The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim

[Parabellum]

Casters aren't my thing really, but I may give it a try. Sad though, that the dragon priests are, for a melee/ranged class, more difficult to kill than the dragons themselves. I'd prefer dragons to be extremely difficult.

[WytchDokta]

Magic casting cost decreases and damage increases by casting magic. For Destruction, legit targets need to be hit for the damage to go up and the cost to go down, casting on animals even works for this. Simply casting Destruction spells WILL NOT boost your Destruction skill/damage etc, you need to hit something for it to work. On the contrary, just casting certain Illusion or Alteration spells without hitting anything does boost the respective skill/decrease cast cost, etc. In my experience, the cost to cast seems to decrease quicker than the gradual increase in damage. I primarily used Flames for the whole of the main quest, and for the Companions' quests. Next thing I know, the cost to cast has hit a floor of 5 magicka per second and the damage per second is 22 per second. I haven't used Frostbite or Sparks much either, but they both deal 10 damage per second. Worthy of note too is that my Fireball spell (Adept level) deals 62 damage, the base damage when the spell is purchased is 50 damage. I've not used Fireball that much to be honest either.

Deadric arrows will likely be level specific, as spells are (go to farengar at the start of the game and you can only buy Novice level Destruction spells. Go back to him later in the game after grinding your Destruction skill and he'll have Apprentice and Adept level spells too. Having the respective perk to decrease cost of each level of spell MAY also somewhat dictate what spells are available. With that said, I can purchase Bound Battle Axe from Farengar with my Dark Elf and I only have the perk to decrease cast cost for Novice level Conjuration spells. I think also it depends on the vendor somewhat - my Illusion skill level for my Dark Elf is in the 60's and Farengar doesn't stock an Adept level Illusion spells (but I can get Adept level spells for Illusion from the College of Winterhold). Certainly as you level you level up, you'll start to find better equipment in chests. Equipment carried by badguys isn't always better than what you have because the level of enemies in certain areas varies, like in Fallout 3.

Completed "Join the Stormcloaks" yesterday. It was fun, but it seems that Imperial Legion soldiers are locked at much lower level my Dark Elf (I was level 30 at the time), as I could kill them in a matter of milliseconds with Novice level Destruction spells. Any of you spellcasters doing this quest should be wary of using Rune spells, and I'll tell you why: During the Battle for Whiterun, I cast a Frost Rune, which the enemies decided not to walk into. After completing the Stormcloak questline, I head back to Whiterun for business purposes. I waltz in through the main gate, as you do, then I see one of the townsfolk decide to walk into the Frost Rune, deliberately probably. Then my Stormcloak fanclub starts to chase me all over Whiterun and I get a bounty of 40 on my head. The Stormcloak guards would just attack on sight (which is odd as this should ONLY happen when you have a high bounty) - the only way I could get the guards to apprehend me without attacking (so I had the option to pay the bounty) was to book it back through the main gate.

Casters aren't my thing really, but I may give it a try. Sad though, that the dragon priests are, for a melee/ranged class, more difficult to kill than the dragons themselves. I'd prefer dragons to be extremely difficult.

This depends on the race you're playing as, regardless of magic aptitude. An Orc using Berserk Rage along with say Ebony weapons (improved to legendary level), would likely take down a Dragon Priest with just a few swings of two-handed weapons. Spellcasting has flaws because of different enemies having different resitances - whereas no enemies have resistances to melee weapons or bows. Hostile mages can be difficult for casters using ranged Destruction spells in place of a bow, as casting is not silent (unless you have the respective Illusion perk). For example, with my Khajiit, I can one shot kill a mage with my bow from stealth. For my Dark Elf, mages are more difficult to kill with their magic resistance too (funny, even Orc mages seem to have a magic resistance, yet the race itself doesn't have any magic resistance). I say so because my ranged Destruction spells can now do much more damage than my Khajiit's bow, yet I can't one hit kill mages with ranged Destruction attacks from my Dark Elf.

[Parabellum]

Thanks for the detailed write-up, Dok. I may explore the casting side of the game a bit more in the near future. RE: The Stormcloak quests, yes, those were very enjoyable for me as well. Joining the Stormcloaks seems to make more sense to me than joining the Legion, simply because I can't fathom how someone would be two seconds from having his head lopped off by the Legion, and then turn around and join them. The Dark Brotherhood series has been the most enjoyable for me thus far, and I've done all of them except for the Mage guild and the Imperial line. Doing the Stormcloak line and the Dark Brotherhood line pretty much wipes the Legion off the map, at least in Skyrim.

