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Dragon Shouts

Dragon shouts (THUUM or Thu’um in the Dragon language) are an ancient form of magic prominently used in Skyrim during the late Merethic and early First Era, but has gradually become obscure.

The Dragonborn is able to use the language of the dragons to great effect due to his/her ability to absorb the souls of dragons.[1]

A minority of non-player characters also have the ability to use dragon shouts, such as a small group of monks known as the Greybeards, who reside in the fortress of High Hrothgar atop the Throat of the World.

There are twenty shouts in Skyrim†. Each shout is performed by the vocalization of specific words of power. Shouts are learned on the Word Walls of old ruins, and are unlocked with Dragon Souls. There are a select few however, that are unlocked for you by simply completing quests for the Greybeards along the main storyline. Dragon Souls are gained by slaying dragons and absorbing their souls. Each Shout consists of three words of power, and each word of power requires one Dragon Soul to be unlocked. Hence, each shout requires three words of power and 3 Dragon Souls to be used at full power.

These shouts have powerful effects and provide the user with a variety of abilities. For instance, one shout sends foes hurling away from you, another shout allows you to sprint a short distance almost instantly, and yet another lets you conjure forth spells of ice or fire, doing heavy damage. A player with only a partly unlocked shout (only one or two words unlocked) can use it, but the shout grows stronger with each word learned. The second and third words will also usually increase the recharge time of the shout, limiting the use of the shout.

† = Skyrim without any add-ons. The Dawnguard expansion adds three new shouts, and the Dragonborn expansion adds four new shouts.

Significant events involving Dragon Shouts

Kynareth was the one who granted the power to use the Thu’um to the mortal races of men. Paarthurnax was then the first to teach mortals to use the Thu’um.
The Nord heroes Felldir the Old, Gormlaith Golden-Hilt, and Hakon One-Eye contrive the Dragonrend shout and use it and an Elder Scroll to partially defeat Alduin by casting him adrift in time, marking the turning point in mankind’s favor during the Dragon War.
The Greybeards study shouts and are the primary institution for studying the Thu’um among mortals.
Akatosh first facilitated the creation of dragon souled and blooded mortals, mortal dov (dragonkind), or dragonborns, by granting the Alessian Bloodline the power of the Dragons (i.e. the ability to use the Thu’um naturally, to steal the power of a dragon by absorbing its soul as it dies).
After the great Nord army defeat against the Dunmer at Red Mountain, Jurgen Windcaller converted to pacifism and founded the Way of the Voice to be thereafter practiced and taught by the Greybeards.
General Talos was known to have been Dragonborn, possessing the natural ability to use shouts.
Ulfric Stormcloak studied and then used the power of Shouts (Thu’um) to disable the previous High King of Skyrim in order to kill him. This was part of Ulfric’s effort to show that the empire was unfit to rule, supporting the cause of the Stormcloaks, the Nordic rebel force named after him. He also used Shouts to retake Markarth from the Forsworn who had taken control during the Great War.
The Dragonborn in Skyrim defeated Alduin and was recognized by the other dragons as the dominant dov in Mundus.

Locating Shouts

After finishing “The Horn of Jurgen Windcaller”, Arngeir can be asked “Have you located any Words of Power?”. The location will be added to your map and a Miscellaneous quest will be added to your journal.

After shouting in a populated area, a courier may hand you a Letter from A Friend, which reveals the location of a nearby Word Wall, although it may be a location you have already been to.

The first word of the shout is always the first to learn, so traveling to the default location of a shout’s second word, will only learn the first word, and the locations will differ. All three locations will hold all three words, but it isn’t always precisely that word if one is already known.

Learning Shouts

Once a new shout has been discovered, a Dragon soul is required to unlock it. Access the Shouts sub-menu from the Magic menu. Locked shouts are grayed out. In the bottom right corner of the menu is the number of Dragon Souls available to use. These accumulate as you kill dragons.

According to the Greybeards, a Dragonborn absorbs the knowledge of the words from the dragon’s soul. Fully unlocking a shout requires the use of one dragon soul for each word of power learned, with each shout being composed of 3 words.
Unlocking shoutsEdit

To unlock the shout, hover over it and press the correct button for your system.

Xbox 360: Press 40px-Button x

PlayStation 3: Press 40px-PS3 Square

PC: Press the Z key.

Dragon Shouts not available to player

Dragon Shout     Word of Power     Translation     Effect     Location
Resurrect Dead Dragon
SLEN     Flesh     This shout is used by Alduin to resurrect long dead dragons from their burial sites.     Observed at Dragon Burial Mound near Kynesgrove and several others throughout Skyrim.
TIID     Time
VO     Undo
Meteor Storm †
N/A     N/A     This shout is used by Alduin to summon a storm that rains meteors down from the sky.     Observed during encounter with Alduin at Helgen, and later during Alduin’s Bane and Dragonslayer.
N/A     N/A
N/A     N/A
Summon Spectral Clone
FIIK     Mirror     This shout is used by Greybeards to summon a spectral clone of themselves for Dovahkiin to practice Unrelenting Force on.     Observed inside High Hrothgar during The Way of the Voice.
LO     Deceive
SAH     Phantom
Summon Fog
VEN     Wind     This shout is used by Alduin to summon a dense fog that doubles as a soul snare.     Observed by the player in Sovngarde.
MUL     Strong
RIIK     Gale
Return to Nirn
NAHL     Living     This shout is used by Tsun to return the Dragonborn to Tamriel after the defeat of Alduin in Sovngarde.     Observed by the player in Sovngarde.
DAAL     Return
VUS     Nirn
Soul Cairn Summon
DIIL     Undead     This shout is used by Durnehviir to summon a Boneman, a Mistman and a Wrathman from the Soul Cairn.     Observed when Durnehviir is in combat.
QOTH     Tomb
ZAAM     Slave
† Meteor Storm is the only shout with no words associated with it. During both encounters of this shout, Alduin’s roar is what seems to produce the storm.

Gallery

     

First word of the Clone shout

Clone being summoned by Greybeard using Summon Spectral Clone

The Clone summoned by Greybeard for Dovahkiin to attack with Unrelenting Force

Power of the Unrelenting Force shout

Trivia

Using a shout in a city may prompt a guard to run up to the Dragonborn and request that they stop, stating that it’s making people nervous.
Storm Call will strike friendly NPC’s, including followers.
It is possible to learn the first word of Whirlwind Sprint before going to High Hrothgar If learned before going to High Hrothgar, the Greybeards will teach the second word of Whirlwind Sprint.
All three words of Throw Voice are learned at a single word wall.
The locations are shout specific not word specific, meaning you can visit the locations in the reverse order as listed and learn the words in the proper sequence.

Achievements

Words of Power
Learn all three words of a shout
Points     10 Game points
Trophy
Bronze trophy

Thu’um Master (Achievement)
Thu’um Master
Learn 20 shouts
Points     40 Game points
Trophy
Silver trophy

 

 

 

Skills represent actions that can be taken in game; there are 18 in total and each is tracked by its own system of skill points. Skill points are a measure of how proficient the player is at these skills and increasing them grants benefits to the skill as well as granting access to perks that may be taken upon leveling up. Also, when a certain level is reached in some skills, guards and other NPCs will comment on it

By class archetype

All 18 skills can be grouped into 3 distinct categories:
The Mage     The Warrior     The Thief

Alteration
Conjuration
Destruction
Illusion
Restoration
Enchanting

Archery
Block
Heavy Armor
One-Handed
Two-Handed
Smithing

Alchemy
Light Armor
Lockpicking
Pickpocket
Sneak
Speech

Raising skill level

The level of a given skill is increased as that skill is used successfully – Archery is increased when an arrow hits its target; Destruction is increased when a spell causes damage to the target; Sneak increases when the player remains undetected in Sneak mode, while in range of NPCs who otherwise could detect the player, etc. Some skills are more passive in the nature of their leveling, such as Conjuration, which increases a little bit each time the player summons a Bound Weapon or an Atronach, or even soul traps an enemy. But these types of skills must also be used in combat in order to gain the increase.

Some skills, specifically Lockpicking, can increase when attempts to pick a lock are unsuccessful, or when a lockpick breaks.

When taken from an in-character context, the idea is that the player character is learning as they go. Each release of a bow, each hitting swing of a sword, each spell cast successfully, or each lock picked is a learning experience for the character, and slowly these experiences give the character greater expertise in that certain skill.

Temporary skill increases

The use of enchanted items can temporarily increase the level of a skill, in the sense that the skill level used by the game when calculating a player’s successes with that skill is increased within the corresponding formula. While using these items makes it easier to use a given skill and in some cases can provide a player with Perks available for that skill without having taken them (Muffle, specifically, is available as an enchantment for footwear, and corresponds directly to the perk in the Sneak tree called Muffled Movement), the temporary skill-point increase provided by an item does not apply to Perk selection in the Skills menu.

A player with a Lockpick skill of 15, for instance, who dons a piece of armor that adds 5 or more points to that skill, will not be able to use the new skill level (20+) to purchase the Apprentice Locks perk from the Skills menu, because only the raw skill level is used.

See Enchanting for further information on skill and ability bonuses provided by enchanted gear.

