can you join Blackwood Company?

ive talked to all the people at there base in the south most city (Legwithn or something) but dont see any options.


I also just stole a sweet magical long sword from the invisible lady that walks around that place


stealing is too easy.

Im a Wood elf (custom class) currently in the dark brotherhood.

3/26/2006 12:25:14 AM

Does the 360 version tell you how many hours you've played the game?

3/26/2006 1:34:38 AM

^^I may have to go check that out. I finally found a better sword today (Elven longsword) but I haven't run into much enchanted stuff.

At least I'm getting better items overall now--when I hit level 9/10, people started dropping mithril and dwarven armor.

3/26/2006 4:33:30 AM

^^ yep, im around 20hrs. play a decent bit, but not crazy amounts.

3/26/2006 8:34:08 AM

on sale for $50 this week at compusa for the 360 version

http://compusa.shoplocal.com/compusa/default.aspx?action=browsepagedetail&storeid=2402124&rapid=254454&pagenumber=12&listingid=-2095379524&ref=%2fcompusa%2fdefault.aspx%3faction%3dbrowsepagelarge%26storeid%3d2402124%26rapid%3d254454%26pagenumber%3d12

3/26/2006 11:37:43 AM

which is more of a bottleneck:

1.79 GHz
or
Radeon 9600XT
or
1 Gig RAM

Despite the low processing speed, I am still guessing the video card. The game runs fairly smooth on all the low settings at 800x600.

3/26/2006 12:47:54 PM

I think the major bottle neck is video card. You can talk processor speed and RAM all you want, but at the end of the day its your video card that does the real work.

I got a
ATI Radeon 800xt PE
AMD 2500+ 1.8GHz barton core
1GB PC 2700 DDR RAM

Running it at 1280/1024 no AA with almost everything on high except I turned down the distances on all the thingies a little bit just not to kill my card. I think its running a little hot, but I am not sure what a hot temp is for a videocard.

It runs fairly smooth, but I doubt my framerates would be any good if I fought more than 2 things at a time. Thats why I snipe things with bows

[Edited on March 26, 2006 at 2:14 PM. Reason : sfdf]

3/26/2006 2:13:57 PM

yeah, I'm trying real hard to get a replacement card, budget is a little tight these days.

3/26/2006 2:43:47 PM

I hope that none of you guys are using the unlimited gold trick, you are just taking away the fun

3/26/2006 10:38:11 PM

well, somehow I have become a vampire... this sucks

3/26/2006 11:51:40 PM

You have a few options when you're infected with the disease...if you've contracted it but haven't become a vampire yet, you can go to a temple and they'll cure you. Once you become a vampire, you have to go on the quest to get rid of it.

However, you get some insane stat bonuses as a vampire if you don't feed for two or three days.

I've managed to not get infected yet, but my next quest is to go kill five vampires.

3/26/2006 11:54:09 PM

I have a wood elf assassin. I'm at the point in the "storyline" where I escorted the new emperor to the blades clouds place and now have to do something else... I've abandoned the storyline now and am just wandering around stealing shit. I'm thinking of killing some people and joining the dark brotherhood. After all, I am an assassin.

3/26/2006 11:59:59 PM

^thats basically me.

i made a custom class though that is pretty good at being an assassin.

What are the downsides of being a vampire? Ive done enough quests for the Dark Brotherhood and Vicente said he would make me a vampire if i wanted.

I also just got done doing that "Kill the 5 vampires" quest. It was a bitch for me in those close quarters as im used to picking people down with my bow before having the slice them to death.

3/27/2006 1:01:44 AM

Did anyone else have a hell of a time doing the "get the count" section of the first oblivion gate thing?

I seriously spent about 30 minutes going through that because those little demon things would totally rape me. I had to use exploits and hide behind barriers where they couldn't hit me but I could hit them just to survive.

3/27/2006 1:34:02 AM

what was so hard about killing them?

Run-sneak around and get the 3X bow hit, hit them a couple times more with bow/shoot some flares at them = dead

the little dinosaur guys are a bitch in close quarters though.


The enemy-humanoid-daedra are suprisingly easy to kill.

3/27/2006 1:46:49 AM

Only bad part of being a vampire is that if you don't feed for a couple days sunlight starts to hurt you... but I haven't gone more then 2 or 3 days without feeding so i dunno if it gets worse

3/27/2006 2:21:27 AM

I still suck at lock pickin. Ive been roaming around the imperial city for days just learning my way around. I guess i should go ahead and complete that first quest

3/27/2006 7:35:12 AM

is there a good place to train to get your fighting skills up? maybe get some gold and armor/weps worth a shit.

I just found all 4 books and have to go to that cave and fight the whole clan of people in red(name escapes me).

