Choosing the perfect birthsign in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered is a pivotal moment that shapes your entire adventure. From the spell-absorbing power of the Atronach to the agility-boosting Thief and the hardy Warrior, each of the 13 birthsigns offers unique strengths that can define your playstyle on PC, PlayStation, or Xbox. Dive into our guide to discover which celestial blessing will best unlock your character’s potential in the vast world of Cyrodiil.
Birthsigns depict the constellation your character is born under, with each granting your character unique passive or active powers. There are 13 birthsigns, but with your character limited to just one, you must consider your choice carefully.
Below, we’ve highlighted what we believe is the best birthsign to pick in Oblivion Remastered, along with details on its buffs and some tips on utilizing it.
All birthsigns in Oblivion Remastered
In Oblivion Remastered, there are 13 birthsigns to choose from, each granting unique passive or active effects that influence your character’s abilities and playstyle. Notable birthsigns include the Atronach, which provides a substantial +150 Magicka boost, 50% spell absorption, but halts Magicka regeneration, making it ideal for magic users. The Warrior enhances Strength and Endurance by 10 points, perfect for melee fighters, while the Thief boosts Agility, Speed, and Luck by 10 points, benefiting stealthy characters. Other birthsigns like the Lady, Lord, Mage, and Steed offer various attribute bonuses and special powers, allowing players to tailor their character to their preferred combat or exploration style. Choosing the right birthsign is crucial, as it permanently affects your character’s development throughout the game.
You pick your birthsign in Oblivion Remastered during the tutorial at the beginning of the game. After customizing your character, continue through the sewers until you reconvene with Emperor Uriel Septim and his men.
There are 13 birthsigns in Oblivion Remastered. Here are all of them plus the active and passive powers they grant you:
The Apprentice
- Fortify Magicka: Increases Magicka by 100 points
- Weakness to Magic: Increases susceptibility to magic by 100%
The Atronach
- Fortify Magicka: Increases Magicka by 150 points
- Spell Absorption: 50% chance of absorbing incoming spells cast
- Stunted Magicka: Magicka regeneration is halted
The Lady
- Fortify Willpower: Increases Willpower by 10 points
- Fortify Endurance: Increases Endurance by 10 points
The Lord
- Shield: Increases Armor Rating by 15
- Resist Magic: Increases magic resistance by 15%
The Lover
- Lover’s Kiss (greater power): Use this power once a day to paralyze an opponent for 10 seconds at the cost of 120 points of Fatigue
The Mage
- Fortify Magicka: Increases Magicka by 50 points
The Ritual
- Mara’s Gift: Restores 200 points of health, can be used once a day
- Blessed Word: Forces the undead to flee in horror for 30 seconds, can be used multiple times a day at a cost of 40 Magicka points per cast
The Serpent
- Serpent spell (greater power): Deal 3 points of damage for 20 seconds, also cures Poison, dispels 90 points, and damage Fatigue 100 points to caster, can be used once a day
The Shadows
- Moonshadow (greater power): Grants invisibility for 60 seconds once a day
The Steed
- Fortify Speed: Increases Speed by 20 points
The Thief
- Fortify Agility: Increases Agility by 10 points
- Fortify Luck: Increases Luck by 10 points
- Fortify Speed: Increases Speed by 10 points
The Tower
- Tower Key: Opens locks of average difficulty, can be used once per day
- Tower Warden: Reflects 5% of all incoming damage for 120 seconds, can be used once a day
The Warrior
- Fortify Endurance: Increases Endurance by 10 points
- Fortify Strength: Increases Strength by 10 points
Can you change your birthsign in Oblivion?
In Oblivion Remastered, you can only change your birthsign during the tutorial phase, specifically before exiting the Imperial Sewers, where you get a final chance to modify your character’s birthsign along with other customizations. Once you leave this area, your birthsign becomes permanent and cannot be changed through normal gameplay. However, if you are playing on Windows PC, you can use the console command showbirthsignmenu to reopen the birthsign selection menu and change your birthsign at any time. Keep in mind that using console commands disables achievements for that save file.
After selecting your birthsign, Oblivion Remastered gives you one final chance to change it (and any other character customization choices) before you leave the sewers. After that chance, your birthsign is permanent.
If you’re playing Oblivion Remastered on Windows PC, however, you can use a console command to change your birthsign. Press the tilde key (~) to open the cheat console, then type in ’showbirthsignmenu’ (without the quotes) to bring up the birthsign menu and change your birthsign.
Best birthsigns in Oblivion Remastered
The best birthsigns in Oblivion Remastered offer unique benefits tailored to different playstyles. The Atronach is widely regarded as the top choice for magic users, granting a massive +150 Magicka boost and a 50% chance to absorb incoming spells, though it halts Magicka regeneration, making it a powerful but challenging option. For melee fighters, the Warrior is ideal, providing +10 Strength and +10 Endurance to boost health and combat effectiveness. The Thief birthsign benefits stealthy and agile characters with +10 Agility, +10 Speed, and +10 Luck, enhancing movement and critical chances. Other notable birthsigns include the Lady for balanced stat boosts and the Mage for additional Magicka.
