Xbox 360 The New Improved(?) Smithing

[Perkless in Skyrim]

I haven't updated to patch 1.5 yet so I'd like to hear from those who have experimented with Smithing now that it's been, for want of a better word, nerfed.

As I understand it, Smithing now levels based on the value of the item crafted? Does this remain constant or does multiple crafting of the same item decrease XP gains for each additional item?

What if I don't craft, but improve an item? Does the XP gain scale with the value of the item? Example: Will I gain more XP improving a dwarven sword than a steel sword?

Also, are you happy with the change?

Thanks in advance for your input.

 

[Straumgald]

I too am very interested in this new setup. I would think it just makes it a little less easy to grind, but still grindable.

 

[Adam Warlock]

I liked the way leveling up in Alchemy was based on value , not quantity.
Once I could make an expensive potion , it was so much easier than cranking out iron daggers .
What will be the effect on Speech xp if you end up making many less transactions because of the item`s higher value ?
It also seems that you will be Enchanting less items this way.

 

[Perkless in Skyrim]

I liked the way leveling up in Alchemy was based on value , not quantity.
Once I could make an expensive potion , it was so much easier than cranking out iron daggers .
What will be the effect on Speech xp if you end up making many less transactions because of the item`s higher value ?
It also seems that you will be Enchanting less items this way.

Every other skill seems to follow the idea that the higher the number involved, the greater the return on skill increase. So expensive potions, higher damage weapons/spells and higher damage inflicted from enemies equals faster skill increases. If Smithing now follows this, then instead of grinding iron daggers, people will need to grind ebony daggers for the best skill increase. I say "best" because Daedric equipment requires exotic components that may be hard to get in quantity.

I'm curious about Speech. I was under the impression it was based on the value of the item sold or bought, not on number of transactions though I know that selling a bundle of items counts as one transaction and it's more efficient for leveling Speech to sell items individually.

 

[redrkt]

well I do know that the speech glitch in Riften still works, as I just did it last night.

 

[Drewski]

I'd call it corrected not nerfed....

It quite simply makes any char that uses weapons and armour, much more fun to play (read challenging). Before, once I knew about the Iron Daggers exploit, most characters had around 60-70+ smithing before they even left Whiterun, which was just silly.

My brand new post 1.5 Nord Warrior is making his own kit, and selling Jewelry for money. Making Jewelry (i.e. items with Gems in them) is possibly the best way to improve smithing early on. He wore/wielded Steel up to around lvl 11, then made full Dwarven suits/weapons for himself and Lydia. Currently he's lvl 20 and has a 1/2 set of Orcish gear.

To the OP, the increase seems purely based on the value of the item. Therefore Iron Daggers get you nowhere. If not crafting Jewelry, then Steel Plate is possibly the best leveller, then Dwarven Plate and so on. Improving the item gives a very small levelling boost (again based on the new value of the item). In your example, making Dwarven Swords boost smithing a bit more quickly than Steel Swords.

For the first time in the game, I've actively had to search out Dwemer ruins, and purposely help an Orc to get access to the Orc strongholds. Again, it's the first time I've progressed up the different armour trees, using each set as it became available. Often before 1.5, I'd just go straight from rags to Ebony Plate, which was of course a ludicrous idea.

To me, it's the single best game change since Skyrim was released. I love it

Hope this is of some help.........

 

[Perkless in Skyrim]

I'd call it corrected not nerfed....

It quite simply makes any char that uses weapons and armour, much more fun to play (read challenging). Before, once I knew about the Iron Daggers exploit, most characters had around 60-70+ smithing before they even left Whiterun, which was just silly.

My brand new post 1.5 Nord Warrior is making his own kit, and selling Jewelry for money. Making Jewelry (i.e. items with Gems in them) is possibly the best way to improve smithing early on. He wore/wielded Steel up to around lvl 11, then made full Dwarven suits/weapons for himself and Lydia. Currently he's lvl 20 and has a 1/2 set of Orcish gear.

