Hey... new (or a noob, whatever!) to Skyrim - loving it. Played less than 20 hours thus far (job/family getting in the way, damn 'em!!) - I have a Dunmer Spellsword. Currently L5, just got to High Hrothgar.
I guess what I'm after is any low level hints/suggestions for a new guy...

Thanks in anticipation!

You've already figured out that you should ask for hints in the hints forum - which honestly puts you ahead of the curve

My suggestion, don't do the main quest in one fell swoop. If you take it slow and alternate it with some regional or faction quests I think you'll find it more enjoyable (the same goes for the civil war and the faction questlines).

Yeah, don't rush the main quest.. Skyrim is huge and the main quest is somewhat short so get yourself sidetracked doing side quests for a while.
When you visit a town, talk to everyone to see if they have quests to offer, visit the inn and keep asking for rumours until they start repeating.

Be careful with randomly exploring caves or dungeons because it is possible that you might pick something up or kill something required for a quest later on, hopefully these issues will be fixed properly in a later patch but it is something you need to be aware of.

Don't splash out perks willy nilly, you don't have to spend that perk every time you level up, if you want to you can just exit the screen and spend it later when your skill is high enough for you to choose the perk you want.

Edit: Oh, and when holding a sword make sure the pointy end faces outwards.

It's been so long since I was "new" to a TES game, I really don't know what to say.... I guess the first main thing is - explore. Don't just "go here do this go back turn in". Don't fast travel, wander the world. Pick up quests whenever they happen but don't rush out to finish them. Leave them until you feel like going there.

And the main thing: HAVE FUN. TES gives you worlds enough and time.... USE them. I've never enjoyed a game series more - and I've been playing CRPGs since 1985.

[Oh.... you know? You might want to pick up the earlier games: Daggerfall, Morrowind, Oblivion. Daggerfall and Morrowind are "graphically dated" (um.... understatement of the year probably) but still VERY fun as long as you don't get upset over "graphically inelegant/dated"; Oblivion is still very nice graphics and MUCH fun gameplay.]

This is my first RPG since Ratchet and Clank (the first one), and so is my first TES ever. these are the things that helped me on my second run through. I did a simple Nord run through to learn game play and basics (like picking up armor while still in Helgen) then junked it for a new character when I felt comfortable. It helped me quite a bit.

Find a companion that complements your style. If one isn't working out, send 'em packing. If you want to fight short to mid-range, find a tank or long range companion and see which works best for you. I like Mjoll from Riften to tank, and Faendal from Riverwood for ranged, you may like someone else.

GET MARRIED! The money alone makes it worthwhile. 100 g per day, you just have to find your spouse to pick it up. I married Mjoll so I could collect right before buying stuff as I keep her with me most of the time now. You can do all of it in Riften at the same time, but you have to do Mjoll's quest. If you are new to the gametype, I suggest bringing a merc with you to do Mjoll's quest. I don't want to give too much away, but there are some serious enemies on that quest for low level players. Totally worth the effort though.

Plan out your skill trees in advance. Which spells do you intend to use the most? Perk that tree. Which armor do you intend to use? Perk it.

Learn how to cook. A lot of cooked meals offer side effects that equal or better potions available early on. Venison Stew is well worth the effort, and is easy to find ingredients for.

Practice sneaking. You never know when you will be out of potions, out of Magicka, and hurt. Sneaking into the shadows and waiting out an agro enemy lets you come back for more. most low level enemies don't regenerate health, so hiding lets you get stronger without the worry of them being back to full health.

Don't die.
Aim for the person/beast you're fighting.

Appreciating the tips!

Time's a bit of a factor for me - I work pretty long hours, and I have a 4 year old - so there simply aren't many hours for me to sit down at one time. That said, I am more than willing to just pace it out. Have done so thus far, and I'm enjoying it (was actually excited when told "You may buy a house in Whiterun"). This is actually the first RPG I've been able to play in years (I have a small amount of free time now!) - used to play a lot, was an alpha & beta tester in GuildWars (actually had an NPC named after me!), and played City of Heroes for a few years after that. So I'm enjoying actually playing a game again.

What level should I be looking at getting Mjoll? I'll be light-armour, focusing on one-handed weaponry and destruction spells (tho' from what I've read, crowd control can be difficult later?)... I think it'd be nice to have a companion to tank it out...

I didnt get to high hrothgar till i was level 19! lol
I was busy doing all sorts of other stuff

At the moment, followers have a tendency to be locked at the level you are when you first meet them, this makes the earlier companions somewhat weak later on so don't be afraid to change to a different companion if your current one seems to be underperforming.
Most potential companions will require you do do a quest for them before giving you the option to recruit them but in many Inns you will find mercenaries who will join you for a fee of 500 gold.
If you talk to a companion who is travelling with you, you will see an option to trade, companions make useful mules if you like to grab more loot than you can carry.
Companions can die but usually they will go down on one knee and the enemy will ignore them while the companion heals up, be careful with those fireballs or you might finish them off.

There are five main cities in the game (Whiterun, Solitude, Markarth, Windhelm and Riften) which will all have a horse and cart parked outside, for a small fee these carriages will take you to any other city or major town in Skyrim, which is useful if you are short on time and don't want to walk. Of course if you have already visited a place you can just open your map and use the option to fast travel there but the carriage will take you there even if you haven't been there before.

It's quite a walk to Riften, but if you made it up to the Grey beards, you could get there fromt he base of the mountain pretty quickly. There are some pretty strong NPCs in the wilderness around Riften, so keep your gaurd up. I was a level 20 or so when I went the second time, and found her quest challenging, but not unmanageable. I took Janessa from Whiterun with me (Merc in the bar by the front gates, 500 gold to hire her), and she tanked well enough to help me drop the boss, but died during her effort. It left me in the perfect position to just pick up Mjoll, get married, and run off to adventure together.....

i would skim through the 'character design' thread. you'll get lots of good tidbits like armor cap,magic resist, best sort of weapons, enchants, and potions to use.


edit, http://www.ign.com/builds/the-elder-scrolls-5-skyrim/create?

edit 2, if you plan to do any enchanting smithing or alchemy, save up for a house. They are great for storing crafting gear, and other valuables.

Any tips for suitable light armour/weaponry? At the moment, I've smithed (?) some leather armour, and I'm wearing a helm Balgruuf gave me, and alternating between the axe he gave me, and the sword the Draugr Overlord had.

Thanks! Where is this particular thread... ? This forum, or the General Discussion?

http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1317202-complete-character-design-freedom-damage-resist-caps-and-ridiculous-damage-thread-8/



you can use smithing to improve any armor or weapons to be sufficient as you level up.

For weaponray, decide which type of weapon you wish to use and stick to it, spreading your perks points trying to cover axes, maces and swords is a waste just choose one to specialise in.
Don't be afraid to upgrade your weapon and armour, at early levels you wont upgrade it my much but every little helps. You'll soon be replacing it anyway.

This ^ is what I was trying to say when I said to plan out your skill tree. Look at the perks themselves, and try to figure out which will work best for your play style. If you found a sword you like, you will be able to make a better one soon enough through smithing, disenchanting your current sword, and enchanting your new/better one. Just stick with swords if you found one like (sounds like you did).

Yup, I like the notion of swords. The only reason I have the axe is a) I was given it... and b ) it has some pretty cool effects too. So - just checking - I can disenchant my current sword, and use the same enchantment on another sword? Via the Arcane Enchanter... right?
Question: can I do this for different weapon types (take the enchantment from a mace, and put it on a sword)?

Yes, weapon enchantments are viable for all weapons.

When enchanting an item you need filled soul gems to provide the power, the better the gem the stronger the enchantment, having the appropiate perks in the enchantment tree will also increase the effectiveness. You can buy filled soul gems at general stores or from dealers in Magic (the mage in Whiterun who hangs around the enchantment station in Dragonsreach), or you can fill empty soul gems by casting soul tap/using a weapon enchanted with soul tap. Different creatures provide different levels of soul, a skeever will only have a petty soul while a Mammoth will have a grand soul, you will need enpty soul gems in your inventory for that. Human/elf souls can only be captured with Black soul gems which are not as readily available as normal ones.

Here are my tips.

