The Skyrim/Elder Scrolls thread

[Atheris]

One time I got really pissed over how goddamn frequently you had to fight wolves. I had to kill like 10 between Honningbrew Meadery and Ivarstead so I decided to do a complete run in which I take every single wolf pelt I kill. I'm allowed to buy and sell as much as I ever want, the only rule is that I'm not allowed to dump ANY wolf pelts whatsoever, can't put any points to stamina and no carry capacity enchantments/potions. How far can I go before coming over encumbered by wolf pelts.

"Complete run" means doing every quest and side/misc quest, not counting radiant/random encounter ones. For example random guy on the road saying "don't go to x" doesn't count but kid and elf talking about Aretino boy counts. Quick travel is only accepted in the case of a crash (killed wolves added via console) or in a place where there's a guarantee you're not facing any wolves, like Ivarstead-High Hrothgar. Ice wolves don't count because they drop Ice wolf pelts, not wolf pelts.

And to top it all off, it's done with all official add-ons, without any mods (might alter encounter patterns) in oldrim. Special Edition is uplayable for me because it's locked to wide screen and I have an old letterbox screen.

This isn't hatred, this is fury. I don't think I have enough heat in my body to manifest such pure, raw anger to do something so single-mindedly spite-driven. Wolves are but a nuisance for me; not something worthy of my time or attention.

Now bears on the other hand, holy fuck. I totally get it, Temba. I really do.

Don't get me started on Sabercats. Doing a dark brotherhood build on my Switch and I nearly died from a Sabercat trying to get to Montierre. I'm level 8.

[The Imperial Reach]

This isn't hatred, this is fury. I don't think I have enough heat in my body to manifest such pure, raw anger to do something so single-mindedly spite-driven. Wolves are but a nuisance for me; not something worthy of my time or attention.

Now bears on the other hand, holy fuck. I totally get it, Temba. I really do.

Don't get me started on Sabercats. Doing a dark brotherhood build on my Switch and I nearly died from a Sabercat trying to get to Montierre. I'm level 8.

If there was ever a creature deserving of being soul-trapped, it's those fucking glorified house cats with fangs. Fuck them and the ground they walk on.

[Cadonica]

Now bears on the other hand, holy fuck. I totally get it, Temba. I really do.

Don't get me started on Sabercats. Doing a dark brotherhood build on my Switch and I nearly died from a Sabercat trying to get to Montierre. I'm level 8.

I don't care about those two as much. Sure they are more dangerous, but they are also rarer and challenging enough. Wolves are just plain annoying, not dangerous in the slightest but they just make me go "AGAIN FOR FUCKS SAKE?!"

[The first Galactic Republic]

Why do you repeat the same thing in multiple posts? You've already told us you're going to marry Shahvee three times before.

All answers for marriage that are not Mjoll the Lioness are the wrong answers.

But then you also marry her weird follower.

[Impaled Nazarene]

I feel like im the only person who struggles with magic in skyrim. even when leveling magicka up i feel like i never have enough and my damage is always low. I never cared for magic in most fantasy universes but i also dont like being bad with it when its a free option.

How do i mage?

[Impaled Nazarene]

One time I got really pissed over how goddamn frequently you had to fight wolves. I had to kill like 10 between Honningbrew Meadery and Ivarstead so I decided to do a complete run in which I take every single wolf pelt I kill. I'm allowed to buy and sell as much as I ever want, the only rule is that I'm not allowed to dump ANY wolf pelts whatsoever, can't put any points to stamina and no carry capacity enchantments/potions. How far can I go before coming over encumbered by wolf pelts.

"Complete run" means doing every quest and side/misc quest, not counting radiant/random encounter ones. For example random guy on the road saying "don't go to x" doesn't count but kid and elf talking about Aretino boy counts. Quick travel is only accepted in the case of a crash (killed wolves added via console) or in a place where there's a guarantee you're not facing any wolves, like Ivarstead-High Hrothgar. Ice wolves don't count because they drop Ice wolf pelts, not wolf pelts.

And to top it all off, it's done with all official add-ons, without any mods (might alter encounter patterns) in oldrim. Special Edition is uplayable for me because it's locked to wide screen and I have an old letterbox screen.

This isn't hatred, this is fury. I don't think I have enough heat in my body to manifest such pure, raw anger to do something so single-mindedly spite-driven. Wolves are but a nuisance for me; not something worthy of my time or attention.

