Skyrim House Rules and You!

[Dkboy24]

So along with tons of mods.. I also like to implement my own house rules as well to make my game a more immersive. Some of my rules are as follows:

 

- I never fast travel. Ever.

- I do not work on a craft until I have spent at least one perk in it. So I will not craft items at a smithy unless I have one basic perk in smithing. The way I look at it is I am so unknowledgeable about the craft I would not even know the first thing. The way I see it is after I spend at least one perk, I've invested some time to get the know the basics of said craft. So for enchanting, I will not disenchant, or recharge weapons until I have at least one perk point in that craft.

- I never reload a save if an NPC dies

- On that same note, if I'm playing a thief character I will never reload a save after a failed pick pocket attempt

 

These are just a few, but I am curious to know what others play with!

 

So tell me what are YOUR special rules that you like to play with?

[StayFrosty05]

1/ I only Fast Travel for three events in the game...:

1/ Up and down between Ivarstead and High Hrothgar....because quite frankly I am sick of that journey.

2/ When that Worshipper joins you to go to Eldergleam...he dies too easily otherwise and I have added a number of tough opponents to my game.

3/ When forced to have Serana in tow...that NPC is a nightmare to deal with.

Other wise absolutely no Fast travel what so ever, that includes Carriages...never use Horses either.

 

2/ Never use Healing and Skill Buffer Potions, or Restoration Magic...takes the joy out of the challenge....too much of an 'I WIN!' button.

 

3/ Never join any Guilds or the College, I prefer playing the Lone Wolves.

 

4/ Always play for 'realism'....eating, sleeping, drinking, bathing, etc...

 

5/ Never carry over 220 weight, no matter how much Stamina I have...over that just seems too unrealistic.

 

6/ Never loot large or heavy items such as Weapons, Armor, etc....for the same reason as above, it's unrealistic.

 

7/ Never play a wanton Murderer, I just can't do it, it's no fun for me.

 

8/ Unless testing Mods, always play Perma Death.

 

I think that's essentially about it.

Edited August 26, 2013 by StayFrosty05

[Dkboy24]

That's awesome! You've given me some great ideas. I also play with as much realism as possible (Frostfall on hardcore, RN&D, etc).

 

I'm tempted to play with the no death rule. I just installed a the new Enemy AI overhaul "revenge of the enemies" and dropped my difficulty from master to expert. I really enjoy hard fights... but master difficulty just seems too unrealistic to me. When a shirtless bandit is able to one shot me with a dagger after having a dozen arrows pumped into his face... yeeeah.

 

I also really like your idea of never hauling anything large. I can't see how I am able to carry 5 different heavy armor breastplates on me at once.

 

Would love to hear what other house rules you all play with!

[TenderHooligan]

Well I roleplay so a lot of my 'rules' vary from character to character, so I'll just do my current character:

 

-use realism mods like Hunterborn, Frostfall, RND, RLFX and CoT for dark nights and dungeons so a torch or lantern is required. And with food spoilage on, my diet varies widely depending on whether I'm going on a week long expedition into the wild where I live off the land essentially, eating only what I kill or find, or whether I'm in a city where I'll usually gorge on sweets, luxuries and fancier home cooked meals. My character's also really thin and short so I've set her alcohol tolerance really low so even a weak mead gets her drunk. Still, after a successful hunting trip or quest she tends to overdo it a bit upon returning to an inn and spends the next day or two sleeping it off and taking it easy around town. And her favorite food is apples so I always buy up every one I find and let her eat herself sick.

-She was raised a devout follower of the 8 (yes, 8, not 9) Divines, but personally worships Mara, Dibella and Kinareth which means I don't pray at any of the other shrines and always leave some sort of offering when I take a blessing (usually a gem or rare ingredient).

-Relatedly, if I catch a disease, I always use a Cure Disease potion and not a shrine or spell.

-Max carry weight at 300. Still unrealistic, but I can't imagine setting it any lower with Hunterborn active. If I kill an elk or something, I want to be able to bring it back to my camp before skinning and butchering it after all. And no one said 1 weight unit in Skyrim=1 lb after all :) Also max out my horse's saddle bag at 600.

-Since she's a skinny girl, no using heavy armor or big weapons. Shortswords and Short Bows are the biggest weapons I'll let her use as I don't think she'd have the strength to string a Long Bow or wield a broadsword 1-handed.

-I don't use armor I loot from enemies. It doesn't make sense to me that a 5'2" Breton girl could wear the armor of a 7' Orc she killed. Everything she wears is either bought custom-fit or made by her personally.

-Only school of magic she has talent in is Restoration, so I used the uncapper and console to set everything else to level 5 and removed all non-Restoration spells via a mod. I keep spellbooks I pick up to teach my followers, but don't use them personally.

-For things like Smithing, Restoration, Alchemy and Enchanting I didn't let her use any of these things without first paying an expert to teach her how the basics.

-Absolutely no stealing or committing crimes. That's just not her style.

-Dead is Dead...for everyone except her. I never reload a save if I lose a follower or if someone is killed in a vampire/bandit/dragon attack and I usually visit the town's hall of the dead to pay my respects. But I just can't give up on my character due to my stupidity and lack of skill for getting her killed or because the Skyrim/SkyRe combat is so ridiculous (bandit in fur armor takes 15 Dwarven arrows to go down, but I'm dead from one hit of an Orcish Dagger. WUT?).

-no fast travel unless i get stuck in a crevice on a mountain or something and can't climb out of on my own. I have Scenic Carriages installed in case I ever want to take the cart, but have yet to do so so far.

-Only take Followers I trust. Which means no hiring mercenaries. Also use 2 followers at max, and usually just 1 (0 is almost unplayable early game with SkyRe, even with training up to level 10 before leaving Riverwood essentially.

