Getting Started

Getting Started: The First Hour & Beyond

Welcome to Skyrim! This section will guide you through your first hour in the game, from character creation to your first major quests. By the end, you'll understand the core systems and have a clear path forward.

Character Creation (The Prisoner's Start)

When you begin a new game, you start as a prisoner on a cart heading to Helgen. After the opening cinematic, you'll enter character creation. This is your only chance to fully customize your character before entering the world.

Key choices:

Race: There are 10 races, each with unique starting stats, abilities, and powers. For a beginner, Nord (native to Skyrim, good for warriors) or Imperial (bonus to speech and gold) are easy picks. If you want magic, choose Breton (magic resistance) or High Elf (extra magicka). Racial bonuses matter early but become less significant later.
Gender: No gameplay impact beyond appearance and some NPC dialogue.
Appearance: You can adjust face, hair, scars, etc. Clicking "Random" is fine. You can change appearance later with the Face Sculptor in Riften (costs gold).
Name: Choose anything. It appears in menus and dialogue.

Once done, you'll experience the game's intro cutscene. After the dragon attack, you'll escape through Helgen Keep.

Controls Overview (All Platforms)

#### PC (Keyboard + Mouse)

Tip: You can rebind all keys in Settings > Controls.

#### Xbox (One/Series X|S)

Tip: You can open your favorites menu and assign items/shouts to D-pad directions for quick access.

#### PlayStation (PS4/PS5)

Tip: To sprint, press and hold the left stick while moving forward. To sneak, tap the right stick (or hold for momentary sneak).

#### Nintendo Switch

Tip: On Switch, motion controls can be turned off in Settings > Gameplay.

UI Overview

Health, Magicka, Stamina bars: Bottom-left of screen. Health is red; when it reaches 0 you die (unless you have a special ability). Magicka is blue; needed for spells. Stamina is green; used for power attacks, sprinting, and blocking.
Compass: Top center. Shows cardinal directions, quest markers (diamond icons), and discovered locations. White markers = discovered, black = undiscovered but known from map.
Quest Marker: A directional arrow on the compass points toward your active quest objective. You can change active quest in the Journal (J on PC, Journal from pause menu on console).
Crosshair: Center of screen, changes based on available actions (talk, activate, pick up, etc.).
Enemy Health Bar: When you target an enemy, a red bar appears at the top-center of the screen.
Active Effects: Bottom-right shows current buffs/debuffs (e.g., Fortify, Poison).
Pause Menu: Shows inventory (Items), magic (Spells, Shouts, Powers), map, journal, stats, and system options.
Map: Large world map with discovered locations, roads, and terrain. You can fast travel from the map to any discovered location (not all, must be outside and not in combat).

Essential UI tips:

Always check your Journal (J on PC) to see current quests and switch active quest.
Use Favorites (Q on PC, D-pad Up on console) to equip weapons, spells, and shouts quickly. You can assign up to 8 favorites to quick slots.
Save often! Press F5 on PC for quick save. On consoles, open pause menu and select Save.

Essential Early Objectives (First Hour Walkthrough)

1. Escape Helgen Keep: Follow Hadvar (if you chose to go with the Imperial soldier) or Ralof (Stormcloak rebel). Both paths lead to the same main quest eventually. Loot everything you find. At the exit, choose your race and name (you already did), then grab the armor and weapons from the dead bodies or chests. Follow your chosen NPC until you exit into a forest. They will split ways; you can follow either to Riverwood.
2. Reach Riverwood: Follow the road downhill. You'll see a river and a small town. If you went with Hadvar, talk to his uncle Alvor the blacksmith. With Ralof, talk to his sister Gerdur. Both will offer you supplies and a place to rest. Sleep in the bed to save (and get a well-rested XP bonus).
3. Visit Whiterun: From Riverwood, go north along the road. You'll see the massive city of Whiterun on a hill. Enter through the main gate (follow the path). Talk to the guards; they'll direct you to Dragonsreach to see the Jarl.
4. Meet the Jarl: Go up to Dragonsreach (the large palace). Speak to Jarl Balgruuf. He'll ask you to retrieve the Dragonstone from Bleak Falls Barrow (a dungeon near Riverwood). Accept the quest.
5. Clear Bleak Falls Barrow: Return to Riverwood, then head east to the barrow. It's a linear dungeon with draugr (undead enemies). At the end, you'll find the Dragonstone and a Word Wall for the shout "Unrelenting Force" (Fus Ro Dah). Learn the word.
6. Return to Whiterun: Give the Dragonstone to the Jarl. You'll be made Thane of Whiterun (a title). Soon after, a dragon attacks Whiterun's watchtower (Western Watchtower). Go there, help the guards fight the dragon. When it dies, you absorb its soul and unlock your first full shout. The Jarl will name you Dragonborn (the legendary dragon-slayer). This completes the first chapter of the main quest.

By this point (about 1–2 hours), you have your first shout, the ability to absorb dragon souls, and a housecarl (Lydia) assigned to you as a follower.