Now bears on the other hand, holy fuck. I totally get it, Temba. I really do.

Its pretty tame when you consider he's Finnish and the heart of winter hath no fury like like an irritated Finn.

[Cadonica]

All answers for marriage that are not Mjoll the Lioness are the wrong answers.

But then you also marry her weird follower.

Murder him while she's not watching and she doesn't even know he's gone. Profit.

[Atheris]

I feel like im the only person who struggles with magic in skyrim. even when leveling magicka up i feel like i never have enough and my damage is always low. I never cared for magic in most fantasy universes but i also dont like being bad with it when its a free option.

How do i mage?

Conjuration, alternation armor spells, and level up destruction on essential NPCs. If you use restoration, go into the Hall of the Dead in Whiterun and let the skeletons beat on you for a few hours.

[The first Galactic Republic]

I feel like im the only person who struggles with magic in skyrim. even when leveling magicka up i feel like i never have enough and my damage is always low. I never cared for magic in most fantasy universes but i also dont like being bad with it when its a free option.

How do i mage?

My main Skyrim run was pure mage. Never touched bows or weapons. Only wore robes until I got to level 100 smithing, at which point I had fully enchanted dragon armor. Fancy unique loot was simply stored away in my mage tower, treasured for collectible value but never to see the light of day. I was basically Palpatine from Episode 6.

I don’t remember it being that hard. I just went with magicka every level up, and enchantments helped me reduce the cost of destruction and conjuration spells. (The ones you’ll be using the most.)

I went out of my way to do the College questline early for what that’s worth. Some of the clothing rewards, like the archmage robes and the Morokei mask, are solid for early levels.

Becoming a werewolf is an early solution to your squishiness. Especially with the Dawnguard DLC perks added to it. The civil war battles are an easy source of bodies.

When you’re ready to do Dawnguard, which is also an easy way to remove your lycanthropy, I highly advise being a Vampire Lord, and joining Harkon further gives you buffs for that. (Though you can still join the Dawnguard and become one later.) Being a vampire is great for one main reason. The necromage perk in restoration increases the effectiveness of spells against the undead. This applies to combat spells against undead, but it also means buffs are more effective on you when you are undead. Read this for more info.

Being a vampire lord also gives you the physical might you’d otherwise lack as a pure mage. I got to the point where I never needed my vampire lord form once my build was entirely set up, but it’s very helpful for the middle levels, where you’ll face tougher enemies but before you have your skills at maximum.

That should be all it takes. I remember struggling for a little while in a glass cannon sense, but my pure mage eventually became too powerful for anything to stop. Honestly, it was great not having to worry about weapons and finding soul gems to refill the enchantments and all that whatnot. I was the only weapon I needed.

[The Imperial Reach]

I feel like im the only person who struggles with magic in skyrim. even when leveling magicka up i feel like i never have enough and my damage is always low. I never cared for magic in most fantasy universes but i also dont like being bad with it when its a free option.

How do i mage?

Illusion is the easiest one to level up. You can just run around town throwing Courage spells at people and they don't even give a fuck.

Note: do not hit Roggvir with one if you go to Solitude. He'll start attacking the guards and they'll turn hostile to you as well (though you won't get a bounty unless you attack them)

You can used Fortify Destruction enchanted gear to enhance the damage output of your Destruction Spells. Dual-casting increases damage output, too. Get the perk for Dual-Casting and you can increase the damage output even more. You also need to be careful who you target with spells because some have weaknesses/immunities. Undead are vulnerable to Fire but not Frost; Dwemer constructs are also weak to Fire. Dunmer have greater resistance to Fire, Nords to Frost, and Bretons (including Forsworn/Reachmen) for all types of harmful magic.

Unlike regular weapons, any magic class besides Destruction and possibly Restoration can be practiced outside of combat. Cast Illusion, Alteration, and Conjuration spells randomly when in cities and no one will really care so you can level those skills up pretty quickly. Wearing enchanted items to increase your Magicka or it's regeneration can help you, and you can always just sleep/wait an hour to restore your Magicka without wasting potions.

I think scrolls and staffs also increase your skills slightly, but don't quote me on that. The former are typically expensive and 1-use only so don't throw them around willy-nilly. Staffs you only need to buy once and can be recharged with soul gems if you have any filled ones. This is a good way to level up enchanting if you want, though it technically isn't magic it's part of the magic tree so whatever.

