Hi, all,

My new character is a Nord, level 15ish. Lately I've been running into opponents that have been doing quite a number on my health gauge. I've had to play very smart in long dungeons and on tough quests. I'm looking to start making health potions. Any tips as to where I should start?

• What are some good ingredients?
  
• What is the fastest way to level up Alchemy?
  
• Is there a best region in Skyrim for ingredient gathering?

This is an often-used bookmarked site for my early characters:
http://skyrim.melian.cc/?cmd=cmdSkyrimAlchemyWizard
You might scroll down the list of ingredients, just to become familiar with what you can actually use. Might find some surprises.

Two quick combos that I've committed to memory:

- BLUE mountain flower and wheat (fortify health & restore health)
For early levels it's probably no accident that blue mtn flower is found all along the road near Whiterun, and there's plenty of wheat to grab at the nearby farms right there.

- mudcrab chitin and charred skeever hide (cure disease / resist poison / restore stamina)


The fastest way to level up alchemy is to make expensive potions. Poisons, especially of paralysis, do well. Also multi-effect potions will bump the bar up faster.... don't worry at this point whether it's a good AND a bad effect potion as you can still sell it (just don't drink it in battle!).

You can (make a fortify barter and then) buy out all the ingredients at an alchemy shop... the shopkeeper will then have plenty of money to buy all your dodgy potions that you can't use (but that have really helped to bump up your alchemy).
But there are ingredients everywhere in the world, especially if you don't fast-travel..... different ingredients in different areas (snowberries in snowy areas, tundra cotton on the tundra, jazbay and creep cluster and dragon's tongue in the swamps, etc.).

Don't forget to eat everything to learn the effect
Some fortify alchemy gear might help as well, to make potions stronger (as they are pretty weak in the beginning).

Don't eat something more then once until you have the perks for learning more though. That would just be a waste.

Woops yes, I almost forgot!
Muiri (Dark Brotherhood quest) will reward you with a ring, and the alchemist in Dawnstar has a little miscy quest to fetch an alchemy ring (I just kept it).

The most valuable potion that I've made was Giant's Toe+Blue Mountain Flower+Blue Butterfly Wing. It's completely useless as far as something you can use, but has a long list of effects. Unless you can bring down a giant yourself, alchemy shops carry the toes. Much less painful way for an early character to get them.