Alteration Magic bug?

[StanIsTheLaw]

I understood the more you use magic, the more it is supposed to level up.

 

However, I am finding alteration is virtually at a standstill. I use Oakflesh regularily and it has never advanced alteration level ever. Transmute has a couple of times but I have to find so much iron ore it is not funny. The only way I have advanced my alteration is to buy it from Tolfdir.

 

Is it a bug or is there a better magic to advance alteration?

 

Thanks.

[xlcr]

@StanIsTheLaw, take a peek at the bottom half of this page, there are 4 or more clever exploits

explaining how to level up Alteration (pasted in the spoiler below for ya..):

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

 

fyi, casting Oakflesh probably isn't leveling you up much because it is only a novice level spell,

try using apprentice, adept, expert, and master alteration spells instead.

Transmute which is an adept spell has been reported as being slow for leveling alteration.

 

 

 

 

Free Skill Boosts

 

+1 Alteration reward from Dravynea the Stoneweaver for completing the quest Dravynea's Frost Salts.

+1 Alteration reward (as well as +1 to all other magic skills) from Pantea Ateia (Bards College) for completing the quest Pantea's Flute.

+5 to Alteration (and other Magic skills) by selecting "The Path of Magic" when reading the Oghma Infinium after completing the quest Discerning the Transmundane.

 

 

Gaining Skill XP

 

Casting higher level spells gives generally faster skill increases (Novice<Apprentice<Adept<Expert<Master).

Regenerate Magicka effects help reduce downtimes while training.

It is possible to reduce or even completely eliminate the magicka cost of spells by stacking Fortify Alteration enchanting effects, which is very helpful for Alteration training.

 

 

Casting with Enemies Nearby

 

Repeatedly casting high-duration Alteration spells (like Oak Flesh, Stone Flesh, Iron Flesh, or Ebony Flesh) while in a combat situation will quickly increase one's Alteration skill. An effective method for doing so very quickly:

 

Find a place with an enemy or enemies that only use melee attacks that also has a high platform or place otherwise out of reach of the enemies. Preferably, kill all but one of the enemies. Bleakwind Basin works very well for this purpose. Alternatively, on the northern shore, the Horkers can be made aggressive without them actually attacking, allowing one to move far enough away to use the Wait function but still close enough to train the skill. And then there's Roadside Ruins, where a Spriggan Matron will notice the player, but she cannot attack since she's trapped inside. Slaughterfish can also be exploited by getting their attention and then standing on a nearby shore to cast.

With both hands, continually cast the highest level Alteration armor spell. Casting the higher-level spells progresses the skill faster (Oak < Stone < Iron < Ebony), so it might be advisable to take a break part way through to go buy them once you've reached a level where the better spells are available. Often the enemy will run far enough away from your location to allow you to use the wait function. If so, wait an hour to get more Magicka to keep casting the spell, or just wait until it refills itself. The giants in Bleakwind Basin will almost assuredly run away, though, if you're standing on the rectangular pillar near their fire. Mammoths never run away from you when they can't reach you. Using this method, one can go from 0 Alteration to 100 Alteration in roughly 40 minutes, but it depends on total Magicka available, particular spells cast, and the location chosen.

Use a follower or permenant summon to continuously attack an NPC that cannot be killed. If your ally can keep the NPC on their knees, this leaves you free to repeatedly cast a spell.

 

 

Water Breathing Trick

 

After you learn Water Breathing, another way to quickly level Alteration is to stand in water and repeatedly cast Water Breathing. You don't actually have to be underwater, just standing in it (this only applies to pools of water you could actually dive into; so the small streams in Whiterun won't work, but the river outside will).

 

 

Casting Detect Life Spell in cities

 

Detect Life spell increases Alteration depending on amount of targets it is currently highlighting. Using it on your horse in the wilderness is almost useless. Using it in crowded location (market in Riften at daytime) gives incredible training speed. The more living objects in sight, the better.

 

Solitude - 8:00am until 5:00pm, from the west entrance, follow the road leading to the Blue Palace, just a little bit after you go under the bridge is a small "cliff side" on your left. If you stand there with 100% alteration magicka reduction, two hand cast Detect Life here for about 10-15 minutes should get you to 100 Alteration. The downstairs of the Blue Palace, once the player has completed the Stormcloaks questline, is also a good place to train, as there will be up to 15 people, mostly former Jarls, within the reach of your spell.

 

 

Casting Telekinesis

 

Holding any object in the air with Telekinesis without picking it up also gives a very high amount of experience. If the suspended object touches any NPC they will become hostile though, so be careful (holding a potion up in the air with Telekinesis while simultaneously casting Detect Life on Riften marketplace gets you from skill level 99 to 100 in a mere 14 seconds).

 

 

 

Edited June 25, 2012 by xlcr

[StanIsTheLaw]

Thanks :-0

[Rooker75]

Detect Life while standing near the market in either Riften or Whiterun will level Alteration up very quickly. Detect Dead after a huge fight (like a Civil War battle) will do it even faster.