Say you get attacked and hit the block button right when the attack hits. It would be nice if this type of precision was rewarded with stunning the enemy or making the enemy drop its weapon. Will there be these kinds of reaction-based elements in combat or will be strictly stat based again?

...You manage a deft swing that catches your opponent off-guard, and blood blossoms across his midsection. Undaunted, he rears back for a powerful slam, hoping to overpower your guard. You take the moment to bash forward with your shield, sending him staggering. By now, his companion is almost upon you. Abandoning your shield, you turn towards the new opponent as a whirling current of ice ignites within your palm. You fling the spell into your foe's path.

- GI

Now if that's artistic license (much of GI's descriptions are hyperbolic), I don't know, but it seems to suggest at the very least a shield bashing maneuver. So, combat seems to act more like Oblivion and less like Morrowind.

- GI

Now if that's artistic license (much of GI's descriptions are hyperbolic), I don't know, but it seems to suggest at the very least a shield bashing maneuver. So, combat seems to act more like Oblivion and less like Morrowind.

You're walking through a seedy part of a town in Western Cyrodiil. People mill about, some engaged in conversation, others minding their own business, out on their own errands. Suddenly, an ugly man decides he doesn't like you. Maybe he's drunk, maybe he's just a bully, maybe he's just showing off in front of his friends -- but for whatever reason, he has taken your measure and decided he can best you....