Ok, so i don't particularly care if I never see 81, but my main char is currently at level 56, and for the life of me, I don't know how I'll ever even make it to level 60, as slow as the leveling process has become at this point.

The only way your exp bar moves, is by gaining levels in your skill trees while you play. So I've maxed out all my sneak/archer's primary skills (Archery, Sneak), and the secondary ones have all gotten up around 90 (One-Handed, Block, Light Armor), and peripheral skills that are easy to max have all been maxed (Lockpicking, Pickpocketing, Blacksmithing). Other skills with significant amounts are Speech 80, Enchanting 62, Alchemy 50, Restoration 43.

I have no perk points in Ench or Alch, so they are pretty much just dump skills that I've occasionally worked at just to help level.

But, even if I dilligently work at collecting mats and items and working those two up (oh god, the tedium), and jumping off cliffs and healing to get Resto up (oh god, the more tedium), and slowly but surely getting my secondary melee skills up (damn, they move slow once you get past 90, no matter how much fighting you do), I still don't see all that effort and tedium getting me much past level 60, if even that.

I still have about 20% of the map to explore, and plenty of quests still to do, and haven't even really done much of the primary questline yet- but questing doesn't get you levels, by itself. Oh, I've already done Blackreach and the quest line that gives you +5 skill levels to your chosen branch... long ago. If I'd known how hard it was to get your secondary skills max-leveled, I'd have waited till they were all 90, before finishing that quest Live 'n learn.

So, I'm having a really hard time believing anyone actually gets maxed out to level 81, or anywhere near it, without some kind of mod, exploit, or cheat. Am I right? I'm looking mighty hard at a mod that raises the skills cap from 100 to 300, as I'm betting that's the only realistic way to ever accomplish that goal. I'd be interested to hear from the people who've reached 81, to see how they managed it. Be honest

most of all there's no pint in reachin 81 but yeah, you can. You need to level up all those skills you haven't used, like magic schools if you are a warrior and so on

I made it as far as 50 and got bored with Skyrim, and moved on to another new game. I could not fathom how an individual could play this thing to 100 ??? Even if you are retired, and games are all you have. I would still have to move on to something more new and exciting !

Meh, it's tedious enough just raising the *useful* skills up, let alone bringing a bunch of magic up from scratch, too. Not gonna happen. I have a magic character for that.

word, it's totally pointless, better make a new char

we are still playing at least, you are in a froum of a game you don't play anymore. I'm pretty sure YOU should move on...

just use the skyrim community uncapper http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/downloads/file.php?id=1175

There is nothing wrong with a little bump and grind http://www.jayzar.co.uk/#aG0000a0IWB1|yly0081Y2IO001S000E0Um000k0

of course if you play on PC you can mod it, and it's even more pointless...

Heh, I have 3 other chars, I've just been focusing on my main lately to try to finish the whole map and as many of the quests as I can stomach, with her. Do all the dungeons at least once, discover everything, finish primary questline, that sort of skit. There's still a lot of playtime left to accomplish all of that, but her experience gain and leveling has turned into pure snail-crap at this point, which is disappointing. I like to feel like my char is steadily progressing as it plays, not just mopping things up while remaining stagnant, development-wise.

But realistically, I do not have a goal of getting her to 81, as I'm sure that would be utter insanity, barring mods or the like.

I did that with my first warrior char, completed all quests and guilds and explored every location, ended up at level 57. (and honestly didn't need to be higher that that)

I doubt i'll get past lvl 30 on my current char. As he has no interest in any guilds and his only real goal is to wipe out the stormcloaks. Currently 45hrs with him at lvl 18

I reached level 73 or so just with normal play and no grinding. There are a number of skills that I simply never use so once they had been trained up to 90, they were effectively stuck. At that point, I knew who my character was from an RP perspective so I felt no qualms using the Oghma Infinium glitch to push me the rest of the way to 81. Unless you really need the perks, it's not necessary to max out your character. At level 56, the game has already stopped leveling with you anyway.

Level up Conjuration - Soul Trap a dead body over and over, wait an hour to restore magicka, repeat.

Level up Illusion - Use the Muffle spell and sneak around, continually casting it.

Level up Restoration - While working on leveling Heavy Armor, use Restoration to heal yourself as you fall to low health. Use a wild animal if necessary (there is a wolf nearby Riverwood when going up the Bleak Falls Barrow that spawns; just let it attack you while you back yourself into a wall so it doesn't run around).

Level up Alteration - Use the Detect Life spell while in a heavily populated room or building; the more life you detect, the more experience you earn.

Level up Destruction - By far the most difficult, but the most used IMO. My best advice on leveling this one is to put "Frostbite" in one hand and "Heal Other" in your other hand and cast them both on a horse, Farkas while he follows you in Dustman's Cairn, or any other ally that won't return fire. Both spells heal and damage at the same rate, so you never kill the target.

Sneak - Just walk into a wall, but you don't need that.

Speech - The Bosmer bartender in Black-Briar Meadery can be continually questioned about how Maven is and how it is to work for her -- Infinite persuade options for Speech.

One/Two Handed - Get Shadowmere and attack him with the weakest weapon on that class to level up.

Heavy/Light armor - See Restoration, same principle.

Smithing - Iron daggers, but you already know this I'm sure.

Enchanting - Enchant those iron daggers you made!

Pickpocket and Archery are pretty self explanatory, but you already got those up.

Lockpicking - Break a bunch of locks on a 'Master' chest

Alchemy - No idea how to quickly rank this one up. It took me a long time and a lot of money to buy the ingredients to do it.

