For the longest time, I went with custom classes in Oblivion. But after I started getting mods that provided an unleveled world, like OOO, I realized that I no longer needed to worry about carefully choosing my major skills, or about levelling up too slowly or too quickly. Then I took another look at the premade classes.

Like it or not, choosing one of those classes is the only way to get some flavor text into your game, or to see some of that artwork. I find it such a nice touch.

Just made a 'Pilgrim' for the first time today. Imperial, with the Lady birthsign. Love the description: "Hearty folk, well-versed in tomes of old." Stealth specialization, Endurance and Personality favored attributes, with Light Armor, Security, Speechcraft, Mercantile, Block, Blunt, and Armorer as major skills. It's kind of a crazy combo, but after some thought I decided, "Cool! A sort of cleric/rogue, with no spellcasting." Having to do a little bit of mental work to make something out of the concept is an interesting exercise. It's not a combination of skills I would have put together on my own, ever. But I'm imagining this guy as a devout, roguish type, whose goal is to visit all the shrines of the Divines in Cyrodiil - and unearth some treasures along the way. Probably no guild questlines and no main quest, but lots of exploration, reading, and collecting books.

Or look at the Acrobat, another Stealth-specialized class, with Agility and Endurance as favored attributes. No armor skill, but Block, Blade, Acrobatics, Speechcraft, Sneak, Security, and Marksman. Solid, right?

Someday I'll go with the Healer class. Magic specialization, with Personality and Willpower as favored attributes. Major skills are Alchemy, Alteration, Destruction, Illusion, Mercantile, Restoration, and Speechcraft. I can already see the concept - a cultivated, canny apothecary whose knowledge of the body can be used to heal or harm.

Custom classes are great when you have a specific concept in mind. But sometimes, creativity means looking at the hand you're dealt and telling your own story with the materials at hand.

Anyone else have good experiences with the premade classes?