Character Archetype: The Assassin

Race: Khajit

Gender: Female

Statistic Focus: Health 60% Magicka 20% Health 20%

Primary Skills (you’ll want to level these ASAP): Sneak, One-Handed

Secondary Skills: Alchemy, Pickpocket

Stone Ability: Shadow Stone

Essential Perks: Stealth (Sneak), Backstab (Sneak), Assassin’s Blade (Sneak), Armsman (One Handed), Dual Flurry (One Handed), Dual Savagery (One Handed)

Weapons: Dual One-Handed weapons, but move to daggers once you get the perk, Assassin’s Blade. Keep a bow for misdirecting and distracting foes, or for where sneaking isn’t an option.

Armor: Light Armor for protection without sacrificing speed or stealth

Follower: None. You probably don’t want one since it will make it really hard to sneak with a Viking following you. If you want someone to distract enemies, use a tank like Vorstag or Iona. Try to get them to wait at a distance, though.

Advice:

·       As a Khajit, you already have the One Handed and Sneak necessary to be a good assassin, plus bonuses to your Alchemy, Archery, and Lockpicking for backup.

·       For a good assassin, every situation is a puzzle to be solved (Bethesda’s words exactly), so when you see an enemy, drop into a crouch (if you don’t walk through dungeons in one already, like I do) and figure out how to sneak up on them for a one-hit KO backstab.

·       If you’re looking to get into an outdoors camp or ruin, it’s much better to wait until night, where you can sneak around. Pay attention to the weather, too. A stormy night will offer much better protection than a clear one.

·       In dungeons, keep an eye out for alternate paths, or ways to get behind your foes.

·       In crypts or catacombs, there will probably be times where you can walk right by sleeping (or alert) draugr without catching their notice (assuming your Sneak is high enough and the lighting is gloomy).  Don’t miss on the opportunity to shank some unsuspecting draugr, though. It levels up your skills, it ruins their day, and it makes you smile.

·       At earlier levels, your Sneak is gonna suck, but once your skill gets high enough, you will be able to walk across fully lit rooms without being seen, or to stab someone in the back and walk away before they realize they’ve been hit (seriously). Your sneak skill levels up when things are looking for you, but cant find you. So when that eye is partially open, or closing, your skill is leveling up, regardless of whether you’re hiding from enemies, animals, or Housecarls.

·       Assassins need fast, sneaky ways to kill their enemies before they can retaliate. Perks in One Handed and Sneak will increase your damage output to the point where you’ll be able to one-hit almost anything if you get the drop on it.

·       Alchemy is a great supporting skill to have: poisons increase your damage output and potions heal you and increase your defenses (like your Sneak or Light Armor skills). Ever think about adding potions/poisons to your favorites menu?

·       Pickpocket is worth looking into and totally easy to level up (my friend says you can master Pickpocket in an hour, but I’m not sure I believe him). At first, pickpocket is only good for stealing enchanted jewelry or gold, but once you’ve nearly mastered Pickpocket, you’ll be able to steal the weapons or armor off of foes before killing them (which is sweet).

·       Use your racial ability, Night Eye, when you want to see better. It’s unrestricted (unlike other racial abilities), free, and silent.

·       The Shadow Stone gives you the ability to turn invisible once per day. Even if you know the spell for invisibility, the Shadow Stone can still be useful.

Character Archetype: The Spellsword

Race: Dark Elf

Gender: Female

Statistic Focus: Health 40% Magicka 30% Stamina 30%

Primary Skills (you’ll want to level these ASAP): One-Handed, Destruction

Secondary Skills: Light Armor, Illusion

Stone Ability: Lover Stone

Essential Perks: Armsman (One Handed), Fighting Stance (One Handed), Destruction Rank Perks, Augmented Flames/Shock/Frost (Destruction), Impact (Destruction), Agile Defender (Light Armor)

Weapons: One-Handed weapon and spell

Armor: Light Armor for speed and mobility. Look for enchanted armor that increases your maximum Magicka or Magicka regeneration rate

Follower: if you want a tank to absorb damage, use a warrior like Lydia or Vorstag. If you want anged support, use Jenessa or Marcurio.