Leveling skills without perks

Perks, which have skill-level requisites determining when the player has access to them, increase the effectiveness of skills in various ways, but aren’t required to use that skill effectively, even at higher levels. Most of the early Perks available in any skill tree lower the difficulty of using the skill (i.e. locks of a given difficulty become easier to pick once the Perk for that difficulty level is taken), while the more advanced perks provide the character with unique abilities that make them even more effective (Wax Key, for example, which places a copy of the key [if one exists] for any lock successfully picked into the player’s inventory, allowing them to circumvent that lock in the future should an NPC relock it).

While Perks are extremely useful and make the player much more efficient, they’re not absolutely necessary in order for the player to use a skill effectively. As the skill is used and its level increases, the ease of the skill also increases. For instance, as the player’s speech skill increases, it becomes easier to persuade/intimidate NPCs (Bribery is always successful). By small increments as the level of speech increases, regardless of whether the player takes the Perks for the various difficulties, it slowly becomes easier. So even if the player uses a piece of apparel or potion to enhance their speech skill (For example, an Amulet of Dibella or a Philter of Glibness) taking the perk simply causes a much more immediate and noticeable decrease in the difficulty of persuasions/intimidations at that level.

This is evidenced by the existence of skill-increasing enchantments, which, since they do not assist the player in gaining perks, would be otherwise useless if the level of a given skill didn’t play its own part in the skill’s effectiveness.

Trainers and training

As in previous Elder Scrolls titles, the player can pay certain NPCs for training. Each training session provides a single level up for a particular skill, and the player can train at most five times per character level. Unlike Oblivion, master trainers in Skyrim cannot advance a player’s skills beyond level 90. The cost of training grows as the player’s current skill level increases.

When the player finds certain NPCs that cannot die (such as an Imperial Legate), they can keep attacking them and increase his skills indefinitely.

Training for free

While there are many people in Skyrim that will follow the Dragonborn and many others that can train him, only a few will do both. In order to train for free the trainer must already be willing to follow the Dragonborn. The player may then request the training, then have the trainer follow him, thus enabling trading with the follower, upon which all the Dragonborn has to do is to ask to trade items and take back the money. Faendal, of Riverwood, and Aela the Huntress (only after completing the Companion quest line), of Whiterun, are two such NPCs that this can be done to. Both train Archery.

Should the Dragonborn have a high Pickpocket skill, he can simply steal the gold spent on Training by pickpocketing the trainer.

If the player is unable to steal the gold due to it being higher that the limit (0% steal chance), a paralyze potion may be used on the wielded weapon to hit the trainer once, to make him fall, paralyzed. Just a moment before he/she stands up, the Dragonborn will be able to steal the gold, no matter the amount, without the trainer turning hostile. A Paralyze spell may also be used.

Quick Alchemy skill raising

This particular skill is tiresome to raise but there is something that can be done to speed things along. With a maximum enchanting skill and four pieces of enchanted gear that raise Alchemy skill will create the most powerful and most expensive potions and poisons. However, when raising this skill, the player will find out he will be making an impressive assortment of potions and poisons. Newly made brews may not all be bought by merchants due to the limited amount of gold they have. However, the player can go to any Alchemy trainer and receive training in Alchemy (up to 5 times per level), after which the money spent on that training will appear in their inventory screen when bartering, thus enabling the player to sell all of the potions/poisons made trying to raise the skill, and get the money back.

Leveling skills quickly

There are numerous means by which players may exploit or overcome the mechanics of the game in order to raise certain skills rapidly, making the game vastly easier and perhaps more enjoyable to play. The following methods can be utilized, should players desire to increase their game play proficiency.

NOTE: The following methods are considered exploits. They are not hacks or mods, they do not modify or bypass any specific technical formalities of the game, they do not require the addition of any third party software, they merely take advantage of design flaws in the game. These allow players to increase their skills at rates far beyond the regular functional design of the software. As such they may contribute to the prevalence of bugs and glitches, or otherwise overcome the challenging aspects of the game. Careful early-game min-maxing and “grinding” is not as necessary in Skyrim as it was Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, for those considering this route. Indeed, should readers wish to experience the game to the fullest it is advised not to attempt any of the following methods of exploitation.

Very early in the game it’s possible to raise Block, Heavy Armor, Light Armor, Illusion, Restoration, Conjuration, Sneak, One Handed, and Two Handed easily by exploiting the AI or other mechanics. The tricks fall into 3 main groups, and some of them require exploiting AI during quests, as such they may not always be available.

Type one: Auto Grinding. Get a weak enemy to attack constantly (eg. let a wolf “corner” you), and heal yourself/block/cast 0 damage spells (courage, conjuration, etc). This will level those skills and whatever skill is linked to currently equipped armor (light/heavy)

Type two: Invulnerable Ally. At the opening of the game after Alduin attacks and the Dragonborn must enter the keep, follow Ralof, the Stormcloak dressed in blue. Ralof and the Dragonborn will arrive at a locked door and after killing two guards, will find the key on one of them. Instead of unlocking the door, sneak behind Ralof and sneak attack him. He should heal himself when he gets low and he shouldn’t become hostile. This allows players to swiftly level the sneak, one handed, two handed, and destruction skills.

Type three: Exploiting Spell Mechanics. There are many more variations for the other schools of magic, but here are a couple simple examples. Cast soul trap on a dead body (conjuration). Cast Detect Life in the middle of a large town (Alteration). Cast Courage on a horse repeatedly (Illusion). Finding or enchanting sets of armor for a total of of 100% reduced casting cost for a particular school can also be useful not just for leveling, but as a legitimate tactic later in the game.

 

Destruction

Summon an unbound Flame Atronach at the Atronach Forge, and use Ice spells to kill it. Loot the body for fire salts, and repeat. Note: You need a lot of Rubies.
Sneak

To raise sneak to 100, summon a Flame Atronach or other conjured creature and sneak-attack it with a low-damage dagger at 5 second intervals.

Another easy way to increase sneak is to use sneak attacks on essential characters, they possess scripted invulnerability.
Alteration and Illusion

To raise Alteration and Illusion quickly, the player will need enchantment high enough to where casting cost for spells are up to 25% less to cast. Items can be enchanted, such as necklaces, rings, armor, and helmets with ” 25% less casting cost” of the respected field. With all four of these items enchanted, the player will accomplish 100% free cost for all magical disciplines.

Alternatively, if the players magic pool or enchanting skill is very high, repeated casting paralysis spells during combat can be a prudent way to level up alteration in conjunction with a variety of other skills, given that the target will be paralyzed and unable to move. Before the paralyze spell wears off, cast it again and continue to attack opponents with the desired magic spells, or weapons. Be aware of current skills levels before attempting this. Ensure the alteration skills is high enough to cast paralysis spells.

A method for leveling Alteration alone requires the Telekinesis spell and a full set of armor with the Fortify Alteration enchantment (reducing the magicka cost of Alteration spells to zero) to be equipped. Telekinesis can then be dual-cast indefinitely on any object, and simply holding (or taping down) the left-hand and right-hand controls (LT and RT, L1 and R1, or the mouse buttons) will level the Alteration skill to 100 in around 30-45 minutes.

Skill points

In order to achieve a character level up, the player must earn a pre-specified number of experience points, which are acquired by leveling up any of the player’s skills. The effort required to level up a given skill increases with the current level of that skill. Generally, using a more advanced feature of a skill, such as an adept spell, advances the skill more than a novice feature or spell.

The max level in the game is 81 and a half. That is reached when the player levels all skills to 100, providing 80 skill points in total to spend.

Maximum skill levels can be attained by setting his player’s level back to 1 by using typing the command player.setlevel 1. Combinations of using advskill <skillname> <amount>, then setting the level back to 1 can give enough points to get all skills to 100 and have all the perks in each.

Not all skills advance the same. For example, advskill enchanting 100 will advance enchanting to skill 100, but advskill destruction 100 will only advance it by one or two. Also the higher the level, the more it takes to advance. Some skills will only advance 5 or 6 levels, with advskill values of 1 million.

Exit from the command screen to let level the character up between using the advskill command. This allows the player to gain perk points, enabling him to set his character’s level back to 1, and continue advskill.

The names of the skills can be found in the skills/perks window and are named the same except for two, which are Speech (use >advskill speechcraft <amount>) and Archery (use advskill marksman <amount>).

Note: As of patch 1.09, a new feature called Legendary Skills  was provided. This allows one to reset an individual skill back to level 15 without affecting the overall skill level, and thus break the 81.5 overall level barrier.

  

Skill tree specs

These are some examples of skill tree specs that are based on how the player chooses to play and fight with his character.

Sneak(12x), One-Handed(7x), Archery(6x), Destruction(12x), Restoration(9x), Enchanting(4x) Spec
This class is designed for players who prefer to remain undetected and land critical hits with Bows and Daggers. When the circumstances permit, the player may lay down a Rune so that the NPC walks over it, enabling the player to hit it with a stealth attack or more Destruction magic. For close active combat, the player may want to stick to Destruction kiting or to dual wielded Daggers if magic is weak. The spec into Enchanting allows the player to double enchant all his items increasing his magicka pool or magicka regeneration, those two being the most beneficial. It is also advised to carry addition sets of gear for Restoration, Daggers, as well as Bows.

