double swords, shield n' sword etc.

[ghostrecon123]

i've only starting playing skyrim for a week even though i bought it on the first week of its release

 

so i still cant decide what, which or how to use

 

- should i go for shield and sword then switch the shield for healing magic when my health is low and switch it back to shield again when i fill up my health?

- should i go for double sword and switch the other sword back and forth with healing magic like above?

- or should i go for healing magic on one hand and sword on the other?

[Muschen]

play the combination that seems most fun for you at the moment. You can just start a new game later. There is plenty of stuff to do so you dont have to replay much. :-)

[Seviche]

As a boring response that's not going to add any help at all: do what makes you happy. Skiyim is flexible enough that anything works after a fashion. I use 2-h weapons and then switch to double-handed healing as I run away screaming until I'm healed again. I also prefer to sneak around and use a bow when I'm not introducing people to the business end of my giant hammer. Both work really well. I hear sword and board are awesome, but it doesn't thrill me in the least, so I don't use them.

 

Try all of your suggestions and see what you like best! :thumbsup:

[tazmo]

Sword and board is my preference, as far as skyrim goes, dual weild sucks. The blocking element whilst dual equipped is very poor. Using a shield, the block effect is high and the use of shield bash works really well inflicting quite a bit of damage on your enemy. Also dual wield requires different weapons to be used if you have favourites set up as it messes favourites settings up

[Cookicut]

I've played quite a bit with melee weapons, and with my preference, 2 handed weapons are best used together with magic because it's the easiest to switch with. Inputting the 2 handed weapon's hotkey while you have it equipped will switch you back to your previous setup rather than just removing, which is great for fast swapping with magic or dual weapons.

 

2 handed weapons don't fall short on blocking anymore than losing the use of 3 perks in the blocking tree and the benefit of the shield's defense rating itself. It can still shield bash and block normal blows just as effectively.

[TimF]

Both builds work, but the shield and sword is easier. I don't see why go for healing magic, when those potions are extremely effective even without alchemy. Edited December 24, 2011 by TimF

[TimF]

<delete this> Edited December 24, 2011 by TimF

[Lanceor]

I was thinking of writing a guide for warriors, but never got round to it. Anyway, here's a quick brain-dump on my thoughts. :)

 

The hardest part of playing a warrior is that middle stage from level 10 to level ~25-30 where your equipment and skill isn't yet great but the monsters are getting tougher. Once you get past that stage, all three melee types are almost invincible.

 

• 
   
  
• Sword and shield is probably the easiest to play. If you position yourself well and make use of block, you'll be able to tank most melee fights. Lack of damage does become a problem at that middle stage and against multiple opponents, you might find yourself swinging endlessly in a fight that doesn't seem to end.
  
• Two handed does some pretty hefty damage and you can kill things quite quickly in most cases. Getting surrounded is rather dangerous due to lack of passive defense and the relative ineffectiveness of blocking at those middle stages. You may have to retreat and heal fairly often.
  
• Dual wield is definitely hit and run. You'll kill things very, very quickly, but don't expect to be able to survive in a sustained fight until late-game when you've smithed some awesome armour and have the skill to use it.
   
  

For levelling, I'd avoid levelling sneaking / archery / magic until your melee skills hold their own - this is to ensure the highest combat survivablility for the level you're at. (In other words, you'll survive better if three skills were at 50 than if six or seven were at 35.)

 

For perks, don't waste them on the "specialisations": Bladesman, Bone Breaker, Hack and Slash, Deep Wounds, Limbsplitter and Skullcrusher. They do next to nothing. Critical Charge and Great Critical Charge sound good but they use ridiculous amounts of stamina and are very hard to hit with and they never seem to do as much damage as they should (needs testing).

 

For armour and block skills, no more than 1 point in Juggernaut, Agile Defender and Shield Wall - while they offer some benefit at low levels, you can replace them with a ring or necklace of armour/blocking. At high levels, you'll easily reach the armour/block cap regardless of perks. Likewise, Matching Set isn't needed except as a prerequisite.

 

Other skills such as Archery, Sneak, Alteration (for the Passive Magic Resistance bonus) and Restoration are all nice to have... but I wouldn't spend perks on them (or level them) until the core melee skills are up to scratch.

 

Finally, get your magic resistance up as soon as possible. You can obtain the Lord Stone and Temple of Mara blessings, that get you 40% without equipment or perks (65% if you're a Breton).

[aguliondew]

I normally use healing magic after combat, since you can easily use the potions in your inventory during combat. Sword and board vs Dual wield just depends on your play-style. For the OP do not worry about perks, since their is a lot of time to decide what skills your hero is primarily using. I started out trying to be a mage but ended up using my 2h more so than my magic. So if I put a lot of perks into my destruction early I would have wasted them.

 

Enemies scale with your skills, so if you have 18 skills a 40 you will see harder enemies than if you have 4 skill at 70 and the rest at 15. Endgame archers can hit as hard as a 2h user and that is before any of the multiplers(3x sneak, 2.5 crit), but 2h users can clear a room and kill their companion with sweep power attacks. Also, I would avoid putting any perks into heavy/light armor unless you are dieing a lot (meaning you are playing on masters).