Forums » Elder Scrolls

Stuck in re-roll hell.

    • 6 posts
    April 23, 2016 10:34 PM EDT

    Hello guys.

    I am stuck in a continuous loop of re-rolling my character for a very complex yet intriguing build I have in mind. I know what the problem is - I'm not taking my time with the game. It only feels like a matter of days in-game right now and already I've almost done the Winterhold quest...

    So, I've deleted my save and pledged to restart. But I need help. How do I "take my time" with the game? I try to walk in the towns at all times, but I run in between (I like to keep the idea of running in between towns to stave off walking during the night). I listen to the dialogue without skipping and try take on side-quests relevant to where I am in-game (basically, not horde the quests and then do them all in one sitting).

    If anyone has any help with this, id much appreciate it :) My character build is as follows:

    Young Imperial, ventured to Skyrim to find the sword belonging to his Great Grandfather, a legendary General in the Imperial Army, and finally put him to rest. However, ambushed at the border by Imperial guards, this young lad lost his cash and most of his supplies to his captors, if it wasn't for those bloody Stormcloaks he wouldnt of been in that situation in the first place, but he has sworn vengeance on his captors who sentenced him to death.

    So, without cash, our young's turns to bounty hunting between settlements to make some early cash, and to provide a home for his wares. He is also quite interested in facilitating his desires of the magical powers, hence why he needs to save for tuition at the College of Winterhold, which at the moment, costs 5000 Septims for our young lad.

    For now this is the idea I have so far - build up a young lad's experience in the Skyrim wilderness to enrol into College and find his Great Grandfather's sword, with a great twist in the end.

    thanks for listening :)

    • 52 posts
    April 24, 2016 6:06 AM EDT

    Greetings Dean. I'm not sure if I understand. . . I think I do but one suggestion I do have is to plan the story of your character a little bit more precisely by pen and paper. Write or type down your own objectives and goals you're aiming at for the playthrough you're working on. If you feel that you're moving too fast and not taking your time, add a few more tasks you want to do or curious about doing. ( Try thinking about something you haven't done in Skyrim yet. This probably isn't your first playthrough but as awsome and big as this game is, there is always something new having to be tried. ) Another thing to try would be  to space your objectives out . An example of this would be spending one session journeying to where his Grandfathers sword is at to just look around, not go in just yet, and another session raising money for the collage. That's how I do it. I plan out all my playthroughs down to the letter. It can take all night but it'll pay off in the long run. I do like your story character. Keep me posted on what happens if you want as this is my favorite part to building the character.

    I hope these suggestions are clear enough to perhaps point you in the right direction. Good luck!  

    • 7 posts
    April 24, 2016 10:54 AM EDT

    Ah, the compulsive re-roll. I know it well! I can be loving everything I'm doing and thinking "this is great, this is IT!" and then some stray thought about another style/story/choice flits by my concious mind and starts to pick and itch at my enjoyment, slowly unravelling it to the point where I exit the game and start to make a new character. All the hours gone into the previous work? So easily forgotten.

    Your general premise is good, it has some key factors that can keep you focused, but perhaps you need some... checkpoints? To keep you going from place to place, to keep you surging on in your quest. You have a goal - make 5000 septims. But what does your character feel is necessary for his livlihood along the way?

    Is he content to stay at the local inn wherever he goes, or does he want the comforts of hearth and home?

    Does he strategically plan to buy a house in a central location so he can return home regularly, or is he a leaf in the wind?

    Is he the sociable type, who can't go long without contact from other humans? Is contact as simple as chatting with a local about something they're missing, setting him on a quest to help them and make some cash, or does he want to sit down and listen to the bard, chat with the tavern keeper - is he lonely? Or is he the kind who can curtly nod as he picks up some tasks, go out to enjoy his solitude, then return to as curtly accept his payment and move on?

    Further on is he lonely? - Does he feel the need for constant companionship, does he need a best buddy to watch his back, or a faithful hound to pet by a campfire, or does he ache for the love of a good man/woman (what's his preference?). If he wants love, does he want his soulmate with him at all times, taking on the dangers of the world with him, or does he want someone to come home to, someone who'll support him from afar by caring for their home, their family?

    When you say he's sworn vengeance on his captors - does he blame the other Imperials for the situation or the Stormcloaks? Does he get caught up in Skyrim's political strife and see the wisdom in Ulfric's desires - or the self-serving lust for power - and choose a side, temporarily putting his own quest on hold to hone his skills and attempt to bring peace to this fractured land?

    The completionist bug can bite me during my playthroughs but it can lead you to places that don't make sense - I might want to complete the Thieve's Guild chain, but would my plate wearing, Gods-fearing, evil-vanquishing paladin really hook up with a bunch of underground thugs and bandits? Is your character open of mind and innocent of heart, exploring every avenue available to him, or would some lines (cannibalism, thieves, Daedra) turn his stomach?

    From your profile I see you're playing on PC. Do you mod your game? You might be interested in a few mods that can alter the passage of time or whether or not gossip triggers events in your quest log (The Choice Is Yours, for instance, makes it so that gossip does not force entries and after hearing it, should you actually want to pick up the quest, you have to seek out whoever the gossip mentioned instead). If you're on the road a lot, maybe you'd benefit from mods like Frostfall (feeling the effects of the cold climate) and Campfire (you can set up camp to escape the aforementioned cold, or without Frostfall just set up camp because it's getting dark and it's time to sleep). There are various timescale mods that slow down the game time and increase the time it takes you to do things (no more five minute smithing - it takes a few game hours!).

    If you're doing the college I'd also recomment Immersive College of Winterhold as it fleshes out the college, makes it so you can learn magic by attending lectures and classes and practicing your casting, improves various aspects of characters and quests and so on.

    Of course there are the obvious suggestions of only travelling between settlements via carriage (more mods for more carriages) or only roaming around by horse, ignoring fast travel. Just don't restrict yourself to the point of frustration - what works for someone else might just irritate you and lead to more reroll.

    Good luck :)

  • April 24, 2016 3:50 PM EDT

    Hello mate, after reading Pontys method of character building, I use it now, set yourself some mini goals, and achieve them one at a time, think where you would like your character to be by say level 10 then 15, and so on take your time perfect everything you want your character to be or do, and good luck.