-Prioritize questing based on how my character perceives the situation. So for instance, getting a letter to Winterhold because a village is in desperate need of alchemy supplies or rescuing a Whiterun citizen captured by bandits takes precedence over finding someone's lost sword or a book they want, even if the former takes me halfway across the province while the latter might be just a cave over.

 

Probably have others, but that's all I can think of at the moment.

[Dkboy24]

I love how in depth you play! I've always loved to play in character myself. I also use the spoil option in RN&D as well and Hunterborn is an amazing mod! I love the realism it adds!

 

I just started a new character using the Live Another Life mod as an Imperial Solider. I normally play the long range archer sniper type character (my last character was a Forsworn Huntress/ Summoner) so this will be a really big change for me.

[StayFrosty05]

Oh, I forgot....I never use Enchanted items either....My primary Dovahkin doesn't because he does not trust Magic and also has a real issue with the idea of capturing souls, his a wildling Werewolf (born Werewolf) and is a very brutal man in many respects, but will not take anothers freedom and frees every imprisoned humanoid and animal he comes across, he can't tolerate imprisonment.

 

I would like to be able to use a 'realistic' needs Mod but due to my RP I am unable to do so and so have to self govern in regards to food spoilage, the need to eat, drink, etc...My Dovah only eats raw predator meats and only drinks water being a Werewolf...he eats Humanoid, Sabre and Bear primarily...I would love it if someone came out with a Mod that supplied Dragon meat.... :happy: ...the ultimate predator in my Dovahs eyes....the greater the challenge in Battle another gives him, the greater the value in their flesh...it's a fellow predators respect thing for him.

 

Yep, I play on Expert...sometimes Master...but as mentioned Master is very unrealistic, its a broken and unbalanced system. I prefer to use Mods to create a more challenging game, keeping the damage much more equalized and a smarter AI for the opponents and specialized Mod introduced Boss opponents who make a great deal more sense as to why they would be much more difficult to over come.

[DiamondLlama]

I love this thread, it has really inspired me to roll a new ranger and slap on that hunter and realistic needs mods! Keep the inspiration coming!

There goes my lvl 25 Pally now...

 

Also: I'm on the fence regarding essential followers. For me, knowing a follower cannot die makes me a little...callous? If I have to worry that they aren't going to make it, I'll take better care of them won't I? Until a giant flying lizard lands on them to spite me, or a vampire chews their face off.

 

It's going to be a Ranger type character with that Huntng mod that has been mentioned, Realistic Needs and survival effects. Lets say It'll be on Adept or Expert. Am I just making my life too difficult with non-essential characters?

Edited August 28, 2013 by DiamondLlama

[Dkboy24]

@ StayFrosty05: You should check out the mod "Hunterborn." With that mod you can actually skin, harvest ingredients, and butcher the meat of any type of creature you slay (Including dragon meat!) In fact, dragon meat gives you a nice little buff as well and you butcher TONS of it per dragon. It's a pretty neat mod! You can even harvest stuff from the bones you get including really cool jewelry and you can fashion hunting knives, etc. That might go pretty well with your werewolf character. Also, you may be able to get RN&D to work for you. You can turn off food spoilage and when you feed as a werewolf it does count toward eating. Now you can get sick from eating raw meat, but you may be able to turn that off as well. With these realism mods they make them pretty versatile to meet your own needs.

 

@DiamondLlama: I always play with all my followers as non-essential. I won't lie... it REALLY sucks when you lose your favorite follower. But let me tell you... there is nothing more satisfying than going into a killing rampage to seek vengeance for your fallen comrade. In my current play through, I'm a total Imperial loyalist and using the Live Another Life mod, I started off as an Imperial soldier. After obtaining Lydia as my housecarl, in my back story she was an ex-Imperial soldier who has retired from the army to serve the Jarl. So since she is my Housecarl I fashioned her a set of Imperial armor and the two of us roll around the country side fighting the Stormcloaks together. Just last night, we were setting up an ambush for a Stormcloak patrol when things got out of hand. Shortly after we launched our assault, a Spriggon and her bear and sabrecat minions came lunging out of the forest at us. So not only were we engaged with three Stormcloak soldiers but we had to fight off the other group as well. It was a tough fight and through the chaos Lydia and I got separated. After the dust had settled, I saw her, dead in the grass. I literally carried her body all the way to Whiterun and placed her inside the Halls of the Dead myself. The next morning the Stormcloaks attacked the city and I have never fought with such vigor before. My character was uncontrollable, breaking rank and charging the front lines recklessly and full of rage. After the battle was finished and I served my punishment from the Legate, I continued on... alone. But each night I drink a bottle of Nord Mead at sunset in her honor. So although losing a companion sucks, it can add a totally new element to the game!

[StayFrosty05]

@Dkboy....Thank you for the heads up on Hunterborn.... :happy: ...sounds absolutely perfect.... :happy: ...I also use a Mod that adds Viscera to the body loot, here's crossing my fingers they work together. I would very much like to use a realistic needs Mod and am always trawling the Mods looking for exactly what I want....you have inspired me again, I will hail the Mod author and ask him a few questions about RN&D....what I would need is the Mod meats I use (Humanoid, Sabre, etc....) recognized as food stuffs and yep, turn off the raw meat making you sick...The spoilage doesn't worry me, my Dovah has a big appetite.... :tongue: ....made sense to me that he would considering what he is and all his activity, he munches through his food stores fast....good thing Bandits keep attacking him or he could go hungry.... :tongue:

 

I love what you do about your Followers...that's very immersed and brilliant RP.... :happy:

[kleinstaff]

never fast travel

never do a daedric quest unless i m playing a evil character

always try to kill serana atleast once

always start a character with a death is death playstyle , but usually gets so attached to him or her i continue playing