Skyrim III: Get rich selling protective knee gear!

[Lord Ruby34]

Okay, so I just started the game and am on the way to High Hrothgar. I've had all sorts of trouble getting there, killed by giants on the road, reload try a different way and get attacked by a dragon. Try again a different way and make it, but then on the path of 7000 steps get attacked by some trolls and killed.

I'd just keep trying. I was playing something pretty similar to you my first time through, the troll took me about three tries (I was about level seven.), but I beat it by backpedaling and using flames while Lydia shot him. When you run out of mana or he's about to hit you just FUS real quick.

Stay away from giants, and they shouldn't bother you. Run near the guards for dragons. Bandits seem to make up most other enemies, and they aren't too bad.

[Moonshadow]

I'm a wizard with the archmage robes and no smithing skill. The amount of effort involved in making dragon armour makes it completely not worth it for me.

Wait wait wait. Effort? What effort? You're pretty much always rolling in gold, even more so if you find the iron mines, mine all the veins and then Transmute them all to gold and make jewelry and then use the money to buy even more ores and stuff from blacksmiths.

In fact, Smithing has to be one of the easiest skills to level up.

[Seerow]

I'd just keep trying. I was playing something pretty similar to you my first time through, the troll took me about three tries (I was about level seven.), but I beat it by backpedaling and using flames while Lydia shot him. When you run out of mana or he's about to hit you just FUS real quick.

Stay away from giants, and they shouldn't bother you. Run near the guards for dragons. Bandits seem to make up most other enemies, and they aren't too bad.

Well the dragon attack was far away from any town, it was really random. So I couldn't take it back to the guards. I did admittedly attack the giant first, so that one was my fault. There were two other deaths I forgot to mention. One was my fault (bought a horse, decided to go mountain climbing, fell off the mountain, killed the horse and died), and one where I died to a sabertooth something.

But you mention having Lydia, where are you supposed to pick her up at? I never got a companion. I had one mercenary guy offer to follow me for 500g, but that was too pricey for me. I assume there are cheaper/free companions I can pick up at this point in the game?

Lets see you have the companions, mages, thieves or dark brotherhood. Bards too but that's only a handful of quests. You could also randomly explore since some quests start right in front of or inside a dungeon or you could talk to random people in random towns and you'll find plenty of quests. Finally you could simply sprint past everything on the 7000 steps and hope you can make it inside before they catch you.

This comment did in fact encourage me to find out there is a sprint button, something I was unaware of before. That should help a lot. Also, I was thinking about joining the companions, but it seemed out of the way so I wanted to put it off a bit. I also remembered hearing to avoid sidequesting too much until getting to high hrothgar, it just feels like I'm a little under leveled or under equipped for it at this point. If it's normal to have trouble with trolls without kiting though, then I guess I'll find a companion and try again.

[Weezer]

Wait wait wait. Effort? What effort? You're pretty much always rolling in gold, even more so if you find the iron mines, mine all the veins and then Transmute them all to gold and make jewelry and then use the money to buy even more ores and stuff from blacksmiths.

In fact, Smithing has to be one of the easiest skills to level up.

I think it's the "mine all the mines, transmute it all, make jewelry and sell them" grind that he is counting as too much effort, it's certainly what's stopping me from leveling up any of the crafting skills, except for enchantment for which the grind is "shoot everything with my soul trap bow before killing them and spend 2 minutes to enchant everything before I sell it".

[pffh]

I think it's the "mine all the mines, transmute it all, make jewelry and sell them" grind that he is counting as too much effort, it's certainly what's stopping me from leveling up any of the crafting skills, except for enchantment for which the grind is "shoot everything with my soul trap bow before killing them and spend 2 minutes to enchant everything before I sell it".

He could also level it up enough to craft dwarven stuff and fill up his leftover inventory with smeltable dwarven crap everytime he enters dwemer ruins. It's what I did (before I went nuts and decided I wanted to smelt everything in one huge dungeon. Took me 6 trips and ended up giving me few hundred ingots).

[Lord Ruby34]

But you mention having Lydia, where are you supposed to pick her up at? I never got a companion. I had one mercenary guy offer to follow me for 500g, but that was too pricey for me. I assume there are cheaper/free companions I can pick up at this point in the game?