The best birthsign in Oblivion Remastered is the Atronach, followed closely by the the Warrior and the Thief. Below, we’ll explain why these are the best birthsigns in Oblivion Remastered.
The Atronach
Permanent Effects:
- Fortify Magicka: Increases Magicka by 150 points
- Spell Absorption 50% chance of absorbing incoming spells
- Stunted Magicka: Magicka regeneration is halted
The Atronach is perhaps the best defensive birthsign in Oblivion Remastered. This birthsign is great for those who want to focus on a magic build or playstyle, as it gives you a 150 Magicka boost, the highest permanent Magicka boost in the game.
The real stand-out power of this birthsign, however, is its 50% spell absorption. This means that half the time, magical spells (and potentially hits from magic weapons) do no damage to you, instead, they regenerate your Magicka. This is incredibly helpful for defense, but also because the downside of this birthsign is that it gives you stunted Magicka – in other words, it prevents normal Magicka regeneration.
In the early game, that stunted Magicka may be a bit of a pain, but it comes into its own as you progress. Initially, you need to use Ayleid Wells, Welkynd Stones, and Magicka potions to effectively restore Magicka, but eventually, you’ll likely need fewer potions in your inventory, and this tradeoff will prove its worth.
What’s more, Spell Absorption stacks. So, you could, for example, combine the Spelldrinker Amulet (which gives 26 points) and the Sorcerer’s Ring (which gives 25 points) to make up the other 50 points of Spell Absorption, granting you 100% Spell Absorption and making you immune to magic.
This makes The Atronach a great future-proof birthsign and a great choice for High Elves (as it gives them the highest initial base Magicka), for those looking to maximize their Magicka, or for those who wish to improve their magical defense – even if you don’t plan to spell cast much.
The Warrior
Permanent Effects:
- Fortify Endurance: Increases Endurance by 10 points
- Fortify Strength: Increases Strength by 10 points
If spellcasting and magic aren’t your style, and you value health and strength more, then The Warrior is a good option.
The extra Endurance provided by The Warrior birthsign helps to quickly improve your maximum health, as your Endurance level directly affects how much your maximum health increases each time you level up. Having a high Endurance level early on puts you in good stead for later in the game, just keep trying to level it up.
The Strength boost here is great for those who want to focus on melee, but if you want that Endurance boost, but would rather focus on magic than brute force, TheLady is a good alternative to this as it provides the same 10 points of Endurance but 10 points of Willpower instead of Strength.
The Thief
Permanent Effects:
- Fortify Agility: Increases Agility by 10 points
- Fortify Luck: Increases Luck by 10 points
- Fortify Speed: Increases Speed by 10 points
The Thief is a solid birthsign for those who want a well-rounded character and are more focused on the early game over the late game.
Straight off the bat, this birthsign gives you 30 extra stats (compared to the 20 of other birthsigns), including 10 points to Luck, which impacts all skills and is the slowest attribute to raise normally. That equates to about four extra points to each of your stats and is helpful early in the game, especially if you’re a new player, but this birthsign eventually becomes somewhat redundant as you progress.
Which birthsign in Oblivion Remastered offers the most powerful early-game advantage
The birthsign that offers the most powerful early-game advantage in Oblivion Remastered is widely considered to be The Thief. It provides a substantial boost of +10 to Agility, Luck, and Speed, which enhances movement, stamina, and overall effectiveness in early combat and exploration. The Luck bonus also subtly improves all skills, making it a versatile and immediately beneficial choice for early gameplay.
However, for players focusing on magic, The Atronach offers a powerful early-game edge with +150 Magicka and a 50% chance to absorb enemy spells, greatly improving survivability in magical combat. While it disables natural Magicka regeneration, the spell absorption effect can turn enemy attacks into a resource, making it a strong option despite the initial challenge of managing Magicka.
In summary, The Thief is the best for a broad and immediate early-game advantage, especially for physical or balanced builds, while The Atronach excels for magic users who can manage its regeneration drawback.
How does the Thief birthsign enhance early stealth and agility benefits
The Thief birthsign in Oblivion Remastered enhances early stealth and agility benefits by granting a permanent +10 boost to Agility, Speed, and Luck attributes. This trio of bonuses significantly improves your character’s mobility and survivability: Agility increases your ability to dodge attacks, sustain through staggers, and boosts ranged damage, making stealth archery more effective; Speed enhances your running and jumping capabilities, allowing you to move quickly and quietly past enemies or escape dangerous situations; and Luck subtly improves all skills, increasing your overall success rate in stealth-related actions like lockpicking and pickpocketing. Together, these attribute boosts make The Thief ideal for players seeking a nimble, precise, and versatile stealth build right from the start.
