Smithing perks are a trap if you're not planning ahead

[WhiterunModder]

I just realized I've been wasting perk points on Smithing for like 200 hours across multiple playthroughs. You grab Steel Smithing early because you need gear, then you're stuck grinding through Dwarven and Orcish and whatever just to unlock the one or two tiers that actually matter (Dragon and Daedric Smithing). By the time you get there you're already level 40+ and those perks could've gone into something that actually scales with you.

The real trap is that Smithing feels mandatory but it's not. A decent enchanted iron dagger beats a mediocre steel one, and you can just... buy or loot what you need. I'm trying a playthrough right now where I'm completely skipping Smithing and just using whatever drops, and honestly it's way more fun because I'm not obsessing over ore routes and tempering every five minutes.

Anyone else skip Smithing entirely or is that just me being weird about it?

 

[DragonbornVet]

Nah, you're not wrong about the perk tax, but I'd push back a little on the conclusion. The real issue is that Smithing scales with your character level in a way most skills don't - you're right that grinding through Dwarven and Orcish sucks if you're only chasing the endgame stuff. But if you're willing to grab Steel Smithing early and then just... skip ahead to whatever tier matches your current gear needs, you avoid most of the pain. You don't need to unlock every single one.

Where Smithing actually becomes worth it is tempering, not crafting. A legendary-quality weapon is a massive damage jump, and tempering scales off your Smithing level. That's the real value proposition - not "I need to craft Daedric armor" but "I found this sick enchanted sword and now it hits like a truck." If you're looting and buying gear anyway, tempering those finds is way more efficient than the perk grind.

That said, on my current playthrough I'm doing exactly what you are - minimal Smithing investment, just grabbing what drops - and yeah, it's freeing. Forces you to actually engage with enchanting or magic instead of just relying on gear. The trap isn't Smithing itself, it's feeling like you have to max it out early. Grab one or two tiers when you hit them naturally and call it a day.