Talent Tree Sneak     Stealth(5x)     Backstab(1x)     Deadly Aim(1x)     Assasin’s Blade(1x)     Muffled Movement(1x)     Light Foot(1x)     Silent Roll(1x)     Shadow Warrior(1x)
One-Handed     Armsman(5x)     Dual Flurry(1x)     Dual Savagery(1x)
Archery     Overdraw(5x)     Eagle Eye(1x)
Destruction     Novice Destruction(1x)     Apprentice Destruction(1x)     Adept Destruction(1x)     Expert Destruction(1x)     Master Destruction(1x)     Augmented Flames/Augmented Frost/Augmented Shock(2x each)     Destruction Dual Casting(1x)
Restoration     Novice Restoration(1x)     Apprentice Restoration(1x)     Adept Restoration(1x)     Expert Restoration(1x)     Master Restoration(1x)     Recovery(2x)     Restoration Dual Casting(1x)     Respite(1x)
Enchanting     Enchanter(1x)     Insightful Enchanter(1x)     Corpus Enchanter(1x)     Extra Effect(1x)

See also

Skills – Skills in other Elder Scrolls Games.
Perks – All the known Perks.

Skills in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
The Mage     Alteration · Conjuration · Destruction · Enchanting · Illusion · Restoration
The Thief     Alchemy · Light Armor · Lockpicking · Pickpocket · Sneak · Speech
The Warrior     Archery · Block · Heavy Armor · One-Handed · Smithing · Two-Handed

 

Races (Skyrim)

In The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, there are 10 different playable races, and each one possesses its own unique racial abilities and powers. Each race starts off with +10 in one skill and +5 in five other skills. However, this doesn’t mean that each race is restricted to creating a certain type of character, because the player can develop any skill over time. Unlike other Elder Scrolls games, Skyrim does not feature a class system, so in character creation, the race is the only major gameplay choice that the player has.

Starting skills by race

The following table shows the starting Skill statistics for each Race. The higher the number (over the base level of 15) the better. Values of 20 indicate this is a favored skill of the race. Values of 25 indicate this is a Primary Skill of the Race. Skills can be improved to a primary group.

Every race has their own unique skill which they excel at and will start at level 25 with that particular skill. For Example: Bretons start at level 25 Conjuration as they are naturally skilled at it.

Race/Skills

Altmer (High elf)
Argonian

Bosmer (Wood elf)
Breton

Dunmer (Dark elf)
Imperial     Khajiit     Nord

Orsimer (Orc)
Redguard
Smithing     15     15     15     15     15     15     15     20     20     20
Heavy Armor     15     15     15     15     15     20     15     15     25     15
Block     15     15     15     15     15     20     15     20     20     20
Two-Handed     15     15     15     15     15     15     15     25     20     15
One-Handed     15     15     15     15     15     20     20     20     20     25
Archery     15     15     25     15     15     15     20     15     15     20
Light Armor     15     20     20     15     20     15     15     20     15     15
Sneak     15     20     20     15     20     15     25     15     15     15
Lockpicking     15     25     20     15     15     15     20     15     15     15
Pickpocket     15     20     20     15     15     15     20     15     15     15
Speech     15     15     15     20     15     15     15     20     15     15
Alchemy     15     15     20     20     20     15     20     15     15     15
Illusion     25     15     15     20     20     15     15     15     15     15
Conjuration     20     15     15     25     15     15     15     15     15     15
Destruction     20     15     15     15     25     20     15     15     15     20
Restoration     20     20     15     20     15     25     15     15     15     15
Alteration     20     20     15     20     20     15     15     15     15     20
Enchanting     20     15     15     15     15     20     15     15     20     15

Starting spells by race

The following table holds all of the basic spells for each race.

Race / Spell

Altmer

(High elf)
Argonian

Bosmer

(Wood elf)
Breton

Dunmer

(Dark elf)
Imperial     Khajiit     Nord

Orsimer

(Orc)
Redguard
Healing     X     X     X     X     X     X     X     X     X     X
Flames     X     X     X     X     X     X     X     X     X     X
Sparks                     X
Fury     X
Conjure Familiar                 X

Unique Race Powers

These powers can be used only once per day, unless otherwise specified.

Race
Name
Description
Redguard     Adrenaline Rush     Stamina regenerates 10 times faster for 60 seconds.

Orsimer

(Orc)
Berserker Rage     Take half damage and do double physical damage for 60 seconds.
Nord     Battle Cry     Nearby enemies are Feared for 30 seconds.
Khajiit     Night Eye     Improved Night Vision for 60 seconds (can be toggled multiple times per day.)
Imperial     Voice of the Emperor     Nearby people are Calmed for 30 seconds.

Dunmer

(Dark elf)
Ancestor’s Wrath

Surrounds the Dunmer in fire for 60 seconds.
Breton     Dragonskin     Absorb 50% of magicka from all incoming spells for 60 seconds.

Bosmer

(Wood elf)
Command Animal     Make all surrounding animals your allies for 60 seconds
Argonian     Histskin     Invoke the power of the Hist to recover health 10 times faster for 60 seconds.

Altmer

(High elf)
Highborn     Regenerate magicka 10 times faster for 60 seconds.

Unique race perks

Altmer: +50 Magicka
Argonian: 50% Disease Resistance, Waterbreathing
Bosmer: 50% Resistance to both Poison and Disease
Breton: 25% Resistance to Magic
Dunmer: 50% Resistance to Fire Damage
Nord: 50% Resistance to Frost Damage
Redguard: 50% Resistance to Poison
Khajiit: +15 Base Unarmed Damage
Imperial: Find more gold than usual

Stats affected by character size

Characters’ races impact their jump height and run speed. Physically taller races can cover more ground while running and have a greater vertical jump height.

Melee damage

Using the console command player.setscale to change the height of the character will increase the size of a character in addition to increasing their movement speed, jump height, and damage output. Because changing the player scale in the console increases and decreases melee damage accordingly, there is a misconception that taller races do more base melee damage.^[1] Without console modification, however, the default scale of all races in the console is 1.00, regardless of physical height.^[2] Therefore, all races do the same melee damage at the time of character creation. For further explanation, see the screenshot displaying the actual player scale (1.00) used in calculations and the base scale. The base scale is a purely, completely cosmetic scale in which the character’s height is adjusted accordingly. Orcs and High Elves have, equally, the highest cosmetic height in the game, in which both of the races cosmetic scale is 1.10. This means that an Orc has a cosmetic scale of 1.10 as does a High Elf, but like mentioned above, all races in the game use a scale of 1.00 for every single calculation including Damage Output, Damage Resistance, Run Speed, and Jump Height.

Changes from previous games

Character creation has been dramatically changed in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Previous games had the player choose from a list of classes that would determine the starting skills for the player’s character and in some cases, how the player’s character would level. The player also had the option of creating a custom class, selecting each skill individually. This system had a very large impact on player effectiveness in the beginning of the game, though Oblivion’s system was able to lessen that impact. A player could spend hours working out the most effective way to build a character.

In Skyrim, however, that system has been removed, meaning that though the player will still select a race, the player no longer has to select a class. Skill set specialization is still possible in Skyrim, but instead of permanently selecting this during character creation, this is now done using the skill perks earned by leveling up (both skills and player level, as perks are earned by overall level while skill level is required to select any but the most basic perks). The birthsign system has been replaced completely with Standing Stones, which can be changed at any time by visiting and activating a new stone.

The Luck attribute has also been removed and is therefore impossible to increase. Skills have been further reduced from a total of 21 to 18. There are no acrobatics/athletics or speed attributes so it is not possible to increase your jump height or your character’s running speed through stats (however, Altmer for example, have a naturally faster running speed than the other races).

Level 81 is the highest, meaning there are 80 (no perk can be chosen at level 1) possible perk points to choose from (out of over 250 possible places to spend them) however a typical player will not max out all skills to 100, and will instead reach only around level 50 or so. A character designed around 30 perk points is a reasonable build that can be reached in-game fairly quickly and is a great starting point for those who want to design the character before playing. This has changed with Legendary Skills, which allow the player to refund all the perk points from a single skill and set its level back to 15, effectively allowing the player to level their character indefinitely. Skills can also be made legendary multiple times.

See also

• Classes
• Skills in Skyrim
• Perks in Skyrim
• Character Creation in Skyrim

References

 

 

 

Quests (Skyrim)

Quests are tasks the Dragonborn can perform in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Various persons can initiate quests, allowing for rewards to be gained by completing them. Sometimes, rewards are monetary or come in the form of items. Other times, quests increase skill levels or open opportunities to recruit followers or make marriage proposals.

The “main quest” denotes tasks the Dragonborn is compelled to complete as part of the game’s main story. Other quests can be performed for a guild or faction, while others are considered side quests, which skirt on the periphery of the game’s plotlines.

As with most of The Elder Scrolls titles, there are quests for each of the Daedric Princes, excluding Jyggalag. Unique to Skyrim are Radiant Quests, quests which are initiated as part of the Radiant Story artificial intelligence system. These quests can be repeated an infinite number of times, allowing for never-ending gameplay.

Two separate questlines were added to the game with the official plug-ins, Dawnguard and Dragonborn. For coverage of these quests, see Quests (Dawnguard) and Quests (Dragonborn).

Interface

The interface listing all quests can be activated through the map menu or by accessing the journal directly. PC versions of the game allow the journal (pressing “J”) to be accessed directly, while consoles open the journal, game settings, etc through the same button. Quests are listed by faction and relevance to the main quest first, and alphabetically second. Thus, quests in the main quest appear first, but quests involving the Thieves Guild appear later. Miscellaneous quests are grouped together on a separate menu, accessible from the very bottom of the list of quests.

