questing for!



DAEDRIC ARTIFACTS




Mace of Molag Bal:

Damage Magicka/Stamina effects changed to Absorb Magicka/Stamina

Soul Trap duration increased to 10 seconds

Recharges itself when killing enemies


This artifact would be great as it is, except for whatever reason, even though in older games it had Absorb Magicka, vanilla Skyrim has it with… Damage Magicka and Stamina? Why would you ever use this aside from the fact that it looks cool? Also, I made it regain a portion of its charge when killing enemies. This thing will literally eat your soul.


Spellbreaker:

Ward magnitude increased to 200 points

50% ward absorb

Spellbreaker is a really cool shield. Too bad that it provides a ward that’s only 10 points better than Lesser Ward. Let’s make it significantly stronger. I gave it a natural ward absorption, for those people who like wards but don't want to invest in Restoration. Really good for spellswords!


Dawnbreaker:

Fire damage increased to 35 points

Base damage increased to 14 (same as a Daedric Sword)

Can actually benefit from Daedric Smithing (USSEP for some reason doesn't include this fix?)


Dawnbreaker is a nice sword. Shame that I can make something better with like level 40 Enchanting.



The Rueful Axe:

Damage doubled to 44 (50% extra on crit)

Now counts as silver (dealing extra damage to werewolves and the undead)

Now tagged as a Daedric Artifact

I've never used this artifact in vanilla. Someone told me that it was really slow, so I buffed its damage to compensate. I also gave it the same abilities as silver weapons and tagged it as a Daedric Artifact.



Volendrung:

Speed reduced to 0.35

Damage increased to 65 (doubled on crit)

Absorb Stamina increased to 80


MASSIVE. FUCK YOU. HAMMER. Need I say more?


Skull of Corruption:

Absorbs 100 points of Health when sated with dreams; absorbs 35 points otherwise.

Oh god, this thing sucks, buff it hard!


Ebony Mail:

75% Fire Resist, 20% Magic Resist, +50 Armor Rating.

This is probably a controversial change but I don't like stealth buffs on a heavy armor piece. The poison cloak is also annoying and buggy. I literally just lifted the Ebony Mail's effect from Morrowind, because I honestly like that better.




DRAGON PRIEST MASKS


Hevnoraak:

One-handed and two-handed weapons deal 30% more damage, Health increased by 50, +200% health regen

When I think “Brutal” I definitely don’t think of fucking disease and poison immunity.


Morokei:

Changed to clothing with an effect that grants +25 Armor Rating

+200% magicka regen, 20% Fortify Shouts

This mask is pretty good already. If you’re using the Unofficial Patch (and I assume that you are, because why would you not?), it actually gives Morokei its intended unique enchantment! Which is the same as it is in vanilla but with 20% shout cooldown reduction. Not bad, but being armor makes it screw with the Mage Armor perk, but to compensate I added 25 armor rating. I also gave it the unique effect of the Ring of the Erudite. Non-vampires need love.


Nahkriin:

+50 Magicka, all spells cost 20% less to cast.

Changed to clothing with an effect that grants +25 Armor Rating.


Nahkriin is a really good mask, and I often find myself using it with the Arch-Mage’s Robes. It’s armor though… So I fixed that and gave it Vokun’s old effects as well. Now it’s a savory alternative mage mask to Morokei, with the same 25 armor rating.



Vokun:

Changed to light armor

Sneaking is 20% better, lockpicking is 20% better, pickpocketing is 20% better. Muffles movement.


For a mask with the name of “Shadow” it sure isn’t related to stealth at all.

(Shadow Spell Package patch changes Vokun to clothing with an effect that buffs Shadow spells by 50%.)


Krosis:

Added 20% Fortify Sneak and Muffle

Krosis is a nice mask for any assassin, so I felt like giving it some extra assassin-assisting effects.


Volsung:

Added 20% Fortify Conjuration and Illusion

Uhh... Honestly I had no idea how to improve this mask. It's very niche, but its name means "Horror" so I figured I'd make it buff Conjuration and Illusion spells. That feels "horror" right?


