The Big One is almost here...Skyrim. Who's going to join me on this epic adventure?

[Mordroc]

Thanks for the great tips Alex. I will definitely avoid taking a side for now. I'm still focused on exploring, slowly making treks to each city. I did take on the legend of Red Crow which had a good ending. On my hike to Markarth I discovered a surprise short quest into a Bastion that for some reason does not get marked on your map, and this location does not seem to show up on the online maps either. It's under a tall thin bridge like structure that juts out over the river, but does not cross it. North of Salvius Farm. The Bastion inner quest had a good ending and I scored a kick ass weapon.

And I recommend taking the hike to Markarth. When you enter the city something unexpected happens, leaving you with a potential mystery to solve. The city itself is really cool. It's built into the rocks and there's lots of stairs to various homes and businesses.

The game continues to be worth my time. I'm at Level 13. Haven't gone after any Dragon's yet...

I did read some good advice to sell any magic scrolls you find as they only can be used once.

[chooka1]

Guys,

Finally have a weekend to put some time into Skyrim. I was gone over break and no XBOX's were in sight.

I've put about 6 hours in. Went almost immediately to the College of Winterborn (?) mages guild and I'm completing the quests.
I'm a bit overwhelmed even with my Fallout experience (wow that sentence is nerdy).

Anyone share some newbie tips on the following issues I'm having trouble with:

1) Maximizing skills

2) maximizing gold

--both 1 and 2 seem in relatively short supply. Levelling very slow--

3) Do I just focus on destruction spells for now or should I spread out my spells into other areas? If so, what are some good ones?

4) Followers. Haven't found any yet.

5) Selling goods. Where is the best easiest in and out place to fast travel to sell weapons/ mage robes/ etc?

6) Save up for a house?

I did go and find the Lover's Stone to increase how quickly my skills increase.

I plan on going back to the main quest line after finishing these side quests.

Thanks!

Chad

P.S. I bought the hardcover Prima guide ($23 on Amazon) and it's wonderful. A great resource and beautifully put together.

[DaMenace]

Guys,

1) Maximizing skills

2) maximizing gold

--both 1 and 2 seem in relatively short supply. Levelling very slow--

Seems that the best way to break Skyrim and really get powerful is through being a thief.
Go get the Thief stone power on and get your stealing/lockpicking on. Seriously. There's a perk that increases your carry weight by 100 in the pickpocket skill tree.
Lockpicking lets you get lots of gold, and of course there's a perk there that increases gold found.

To further help you develop your thief skills, go find the Thief's guild in Riften..
You could also consider becoming a Vampire... being a vampire gives you a large boost to your sneaking ability.. and an eventual free invis power if you starve yourself of blood long enough..

Last but not least, consider getting married.. That's some free gold, and sleeping in the bed that your wife uses gives you Lover's Comfort.. which increases skill gain by 15%.. Lose Lover's Stone power though because for some reason you can't have rested/lover's comfort with that stone.. Get thief stone for real..

3) Do I just focus on destruction spells for now or should I spread out my spells into other areas? If so, what are some good ones?

4) Followers. Haven't found any yet.

As powerful as I found destruction magic early on, it really loses it's power up against stronger foes.. Even still there isn't really a bad spell out there.. but there are lots of free spell books in dungeons.. especially related to the Winter college quests...
Dual casting helps a lot, though I haven't gotten the dual cast perk for restoration..

You can find some followers in the bars/taverns.. but those cost money..

5) Selling goods. Where is the best easiest in and out place to fast travel to sell weapons/ mage robes/ etc?

6) Save up for a house?

5 - Again, find the thief's guild in Riften.. you definitely need those guys to sell stuff, ESPECIALLY STOLEN STUFF..
6 - Thief's guild quests will give you all the money you need.. along with anything you sell that's stolen.

I did go and find the Lover's Stone to increase how quickly my skills increase.

I plan on going back to the main quest line after finishing these side quests.

