It seems to me as if Skyrim almost forces you to be a blacksmith. When it comes to most skills, it feels like the game says "You will have some perks if you don't practice this skill, but you won't suffer for it if you don't". Smithing on the other hand feels like "You don't have to be a Blacksmith, but you will suffer for it if you don't". Every time I make a new character, they always end up as at least pretty good smiths (even if I don't really want to). This is mainly because (IMO) that you can't improve weapons and armor at all if you don't do it yourself, and because you can easily get any weapon/armor you want.

So my proposition is this: let us be able to make orders straight from the blacksmith instead of doing everything ourselves. It's not because I'm lazy, but I want this so that we can choose to not be a blacksmith and so that blacksmiths get a bigger purpose.

This is my idea of what of how it would work:

Instead of just getting the "what do you have for sale" at the blacksmith, we should get three options:

"Can you craft an item for me?"
"Can you improve an item for me?"
"What do you have for sale?"

The crafting option would take you to a menu that is similar to the ordinary forge menu, where you choose the item you want the blacksmith to make. This menu however wouldn't show any required materials, but would instead show the base-price of making the item. The blacksmith wouldn't have to have the item in his inventory, but would craft the item you desire, which would take a few days (in-game time). Some pieces of weapons and armor would be restricted to certain blacksmiths, for example: Legion armor would be restricted to the blacksmith in Solitude (before the end of the civil war), Ancient Nord Armor would be restricted to Eorlund Gray-Mane, and Orc armor/weapons would be restricted to orc blacksmiths. However, no blacksmith should be able to make Daedric armor/weapons or Dragon armor/weapons (so that there still are advantages of being a Blacksmith). When you have chosen an item, you would get to choose how good (improved) the weapon will be when you first receive it. The level (e.g. "Superior", "legendary" and so on) of the item would be determined by how much extra you are willing to pay for it (every level would have a certain price). The higher level you request, the longer it would take for the blacksmith to make it. When you are done, the blacksmith would say something like "Come back in three days, I should be done by then". If you don't come back at that time, a courier would deliver a letter that says something like "Your [Item] is done, you may come by at pick it next time you visit / [blacksmith]".

The improvement option would be similar to the crafting, but you would choose an item from your own inventory instead of having the Blacksmith crafting a new weapon/armor. This would take less time than the crafting option and would be less expensive.

The "what do you have for sale?" option would work like usual: you buy anything that is already made and you get it without having to wait for it.


Maybe there could be something similar for enchanting?


What do you think?

I think it might be a good idea. Some people might not like it because you wouldn't be able to use crafting exploits, but I like it.

i loved this ideia, have always found the blacksmiths in Skyrim to me a little... useless q-, and this would be perfect for my character that didn't even touch the smith perks *-* (for the right price ofcourse, very, very spencive to make a good improved weapon or armor)

I'm glad that you like it

Sign me up as one who likes this idea as well, but be sure to throw alchemy in the mix as well. I don't like spending time trying to create potions that either fail or aren't anything I'll use. I'd gladly collect ingredients for potion making (with a discount on the back end) like the "Adventurer's Potion" Oblivion had.

Oh, and be sure blacksmiths can craft arrows.

I have also had similar thoughts. It does seem like the game forces you to do self-crafting on every character. I would prefer having the option to purchase enchanting and smithing services.

Great idea! I do enjoy Blacksmithing, but I've never been keen on the idea that all of my characters should take it up in order to get good gear soon. Your idea is much better, and it'd make blacksmiths... y'know, blacksmiths.

You should also be able to give the Blacksmith Fortify Smithing gear and Smithing potions to use

It's the way it should have been all along. We see the smiths using the grindstone, forge, and workbench... yet they aren't actually doing anything. Why is the player-character the only person in the known universe capable of improving or crafting gear? It's a huge, ugly oversight.

As long as prices were balanced, there should be an option to get highest tier stuff made but only above level 50 and if you get the smith the items required with a small chance of failure based on the merchants smithing level.

The same goes for other crafts.

Alchemist: Can you craft some potions for me?
Enchanter: Can you enchant this item for me?

We should have the ability to get items made for us. The level of the trader defines the level of the item being crafted, maybe even the items that can be crafted. This means that you would have to go to certain towns to get higher level items from the traders there.

It also allows for quests to get recipes for traders who don't have that item in their craft inventory. Maybe not a quest to get it from a specific place, but more like "if you find a recipe for xxx in your travels, bring it to me and I will give you a good price for it."
Also if you trade a recipe to a trader who doesn't have it, they can then start crafting that item for you.

As a bonus, you could even help to level up a trader so they can craft higher level stuff. Instead of you levelling up as you craft it, they level up as they craft it for you. DING! You can now buy level 15 items from this trader.

Agree 100%. In fact, isn't this how it was in Oblivion? Can't quite recall.

I think it's a great idea that could be applied to smithing, alchemy and enchanting alike. The game more or less does force you to go with some sort of crafting skill in order to have the proper gear, and knowing the actual craft should always be better than buying it from a smith. However, this way you will be able to get the gear you want, use your ingredients and obtain specific magic weapons by paying for it. It would also be a good way to eliminate the vast amounts of gold you always end up with.

I loved this idea so much I brought it up on these forums a few months ago, and I'm pretty sure others brought it up before I did. "Greatest blacksmith in Skyrim" can't even sharpen a sword, even though he spends half his time at the grinding wheel. I think this is why smiths don't mind you using their forges and equipment: they're hoping to get a glimpse over your shoulder so they can learn how to improve things (not that it helps, they still can't figure it out.)

Oh, well, it's just another "grrrr" moment in Skyrim.

JohnScorpion, hi there! You good?

Good idea! What I like about it is that it opens up a lot of new possbilities. Imagine having to travel to a distant blacksmith, for only he knows how to forge that Pristine Dagger.

Good stuff! I like you OP, you're a man after my own heart! Never let it be said that OP is a buffoon in this thread! I'd also like it if there were special weapons and armors that only those specific smiths can/will make because it's their "signature" look, like glass or steel plate armor that looks completely different and would take an extra day or so because of the different aesthetic that will be applied to it.

I love those ideas. Maybe when it comes to enchantments, different people who master different schools of magic would know different enchantments? For example: a conjurer would know the soul trap enchantment while a healer would know "fortify health"? And also, the enchantment-master at Winterhold is already doing enchantment business by the way (but not wuth the player). It would be nice if we could buy enchantments from him and court-mages.

And when it comes to smithing, I think Eorlund should be the best blacksmith by default.

That's also another good side of it


Hi! I'm good, you good?

Maybe this would be a nice opportunity to add new unique items that can only be forged by a special smith? And maybe if you do him/her a favor, he/she could teach you how to forge the item (if the player has a high enough smithing-level? If you buy from the same blacksmith often, maybe you could get a discount from the blacksmith?


To everyone: please, if you like this idea, try to keep this thread alive!