Really appreciate the exploit tips, but that's not how I roll. I'd sooner give myself a pedicure with a branding iron, than go through all that with a bunch of skills I don't even use. No, I just want to be able to get a reasonable amount of level-gain from using the skills that actually apply to my gameplay. From my point of view, applying an arbitrary cap on a skill (100) is just that- arbitrary. You never stop learning more about your skills, no matter how good you get. At least if you are a true artisan. I'll probably go get the mod that raises the skill caps, to facilitate that. If I'm 65 or 70 when I'm 'finished' with this char, that's fine by me. But stagnating at 56 the rest of the way... no.

You think you have to cheat to get to level 81? Nope. All you have to do is continue what you call "the tedium". That's the secret. As many people point out there really is no need to get to level 81, but if you are going to do it then you need to drop the attitude and realize that the only way to get to 81 is through the act of using all the skills a LOT. So, yes, you need to spend a lot of time gathering materials to craft. You will need pantloads of ingredients, soul gems, skill books, smithing goods, etc. etc.

If you think it's tedious, then don't do it. But that's how you get to 81. You play the game and you keep on playing it.

Right now my thief/smith is at level 51, I have several towns I haven't even been to yet, I have barely scratched the surface of the main quest line, and there are a fair amount of side quests left to do. I'd say I've done perhaps 30% of the intended game stuff. I've spent a lot of time just exploring, hunting, swimming, some side-questing, etc. But, I don't have any problem leveling. I should mention that I didn't grind anything and there are a lot of skills left to focus on. I really doubt I will even attempt going after 81 but I hold a diametrically opposite view. I level up at least one level every time I play the game. Perhaps that will stop at level 56 but I find that even harder to believe than people needing to cheat somehow to get to level 81.

Keep us posted, and let us know when you get to 81 that way, without any exploit grinding. Oh, it goes fine up into the early 50's, where you are now. But by 55, you hit a serious exp wall, just playing 'normally'. All of the combat skills you use much of will be maxed or close to it, and just 'doing your thing' out in the world will gain you *very* little, and very slowly, after that. Crafts will only get you so far. If I max out all of my crafts, I'll still barely get to 60, even after maxing all of my primary and secondary combat skills. No, to get much past 60, I'm betting you'll have to seriously start doing some of the things like Daryn Mercio posted above, to get there in the next year. Letting things beat on you for eternity, casting soul trap endlessly on dead bodies, doing the heal/damage loop on some hapless follower... exploit stuff. Otherwise, if you get to 81 just by using all of your skills normally, and not doing any of those exploits, you da F'ing Man, when it comes to dedication (insanity?).

Sneak and lockpicking are the only skills right now that is "leveling" me, and I'm level 49.

Oh and I've explored the entire map, with probably 50 or so locations remaining to be discovered.

Do you buy your 5 allowed skillups from trainers, during each level?

I did that only in the case of Illusion and Restoration

Destruction, Conjuration, Illusion, Alteration, Enchanting, Smithing, Alchemy = 100
Restoration 88
Heavy Armor 15
Block 16
Two Handed 17
One Handed 17
Archery 17
Light Armor 25
Sneak 86
Lockpick 53
pickpocket 16
Speech 36

As I have no intention of leveling the rest(cept for sneak and restoration and lockpicking) you can say I am slowly progression towards an intended "soft cap".

Interesting. You must not do a lot of selling loot at vendors. I'm a packrat and sell off everything worthwhile that I find, that's worth at least 50g or more... and my Speech at your level is twice that, solely from talking with vendors while selling loot. I also usually have a follower along to pack extra loot, though... maybe you don't. Also, with a non-stamina mage build and no +100 carryweight perk form pickpocket, I'm guessing your max carryweight doesn't exactly lend itself to a lot of looting

I am at level 64 and have not cleared all locations yet. I stop using skills after they have reached 100 to use others more often. I suggest you have some more patience and just play the game. You will get there. If it is not fun then stop.

If you want to get Alchemy up then take all your ingredients and research their effects. Each time an experiment discovers a new effect will it not only create a potion, but the discovery itself will increase the Alchemy skill, too. Here is a link, which describes how you can get this done: http://www.gamesas.com/topic/1353783-alchemy-any-way-to-level-this-skill-up-a-touch-faster/page__p__20403102#entry20403102

Similar with Enchanting. Disenchanting items to learn a new enchantment will increase the skill, too. So try to learn as many enchantments as you can find. Create your own enchantments to stay as flexible as possible and save weight. I.e. create rings and necklaces with resistances and fortifications instead of switching between armor pieces. Trap souls and recharge enchanted weapons. It will increase the skill, too.

I dont think ill ever level any chars beyond 50. My current chars is at 35-45, but i don't play much anymore. I will pick it up eventually thou.

Another mod you might consider is http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/downloads/file.php?id=2814. It let's you customize how many times per level you can train. Five sessions per level is BS, in my opinion. At lower levels, five training sessions will advance you five levels, skipping past 20 possible sessions.

eta: To level up Alchemy, keep in mind that you level up faster the more valuable the potion you create. If you look on the wiki there is a simple recipe worth +/- 3k septims that will level you up very quickly. I can't remember the exact ingredients but I was making one worth over 4.5k. Then if you sell these you level up Speech.

Thats the point. Yes mathematically you can reach level 81, by maxing all skills to 100, but realistically it is more fun to have 3-4 characters that use a combination of the skills.

Only true hardcoe grafters get the max in every skill in Skyrim.