Most quests can be completed in any order, upon activation. However, quests markers will not appear on the world map, on the compass, or in-game unless they are marked as active in the interface. Simply selecting the affirmation button activates the quests, once it has been highlighted in the list. Completed lists are listed at the bottom of the quest menu, below a divider. The names are greyed out, and the bullets next to the objectives are filled, indicating completion. In the menu, quests that are partially completed also have their objectives greyed out or ticked off. Optional tasks within the quest are labeled as such in the list as well.

Main quest

The main quest of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim involves the investigation and resolution of the Dragon Crisis, as foretold by the Elder Scrolls. Two factions must be joined in order to progress the main quest, the Blades and the College of Winterhold. “Paarthurnax” is completely optional and can be completed after the main quest. “Season Unending” operates under special conditions; completing it halts the Civil War questline, while completing the Civil War questline causes this quest not to appear, since it is no longer necessary.
Act I

Unbound
Before the Storm
Bleak Falls Barrow
Dragon Rising
The Way of the Voice
The Horn of Jurgen Windcaller

Act II

A Blade In The Dark
Diplomatic Immunity
A Cornered Rat
Alduin’s Wall
The Throat of the World
Elder Knowledge
Alduin’s Bane

Act III

Season Unending
The Fallen
Paarthurnax
The World-Eater’s Eyrie
Sovngarde
Dragonslayer
Epilogue
Faction quests

Quests performed for the various factions are not considered part of the main questline. Choices made during faction quests are non-canonical, lore-wise. Each faction contains several Radiant Quests which can be completed an innumerable amount of times.

Dark Brotherhood
Darkbrotherhood

Delayed Burial
Innocence Lost
With Friends Like These…
Sanctuary
Mourning Never Comes
Whispers In The Dark
The Silence Has Been Broken
Bound Until Death
Breaching Security
The Cure For Madness
Recipe For Disaster
To Kill An Empire
Death Incarnate
Hail Sithis!

Contracts

Contract: Kill Beitild
Contract: Kill Narfi
Contract: Kill Ennodius Papius
Contract: Kill Lurbuk
Contract: Kill Hern
Contract: Kill Deekus
Contract: Kill Ma’randru-jo
Contract: Kill Anoriath
Contract: Kill Agnis
Contract: Kill Maluril
Contract: Kill Helvard
Contract: Kill Safia

Side quests

Locate the Assassin of Old
Honor Thy Family – Gain re-entry to the Dark Brotherhood. radiant quest
Dark Brotherhood Forever – radiant quest

Other quests

Destroy the Dark Brotherhood!
Where You Hang Your Enemy’s Head

The College of Winterhold
College

First Lessons
Under Saarthal
Hitting the Books
Good Intentions
Revealing the Unseen
Containment
The Staff of Magnus
The Eye of Magnus

Side quests

Arniel’s Endeavor
Daedric Relic
Out of Balance
J’zargo’s Experiment
Onmund’s Request
Brelyna’s Practice
Rejoining the College

Radiant quests

Given by Urag gro-Shub

Fetch me that Book!
Shalidor’s Insights

Given by Tolfdir

Aftershock
Finding Tolfdir’s Alembic

Given by Sergius Turrianus

Enchanting Pick-Up
Restocking Soul Gems

Broken quests

Lost Apprentices

Master-level spell quests

Alteration Ritual Spell
Conjuration Ritual Spell
Destruction Ritual Spell
Illusion Ritual Spell
Restoration Ritual Spell

The Companions
Companion

Take Up Arms
Trouble in Skyrim – radiant quest.
Proving Honor
The Silver Hand
Stealing Plans – radiant quest.
Blood’s Honor
Purity of Revenge
Glory of the Dead

Side quests

Animal Extermination – radiant quest.
Hired Muscle – radiant quest.
Family Heirloom – radiant quest.
Escaped Criminal – radiant quest.
Rescue Mission – radiant quest.
Striking the Heart – radiant quest.
Retrieval – radiant quest.
Totems of Hircine – radiant quest.
Purity
Dragon Seekers – radiant quest.

Thieves Guild
Thieves

A Chance Arrangement
Taking Care of Business
Loud and Clear
Dampened Spirits
Scoundrel’s Folly
Speaking With Silence
Hard Answers
The Pursuit
Trinity Restored
Blindsighted
Darkness Returns
Under New Management

Side quests

Imitation Amnesty
Summerset Shadows
Silver Lining
The Dainty Sload
Deliver Moon Sugar to Ri’Saad
The Bedlam Job – radiant quest.
The Fishing Job – radiant quest.
The Numbers Job – radiant quest.
The Burglary Job – radiant quest.
The Heist Job – radiant quest.
The Shill Job – radiant quest.
The Sweep Job – radiant quest.
No Stone Unturned

The Blades

Paarthurnax
Rebuilding the Blades
Dragon Hunting

Bards College

Tending the Flames
Find Rjorn’s Drum
Find Finn’s Lute
Find Pantea’s Flute

Dawnguard

Dawnguard
Awakening
Bloodline
A New Order
The Bloodstone Chalice
Prophet
Prophet (Dawnguard)
Prophet (Vampire)
Seeking Disclosure
Chasing Echoes
Beyond Death
Unseen Visions
Touching The Sky
Kindred Judgement

Vampire Quests

Protecting the Bloodline
Ancient Power
New Allegiances
Culling the Beast
Deceiving the Herd
The Hunt
Destroying the Dawnguard
Rings of Blood Magic
Amulets of Night Power
The Gift

Dawnguard Quests

Hide and Seek
Rescue
Preemptive Strike
Cleansing Light
Hunting the Monster
A Jarl’s Justice
Lost Relic
Ancient Technology
Bolstering the Ranks

Civil War quests

The brewing Civil War in Skyrim is between two main factions, the Legion and the Stormcloaks. Both sides have the same tasks, with plenty of individuals throughout the region relaying the deeds of both sides. Minor factions, especially in Whiterun between the Battle-Born and Grey-Mane families, exist throughout the empire. Siding with either side impacts gameplay.
Imperial Legion

Joining the Legion
The Jagged Crown
Message To Whiterun
Defense of Whiterun
Reunification of Skyrim
​False Front
The Battle For Fort Dunstad
Compelling Tribute
The Battle for Fort Greenwall or The Battle for Fort Sungard (depending on the outcome of the main quest Season Unending)
Rescue From Fort Kastav
The Battle For Fort Amol
Battle For Windhelm

Stormcloaks

Joining the Stormcloaks
The Jagged Crown
Message To Whiterun
Battle for Whiterun
Liberation of Skyrim
Rescue From Fort Neugrad
Compelling Tribute
The Battle for Fort Sungard or The Battle for Fort Greenwall (depending on the outcome of the main quest Season Unending)
False Front
The Battle For Fort Snowhawk
The Battle For Fort Hraggstad
Battle For Solitude

Daedric quests

Prince     Quest
Azura     The Black Star
Boethiah     Boethiah’s Calling
Clavicus Vile     A Daedra’s Best Friend
Hermaeus Mora     Discerning the Transmundane
Hircine     Ill Met by Moonlight
Malacath     The Cursed Tribe
Mehrunes Dagon     Pieces of the Past
Mephala     The Whispering Door
Meridia     The Break of Dawn
Molag Bal     The House of Horrors
Namira     The Taste of Death
Peryite     The Only Cure
Sanguine     A Night to Remember
Sheogorath     The Mind of Madness
Vaermina     Waking Nightmare
Nocturnal     Thieves Guild*

To earn Oblivion Walker 15 Daedric artifacts must be collected. These can be collected during the above quests, although some outcomes of the quest do not yield artifacts. This is based solely on choices made during quests.

* Does not count towards Oblivion Walker achievement.

Dungeon quests

The following 24 quests relate to specific dungeons and maps. Quests listed with “*” appear as Miscellaneous Quests in the Quest Journal, and are named according to the Official Skyrim Game Guide.[1]
Quest name     Location
Medresi Dran and the Wandering Dead     Angarvunde
A Love Beyond Death     Ansilvund
Composure, Speed, and Precision     Angi’s Camp
Leap Before You Look     Bard’s Leap Summit
Melka and Petra     Blind Cliff Cave
Repentance     Darklight Tower
Siege on the Dragon Cult     Forelhost
What Lies Beneath     Frostflow Lighthouse
The Pale Lady     Frostmere Crypt
A Scroll for Anska     High Gate Ruins
Ancestral Worship     Hillgrund’s Tomb
Forgetting about Fjola     Mistwatch
Hunter and Hunted     Moss Mother Cavern
The Lost Expedition     Nchuand-Zel
The Nilheim Scam     Nilheim
Otar’s Mad Guardians     Ragnvald
The Legend of Red Eagle (Quest)     Rebel’s Cairn
Wilhelm’s Spectre     Shroud Hearth Barrow
Ysolda’s Shipment     Sleeping Tree Camp
The Savior of Selveni Nethri     Southfringe Sanctum
Infiltration     Treva’s Watch
Evil in Waiting     Valthume
Silenced Tongues     Volunruud
Ashore in a Sea of Ghosts     Yngol Barrow

Miscellaneous quests

Sorted by place of acquisition: hold, city, or place. Some are actual Side quests and have their own quest lines which count towards the “Sideways” achievement. Others are miscellaneous objective and count toward the “Hero of the People” trophy and achievement.
Eastmarch
Windhelm

Blood on the Ice – side quest.
Repairing the Phial – side quest that requires The White Phial and the Throat of the World.
The White Phial – side quest.
Harsh Master
Rise in the East – side quest.
Find the Thalmor Assassin
Argonian Dock Workers
Shavee’s Amulet
Deliver Adonato’s Book to Giraud Gemane
Return Queen Freydis’s Sword to Oengul War-Anvil.
Plant Viola’s Gold Ring in Viola Giordano’s House.

