Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

[robdood]

The only thing Id be looking for in the next generation of consoles,

is no loading between being outside in Skyrim and entering/leaving a cave.

Hah, ok look I agree its a fantastic game with a great sense of adventure and exploration and progression of skills, BUT JESUS CHRIST I'm expecting a bit more in the future.

I don't have time to write a massive negative-shmegative post, but every time I have any conversational dealings with npcs I want to curl up and die. Its totally embarrassing; the much vaunted drinking contest quest is a prime example: awful animation and dialog process, concluded with a fade to black.

They really, really, REALLY need to work on this aspect in the future. It totally spoils the immersion for me.

And if that guy near Belethor's tries to tell me AGAIN about the problem with Skyrim these days, I'm going to fucking murder him.

[Yiggy]

And if that guy near Belethor's tries to tell me AGAIN about the problem with Skyrim these days, I'm going to fucking murder him.

That's because you're obsessed with death.

[Distinct muttering]

Shouts ... once you get the fire shout, do you use anything else ?

Unless you're blowing stuff off tables which never gets boring, or walking in the hills and starting a thunder storm just to annoy Lydia who is an amazing lightning conductor it turns out. They don't appear to be of much use.

I've got a "make you ethereal" one which just turns everything blue ?

One to calm the animals that I've never found a use for.

I just seem to use the Fire breath shout exclusively. Blowing low level bandits across the room as i charge in, route one, tooled up to the max.

I mainly just use the very first one you got, the force push thingy. however one really annoying thing, anyone else notice that quite often as the person is in the bent over recovery position that more often than not your attacks glitch through them? really annoying.

[Distinct muttering]

I think that one's great. It renders you immune to damage (but I believe also renders you incapable of dealing damage), which can be useful if an enemy is overwhelming you and you need to run away. I mainly use it for leaping off of cliffs, saves a quite a bit of time navigating when you can fling yourself off mountains.

Oh, thats a nice tip right there!

[Distinct muttering]

Wiped out Ulfric and his lads the other day. Today I walked into a bar only to have some bloke bang on about Ulfric and how he should be on the throne..I quite clearly remember putting some cheap sword through him.

In a 300+ hour game if you really want anyone to read that might be better to give us a bit of a clue as to what its about.

[Loki]

I played so much of this on Saturday (about 10 hours) and did so much. Some of the things included becoming a Thane of Haafingar, completing the Thieve's Guild quest chain, joining The Dark Brotherhood, buying a house and decorating it, crafting and enchanting myself some sick Dragonplate armour and getting married.

MOAR.

[hauk]

Been playing Skyrim for a little while now, cannot stop playing it I am totally addicted. I do have one question that I hope someone might be able to answer - can you only improve your skills when you level up? I don't seem to be able to do it just when I get enough points for that particular skill.

[robdood]

Been playing Skyrim for a little while now, cannot stop playing it I am totally addicted. I do have one question that I hope someone might be able to answer - can you only improve your skills when you level up? I don't seem to be able to do it just when I get enough points for that particular skill.

What do you mean? When you successfully use a skill (eg archery) you gain progress in that skill. Gain enough progress and the skill levels up (archery goes from 15 > 16). Get enough skill ups and then your character levels up (eg character goes from level 1>2), which allows you to pick a health/magic/stamina boost and select a perk (eg bows do 20% more damage).

[hauk]

What do you mean? When you successfully use a skill (eg archery) you gain progress in that skill. Gain enough progress and the skill levels up (archery goes from 15 > 16). Get enough skill ups and then your character levels up (eg character goes from level 1>2), which allows you to pick a health/magic/stamina boost and select a perk (eg bows do 20% more damage).

You've answered my question, I get to select a perk only when I level up not when my skill level on a certain skill gets to the level needed for that particular perk. Thanks!

[Teeohbee]

You can save your perk points though Hauk! Don't have to spend them immediately when you level and can access the skill menu from the main menu.

[scottcr]

The shout that turns people into Ice is quite sweet - was disappointed though that a swing of my mace didn't smash them up into little bits though.

Highly recommend freezing some wolves at the top of a mountain and watching them bounce all the way down without shattering (and then you twat them and they mysteriously melt).

[hauk]

You can save your perk points though Hauk! Don't have to spend them immediately when you level and can access the skill menu from the main menu.

Good to know!

[gospvg]

I killed a dragon near the top of a mountain and after the final blow it fell all the way down, I went running after it to grab the loot

[Girth Certificate]

if these cunts in the thieves guild don't give me some Marcath missions soon I'm killing every last one of them.

[robdood]

if these cunts in the thieves guild don't give me some Marcath missions soon I'm killing every last one of them.

Not that I don't appreciate the sentiment, but why do you want them to give you missions in Markath?

