The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Character Building Guide: Sneak

With so many customization option given by the game, creating your character is not going to be too hard. We have taken a good look at each of the races available and understood that each one of them comes with its own strengths and weaknesses: some are better suited at being warriors while others are better at magic or stealth.

In creating your character and getting him or her ready for battle and adventure you’ll probably need some good understanding on how skills work. Skills determine your proficiency at everything that can be done in the world of Skyrim. Unlike previous The Elder Scrolls game, skills aren’t determined by the character class: the specialization of skills comes with the Perks system.

All Skills improve depending on the action you do: improving some of them can be somewhat tedious. There are other ways to improve skills without having to repeat some actions over and over: you can improve them by getting your hand on a Skill Book or find some Trainers who will help you improve specific skills.

Trainers can only train you five times per level: to get them to train you again you will have to raise you level. This limit doesn’t apply to a single trainer but to all: if you have already trained three times with a single trainer, you can only train two more times with another trainer. To start training again you will have to level up.

Some followers will also be able to train you: this actually comes with an advantage since you can get your money back by going through their inventory.

There’s also another trick to earn some good XP if you have the horse Shadowmere: this horse cannot be damaged by magic, direct and ranged attacks. Keep attacking him to earn some easy XP.

• Sneak

The Sneaking skills are your first choice of skills if you’re creating a stealth build. Even if you’re not looking at becoming a neaking master you may still want to invest some time in this skill tree since sneaking is helpful in all circumstances and unaware enemies also get damaged more. Using the element of surprise in battle is always an advantage in Skyrim. Sneaking is also pretty easy to level up since all surprise attacks grant points towards leveling.

Perks

• Stealth

You are 20% harder to detect when sneaking.

• Muffled Movement
• LV 30

Noise from armor is reduced 50%.

• Light Foot
• LV 40

You won’t trigger pressure plates.

• Silent Roll
• LV 50

Sprinting while sneaking executes a silent forward roll.

• Silence
• LV 70

Walking and running does not affect detection.

• Shadow Warrior
• LV 100

Crouching stops combat for a moment and forces distant opponents to search for a target.

• Backstab
• LV 30

Sneak attacks with one-handed weapons now do six times damage.

• Deadly Aim
• LV 40

Sneak attacks with bows now do three times damage.

• Assassin’s Blade
• LV 50

Sneak attacks with daggers now do a total of fifteen times normal damage.