You get Lydia automatically when you become Thane of Whiterun, she stands near the door, and you can just tell her to follow you when you leave. Free, and you've probably completed the quest already.

[Seerow]

You get Lydia automatically when you become Thane of Whiterun, she stands near the door, and you can just tell her to follow you when you leave. Free, and you've probably completed the quest already.

Yep, completed the quest, didn't even see her standing there. Ill have to run back and grab her. Thank god for fast travel.

[Flickerdart]

Wait wait wait. Effort? What effort? You're pretty much always rolling in gold, even more so if you find the iron mines, mine all the veins and then Transmute them all to gold and make jewelry and then use the money to buy even more ores and stuff from blacksmiths.

In fact, Smithing has to be one of the easiest skills to level up.

Easy? Sure. But instead of playing Mine Simulator 2012, I could be actually enjoying the game I paid for.

[Archpaladin Zousha]

Easy? Sure. But instead of playing Mine Simulator 2012, I could be actually enjoying the game I paid for.

This is why my brother isn't too keen on Skyrim, despite loving Morrowind:

"I've already GOT Minecraft, and I can do much more in that than I could ever do in Skyrim."

He feels Skyrim is too limited compared to Minecraft, is dissapointed that you can't tell both the Imperials and Stormcloaks to go hang themselves and take over Skyrim yourself, and that you can't actually play the musical instruments you may find.

[Moonshadow]

You're acting like you'd spend an 8 hour sitting hitting rocks and making daggers just to level up once. It honestly does not take that long.

Besides, you need a lot of money to buy all 5 houses and upgrade them. This goes a long way towards that.

[Flickerdart]

Besides, you need a lot of money to buy all 5 houses and upgrade them. This goes a long way towards that.

Do what now? This isn't the Sims, this is Elder Scrolls, a game about stealing everything in the world while setting bandits on fire with your mind.

Unrelated: What is it with dragons who just fly roaring overhead, and don't appear as enemies? I get excited, and then they just fly away.

[VanBuren]

Do what now? This isn't the Sims, this is Elder Scrolls, a game about stealing everything in the world while setting bandits on fire with your mind.

Unrelated: What is it with dragons who just fly roaring overhead, and don't appear as enemies? I get excited, and then they just fly away.

You know how you have dragons that shoot frost, and dragons that shoot fire?

These ones are like that, but they shoot disappointment.

[Moonshadow]

So wait. Every game that has the ability to buy houses should automatically be dumped in favor of the Sims, just like every game with mining should be dumped in favor of Minecraft, because OBVIOUSLY you can only have one game about one specific thing and any others should be ignored?

Honestly. Saying "HURR DURR Y SHOULD I MINE IN SKYRIM I HAS MINECRAFT" is just ridiculous.

Next thing you'll be telling me that you don't take a follower because if you wanted to do that, you'd play Baldur's Gate and have 5 of them.

[Archpaladin Zousha]

So wait. Every game that has the ability to buy houses should automatically be dumped in favor of the Sims, just like every game with mining should be dumped in favor of Minecraft, because OBVIOUSLY you can only have one game about one specific thing and any others should be ignored?

Honestly. Saying "HURR DURR Y SHOULD I MINE IN SKYRIM I HAS MINECRAFT" is just ridiculous.

Next thing you'll be telling me that you don't take a follower because if you wanted to do that, you'd play Baldur's Gate and have 5 of them.

No, no, no. My brother isn't concerned about the mining aspect. That isn't the connection he's drawing. It's that it's an open-world game with RPG elements. He feels Minecraft is a lot more flexible, since most of the game is player-driven. You decide what you want to do and the game allows you to do it. He feels Skyrim is too restricting, that he can't just wander around doing whatever he wants because there are quests and he can't leave a physical impact on the world and he can't. Play. Musical. Instruments.

It's not "HURR DURR Y SHOULD I MINE IN SKYRIM I HAS MINECRAFT." It's "Why should I play Skyrim AT ALL when Minecraft gives me more freedom."

[Flickerdart]

You know how you have dragons that shoot frost, and dragons that shoot fire?

These ones are like that, but they shoot disappointment.

The most powerful Thu'um of them all.

So wait. Every game that has the ability to buy houses should automatically be dumped in favor of the Sims, just like every game with mining should be dumped in favor of Minecraft, because OBVIOUSLY you can only have one game about one specific thing and any others should be ignored?