What to Do First (After the Main Quest Start)

Follow the main quest until you unlock the full Fus Ro Dah shout (3 words). The quest will lead you to the Greybeards at High Hrothgar. This teaches you more shouts and gives you access to fast travel to High Hrothgar (useful later).
Visit the Standing Stone near Riverwood. You'll pass it on the road. Choose a stone: Warrior (combat bonus), Mage (spell bonus), or Thief (stealth bonus). You can change later at the Guardian Stones, but only one active at a time.
Join a faction (optional): Companions in Whiterun (warriors), College of Winterhold (mages), Thieves Guild in Riften, Dark Brotherhood via a quest chain starting in Windhelm. Factions provide gear, quests, and safehouses.
Clear nearby dungeons for loot and XP. Early-game good choices: Embershard Mine (south of Riverwood), Halted Stream Camp (northwest of Whiterun) – has the Transmute spell book (turns iron ore to silver and silver to gold, great for making money).
Collect alchemy ingredients (flowers, mushrooms, etc.). Berries (blue mountain flower, wheat) and mushrooms (blisterwort, glowing mushroom) can be combined for healing potions.
Spend gold wisely – save for a house (first one is in Whiterun for 5,000 gold after becoming Thane). Don't buy expensive weapons – you'll find better as loot.

What to Avoid (Beginner Pitfalls)

Don't kill chickens. Seriously. In towns like Riverwood, killing a chicken makes everyone hostile and you'll get killed or fined heavily.
Don't fight giants at low level (below level 15). They can one-hit kill you with their club. Stay away from giant camps.
Don't attack shopkeepers or guards unless you want a bounty. Bounties can be paid (expensive) or you can go to jail (lose stolen items).
Don't sell unique quest items (e.g., Dragonstone, special weapons). They may be needed later or cannot be gotten back.
Don't over-encumber yourself. Your carry weight limit is based on Stamina. When overencumbered, you can't run, sprint, or fast travel. Drop items (preferably stackable ones like common weapons) or invest in Stamina perks.
Don't ignore your health potions – they are life-savers. Buy them from alchemists or make them.
Don't shoot arrows into NPCs by accident (especially followers). It may ruin your relationship or cause hostility.

Early Resource Priorities

Gold: Loot everything sellable (especially enchanted gear, jewelry, potions). Sell to merchants. Invest in the Speech skill tree later for better prices.
Lockpicks: Always buy or loot them. Carry at least 20. They break, so save before picking hard locks.
Ore: Iron ore is common. Use Transmute spell (from Halted Stream Camp) to turn iron ore into silver then gold. Smith gold ingots into jewelry for high profit.
Ingredient: Grab every alchemy ingredient you see. Combine at alchemy tables to make potions. Health and stamina potions are most useful early.
Skill books: They give +1 to a skill. Read every book you find unless you've already maxed that skill.
Training: Pay gold to skill trainers in cities to level up faster. Each skill can be trained 5 times per character level. It's expensive but efficient.

Common Beginner Mistakes

1. Sleeping without saving – always save before entering a dangerous area or before sleeping (vampire attacks can occur while sleeping if you have Dawnguard DLC).
2. Using too many mods (especially on PC) before understanding the base game. Mods can break the game or make it unstable. Play vanilla for your first playthrough.
3. Ignoring the main quest – the main quest unlocks shouts and abilities. You can pause it later, but do at least the first few steps.
4. Selling or disenchanting unique gear without checking its value (some unique items are one-of-a-kind and can't be duplicated).
5. Trying to fight high-level enemies (like vampires, dragons, or Dwemer constructs) too early. Check enemy levels – they scale with you but not infinitely. Early game, stick to bandits and wildlife.
6. Not using followers – you can have a follower (like Lydia) who carries extra items and fights with you. Recruit one early.
7. Sticking to one weapon type – try different weapons and spells. You can always respec perks later (only with Dragonborn DLC). For best first-time experience, pick one combat style (one-handed, two-handed, archery, magic) and focus there.

Day-One Checklist (First Real Session)

• [ ] Complete character creation.


• [ ] Escape Helgen Keep.


• [ ] Visit Riverwood, talk to Alvor or Gerdur, loot the blacksmith shop (don't steal – buy or take free items).


• [ ] Activate the Standing Stone (Guardian Stones near Riverwood). Choose Warrior, Mage, or Thief.


• [ ] Clear Bleak Falls Barrow (get Dragonstone + first word of Unrelenting Force).


• [ ] Deliver Dragonstone to Jarl Balgruuf in Whiterun.


• [ ] Defeat the dragon at Western Watchtower.


• [ ] Return to Jarl – become Thane of Whiterun, get housecarl Lydia.


• [ ] Buy a house in Whiterun (optional, saves gold for later).


• [ ] Save game (manual save, not just quick save) after major events.


• [ ] Practice combat on easy enemies (mudcrabs, wolves, bandits).


• [ ] Read the skill books you find.


• [ ] Collect a few alchemy ingredients and make a health potion.


• [ ] Set your active quest to "The Way of the Voice" (continue main quest).

Now you're ready to explore Skyrim! Remember: the world is huge – don't rush. Save often, talk to everyone, and experiment with different playstyles. Enjoy your adventure, Dragonborn!