Advice:

·       As a Dark Elf, you might have to work a bit harder to level up your one-handed skill (which doesn’t come with a bonus), but the rest of your skills are a good fit.

·       A spellsword is all about flexibility, switching between weapons and spells as the situation demands, aggressively creating and exploiting enemy weakness.

·       Use Destruction spells to soften up foes from a distance before they can get close to you. Use Flames on weaker enemies to cut down their health, Frost on stronger opponents to slow them down, and Shock on mages, to drain their Magicka.

·       Your best defense is a good offense.

·       It’s pretty effective, at earlier levels, to use your Flame spell in one hand while you chop away with a One Handed weapon in the other.

·       As your enemies level up with you, it becomes really important to stagger them. Take the perks Fighting Stance (to power attack more frequently) and Impact (to let spells stagger enemies)

·       Your racial ability is Ancestor’s Wrath, a Flame Cloak spell. Use this at earlier levels to inflict damage at close combat, or if you’re surrounded by a few enemies. Watch out though, at higher levels, using the actual Flame Cloak spell is much more effective and powerful (unless you want to conserve Magicka)

·       Being a spellsword, you can focus your attention almost solely on offense, but it’s a good idea to learn a few Ward spells (for facing mages) or a Flesh spell (like Oakflesh, Stoneflesh) to increase your armor rating against some of the tougher bad guys. Neither one of these should slow you down too much

·       It’s really important that you balance your One Handed and Destruction skills. If one falls behind, it won’t be much use to you

·       Since spellswords don’t use blocking or shields, your armor is your only real defense. Don’t neglect Light Armor perks!

·       When you’re facing a large group of enemies, using Illusion spells like Fear or Frenzy are a huge help because that will disrupt the bad guys and give you the chance to fight one at a time.

·       Your skills as a spellsword are pretty wide-ranging, so the Lover Stone is a pretty good way to keep them pretty advanced. If you notice that one skill is falling behind, you should switch to a specific (Warrior, Mage, Thief) stone to balance your skills out again.

Note: When you meet the leader of the greybeards in the main questline, you can meditate with their leader to attain the perk Force Without Effort (Fus), which allows you to stagger 25% less and enemies to stagger 25% more.

Character Archetype: The Warrior

Race: Nord

Gender: Male

Statistic Focus: Health 60%, Stamina 40%

Primary Skills (you’ll want to level these ASAP): One-Handed, Block

Secondary Skills: Light Armor, Archery

Stone Ability: Warrior Stone

Essential Perks: Armsman (One-Handed), Fighting Stance (One-Handed), Power Bash (Block), Disarming Bash (Block) Elemental Protection (Block), Agile Defender (Light Armor)

Weapons: One-Handed weapons and a shield; Bow and arrows for backup

Armor: Light Armor; with your shield for defense. Heavy armor will weigh you down.

Follower: You’ll be the tank and take up all of your enemies’ attention in combat, so you want a ranged follower who will stay out of the way. Try Marcurio or Jenessa.

Advice:

·       As a Nord, you start out with bonuses in your most important skills plus a racial ability that helps you thrive in the thick of combat.

·       Before each fight, decide where you want to meet your enemies. Give yourself space to move, but don’t let them get behind/surround you, or your shield will be useless.

·       Let your enemies come to you. Use your bow early on, then use your favorites menu to switch back to your preferred weapon and shield.

·       Stay in the spotlight. If your enemies try to go after your follower, take them down so your follower can do his/her job.

·       If you’re getting overwhelmed, try to move back into a hallway or doorway. Sacrificing your space is worth keeping your enemies from flanking you. You’ll also have less things to fight at once.

·       If you become surrounded, use your racial ability, Battle Cry. It will scatter your foes and give you some time to reposition yourself or recover.

·       Master the rhythm of combat. Learn how to use your attack, power attack, and shield bash smoothly with the greatest effect.

·       One Handed perks like Armsman or Fighting Stance increase your damage output, but block perks like Power Bash, Disarming Bash, or Elemental Protection are all important for taking full advantage of your shield and armor.

·       The Warrior Stone helps you level up three out of four of your critical skills.

·       Even if you don’t use a single archery perk, it can be helpful for taking out snipers or luring out enemies.

