The OFFICIAL Anandtech Forums TeS V: Skyrim Thread

[Rhezuss]

I tried doing a battle mage, but what I found out was the damage bonus from double spells is too good to pass up. So now its just a mage in heavy armor, which frankly thanks to Skyrims munchkin system isnt that special.
Game really needs set character classes, or something closer to 3 or 4.

Couldn't agree more. The way you can do anything is awesomely nice and proportionally unrewarding and would need some kind of character development structure.

But it's a damn fun game to explore and just roam about.

 

[Face2Face]

You know their not done with Skyrim

http://www.idigitaltimes.com/articles/15364/20130213/next-skyrim-dlc-redguard-release-date-2013.htm

 

[Madia]

Can anyone recommend a replacement mod for starac's realistic overhaul mod? I currently have the following mods installed:

AOF Believable Hair
Better Dynamic Snow
Deadly Spell Impacts
Improved NPC Clothing
A Quality World Map with roads
Rich Merchants
Ruins Clutter Improved
Skyrim Flora Overhaul
SkyUI
Static Mesh Improvement Mod
WATER - Water And Terrain Enhancement

Are there any other graphics mods that you would recommend in addition to what I have? Are Skyrim HD - 2K Textures and Serious HD Retexture worth adding? I'm running Skyrim on an i5 750 with a 560ti so it can handle very good graphics but not extreme.

 

[hans030390]

Has anyone found and good ENG configurations/presets for the later ENB releases? It seems like most people are still using older versions.

Also, are there any good mods to make the combat more hardcore or realistic? I'm thinking of something like Dark Souls or Chivalry.

 

[Face2Face]

Just finished Dragonborn's main story. Was a pretty good DLC, little short, but good. Gonna take a break from Skryim for a little while. Crysis 3 and still gotta finish FC3.

I recommend people who have this DLC to fight Karstaag

http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Karstaag_(Dragonborn)

Pretty dang tough.

 

[Madia]

Just finished Dragonborn's main story. Was a pretty good DLC, little short, but good.

I just got back into skyrim and started a new character for Dragonborn. Around what level is a good time to do the DLC? Also, about how long is Dragonborn?

 

[Face2Face]

I just got back into skyrim and started a new character for Dragonborn. Around what level is a good time to do the DLC? Also, about how long is Dragonborn?

Dragonborn is a tough DLC compared to Dawnguard. I have heard of people with level 10 characters having a pretty tough time, but it should be doable. It took me about 6 hours to beat the main quest. Well maybe even a little bit less. There is still plenty to do on the island though.

 

[StinkyPinky]

I just got back into skyrim and started a new character for Dragonborn. Around what level is a good time to do the DLC? Also, about how long is Dragonborn?

It took me about 15 hours to do all the quests. It's a long DLC. I enjoyed it.

 

[Madia]

Thanks for the replies. I'll probably wait until around level 20 or so to begin Dragonborn. I thought you got the quest later in the game when you finished the horn of jurgen windcaller quest, not when you began it.

Also, can anyone recommend a good non mage follower for me? I'm playing with a stealth archer character and currently have Marcurio as a follower. Marcurio is awesome but sometimes he jumps the gun to attack foes and his spells often send enemie's corpes flying which can make them harder to loot. Plus I'm concerned about splash damage from his chain lightning especially hitting innocents.

 

[Face2Face]

Thanks for the replies. I'll probably wait until around level 20 or so to begin Dragonborn. I thought you got the quest later in the game when you finished the horn of jurgen windcaller quest, not when you began it.

Also, can anyone recommend a good non mage follower for me? I'm playing with a stealth archer character and currently have Marcurio as a follower. Marcurio is awesome but sometimes he jumps the gun to attack foes and his spells often send enemie's corpes flying which can make them harder to loot. Plus I'm concerned about splash damage from his chain lightning especially hitting innocents.

