About 80 hours into my first char. I startend with no fast travel and no quest markers. Was really good at first, but...after my 20th run from winterhold to whiterun, it got too repetetitive and took away from the game.

Now, i personally really focus on the rpg and immersion parts. So i set up my own rules to balance fast travel and immersion: i do use FT between and only between all cities and towns. I dont use FT in any other situation. This means plenty of walking and exploring, for example related to all new areas and all quests like dungeon crawling (no FT to drop loot). It also means avoiding the somewhat tedious hikes simply to get from city to city for the Nth time.

Each player should and can find their own balance in this game. For me, the combination of no quest markers and limited FT is the answer. I encourage all of you to experiment with this.

Also, i'm interested in getting your views on other forms of balancing FT in skyrim. Please drop a note if you have ideas.

Cheers, Sham

That's a nice balance. Personally, I'm lazy enough to FT from the front gates to the palace in most cities. You're not going to miss any random encounters after your first few times through.

Congradulations in finding out how to have fun with the game. I wish more people have do this instead of complaining that Fast Travel is in the game. It's a choice. Use it when You want to. You don't even need to use it.

For me, I am surprised how little I do use it. Like you, I only use it when the walk/run is a tedious walk and I just want to game instead of traveling the same road for the umpteenth time. I love the landscape of Skyrim so I am walking/running everywhere. Most times in Oblivion, I would just fast travel but not so in Skyrim.

I usually fast travel to drop off loot and then FT back to where I was.I love walking around and it's the best way to get hides.I like to fix up all the fur and hide items I find.

For travelling between major cities you can just always use the caravan outside of each city.

I personally like using fast travel to visit those greybeards... how many times do you want me to go up the 7000 steps?

I don't understand the carriages.Why would I pay when I can just FT.Does it do something different then just get me there? I've never used one.

Fast travel does have its place in this game when used in moderation. I'm glad you found a balance that suits you, OP. I also use it similarly, though I do use it to drop loot, and it makes the game very enjoyable without taking away from the exploration aspect.

That's similar to what I do if I'm roleplaying. I usually put in specific rules but I do occassionally fast travel but not all the way across the map. I may fast travel from Markarth to Karthwasten but nothing further then that. I've done enough roleplaying in Oblivion to know that you need some fast travel but done in a way that helps the roleplay, not hurt it.

I have invented "imaginary carriage" travel in my game. I roleplay that places like Dawnstar and Riverwood have carriage travel and even smaller settlements have someone who will give my character a ride for a fee. So, if my character wants to quickly travel from, say, Septimus Signus's outpost in the Sea of Ghosts down to Riverwood we would travel on foot from Septimus Signus's cave to Winterhold, then fast travel from Winterhold to Solitude, take the carriage from Solitude to Whiterun and then fast travel from Whiterun to Riverwood. Somewhere along the way I'll pay 50 more gold to a merchant than I have to, to simulate the missing carriage fees.

For me, this is a nice, workable compromise on those days when I want to accomplish quest-related goals but don't have much time to play.

I use FT with rules as well.

I only use carriages - I find they offer just the right amount of roleplaying

You could always make horses useful by incorporating them into your fast travel house rule. Only fast travel via wagon or if you are sitting on the back of a horse.

Great input and some good ideas i will test, thanks everyone!

I find myself fast traveling only if I have go from one side of the map to the other. Say, Markarth to Riften, it just takes too long to hoof it.

But, if I have to go from Solitude to Matkarth then I just walk.

I also only use carriages. Walking between cities gets tedious at some point, and I can imagine those carriages really existing in that world, so why walk? I only wish they wouldn't just zap me to my destination. I'd prefer if they were like horses on autopilot. Yes it takes time to get from A to B.

When I saw the first Whiterun cart, I thought Bethesda gave us the awesome Red Dead Redemption ridealong (like, you know, in the INTRO TO SKYRIM). But alas, no =)

Again, i say Skyrim will be totally awesome on 12/12/12 - modded to hell and back. Can't wait!

can you imagine how incredibly tedious those carriages would be if you would have to sit through the entire ride from solitude to riften?

Nah - you give the option to SKIP AHEAD. No big

i did something like that in red dead redemption once, it was okay, mostly for role playing

I have very strict FT rules. I only FT if where I'm going fits the following three criteria:
1) I'm travelling from one city to another; and
2) The city I'm travelling to is not adjacent to (i.e. one city away from) the city from which I'm travelling; and
3) I can't use a carriage to get to the destined city.

Viz., if I'm travelling from Whiterun to Riverhold, I travel on foot, but if I'm travelling from Whiterun to Falkreath, I use FT, but if I'm travelling from Whiterun to Markarth, I use a carriage.


I'm looking forward to someone modding the cart rides so that they function like the intro cart ride does. Would be absolutely awesome.

Start the cart ride, and you can get some (RL) work done AND enjoy pretty scenery at the same time ... Productive bliss.

I FT when I feel like it. No more, no less.

I think it's faster, less game time passes than with fast traveling. In Oblivion fast traveling with horse was faster than on foot.

However, it's mostly for those people who see the map fast travel as cheating or nonsense.

Sure. It means I'd think twice if it's really necessary right now to travel there. Just like in real life

Heheh.

this would be just like the cab rides in GTA4 and highly approve of this idea.