Narzulbur

Find the Forgemaster’s Fingers

Kynesgrove

Find Roggi’s Knot-Beard’s Ancestral Shield

Darkwater Crossing

Deliver Sondas’s Note to Quintus

Falkreath Hold
Falkreath

Steal the Private Letter for Dengeir
Destroy the vampire Vighar
Deliver Berit’s Ashes to Runil

Other

Help Valdr clear out Moss Mother Cavern

Haafingar
Solitude

Light’s Out! – side quest.
The Man Who Cried Wolf – side quest.
The Wolf Queen Awakened – side quest.
Speak to Greta about going to the Temple of Divines
Convince Vittoria Vici to release the Spiced Wine Shipment

Dragon Bridge

Dragon’s Breath Mead

Old Hroldan Inn

The Ghost of Old Hroldan

Hjaalmarch
Morthal

Laid to Rest – side quest.

Saarthal

Forbidden Legend – side quest.

Kjenstag Ruins

Open Kjenstag Tomb

The Pale
Dawnstar

Visit the Museum in Dawnstar
Rising At Dawn
Collecting the fine cut void salts for Captain Wayfinder
Collect a Quicksilver Ingot and sell it to the mine owner

The Reach
Soljund’s Sinkhole

Soljund’s Sinkhole of Draugr

Left-Hand Mine

Clear Kolskeggr Mine

Markarth

The Lost Expedition – side quest.
The Heart of Dibella – side quest.
Bring The Last Scabbard of Akrash to Ghorza
Bring Hjalti’s Sword to the Ghost of Old Hroldan
Bring the Stallion’s Potion to Roerek
Bring a Daedra Heart to Moth Gro-Bagol, the Jarl’s personal blacksmith
Kill Nimhe inside Nchuand-Zel Excavation Site
Investigate the Hall of the Dead
Bring a Dwarven Helmet to Calcelmo
Talk to Mulush about Omluag, at the smelter
Speak to Kerah Deliver ring to Calcelmo
Speak to Ondolemar about Ogmund’s Talos worshipping
Retrieve Lisbet’s shipment from Deepwood Redoubt
Recover Hrolfdir’s Shield

Forsworn

The Forsworn Conspiracy – side quest.
No One Escapes Cidhna Mine – side quest.

Salvius Farm

Speak to Rogatus Salvius Deliver a letter to Leontius Salvius

The Rift
Froki’s Shack

Kyne’s Sacred Trials – side quest.

Heartwood Mill

Fight or Flight

Ivarstead

Gather 10 bear pelts for Temba Wide-Arm
The Straw that Broke
Deliver Klimmek’s Supplies to High Hrothgar

Riften

A Chance Arrangement – side quest.
Taking Care of Business – side quest.
Promises to Keep – side quest.
Retrieve Grimsever
The Lover’s Requital
Retrieve an ore sample from Shor’s Stone
Ingun’s Task
The Raid – a Skooma Trade quest.
Supply And Demand – side quest.
Unfathomable Depths – side quest.
The Book of Love -side quest.
Bring three flawless Amethysts to Talen-Jei
Bring 10 Fire Salts to Balimund
Speak to Marise Collect 5 Ice Wraith Teeth.
Help Wylandriah
Retrieve Wylandriah’s Soul Gem
Retrieve Wylandriah’s Ingot
Retrieve Wylandriah’s Spoon
Embarrass Haelga
Obtain a Mark of Dibella from Indaryn
Obtain a Mark of Dibella from Hofgrir Horse-Crusher
Obtain a Mark of Dibella from Bolli
Help Madesi with his business
Find 2 flawless sapphires for Madesi
Find a mammoth tusk for Madesi
Find Gold Ore for Madesi
Deliver the purchase agreement to Kleppr in Markarth

Whiterun Hold
Whiterun

Missing in Action – side quest.
In My Time of Need – side quest.
The Blessings of Nature – side quest.
Bring one Mammoth Tusk to Ysolda
Talk to Mikael about Carlotta
Argonian Ale
A Night to Remember
The Whispering Door

Riverwood

The Golden Claw – side quest.
Love Triangle

Winterhold Hold
Winterhold

Find the Helm of Winterhold
Assist the people of Winterhold
Drowned Sorrows

The College of Winterhold

Enchanting Pick-Up
Restocking Soul Gems

Septimus Signus’ Outpost

Discerning the Transmundane

Blackreach

A Return To Your Roots

Bounty Quests

These can be given by innkeepers when asked about work or rumors. Any of the Jarls or stewards can give these when asked for work. The Bounty Note identifies the type and location of the bounty.
Forsworn

Kill the leader of Bilegulch Mine
Kill the leader of Bruca’s Leap Redoubt
Kill the leader of Dragon Bridge Overlook
Kill the leader of Druadach Redoubt
Kill the leader of Lost Knife Hideout
Kill the leader of Pinemoon Cave
Kill the leader of Red Eagle Redoubt
Kill the leader of Stony Creek Cave
Kill the leader of Deepwood Redoubt

Bandits

Kill the bandit leader at Broken Oar Grotto
Kill the bandit leader at Four Skull Lookout
Kill the bandit leader at Halted Stream Camp
Kill the bandit leader at Nilheim
Kill the bandit leader at Redoran’s Retreat
Kill the bandit leader at Rift Watchtower
Kill the bandit leader at Silent Moons Camp
Kill the bandit leader at Winter War
Kill the bandit leader at Valtheim Towers – journal entry may say “Valtheim Keep”.

Giant

Kill the giant at Bleakwind Basin
Kill the giant at Broken Limb Camp
Kill the giant at Cradlecrush Rock
Kill the giant at Secunda’s Kiss – journal entry says “Secunda’s Shelf”.
Kill the giant at Sleeping Tree Camp
Kill the giant at Guldun Rock
Kill the giant at Steamcrag Camp
Kill the giant at Blizzard Rest

Dragons

Kill the dragon at Ancient’s Ascent
Kill the dragon at Autumnwatch Tower
Kill the dragon at Bonestrewn Crest
Kill the dragon at Dragontooth Crater
Kill the dragon at Eldersblood Peak
Kill the dragon at Lost Tongue Overlook
Kill the dragon at Mount Anthor
Kill the dragon at Northwind Summit
Kill the dragon at Shearpoint
Kill the dragon at Skyborn Altar

Global

Quest all Drunks Have
Rare Gifts
Some Light Theft
A Few Words with You
Delivery
Investigate the Bards College
Dungeon Delving
Rebel’s Cairn
Visit The College of Winterhold
Go to Endon in Markarth and pick up the item.
Amulet of the Moon

See also

Daedric Quests
Side Quests
Radiant Quests
Quest Items
Quest Rewards
Quests in Dawnguard
Quests in Dragonborn

 

Wikia is here at E3 and we recently got a chance to get hands-on with The Elder Scrolls Online. To be honest, I was a big naysayer when I first saw the game last year. The game had been in a development for a long time and it failed to impress. After playing the game myself yesterday, it’s glaringly clear the team has put a lot of effort into improving the look and feel of Elder Scrolls: Online.

I don’t want to get into too many details about my short time with the game, but feel free to ask questions in the comments if you have any.

Some of you already submitted questions for the show, so let’s cut to the chase. Here are the answers I could scrounge up from Bethesda representatives about The Elder Scrolls Online!

1. Will The Elder Scrolls online interrupt with the lore of the series that we know and love?

According to the Bethesda rep I spoke to, the game adhered to continuity established in the series pretty closely. I imagine location details and geography may have to shift out of necessity, but he assured me the game’s lore is right for the time period.

Players in the game will also collect pieces of lore themselves in the form of books scattered and hidden throughout the world. The Lore page of the game features sections for lore and Bethesda specifically mentioned some books we have already seen in the series will be present in Elder Scrolls Online in their entirety.

2. Will there be mounts and will each race and factions have there own mounts.

In short, yes! Races, classes, and factions will feature prominently in the game. A hefty chunk of the game will be class or race specific quests, with their own rewards accordingly. Like other MMOs, various mounts in the game will be tied to these portions of the game according to a Bethesda rep.

3. Massive Scrolls: If I make steel armor in ESO, will it look different depending on what faction I’m a part of?

While I can’t confirm if every piece will look different, the rep did mention there would be faction-specific armor.

4. Thandeon: Will you see health, stamina and magicka in a bar on the screen? If yes, will it be like WoW where you see your character info in the top left corner?

I was immediately struck by how sparse the ESO interview appears. Nothing is on screen unless the value is changing by default, although this can be toggled on. When using spells, Magicka appears in a small bar on the lower screen. Health and Stamina are similar hidden until use.

5. TheInfamousLyingHarlot: …does anyone know if some form of pet will be available?

The rep was a bit vague in this regard, but yes, there will be pets in the game.

6. I’m wanting to know if there will be marriage or adoption options.

As for marriage, yes! The Bethesda rep hesitated to answer and then answered in the affirmative. While the game calls these unions “pledges” intead of “unions”, players will actually be able to seal their commitment to other players with an exchange of rings. How romantic!

As for adoption, the game will not be shipping with the feature but Bethesda left the idea open for the future.