She is really good, but she talks too much.

http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Mjoll_the_Lioness

I like the Merc on the island of Solstheim, he looks pretty cool in the Chitin armor too. Just go over to island and he is in the bar, should be around 500 gold. He is a sword/Fire mage

 

[Madia]

Dragonborn was a HUGE let down for me. I mean HUGE. I'm sure you've all mostly read about how dragon riding is pathetic, but the story. Oh the story...wait...what story? It literally made no sense and nothing was explained. The end boss, so cheap...I mean...I dunno if I have ever played a game where the boss would cheat so bad and be so annoying.

I just finished the main quest and have done a good number of side quests (putting in around 13 hours) and I agree that the main storyline is rather weak. The level design and journey are both excellent but Miraak came off as a horrible antagonist. The whole plot and execution of what he was doing and why he was doing it was extremely lacking.

The rest of the DLC was a lot of fun though. I enjoyed helping the Dunmer with the various quests and exploring the island. Overall, I enjoyed it and liked it better than Dawnguard even though Dawnguard's story was much better executed.

 

[RampantAndroid]

Couldn't agree more. The way you can do anything is awesomely nice and proportionally unrewarding and would need some kind of character development structure.

But it's a damn fun game to explore and just roam about.

Honestly, the game fails to impress beyond roaming around. I just turned cheats on and go around killing crap. Like all of these games, I stay interested for 10 hours then realize "wow, this is boring" and quit. The lack of classes is exceptionally frustrating. What skill do I want? I guess that. Does this get me anything? No....welp, that tree is worthless.

Except I'm at 20 hours - only because of mods.

 

[shortylickens]

Honestly, the game fails to impress beyond roaming around. I just turned cheats on and go around killing crap. Like all of these games, I stay interested for 10 hours then realize "wow, this is boring" and quit. The lack of classes is exceptionally frustrating. What skill do I want? I guess that. Does this get me anything? No....welp, that tree is worthless.

Except I'm at 20 hours - only because of mods.

Sex is stupid because all I do is roll on the condom and masturbate while the girl eats ice cream in another room.

 

[RampantAndroid]

Sex is stupid because all I do is roll on the condom and masturbate while the girl eats ice cream in another room.

Well, your version of sex is pretty boring then.

I played Skyrim properly for a while. Like Oblivion, it's got great environments and all that, and graphics are great...but as a game it failed to draw me in - to make me play it for 10 straight hours. DAO does that. Oblivion, Skyrim and Fallout failed to do it. Those games just don't get me super invested.

 

[shortylickens]

Well, your version of sex is pretty boring then.

Well now you know EXACTLY what I think about your opinion of the Elder Scrolls.
Like sex, its supposed to be about a fulfilling experience. If you deliberately choose to ignore that its hard to feel sorry for you.
And its not WoW either.
WoW is to role-playing games as porn is to sex: Only a hint at the proper experience.

 

[Face2Face]

I love Skyrim, probably my favorite game of all time. But I can understand why some people don't like it. It's not for everyone.

 

[Face2Face]

Check it out. 1.9 Patch

http://www.pcgamer.com/2013/03/21/s...el=ref&ns_source=steam&ns_linkname=0&ns_fee=0

I just installed this patch and went legendary on all of the skills I had 100 on. It will make your badass character seem like a wimp again. They also added a Legendary difficulty. I am still playing on one below master and it's definitely tougher. Makes the game more enjoyable. I think they are doing this because we will see Redguard DLC soon and I have heard rumors they are going to be making many more DLC's for Skyrim as well.

 

[RampantAndroid]

Well now you know EXACTLY what I think about your opinion of the Elder Scrolls.
Like sex, its supposed to be about a fulfilling experience. If you deliberately choose to ignore that its hard to feel sorry for you.
And its not WoW either.
WoW is to role-playing games as porn is to sex: Only a hint at the proper experience.

Except I didn't ignore it. I tried it, and found it horribly....well, *yawn*. Pretty, but failed to engage me in any way. But I think I can say that of nearly ALL bethesda games I've tried. I think I finally learnt my lesson.

This is a opinion piece which I pretty much agree with: http://www.hbhud.com/2011/11/30/skyrim-its-actually-pretty-boring/

 

[mmntech]

Honestly, the game fails to impress beyond roaming around. I just turned cheats on and go around killing crap. Like all of these games, I stay interested for 10 hours then realize "wow, this is boring" and quit. The lack of classes is exceptionally frustrating. What skill do I want? I guess that. Does this get me anything? No....welp, that tree is worthless.

