Oblivion Remastered: 5 things to do first after you beat the tutorial dungeon

Essential early-game strategies and expert tips for maximizing your Oblivion Remastered experience after the tutorial

Strategic Save Management for Character Build Flexibility

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Essential early-game decisions in Oblivion Remastered require strategic save management (Image via Bethesda Softworks)

Emerging from the tutorial dungeon in Oblivion Remastered marks a critical juncture where your initial character choices face their first real test. Many players discover their carefully planned Attributes and Birthsign selections don’t perform as expected in Cyrodiil’s open world. This realization often hits within the first hour of exploration.

Proactive save management provides crucial insurance against early-game regrets. Create multiple manual saves before exiting the tutorial area, labeling them clearly for easy identification. This practice allows you to experiment with different character specializations without losing progress. Consider testing builds like Stealth Archer, Battlemage, or Pure Mage to determine what suits your playstyle before committing.

Common Mistake Alert: Many players rely solely on autosaves, which get overwritten quickly. Maintain at least three rotating manual saves to preserve different character development paths. This approach saves hours of replay time if you decide your initial build isn’t working.

Securing Essential Early Game Assets and Housing

Financial constraints shouldn’t force your character into homelessness. While Imperial City offers luxurious purchasable estates, Dunbarrow Cove provides immediate free accommodation perfect for new adventurers. This coastal hideout serves as an excellent base for storing loot and provides access to merchants who sell essential spells.

Weapon acquisition represents another critical early-game priority. Among Cyrodiil’s arsenal, Chillrend stands out as a top-tier enchanted blade obtainable through The Killing Field quest. This glass sword delivers substantial frost damage that slows enemy movement, providing tactical advantages in difficult encounters.

Pro Tip: Before pursuing Chillrend, ensure your character meets the recommended level 10 requirement for optimal weapon stats. The quest becomes accessible after establishing your reputation in the Imperial City and requires careful navigation of specific location parameters.

Early housing provides more than just shelter—it offers secure storage for unique items, alchemy ingredients, and equipment sets you’ll accumulate. Dunbarrow Cove’s upgrade system eventually unlocks additional vendor services and storage capacity as you progress through associated questlines.

Transportation Solutions: Acquiring Your First Mount

While fast-travel provides convenience, nothing compares to exploring Cyrodiil’s landscapes on horseback. Two primary options exist for obtaining free mounts early: Prior Marobel’s Horse through simple retrieval quests or Shadowmere via Dark Brotherhood initiation.

Shadowmere represents the superior long-term investment despite requiring deeper faction commitment. This supernatural steed possesses immortality—when health depletes, it enters temporary unconsciousness rather than permanent death. This eliminates the frustration and expense of repeatedly replacing killed horses throughout your adventure.

Strategic Consideration: The Dark Brotherhood questline offers substantial rewards beyond Shadowmere, including unique armor sets and weapons. However, it requires committing morally questionable acts that may conflict with certain character roleplaying concepts. Prior Marobel’s Horse provides an immediate, morally neutral alternative for players avoiding dark faction alignments.

Mount ownership transforms exploration, allowing faster overland travel while discovering hidden locations and random encounters missed during fast-travel. The equestrian perspective also provides tactical advantages in wilderness combat situations.

Advanced Character Development: Vampirism Transformation

For players seeking unconventional character development, vampirism offers unique gameplay mechanics and statistical advantages. The transformation process begins at Barren Cave east of Imperial City along the Cheydinhal road, where Vampire Knights can infect your character through combat.

Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to defeat these creatures—simply sustain a few hits to contract Porphyric Hemophilia. After three in-game days, this disease progresses to full vampirism, granting enhanced strength, stealth capabilities, and special abilities while introducing sunlight vulnerability and blood dependency.

Critical Warning: Vampirism carries significant gameplay consequences. Sunlight exposure progressively weakens vampires, necessitating careful travel timing or constant use of protective gear. Feeding becomes mandatory to manage visibility and maintain power levels—failure results in escalating penalties and NPC hostility.

Unlike later Elder Scrolls titles, Oblivion Remastered doesn’t include lycanthropy options. Vampirism remains the sole supernatural transformation, making it particularly valuable for players wanting to explore the game’s darker character development paths. The condition provides access to unique dialogue options and faction interactions throughout Cyrodiil.

Strategic Progression and Long-Term Planning

While these five priorities provide excellent starting direction, Oblivion Remastered ultimately rewards player agency and exploration. The game’s open structure allows countless progression paths beyond conventional questing—from alchemy experimentation to faction advancement or pure exploration.

Advanced players should consider skill specialization early, focusing on three primary skills that complement their chosen character archetype. Efficient leveling requires understanding the attribute system and planning skill increases to maximize attribute bonuses at each level-up.

Remember that console commands and gameplay modifications exist for players wanting to customize their experience beyond vanilla parameters. These tools allow adjustment of difficulty, accessibility features, or roleplaying elements to match personal preferences.

The most successful Oblivion players combine structured goal-setting with spontaneous discovery. Balance following these essential early-game steps with exploring unexpected opportunities that make each playthrough uniquely memorable.

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