Choosing race and gender - p.1 | Character development TES V: Skyrim Guide

Last update: 05 December 2019

On this page of TES V: Skyrim World Atlas is the first part of character creator tool. You will learn how and when you can select the gender and race of the main character. On this page of the tutorial, there also are the descriptions of the first group of races available in the game are Argonians, Bretons, Imperials, Wood Elves and High Elves. The review of each race shows you their unique abilities and starting skill bonuses.

• Character Creator
• Argonians
• Bretons
• Imperials
• Wood elves
• High elves

Character Creator

You don't have to create your character the second you choose the 'new game' option from the main menu, because it occurs after a short and interactive introductionary sequence, showing the main character arriving in Helgen among other captured prisoners. During this prologue you'll come to a point where Hadvar will ask you to reveal your identity (screen above) and this is when you'll have to make your first decisions.

The most important choice by far is the race of the main character. I recommend that you scroll down to find out the differences between members of different races, because each race has different starting skills and abilities (including one unique ability per race). The race you've chosen may also influence some of the gameplay, however the differences in this case are minor and usually very symbolic. Don't expect nothing beyond getting a discount from a vendor, hearing a different conversation from an NPC character or being able to complete a side quest in a slightly new way. The best course of action is to choose the race based solely on the skills it's focused on. They should of course be the same as the skills you plan increasing on your own, because it will make the start of the game less difficult and you'll also have an easier job to max out (100 points) all the skills which are crucial to your character.

There are also other steps you must complete while creating a new character and that is to change appearance and to choose a gender. You may be surprised to hear that the second factor doesn't change the game in any major way as in some of the other RPG games. Men and women have both the same skills. The choice of the gender also doesn't change any of the quests in any significant way and you may only notice very small changes, like someone saying a different dialogue or being suddenly more friendly towards the main character. You should also know that choosing the gender doesn't block your choices when it comes to marriage arrangements, because you can get married to the person of the same or the opposite gender.

Argonians

Skill bonuses:

1. +10 points to Lockpicking (25 instead of 15 points)
2. +5 points to Pickpocket (20 instead of 15 points)
3. +5 points to Light Armor (20 instead of 15 points)
4. +5 points to Alteration (20 instead of 15 points)
5. +5 points to Restoration (20 instead of 15 points)
6. +5 points to Sneak (20 instead of 15 points)

Unique abilities:

Histskin (active unique ability) - This is an extremely useful ability, because it improves health regeneration rate by 10 times and it lasts 60 seconds. Obviously you should rely on this ability during difficult fights, so you don't have to worry about dying. It's worth mentioning that a similar effect can be achieved using certain spells and potions.

50% less likely to catch a disease (passive ability) - It's very easy to catch a disease in Skyrim and it usually occurs when the main character is bitten by a certain type of a monster, however this passive ability isn't too useful. The main reason is because you can cure all diseases without any problems (by visiting a shrine or drinking a cheap potion).

Possibility of staying underwater for an indefinite amount of time (passive ability) - This ability won't somehow make your character more useful, because diving is a rare thing in Skyrim. Besides, even when this is mandatory you'll always have a large margin for error and you won't have to be counting seconds until the main character starts drowning.

Recommendation:

You should consider choosing an argonian if you plan on playing as a thief and if you often want to stay hidden in order to avoid other characters or to steal from them. The bonuses to "defensive" schools of magic (Alteration and Restoration) may come in handy when you want to quickly regain strength.

Bretons

Skill bonuses:

1. +10 points to Conjuration (25 instead of 15 points)
2. +5 points to Alchemy (20 instead of 15 points)
3. +5 points to Illusion (20 instead of 15 points)
4. +5 points to Alteration (20 instead of 15 points)
5. +5 points to Restoration (20 instead of 15 points)
6. +5 points to Speech (20 instead of 15 points)

Unique abilities:

Dragonskin (active unique ability) - This is a very useful ability for a mage, because it absorbs half of the mana used by enemies to cast spells and it lasts 60 seconds. Obviously you'll notice the difference only when fighting enemies with magical abilities, because otherwise they won't be using any mana. Thankfully this is a frequent thing and you can count on a significant increase of your mana so that the risk of running out of it will be much smaller.

