Forums » Elder Scrolls

• Mottyskills

  

  • 248 posts
   

  June 9, 2015 9:21 AM EDT

  I've been thinking a lot about this question with my latest play through - a dedicated 2 handed Nord male, in the same vein as the wonderful build The Harbinger by Ambrorc. 

  What I mean is this: how do you navigate wanting to role play a character, maintaining the kind of 'rules' that character would follow while still enjoying the game and taking advantage of certain game mechanics/quest lines/etc?

  For example, I doubt my Harbinger would/should spend much time over an enchanting table. But - disenchanting items, especially early on is a super helpful and quick way to level up. Is this 'ok'? Or is it bending the rules to make my play through a little easier/quicker?

  Same goes for other magic - would the Harbinger be ok tooling around with some restoration magic? I don't know, but being able to heal myself on the fly without lugging a bunch of potions around yields a much more enjoyable play through IMO.

  Same for sneaking...certain aspects of the play through would be 'easier' if my heavily armored lug were a little quieter. The question remains: would my huge, Wuuthrad wielding, heavy armor wearing warrior sneak just because the game rewards it (in terms of either leveling or quest objective). Probably not. 

  And should I use some of these game play mechanics to level quicker? Or just enjoy the role play and not worry about getting another perk point to spend a little "sooner"? 

  Is suppose in the end, it's in the eye of the beholder...or player. How much do you care about bending character rules to level up or gain advantage, versus how much do you enjoy sticking to the role play of your character?

  Thoughts?

• Lore_Roamer

  

  • 9 posts
   

  June 9, 2015 11:03 AM EDT

  I usually have a hard time role-playing because I'm always tempted to level up quickly and get some helpful perks
• Idesto

  

  • 394 posts
   

  June 9, 2015 7:11 PM EDT

  Good question! I haven't really had to make hard choices like that yet, but I have compromised for instance in using the follower command exploit to get them to carry more than they should

• Tom

  

  • 624 posts
   

  June 9, 2015 8:22 PM EDT

  It can get tedious doing the daily, mundane acts of sleeping in a bed, eating, and drinking. It's kinda easier as a mage, I think, but it's probably the inventory space that's broken more often than not. Not the weight, but number of items.

• Mottyskills

  

  • 248 posts
   

  June 9, 2015 8:35 PM EDT

  I definitely find that the more I play, the less I carry. And avoiding some mundane is precisely why I probably bend more character rules than a strict role play would require.
• The Long-Chapper

  

  • 295 posts
   

  June 9, 2015 8:47 PM EDT

  Depends on the character. Sometimes I roleplay very strictly. Sometimes I level up quickly. Sometimes I also deliberately gimp my builds so that the gameplay is more challenging. 

• Librari the Wizard

  

  • 237 posts
   

  June 9, 2015 8:47 PM EDT

  In terms of gameplay, it's actually a really bad idea to level skills you aren't relying on. Every character gets Speech and Lockpicking, but there's absolutely no reason to, say, disenchant if you aren't going to enchant your own gear and/or pick up perks for weapon recharging.
  
  I always role-play first and worry about mechanics second. Without mods, optimizing your build is pretty important, especially on Expert and above. But it's always doable with the right preparation and caution.
  
  There are definitely some expectations the game as designed has, like expecting the player to be capable in close-range combat, but subverting these expectations is part of the fun of role-play.
• Librari the Wizard

  

  • 237 posts
   

  June 9, 2015 8:51 PM EDT

  You certainly stop needing every last bit of loot after a while! I usually play with reduced carry weight, and it's fun trying to figure out how to lug treasure around with all my camping gear.
• Mottyskills

  

  • 248 posts
   

  June 9, 2015 8:51 PM EDT

  I like that approach thanks for the reply.
• Mottyskills

  

  • 248 posts
   

  June 9, 2015 8:56 PM EDT

  Haha nice. Yeah after my first play through I figured out pretty quickly that I wouldn't need as much gold as I thought. I call this the "never do the no stone unturned quest" rule.
• Jonathan Davis

  

  • 113 posts
   

  June 10, 2015 12:38 AM EDT

  You know how I roleplay some of the glitches?

  I just pretend that they are powerful techniques that no normal mortal would be able to perform. 

• Blaze

  

  • 24 posts
   

  June 10, 2015 2:06 AM EDT

  Nice thinking. Very creative, yet so true. You are the Dragonborn of course.

• Librari the Wizard

  

  • 237 posts
   

  June 10, 2015 9:16 AM EDT

  I like gems so much, though! :P
• Librari the Wizard

  

  • 237 posts
   

  June 10, 2015 9:37 AM EDT

  For me they're lost to the ages secrets of ultimate arcane power!
• The Spook

  

  • 6 posts
   

  June 10, 2015 6:13 PM EDT

  When I play Skyrim Builds I tend to stick to the skills I am going to use, as for lockpicking and speech I will sometimes goto a few people I know can level my speech up by persuading them to tell me or for example let me into whiterun/riften just for an extra level or 2 early on. I feel like if I boost all the skills I am using to the level I need them for the right perks, I end up doing all of them. Then I am stuck with a character that doesn't need to be leveled anymore and is kinda pointless to play. I see Skyrim as a game where you slowly progress through the game by doing all sorts of questlines and side quests to finally achieve the end result which I see as the "Perk Spread" completed and from there I rather finish the build or carry on playing for extra levels and fun.

• Mottyskills

  

  • 248 posts
   

  June 10, 2015 8:48 PM EDT

  Good point! I remember getting to that sort of "unstoppable" phase of my first build and while it's fun for a bit, the novelty fades quickly. Trying to find that mix of building a strong character without leveling unnecessary is the fun sweet spot, IMO.
• Kagrenac

  

  • 45 posts
   

  June 10, 2015 9:10 PM EDT

  I always play on master so, like you said, it would be a very bad idea indeed to level up using a skill that is not important to my build. That said, while I do take a lot of care in planning my characters' skills, I do emphasize roleplay more because that is most important to me. However, I have found that usually gameplay will, at least loosely, fit into my roleplaying.