[lampkin]

In a 300+ hour game if you really want anyone to read that might be better to give us a bit of a clue as to what its about.

Ulfric is the leader of the stormcloaks, skyrim is at war between the imperials and stormcloaks. One questline sees you join one side to help decide the outcome

[drewthmsn]

Ulfric is the leader of the stormcloaks, skyrim is at war between the imperials and stormcloaks. One questline sees you join one side to help decide the outcome

Think he meant you should label your spoiler box, so everyone has a chance to know what it's spoiling. Eg "end of civil war quest spoiler:"

[sir stiff_one]

I started chasing a rabbit up a mountain last night, no idea why, I really wanted to get it with my axe. I look up after half a mile and see a guy who exclaims "Aha, now I've found you!" and raises a sword above his head while running towards me. Oh, another fucking DB assassin I think, so I yank my axe out and launch into an almighty swing.

However, just before the blow lands, the guy turns away from me and starts running away, hacking at the floor. He's chasing the rabbit. "Odd". I think. "For a DB assassin to get distracted by a fucking rabbit." My axe misses him by a whisker but Lydia, the ever faithful comes dashing in to split his skull open. Then I realise it's just a fucking hunter and he was talking to the rabbit all along, not me.

"Shit" I think. I look at Lydia, who looks oddly guilty. So I hustled his body behind a very large tree and we did not talk about it again.

[Broker]

if these cunts in the thieves guild don't give me some Marcath missions soon I'm killing every last one of them.

They're sour bastards about it, but it's totally possible to take a job, check the location, then reject it if it's not in the right place. I did that for the last two I needed to do in Solitude like that in the end.

[lampkin]

Think he meant you should label your spoiler box, so everyone has a chance to know what it's spoiling. Eg "end of civil war quest spoiler:"

Oh right, was a bit confused (happens a lot), didn't know you could label the spoiler box.

Thanks!

[Guest]

Reading through this thread just highlights how many options you've got with your approach to this game. There are things spoken about over the last few pages that I didn't even know existed!

Anyway, I increasingly seem to keep ending up on quests where the main battle at the end of the dungeon is way beyond my level. I must have 10 active quests unfinished because ive had to run away. So, I'm really wanting to get my weapons as powerful as some of those posted a few pages back but I really don't have the first clue how to go about it. I believe it's something to do with enchanting them, but if somebody could give me a quick rundown of the best way for me to learn these dark arts I'd be eternally grateful.

[Kryptonian]

I've never had to turn away from a fight at the end of a dungeon, sounds a bit odd...

[Guest]

Next time I'm playing I'll list the ones who've kicked my arse. Bear in mind, I'm only a level 19 and I've been putting all my perks/levelling into single handed weapons, archery and destruction, so they're all moving along steadily.

I haven't done any enchanting or blacksmithing as I never seem to have the required items, so I've let those slip. I guess that's why I need to know more about it. Is there a tutorial quest on how to get those levels up?

The latest impossible battle was against someone called Vakron, or something similar. I was given it by a dude up High Horgrath ad I met some bird at the entrance to the dungeon. She was pretty hardcore, but SS eventually went down and as soon as Vakron turned his attention on me I was down in a couple of strikes fro his magic.

I feel like I'm playing it wrong, or missing something obvious because it's really tough and I'm getting a bit pissed off that I can't finish off a lot of these quests.

Edit: Vokun, not Vakron.

[Jimmy Shedders]

"A sword won't do much damage to a dragon"

Oh, is that right Mr. "Arrow in the Knee" Solitude guard?

Try telling that to the 20 odd dragons that are now just a pile of bones left lying on the roadside

Also, does Lydia get some sort of sexual thrill out of watching me and my sleep together?

Ever since I bought the house in Whiterun she's done nothing but sat on the chair by the bed.

It's getting quite creepy.

[Broker]

Vokun

Levitating dude in a metal mask? I believe he's one of the Dragon Priests, so getting a kicking is possible at all levels are they're awful bastards.

When I tried playing at first I didn't click straight away, I was pretty much just playing my guy from Oblivion and combat seemed hard, I had no focus so I wasn't specialising in anything. Three combat skills might be spreading yourself a bit thin, picking one weapon to really focus on and putting other perks into a support skill (block, armour or sneak) and try different weapons and skills in combination until you find a playstyle you like then focus on those skills at first. Making sure you level at least one combat skill at an early point is important.

Though there's no wrong way to play, I initially messed myself up as around level 22 I got to a point where my perks were spread really thin and I'd spent very little time in combat compared to pissing about making and selling things. Consequently all the missions I got offered were kicking my ass. I ended up starting a new character to try playing differently even though I was 18 hours in, never loaded the first file again.