Except I'm at 20 hours - only because of mods.

Go play Oblivion then. "Oh dear, your sword broke. Guess you'll have to fight this daedra warrior with your bare fists. Oh, now you're dead. Try again?" ^_^

I didn't like Skyrim at first actually but it's one of those games that grows on you. Especially once you discoverer the Steam Workshop. Yeah, it's not a true RPG but I found a lot of the RPG elements in Oblivion to be rather frustrating.

 

[Madia]

Apparently there will be no further DLC for Skyrim:

http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/04/15/no-further-skyrim-dlc-planned-team-moving-on

I was expecting one more DLC with the rumored "Redguard" so this is a bit of a disappointment. Hopefully this means Fallout 4 will be coming sooner than later though.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Apparently there will be no further DLC for Skyrim:

http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/04/15/no-further-skyrim-dlc-planned-team-moving-on

I was expecting one more DLC with the rumored "Redguard" so this is a bit of a disappointment. Hopefully this means Fallout 4 will be coming sooner than later though.

This is good for me. I don't have to keep it installed and can recover a bit of SSD space.

 

[shortylickens]

Apparently there will be no further DLC for Skyrim:

http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/04/15/no-further-skyrim-dlc-planned-team-moving-on

I was expecting one more DLC with the rumored "Redguard" so this is a bit of a disappointment. Hopefully this means Fallout 4 will be coming sooner than later though.

No it means they are putting all their efforts into the MMO and we will never see another decent game again.

 

[Truthslayer]

No it means they are putting all their efforts into the MMO and we will never see another decent game again.

The MMO is being made by another team entirely separate from Bethesda. It likely means that they're deep into Fallout 4 at this point and need the extra manpower to release in a timely-ish fashion (hopefully with next-gen consoles specs only, if only that the PC version would benefit greatly for it). Anyone want to start a pool that they'll try for the holidays with the new consoles?

 

[Sleepingforest]

Honestly, the game fails to impress beyond roaming around. I just turned cheats on and go around killing crap. Like all of these games, I stay interested for 10 hours then realize "wow, this is boring" and quit. The lack of classes is exceptionally frustrating. What skill do I want? I guess that. Does this get me anything? No....welp, that tree is worthless.

Except I'm at 20 hours - only because of mods.

That's why PC players have mods to fix everything. There a mod for immersive Khajiit language, a mod to fix skill trees to be more useful, a mod for menus on PC, a mod to make combat more engaging, a mod to add a million and one spells, a mod to make every dragon combat a little unique and much more challenging, a mod to change the storyline to give more options, and so on ad nauseum. Skyrim on the PC can be almost anything you want at all.

Plus, the class thing? You have limited skill points due to a level cap, so it's up to you to pick a build. Want a sneaky thief? You can do that. Want a summoning mage made of squish? Also possible. Want an assassin? That's also possible. But it's up to you to plan it out and decide what skills are worthwhile rather than just randomly hitting "LOLZ THIS SKILL LOOKS TEH COOLZ" and then realizing "oh wait, it doesn't contribute to what I want at all."

You also have to make the narrative your own. Like older games with worse graphics, it's kind of up to you to make up some of the background. You're sent to go kill a guy--why, and who? What challenges do you face getting there? Is your target paranoid and sending hunters after you? Even fetch quests can be interesting in Skyrim if you let your creativity run free.

If you actually, you know, use your imagination, Skyrim is a great game. If you're just expecting to be spoon-fed narrative and direction, you're looking in the wrong place. It's like expecting Minecraft to give you a goal--Skyrim is a sandbox, not a true RPG. If that's not your thing, that's fine. But you shouldn't go in expecting it to give you everything.

 

[Face2Face]

Apparently there will be no further DLC for Skyrim:

http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/04/15/no-further-skyrim-dlc-planned-team-moving-on

I was expecting one more DLC with the rumored "Redguard" so this is a bit of a disappointment. Hopefully this means Fallout 4 will be coming sooner than later though.

I'm pissed....