Best Race in The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered

Starting your journey in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered comes with a few big choices, and one of the first before the tutorial and arguably most important is selecting your race in Oblivion Remastered. Every race not only gives your character a different look, but it also impacts starting attributes, special abilities, and how NPCs treat you. Some races are better suited for Mages, some for sneaky Thieves, and others for heavy-hitting Warriors. While there’s technically no “wrong” choice, some races make the early game much better (or tougher) depending on your playstyle. Let’s discuss which races are the best for different builds in Oblivion Remastered.

Best Race for Melee: Nord, Orc, or Redguard

If you love charging into battle swinging a giant sword, you’ll want a race built for melee combat. In The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered, Nords, Orcs, and Redguards are the best races for a heavy playstyle.

• Nords are classic berserkers straight out of icy Skyrim. They have bonuses to Blade, Blunt, Heavy Armor, and Restoration, which means they attack hard, soak up damage, and can patch themselves up after a fight. Plus, they’ve got a natural 50% Frost resistance, which comes in clutch when facing certain Daedric enemies and icy dungeons. Nord’s Woad power also gives them a Shield spell once per day.
• Orcs are slightly stronger than Nords when it comes to surviving brutal battles. Thanks to the “Berserk” ability which boosts Health, Strength, and Fatigue, and good magic resistance, Orcs are true tankies. Orcs have brute force and experts in survival. They get massive bonuses to Heavy Armor, Blunt weapons, and Hand-to-Hand combat. Their Berserk ability is a big “screw you” button: it supercharges Strength and Fatigue for one minute, making you almost unstoppable. Sure, your Agility drops during Berserk, but when you’re smashing down enemies, who needs dodging?
• Redguards might not seem as bulky as Nords or Orcs, but they’re beasts in sustained fights. Their Adrenaline Rush power levels up everything that matters, such as Strength, Endurance, Speed, and even Health, all at once for 60 seconds. Further, Redguards resist Poison and Disease, which means you can wade into dirty ruins and Oblivion gates without worrying about getting sick from gross zombies.

Best pick for pure melee domination is Redguard (Dragontail Mountains Origin), it slightly edges out the others thanks to a great adrenaline-fueled power-up.

Best Race for Magic: Breton or High Elf

Want to blast fireballs or summon minions? Magic users are a big deal in Oblivion, and two races tower above the rest: Bretons and High Elves.

• Bretons are kind of the unsung heroes of Oblivion’s magic system. They might not have the most Magicka compared to a High Elf, but they have something even better — a 50% resistance to magic. That’s right, half the spells that hit you will tickle instead of killing you. Further, these half-elves come with solid boosts in Restoration, Conjuration, and Mysticism, which makes them incredibly well-rounded for both offense and defense. If you’re new to mage builds or want a smooth ride through the game, Breton is the best “no regrets” race pick.
• High Elves (also known as Altmer) are like the glass cannons of Oblivion. They start with +100 Magicka — double most other races — and amazing bonuses to destructive magic schools like Alteration, Destruction, and Mysticism. But they have a 25% weakness to Fire, Frost, and Shock. This makes them very dangerous but fragile. Play a High Elf if you want to nuke enemies before they can touch you. It’s high-risk, high-reward gameplay, but when you’re unleashing massive magical devastation, it feels so good.

Best Race for Stealth: Khajiit or Wood Elf

If your playstyle is sneaking past guards, picking pockets, landing one-hit assassinations, or living in the shadows, stealth-focused races are where you’ll want to live.

• Khajiit are born for stealth in Elder Scrolls. I mean, they’re literal cats. They come packed with bonuses in Sneak, Security (lockpicking), Acrobatics, and Hand-to-Hand combat. If you want to slip into a castle and rob it blind or take down an enemy before they even realize you’re there, Khajiit have the toolkit. Plus, their Night-Eye ability (free permanent night vision) makes exploring dark caves and dungeons much easier with no need for flash. If you love the idea of an acrobatic, quick-moving thief or assassin, Khajiit (especially from the Anequina origin) is perfection at its best.
• Wood Elves, or Bosmer, lean into stealth too, but they bring a bit more ranged flair to the table. They have the highest Marksman bonus of any race and are also great at sneaking around undetected. If you want to channel your inner “stealth archer” and snipe enemies from the shadows, Wood Elves are the clear pick as their natural Disease Resistance also gives them a little more survivability when out in the wilds.

All Races in Oblivion Remastered with Stats and Special Abilities

All Race Origins in Oblivion Remastered

Oblivion Remastered added a twist to character creation that wasn’t in the original game: Origins. It doesn’t change your entire race, but it gives you an extra spice in the form of specific attribute tweaks. Instead of male vs female stat differences which the 2006 version had, now every race has two origin options. These Origins lightly boost or nerf many attributes like Strength, Intelligence, Endurance, etc., and they let you customize your build even further right from the jump.

Let me break it down simply:

• Western Nord = tougher, more endurance = better frontline warrior
• Auridon High Elf = faster, more mobile mage = dodge enemies while spell-slinging
• Systres Breton = smarter, more willpower = defensive mage who can tank magical attacks
• Pellitine Khajiit = stronger melee sneak = better for stealthy assassins who also want to do sturdy damage
• Reaper’s March Wood Elf = tougher stealth sniper = survives more hits if your sneak attack fails

Origins don’t massively shift your build, but they’re kind of customizing a race into your perfect version.

If you know what type of gameplay you want (magic, melee, stealth), picking the right Origin can save you a lot of frustration later on.

Origins are small stat changes but in Oblivion, every little advantage matters, and you feel this clearly when dodging fireballs or barely surviving that boss fight. Some Origins are just flat-out better for their playstyle. For example, a Nord from the Western origin is far more survivable in a melee-focused build than an Eastern Nord. So don’t do random picks here, match your Origin to your build plan.

Which Race is the Best in Oblivion Remastered?

Breton is the all-around best race for beginners and veterans in The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered. Considering pure “best performance in most situations”, the title has to go to the Breton because they are highly adaptable. They offer strong magical resistance, good starting stats, and are flexible enough to become anything you want, including Warrior, Mage, Thief, or a little bit of everything. But you should play what sounds interesting to you.

Bretons have great starting Magic stats, a 50% resistance to magic (which protects you from spells, scrolls, traps, and magical creatures), and a nice bonus to Magicka. Even if you don’t plan to be a full-time mage, those defenses are valuable. Magic is a big threat in Oblivion — from daedra throwing fireballs at you to traps in ancient Ayleid ruins. Even if you don’t like to side with race, the runner-ups worth mentioning are Redguards for pure melee domination (especially for new players who wanna hack and slash) and Khajiit for anyone who loves sneaking, stealing, and playing trickster-style characters in The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered.