A Question of Class, s/Question/Rant/ Options

[Cardboard Box]

I'm trying to get into Skyrim, but the operative word is 'try', because Bethesda, no doubt advised by Sheogorath, decided to throw out half of the character creation system.

"Hi, I'm ___, the ____ ____. That means I'm intrinsically better with this, that, and the other from the get-go, because that was what I did before I got thrown in jail."

Fast-forward to Skyrim.

"Hi, I'm ____, the ____. I'm not especially skilled in anything, because I didn't exist before I was almost beheaded in Helgen. I'm just a one-dimensional pair of hands for some kid at a computer to drive around the countryside killing people and things."

You get my problem? (and no, the stones outside Riverwood are not enough.)

Classes provide limits and shape what you do, and when; Bethesda for some reason threw all that out the window. I'm literally struggling to connect with my character, since I have lost the mechanism by which she would have gained her drive. As it is, she's barely more than a Minecraft skin.

Does anyone know of - since Skyrim Nexus' search is © UselessCo - any good mods that bring classes back? Or failing that, any tips and tricks on developing a skill set and sticking to it?

[Grits]

You know, I think I’ll give Darnand a setAV makeover. He’s standing in the Hall of the Elements with zero experience points having not taken a single step out the door in his game. (Live Another Life: new member of the College.) I’ll keep the vanilla skill and attribute point totals, just assign them where they should be. Move 50 from Stamina to Magicka. Drop the base skill value from 15 to 5 for everything, put in the racial bonuses that he gets from being a Breton, and then add points back to skills according to his mage class. Oh, and give him the Apprentice sign/stone. Hmm.

[SubRosa]

You know, I think I’ll give Darnand a setAV makeover. He’s standing in the Hall of the Elements with zero experience points having not taken a single step out the door in his game. (Live Another Life: new member of the College.) I’ll keep the vanilla skill and attribute point totals, just assign them where they should be. Move 50 from Stamina to Magicka. Drop the base skill value from 15 to 5 for everything, put in the racial bonuses that he gets from being a Breton, and then add points back to skills according to his mage class. Oh, and give him the Apprentice sign/stone. Hmm.

5 seems a little low to me for starting skills. That is one thing I did not like about the Character Creation Overhaul mod, it put the minor skills too low, and majors too high. Of course it is all a matter of whatever you feel is right for how you play of course.

OTOH, the lower your initial skills are, that means the quicker you will level up at the start (it takes fewer skill uses to level up a skill when it is at a lower level), and the more perks you will get overall. If you start with a skill at 5, then you get 9 perks and level ups by the time you get to 100 (well 95 really). But if you start with a skill at 35, you only get 6 perks and level ups by the time you max it out. That is one thing I do not like about starting with skills too high. It eventually stunts your growth. The other thing being that it makes things too easy at the beginning of the game.

You have given me an idea though. Maybe start all skills at a base of 10, then add in the racial mods, and then add in a 10 point bonus to seven major skills. That way the most you will start with is going to be a 30, and probably only in one skill (I do not think any race gets a +10 bonus to more than one). Your other majors are going to be a 20 or a 25, which seems respectable. I also keep toying with starting with one perk as well.

This post has been edited by SubRosa: Nov 10 2013, 07:48 PM