I feel the need to level up once or twice since I am only level 2.

3/27/2006 8:51:22 AM

In general, you can't get better armor/weapons without being higher level. (There are exceptions--some hidden ruins have predetermined stuff in them, but it's not easy to get.)

Also, when you level up, you meet stronger enemies, too.

Best way to train fighting skills is just to go fight, though.

Oh, and for your level...did you get the Blades equipment back at the temple where you took Martin? If you use Heavy Armor/Blade skills, that's some of the best stuff you can get until you hit level 10 or so.

[Edited on March 27, 2006 at 9:13 AM. Reason : ]

3/27/2006 9:09:43 AM

I wish I had got the choice on being a vampire or not. Somehow I just became one. I did kill one in a dungeon, so I guess during the scuffle she infected me somehow? It sucks because I didn't know for a while. couldn't figure out why I was losing a small bit of health (and thus couldn't fast travel) during the day. I got to the castle where the guy is supposed to cure me, but haven't had the chance to talk to him yet.

^^Damn man, how are you that far along and only a level 2? I just got finished with that mission and I'm a level 14. Those guys still almost kicked my ass. Maybe they were harder because I was a higher level, but still...

[Edited on March 27, 2006 at 9:39 AM. Reason : .]

3/27/2006 9:37:11 AM

It tells you during the fight whether you've contracted the disease (porphyric hemophilia).

I got infected by one, but then died; when I fought her again, I managed to not get infected (I think blocking her attacks kept me safe).

I'm not sure whether the enemies in the main quest change based on your level. I know the random encounters do... I just finished that quest at level 11 myself--I ran like hell once I got my stuff back, though.

3/27/2006 9:48:26 AM

All you had to do was drink a potion of CURE DISEASE and you wouldn't get vampirism at day 4.

3/27/2006 10:13:10 AM

You're talking about the shrine quest right? Get the 4 books, go to the shrine and pretend to be one of their initiates? I did that entire thing as a lvl 1... I just went around and hacked them all down then left.

3/27/2006 10:20:23 AM

yeah i thought vampirism was pretty awesome until the sun started to hurt me. i thought i was the mighty day walker. didnt know i could cure it though so im debating now whether to bother (since i usually do most stuff at night being a theif).

lvling up is also a helluva lot easier for some classes. would be hard for a theif if you didnt do a lot of theiving quests or whatnot. always thought fighters as the quick lvlers since they use pretty much every major while fighting.

3/27/2006 10:31:22 AM

yes, the shrine quest where you pretend to be them.

I am a mage/fighter hybrid. I have 0 spells worth a shit. How do I get some better spells. Most notibly a better healing spell and an attack spell. Using blade with light armor, should I switch to heavy armor? What are the advantages/disadvantages?

I can heal 8 points and summon a skeleton. Both are pretty worthless in the heat of battle.

AND CAN WE TURN THIS INTO A GAME DISCUSSION, instead of why won't the game work on my 3 year old pc...

3/27/2006 11:31:12 AM

Where are some good places to break into? I have noticed that the vendors dont really have any good things worth my time to steal that I can use. Are the vendors upstairs above the shop?

And has anyone else noticed that the stone you take from oblivion can be put onto an item your wearing to enchant it with effects. I am trying to find a bow better than steal (fine steal?) to enchant it with. Anyone know where there is a good bow to buy/steal?

3/27/2006 11:38:18 AM

^^Even if you learn better spells, you won't be able to cast them until you raise your level... Unless you get scrolls, and you probably won't find any good scrolls laying around at this point. Practice your magic. The more you use your weak-ass 8-point healing spell, the more your Restoration skill will go up.

As for armor, it depends entirely on your skills. I have a really high Heavy Armor skill and a really low Light Armor, so even quality light armor doesn't protect me for shit. I have to use the heavy stuff.

^And like I was saying...the good stuff doesn't show up until you're at higher levels. As you advance, you'll start to see better stuff dropped and better items in stores. As long as you're <10 or so, the stores don't carry much useful stuff.

And yeah...let's take the Imperial City shops as an example. The main level is the store. The basement is storage, and the upstairs room is the living area. I typically just loot the main floor, because I rarely find much of interest in the bedroom/basement.

In houses, though, the best stuff is usually in the bedrooms. Make sure your sneak skill is pretty good if you're busting into homes.

Best way I've found to make quick cash is by breaking into shops that carry a lot of potions. They're light, so you can carry plenty of them, and they'll sell for 50+ each. For raising levels and getting some better items, try going on quests. I've heard the Dark Brotherhood quests give you good items (particularly light armor), but I haven't done those so I can't verify that. Check with the Fighters Guild or Mages Guild and take on some missions.

