Why does my unarmored skill increase even when I am covered in light a

[night audit]

The topic says it all. I use light armor almost exclusivly, I think I am using the fists of rangulf too, but I have on boots of blinding speed, the saviors hide, glass greaves and paldruns, and glass helm. It seems that the unarmored skill goes up about twice as fast as my light armor skill.

 

Also, if I don't pick athletics as a major or minor skill, it goes up 4 levels by the time I walk to Balmora, but if I do pick athletics, I have to walk halfway across the darn island to get even one level increase, What gives?

[Malchik]

Your unarmoured skill should not increase if you are fully covered in armour. And unless you are not wearing a cuirass this increase is slow. Either you do not have a full set (not sure if a shield counts) or for some reason one of the pieces you are wearing is not recognised as being 'armour' in your game. Are you using any mods?

 

The speed with which skills increase is also dependent on the attributes you pick. I suspect you chose different attributes in your different games. Athletics is allied to strength as I recall.

[night audit]

No mods. I don't like useing shields. I usually pick strenght and endurance as my favored attributes no matter what type of character I am making. Although don't remember what I picked with the character that increased atheletics so quickly. I havent tried using a class yet, always custom class so far. You could be right about some of the artifact armor not being recognised as light armor.

[Abramul]

Athletics is governed by Speed.

http://tessource.net/content.php?page=Morrowind%20Skills

 

Skills which you have a higher level in increase more slowly. I'm not sure whether the higher starting level offsets the faster leveling of primary skills.

[Landsknecht]

I don't like useing shields.

 

Either you do not have a full set (not sure if a shield counts) or for some reason one of the pieces you are wearing is not recognised as being 'armour' in your game.

 

Shields do count as part of the armor rating, and if you do not have one equipped, it considers that part of your armor "unarmored." And if one part of you is unarmored, that part helps increase your unarmored skill. It does not matter if you shield is active or not, but if you have one equipped, that slot is considered armored.

 

Figured out the problem through personal experience with one of my first Morrowind characters; all heavy armor but no shield equipped, and when I equipped a shield, my unarmored skill stopped increasing.

 

Hope that solves the mystery.