·       If you can block effectively, you won’t take much damage. This works well with the light armor and gives you extra mobility and carry weight. If you’re struggling, don’t be afraid to switch to heavy armor, though.

Alteration Quests

 

Some quests improve your alteration spell:

-Bringing Frost salt to Dravynea the Stoneweaver, in Kynesgrove

-Reading the Oghma Infinium, Path of Magic in the quest Discerning the Transmundane

-Finding and returning Pantea’s flute will level up each Path of Magic skill (blue-colored skill tree) by one

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-Completing Urag gro-Shrub’s quest Shalidor’s Insights has a rare chance to increase any magic skill

Armor Enchantments

Enchantment	Helmet	Armor	Gloves	Boots	Shield	Necklace	Ring
Fortify Alchemy	X		X			X	X
Fortify Alteration	X	X				X	X
Fortify Alteration & Magicka Regen		X
Fortify Archery	X		X			X	X
Fortify Barter						X
Fortify Block			X		X	X	X
Fortify Carry Weight			X	X		X	X
Fortify Conjuration	X	X				X	X
Fortify Conjuration & Magicka Regen		X
Fortify Destruction	X	X				X	X
Fortify Destruction & Magicka Regen		X
Fortify Healing Rate		X				X	X
Fortify Health		X			X	X	X
Fortify Heavy Armor		X	X			X	X
Fortify Illusion	X	X				X	X
Fortify Illusion & Magicka Regen		X
Fortify Light Armor		X	X			X	X
Fortify Lockpicking	X		X			X	X
Fortify Magicka	X		X			X	X
Fortify Magicka Regen	X	X					X
Fortify One-Handed			X	X		X	X
Fortify Pickpocket			X	X		X	X
Fortify Restoration	X	X				X	X
Fortify Restoration & Magicka Regen		X
Fortify Smithing		X	X			X	X
Fortify Sneak			X	X		X	X
Fortify Stamina		X		X		X	X
Fortify Stamina Regen		X		X		X
Fortify Two-Handed			X	X		X	X
Fortify Unarmed			X				X
Muffle				X
Resist Disease		X			X	X	X
Resist Fire				X	X	X	X
Resist Frost				X	X	X	X
Resist Magic					X	X	X
Resist Poison		X			X	X	X
Resist Shock				X	X	X	X
Water Breathing Enchantments	X Helmet	Armor	Gloves	Boots	Shield	X Necklace	X Ring

The Skyrim Compass Icons

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• Crossed Tools-A mine
• Indian Teepee- A camp (with Forsworn or Bandits)
• A cave-A cave, can be huge or small
• Mammoth Skull-A giant’s camp, including mammoths and giants
• Upsidedown Trident-A dungeon, sometimes with a side quest, usually pretty big
• An oval-A standing stone or three
• A semi-circle with bands around it-This is a Nordic burial mound, usually with bandits or spriggans. It’s entirely outdoors
• Imperial symbol-An imperial camp
• Stormcloak symbol-A stormcloak camp
• Small, squarish doorway/window thing-A dwarven dungeon, pretty high-level (usually has falmer)
• Dragon head-An animal den until Main Quest: Dragon Rising, when it becomes a dragon lair
• Split mountain-A mountain pass, usually an animal den
• House with crooked roof-A single building or shack
• Castle tower-A fort, can be a full fort or a single, fortified tower
• Tower with windows-A lighthouse
• Boat-A sunken or floating ship, probably full of bandits
• Round house with even roof-a large house or estate, like the Thalmor Embassy
• Small Castle tower with flag-a ruined tower, can be inhabited by hagravens or bandits
• Big house with second floor-A small town, like Rorikstead or Ivarstead
• Horseshoe-A hold stable, with horses for sale
• Pointy anchor thing-Some sort of warehouse, like the East Empire Trading Company
• Wheel on a river-A small mill with (usually) non-hostiles.
• Trees on a hill-A lake, usually with spriggans
• Tall doorway with spiky top-a shrine to a daedric god.
• Pine tree-a grove, usually with hagravens
• Windmill-A farm, usually with a grain-grinding thing
• Building with a lumpy, round top-A tower, usually outdoors, usually full of bandits
• Upside-down Triangle-a mage’s hideout
• A dome with a single doorway-An orc stronghold
• A sickle with wheat-a farm