25% more resistant to magic (passive ability) - The usefulness of this ability is very similar to the one explained above, because it will only work with enemies with magical abilities. 25% is a lot so the power of their spells is greatly reduced.

Recommendation:

You should consider choosing a breton if you plan on playing as a mage and if you also want to be versatile, so instead of focusing only on typical offensive spells you'll also want to experiment with different types of them. Conjuration has a big starting bonus, so you should often call on magical companions and/or resurrect the dead.

Imperials

Skill bonuses:

1. +10 points to Restoration (25 instead of 15 points)
2. +5 points to Block (20 instead of 15 points)
3. +5 points to One-handed (20 instead of 15 points)
4. +5 points to Heavy Armor (20 instead of 15 points)
5. +5 points to Enchanting (20 instead of 15 points)
6. +5 points to Destruction (20 instead of 15 points)

Unique abilities:

Voice of the Emperor (active unique ability) - This is a rather useful ability which calms down nearby opponents for 60 seconds, preventing them from attacking the main character. I think it's rather obvious to mention that this ability is most useful in situations when the hero is surrounded by a large group of enemy units and wants to escape or at least to heal in peaceful conditions.

Finding more gold coins (passive ability) - An important thing to know is that the bonus to your findings only applies to gold found in chests and other closed objects, so you won't be finding extra money when examining bodies or in plain view. This isn't a good ability in my opinion, especially since you shouldn't have problems with money as long as you remember to sell things you don't need.

Recommendation:

You should consider choosing an imperial if you plan on playing as a combination of a warrior and a mage. As a warrior you should be using a one-handed weapon mixed with a shield and as a mage you should rely both on offensive Destruction spells as well as on defensive/healing Restoration spells.

Wood elves

Skill bonuses:

1. +10 points to Archery (25 instead of 15 points)
2. +5 points to Alchemy (20 instead of 15 points)
3. +5 points to Pickpocket (20 instead of 15 points)
4. +5 points to Light Armor (20 instead of 15 points)
5. +5 points to Lockpicking (20 instead of 15 points)
6. +5 points to Sneak (20 instead of 15 points)

Unique abilities:

Command Animal (active unique ability) - This is a rather useful active ability which turns one of the nearby animals into an ally, forcing it to assist the main character for 60 seconds (or less if it dies sooner). Two important things you should remember about this ability are that it works only in areas where wild animals are present (you won't find them in cities, most dungeons etc) and that for best effect you should always "take command" over the strongest animal you see.

50% less likely to get poisoned or catch a disease (passive ability) - It's very easy to get poisoned or to catch a disease in Skyrim and it usually occurs when the main character triggers a trap or is bitten by a certain type of a monster, however this passive ability isn't too useful. The main reason is because you can get rid of all poisons and diseases without any problems (by visiting a shrine or drinking a cheap potion).

Recommendation:

You should consider choosing a wood elf if you plan on playing as a thief and if aside from stealing from the civilians you also want to be a skilled assassin. The second part works best if instead of getting close to your targets you're planning on killing them from a distance with precise arrow hits.

High elves

Skill bonuses:

1. +10 points to Illusion (25 instead of 15 points)
2. +5 points to Alteration (20 instead of 15 points)
3. +5 points to Conjuration (20 instead of 15 points)
4. +5 points to Destruction (20 instead of 15 points)
5. +5 points to Restoration (20 instead of 15 points)
6. +5 points to Enchanting (20 instead of 15 points)

Unique abilities:

Highborn (active unique ability) - This is an extremely useful ability to a mage, because it vastly improves mana regeneration rate (25% regained per second) and lasts 60 seconds. You can achieve the best effects if your character uses only magical attacks and therefore needs tons of mana to survive on the battlefield.

Mana pool increased by 50 units (passive ability) - Having additional mana points is always a good thing. This increase is very noticeable at the beginning of the game, because your mana pool is rather small at that point.

Recommendation:

You should consider choosing a high elf if you plan on playing as a powerful mage and if using only Destruction spells isn't exactly what you want to do with your character. High elves are masters of the school of Illusion and this category of magic can be used to "convince" enemies to stop their attacks, to run away or even to turn on each other.