How to Skyrim?
How to Skyrim?
I tackled my collection of impulse-bought games and landed on Skyrim—the original version without any extra packs or editions. I spent roughly two and a half hours, with around fifteen minutes fumbling to set it up in ultrawide mode. Mostly I just admired the scenery and wandered by the river watching rabbits. My main challenge is figuring out what to do next. I’m reaching out to more experienced players for advice. Could you share some essential tips or explain a few basics? The game feels tough to learn, and it doesn’t always clarify things clearly. I really hope to enjoy it, but I’m struggling without a clear starting point. Thanks ahead, and remember: I’m completely new—please be gentle.
Begin with just a few key areas. Keep it simple—like picking up a spell or a weapon first. Remember, Skyrim isn’t super tough to learn, so you can jump right in. Always save your progress, or use quicksave (F5 and F9) to return to the last saved point if needed.
You should begin with a versatile mix that covers close combat, ranged attacks, and defense. A dagger for quick strikes, a sword for versatility, a mace for heavy blows, a greatsword for slashing, an axe for chopping, an iron shield for protection, and a longbow with arrows for distance control would give you the best starting advantage.
When you progress, it allows you to enhance stamina, health, and magicka. Boosting stamina gives you an additional 5 carry points. Focus on collecting only what's valuable—grab money, powerful weapons, and potions, but avoid picking up cups and plates unless you plan to sell them later. Start by improving one skill at a time, ideally with one hand for easier access. The dungeons are impressive and enjoyable, offering some storage options. You might discover interesting journals along the way. Have fun and enjoy the experience! Skyrim is likely my top single-player title ever.
It's great to begin with just a mace, sword, or dagger—each offers its own feel and strengths. Daggers are quick but fragile, maces are powerful but less precise, and swords strike a balance. You can also carry an additional weapon in your other hand. A shield is an option, though I haven't found it very useful yet; perhaps conjuration magic could help later (unless you're a Breton). Don't stress too much about it—you'll have time to develop other abilities if you don't enjoy what you're practicing now.
@ThinkWithPortals There is a right way to play for the first run through... your next game can be to specialize in the role-play element. I try to mix the best possibly way to play (economically) with a role-play slant. So what is this right way? 1. Start collecting every single alchemical ingredient you can find. You can use the three barrels behind the Blacksmith in Whiterun to store things. Your stuff is safe there until you can buy a home. 2. Play up to the first dragon kill in Whiterun in order to get your first follower. She is an effective mule and is tougher than you. 3. Start making potions at the alchemy shop in Whiterun and start selling the potions. To start, you can eat one of each ingredient to get one of four attributes. Each ingredient has four aspects that can be used to tailor your specific potions. Some potions are worth more than others. You will want to also buy recipes for potions at the shop. As you level your alchemy skill you will get the perk to reveal more attributes when eating an ingredient. The shop will replenish supplies every two days. Early on you will find it impossible to buy every ingredient. Eventually you will have enough of an income to do just that: buy all the ingredients, and make your money back by selling the potions. I run back and forth between Whiterun and Solitude to shop, it is more efficient than just sleeping or waiting for a single shop to restock. Potions that have multiple effects will sell for more money. That is why it is important to have many ingredient attributes available, so you can see what ingredients go with what others; and to throw in a third ingredient to increase value by adding more effects to the potions. So now you are stinking rich and everybody wants your product. =P 4. Smithing and enchanting are the next two things to level. Smithing is easy, enchanting not so much... but easier than alchemy, especially since you have money now. Come back when you are this far and I will go into enchanting. I am level 31 and have maxed alchemy, level 92 in enchanting and 78 (I think) in smithing. My potions sell for 2000g+, my enchanted daggers sell for 1500g+. I am actually balancing some of my own gear stats