A Master Conjurer is quite literally able to clear entire dungeons without having to directly kill anybody. Courage spells on summoned Dremora can slaughter most opponents with ease, especially once you can summon two at the same time. Having a Follower with you is just a bonus.

Transmute Ore is a spell book that can be found in the bandit camp north of Whiterun. It's an Alteration Spell that turns Iron ore into Silver ore and Silver ore into Gold ore. Since iron ore is plentiful and common, it's an easy way to get rich AND level up Alteration + Smithing by making Gold Ingots and forging jewelry. Having gems on you will let you make more expensive pieces.

[The Islands of Versilia]

Alternation and Conjuration level up decently fast for me whenever you have an Alteration or Conjuration spell active when you enter/during combat. I tend to cast Flesh spells and summon an Atronach whenever I enter combat on my main play-style and they level up pretty fast with the Lover or Mage Stone active.

[Cadonica]

I feel like im the only person who struggles with magic in skyrim. even when leveling magicka up i feel like i never have enough and my damage is always low. I never cared for magic in most fantasy universes but i also dont like being bad with it when its a free option.

How do i mage?

Illusion is the easiest one to level up. You can just run around town throwing Courage spells at people and they don't even give a fuck

At low Illusion levels Muffle is the best one to level up with. Courage requires NPCs, Muffle does not. Spamming Muffle gives one Illusion level per cast at low Illusion levels, two Muffles at low mid levels and so on. That way you can progress the story/quests while leveling Illusion without having to sit in one spot casting one spell.

[The first Galactic Republic]

I feel like im the only person who struggles with magic in skyrim. even when leveling magicka up i feel like i never have enough and my damage is always low. I never cared for magic in most fantasy universes but i also dont like being bad with it when its a free option.

How do i mage?

For skill grinding, the following strategies are the absolute easiest imo.

For conjuration, just repeatedly cast soul trap on a dead body. Second easiest shit ever.

Casting illusion spells on NPCs helps, but you can also just repeatedly cast muffle on yourself. If you get the mystic tuning gloves from a College minor quest to fix the focal points, which is super easy to do, you can infinitely dual cast muffle for as long as the buff lasts.

Restoration is kind of a pain, and simply healing yourself after fights will be a big part of it. Spamming circle of protection will build the skill. Using repel undead repeatedly is helpful once you get the skill to 75.

Destruction is also a bit of a grind, but you will steadily level it from relying primarily on spells. The super duper room clearing destruction spells you have to do quests to unlock will level you quickly. Using the ethereal shout will protect you in combat while your character does the animation. One trick is to summon a flame thrall and then cast Blizzard. The thrall takes constant damage, but it won’t turn hostile and your skill should go up. I don’t recommend resetting destruction through the prestige or whatever it’s called mechanic.

Alteration is easy. Enchant a special set of clothing (the specific clothes don’t matter) so that you spend no magicka on alteration. Grab an item with telekinesis and just hold it. Use an RL object to continuously hold down the button if necessary while you do something else. Your level will build constantly. Easiest shit ever. So easy, in fact, that I always prestige reset alteration to get perk points for other skill lines. No need to reset any other skill ever.

Lastly we have enchanting. That’s honestly just a skill you’re going to have to grind, but obviously spamming enchantments on things like daggers will build the skill. (Along with smithing.) Your enchanted goods can then be sold for fat stacks.

[The Imperial Reach]

For summoned minions via Conjuration, keep in mind that Familiars are weak but cheap. You can use them to attack enemies that are focused on you from behind, or as a surprise attack. They shouldn't be used in frontal assaults because they aren't very strong and will die fairly easy even from non-power attacks. So they're kinda useless as they're as tough as regular wolves, but until you can throw out Atronachs they're the best you can get.

Atronachs have a variety of uses and their elemental nature leaves them best suited for enemies weak to their element (Flame to Undead/Automatons, Shock to Mages, etc.). Flame and Shock Atronachs are primarily ranged combatants, but Frost Atronachs only have melee-attacks so remember that when facing specific enemies like Dragons.

Dremora are the best. They're absolute beasts with their Daedric armors and weapons. Their weapons also do fire damage and they have a more resistance to fire, making them very dangerous foes. They can go toe-to-toe with high level enemies and once you can cast two summons at once they'll be a force to be reckoned with. It's a struggle to get there, but very much worth it.