To the OP, the increase seems purely based on the value of the item. Therefore Iron Daggers get you nowhere. If not crafting Jewelry, then Steel Plate is possibly the best leveller, then Dwarven Plate and so on. Improving the item gives a very small levelling boost (again based on the new value of the item). In your example, making Dwarven Swords boost smithing a bit more quickly than Steel Swords.

For the first time in the game, I've actively had to search out Dwemer ruins, and purposely help an Orc to get access to the Orc strongholds. Again, it's the first time I've progressed up the different armour trees, using each set as it became available. Often before 1.5, I'd just go straight from rags to Ebony Plate, which was of course a ludicrous idea.

To me, it's the single best game change since Skyrim was released. I love it

Hope this is of some help.........

I have mixed feelings about the "correction." It's at least closer to how the other skills are handled which I guess is how it should have been at the outset. But a part of me liked being able to power level so as to claim my rightful place as God of Skyrim that much quicker.

Thanks very much for your post.

 

[tigersauce]

My plan is to completely avoid Smithing and just roll with whatever I find in stores or loot of bodies. All my previous characters have had 100 Smithing at one point or another from going through the iron dagger grind, so I figure I'll give it a rest and try something new.

 

[Serebro Moniker]

I don't like it to be honest; yes it was game-breaking but it as still fun.

 

[Grey Fox]

I must say, I like the new change to smithing. It was WAY too easy before to become a master smith. As it is now tied to the value of the item, I started to craft all sorts of jewelry and actively searched for mines and ore veins to support my new craft.
The only thing that kind of bugs me about crafting jewelry is that only gold/silver ingots are used. I for one would love to have an ebony/ruby ring or a dwarven/emerald necklace. Why not? Especially if you go up the left side of the smithing tree. If you do, all heavy armor related ingots are just paperweights or gold.

 

[Perkless in Skyrim]

I must say, I like the new change to smithing. It was WAY too easy before to become a master smith. As it is now tied to the value of the item, I started to craft all sorts of jewelry and actively searched for mines and ore veins to support my new craft.
The only thing that kind of bugs me about crafting jewelry is that only gold/silver ingots are used. I for one would love to have an ebony/ruby ring or a dwarven/emerald necklace. Why not? Especially if you go up the left side of the smithing tree. If you do, all heavy armor related ingots are just paperweights or gold.

You can still use them to improve equipment you find, but yeah, I'd love to have the option to make exotic jewelry. And my own silver swords, for that matter. SOMEBODY made them.

 

[Drewski]

I forgot to add a few points:-

I'm playing this New Nord pretty hardcore fashion, walking everywhere (absolutely no fast travel or carts), and also he gets no warrior stone benefits, so smithing is at an absolute base improvement lvl.

I actually ended up paying for quite a few of the smithing points, it realy is quite slow, and his Character Lvl was starting to outstrip his kit/weapons.

As much as I quite enjoy the `shopping` aspect of the game, I can see it starting to become a bit of a chore. It also becomes something of an exercise in logistics (until you get speech to 50, which I also paid a lot towards), because you have to work out who will buy what and try and remember how much cash they have at that moment, and thus work out what's best to smith/sell. I don't believe in giving kit away, or carrying excess kit around.

With the merchant perk, this becomes a lot simpler

 

[Straumgald]

Did they change enchanting as well? AFAIK it was the same as smithing, as in skills were set regardless of the power of enchant or soul gem used.

Why it wasn't like this from the start, I don't know.

 

[Notmy420]

My Smithing is @ 90 and I crafted 30 Iron Daggers earlier and didn't get to 91. I came close, but it didn't level up. Hope that helps alittle..

Sent from my SGH-T839 using Tapatalk

 

[Jersey Dagmar]

My plan is to completely avoid Smithing and just roll with whatever I find in stores or loot of bodies. All my previous characters have had 100 Smithing at one point or another from going through the iron dagger grind, so I figure I'll give it a rest and try something new.