in order to not be too overpowered. This may sound boring, but it the most efficient way to get a start in Skyrim. @ThinkWithPortals I forgot to mention enchanted items to buy in shops early on... you will want to float 2000g-3000g early on in order to be able to buy a piece of armor/jewelry that enhances the potency of your potions, should you find them available. This is an important step. Oh, and you can use the carriage service to travel between Whiterun and Solitude. Picking up ingredients on the journey becomes less important once the money rolls in. There are also enchanted gear pieces that help your "haggle" rate, so you can sell higher and buy lower. There is a perk for this in the speechcraft skill tree. Buy those when you can. There is a glitch with Restoration potions that drastically speeds up this process (base game, no mods), but I won't go into that. A few rounds of Alchemy and Enchanting and your potions will be worth more than all the money of all the shop owners in the game combined. There is a reason I only travel into two cities. There are quests everywhere and I don't like to bog down my journal early on. I still have not gone to visit the Greybeards.. level 31. 5. Combat is part of the game even when you are focused on stabilizing your income and Alchemy/Smithing/Enchanting skills. I rarely use magic so I won't comment on that. Either one-handed/shield/armor-of-choice or two-handed/heavy armor is easy and effective. Archery is great for those 2x damage shots when in sneak mode; this works only when you are not seen. After you get the the holy trinity of skills (Alchemy/Enchanting/Smithing) maxed, you can pretty much do whatever you want. You will be unstoppable. Oh...and I NEVER DIE! It is part of my role-play slant. Self imposed Hard-Core mode. <<This is a lie. @ThinkWithPortals Minor Addendum Perks and leveling up: Get your health up. Having a lot of health gives you time for those unexpected "holy crap" moments in order to pop a potion. I am not above running around a large obstacle, in circles, to avoid being killed. All my perks are in the trinity skills (and the Speech stuff to make money) with a few perks in Smithing to gain access to improving things like steel gear. This is extreme but I can pull it off. I hit level 34 now and have about 4-5 perk points to still spend, so there is some wiggle room to improve armor/archer/one-hand/block/etc... skills a bit. I maxed enchanting and have about 40 daggers left over, with values ranging from 1375g-2000g+ each. A chest full of potions is worth more that the daggers. Smithing: Grab the ability to make/improve steel early on. Suit up your follower before going on a dangerous quest. Notable quest: There is a lady (Gray-Mane) in Whiterun that has a missing son that she believes to be alive. Others are telling her he is dead. I prioritize this quest because it gets me a ton of Elvish Armor/Weapons (sells well and the weapons are nice to use) and there is a Falmer cave nearby that has a lot of Chaurus Eggs (used for invisibility potions, great money maker early on). I do this mission around level 10-15, when I feel capable. I make sure I have some in-game knowledge (recipe) that Chaurus eggs make those potions, just to play into the RP element. It is a nice break from the alchemy. A neat little trick to increase the potency of potions is to get your hands on a Falmer helmet. A Falmer helmet can be worn at the same time as a circlet. If you enchant both to boost the power of potions, you can wear them at the same time. The Thalamors are no joke, they are tough. Use whatever tactics you can to defeat them when outside. Inside is even tougher. Having Lydia help out is a must. As if the Thalamor prison is not hard enough, the Falmer cave is probably tougher. The Chaurus creatures pack a punch (Lydia will die fast) and Falmers jump down on you from the ceiling of the cave. Stock up of potions, you will need them. Tune up your steel armor and weapons before you attempt this, if you attempt this. I do this mission without any help from Thorald's brother, he offers to get a bunch of men to attack the prison. You might try accepting his offer, it could make it easier. Hey, at least you don't have to worry about the cold. I use a mod to make the weather deadly. I have to set up a camp to do this quest or I freeze to death. Northwatch Keep is the Thalamor Prison. Lost Echo Cave : http://uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Lost_Echo_Cave http://srmap.uesp.net/?centeron=Lost+Echo+Cave There are probably better ways to get a jump on your income. This is just the one I use.