[WytchDokta]

From the clues around Windhelm, including what you first discover when you walk into your house there, I assume the Dark Brotherhood operates out of Windhelm? That, and the fact that a few times when I've visited Windhelm, I discovered one NPC has been murdered and dumped in the streets - this is kind of an obvious clue.

Those of you with Dark Elf builds should consider getting the Flame Cloak spell as soon as you can because it renders Ancestors Wrath redundant - Flame Cloak can be cast as many times as you want provided you have enough magicka. It does not seem to increase in damage with use, but the cost to cast does decrease with use. On the contrary, Ancestors Wratg costs 0 magicka to cast (seeing that it's a greater power), but can only be cast once a day. The damage dealt by both are the same. I don't know if Ancestors Wrath and Flame Cloak are stackable, but different types of elemental cloaks can NOT be stacked - casting a new one will override the one that is active.

Edited January 25, 2012 by WytchDokta

[WytchDokta]

As for Dragon Priest slaying antics, wait until you complete the main questline and you'll have two already maxed out Dragon Shouts that can rip Dragon Priests a new one - Call Dragon (summon Odaviing) and Call of ValoUr. Use Call Dragon outside, like against Krosis ('Sorrow') and use Call of ValoUr inside like against Rogut (sp?). Stormcall is isanely powerful and has a huge duration so that's another option for outside. However, the lightning bolts from Stromcall CAN harm friendly NPC's and any followers.

Also, Odaviing is unkillable, and his fire breath attack deals massive damage - I called him in to help me with Krosis, me and Marcurio got Krosis' halth down to halfway. Then Odaviing shows up, makes one pass, turns around and comes back lighting that ######er up with Fire Breath, and Krosis was dead. Odaviing took out half Krosis' health with his Fire Breat, and that's no exaggeration. Odaviing will also land on rare occasions too and get his om nom nom on when dealing with some enemies (I've seen him land to take on two Giants I was fighting the other day. Was enjouyable to watch a dragon vs 2 Giants in melee.

Edited January 25, 2012 by WytchDokta

[Parabellum]

RE: Dark Brotherhood: I thought that they'd be operating out of Windhelm as well, and was pleasantly surprised by where the quests there led me. The murders in Windhelm ... well, rather than spoil it, just follow it if you like and see where it goes.

RE: Dragon priests: I'll give that a try. My main character has finished the quest line, and cna summon Odaviing and the Nord heroes. It just doesn't occur to me to use them very often. The dragon is a lot of fun when you're assaulting fortresses, though. I rather enjoy calling him, then taking cover and watching him obliterate all the guards.

[Parabellum]

Dok, have you tried the Deadly Dragons mod for Skyrim? It comes in varying difficulties, all of which make dragons more dangerous, to one degree or another. I downloaded it last night, and was quite pleased with the results. Even on the easiest difficulty, dragons are much more difficult than in vanilla Skyrim. Finally, dragons feel ... epic ... rather than being easy kills!

[WytchDokta]

As stated earlier in this thread, I have the Xbox version of Skyrim. So no, I don't have mods.

Anyone want a free tough Irish Wolfhound? Head over to Miko's Shack. Problem is, if you tell him to wait in your house, he'll eventually ###### off back to Miko's Shack. Might have to fire Marcurio as a companion as he is very careless with his Chain Lightening spell, dipwad keeps getting me in trouble with guards when he casts that ###### near them (as it arcs to all nearby targets including NPC's and any canine companions you have, then they fight it out and you either loose a canine companion or the whole Hold guard comes after you). Might go hire that Dark Elf dude over at Dawnstar (for free). Two Dark Elf firestarters on a revenge mission can be dangerous indeed.

[Parabellum]

lol my failure to read carefully strikes again. Sorry! As far as companions go, I honestly haven't used them very much. Never had a need, really. I did use the mage that asks you to help her kill her mother (sorry, her name escapes me right now) but found that her icy projectiles hit me in combat almost as often as they hit the enemy, if I didn't turn the mob so that its back was to her.

[WytchDokta]

This is why a a Warrior type companion is better, you haven't got to worry about them causing friendly fire with magic. However, it is yields disadvantages as they can end up getting in your way in combat - they charge at the enemy you're already from a distance, so next time you swing your weapon/cast a spell at the enemy, you hit and kill your companion. This is particularly true of dog companions. Seems friendly AI in Skyrim can't figure out how to flank/get behind enemies, but is adept at getting in your way when you're attacking.