7. Grimm King: I need werewolf status. Make it happen Bethesda.”

Done! Bethesda has confirmed that players in the game will be able to become both Werewolves and Vampires, although not at the same time. Most interestingly, the Werewolf and Vampire traits are actually upgradeable skill trees in their own right! Players will be able to invest points in each tree, gaining new abilities and strengths as they progress.

8. I want to know if there will be any Lesser Daedra.”

Based on the lore in the game, it seems Lesser Daedra will certainly make an appearance. Much of the story pertains to the Daedric Princes.

9. Will there be a First Person mode available within the game?

This question was already answered, but just to be safe, yes! After trying out it myself too, it looks great. I might now actively play thay way in the game since it cuts off so much from view, but role-players may find it charming and anyone looking to pick up and move objects individually might find it useful.

10. I wonder if it’s true that there is an uncanny amount of freedom to be had in customizing your character, such as mages being able to wield two-handed weapons…

The Bethesda rep confirmed that all types of armor will be available all classes. However, some armor has more benefits than others. While a mage might choose to wield heavy armor, she would be constrained in other ways.

11. Jonesy95: Will it be free-to-play, subscription-based, or a one-off payment?

Sorry, no news as of yet. Personally, I would predict the game would begin with a subscription based model.

That’s all folks! Thanks for the questions!

 

The Pillars of Elder Scrolls

I talk about this all the time on the show, these “Pillars of Elder Scrolls“. I have mentioned a couple of them before, but have never gone into too much detail. The truth is, I have been thinking about them in one form or another for the past 7 years.

I sat down Sunday night and hashed out what I consider to be the true Pillars of Elder Scrolls. I wanted to make sure that these pillars, whatever they may be, were completely unique to Elder Scrolls. Meaning, no other game fulfills all these criteria in tandem. These pillars, once realized, must be able to create a true Elder Scrolls experience entirely on their own accord.

And so, I picked up my laptop and began writing instinctively. It took me about 30 seconds to write down what I considered to be true pillars and then another 40 minutes of deeper thought to understand and dissect what they meant. What I ended up with were four pillars that I consider absolutely necessary in order for a game to be worthy of the Elder Scrolls name. Only by fulfilling all of these pillars will the Elder Scrolls title be bestowed.

If you love this series, truly love this series, then this article is for you.

I. True First Person

Yes, first person is not required to play Elder Scrolls games, but the option is there. I have mentioned in the past why I only play in first person. However, this goes beyond normal first person. I am talking about true first person. This means that you see your hands in front of you wielding your weapon, holding your torch, etc. This provides complete and total immersion in any situation you are in. Whether you are doing quests, exploring the breathtaking beauty of Tamriel, or sneaking around an old Ayleid ruin, true first person provides you with a totally immersive experience that cannot be matched by using a different perspective.

A complete and true first person experience provides you with something that many games strive to capture, but few succeed: self-awareness. If implemented properly, you feel as if you are truly sniping someone with a bow, walking around at night with a torch in hand, or simply exploring the world. With true first person, you no longer feel as though you are watching some on-screen avatar performing these actions. No. You are doing them.

I haven’t played any other RPG that has such amazing true first person implementation as Elder Scrolls.

II. Customization

Customization starts with character creation. When you start any Elder Scrolls game, you are given the chance to create your character. Yes, many games now have this feature, but I have yet to see one that employs the same depth as Elder Scrolls. Almost every single physical feature can be customized, from your eye color, hair style, to even your cheek depth. So robust is this system that I regularly spend an average of 35 minutes creating my characters. Character creation is first step in creating a rich, unique identity, something that will be covered below.

Of course, customization doesn’t stop there. In each successive Elder Scrolls title, you are given more and more choices regarding your skills, the biggest leap being from Oblivion to Skyrim. Upon leveling up in Skyrim you can customize any skill however you see fit.

Customization doesn’t end with your character either, but is extended to the world at large. For example, we know that you can purchase homes in Elder Scrolls. Even here, you are given options. Craft lamps, buy rugs, even build entire extensions of your home. I have spent hours upon hours arranging seemingly mundane objects such as books in my bookshelf.

The question arises: why? Why is this important? What makes customization a pillar of Elder Scrolls? Customization creates something so incredibly crucial to RPGs: personal identity. Think about that for a second. I am only one of countless players, yet no single character of mine looks the same, no single character plays the same. Now expand this to the scores of players enjoying Elder Scrolls. It quickly adds up. The scale is staggering. This unique personal identity gives you that sense that it is indeed you versus the world, where your actions feel unique and important. You feel heroic. You matter.

No other game I have ever played comes even remotely close to matching this sense of unique personal identity. None.

III. Complete Freedom

This is a very critical component of RPGs. If implemented correctly, it allows for some truly staggering gameplay. This sense of freedom, of complete freedom, increases with every Elder Scrolls game. The word “linearity” does not apply. After a very short “tutorial” at the beginning of the games, you are completely free to explore wherever you want.

The entire world is open to you instantly.

You can pick a direction right then and there and just set off. You are not forced to go down paths in order to access areas. The world is your playground. You can completely ignore quests. You can do quests in almost any order, at any time.

In addition to this, your gameplay is free. Don’t fancy wearing heavy armor when you’re in town? No problem. Simply swap into your civilian attire. Are you in a heated fight and find that your sword is ineffective? Change strategy and swap to your destruction staff. Don’t feel like questing today? Why not go hunting and craft some wares to sell in town instead?

Simply put, you are completely and totally free.

You are free to do whatever you want, whenever you want, however you want. I have never played anything that approaches anywhere near the level of freedom as Elder Scrolls does.

IV. Endless Replayability

I have scores of games. Upon completing them, I rarely go back and play them twice, barring a few exceptions like the Mass Effect series.

Why? A lot of games have replayability. But, few games have endless replayabililty. This is a subtle yet critical distinction. The former implies that the game can be played through a few times. The latter, however, implies that the game can be played through almost indefinitely.

This is the case with Elder Scrolls. We get emails from people saying they’ve spent hundreds and hundreds of hours in Elder Scrolls. You can see it on forums, in comment posts, in YouTube videos. Everyone who loves this series says the same thing: they can’t stop playing. These games are the only games I play constantly to the point where I play them on an almost daily basis since 2006.

With the Elder Scrolls, you always have a reason to come back. You always find something new, something you’ve never seen before. You always feel the urge to do just one more quest, clear one more dungeon, make one more potion. You always feel the urge to explore. The carrot is always out there.

Over my 1000+ hours and dozens of characters, I have never had the same experience twice. Ever. The Elder Scrolls can truly be played forever.

. . .

What does this all mean? This is just one fan’s take on his beloved games. These four pillars are absolutely essential in creating a true, unique, and complete Elder Scrolls experience. Many games draw from these pillars individually, and these are great games – but none of them are built upon all of these pillars in glorious concert. None weave them all together so seamlessly, so perfectly, and so effectively as the Elder Scrolls.

Taking a Closer Look at the MMORPG Interview With Zenimax’s Paul Sage

Yesterday, MMORPG.com held a great open forum with Zenimax Online Studios’ Creative Director Paul Sage regarding their upcoming MMO title The Elder Scrolls Online.

This forum was an hour long and detailed many things regarding how the game is structured, the mechanics and such. While all this information is great, a few things shine above the rest. Here are the top 3 questions and answers, as I see it, from the interview yesterday:

1. Is healing in TESO limited to two paths? You have stated that the 4 classes are just templates and starting point as there are loads of skill trees to follow and shape a character to fit our playing styles. However as a healer, as far as the information has been released, are there only 2 Healing skill paths at launch, The Templars’ healing path, and the Restoration Staff path. Is this not a very limited choice for healers? Either being forced to pick a Templar, or only having the option of one weapon, the Restoration Staff. Will there be any other healing paths that have not been unannounced? Will the Restoration Staff have different atunements, like the Destruction Staff having Fire, Lightning and Frost? As it currently stands, if I was to play either a Sorcerer, Nightblade or Dragon Knight, is the only option I have to be a viable group healer, the Restoration Staff path?

Well, there are two full ‘healing’ paths, that aren’t just healing, but that is their focus. Also, most “healing” classes usually have other skills or abilities. For us, you can determine what those are. I think the openness of the skill system really will allow you to play a very versatile healer.

The above question is a very important one, as it attacks the overall ideology that has been praised by Zenimax: the ability to play your way, no matter the class you choose. While the Templar, from my experience playing one at E3, has a healing tree, it also had damage dealing trees to supplement the healing. Though if you decide to play one of the other classes, but still want to be able to heal, you can go down the restoration staff tree. One of the great things said in a previous interview is the ability to pop between weapons and styles, so you can be a group healer at times, but still have the ability to do damage. Just because you don’t play a class with it’s own separate healing tree doesn’t mean there isn’t a tree available to learn. This is customization. While your Nightblade’s skills may not be able to inherently heal, your choice in playstyle can still give you a viable option to do so. Those who want to be a main “group” healer though are going to be innately drawn to the “healing” class. In the end, the choice is still yours.

2. What kind of collision system will be in the game? Do I move through my friends while playing, can they push me, or can members of my faction block my way?

There is no collision with other players. I know why people want there to be, I really do, but it also leads to opportunities for griefing. While I understand you can work around all of those I think this anecdote is important, “we can do anything, but we can’t do everything.” Having played our PvP, I think people will agree with this decision.