Standing Stones Locations (Plus Map)

*Don't be afraid to click-and-enlarge or whatever!*

Standing Stones:
Skill Improvement Stones:
                 (A) The Warrior Stone (Falkreath), Combat skills increase 20% faster
                  (A) The Mage Stone (Falkreath), Magic skills improve 20% faster
                  (A)The Thief Stone (Falkreath), Stealth skills increase 20% faster
                  (B) The Lover Stone (Reach) All skills improve 15% faster
Other Stones
                  (C) The Apprentice Stone (Hjaalmarch) Recover Magicka twice as fast, but twice as weak to magic damage
                  (D) The Atronach Stone (Eastmarch), 50+ Magicka, 50% absorb spells, -50% Magicka regen
                  (E) The Lady Stone (Falkreath), Regenerate health and stamina 25% faster
                  (F) The Lord Stone (Pale), 50+ damage resistance, 25% magic resistance
                  (G) The Ritual Stone (Whiterun), Raises all dead around you to fight for you
                  (H) The Serpent Stone (Winterhold), Paralyze the target for 5 seconds and do 25 points of damage
                  (I) The Shadow Stone (Rift), Invisibility for one minute
                  (J) The Steed Stone (Haafingar), +100 carry weight, no movement penalties from armor
                  (K) The Tower Stone (Winterhold), Allows you to pick the lock on anything, once per day

All of the Standing Stones

Skill Improvement Stones:

                  The Warrior Stone (Falkreath), Combat skills increase 20% faster

                  The Mage Stone (Falkreath), Magic skills improve 20% faster

                  The Thief Stone (Falkreath), Stealth skills increase 20% faster

                  The Lover Stone (Reach) All skills improve 15% faster

Other Stones

                  The Apprentice Stone (Hjaalmarch) Recover Magicka twice as fast, but twice as weak to magic damage

                  The Atronach Stone (Eastmarch), 50+ Magicka, 50% absorb spells, -50% Magicka regen

                  The Lady Stone (Falkreath), Regenerate health and stamina 25% faster

                  The Lord Stone (Pale), 50+ damage resistance, 25% magic resistance

                  The Ritual Stone (Whiterun), Raises all dead around you to fight for you

                  The Serpent Stone (Winterhold), Paralyze the target for 5 seconds and do 25 points of damage

                  The Shadow Stone (Rift), Invisibility for one minute

                  The Steed Stone (Haafingar), +100 carry weight, no movement penalties from armor

                  The Tower Stone (Winterhold), Allows you to pick the lock on anything, once per day

Alchemy Effects List

 

Combine two ingredients of the same type list to make a potion of that effect.

Ex: Jarrin Root+Mora Tapinella=Damage Health potion

Jarrin Root+Luna Moth Wing=Damage Magicka Potion

Jarrin Root+Mora Tapinella+Luna Moth Wing=Damage Health and Magicka Potion.

·       Cure Disease: Charred Skeever Hide, Hawk Feathers, Mudcrab Chitin, Vampire Dust

·       Damage Health: Crimson Nirnroot, Deathbell, Ectoplasm, Falmer Ear, Human Flesh, Human Heart, Imp Stool, Jarrin Root, Mora Tapinella, Nightshade, Nirnroot, Orange Dartwing, Red Mountain Flower, River Betty, Skeever Tail, Slaughterfish Egg, Slaughterfish Scales, Small Antlers, Troll Fat, Void Salts

·       Damage Magicka: Butterfly Wing, Chaurus Egg, Daedra Heart, Eye of Sabre Cat, Glow Dust, Hagraven Feathers, Hanging Moss, Human Heart, Jarrin Root, Luna Moth Wing, Namira's Rot, Nordic Barnacle

·       Damage Magicka Regen: Bear Claws, Blue Butterfly Wing, Blue Mountain Flower, Chicken’s Egg, Glow Dust, Hanging Moss, Human Heart, Jarrin Root, Nightshade, Spider Egg, Spriggan Sap