That female mage you're on about is Illia.

[Parabellum]

Aah, Illia, that's it! I dismissed her some time last week, and she still hasn't made it home yet, so I've been unable to find her again, lol. You're certainly right about companions charging in, and even moreso on quests such as the Imperial or Graycloak lines which have you attack fortresses with a number of friendly troops. At times, I find it easier to just let them attack enemies, while I find someone else to kill, because they'll end up jumping right in front of my character and get cut down along with the enemy troops. One-on-one the enemy AI is pretty cool in combat in Skyrim, I think. In larger numbers though, it's paltry at best, and that's a shame. It would add to the immersion if Legion troops actually fought like Roman Legionnaires, in a coordinated group.

[WytchDokta]

Same with Jenssa for me. Since I fired her she's been hanging out outside Whiterun stables rather than returning to the inn.

[MeanMF]

Another essential Skyrim mod...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U48uDLQ2_fs

[Parabellum]

OMG I laughed SO hard! That's probably not a mod that I'd use (because I do enjoy the immersion of Skyrim) but that's funny right there.

[WytchDokta]

I know an awesome way to grind the Restoration skill, but it will most definitely result in you contracting diseases, as happened with my Argonian, despite the Argonian resistance to disease (50%) racial bonus. Firstly, find a Draugr lair. Located a spike-wall trap within and look around for the nearby pressure plate trap trigger. Stand on the trap trigger and let the spike-wall smack you in the face. Step off the trap trigger and use a healing spell on yourself. Repeat as necessarily. Be warned though as this is very time consuming and you can contract diseases from doing this (I got one that stunted my magicka from using this method.) Knowledge is power.

Anyway, I'm working on a Skyrim guide on how to be self sufficient in game (which is self-explanitory if you possess the ability to think outside the box. If not, then woe unto thee.) Put it this way, across ALL my character builds, I have NEVER bought weapons, armour, or potions. All of my equipment (for ALL my characters) is either what I have created myself or what I have found on dungeon crawls (or that which I have stolen/pickpocketed for that matter) and upgraded. The game has all the materials you need. Between missions I either hunt wild animals (for their pelts so I can create leather from it. From leather I can create leather strips for weapon making), mine my own ore (them smelt it down into ingots to make weapons and armour), chop wood/harvest vegetables and sell them on to woodmills/farms, go on stealing sprees, pick plants and vegetables to make my own potions and meals, etc. Like I said, it really is self explanitory.

Now, back to my beer(s). Gotta love playing video games when you're drunk.

[WytchDokta]

Well, I hope one of the inn-keepers will put out a new search and rescue request out to one of you adventurers soon - 'cause like, due an apparent game killing bug, I'm now stuck inside a Draugr lair with no way out. You see, there's this ring-locked door in Dead Man's Respite that refuses to open - I have the Ruby Dragonclaw and the correct unlock sequence for the rings (Wolf - Eagle - Wolf, it's printed on the underside of the Dragonclaw). But that's not the problem. The problem is that for some reason the rings DO NOT turn when interacted with, yet the claw can be inserted into the lock as normal. And of course, such was Bethesda's initiative for awesome level design that they decided to make it so that in order to reach the ring-locked door, you first need need to drop down into that area through an old disused well shaft from the floor above - which means you can't get back to the entrance. It also means the only exit is on the other side of the seemingly inoperable ring-locked door. So I'm like stuck, in a like Draugr lair, with like no way out, like. So if any of you adventurers out there could head down to Dead Man's Respite to help it would be appreciated, I've even cleared out the Draugr up to the ring-locked door. The only thing you'll need to bring is a rocket launcher to blow through the door. Laugh all you like, I am in much peril.

[RileyFletcher_01]

Laugh all you like, I am in much peril.

[WytchDokta]

I'm not sure you guys fully understand the seriousness of this predicament.

Quite possibly it's something to with the associated quest that takes place in that Draugr ruin. The problem with that was, I didn't even have the quest at that time. I liked the sound of the ruin's name, so went ot check it out, only to find the ring-locked door is bugged (without the quest atleast)

Started those rebuilds with focus on upgrading the skills I never really used before, such as Alchemy, Pickpocket, Lockpicking and Speech. I'm using magicka more across all rebuilds, although I haven't invested any perk points in any magic school for one rebuild (yet). I got a Nord Warrior/Trader with a focus on trading (Speech skill); Argonian Thief/Healer ('Spellsword' I think is the term for half Thief half Mage) with a focus on stealth/Thief skills whilst harnessing the Argonian racial Restoration skill boost; Imperial Battlemage (half Warrior half Mage build, with heavy armour) with a focus on offesnive magic (Destruction) and healing (Restoration), with a little Enchanting on the side. The Imperial character is the one currently MIA in Dead Men's Respite (due to a game killing bugged inoperable ring locked door), awaiting rescue from fellow adventurers - or atleast, was MIA.... Until the discovery of the mystical Autosave upon entry feature.

