Specifications

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COMBAT
For even the most skilled adventurer, Skyrim is a dangerous place. Learning the basics of battle is essential to your survival.
WEAPONS
There are many types of weapons in Skyrim. The damage you
do depends on the weapon itself, your skill, and any pertinent
Perks. Heavier weapons take longer to swing, and may do less
damage over a period of time than a faster weapon. Heavier
weapons also slow you down while moving.
MELEE ATTACKS
There are two types of attacks: Basic Attacks and Power
Attacks. To perform a Basic Attack, tap
E
. To perform a
Power Attack, hold down
E
. Power Attacks take stamina
to perform, but do double damage. Power attacks also have a
chance of staggering your opponent, allowing you to perform
extra attacks. Heavier weapons drain more Stamina when
power attacking than light ones.
ARCHERY
To attack with a bow, hold
E
to draw the bowstring
to full extension, then release
E
to re the arrow. The
more you pull the string back, the more damage you will do.
You can cancel a shot by pressing
F
. You can select Perks
under the Archery Skill to gain abilities like zooming in or
slowing down time. These are done by holding
Q
while
you have an arrow drawn.
ONE-HANDED AND TWO-HANDED WEAPONS
Certain weapons like daggers, swords, maces, and war axes,
are one-handed weapons, and can be used with a shield or
dual wielded. Other weapons, like battleaxes, greatswords
and warhammers require two hands and cannot be used with
a shield or dual wielded. Two-handed weapons are slower, but
do more damage.
BLOCK
To block, hold
Q
. A shield or weapon block reduces the
damage you take. Shields are more effective at blocking than
weapons. To bash with your shield or weapon, hold
Q
and
tap
E
. Bashing uses Stamina and staggers an opponent,
giving you an opening to strike. You can also select a Perk to gain
Power Bash, a stronger bash attack which is performed by holding
E
while blocking.
ARMOR
Each piece of armor you wear adds to your overall protection,
or Armor Rating. The higher your Armor Rating, the better
you are protected. The amount of protection you receive from
armor depends on the armor itself, your skill with that armor’s
type, and any relevant Perks you’ve selected.
YIELDING
If you get into a ght with a friend or a guard, you can yield
by sheathing your weapon. If your opponent is willing, he will
stop the ght.
SNEAKING, PICKPOCKETING AND LOCKPICKING
SNEAKING
Toggle sneaking by pressing
P
. Sneaking allows you to pickpocket, as well as carry out stealthy and powerful attacks. Your stealth
state is displayed when you crouch:
When the sneaking reticle is fully open, you can be detected.
When the sneaking reticle is halfway open, you are in danger of
being detected.
When the sneaking reticle is fully closed, you are hidden.
When the eye opens fully and the reticle displays “DETECTED” it means that a nearby enemy has detected you and is about to attack.
When the eye closes fully and the reticle displays “HIDDEN” it means that all nearby enemies have lost track of you and will stop
searching.
How stealthy you are is affected by many factors:
• Your Sneak skill only helps you when you are crouching. The higher your Sneak skill, the easier it is to remain
undetected. Increase your Sneak skill by staging successful stealth attacks, or by sneaking within range of a target. There are a
number of Sneak perks that grant additional stealth bonuses.
• Line of sight: An enemy is much less likely to detect you if he can’t see you.
• Darkness: You are harder to see in darker areas.
• Movement: You are hardest to detect when motionless, and easiest to detect when running.
• Sound: Two-handed weapons make the most noise. One-handed weapons are quieter; daggers and bows are silent. Casting
spells makes both sound and light. Heavier armor makes more noise when moving.
Attacking an enemy that has not detected you grants a damage bonus, the amount of which depends on the weapon and can be
increased through perks.
Enemies will react to sounds in the environment, like arrow impacts or traps. You can sometimes use this to your advantage to lure an
enemy out of position.
PICKPOCKETING
You must be sneaking to pickpocket. Approach the target and activate them to bring up their inventory. Select an item to steal it, or an
item from you inventory to plant it on them. If you are successful, the item will be added to your inventory. If you are detected while
pickpocketing, a crime will be reported and you will not take the item.
The higher your Pickpocket skill, the lower the chance you’ll be caught. Just looking at a character’s inventory is not a crime.
“Block, counter, bash! Hit them when they’re down! They’ll show no mercy, so
why should you? Battle is about the offense, about catching your foe early and
never relenting.”
– Eduardo Corvus, Killing - Before You’re Killed