The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Dawnguard DLC Preview

Eurogamer is offering a preview for Skyrim’s first DLC Dawnguard, based on some hands-on time with a demo of it at E3. Judging by what they have to say, it sounds like we’re going to get something pretty meaty (10-20 hours of gameplay are promised):

A Vampire Lord is different to a vampire in the normal Skyrim game. You shape-shift to become a Vampire Lord, a bit like becoming a Werewolf, and you can Revert Form if and when you like. A Vampire Lord has two arms and two bony wings that have sprouted from its gnarled and twisted back. It’s a devilishly cool look. The Vampire Lord is primarily a caster, similar to how the Werewolf primarily uses melee. The Vampire Lord can hover and walk. When hovering, the Vampire Lord uses magical attacks. When walking – a state changed by clicking the left analogue stick – the Vampire lord swipes with its clawed hands. Holding down the left bumper has the Vampire Lord flap its wings and fly-sprint, and the effect can be sustained for a relatively long time. The Vampire Lord can also walk across water by virtue of its hovering.

A Vampire Lord’s inherent abilities are Bats, Vampire Sight and Raise Dead. Bats is a teleport ability that has you disappear and pop up meters away in a swarm of bats. Vampire Sight allows you to see things normal eyes couldn’t, and Raise Dead does what it says on the tin. In the right hand, a Vampire Lord always wields Drain Life, and using Drain Life and Bite (we’re not sure how Bite works) to kill enemies is how you progress in the Vampire Lord perk tree.

The right branch of the Vampire Lord perk tree has Power of the Grave, which grants bonuses to health, magicka and stamina, and Vampire Grip – a fantastic ability that has you drag enemies towards you, drain the life out of them and then toss them away like a piece of rubbish. Further down, there’s Summon Gargoyle, which is self-explanatory, and Corpse Curse, which paralyzes foes.

Thanks RPGCodex.