Generally, you have get your level up to get more powerful. It's not like Morrowind where you could go into a shop at level 1 and steal a full set of glass armor and an enchanted sword.

[Edited on March 27, 2006 at 12:07 PM. Reason : ]

3/27/2006 11:59:13 AM

i just sell crap from teh stores, couple hundred gold for robbing the weapon shop aint bad each time.

3/27/2006 12:25:55 PM

I thought the stores wouldn't buy back stolen stuff. I wouldn't know cause I'm playing as a goodie-two shoes the first time through.

3/27/2006 12:31:34 PM

Someone on another board said there was a level up icon at the bottom of the screen. When you are enough experience, you still have to push it to level. Is this true for xbox? how do I get to it to make sure I am leveling up.

This game is f'ing complex.

[Edited on March 27, 2006 at 12:35 PM. Reason : .]

3/27/2006 12:34:50 PM

There is an icon with an up arrow at the bottom when you can level up. You will also get a message telling you you need to rest and meditate on what you have learned. To level up you must sleep in a bed. You have to sleep each time you level up so if you have multiple level-ups stored you will have to sleep multiple times in a row until the icon isn't there anymore.

3/27/2006 12:37:56 PM

So all I gotta do is sleep?

3/27/2006 12:39:46 PM

in a bed yes. resting won't level you up.

3/27/2006 12:40:11 PM

Where do ya'll sell back all this stuff at??? Will any store do it or just particular ones.

3/27/2006 12:53:00 PM

stolen stuff has to be sold to fences through the thieves guild. Go talk to the beggars in the Imperial city about the Grey Fox.

3/27/2006 12:54:19 PM

yeah. the more theives guild quests you do, the more available fences there are (and the more money they'll have).

it is a pain, but not hard.

3/27/2006 12:59:29 PM

^Yep.

You can either get a beggar's disposition up high enough (persuade/bribe) that they'll tell you about him, or you can get caught stealing, go to jail, and they'll send you a note.

It's worth joining the Thieves Guild just for the fences...the rewards for their quests have pretty much sucked so far, though.

3/27/2006 1:00:35 PM

I was in Bruma, I think, and I broke into a random house and found in his closet a set of hat and cloak that granted me like +10 to all these theif attributes (stealth, security, mercantilism, personality, etc) it was awesome. I wish I could remember the owners name so I could tell you guys. anyway, that's what I wear know when I'm doing all my sneaking.

3/27/2006 1:05:34 PM

^thats a good idea to not wear any armor when sneaking. And the fact that the clothes have bonuses is like

3/27/2006 1:28:11 PM

what is your max weight before you get encumbered? mine is 350. i difficulty set pretty high. it seems that you can change the diff setting during anytime in the game, if so i wonder what ways can one take advantage of this.

3/27/2006 1:32:36 PM

***********SPOILER*************

Thoromir quest(selling stolen goods from his store, Copius Coin),

Gotta sneak in a house and look for proof of where he might have gone. Guards keep coming, how do I get this done? Sneak?

3/27/2006 1:32:41 PM

3/27/2006 1:43:19 PM

Quote :

"Gotta sneak in a house and look for proof of where he might have gone. Guards keep coming, how do I get this done? Sneak?"

Be patient when you're breaking in...go into sneak mode, stand by the door, and watch the eye icon. When it goes dark, bust in. Stay in sneak mode while you're inside, make sure you're walking (not running) and keep watching that icon.

Guards shouldn't show up unless someone sees you (if the eye is dark, no one's watching you).

3/27/2006 1:55:45 PM

How closely does you character design look yourself? I mine is really damn close.

3/27/2006 2:08:08 PM

well my character is a dark elf, so not very closely.

3/27/2006 2:09:57 PM

I made my guy as red as possible. Cause all the faces are boring. to realistic IMHO

ibtl

3/27/2006 2:13:31 PM

i thought most of the characters looked pretty gay. the dark elf looked really bad until i tweaked the hell out of it. it's good that they are so customizable.

3/27/2006 2:14:25 PM

i am a nord, and i modeled him close as i could to myself.

3/27/2006 2:15:26 PM

I think I am gonna have to make a orc/nord barbarian bad ass to just rampage over shit cause I think I will get to bored with sneaking around

3/27/2006 2:47:20 PM

^sneaking is pretty fun, man. Once you figure out the secret of lockpicking (I can get 5 pick lockpicks on the first try) HINT: it's the sound the things make.

Anyway, once you figure it out you can pretty much go anywhere you please and take anything you please.

But yes, without heavy armor I am pretty much fucked in regular melee combat.

3/27/2006 2:50:23 PM