Oblivion:Blunt

Skill: Blunt
Governing Attribute: Strength
Specialization: Combat

Blunt is the skill that governs how well your character can use crushing weapons, such as maces, hammers, and axes. Improving your blunt skill allows you to deliver more damage with crushing weapons, and gives you access to power attacks.

The name is a bit of a misnomer, as a large amount of the most useful and most commonly encountered Blunt weapons are blades (axes) or at least sharp (maces with spikes). For this reason, it is much more useful to think of 'Blunt' weapons as hafted weapons, which is a term used to describe weapons which attach the business end to a clublike stick. It is worth noting that although axes and maces are both sharp, they depend on their weight to cause damage. Categories listing all of the blunt weapons in the game are available at Blunts One Hand and Blunts Two Hand.

Mastery

Mastery Perks

• A Novice does a basic power attack with a damage bonus (2.5 times more damage) in all directions.
• An Apprentice gains damage bonuses with a Mastery Standing Power Attack (3 times more damage).
• A Journeyman gains the Mastery Left and Right Power Attacks, which both do 2.5 times more damage and have a 5% chance to disarm.
• An Expert gains a Mastery Backwards Power Attack, which does 2.5 times more damage and has a 5% chance of a knockdown.
• A Master gains a Mastery Forward Power Attack, which does 2.5 times more damage with a 5% chance to paralyze. This Paralyze effect ignores Resist Paralysis.

Skill Benefits

Your blunt skill controls how much damage you do with a blunt weapon, according to the following formula:

 Damage = BaseWeaponDamage * 0.5 * ( 0.75 + Strength * 0.005 ) * ( 0.2 + BluntSkill * 0.015 )

The Damage value is the amount of damage you will see listed for a given weapon in your inventory. See also Damage Calculations and The Complete Damage Formula for more information on weapon damage.

Skill Increases

Your Blunt skill increases by 0.5 experience points each time you hit a living target with a Blunt weapon, regardless of the amount of damage inflicted. Hits on inanimate targets (such as those in the Fighters Guild training rooms) do not provide any experience.

General tips on how to increase your Blunt skill are provided at General Combat Strategies.

See also:

• Increasing Skills: General tips on how to improve your skills semi-naturally.
• Trainers: Pay for Blunt lessons.
• Blunt Training: A Master in blunt skills needs to know sufficient bloodthirst to receive her training.
• Skill Books: Books that provide lessons in Blunt.
• Increasing Attributes: Tips on training skills to improve the Strength attribute.
• Free Skill Boosts: Unlike Blade, there is only one free Blunt skill boost, a 10-point boost from reading the Oghma Infinium.
• Magic Items: There are multiple generic items with the Fortify Blunt enchantment.
• Unique Items: A list of unique Blunt weapons, as well as several unique items that fortify the Blunt skill. These do not include Leveled Items such as those received from quests, or Artifacts.

Unique items include:

• Aegis of the Apocalypse is a unique heavy cuirass that can be bought from Varnado at The Best Defense. Amongst other enchantments, it fortifies Blunt by 5 points.
• Helm of Ferocity is a unique heavy helm that can be bought from Agnete the Pickled at the Hammer and Tongs. Amongst other enchantments, it fortifies Blunt by 5 points.

Dialogue

When your skill reaches 70 or higher, NPCs will start saying: "You look like you've swung a mace or two in your time."

Character Creation

The following races provide initial skill bonuses in blunt:

• +5 bonus: Dunmer, Imperial
• +10 bonus: Nord, Orc, Redguard

The following standard classes include blunt as a major skill:

• Archer, Barbarian, Battlemage, Crusader, Knight, Pilgrim, Warrior

Power Attacks

• To perform a power attack, you can hold the direction you want to move in and hold the attack key until the move is performed, or with careful timing it is possible to hold the attack button and click the direction a split second later.
• You can also hold block and perform the power attack while holding block. This also helps to reduce your movement (as you always walk when blocking) making it easier to stay within reach of your enemy, especially with the backwards power attack.
• Power attacks cost five times the amount of fatigue as a normal attack. Restore Fatigue potions can be used to restore fatigue if necessary.
• For maximum effect, try to "chain" power attacks and other effects to make maximum use of them. For example: After a knockdown close quickly and get in as many hits as you can while your enemy is down. They will be quite vulnerable in this time, and unable to block, dodge, etc.
• The "disarm" style is useful, but note that you will need to pick-up the opponent's weapon (and any nearby weapons on the ground from other fallen opponents or just incidental weapons that happen to be lying around). Otherwise, a disarmed opponent will rearm himself if any weapon is available nearby. Disarming an opponent only to watch them run to a nearby weapon rack can be disconcerting, if humorous. Throwing the weapon far, far away with a Telekinesis spell is useful for keeping disarmed enemies vulnerable as well.
• The backwards power attack "knockdown" is powerful, but sometimes can result in being out of range by the time the attack activates. You can stay in range easier by practicing holding block, or by backing into a corner.
• The "charge" (forward power attack) can be useful for attacking enemies that continually retreat, especially if using a shorter range weapon.
• Power attacks and close quarters combat, especially with multiple opponents, is sometimes easier to observe and perform by momentarily switching to the third person perspective.

Messages

The following table provides the messages that are displayed when your Blunt skill levels up.

Level	Message
Apprentice	You have lumps and bruises from long practice sessions with all kinds of maces and axes. You are now an Apprentice with Blunt weapons. You now have the Standing power attack, which does extra damage. Press and hold the attack button to use this power attack.
Journeyman	You have lumps and bruises from long practice sessions with all kinds of maces and axes. You are now a Journeyman with Blunt weapons. Your Sidestep power attack now has a chance to disarm your opponent. Press and hold Attack while moving left or right to use this power attack.
Expert	You have lumps and bruises from long practice sessions with all kinds of maces and axes. You are now an Expert with Blunt weapons. Your Sweeping power attack now has a chance to knock down your opponent. Press and hold Attack while moving backward to use this power attack.
Master	You have lumps and bruises from long practice sessions with all kinds of maces and axes. You are now a Master with Blunt weapons. Your Rushing power attack now has a chance to paralyze your opponent. Press and hold Attack while moving forward to use this power attack.

Notes

• The blunt weapons aren't very fast. However, compared to blades of the same quality, they do more damage.

• Fatigue has huge impact on damage applied, as explained at The Complete Damage Formula.

• You can poison your weapon for extra damage for the next hit. The poison (unlike with bows) remains on the weapon until it hits someone - you can miss safely.

• Some enemies are immune to normal weapons; see Resist Normal Weapons for tips on how to damage these creatures.

• If you visit the Warrior birthsign doomstone you can receive the greater power War cry. One of several benefits of this power is that it fortifies your blunt skill 10 points once a day for 120 seconds.

• Once your renown reaches 30, you can also visit the Jode heaven doomstone to receive the greater power Jode's Blood. One of several benefits of this power is that it fortifies your blunt skill 20 points once a day for 120 seconds.