·       Damage Stamina: Blisterwort, Blue Butterfly Wing, Bone Meal, Butterfly Wing, Canis Root, Crimson Nirnroot, Cyrodilic Spadetail, Daedra Heart, Giant’s Toe, Jarrin Root, Nightshade, Nirnroot, Rock Warbler Egg, Small Antlers, Spider Egg

·       Damage Stamina Regen: Creep Cluster, Daedra Heart, Frost Mirriam, Giant’s Toe, Histcarp, Juniper Berries, Large Antlers, Silverside Perch, Skeever Tail, Wheat

·       Fear: Blue Dartwing, Cyrodilic Spadetail, Daedra Heart, Namira’s Rot, Powdered Mammoth Tusk

·       Fortify Alteration: Grass Pod, River Betty, Spriggan Sap

·       Fortify Barter: Butterfly Wing, Dragon’s Tongue, Hagraven Claw, Tundra Cotton

·       Fortify Block: Bleeding Crown, Briar Heart, Honeycomb, Pearl, Slaughterfish Scales, Tundra Cotton

·       Fortify Carry Weight: Creep Cluster, Giant’s Toe, Hawk Beak, River Betty, Scaly Pholiota, Wisp Wrappings

·       Fortify Conjuration: Blue Butterfly Wing, Blue Mountain Flower, Bone Meal, Frost Salts, Hagraven Feathers, Lavender

·       Fortify Destruction: Beehive Husk, Ectoplasm, Glow Dust, Glowing Mushroom, Nightshade, Wisp Wrappings

·       Fortify Enchanting: Blue Butterfly Wing, Hagraven Claw, Snowberries, Spriggan Sap

·       Fortify Health: Bear Claws, Blue Mountain Flower, Giant’s Toe, Glowing Mushroom, Hanging Moss, Wheat

·       Fortify Heavy Armor: Ice Wraith Teeth, Sabre Cat Tooth, Slaughterfish Scales, Thistle Branch, White Cap

·       Fortify Illusion: Dragon’s Tongue, Dwarven Oil, Mora Tapinella, Scaly Pholiota, Taproot

·       Fortify Light Armor: Beehive Husk, Hawk Feathers, Honeycomb, Luna Moth Wing, Skeever Tail

·       Fortify Lockpicking: Falmer Ear, Namira’s Rot, Pine Thrush Egg, Spider Egg

·       Fortify Magicka: Briar Heart, Ectoplasm, Histcarp, Jazbay Grapes, Red Mountain Flower, Tundra Cotton, Void Salts

·       Fortify Marksman: Canis Root, Elves Ear, Juniper Berries, Spider Egg

·       Fortify One-Handed: Bear Claws, Canis Root, Hanging Moss, Hawk Feathers, Rock Warbler Egg, Small Pearl

·       Fortify Pickpocket: Blue Dartwing, Nordic Barnacle, Orange Dartwing, Slaughterfish Egg

·       Fortify Restoration: Abecan Longfin, Cyrodilic Spadetail, Salt Pile, Small Antlers, Small Pearl

·       Fortify Smithing: Blisterwort, Glowing Mushroom, Sabre Cat Tooth, Spriggan Sap

·       Fortify Sneak: Abecan Longfin, Beehive Husk, Frost Mirriam, Hawk Feathers, Human Flesh, Powdered Mammoth Tusk, Purple Mountain Flower

·       Fortify Stamina: Charus Eggs, Garlic, Large Antlers, Lavender, Slaughterfish Egg, Torchbug Thorax

·       Fortify Two-Handed: Dragon’s Tongue, Fly Amanita, Troll Fat

·       Frenzy: Blisterwort, Falmer Ear, Fly Amanita, Hagraven Feathers, Human Heart, Troll Fat

·       Invisibility: Chaurus Eggs, Crimson Nirnroot, Ice Wraith Teeth, Luna Moth Wing, Nirnroot, Vampire Dust

·       Lingering Damage Health: Imp Stool, Mora Tapinella, Orange Dartwing, Slaughterfish Egg, Slaughterfish Scales

·       Lingering Damage Magicka: Hagraven Claw, Purple Mountain Flower, Swamp Fungal Pod, Torchbug Thorax, Wheat