Smithing is very important for light armor. Since it's light it can't absorb as much as heavy armor so any improvement you can add do it. Even if it's just a few extra points. So sharpen and improve everything you use/wear even at lower skill level. Those extra one or two points can mean life or death

I would get azura's star. Ask an inn keeper about rumors and they will direct you to the shrine. It's a reuseable soul gem so it's very handy. Then enchant a weapon with soul trap. By using the star to recharge your weapon you also gain XP points in enchanting which helps you level that up.


Plan your perks. For one handed I would use the Armsman perk as soon as I could. Also Fighting stance. I usually take the first armsman then fighting stance next. Then back into armsman when I can. Savage Strike is way better than Critical Charge. So take Savage strike and you can ignore the charge one to save yourself a perk. If you are going to use destruction. Grab the first Novice Destruction perk quickly. Focus on anything that will lower your magicka drain cause magic recharges very slowly in combat. So if given the choice between magic regen or a percentage discount on magicka use. Pick the percentage discount. You can disenchant robes and add the enchantment to armor. So if you grab a pair of say Thalmor robes. You can disenchant and add the destruction lowing enchantment to your armor

Ok I've already posted a novel here so I will cut it short. All in all have fun. Explore and don't be afraid to lower the difficulty slider if you have to. You can do this even in mid combat. If you need any more help just post here. People are always willing to give some good tips

Thanks... some great info guys!

And yes, I'll post here whenever I have questions. I thought it wise to do so early on... and I've already gotten a wealth of information!

My main suggestion is don't fast travel a lot. The best part of this game is the world it is played in. The terrain is beautiful and many of three most interesting and entertaining things I've seen are just random [censored] I've come across running through the wilderness and you miss all of this fast traveling everywhere.

Ok... so I'm thinking of the following skill areas:
One-Handed (Armsman/Fighting Stance/Savage Strike)
Light Armor (Agile Defender... then not sure - like them all!!!)
Destruction (Novice through to Master)
Smithing (Steel/Arcane/Elven/Advanced/Glass)
Enchanting (Honestly not too sure on what I should take!)

What am I missing? Am I spread too thingly? Or ... umm... please comment!

That's a good base for primary skills and will give you the ability to put points in to other things here it there for minor improvements in optional things.

I would also consider restoration since you'll be a magic user anyways. Only takes a few points to become a decent healer as all you need is half cost for novice and adept, dual casting, regeneration and healing spells restore stamina. So 5 points and you can heal like a champ.

This is such a fun game, not only because it's huge and diverse, but also because it's very tolerant of player choices.

So your preferences will be good (you can always play again one day to experience other aspects).

Regarding skills - archery and stealth are very useful, but not essential.

There's no need to worry unduly about money - there's probably more than you can ever spend, so don't be afraid to blow cash on a house or whatever.

Regarding searching dungeons without a motive, be aware that they can repopulate when you go back to do a quest - though arguably that's twice as much fun.

Any tips regarding Light Armor & Enchanting? Which perks should I be taking... ?

I'll link you to a similar build that I played last time.

http://skyrimcalculator.com/#28673

This is my own experience and you can feel free to differ. This will take you to level 37.

You don't need to go up very high on the destruction tree as higher level spells sometimes need both hands plus at higher levels you'll do more damage with a sword and spell. Since you can also enchant a blade with a fire enchant and get the bonus for doing damage to targets already on fire.

Enchanting hides a multitude of sins. Its one of the most powerful crafting trees. It is both a big money maker by selling enchanted items and very useful. Smithing is very easy to level up so if you are taking a lot of damage focus on combat skills first. You can use Azura's Star to help raise your enchant. Or make hide bracers to up your smithing then enchant those to raise two skills.

The hardest skill for me was the light armor skill. After all if you do your job right you shouldn't be taking too many hits. So feel free to take those perks as soon as your skill level in armor allows. The other skills will level up naturally

Make sure you use your shouts and I'd advise a ranged companion that way they don't get caught in the crossfire of your spells. Aela from the companions is good. If you complete their quest she can become a follower. She usually hangs back and picks them off while you go toe to toe with them. Unrelenting force is a good base shout. Also ice form, and become ethereal are very good at buying you some time to run away or switch to a restore health spell if needed. Don't forget the standing stones
http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Standing_Stone
The lord stone or the lady stone are good if you find yourself taking too much damage.