GET OFF LOVER'S STONE... it doesn't ever stack with the skill bonus gain with Rested/well rested/ or Lover's Comfort. Get married! Go to Riften! Riften has Amulet of Mara for marriage!

:-)

[Shane R. Monroe]

My chick bailed right after the marriage. I dont know where she is. I dont own a house yet.

Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk

[DaMenace]

I also forgot to add...
One way to make really easy money is to create potions, or poisons, and sell them... It's very easy to do.. you just need ingredients..
And Alchemy is, for whatever reason, a thief skill now in Skyrim.. it was a mage skill previously but whatever...

One more thing.. one reason why being a master thief can break the game is that there's a Sneak perk where daggers backstab for 15x their normal damage.. You mix that with one hand dual wielding perks and you can one shot giants...

My chick bailed right after the marriage. I dont know where she is. I dont own a house yet.

Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk

You asked to move in with her? Some of these ladies don't have a home for whatever reason! You'll have to find her, where ever she lives.. or walks around..
Check journal and misc., make it so that the quest to meet her shows up on your map..

[chooka1]

Thank you for all the great trips. I put a fair amount of time in this weekend as the wife was away on reserve duty.
I'm now a level 14 mage focussing on destruction. I completed the College of Winterborn quests and received the Arch Mage robes as a reward.
I've saved a couple of perks as my destruction and other skill levels are a little short for the perks I want.

I haven't done any of the alchemy, smithing, enchanting, etc.

Can anyone recommend a quest that rewards with a particularly good one handed weapon or armor/robes that work well with a mage?

I have a companion, J'Azor (?) who's been quite helpful in distracting the enemy while I attack from afar. I did learn the hard way that you can permanently kill followers; fortunately I had saved the game recently before I killed my follower with a fireball during a dragon fight.
I had a dog folloing for a while but he got more in the way than helped.

I enjoyed the dragon fights but they were a bit underwhelming compared to what I expected. I'm saving my dragon souls untill I figure out what shouts to focus on.

Great game. In many ways I like it more than Fallout. At first, I didn't like real time combat compared to VATS but I've become a believer in the real time approach. And the game is gorgeous compared to Fallout. Looking forward to Fallout 4.

Finally, am I right in that you can complete the main quest sand then go back and do the majority of other quests?

Thanks!

Chad

[Shane R. Monroe]

I am undressing the game slowly ... trying not to charge through the main quest.

BTW, if you haven't figured it out -- killing Dragons as a mage is easier, IMHO. Use the OPPOSITE of the dragon is using; if the dragon is blowing fire, attack with ice (Ice Spike works FANTASTIC and it is easier to control) - conversely, use Fireballs on the frost dragons.

To quote Yosemite Sam; "Dragons is so stupid".

I'm at a point in the game where the little bastards are everywhere. As an explorer, I find the dragon camps at the top of cliffs I'm not supposed to be scaling.

I have a great video (forgot to up it yesterday) of a dead dragon carcass, stuck inside part of a house (like a Philadelphia Experiment gone wrong) - twitching like nobody's business.

Seems dragon carcasses and building have a way of interfering with each other.

[chooka1]

Shane,

I take it you are playing as a mage. If so, any particular weapons, spells or apparel you've found particularly useful?

Did you complete all the College of Winterborn quests?

Any luck finding your missing wife.

Chad

[sloppyjoe34]

awesome game...
I'm a dark elf magesword...
just travelled to riften...

[Shane R. Monroe]

I have a couple of magic 1 handed weapons - one fire, one sparks. Not very powerful but I don't use them that much.

Fireball and Ice Spike are my go-to spells along with Fast Healing, Healing Hands, Clairvoyance (sometimes it's handy)

I've played out the College to the end - I think - nobody has anything for me to do.

Shane,

I take it you are playing as a mage. If so, any particular weapons, spells or apparel you've found particularly useful?

Did you complete all the College of Winterborn quests?

Any luck finding your missing wife.

Chad