I recently got a decent enough PC, replacing my piece of shit laptop.

Always wanted to play Skyrim (probably gonna get Oblivion and Morrowind from steam as well) again, especially since now I can mod the game. Been reading up on the nexus forums and following Gopher on youtube to get some info on how to actually do it. Now that I have got the basics down, I have started my new playthrough. Since I beat the game with three different characters on XBOX360, I decided to take it easy with this character and do a bit of actual roleplaying. To add further to the immersion, I have decided not to use fast travel.

Some of the more gamechanging mods I'm using:
* SKSE (for obvious reasons)
* Skyrim Redone
* Frostfall
* Cloaks of Skyrim
* Winter is Coming
* Realistic Needs and diseases
* Deadly Dragons
* Moonlight Tales
* Hunterborn
* Immersive creatures
* Locational Damage
* Convenient Horses
* Amazing Follower Tweaks
* Harvest Overhaul
* Character Creation Overhaul
* Alternate Start - Live A New Life

For climate and lighting:
* Climates of Tamriel
* Realistic Lighting Overhaul
* Realvision Enb Performance
* Enboost


What I really like about the last two is that you can create a character pretty much as you did in Morrowind/Oblivion. You choose major and minor skills and have a permanent birthsign.

So meet Gokrah, a simple Khajit hunter


At a young age his parents had to flee their hometown of Riverhold for some dealings in the illegal Skooma trade. Through their contacts with the Thieves Guild they managed to evade the Cyrodill based skooma ring and reach Riften. Gokrah, therefor, hates bandits and criminal activity, especially those involved with the Skooma trade. He views Skooma like a traditional khajit, it is a holy substance used for religious rituals, not to be wasted away on the criminals of the other races. Unlike other Khajits, he dislikes the Thalmor and sides with the Empire.

He is a skilled hunter, tradesman and alchemist. An honest Khajit working for an honest day's pay. While scouting the forests around Helgen for prey, he is mistaken for a Stormcloak and brought in together with Ulfric. Then a dragon attacks...

This post was edited by hATemOnkEy on Feb 11 2014 04:16am

Gokrah is turning out to be a real asset to Whiterun.

Having rescue'd Hadvar from the Helgen cave, I followed him to Riverwood. He introduced me to Alvor, who let me stay the night and offered me free food. The next morning, saying farewell to Alvor and Hadvar, I took their advice and headed to Whiterun. But before I continued on my travels, I talked to the trader, who asked me to go collect him Golden Claw.

On my way to Whiterun, I met Alea of the Companions. She seemed to look down on my hunting skills, which struck a chord. I took her up on her challenge to meet these Companions.

(skip a couple of days)

- Cleared out Black Fallows Cave
- Killed the first Dragon
- Joined the Companions.
- Cleared out two bandit camps for the Jarl of Whiterun (one through rumors in the inn, the other from a request in a letter).
- Lydia as follower.

Starting to get ready to get my first real Companions quest under my belt, clearing out a vampire den. On the road I met a fellow Khajit. To my shock, he tries to sell me illegal Skooma. Having refused his offer, and threatened to notify the authorities, he attacks me. That was his last mistake...

Nice, I like this.

Passed through Rorikstead on the way to the vampire den. Decided to stop for the night at the inn, have a meal and a (or a couple) of drinks. Talked to some of the other patrons. One of them, Erik, confided in me that he wanted to be an adventurer, but his father wouldn't allow him. Taking pity on him, having just started adventuring myself, I decided to persuade his father to let his son follow his destiny.

The next morning, after a refreshing sleep and a hearty breakfast, I head off to the vampire den. Only a few moments after arrival, I discover these vampires are not that tough.



After checking the map, I find out that the innkeeper in Rorikstead has given me a bounty letter for a banditcamp very close by. I decide to clear that out as well, before heading back to Whiterun...

Clearing out the bandit camp turned out the be easy as well. These bandits are no match for my supreme hunting skills, they just use brute force. But they cannot hit what they cannot see.

The ride back to Whiterun was uneventful, although at the entrance of the city I am accosted by some Alik'r warrior looking for a Redguard woman. I don't pay it much mind, so I leave them in the street to go to the inn. Upon talking to one of the wenches in the inn, it appears that she is the woman they are looking for. When asked for clarification, she spins a highly unbelievable tale. I assume there is some truth to the Alik'r story, so I decide to turn her in to the authorities. On the street I also speak to Amren, who has lost his family's sword to some bandits.