·       Lingering Damage Stamina: Butterfuly Wing, Chicken’s Egg, Nightshade, Small Antlers

·       Paralysis: Briar Heart, Canis Root, Human Flesh, Imp Stool, Swamp Fungal Pod

·       Ravage Health: Cyrodilic Spadetail, Eye of the Sabre Cat, Giant Lichen, Jazbay Grapes, Silverside Perch, Skeever Tail

·       Ravage Magicka: Frost Mirriam, Grass Pod, Lavender, Orange Dartwing, Red Mountain Flower, White Cap

·       Ravage Stamina: Bee, Bone Meal, Deathbell, Honeycomb, Thistle Branch

·       Regenerate Health: Garlic, Juniper Berries, Luna Moth Wing, Namira’s Rot, Nordic Barnacle, Vampire Dust

·       Regenerate Magicka: Dwarven Oil, Fire Salts, Garlic, Jazbay Grapes, Moon Sugar, Salt Pile, Taproot

·       Regenerate Stamina: Bee, Fly Amanita, More Tapinella, Scaly Pholiota

·       Resist Fire: Bone Meal, Dragon’s Tongue, Elves Ear, Fire Salts, Fly Amanita, Mubcrab Chitin, Snowberries

·       Resist Frost: Frost Mirriam, Frost Salts, Hawk Beak, Moon Sugar, Purple Mountain Flower, Silverside Perch, Slaughterfish Scales, Small Pearl, Snowberries, Thistle Branch

·       Resist Magic: Bleeding Crown, Chicken’s Egg, Crimson Nirnroot, Hagraven Claw, Lavender, Nirnroot, Tundra Cotton, Void Salts, Wisp Wrappings

·       Resist Poison: Beehive Husk, Charred Skeever Hide, Falmer Ear, Garlic, Grass Pod, Mudcrab Chitin, Slaughterfish Egg, Thistle Branch, Troll Fat

·       Resist Shock: Blue Dartwing, Glow Dust, Glowing Mushroom, Hawk beak, Pearl, Pine Thrush Egg, Snowberries, Swamp Fungal Pod

·       Restore Health: Blisterwort, Blue Dartwing, Blue Mountain Flower, Butterfly Wing, Charred Skeever Hide, Daedra Heart, Eye of Sabre Cat, Imp Stool, Rock Warbler Egg, Swamp Fungal Pod, Wheat

·       Restore Magicka: Briar Heart, Creep Cluster, Dwarven Oil, Ectoplasm, Elves Ear, Fire Salts, Frost Salts, Giant Lichen, Grass Pod, Human Flesh, Moon Sugar, Mora Tapinella, Pearl, Red Mountain Flower, Taproot, Vampire Dust, White Cap

·       Restore Stamina: Bear Claws, Bee, Charred Skeever Hide, Eye of Sbre Cat, Hawk Beak, Histcarp, Honeycomb, Large Antlers, Mudcrab Chitin, Orange Dartwing, Pearl, Pine Thrush Egg, powdered Mammoth Tusk, Purple Mountain Flower, Sabre Cat Tooth, Silverside Perch, Small Pearl, Torchbug Thorax, Wisp Wrappings

·       Slow: Deathbell, Large Antlers, River Betty, Salt Pile

·       Waterbreathing: Chicken’s Egg, Histcarp, Nordic Barnacle

·       Weakness to Fire: Bleeding Crown, Frost Salts, Ice Wraith Teeth, Juniper Berries, Moon Sugar, Powdered Mammoth Tusk

·       Weakness to Frost: Abecan Longfin, Elves Ear, Fire Salts, Ice Wraith Teeth, White Cap

·       Weakness to Magic: Creep Cluster, Dwarven Oil, Jazbay Grapes, Rock Warbler Egg, Salt Pile, Scaly Pholiota, Taproot, Torchbug Thorax

·       Weakness to Poison: Abecan Longfin, Bleeding Crown,  Chaurus Eggs, Deathbell, Giant Lichen, Pine Thrush Egg, Sabre Cat Tooth, Small Antlers

·       Weakness to Shock: Bee, Giant Lichen, Hagraven Feathers, Void Salts