Honestly. Saying "HURR DURR Y SHOULD I MINE IN SKYRIM I HAS MINECRAFT" is just ridiculous.

Next thing you'll be telling me that you don't take a follower because if you wanted to do that, you'd play Baldur's Gate and have 5 of them.

Lydia is as much of a hindrance as she is help, but at least she doesn't want me to gather my party before venturing forth.

I don't own Minecraft, because I don't want to play a game about mining. I don't own the Sims, because I don't want to play a game about housekeeping. I own Skyrim because I want to play a game about running around a huge sandbox world ignoring quests and looting smoking fresh corpses. If you enjoy mining and housekeeping then I have nothing against that, but there are other ways to play the game than getting a day job as miner/real estate tycoon.

[Archpaladin Zousha]

Mining is only part of Minecraft. Like in Skyrim, you use what you've mined to make stuff. He's just disappointed that you can only make armor and weapons in Skyrim, and can't build your own castle or alter the landscape as you see fit.

[Flickerdart]

Eh. Building a castle is much more involved than making a couple cubes of stone and stacking them up, while it's relatively simple to smith stuff when you already have all the equipment for it laid out for you.

Now, blowing up a castle? Much simpler, and disappointing that you cannot do this.

[Avilan the Grey]

You know how you have dragons that shoot frost, and dragons that shoot fire?

Actually I suspect it / them to be Anduin on his way to resurrect another dead dragon. Aka it's for atmosphere.

Speaking of dragons; as a sneaker... Anyone but me think it looks bad when you go to a dragon's nest / peak and see a skeleton resting on the dragon wall, and when you pelt it with an arrow it suddenly is a living dragon taking off?

Also, I agree about the houses: Urzul is a wanderer and a "sniekthief"... the only times she spend in her house(s) is when I (un)load loot. The only reason she bought the house in Riften was to improve her standing with the community there.

I think she will move the family to Breezehome simply because although it's a small house, the Companion Leadership is the one part of her persona she officially wants to promote (besides, she is already lying to her wife about being a member of the thieves guild, so hey).

I don't own the Sims, because I don't want to play a game about housekeeping

Sims is not about housekeeping. It's about putting innocent people in a world ruled by Eldrich Abominations (you).

[Flickerdart]

Actually I suspect it / them to be Anduin on his way to resurrect another dead dragon. Aka it's for atmosphere.

I was riding west to Rorikstead when just off the side of the road, I saw Anduin resurrecting someone. So I blasted that someone full of firebolts and he died before even getting his skin, Anduin flew off and the weird column of energy didn't disappear. Was kind of disappointing.

[Avilan the Grey]

I was riding west to Rorikstead when just off the side of the road, I saw Anduin resurrecting someone. So I blasted that someone full of firebolts and he died before even getting his skin, Anduin flew off and the weird column of energy didn't disappear. Was kind of disappointing.

Speaking of disappointing:

I killed the same dragon twice this weekend. Nice bug, that.

To clarify: There is a tower where you for some reason can get a bounty for the same dragon from two different barkeeps (at least). What happened was that in Ivarstead I got the bounty to kill the dragon in the tower; I did so and then went to Riften and claimed my bounty. After that I talked to the barkeep in Riften, who gave me the exact same bounty.

The dragon was back, and I could kill it and loot it, but since it already had given me it's soul, it didn't dissolve into a skeleton the second time.

Oh well.

[Flickerdart]

No, don't you see? This is Anduin's terrible plan, to defeat the Dragonborn's power by raising dragons without their souls. None are safe!

[Hawkfrost000]

There should be three pillars in the room with animals on them (whale, snake, eagle iirc) you need to turn those so the correct animal for each pillar faces out and then pull the lever to open the gate. The clues to which animal is the correct one for each pillar is alwas found inside the room with the pillars.

Thanks!

DM

[Derthric]

Speaking of disappointing:

I killed the same dragon twice this weekend. Nice bug, that.

To clarify: There is a tower where you for some reason can get a bounty for the same dragon from two different barkeeps (at least). What happened was that in Ivarstead I got the bounty to kill the dragon in the tower; I did so and then went to Riften and claimed my bounty. After that I talked to the barkeep in Riften, who gave me the exact same bounty.