I've got a few high level characters now and have put well over 200 hours into them all, I'd really suggest picking a goal, at least to start with. My Khajit, who is level 50 now, started off with the sole aim of being the best thief in the world. So I started off and just stole everything, I was so weak that every time I got caught and ran away I had to flee that town and get the carriage to another town where I had no bounty. Just doing a little mission to train my skills up and learn more of the world makes branching out later far more satisfying.

[Gringo]

I feel like I'm playing it wrong, or missing something obvious because it's really tough and I'm getting a bit pissed off that I can't finish off a lot of these quests.

What sort of armour are you wearing and rings/necklaces? It is definitely a good idea to work on smithing so that you can improve any armour you have. Buy iron ingots, leathers strips and make iron daggers if you wish to circumvent a more genuine and time consuming way of improving the skill.

My advice regards fighting would be to make sure you have a follower. They can dish out damage and they can also distract whoever you are fighting and allow you to get sneaky digs in. Couple with this summoning one of the atronachs as they too will distract any opponent. Don't forget to use poisons/potions and utilise whichever dragon shouts you have.

Have you done the drinking contest quest yet? 'A night to remember' if I got that right. If you haven't, do it as soon as you get the chance. The reward at the end is well worth it and will definitely help in future fights.

[Cheyenne]

Having now obtained the Wabbajack, I doubt I'll ever use another weapon.

[kitten]

Have you done the drinking contest quest yet? 'A night to remember' if I got that right. If you haven't, do it as soon as you get the chance. The reward at the end is well worth it and will definitely help in future fights.

Hah, very true. I was really struggling in one cave until I remembered that; between it, my follower and a summoned atronach I was able to watch from a distance like the coward I am.

However, my follower turned out to be something of a liability. I've been walking everywhere since I hired him due to his unfortunate tendency to kill my horse in combat, and tonight I got the chance to buy a dog. Well, you guessed it. First battle = fried canine. I think he got off lightly by just being told to leave, but it'll be a long walk home from Markarth.

[neoELITE]

Reading through this thread just highlights how many options you've got with your approach to this game. There are things spoken about over the last few pages that I didn't even know existed!

Anyway, I increasingly seem to keep ending up on quests where the main battle at the end of the dungeon is way beyond my level. I must have 10 active quests unfinished because ive had to run away. So, I'm really wanting to get my weapons as powerful as some of those posted a few pages back but I really don't have the first clue how to go about it. I believe it's something to do with enchanting them, but if somebody could give me a quick rundown of the best way for me to learn these dark arts I'd be eternally grateful.

This happened to me at first. I ran with the Companions questline initially with the sole purpose of

becoming a werewolf as I'd ruined my first game by becoming a vampire. Werewolves cannot contract vampirism.

. The second or third quest was to clear a Falmer dungeon with a load of Chaurus to back them up (these are tough and make cave bears and trolls seem like kittens). The boss fight at the end of the dungeon was impossible at my early level so I had to postpone the quest. I waited and waited until I was a level 20 with some beefier weapons, some higher level restoration and destruction spells and a few more shouts and went back in and kicked the daylights out of the Falmer leader and his automaton henchman.

Enchanting is a gamble really as you need to destroy an enchanted item to learn the enchantment and you need a filled soul gem to make something new. I was having massive issues at first finding soul gems that weren't empty until I found the soul trap enchantment - it was from a Daedric mace I got from one of the Daedric specific quests ("House of Horrors" I think). You'll gradually learn the enchantments and eventually, if you persevere and keep at it, enchantment becomes very useful if you're going to play with weapons - some people just focus on becoming a mage and ignore melee combat.

Good guide here http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Enchanting_(Skyrim)

[Guest]

What sort of armour are you wearing and rings/necklaces? It is definitely a good idea to work on smithing so that you can improve any armour you have. Buy iron ingots, leathers strips and make iron daggers if you wish to circumvent a more genuine and time consuming way of improving the skill.

What am I supposed to do with Iron Dagger then? Sell them? I know this might sound a bit mental, but who do you sell shit to? The only people I've found who want to buy stuff are very specific and don't want weapons.

My advice regards fighting would be to make sure you have a follower. They can dish out damage and they can also distract whoever you are fighting and allow you to get sneaky digs in. Couple with this summoning one of the atronachs as they too will distract any opponent. Don't forget to use poisons/potions and utilise whichever dragon shouts you have.

I've had 3 followers so far and they've all died in the dungeons I've been in. My dragon shouts never seem to do all that much. Maybe knock them down for a couple of seconds, but without causing any damage. A lot of the time they don't seem to work either. Is there a time limit between uses or something? It doesn't show you very well on the HUD if there is.

Have you done the drinking contest quest yet? 'A night to remember' if I got that right. If you haven't, do it as soon as you get the chance. The reward at the end is well worth it and will definitely help in future fights.

Yeah, I've done it. I always forget to use the rose thing I got though!