I'm pretty much doing this. My latest character isn't even bothering with Smithing. The majority of my other characters have been Warriors or a mix of every class. Playing this new guy as strictly Thief/Assassin. So, pretty much light armors for him, or really just Dark Brotherhood and Thieve's Guild Armors. The Heavy Armors look weird on his skinny frame anyway.

I've used the grinding method before the patch a lot, so I got my use out of it. But, overall, I like the Armor that I can get through quests, that are rare and unique. Like the Ebony Mail armor, Nightingale armor, and Jester's Outfit.

For those who wanted it fixed, it's a good thing. I never really used the boosting exploit to get the various armors, but to increase my level so I could get more perk points. Overall, the boosting did make the game extremely easier, so I say in the long run, it's probably better that it has been corrected.

 

[skyrimaddict1323]

I don't like it to be honest; yes it was game-breaking but it as still fun.

It was in no way whatsoever game-breaking. It didn't cause any crashes or glitches, it just made things easier at low levels. Personally i think it sucks that they changed it, because as perkless said, the Dovahkiin is meant to be the most powerful being in skyrim save the divines and daedric princes, and you should be able to accomplish this quickly if that's what you wish. Also, for some roleplaying purposes, you might want to pretend you're already this powerful when you come to skyrim, or however you start your story. You should be able to accomplish this quickly and easily if you want to. People had a choice whether to powerlevel or not and the people that didn't want to but couldn't help themselves complained untill it was ruined for the people that do want to.

 

[Serebro Moniker]

It was in no way whatsoever game-breaking. It didn't cause any crashes or glitches, it just made things easier at low levels. Personally i think it sucks that they changed it, because as perkless said, the Dovahkiin is meant to be the most powerful being in skyrim save the divines and daedric princes, and you should be able to accomplish this quickly if that's what you wish. Also, for some roleplaying purposes, you might want to pretend you're already this powerful when you come to skyrim, or however you start your story. You should be able to accomplish this quickly and easily if you want to. People had a choice whether to powerlevel or not and the people that didn't want to but couldn't help themselves complained untill it was ruined for the people that do want to.

You misunderstand; gamebreaking doesn't mean it literally breaks the game. To game-break is to exploit the game in some way. So yes, it was gamebreaking.

 

[skyrimaddict1323]

You misunderstand; gamebreaking doesn't mean it literally breaks the game. To game-break is to exploit the game in some way. So yes, it was gamebreaking.

Game breaking, as i've always seen it used in referance to skyrim as well as other games, is using an exploit that causes a glitch so extreme that it renders your game un-playable. Powerleveling smithing wasn't even an exploit, it was powerleveling. Something that was included in the game mechanics that you can use if you choose to. Smithing was no easier to powerlevel than any other skill, except for maybe speech.

 

[Train]

Smithing finally feels right for once, and since it's based on value, expensive jewelry really boosts it. When you find some silver or gold and take it back to a forge, it feels more realistic than buying 50 iron ingots and leather strips to make daggers. Since it's slow to build up now, you spend more time wearing lower level armors rather than having Daedric or Glass before you should.

 

[Drewski]

Smithing finally feels right for once, and since it's based on value, expensive jewelry really boosts it. When you find some silver or gold and take it back to a forge, it feels more realistic than buying 50 iron ingots and leather strips to make daggers. Since it's slow to build up now, you spend more time wearing lower level armors rather than having Daedric or Glass before you should.

This is exactly my point. I honestly believe Bethesda originally intended smithing to function as it now does. Put it this way, they amount of times folks have said on various forums I use, that Mages are just too weak compared to any type of warrior. And I agree with them. This smithing rebalances the different types of chars, especially in the early and mid lvls.

Put it another way, if smithing had been like this from the start, everyone would have accepted it. I can sort of understand some folks wanting to play `god` type chars....but you'll get there anyway, and where's the fun if you don't have at least some struggle on the way?