After this I hit the road with Farkas and Lydia to retrieve the Wuuthraad fragment for the companions. This seeminly menial chore turned out to be a real adventure, full of surprises. The biggest of which is that the inner circle of the Companions are werewolves. This intrigues me. My beastblood and pride as a hunter forces me to acknowlegde these surpreme predators. I have heard tales told around the campfire about werelions, werewolf Khajit. Anyway, retrieving the Wuuthraad fragment was hindered somewhat by a pack of werewolf hunter, the so-called Silverhand. More annoying than fearsome, the three of us dispatched them with ease. We also make some time to find and punish the bandits that stole Amren's sword.

Khodlak was pleased by our work and rewarded with me full membership in the Companions. The celebration afterwards in the Battered Mare got a bit out of hand though...







Oh, and I forgot to mention... I've been trying out these newfangled wearable lanterns. They do require oil, but provide with adequate light in the dark Tamriel nights.

Upon joining the Companions, I figured I'd be given high risk, high reward missions, fitting my full membership. Aela greatly disappointed me in giving me another menial task, namely clearing out some vermin in some cave. Does she still stand by her insult when we first met?

A tad distraught I wander the streets of Whiterun, when I run into Amren. I'd forgotten I had retrieved his sword. He was so enthused when I gave it back to him, that he insisted showing me some sword and shield techniques. It was all very interesting, I'm sure, but it's just not my kind of thing. Lydia seemed bored as well.

After saying our goodbyes, I decide to head to Ivarstead and make the climb to the Greybeards. A couple of days ago, I heard a strange chanting, which according to the Jarl is a summons to the Greybeards. Roughly halfway there, we are hit by a sudden snowstorm.



Meaning, we are forced to take shelter in a Haemar's Cave. A desolate place filled with bloodsucking vampires. These turned out to be a bit more resourcefull than the last den we cleared, but clear it we did. While waiting out the snowstorm inside, I stumble upon a strange artifact in a chest. Upon inspecting it, a disembodied voice starts speaking (or should I say 'ordering') to me. Turns out it is Meridia and I have found her Beacon. She wishes me to take it to her shrine and cleanse her temple of some sort of menace. She can wait. I don't like these Daedra with their high and mighty airs.

When the snow seems to have dissipated, Lydia and I make our way to Ivarstead, where we find the nearest inn to get some warm soup and bread.

Ivarstead turns out the be a place with a lot of needy people. A man named Klimmek can't be bothered to deliver supplies to the Greybeards, the innkeepers complains about a haunted barrow on the edge of the village, a simpleton named Narfi has lost his sister. Seeing as the weather remains freezing, I decide to help these simple folk. The lost sister's remains were located under the bridge on the edge of the village, I can't imagine the search party put much effort in.. The haunted barrow turned out to be inhabited by a charlatan. Dispatching him was easy enough. The innkeeper rewarded me with a Sapphire Dragon Claw, much like the Golden one I helped the trader in Riverwood retrieve. This opened up a new part of the barrow, where I find some real undead and some sort of altar which bestows me with some ancient knowlegde. Much like what happened when I helped kill that dragon outside of Whiterun, but slightly different.

The next morning I head out to The Throat of the World, where the Greybeards reside. On the way I am assaulted first by a pack of Rieklings, and not much later by an actual dragon. Lydia really showed her worth in these engagements. Keeping the hordes of me, while I pepper them with arrows.



My prowess as a hunter is improving. I might even take to calling myself Dragonhunter instead of Dragonborn...

The Greybears themselves are a typical bunchs. They've got the old mystic cult thing down to a tee. I'm not sure I buy into their whole Way of the Voice thing, although they did teach me some ancient words of power.



They've also tasked me with finding a horn of some ancient warleader or other.

Seeing as there's not much else to do (expect delivering Klimmek's supplies), I head back down. But not before admiring the view.

It's been an eventful couple of days since I returned from the Greybeards. Upon arriving back in Ivarstead, I am assaulted by some lunatic fringe. They accuse me of being a false Dragonborn and wanted to 'tear my heart out'. These dumb bastards attacked me right in front of two guards. Lydia and I stood by and watch them get slaughtered by the firm hand of the law.