If you are scratching your head trying to figure out why this is a big deal, bear with me. Early on in development a lot of questions were being raised about whether this would be in the game and how it can be used in PVP. Will you be able to block whole ranks of enemies from reaching a point just by putting a body there? Will spawn camping be nothing more than surrounding a spawn point and not letting anyone through? Now we know the answer. Collision is not in the game, and I understand why. Griefing by players is a definite game killer, and this is one way to try and limit this. There are still ways to have gigantic battles in an MMO for a keep, hold strategic points, and so on without collision in a game. The very fact that a group of Nightblades, Templars, Dragonknights and Sorcerors are in your path is a deterrent enough. So what if you run through them, you have to get to them first to be able to, and that is where the strategy lies. I hope we see more PVP in the near future and see examples of how this decision benefits the game, but for right now we can only hope that it will be a boon, and not a deterrent to the game.

3.Here’s my question/topic I’d like you to address, if possible. To put it plainly, I’m extremely turned off by the faction lock and the lack of immersion that comes from the phasing being applied. As a long time Elder Scrolls fan, there is a great joy in experiencing open borders. As the game is designed, that’s not the case. Furthermore, the fact that I must complete the preceding faction’s zone before heading on also limits immersion. Forming guilds and groups becomes infinitely more difficult, especially for role-players like myself who typically one race or another. Please justify this.

Taking yours so people don’t think I am fielding all of the easy ones. First, this isn’t going to be an exact copy of other Elder Scrolls titles. Each Elder Scrolls game has been and will be unique. I can understand your concern. However, when we decided to put in a heavy PvP system where there would be a faction war, we wanted those factions to mean something. This is also the first Elder Scrolls game where you will be able to adventure with other people and fight other people. I don’t think we need to justify it, I just think we need to be up front and honest about it. I hope you join us as an Elder Scrolls fan. I think you’ll appreciate the differences as well as the similarities. But thanks for taking the time to ask.

This has been the age old question since the announcement in Game Informer that this game was indeed in development. How does one translate the openess of a single player Elder Scrolls game into an MMO that generally gives you the feeling of an open world, but still has noticeable boundries. (I can hear Shank in my head asking if he can traverse those mountains over in the distance.) To be completely fair to the team at ZOS, while the maps in Cyrodill, Skyrim and Morrowind were massive for their games, players tend to forget when comparing them to ESO that they too have boundaries. There are certain points where you stop moving forward, and while we don’t think of them because our relation ship with that game is pigeon-holed to that region, they are there. We can’t travel to Cyrodiil in Skyrim, we can’t go to the Summerset Isles in Morrowind. We can in the Elder Scrolls Online, if not initially depending on who we choose to play.

In addition, one of the pieces of the Elder Scrolls that has driven each game has been it’s story. While the main storyline in an Elder Scrolls game isn’t your only option for stuff to do in the game, it’s influence is seen everywhere you go. You may not work on that main story quest right away, yet you can’t escape it as well. This is no different in ESO. The main story, this faction war, is at the heart of the game, and because of this war going on you must adhere to the influence of it. Once you overcome that obstacle of levelling and taking part in one section of the story and faction, the developers are opening the world up for you to decide how you continue on. Are you a Dark Elf in the Ebonheart Pact eager to rejoin your Elven Kindred in the Aldemeri Dominion? You can do so when you hit level 50. In the end though, it’s as Paul says: each Elder Scrolls game is unique. ESO is unique in the fact you can interact socially with other fans and players and forge your own stories within the grand story. ZOS isn’t stopping you from travelling to the other faction’s areas. They are just making you put some work in before you can.

What are your thoughts? Any other piece of information stick out to you from the interview? Make sure you comment with your thoughts here, as well as tune into our LIVE recording of Elder Scrolls Off the Record on Friday Night at 7pm EST on our Twitch TV channel!

Paul Sage ESO Live Interview on MMORPG.com!

P aul Sage took to the forums at MMORPG.com on Wednesday evening for a live interview with fans. And man, there were a LOT of questions asked. A lot of this information is new so this author was soaking it all in. Naturally, this has earned Mr. Paul Sage the much coveted “Huge G Award” from me.

So here it is guys, the ENTIRE interview for your viewing pleasure. And don’t worry, we will be covering this beast on the show this week. Please note that given its length, it has been split into three separate pages, with a link to the next page at the bottom of each section. Enjoy!

. . .

1. There seems to have been a lot of talk lately about whether ESO is a real MMO prompted by some statements you guys made last month about it being playable as a single player experience. I’ve been following the development of the game closely for several months and I don’t see any changes in the design of the game. Can you explain why the shift in emphasis on how you describe the game?

I think this has to do with how we approach development. We were worried that the term MMO had become synonymous with a certain type of game with an almost exact set of rules. That was definitely a perception we felt, even internally. But we really wanted to be true to our IP first, and still have this amazing social game with thousands of players online. When I started on UO [Ultima Online], MMO was a new term and there weren’t limits on it. We don’t dislike the term or the association, we love it. We just want to make sure people aren’t expecting it to be a clone of certain games.

2. How does the mega server actually work as far as intelligently assigning channels? Do we fill out a preference form, or link our Facebook account? Tell us more about the end game, Cyrodiil, and instanced public dungeons. I just wanted to know what’s in store. Right now, it uses data we already know about you. Your in-game friends, your guild associations, etc. We take that and try to put you in a channel of people you most likely want to be with. We talked about doing a form at one time, and we still might, but that isn’t in right now.

That’s a load of questions. Let’s take end-game:

PVE

Solo end-game = what we have internally been calling 50+. Imagine you can go into any alliance after you complete the zones in your original alliance, but there are no longer levels. Now you can go anywhere you want in that alliance. If you finish that, you go onto the third alliance.

Small group end-game: Master dungeons. You’ll go through dungeons which are more difficult to do progressively. Also we have Adventure Zones where there are large swaths of area just for the smaller group. (4 player)

Large group: Adventure Zone instances. While we aren’t calling them “raids” internally, that’s what you might be safest in imagining.

PVP:

Caters to groups of all sizes. But this is Cyrodiil, a huge land mass where you can just adventure solo doing quests, or looking for resources. Maybe you want a strike group to take out farms or mines. Also you have large objectives like keep sieges. The beauty of Cyrodiil is the size allows for lots of different sizes of group activity down to solo. However, we do pinpoint the hotspot on your map for you, which means if a sizeable fight is going on, you will see it dynamically appear on your map.

3: Can PLAYER created guilds have members from all alliances in it?

Yes.

4. Do you have a system in-game that will allow me to play with friends/guild mates even if their lvl is below mine (I mean in PvE). For example like the Mentoring System in Rift where you can adjust your own lvl to play low lvl dungeons/quests with your friend without becoming to powerful for that content or does the area where your in auto-adjust your lvl like in GW2 [Guild Wars 2]? Sorry for any spelling mistake. Greetz from Germany

We do not have anything like that currently in game. We’ve looked into this, and we have some ideas, but I don’t believe it will be in for ship.

5. Thank you very much for being here.  I am dying to know more about how player to player trading works in ESO?  How will I buy, sell, or trade with other players?

Currently you are able to trade in two very important ways:

Meeting someone and doing the normal, “Hey, let’s swap items.”
You will be able to trade in your Guild Store. This is a really big thing for us, and part of the reason we allow people to join multiple guilds. We think this is pretty exciting and we’ll have more details on the full system later.

6. Will there be some kind of arena (like that in Oblivion) where I can challenge other players or at least NPCs to a duel, with perhaps the option of staking? Thanks for doing this Paul! And nice name by the way (it’s mine too)

All dueling an PvP activity currently takes place in Cyrodiil. We don’t have an arena for it in the PvE areas.

7. Will I be able to leave the starter zone immediately upon starting a new game, or must I complete certain quests before I will be allowed to leave?

We try to make sure you can leave pretty quickly if you would like, but you will likely have to do some things to get out of starter areas.

8. Can we rejoin an alliance we already beat (if I start in Ebonheart then join the queen, can i rejoin Ebonheart for a more difficult play through?)

Right now, you cannot.

9. [Multi part]

Will our equipt gear forced to be our clothing or will we be able to wear anything we want and have the gears only represent stats. I don’t want to be forced to wear pieces of clothing I don’t want, I want to wear custom oufits of my choosing.
Will clothing be like skyrim where an armor set is created for your whole body or will the clothing be seperate for each body part.
The former is too restricting and hinders character customization immensely. Thank you

Right now, we do have costumes in the game and disguises which can be worn over your gear to give you a different look. We also have options for you to take gear you like (stats) and make it look different.

10. Is healing in TESO limited to two paths? You have stated that the 4 classes are just templates and starting point as there are loads of skill trees to follow and shape a character to fit our playing styles. However as a healer, as far as the information has been released, are there only 2 Healing skill paths at launch, The Templars’ healing path, and the Restoration Staff path. Is this not a very limited choice for healers? Either being forced to pick a Templar, or only having the option of one weapon, the Restoration Staff. Will there be any other healing paths that have not been unannounced? Will the Restoration Staff have different atunements, like the Destruction Staff having Fire, Lightning and Frost? As it currently stands, if I was to play either a Sorcerer, Nightblade or Dragon Knight, is the only option I have to be a viable group healer, the Restoration Staff path?

Well, there are two full ‘healing’ paths, that aren’t just healing, but that is their focus. Also, most “healing” classes usually have other skills or abilities. For us, you can determine what those are. I think the openness of the skill system really will allow you to play a very versatile healer.