The dragon was back, and I could kill it and loot it, but since it already had given me it's soul, it didn't dissolve into a skeleton the second time.

Oh well.

I think Dragons might also have a spawn timer, I seem to recall a dragon wall in the marshy lands southeast of windhelm that I had to clear out a few times.

[Avilan the Grey]

I think Dragons might also have a spawn timer, I seem to recall a dragon wall in the marshy lands southeast of windhelm that I had to clear out a few times.

But if it is a proper respawn then the dragon should have burnt.

Besides, as far as I understand it, any area that actually get a "cleared" under it on the world map is a non-respawn area?

[Triaxx]

You're right that the Greybeards don't come out. But the troll will follow you inside.

As for mage companions there are a couple of them in the College of Winterhold. You'll need to at least complete one of the quests for the college so you can complete miniquests for them to get them as followers. But they're free.

[Dhavaer]

Besides, as far as I understand it, any area that actually get a "cleared" under it on the world map is a non-respawn area?

I think it just respawns moer slowly. I've revisited some of the areas around Whiterun several times on bounty quests and always found them fully stocked.

[Avilan the Grey]

I think it just respawns moer slowly. I've revisited some of the areas around Whiterun several times on bounty quests and always found them fully stocked.

Hmm... You know the bandit fort that is also a bridge? No respawn yet, after about 2 months game time, but the CHESTS are refilled occasionally.

[Destro_Yersul]

I'm not sure yet, but I may have accidentally gotten the entirety of Markarth mad at me. I'd go and find out, but I kind of fled the city and I'm a little afraid of going back. Plus, I already looted ALL of the ingot-able metal from their dwemer site. And made it into ingots. Over 250 of them.

I don't think there's a weapon merchant in that city who isn't understocked on gold, and overstocked on legendary Dwarven bows. Let's add 'destroying the economy' to my list of unintentional crimes there.

Also, I am greatly amused by the fact that the Scholar there, they guy who loves to study Dwemer stuff, would have basically watched me walk out with over 1,000 pounds of non-renewable, priceless Dwemer metal things stuffed into my backpack, as I whistled the whole way and pretended I wasn't plundering his dig site at all. It took a long time, that stuff is heavy. On the plus side, my home in Whiterun now has a genuine Dwarven Centurion power core as a decoration on one of its shelves.

[Mr.Bookworm]

Soooo. Some stuff I have found while playing Skyrim over this last week:

1) Found an awesome dagger. Moss Mother Cavern, almost directly west and a little north of the Lady Stone. There's a guy outside who's wounded and will ask you for a healing potion (of any kind), or you can just zap him with Healing Hands. He'll give you a quest to go into the cavern with him and kill three spriggans. Do it, and he'll give you Valdr's Lucky Dagger, which is a unenchanted steel dagger carrying a 25% crit chance. Smith it up to max levels, use Elemental Fury, murder everything.

2) Stumbled into Volsung. At level 9, as a two-hander without any ranged capabilities or having touched the crafting system. Jumped my way up a mountain where I obviously wasn't supposed to do that, found a word wall, and out popped a Dragon Priest, scaring the crap out of me. Took me eight tries (he took off 9/10 of my health with each Icy Spear) and almost thirty minutes, but I finally managed to kill him. The mask is cool, but I wish it was heavy armor.

3) Finished the Companion's quest line. Wuuthrad the Racist Axe is amazing, even against non-elves. Also glad to see that they threw in a nice shield at the end for sword and boarders. Felt kind of... lacking, though. Think it was probably the weakest of the quest lines I've play so far.

4) Found that Clear Skies is broken as hell. It acts almost exactly like FUS if you use it on someone (staggering them and dropping them to a knee), and it has a recharge time of 4 seconds. With an Amulet of Talos, I could almost stunlock people.

5) Decided that Skyrim has improved over Oblivion in literally every single possible way. I'll make another list.

[Starbuck_II]

I was riding west to Rorikstead when just off the side of the road, I saw Anduin resurrecting someone. So I blasted that someone full of firebolts and he died before even getting his skin, Anduin flew off and the weird column of energy didn't disappear. Was kind of disappointing.

Dude, you should let the evil villian finish his monologue (resurrecting someone), or the DM (world editer) will get even.

Man, picking a master lock at level 9 took 8 tries with 5 picks. A lot of reloads.