Otar:

Individual elemental resistances switched out for single 30% magic resistance

Added 100% disease and poison resistance

+50 Armor Rating and Health

I've always felt Otar is a "tank" mask given the theme of resistances, so I focused on increasing resistances. The individual elemental resistances didn't really make sense over a single magic resistance so I combined them into one. Also gave it disease and poison immunity because why not? Extra armor rating and health also makes you harder to kill. Now it makes sense that the ancient Nords could only seal Otar away and not kill him!


Rahgot:

+50 Stamina, +200% stamina regen, 20% Fortify Shouts


...So I just went through all of that for a mask with +70 stamina, which I could make myself, with my own helmet, and probably enchant it better? The name’s pretty accurate, this mask makes me rage in vanilla because of how useless it is!


Konahrik:

The tusked mask grants you Konahrik’s Privilege, which aids you when your health is low. It increases your Health, Magicka, and Stamina by 100 points, regenerating them 300% faster, and grants you the ability to summon a spectral Dragon Priest. In addition, it also provides 25% spell absorption and 35% shout cooldown reduction.

Can be turned into light armor or clothing (+100 armor rating effect) at the forge. Requires Daedric Smithing.


Konahrik is an awesome piece of headgear. Did you know that it’s got a higher armor rating than the Daedric Helmet? The vanilla effect is actually really unique so I kept it, but added a little something extra to entice you to actually wear it once you’ve turned in all your other masks. Oh, and I made it give the player the unused Conjure Dragon Priest spell. You're welcome.


Acolyte Masks (Ahzidal/Dukaan/Zahkriisos):


Changed to clothing with an effect that grants +35 Armor Rating


The acolyte masks have very unique enchantments, so I left them intact. They benefit mages, though, so they're clothing now! You're welcome.


MIRAAK SET


All versions of the effects are identical, the only difference between levels is damage on the sword and armor rating on the mask. Those values are unchanged from vanilla. An optional file is available that unlevels Miraak and his gear.


Mask: +150 Magicka, 30% Fortify Shouts. Adds 10% spell absorption to Miraak’s Robes. All versions of the mask can be turned into clothing (+50 armor rating effect) at the forge. Requires Daedric Smithing.

Robes: All spells cost 35% less to cast. Magicka regenerates 300% faster. Absorb 15% of all magic, with a chance to spawn a tentacle explosion on hit. +150 Armor Rating.

Gloves: One-handed weapons deal 25% more damage. Adds 5% spell absorption to Miraak’s Robes. +75 Health, Stamina, Carry Weight, and Armor Rating. Can be turned into light or heavy armor at the forge. Requires Daedric Smithing.

Boots: One-handed weapons deal 25% more damage. Adds 5% spell absorption to Miraak’s Robes. +75 Health, Stamina, Carry Weight, and Armor Rating. Can be turned into light or heavy armor at the forge. Requires Daedric Smithing.

Sword: Absorbs 35 points of Health, Magicka, and Stamina. Traps the soul of slain enemies, devouring their souls to restore lost charge.

Staff: Damage increased to 50.


The legendary First Dragonborn, and his equipment is… meh. It looks awesome but the enchantments are kind of boring. The mask suffers from Rahgot Syndrome in vanilla, so BE GONE GENERIC ENCHANTMENT. The spell absorption is unique so I kept it, and added it to the mask too, for flavor purposes. I added bonus one-handed damage to the gloves and boots (hey, he has a sword that he uses, so...) I also added a bonus armor rating effect to the robes, gloves, and boots, since the unofficial patch makes the latter two clothing, to make up for the fact that wearing the mask (which is armor) screws up the Mage Armor perk. In the end, you get the same protection as you would with Ebonyflesh at Rank 3 of that perk, with the little bit extra from the mask. The sword suffered from Rahgot Syndrome in vanilla as well (the enchantment is literally the same as Absorb Stamina from the base game, but with an added tentacle effect, which I've kept), but I made it an enticing alternative to Harkon’s Sword that non-vampires can make full use out of. The staff has a unique effect, so I thought the only change needed was to increase its damage.

Fun fact, did you know that the robes and mask Miraak actually uses aren't the ones that he drops? Me neither, until someone pointed it out. So now Miraak actually benefits from the new enchantments of his gear! That should make him more of a challenge.



FAQ

See this article.

COMPATIBILITY

See this article.


FOR CONSOLE USERS

Ports of the mod exist for consoles. Xbox version can be found here. PS4 version can be found here.