I've gathered these ideas from http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1242490-hardcoe-role-play/ and http://anearthlinginskyrim.wordpress.com/the-rules/ about how to make the game more hardcoe/realistic and made some modifications. This is supposed to be the ultimate immersion experience.

So I set these 7 rules of engagement to fully enjoy TES v: Skyrim.

1 - Dead is Dead.

2 - I'll try and eat at least once a day when in the wilds or twice when in civilization. If I don't then I have to stop whatever activity I'm doing and start looking for food to emulate hunger.

3 - I need to sleep a little each 4 four days (4 hours in the wilderness or 6 hours in a bed or another safe place). Otherwise I have to stop whatever I'm doing and look for a place to sleep.

4 - With the dynamic weather system I must try and stay dry/warm whenever possible. that means looking for shelter during blizzards and storms or trying to dry my clothes after rain and crossing patches of water.

5 - I will turn off the compass, quest markers and never use the in game map. I'll only orient myself using the sun, the stars (I'll have to learn that), road signs and a physical map. I'll make notes and draw maps in a journal to keep track of places I've been. Also I'll try and make notes of the quests I've been given so I won't have to use the in game quest book. I'll also make entries to the journal to keep track of time using this calendar. http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Calendar

6 - I'll try and behave like I would in RL. I don't talk to every person I come accross in the street in RL, I don't knock on every door or storm random houses. I don't do whatever ppl ask me to do even if it's putting my life in danger. I migh do it if there's good money in it for me tho or I'm being asked by a pretty lady.

7 - I'll only take quests that offer good risk/reward ratio because due to rule #1 dying could have harsh consequences. Going out on quests will require some serious preparation. As for the main quest, I'll take on it naturally as the game progresses and only when I feel I'm ready for it.

So what do you think? Any other ideas that could make this more realistic/hardcoe/fun?


Edit: Changed rule #1 regarding equipment lost and #5 to allow the use of physical maps.

Edit 2: Changed items 2, 3 and 4 as advised by Mr. Silverwave who's been in the army and have field experience on the subject.

Edit 3: Simplified rule number 1.

Point one is silly. Why would you place something so critical in the hands of fate? That's not hardcoe at all. /opinion

Sounds like you took a great game and turned it into a chore.

Because I want to be affraid of dying.

If you're on a PC, there will be mods that give you the penalties for failing those rather than relying on you to discipline yourself. I will be using (making if need be) them myself.

EDIT: check out Arwen's mods for Fo3 and FONV if you want to bring on the pain. I believe she'll be modding for Skyrim eventually too.

It's not quite for me, but if that's fun for you then go for it!
I've heard other hardcoe players saying they will only let their character carry one heavy set of armour at a time. I won't be doing that, but my plan is to always carry one normal set of civvie clothes that I'll change into before entering a town (my character will be a thief and possibly an assassin, so it makes sense for her to seem as non-threatening and trustworthy as possible when interacting with people - wearing armour and carrying a massive weapon will only draw unwanted attention).

Very nice ideas. Maybe I'll borrow some of them.

I've got a system where when I die, I get injured. Role 2d6, and that's how many days of rest I need in a village. During the day I cant engage in combat or magic etc: I've got it all written down somewhere, its slightly complicated. I think thats better, because then dying still svckS, but you wont waste your 200 hour long character by falling off a clift. But thats my opinion...

smack yourself in the face with a spade every time you die is a good one!

Ha! You want to be afraid of dying? Play Dead is Dead and forget the dice roll.

Every time someone starts one of these threads, ( Daily) they end up listing all the same things as the one before.

Agreed. What a dreadful way of playing....

DiD is too harsh and I doubt I'll be able to complete the game without dying at least once. This way I have a chance but there's still risk.

Also I linked the thread and the blog where I got the inspiration from and stated I made modifications so this is not like the other threads.

Good luck with that.

You mean like this http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1242490-hardcoe-role-play/page__view__findpost__p__19039940__hl__hardcoe__fromsearch__1
and this
http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1158332-my-vision-of-the-perfect-hardcoe-mode/page__view__findpost__p__19038351__hl__hardcoe__fromsearch__1
and this
http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1245274-anyone-keeping-a-skyrim-diary/page__view__findpost__p__18921685__hl__hardcoe__fromsearch__1
and this
http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1248554-roleplayinghardcoe-skyrim/page__view__findpost__p__19000095__hl__hardcoe__fromsearch__1
and this
http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1247714-hardcoe-skyrim-hand-drawing-maps/page__view__findpost__p__18993620__hl__hardcoe__fromsearch__1
and this
http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1247735-make-skyrim-as-challenging-as-possible/page__view__findpost__p__18981877__hl__hardcoe__fromsearch__1

not sure why your not going to use a map. i mean sure dont use the in game map but how about the one that comes with the game

Bear in mind that different people want different things from their games. The blog the OP referenced, An Earthling in Skyrim, is my blog and the reason I gave myself a lot of rules was because I want my character's story to play out in a different and unexpected way, to give my tale a unique spin and make it more fun for the reader. For me the fun is in pushing against the behaviour the game expects from us and seeing what happens, and hopefully anybody reading my updates will find it interesting/entertaining too. I'm also going to be getting a huge blast out of writing up my experiences, which is the main reason I set up the blog. The OP probably has different reasons from me for using his rules (unless he's another blogger, in which case I look forward to reading it), but they are just as valid a playstyle as those people who choose to kill everything they see. That way of playing holds little attraction to me, but I can understand why someone might want to do it.

Also every game restricts the player in many ways; this is actually what makes them fun. Imagine a theoretical game where anything is possible and there are no restrictions - it would be amazing at first, but then it would become satisfying. This is because games are fun because you overcome obstacles and have a sense of progress; what makes them appealing is much the same as films and books - story is conflict. By adding extra rules to follow a gamer can achieve not only a unique play experience, but also a greater sense of accomplishment.

I only have access to the digital copy so I don't have that map but even if I did I find it more challenging to orient myself using the environment.

I love that your definition of "realism" includes up to 6 lives.

I think your #1 point is also a little ... out there.
If you want to be afraid of dying, don't save your games. Just rely on your autosaves. This is what I am planning on doing as well as eating, sleeping, drinking because I need to.

Nice words pal.

I don't have a blog but I'll definetly follow yours.

Thx for the ideas.

I like your rules but could never stick to them myself, I think I would get fed up with attempting to stick to so many rules. I use much more laid-back rules - sleep at night, follow a distinct moral code, and don't use any obvious gameplay exploits (to get rich quick, make myself stronger etc). I like an enhanced challenge, but I don't want to change the base game too much. Especially not at first.

Well, I give you credit for putting so much thought into it, and setting some groundrules for yourself. But i wish I could know, once you are 30 hours into the game and die and the dice roll says that's it, start over... REALLY????? are you going to stick to that?

The trick is not to think too much about it. Just go on and delete it asap. This way you won't have time to hesitate.

It's possible in our world to get beaten, bashed, stabbed, or burned into unconsciousness and still have a chance to survive with medical treatment, so why not in Skyrim where they have healing potions and magic? It's a question of assuming that the character was helped in some way when you get another life. As I see it, it's more realistic than DiD as not every wound is fatal, but they can still take you out of a battle.

I'm fairly certain that after you die in this game (you die, you don't go unconscious), the only way you'd come back would be via necromancy.

I don't really care one way or another. I'm just amused by some of the arbitrary rules people make up in order to make the game more tedious.