[WytchDokta]

Hmmm, seems this is a bug, although I don't know what the trigger event is. Just had the same thing happen Bleak Falls Temple. In the first puzzle room, the pilllars would not rotate when interacted with. This was with a separate character build. Again, loading an earlier save fixed it.

[RileyFletcher_01]

Maybe one too many drinks?

[WytchDokta]

The Alchemy skill can be fun - now if only it would increase faster. It increases at the slowest rate out of all skills, much less Restoration does. I'm making widespread use of the Alchemy skill with my Wood Elf Ranger/Scavenger stealth build. This character has a certain harmony with nature - lives off the land and takes what they want, turning plant ingedients into deadly poisons to use against the enemy. For this character I always carry around seven types of arrows for different purposes. I use Falmer/Forsworn arrows for hunting small/medium game; Steel/Ancient Nord arrows for general purpose situations and two types of more powerful arrows for tougher enemies (whereby one type is to back up the other type if I run out); Iron arrows are reserved primarily for 'hold out' situations. For the toughest enemies, I'll even poison my arrows first, using relevent poisons for types of enemies faced - Damage Health for general purpose, Damage Magicka for mages and Damage Stamina for high level Bandits. Due to my Archery and Sneak skills (along with respectable perks, and relevent arrows), I can drop even Trolls with a single arrow. If any Bears/Wolves or Sabrecats get too close I'll use the Animal Allegiance Dragonshout to mind controll them, then kill them whilst they are under my command (Animal Allegiance is, for all intents and purposes, a legendary version of the Wood Elf greater power). I've also invested a few points into Illusion for this build, because that school of magic can greatly benefit stealth builds - Illusion has invisibility spells etc. Plus, spamming the Muffle spell greatly increases the Illusion skill. Anyway, who needs invisibility spells when you have the ingredients to knock up invisibility potions en masse? See, Alchemy has major benefits, it just takes so long to grind out the skill.

[WytchDokta]

Bethesda really need to fix the inoperable rotating pillar/circle door bug on Xbox. Just got it again, don't know what triggered it, but this time loading a previous save didn't work. So now I have to rebuild my Nord merchant/combat master again from the ground up. Sigh. I reckon the game didn't like the fact my Nord had a William Wallace thing going on with appearance (including the blue 'woad' warpaint) and with the fact of exclusively using Greatswords. Let's see how the game takes it if my Nord rebuild was to have a 'Boudicca' thing going on.

Seriously, Bethesda, sort this bug out, it's not funny anymore.

[WytchDokta]

I've recently set up yet more new builds, with the intention of these being the most adventurous and challenging builds I've made to date - inspired by the Thieves Guild questline. You notice there's no beast races (Khajiiti/Argonian) in the Thieves Guild despite their starting boosts to Sneak?

There are 10 races in all but I'm creating nine of these builds, one of each race. Each build will have points invested into Light Armor, Archery, Sneak, Pickpocket, and Smithing. Each build will have points invested in other skillstoo, relative to the build. Aside from this, each build will have a couple points invested into Illusion (as a secondary magic school) to augment the stealth side of things, and they will also have 5 or 6 points invested into a primary school of magic, either offensive or defensive. The primary school of magic MUST be relative to the respective races' greater power or resistances, either directly or indiirectly. And of course, stealth MUST be paramount (resorting to magic when stealth is compromised). Overall, going for an all round thing, but with an emphasis on stealth.

