and boy, did I get them. I don't know if it's 1.8 or Dragonborn, or that I've never faced an Elder Dragon before (though I think I must have). I just picked up an old character, level 34, never had any trouble with dragons at all. Considered it a serious fault with the game that they were so whimpy. So when I was just dikeing around last night, getting ready to head over to Solstheim and an elder dragon showed up I confidently dashed over there to smack it on the nose and promptly cut it to bits just like I always do.

It didn't happen that way at all. First it's fire breath was much, much deadlier. The fire stuck to me and to the ground, so when I ran through a patch on the ground I got set on fire. It got two consecutive fatalities on me when I tried to melee it. It also did serious biting damage. So I tried to use a bow and stayed behind a big tree stump and sniped at it. It worked but I got through about twenty vigorous health potions.

It was awesome. I'm going to have to seriously reevaluate how I deal with them from now on.

I was still slightly disappointed that it still only used one shout, but it was a huge improvement.

I was wondering if regular "dragons" have also been beefed up.

Maybe you just beefed up the difficulty as well?

I don't think they've gotten harder, that's why the PC community mod them. Of course maybe Dragonborn made them tougher.

Really, I'm surprised to hear that. I've always played on Expert, and I'm sure I must have faced an Elder dragon before. And I really got pasted.

I thought they must have been beefed up.

If you've never faced an elder dragon before (a level 36'ish dragon), then you haven't played Skyrim nearly enough. But, no, dragons are still the same as they were at launch.

Only difference is Dawnguard's Legendary dragons are actually somewhat challenging, but still don't have a high enough life pool... The problem with Legendary Dragons is that the required level to encounter one is 78.. By that time you should be able to take on half of Skyrim by yourself. If you could encounter them at level 63, it'd be perfect.. But 78? Pretty laughable.

This is why we mod them.

Of course, if the player character wasn't predestined to be OP, that would solve half the issue right there >_>

But Elder Dragon's are annoying because of the damage they do more so than their HP I think. If I can get one on the ground and get in close, I can usually take them down without much effort. It is at night when they are flying around (especially in forested areas where they don't like to land) that I have trouble; that dang eye adjustment thing can be a real thorn in my side with the dragons.

So basically, anyone who Smith's or Enchants there own gear... Which is a lot of people, though not all. But even then, Dragons aren't nearly the Apex-predator that the lore portrays them as. They aren't supposed to be easily killed by a half-dozen bandits or town guards (here again, Legendary Dragons).

Then there's Alduin, who's actual stats are weaker than an Ancient Dragon... lol... Again, this is why mods exist.

Elder Dragons are not the tough ones for me, it's the Dragons from the Deadly Dragons mod that I have a tough time with and there are even some I'd rather not fight because I almost never win.


I haven't always upgraded/enchanted my gear but do now only for benefits from enchanted items that I find in my travels. I actually did make myself a bit too OP in my earlier playthroughs if only because my weapon did so much damage afterward. In my current playthrough, I upgraded my weapon only slightly while my armor went up considerably and I still have a hard time with Dragons which keeps things interesting.

I also have a mod that enhances Alduin (though it's not specific to him) and makes both the fights with him much harder.

ebony Warrior warrior, you have yet to face it seeems

No, i was referring to the fact that at max level, unless you were just idiotic with how you distributed your perks and never settled on a set of core skills, you WILL be over powered. This is a long standing problem with TES. It is fine to be strong, but when you can literally do almost anything you want without any fear, that is a problem in my book.