This is the start of a series I like to call "The Basics".
The reason for that is because it makes it easier for those who simply want to know the entry-level, bare bones "rules" of roleplaying in Skyrim to spot that this particular post will likely be helpful to them. Pretty much everything else is up for grabs. This is a young blog so I've much more ground to cover. This post will detailing a few tried and true tips that greatly improve immersion and will take your roleplay to the next level.
* Don't run all the time. I know it will take twice as long to get there, but you wouldn't believe how much awesome scenery you miss gunning from location to location. This applies to fast travel too(especially). Of course, it isn't practical that you have to walk from Riften to Riverwood but at least take a few moments every now and then to check out the rolling plains, massive mountains and the sweet waterfalls. It will be worth it.
* Follow a realistic routine. If you think about it, traveling nonstop without eating, sleeping or anything for days and days is completely impractical and well out of the realm of roleplay(unless you wrote your character be a super-human). For example, try to give your character some rests if he/she is traveling long distances and for god sake feed them. My character is a hunter so I like to utilize my bow and arrow and kill any game that might wield some edibles(and bonus on the pelts!). Upon killing my meal, if there is no inns around, I like to make a "camp" on the side of the road or under an especially big tree.
* Stay in character. When starting out, it can get easy to make decisions or think the way you would, given you were Dragonborn and could kick ass. But if you have a character is completely different with a unique personality, history and opinions/beliefs then it is good to try and remain objective and make sure you are considering things from their point of view. Would this person kill a beggar peasant, or would they give them a few gold? Do they disapprove or magic? Or even something as detrimental as "good and evil".
* Be social. There are tons of folks in Skyrim and though their lines of dialogue are limited, you can certainly use your imagination to come up with some interesting interactions. Farkas is one of my favorite NPC characters in the game but those who've played the Companions story line know that he doesn't have much diverse dialogue, but I have no problem imagining what he would say in any given situation. This might be a bit farther than you're willing to go but roleplay is all about using you imagination to create a more immersive experience so little things like this are all to the good.
* Follow reasonable rules for your encumbrance level. In real life it's a bit ridiculous to think you could carry over 300 pounds of gear, including 7 swords and bows and 3 or more sets of armor and God knows how many potions, etc. Granted, you need a lot of that stuff but I bet you'd could live without it all. All you really need is one, no more than two, sets of armor and no more than 3 weapons(the set up I rock is a good set light armor and set of normal clothes, as well as 3 weapons max: a sword, my bow and a greatsword). As far as weapons so it is a good rule of thumb to have one of each category(one-handed, two-handed and a bow, which of each you choose is up to you).
* Use the difficulty setting appropriately. I used to have a tendency to stick with one difficulty setting for the entirety of the game, but it occurred to me that it could be adjusted at will to appropriate the actual difficulty of some of my fights. For instance, if you want a fight with a dragon or a bear to be more realistic and become a life or death struggle then simply up the difficulty and for battles you want to make easier(if you have a "god" character, for example) set it lower on novice so you can get those "one hit kills".
* Respond appropriately to your environment. Skyrim has a pretty diverse weather system. Granted, most of the province is snowy and blistering cold, there are areas that seen to be warmer all the same, so dress in response to the weather. If it's snowing like a mother then bundle up in something warm and if it gets warmer then strip some of those furs off. When traveling at a easy pace, check out the waterfalls and stand up on those cliffs and look over the horizon line of Skyrim. I hardly make a trip with pausing a few times to admire Bethesda's craftsmanship.
Thanks for this guide, it's pretty neat. Been looking for ways to prolong my Skyrim playing. Gonna make a new guy and try to give him some rules.
ReplyDeleteYou raise a fair point: there is a reason it (skyrim) is called a role playing game. To immerse one's self in the character is a significant part of what makes the game an enjoyable experience, and, having had some amount of experience in the field, it's very similar to acting. There are even similar methods: the interpretation, the speculated backstory, the identification of their desires and aversions...It's all quite similar. Unfortunately, it seems a large amount of players don't experiment with this feature and opt instead to ride through the tundra, slaughtering anything and everything they come into contact with. Don't get me wrong: I enjoy overwriting the latest autosave with a permanent save file, and then going on a random killing spree, but it is quite unfortunate that this (and a very limited number of others) is (are) the only features of the game that they are aware of. Thankfully, more curious and imaginative folk such as yourself are getting the word out about what the majority of us are really missing out on, and helping us to recognize the beauty, depth, and meaning behind what the uninformed glance would assume to be " a game about killing dragons and stuff"
ReplyDelete- keep up the good work.