I'm getting kinda frustrated during the first levels. It seems that no matter what character I create I am overpowered by the enemies I face during initial quests.

My first character was a Breton but I chose the Warrior stone because I knew I was going to find weapons before spells and needed to protect myself. But finally getting to Winterhold and trying to use magic to defend myself just wasn't working - I needed to resort to weapons. I know the response here will be I should have chosen the Mage stone but how would I defend myself BEFORE getting better spells?? Those baby spells only work on wolves and bandits from what I can tell.

My next character was a Bosmer with the Thief stone and still had to resort to a two handed weapon to stay alive because my bows and arrows were a joke AND face a few mages during initial quests that I couldn't even get close to.

My third character is a Breton with the Mage stone and I still have to resort to 2 handed weapons just doing random quests because I have no spells except Sparks and Flames...

I started the MQ only to find out that Bleak Falls Barrow is recommended level 6 and at level 2 I was brutally attacked by three thugs and had to give up....

I thought about joining the companions to get my fighting skills up and raise a few levels but walkthroughs tell me I should cast rune spells here and skin spells there - how does a level 1 or 2 character do THAT if these are my first quests?

It seems that joining a faction or guild is not a great idea until gaining a few levels so what do I do?? Just wander around in the woods and fight wolves and bandits until level 6?

I loved MW and OB and have never had this much trouble surviving or advancing my skills. What the hell am I doing wrong? Any advice would be apprciated.

Have you checked the difficulty is not on Master?

Difficulty is Adept and I hate lowering it. I've only lowered it twice for specific battles. I really don't want to play a 'challenged' 'special needs' type character if you know what I mean.

Well, you should have used those low level spells to level up and then just buy stronger spells. The first 10 levels is pretty much only about bandits and wolves, so I don't see the point in this.


Combine archery with sneak and you are far more effective. And why should you get close to mages if you use a ranged weapon..?

Going pure mage for me was a bit more of a challenge. I found a combination of conjuration and destruction helped me out at lower levels. I did alot of run/heal too which was a bit out of my fun zone but it got better around lvl 15 for me. Definitely take this one slow and practice on the lowest common denominator of enemies. It may not be as exciting playing target practice with elk, wolves and bandits but it trains your spell school levels.

As for archers, im not sure why you had issues with that. I decided to try a pure archer (I don't use any blade weapons for back up at all) and found that a companion (faendal is available quite early int he game) goes a long way while you strengthen up those archery/sneak skills. Bows are fantastic damage and if you keep yourself with the best bow for your level and decent arrows you will be killing them well before they get to you. I used a Fine Hunting Bow until level 15 now im on a fine orcish bow and might be letting faendal go have a break back in riverwood.

The first 10 levels of the College is about wolves and bandits? What College did you join?


The Mage in question was 20' away guarded by 4 skeevers.... One shot from my arrow brought 5 enemies at me at once.

I think my problems were:

Not wandering the wilderness enough. I was heading straight to the guild of my choice/MQ and joining up. I should get into more minor trouble before big trouble.

Not getting a companion.

But do you think choosing the Mage stone is a good idea right off the bat if I'm not going to join the college for several levels?

Although the College first puts your character in some Harry Potter wizard student position where you learn to use wards and go to lessons listening teachers, it might be better to first train your magic skills in misc. and side quests. And that involves a lot of wolves and bandits!

And yes in my opinion you should get the Mage stone's power as soon as you escape Helgen. Not only the College requires you to use spells (Ironically the College only demands you to use magic in a couple of occasions and then you are already archmage).

Theres no reason not to get the stone really, you are learning to be a mage so it makes sense to take it even before going to refine your skills at the college. It will be helpful and they put it at the beginning of the game like that for a reason (thats if you follow your friend to riverwood right after helgen). I did end up doing the first college quest at level 3 and man was that difficult, I also didn't have a companion. Im using faendal on my archer and he has been a great help with his bow. He may prove useful to a blooming mage and you can equip him with some leather armor to help him out a bit (also gives you an excuse to practice your magic on elks if you want to make the armor for him). At a certain point you will probably get rid of him but he will prove useful for those early learning levels.

I'm just glad to hear one other person say that the College at lvl 3 was tough.

And it just occured to me - maybe Bunnies Killed is a hint.

It's always difficult at the beginning when you play a ranged character. I don't understand why you don't use followers - Sven from Riverwood is perfect for an early level mage! With his help I could easily finish Bleak Falls Barrow as my first quest.

You should also equip yourself with more spells before you start adventuring. You can't just charge in and cast Flames on everything, it's certain to get you killed. As a Breton you start out with Conjure Familiar spell, you should use it in situations like the one with the mage you described - your summon could take on the skeevers while you fry them from afar. Even if not all of them attack the familiar, it's still easier to deal with just one or two instead of all five.
From the trader in Riverwood you can pick up Lesser Ward and Oakflesh. The latter is crucial, especially if you only wear mage robes.

For offense you don't really need anything more than Flames and Sparks so early in the game. Most of the enemies you fight ARE bandits, so Flames is perfect. Just make sure to get Impact ASAP and you're good to go. You might also want to take the Novice perk from the Restoration tree for faster healing.

Also, you should always choose the Guardian Stone corresponding to your class. Warrior Stone for a mage is completely useless, early on you need to level up your magic schools, not armor or weapons (unless you go Battlemage or specialize in Conjuration, in which case your weapon skill contributes to bound weapon's effectiveness. But at the very beginning you can't use bound weapons, so it's still not worth taking).

Did I mention taking a follower is vital?