This is what I'm talking about - two of such builds have been deployed so far:

- Nord build. Their resistance to Frost serves as as weapon, this Nord uses Frost Destruction spells. While some see Frost as impractical due to many enemies having resistances to Frost (including Draugr (which are for all intents and purposes the ancestors of the Nords), Dwemer constructs, etc), it still slows enemies down, giving time to switch to melee weapons and finish them off. That brings me on the next thing. I really pushed the level of challenge of this build by utilising the Nord +10 starting boost to Two-Handed. For a long time, I wanted a Warrior build that would use Two-Handed weapons (my inner Celtic Warrior from my heritage wanted to come out to play), and Nords receive the biggest starting boost to Two-Handed, so it made sense. But it also doesn't make sense your now saying to yourself because you don't get any Critical Hit bonuses from Sneak attacks with Two-Handed weapons. True that, but that's the point, it's all part of the challenge. Besides, I've got a bow for Sneak Critical Hits. Only got detected a couple of times on deployment to Dustman's Cairn with the Companions Guild, result. Seems that having a Battleaxe drawn or slung over your back reduces your chances of successfully sneaking (didn't get detected once with a drawn bow, or a bow slung over the back, could just be coincidence)

- Orc build: I've decided to ignore their +10 starting boost to Heavy Armor. Blasphemy I know, but stealth and Heavy Armour don't mix. I chose to invest in Alteration as a primary magic school for this build, to augment the damage resistance of their Berserk greater power. Using One-Handed weapons, Maces primarily, for the highest damage output. Also stress tested in Dustman's Cairn, and actually performed better than the Nord build. Seriously, Orc stealth Warrior build using Light Armour you ask? This build has got nothing on my yet to be deployed Light Armour High Elf stealth Mage build.

Non-deployed but created builds: Dark Elf, Khajiit, Argonian, High Elf, Redguard, Imperial, Breton.

High Elf and Khajiit builds - tryna figure out what magic school would best augment their greater powers/resistances. Both have no resistances. Khajiiti Night Eye power is more of an ability (can be spammed unlike the once per day use of the powers of other races, other than that they start with a +15 boost to melee damage, which can actually be augmented by a certain Heavy Armour perk, which goes against the stealth side of things. As for the High Elf, Restoration could augment their High Born power - there is a perk that increases magicka regeneration rate. However, I plan the Argonian to use Restoration as a primary school of magic so as to augment their Histskin greater power. I don't mind re-using the same primary school of magic for a couple of builds, within reason - like my Nord uses Frost Destruction spells and the Dark Elf will use Fire Destruction spells. Same magic school, different branch. Restoration does not offer the same flexibility in that respect. (likewise with Conjuration, there are 3 different branches - Atromancy, Necromancy and Binding)

So guys, tell me, what magic school do you think would best suit a Khajiit and a High Elf? If possible it MUST be relevant to their greater powers, this is part of the challenge of these builds. Also with the Redguard, thinking outside the box, Frost Destruction could augment their Adrenaline Rush power. Think about it - Adrenaline Rush allows them to regenerate stamina 10x faster for 60 seconds, and Frost Destruction spells drain the stamina of the target. So Frost Destruction again makes sense here, BUT, I'm already using this for my Nord build and would rather not re-use unless absolutely necessary. Might have to go down the non-conformist route with the Khajiit and High Elf, which of course, is all fine with my inner non-conformist.

[WytchDokta]

So, the horseback combat has been added in patch v1.6. I now have reason to purchase a horse (plus they will attack enemies too (only if you dismount first), acting as a follower as it were)

It's pretty cooul stuff and perfect for hit and run attacks, however, while on horseback:

- The left hand is redundant, seemingly superglued to the reins. You attack only with your right hand, pressing attack button for left hand will still result in a right-handed attack - over the left side of the horse. Weapons and torches can still be equipped to the left hand, but they can't be used. Thanks Bethesda, now I can't see where I'm going at night.

- You cannot cast any spells whatsoever, much less, Dragon Shouts cannot be used. Bows and one-handed weapons can be used fine though. I have not yet tried using two-handed weapons from horseback, but judging from the above, I don't think they can.

- Objects and people cannot be interacted with.

- You can climb impossible rockfaces. Skyrim's horses have and insane climbing ability, and in some cases can climb almost vertical embankments. This is possibly a glitch.

Nevermind though, the first DLC - "Dawnguard" - will be out in a few weeks. I hear you can transform into a swarm of bast at will and fly around the game world. Mind you, that was after I'd had six beers.

[WytchDokta]

While I love this game, the AI is hilarious sometimes and posses no ability to reason. In a random encounter, I saw two low-level Hunters (the poacher/game hunter type) try to take on two higher level Giants and their herd of Mammoths. There was no way the Hunters could win, but they still charged straight it and both were killed with one hit from the Giants. This is why you avoid Giants, atleast until you have learned the ability to summon Odaviing or Durnehviir.

Then I go up against a mage, and she keeps repeating "You'll burn" and all that. Funny she should say that considering she was using Frost magic, not Fire magic. Mages don't even recognise what magic element they're using.