 

The Tamriel Chronicle, Issue #16

The latest creations from fans of The Elder Scrolls Online, all in one place.

We’re back with our weekly look at tons of great ESO fan art, podcasts, stories, and more. We hope you’ll enjoy this collection of links, and that they’ll inspire you to come up with your own ESO creations. If you have a link you’d like to share with us, send it in to community@elderscrollsonline.com and we’ll take a look.

Fan Art & Crafts

We’re always inspired by the talent of ESO fan artists. Take a look at some recent works, and don’t forget to visit our official ESO Tumblr page for more!

Skyrim Nordic War Axe – By Nappin’ Kraken Crafts

Bosmer Male & Female – By Shanku on Tamriel Foundry

  

Kematu Akenzua – Art by Evanyell, character by Centarius on TESO-RP

Fan Fiction

A Game of Chance: Chapter 4 – By Iogairn on TESOF

Vultus opened the door and sighed.
“You again?” he asked despairingly.
“Lovely to see you too.” Iogairn smiled and proceeded before Vultus could object “Listen, do you have the …something.?” he asked. Vultus looked puzzled. “What something?”
Iogairn just waved his hands around in front of him, as if trying to mould the potion out of the air.
“You know. The …something. The thing. The whatitsname.” After seeing none of these words brought comprehension he said. “The thing I… Iusepus broke.”

Seventy-three – By Triskele on TESOF

My dear mother,

Another day, another sandstorm. I’m currently waiting for the gates to open, for the guards to tell travellers it is safe. I have half a mind to climb the wall and look upon nature’s wrath myself – there is no sight like the sand dancing with the winds of Tava – but I wanted to write you first.

Rumors and Whispers – Collective Stories of Korva Indoril – By Korva on TESO-RP

It was a beautiful night for a social gathering at Lord Milryn’s Manor, and Korva was always on the guest list. Korva made her way through the sea of overdressed guests that were all standing near the open veranda. She stepped out into the open air and a soft breeze played with the braziers’ light, sending incense smoke billowing into a starry sky.

Fan Music

High Rock – By Matthew Shine

 

Imperial City – By Armin Gutjahr

 

 

Question of the Week Answers

We’ve gathered up some of your answers to last week’s Developer Question of the Week. Watch the video to see the full question, and look for a new Developer Question of the Week this Thursday.

The Dwemers’ Secret. I was thinking it would have a lot of Dwarven aesthetics, and a mead brewed from an “ancient dwarven spice.” Maybe have a small quest of a rival tavern to find the secret ingredient.  Or if you really want to go all out you could have the tavern run by a mage who found out how to control the Dwarven robots and use them as servants in the bar. Could also be the place where you could buy a dwarven robot companion. Or maybe a combo of the two. – By Hayden H.
The Inn of the Hoary Fleece is a legendary house of ill-repute. Named for the beautiful white mane of its proprietress Sakiel–a Dunmer exile from Morrowind–who runs the establishment with her devoted twin brother Sillek, The Hoary Fleece is known far and wide for its ability to cater to a wide range of tastes and clientele, with something of a flair for the exotic.  On any particular night a visitor might witness on its stage the feats of Khajiit acrobats, Argonian jugglers, or the famed merrian Dancers of the Dark Veil: a troupe of Dunmer, Altmer, and Bosmer performers.  On special nights Sillek and Sakiel themselves might be performing as they are well known for their skills at knife throwing (and catching). What is not as well known, is that the twin exiles actually supervise one of the most successful spy rings in all of Tamriel. Generals and nobles, powerful merchant lords and occasionally the captain of the guard, have all been known to frequent The Hoary Fleece, and through it all, Sillek and Sakiel have gathered a wealth of information which they have secured for the highest bidder.  Loyal only to each other, and to their highest paying customer, the twins have escaped their life from the Morag Tong and now concentrate on using their skills to amass a great personal fortune–because there is always opportunity for fortune in times of chaos. But what might happen if the forces of the Ebonheart Alliance should ever reach their corner of Tamriel, and their pasts finally catch up with them? – By Christopher B.
I would name a tavern “The Gutted Frog”. Set on the outskirts of a swamp its specialty is swamp frog soup. Tastes better than it sounds! Main ingredient is frog.  (Let it be known, I love frogs. I just think it would work for a tavern.) – By Dylan H.
If I could name a tavern, it would be something ludicrous like “The Skipping Giant” or “The Frolicking Ogrim.”  Such fun places have no need for a conventional name.  Imagine the look on people’s faces when you tell them where you do your merry making. – By James H.
Shivering Saloon: A Shivering Isles/Sheogorath Themed tavern.
Vials of Vvardenfell (Alchemist): A Morrowind themed alchemy shop – perhaps in a forign land like the Black Marsh or Skyrim.
The Iron Knee (Blacksmith): Preventing arrow related knee injury since the First Age! – By Zen
If I owned a tavern in Tamriel it would definitely be called “The Drunken Draugr”, with a cool backstory, of course.  “Back in my adventurous youth, I delved into an old burial cellar with a graverobbing party in search of easy fortune.  Room by room we crept until we happened upon a long abandoned wine storage chamber.  Suddenly, one companion grabbed my arm and we all froze at the sight of at least a dozen undead shuffling around in the dim torchlight.  Only moments had passed before we noticed the freshly opened crate of wine and the bottles rolling around at their feet.  These draugr were blind stinking drunk!  And thank the nine for that.  As they stumbled around aimlessly, we grabbed up anything we could and returned topside to celebrate our spoils.  As I raised a glass, I toasted our long dead bretheren saying, ‘Here’s to the drunken draugr.  If they can’t rest in peace, then may they drink in peace!’  With the gold I made that night I bought a tavern, and ‘The Drunken Draugr’ was born.” – By Rob B.
I would name my inn ‘The Leaking Barrel’, with a back story: ‘When I was young, I used to work as a bar-hand in an inn not far from here (Someplace in Skyrim). One day, as I was transporting some mead from the brewery the wheel on my cart hit a massive hole and collapsed. One of the mead barrels rolled out of a cart and started leaking. I had no tools with me to fix the leek so I started shouting: ‘Get your mead here! Fresh from a broken barrel!’ Luckily, the village nearby was full of loggers which were thirsty for a good drink after a hard day’s work. The mead from the broken barrel was gone in just an hour and I had to open another one…and another one… By the time they felt satisfied a week’s worth of mead was sold! When I returned to the owner and said I sold all the mead he was confused, but when I showed him all the money I made, he was really happy and gave me a loan to start my own inn…. – By Rokas J.

 

 

 

 

 

Question of the Week Answers

We’ve gathered up some of your answers to last week’s Developer Question of the Week. Watch the video to see the full question, and look for a new Developer Question of the Week this Thursday.

“My first game was Oblivion. My older brothers were huge fans of Morrowind. Morrowind was too complex for me at the time and I could never get into it. When Oblivion came out, my brothers were incredibly excited and even made me want to play it. Oblivion in itself was much simpler and easier to play. However since the day I played Oblivion that first time, I was drawn into that fantasy world of spells, creatures, armor, and swords. I have always been a fan and enjoyed all of the games thoroughly. However, the one thing that had always rattled in my mind was ‘What if I could play Oblivion, Morrowind, and Skyrim with my friends?’ In my opinion, ESO is just the next Elder Scrolls, but Online.”  – By Alex Zubarev
“The very first Elder Scrolls game I played was Daggerfall. When my family and I would go visit my grandparents who had a computer, my cousin had just bought this new game. The cover art was pretty creepy to me, and the game its self was scarier than Doom. We installed it and I watched him play for a while but he eventually got distracted and left, leaving me to make my own character, which was the beginning of my love affair with the series. I remember long, long nights of playing with my handy dandy notebook at the ready, jotting down all the info I needed for the quests, all the while hearing my parents yell ‘GET OUT OF THAT ROOM, IT’S SUPPER TIME AND YOU HAVEN’T EATEN SINCE BREAKFAST’ and receiving my reply ‘THERE’S FOOD IN THE GAME!’”  – By Perry J Ross
“My first game was Skyrim. Everyone was going crazy over the game when it came out and I didn’t understand why because I had never even heard of Elder Scrolls until Skyrim. My friends kept telling me to buy it, but I told them I wasn’t gonna conform. I unexpectedly got 50 bucks from a family member and thought, ‘Well, I guess I could try it,’ even though I could’ve bought other games I wanted. As soon as I realized how much of an open world game it was I was hooked.” – By Mykale-Jamal Cortez Holland
“Morrowind was my first.  What drew me in?  The ability to get lost.  The awesome feeling of finally finding the dungeon I was supposed to go to after an hour of looking for it.  The power of my determination to complete the dungeon with what supplies I had brought with me.  The constant wondering whether I took the right path to the town up the road or if I’ll instead end up somewhere completely different (this was how I first found a lot of the coolest locales in Morrowind).”  – By Matt Daubaras
“My first Elder Scrolls game was Oblivion. A friend of mine let me play it on his 360 and I instantly was mesmerized and hooked! I bought the game for myself then the expansions afterward. Looking back on Oblivion and Skyrim, I always wondered, ‘Man this would be sweet if I could play with my brothers or friends online,’ and before I finished the thought you guys announced ESO!” – By Joseph Henry

We hope you enjoyed all the fan creations and news in this week’s issue of The Tamriel Chronicle. We’ll be back next week with more!