Hi, all. This will be the first in several posts, and it’s a response to an initial thread started by Phoss.
http://www.gamesas.com/topic/1338671-perks-and-gimps/page__fromsearch__1

For those who are looking for more pre-defined character creation in Skyrim, I’ve concocted an AD&D-type character sheet to help you get the ball rolling. The character sheet primarily focuses on Attributes (yes… attributes), how they are affected by race, and how those attributes will affect the skills your character can develop.

The character sheet itself will be pretty simple looking. Just something you can take a quick glance at to help you make informed decisions about what your character can and can’t use and can and can’t learn.

DISCLAIMER: I’ve put a lot of time into Skyrim, but I can’t say the same for this system. I haven’t done an ounce of play testing, but, on its face, it makes sense to me. THAT DOESN’T MEAN I THINK IT WILL BE GREAT FOR EVERYONE. If you look this over and decide it’s a useful tool to help you enjoy the game, that’s awesome. If there are things you disagree with, please trust me when I say that’s totally cool with me. If you have criticism you’re just dying to share with me, please do so. But at the same time, I would just recommend adjusting my work to suit your criticism or just ignoring this “system” altogether. I guess… long story short, I put this together as an aid for those who are interested, not as a topic for debate.

What follows will be:

The Basic Character Sheet
Attribute Generation, Explanation, and Racial Modifiers
How Attributes Affect Weapon and Armor Use
How Attributes Affect Skill Use/Development/Perk Selections Part 1
How Attributes Affect Skill Use/Development/Perk Selections Part 2
Weapon Proficiencies and Fleshing Out the Character

For those who are interested, I’ll do my best to compose the basic system into a more attractive PDF document. Send me a PM with your email, and I’ll shoot it out to you when it’s done.

SKYRIM CHARACTER SHEET

Name:

Race:

Alignment:

ATTRIBUTES (With Racial Modifiers Applied):

STR ___
DEX ___
CON ___
INT ___
WIS ___
CHA ___

WEAPON PROFICIENCIES
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

ADDITIONAL TRAITS
Phobias, Vices, Causes, Grudges, Sympathies, etc.

Attribute Generation, Explanation, and Racial Modifiers

Attributes: You can use any number of 3-16 number generation methods. 3d6, 4d6 minus the lowest (i.e., your dice rolls are 5, 5, 4, 1. You omit the 1, and add the remainder, so the result is 14). Generate six numbers and assign them as you see fit.

Strength (STR). Your muscle, endurance and stamina.
Dexterity (DEX). Coordination, agility, reflexes and balance.
Constitution (CON). Physique, toughness, health, and resilience.
Intelligence (INT). Reasoning and learning ability.
Wisdom (WIS): Enlightenment, judgment, willpower, intuition.
Charisma (CHA): Attractiveness, persuasiveness, and personal magnetism.

RACIAL ATTRIBUTE MODIFIERS:

Altmer +2 INT, +1 WIS, -1 STR, -2 CON
Argonian +1 CON, +1 DEX, -1 CHA, -1 WIS
Bosmer +1 DEX, -1 STR
Breton +2 WIS, -1 CON, -1 STR
Dunmer +1 DEX, +1 INT, -1 STR, -1 CHA
Imperial +2 CHA, +1 CON, -2 INT, -1 WIS
Khajiit +2 DEX, -2 CHA
Nord +1 STR, +2 CON, -1 INT, -2 WIS
Orsimer +2 STR, +1 CON, -2 WIS, -1 INT
Redguard +1 STR, +1 DEX, -1 INT, -1 WIS

How Attributes Affect Weapon and Armor Use

Naturally, these aren’t hard and fast rules, since the game will allow you to wear and use whatever you wish, whenever you wish. But, as a rule of thumb, please use the following STR requirements as a base for weapon and armor usage.

WEAPONS (Minimum STR)

Dagger (any)
Sword (8)
Axe (9)
Mace (10)
Great Sword (11)
Battle Axe (12)
War Hammer (13)

ARMOR
Clothes (any)
Light Armor (7)
Heavy Armor (12)

How Attributes Affect Skill Use/Development/Perk Selections Part 1

SKILL/ATTRIBUTE RELATIONSHIPS
These relationships determine how many PERKS you can invest in any SKILL TREE. Each SKILL is tied to one or two ATTRIBUTES. Always select the HIGHER attribute when determining the number of perks you can invest in a particular skill tree. Interpret the “tables” as the range or number equaling your attribute score and the number in parentheses equaling the number of perks you can select in that particular tree.