After informing myself of the latest rumors in the inn, Lydia and I set off to Autumn Watchtower where supposedly a dragon resides. Killing the accursed beast was difficult enough, were it not for the fact that we had to fight our way through the mountain passes, which for some inexplicable reason were filling with skeleton warriors and draman.



Taking stock of the spoils of battle, we are immediately attacked by a Forest Dragon. Having run out of poisons and hardhitting arrows, we have to make a run for it. Luckily we stumble on an Imperial outpost. The brave soldiers sprang to our aid, but sustained many losses of their own. My heart goes out to the numerous widows and orphans this battle has created.

Staying the night at the camp to reminisce our fallen comrades, I count myself lucky to still be alive.

In the morning, we ride out to Orphan Rock to retrieve Nettlebane for the priestess in Whiterun. It is guarded by some hags and witches, but they go down astonishingly quickly to some wellplaced iron arrows. After this, we continue on to Falkreath were the Jarl has invited us. Falkreath, it seems, has also had some banditproblems in recent times. The Jarl and the steward urge us to clear a mine and a camp of bandits, and promised high rewards. We also hear rumors of a hunting party having gone missing. Luckily all these locations can be strung together to make a roundabout route back to Whiterun.

On our way, we discover a sunken Fort named Ilinalta's Deep. We explore bit, finding some opposition from necromancers. Sadly, we cannot continue for it is getting late and we lack firewood to spend the night.

After sating our curiosity in the wilds, we return to Whiterun to collect our rewards for our various missions. Skjor and Alea are both very mysterious about something, they want me to meet them after midnight at the Underforge. They will not say more. Seeing as I have a few more hours of daylight, I decide to wander the markets and clean the pelts and skins I have collected in the wilds.

I saunter towards the Underforge somewhat before midnight. Skjor is about to tell me what this is all about when Whiterun is attacked by TWO dragons. These bastards are teaming up on us. Luckily with the help of the guards and Skjor we are finally able to take them out.






My heart still pouding from the battle, Skjor seems very relaxed when he shows me a secret passage leading to the Underforge. There Alea shows her werewolf form and I am invited in the Inner Circle of the Companions. After a moment's hesitation, I accept.
Upon drinking Alea's blood, the transformation happens instantly. I can barely keep my bloodthirst in check, as I rush past guards and citizens to the city gates to escape. It's all a bit of a daze after that. The next thing I remember is I'm standing naked in front of a fort of some description. Alea appears out of nowhere, near causing me to swallow my own tongue. She tells me that a group of werewolf hunters are inside that we need to dispatch.

Having contained my bloodlust up until now, I give in to the tempation. The slaughter was glorious.

Sleeping the rest of the night, I revel in the slaughter of my enemies. When I wake, I am still tired. It is the Beastblood that prevents me from getting a real rest.

Stepping outside, I come to the realization that Skyrim can be a desolate place.



We continue to head South East. Lydia has helped me in marking a route that will take us past the Eldergleam Sanctuary to the Rift.
Obtaining Eldergleam sap wasn't that hard, a couple of spriggans jumped out on us, but they were of no concequence.

Arriving in the Rift, we immedatiately head onwards to findin the Silverhand leader hidden away in some cave, like the coward he is. His death was not quick.

Along our travels, we have heard rumors of a group of men forming an army of vampire hunters called the Dawnguard. Seeing that we are close where they are rumored to be stationed, we decide to go an take a look.



Once there, we meet a man called Isran, apparantly the leader of this group. He readily accepts our inclusion in his ranks, and sends us out with a quest forthwith. Apparantly some vampires are searching for something in Dimhollow Crypt. Isran thinks this bodes no good, and wants us to find out what it is, and keep the vampires away from it.

This will have to wait a while, for we have meetings planned in Falkreath and Whiterun. On our winding travel back, we stumble upon Redwater Den. A place openly selling skooma, I find to my great dismay. Alas, these criminals greatly outnumber us, and we are ill supplied. We will have to come back to dispense justice to these fetchers, at a later date.



This post was edited by hATemOnkEy on Feb 19 2014 02:50am