Let me start of by saying that I haven't completed all the guild questlines in Skyrim yet. I have completed Imperial Legion and Dark Brotherhood, I'm one quest away from completing College of Winterhold, and am about halfway in Companions and Thieves Guild (I've done very little on the Stormcloak side, but it's not much diferent from Imperial Legion, I understand).

But I want to give my view on the guilds and factions in Skyrim anyway. Because even though I find this game to be absolutely awesome, I am a bit critical towards the guilds. And I think the reason why the guilds in Skyrim disappoints me somewhat, is because Bethesda are taking them in a direction I don't like.

In Skyrim, Bethesda seem to focus a bit more on more advanced NPC-scripting. Certain points in the game will trigger scripted dialogue or scripted scenes, and the NPC tends to move about more, and be more active in the quests themselves. That is a great thing, especially in the main quest. But when it comes to guilds, I am a bit more old-fashioned. I want a guild to be a specialized faction for a certain role/class, where you get various types of quests to earn money, items and ranks in the guild. I want that to be the main focus of a guild questline, but an underlying story that makes it all more complex makes it more interesting.

But in Skyrim, it seems they are focusing (in my view) too much on story scripted NPCs, and too little on what constitutes a guild or faction. (Again, I am only speaking my subjective view here - what constitutes a good guild for me.). You had stories in the Oblivion guilds too, but you usually had to have middle-ish rank to see it. Take the Mages Guild - first you have to get recommendations from all the guild halls in Cyrodiil, doing various tasks and learning the basics on how the guild works. Only then did you get access to the Arcane University. But even then you had to attend a lecture, get your first staff, and learn your way around the place. And THEN you started learning about underlying problems, and getting involved in them, as a higher ranker member.

In Skyrim, you seem to be the Chosen One from day one, almost. You get tossed into the story and problems of the guild very early, and it soon becomes the main focus of all your guild work. The focus of earning ranks, and working your way upwards is replaced by what feels like just another story questline. The College of Winterhold started really good, and had a good use of the more interactive NPCs. You had to attend a class, even help out with the tutor, you gut shown around the place, and shown to your room. But on your very first excurtion out, you are singled out as someone special, and from there on the entire focus of the guild turns into a story questline. The "Ah, yes, and you are now an Apprentice" gets tossed in almost like a quick afterthought, and I can hardly remember you getting any rewards except for what loot you found yourself in the dungeons.

The Imperial Legion is much the same, but I can understand that. I loved the fact that Skyrim seemed to have almost two main quests, because they had two great storylines. Doing the Legion/Stormcloak questline felt like another main quest. But I would prefer if such interactive and good storylines were kept outside of the guilds, or at least reduced to something you encounter when you reach a higher rank. For instance, it would be great if some of the various towns had their own politics and stories that were turned into a questline of five or six quests, with various choices and outcomes. That would be awesome!

But I want the guilds to remain guilds, in the old-faschioned way. I don't always want to be the Chosen One, the one the leader throws into the thick of things almost from the start. I want to earn that. Even though I dislike the "Morrowind is God's gift to mainkind, and the rest of the TES-games are worthless crap"-attitude, I must say that no TES-game handled guilds and factions better than Morrowind. There were many guilds to choose from, but not so many that they became meaningless and watered down. There were politics, ranks, skill requirements for rank progression, multiple quests (there were more quests than you needed to reach the top, and thus you could replay it with different quests), and a lot of meaning to it all. Some had good stories, but you weren't thrown into it from day one.

I am tempted to say that when it comes to guilds, Skyrim is the weakest of all TES-games I have played. I am still enjoying them, and they do have some great moments (I love the random quests in Thieves Guild, for instance!), but the main problem for me is that a lot of them don't feel like guilds anymore. I can hardly separate them from any other questline in the game, and that is a big flaw for me. I see why they are doing it, to make it feel more meaningful, to give it a good story, and to get away from the mechanical "Fetch X, get 100 gold, go up a rank, fetch Y, get 150 gold, go up a rank...", but I think they have taken it way too far.

Let me end by saying that this is no rant against Skyrim, I love the game itself. I just found the guilds to be a bit of a disappointment, but there is a LOT of awesomeness in the game itself!

I agree, but be prepared for the you know who defence force to say your own opinion is wrong.

Well, people are entitled to their own opinions, and there is nothing to say I am right. This is just my subjective view of the guilds, I have no problem with people who love the guilds in Skyrim.

I agree, i hate joing the guild then one mission later your doing stuff as if you had been there a year.

I think to sum up the main issue with the guilds in Skyrim is they are too rushed and fast-paced. The Companions is the perfect example of this, but I think they were trying to avoid what they did with Oblivion's Fighters guild. I enjoyed the Companions though it was a cool story just really rushed feeling. The only guild I felt wasn't rushed was the Thieves Guild that questline was great especially with the whole return the guild to its former glory.

I have only completed the college and companion guilds thus far, and I definitely agree about the lack of ranks and quick ascension to the top. However, the more I play, I am beginning to appreciate that at least they recognize the ascension. I got so tired of mage scholars dissing me as arch-mage in Oblivion. At least there are some radiant quests after you reach the top, and the politics between the two female master wizards is interesting. Last night I stopped by the college after a grueling dungeon session where I was trying to train a buffed out Ria, and was attacked by an elder dragon on the campus. It was a struggle keeping her, Jzargo and Ormond alive. Afterwards, i was informed about new potential trouble
in Markarth regarding the staff of magnus, which I thought was already put to bed. So, I am hoping that I was premature in my initial assessment, as I continue to play.

I think there needs to be a coopers guild, a stonemason's guild, a blacksmith's guild, a merchant's guild, alchemist's guild, And you can't set up shop anywhere or sell any of your own made goods unless you're a member of the associated guild. Note: these are guilds that you pay monthly dues, but do not get to become guildmaster.