Conjuration is also good for spellswords as you can summon weapons from Oblivion, thereby freeing up space in your inventory while still allowing you to invest points into weapon skills.

[The Imperial Reach]

Illusion is the easiest one to level up. You can just run around town throwing Courage spells at people and they don't even give a fuck

At low Illusion levels Muffle is the best one to level up with. Courage requires NPCs, Muffle does not. Spamming Muffle gives one Illusion level per cast at low Illusion levels, two Muffles at low mid levels and so on. That way you can progress the story/quests while leveling Illusion without having to sit in one spot casting one spell.

You can also summon bound weapons and the sheath them to level up Conjuration or cast any of the armor spells to level up Alteration. Both of which can be done without need for NPCs.

[Cadonica]

At low Illusion levels Muffle is the best one to level up with. Courage requires NPCs, Muffle does not. Spamming Muffle gives one Illusion level per cast at low Illusion levels, two Muffles at low mid levels and so on. That way you can progress the story/quests while leveling Illusion without having to sit in one spot casting one spell.

You can also summon bound weapons and the sheath them to level up Conjuration or cast any of the armor spells to level up Alteration. Both of which can be done without need for NPCs.

I haven't tested it myself, but based on what I've read, summoning bound weapons requires a hostile npc to level the skill up, simply sitting in your house spamming summon sword doesn't work.

[Impaled Nazarene]

Thank you

[Valrifell]

For my current playthrough I'm attempting a fast-travel-less run, with the exception of paying the wagon to take me to major cities because not even I'm that sadistic. There are just a shocking amount of wolves along the main roads, someone should really do something about that.

I've utilized getting kidnapped by the Dark Brotherhood to travel towards Solitude because I was cheap and lazy.

In the time you spent to go to Windhlem, then Riften, then Windhelm again you could've gone to Solitude three times.

Honestly I don't think I could even play the game without fast-travel. Though it might give me an excuse to fork over 1000 gold for a damn horse.

The map feels much smaller than it did back in 2011, I will say.

[The Islands of Versilia]

For the One’s sake, I hope the horses in TESVI actually feel like horses and worth the investment. I almost always buy horses anyways but still. I want faster horses.
Also Oblivion’s wilderness encounters, I don’t want to fight a wolf or bandit or whatever every 5 minutes. Make them memorable or rarer but with more to them rather than just one prick with furs on his back who hasn’t washed in a week threatening me with an iron dagger.

[Atheris]

In the time you spent to go to Windhlem, then Riften, then Windhelm again you could've gone to Solitude three times.

Honestly I don't think I could even play the game without fast-travel. Though it might give me an excuse to fork over 1000 gold for a damn horse.

The map feels much smaller than it did back in 2011, I will say.

Isn't it like 30 km2?

[Valrifell]

Kind of bullshit to get my magical amulet I have to join the Mage's College (to get access to Sarthaal). I just wanted +30 to all my stats but now I have to work with some fucking nerds to get it.

And of course I can't leave a questline half completed so I now I have to end up as the head of the Mage's College.

[The Huskar Social Union]

Kind of bullshit to get my magical amulet I have to join the Mage's College (to get access to Sarthaal). I just wanted +30 to all my stats but now I have to work with some fucking nerds to get it.

And of course I can't leave a questline half completed so I now I have to end up as the head of the Mage's College.

Damn Nerds ruining our quests for Loot.

[The Islands of Versilia]

Kind of bullshit to get my magical amulet I have to join the Mage's College (to get access to Sarthaal). I just wanted +30 to all my stats but now I have to work with some fucking nerds to get it.

And of course I can't leave a questline half completed so I now I have to end up as the head of the Mage's College.

It is really annoying.

[San Lumen]

Kind of bullshit to get my magical amulet I have to join the Mage's College (to get access to Sarthaal). I just wanted +30 to all my stats but now I have to work with some fucking nerds to get it.

And of course I can't leave a questline half completed so I now I have to end up as the head of the Mage's College.

What do you have against mages?

[The Islands of Versilia]

Kind of bullshit to get my magical amulet I have to join the Mage's College (to get access to Sarthaal). I just wanted +30 to all my stats but now I have to work with some fucking nerds to get it.

And of course I can't leave a questline half completed so I now I have to end up as the head of the Mage's College.

What do you have against mages?

I don’t think they have anything against mages. It’s just stupid you have to join them in order to access an amulet needed for a totally separate quest, and they can’t leave quest lines unfinished.