One-handed (STR or DEX)*
3-5 (0)
6-8 (1)
9 (2)
10 (3)
11 (4)
12 (5)
13 (6)
14 (8)
15 (12)
16 (14)
17 (16)
18 (18)
19 (20)
20 (21)
*Choosing Axe, Mace, or Sword-specific perks requires you to have the appropriate weapon proficiency (See WEAPON PROFICIENCY section).

Two-handed (STR)*
3-5 (0)
6-8 (1)
9 (2)
10 (3)
11 (4)
12 (5)
13 (6)
14 (8)
15 (10)
16 (12)
17 (14)
18 (16)
19 (18)
20 (19)
*Choosing Battle Axe, War Hammer, or Great Sword-specific perks requires you to have the appropriate weapon proficiency (See WEAPON PROFICIENCY section).

Block (STR or DEX*)
3-5 (0)
6-8 (1)
9 (2)
10 (3)
11 (4)
12 (5)
13 (6)
14 (7)
15 (8)
16 (10)
17 (12)
18-20 (13)
* Perks derived from DEX are limited to Shield Wall, Quick Reflexes, and Deflect Arrows

Heavy Armor (STR or CON)
3-5 (0)
6-8 (1)
9 (2)
10 (3)
11 (4)
12 (5)
13 (6)
14 (7)
15 (8)
16 (9)
17 (10)
18 (11)
19-20 (12)

Smithing (STR or CON)*
3-5 (0)
6-9 (1)
10-13 (2)
14-16 (3)
17 (4)
18-20 (5)
* For Smithing, the number is related to the “tiers.” For these purposes, “Arcane Blacksmith” is a second tier perk along with Elven Smithing and Dwarven Smithing. Third tier perks are “Advanced Armors” and “Orcish Smithing.” “Glass Smithing” and “Ebony Smithing” are fourth tier perks, and “Deadric Smithing” and “Dragon Armor” are fifth tier perks.


Light Armor (DEX)
3-5 (0)
6-8 (1)
9 (2)
10 (3)
12 (4)
13 (5)
14 (6)
15 (7)
16 (8)
17 (9)
18-20 (10)

Archery (DEX)
3-5 (0)
6-8 (1)
9 (2)
10 (3)
11 (4)
12 (5)
13 (6)
14 (8)
15 (10)
16 (12)
17 (14)
18-20 (16)

Lockpicking (DEX)*
3-5 (0) (None)
6-8 (1) (Novice)
9-11 (3) (Apprentice)
12-14 (6) (Adept)
15-16 (8) (Expert)
17 (9) (Master)
18 (10) (Master)
19-20 (11) (Master)
*Your DEX score also determines the maximum complexity of lock you can even attempt to pick, regardless of the perks you’ve selected.

Sneak (DEX)
3-5 (0)
6-8 (1)
9 (2)
10 (3)
11 (4)
12 (5)
13 (6)
14 (7)
15 (8)
16 (10)
17 (11)
18 (12)
19-20 (13)

Pickpocket (DEX)
3-5 (0)
6-8 (1)
9 (2)
10 (3)
11 (4)
12 (5)
13 (6)
14 (7)
15 (8)
16 (19)
17 (10)
18 (11)
19-20 (12)

How Attributes Affect Skill Use/Development/Perk Selections Part 2

SKILL/ATTRIBUTE RELATIONSHIPS
These relationships determine how many PERKS you can invest in any SKILL TREE. Each SKILL is tied to one or two ATTRIBUTES. Always select the HIGHER attribute when determining the number of perks you can invest in a particular skill tree. Interpret the “tables” as the range or number equaling your attribute score and the number in parentheses equaling the number of perks you can select in that particular tree. In terms of schools of magic, the “tier” of spell your character is capable of learning is limited by the corresponding attribute. So, for example, while a character with an 11 INT may be able to technically learn the number of perks to climb to the “Expert” perk on the skill tree, that character still may only cast “Apprentice” Level spells.

Alchemy (INT or WIS)
3-5 (0)
6-8 (1)
9 (2)
10 (3)
11 (4)
12 (5) (Max Green Thumb or Snakeblood)
13 (6) (Max Green Thumb or Snakeblood)
14 (8) (Max Green Thumb or Snakeblood)
15 (10) (Max Green Thumb or Snakeblood)
16 (12) (Max Green Thumb or Snakeblood)
17 (14) (Max Green Thumb or Snakeblood)
18-20 (15)

Enchanting (INT or WIS)
3-5 (0)
6-8 (1)
9 (2)
10 (3)
11 (4) (Max Storm Enchanter, Corpus Enchanter, Soul Siphon)
12 (5) (Max Storm Enchanter, Corpus Enchanter, Soul Siphon)
13 (6) (Max Storm Enchanter, Corpus Enchanter, Soul Siphon)
14 (7) (Max Storm Enchanter, Corpus Enchanter, Soul Siphon)
15 (8) (Max Storm Enchanter, Corpus Enchanter, Soul Siphon)
16 (9) (Max Storm Enchanter, Corpus Enchanter, Soul Siphon)
17 (10) (Max Storm Enchanter, Corpus Enchanter, Soul Siphon)
18-20 (13)

