The high elf starts out with extra magicka which is nice at the start. Still, I think it's best to play what you want. It really won't matter in the end. I think Alt magic school has some magic blocking perks that you might want to look into as well.
So confused on whether to be a Breton or an Altmer. Why would I choose one over the other?
Altmer seems cool because I can have MORE magicka and regenerate magicka more quickly. Awesome!
However!!!
Breton can block 50% of magic. Very useful against Dragons Fire. And since Mages are known to have low to NO armor, this racial is beneficial.
Either is good in my opinion. Although, I am more inclined on using Bretons. About armor, you could wear heavy armor in Skyrim without any negative effect. The only reason you would want to wear robes is for the enchantments that they have.
I am playing the traditionally most horrible racial choice for a mage, the Khajiit, on master difficulty.
I am having absolutely no problem playing a mage, and I never ever utilize claw attacks nor night vision.
Forget about racial perks completely, and pick the race you want based on their lore and the backstory you want. Even at its hardest the racial perks do not matter much in the end. The fabled altmer mage's racial traits are a glorified mana potion, and I made potions stronger than that at level 30.
I am playing the traditionally most horrible racial choice for a mage, the Khajiit, on master difficulty.
I am having absolutely no problem playing a mage, and I never ever utilize claw attacks nor night vision.
Forget about racial perks completely, and pick the race you want based on their lore and the backstory you want. Even at its hardest the racial perks do not matter much in the end. The fabled altmer mage's racial traits are a glorified mana potion, and I made potions stronger than that at level 30.
Not going to play on "lore". LOL That to me would be silly. I'm here to play a game and get the most out of it.
As for potions, that would require alchemy. A craft aka a "working job". Not going to do that. I'm here to "play". Crafting is tedious and boring.
Play whatever you want. Statistically, Bretons, Altmer, and Dunmer have the best starting stats for a mage I believe. But any race can do equally well after the first 5 levels. I'd say play whatever you think looks best, it doesn't really matter in the end. I'm a Breton on master difficulty, and I almost never really need to use my racial ability with all of the alteration spells I can use as well. If you're going for racial ability, I'd say go imperial since that racial, unlike all of the others, cannot be duplicated with a spell effect.
I am playing the traditionally most horrible racial choice for a mage, the Khajiit, on master difficulty.
I am having absolutely no problem playing a mage, and I never ever utilize claw attacks nor night vision.
Forget about racial perks completely, and pick the race you want based on their lore and the backstory you want. Even at its hardest the racial perks do not matter much in the end. The fabled altmer mage's racial traits are a glorified mana potion, and I made potions stronger than that at level 30.
Khajiit mages FTW!
Racial perks are overrated play the race you like the most and see most fitting for a mage character.
Not going to play on "lore". LOL That to me would be silly. I'm here to play a game and get the most out of it.
As for potions, that would require alchemy. A craft aka a "working job". Not going to do that. I'm here to "play". Crafting is tedious and boring.
^^^^^ Bethesda's target audience :sadvaultboy:
I would choose Breton. You can eventually enchant your armor to mitigate the cost of spells, which makes the Altmer's magicka bonus a bit useless late game. Enemy mages can put a beating on a low health character, so the Breton's magicka resist is useful throughout the game.
Altmers have a better early game and Bretons have a better mid and late game. That is about all there is to it.
As the above said Altmers racial bonuses become redundant as soon as you get Enchanted gear whereas Bretons 60 second spell immunity and 25% passive resistance is always helpful.
I am playing the traditionally most horrible racial choice for a mage, the Khajiit, on master difficulty.
I am having absolutely no problem playing a mage, and I never ever utilize claw attacks nor night vision.
Forget about racial perks completely, and pick the race you want based on their lore and the backstory you want. Even at its hardest the racial perks do not matter much in the end. The fabled altmer mage's racial traits are a glorified mana potion, and I made potions stronger than that at level 30.
Heh. My High Elf Assassin/Thief is cheering you on :ninja:
Edit: To answer the OP - make one of each, play both for an hour, then stick with the one you enjoy the most.
Bretons actually only have 25% resist magicka this time around.
Yes, Beth needs to fix either the ingame stat or the loading screen image that states 50%.
I prefer Bretons of all the ingame races, but I need my shoujo race mod to really play my characters, or my own custom Faeries & Angels mod. But Bretons are awesome pure mages, espeecially in this game, due to their innate magic resistance.
Keep in mind, though, that both Armor Rating and Magic Resistance are capped at 85% in Skyrim.
Bretons actually only have 25% resist magicka this time around.
Yep.
Since you're not playing for lore - and good for you - you should pick the Altmer. Sorry, but the 50 Magicka bonus cannot be beat. It's like being 5 levels above everyone else, always. Plus the Highborn skill is one of the very few racial active abilities that are actually useful.
Yeah, Bretons get 25% magic res, but magic res maxes out at 80% I believe and Lord Stone + 3x Magic Resistance perk(from Alteration tree) + Agent of Mara ability(from a quest) = 70% magic resistance without any equipment, so you're not missing out much as a different race.
Would a Nord Mage svck? Why Nord? Because they can cause enemies to flee. Thus helping enemies to back off the caster. Kind of like having a 2nd go at "unrelentless shout".
I am playing the traditionally most horrible racial choice for a mage, the Khajiit, on master difficulty.
I am having absolutely no problem playing a mage, and I never ever utilize claw attacks nor night vision.
Forget about racial perks completely, and pick the race you want based on their lore and the backstory you want. Even at its hardest the racial perks do not matter much in the end. The fabled altmer mage's racial traits are a glorified mana potion, and I made potions stronger than that at level 30.
Leave it to a filthy cat to malign the superiority of the high elves.
JK.
That is one of the coolest things about this game. So many options. So much to do and so little time.