Alteration (INT)
3-5 (0) (None)
6-8 (1) (Novice)
9 (2) (Novice)
10 (3) (Apprentice)
12 (4) (Adept)
13 (5) (Adept)
14 (6) (Adept)
15 (8) (Expert)
16 (10) (Expert)
17 (12) (Master)
18-20 (14) (Master)

Conjuration (INT)
0-5 (0) (None)
6-8 (1) (Novice)
9 (2) (Novice)
10 (3) (Apprentice)
11 (4) (Apprentice)
12 (5) (Adept)
13 (6) (Adept)
14 (7) (Adept)
15 (8) (Expert)
16 (10) (Expert)
17 (12) (Master)
18 (14) (Master)
19-20 (16) (Master)

Destruction (INT or WIS)
3-5 (0) (None)
6-8 (1) (Novice)
9 (2) (Novice)
10 (3) (Apprentice)
11 (4) (Apprentice)
12 (5) (Adept)
13 (7) (Adept)
14 (9) (Adept)
15 (11) (Expert)
16 (13) (Expert)
17 (15) (Master)
18 (16) (Master)
19-20 (17) (Master)

Illusion (WIS or CHA)
3-5 (0) (None)
6-8 (1) (Novice)
9 (2) (Novice)
10 (3) (Apprentice)
11 (4) (Apprentice)
12 (5) (Adept)
13 (6) (Adept)
14 (7) (Adept)
15 (8) (Expert)
16 (10) (Expert)
17 (12) (Master)
18-20 (13) (Master)

Restoration (WIS or CHA)
3-5 (0) (None)
6-8 (1) (Novice)
9 (2) (Novice)
10 (3) (Apprentice)
11 (4) (Apprentice)
12 (5) (Adept)
13 (6) (Adept)
14 (7) (Adept)
15 (8) (Expert)
16 (10) (Expert)
17 (12) (Master)
18-20 (13) (Master)

Speech (CHA)
3-5 (0)
6-8 (1)
9 (2) (Max Bribery and Allure)
10 (3) (Max Bribery and Allure)
11 (4) (Max Bribery and Allure)
12 (5) (Max Merchant and Persuasion)
13 (6) (Max Merchant and Persuasion)
14 (7) (Max Merchant and Persuasion)
15 (8) (Max Investor and Intimidation)
16 (10) (Max Investor and Intimidation)
17 (12) (Max Fence)
18-20 (13)

WEAPON PROFICIENCIES

The number of weapon proficiencies (i.e., weapons your character can pick up and use effectively) is derived from your combined Health and Stamina scores. Every character will start out with the knowledge of three weapons which you can select ahead of time. As you add to Health or Stamina, extra slots will open up. OPTIONAL: When a new slot opens up through the addition of Stamina or Health, you can choose a new weapon proficiency ONCE YOU HAVE TRAINED WITH THE WEAPON through ONE-HANDED, TWO-HANDED, or ARCHERY. Therefore, you can’t select a new weapon proficiency until you have paid for training, received that training as a result of a service, or read an appropriate skill book. The first number is your combined Health and Stamina score, the second is the number of potential weapon proficiencies your character can learn.

200 (3)
240 (4)
280 (5)
320 (6)
360 (7)
400 (8

FLESHING OUT YOUR CHARACTER (OPTIONAL)

Finally, some of the following items may be important to consider as your role play in Skyrim. Feel free to use them, ignore them, or add to them as you see fit.

Phobias (Does your character have any irrational fears such as water, mudcrabs, heights, close spaces, etc.)

Vices (Do you love alcohol? Ladies? Men? Cheese? Cheese-covered Ladies? Alcohol-covered Men?)

Pre-established Grudges and Sympathies: These can be applied to things such as races, factions, towns, etc.

A+ for effort.

My main char is a Redguard, but if you did him in D&D he'd be a half-elf multi-class fighter thief, like:

STR 15
DEX 18
CON 13
INT 12
WIS 9
CHA 13

nicely done.

i'll have to roll some die and see who i can create.

I appreciate the feedback. Sorry for the long-windedness. It didn't seem so bad when I was writing it up. RPG forums should definitely have a "table/chart" feature.

Haha, yeah that would help! Great effort there, jdfury, I'll take a look at it when I get to play next =)

Now just to code it into the game, lol.