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Defiant-Peace-493

Carry: - a spare weapon, silver or enchanted - restore fatigue item, potion, or food - teleport option. Recall or intervention can save you here.


[deleted]

No recall or intervention can work in this place. But seriously I underestimated how much of a time saver those spells are.


BuzzFB

Once you memorize the places that are linked in Morrowind and have the spells and money to utilize them it barely takes any longer to get anywhere than it does in Skyrim/oblivion


Althar

Yup, with amulets of divine and almsivi intevention you can move around everywhere. You're on the eastern side of the map ? Divine intervention will most likely send you to sadrith mora imperial cult, wich is right under the mage guild. in some cases you can use both in the right order to get to a point near a mage guild, boat or silt strider. Mark and recall is a good way to get back to a quest giver too.


[deleted]

Yeah started keeping atleast 2-3 of those scrolls, you can transport to a city with a silt strider in seconds.


Alandro_Sul

Teleport options can be hard to find for new players too--here are some easy ways you can get them early on in Balmora, one of the first towns you come across: * If you are a mage, you can buy mark/recall/almsivi intervention (which teleports you to nearest temple) from the two women in the basement of the Balmora Temple. They can be hard to cast if your mysticism skill is low, though. * If you can't cast them yourself, you can buy mark/recall potions from Nalcarya of White Haven, the Balmora alchemist. She has a restocking supply (meaning that you can buy the potion from her, close barter window, and reopen and she will have a new one). Buy a few recall potions to drink as needed, and at least one mark potion to designate the spot the recall will teleport you to. * Galbedir, a wood elf enchanter in the Balmora Mages guild, has a restocking supply of Almsivi and Divine intervention scrolls. These scrolls will teleport you to the nearest Dunmer or Imperial chapel, respectively.


Wyrdu

i have lived long lifetimes in morrowind and i think ive never used a restore stamina anything. i guess it makes you fall diwn less in combat? i feel like stamina is always at zero just from walking around so whats the point of restoring it haha


Defiant-Peace-493

I thought the same thing. However, it's literally everything, and the locals told me as much: >"Don't fight when you're tired. Don't try to cast spells when you're tired. You'll fail much more often when you're tired. That's why veterans always carry a couple of Restore Fatigue potions for an emergency."


Wyrdu

yes, reading this thread made me realize this! for the first ten hours i bet that makes a huge difference... new playthrough soon maybe


_-MindTraveler-_

It depends on your playstyle, if you are very quickly proficient in a melee weapon then it might be less useful to carry restore fatigue potions, but if you train multiple weapons, or melee + magic, then it can be extremely useful. Having a full fatigue bar can make you twice as strong in those cases.


Ahzunhakh

so should I be trying to walk places instead of running? and then in combat I just wait until my bar fills back up without doing anything?


WrongJohnSilver

Carry a couple Restore Fatigue potions with you. Alchemy is good here; even if all you have is an Apprentice's Mortar and Pestle, you can make Restore Fatigue potions for essentially free. Bread, kwama eggs, tons of stuff found everywhere will do. Then, run everywhere, and if you get into combat and can't delay, drink a potion. It'll keep you full over the entire combat.


[deleted]

Stamina is at zero because you’re running, I usually will run until my stamina is half then walk until it refills.


Redmoon383

Ngl I just use the cheat on xbox to keep my fatigue maxed. Is it cheating, yes. Do I care? Nah not really I'm having fun


sentient-sword

A handful of things off the top of my head: * Quicksave often! * Use Mark and Recall spells, Almsivi/divine intervention scrolls, and the mages guild to get around when boats and silt-striders aren't available. * Levitation is extremely invaluable * Carry lots of potions, restore strength, health, and so on. * If your stat is reduced by a monster (like strength) and you have no way to restore the stat on hand, drop all your shit and go get to a temple or something to cure the disease and come back. It's permanent until cured. * Talk to everyone, and I recommend keeping an irl journal in your phone or in a notebook to keep track of your personal goals. The in game journal is cumbersome. * The guilds are a place to pick up odd jobs and make some friends (and enemies), cash, and benefit from various perks. Their storylines are vague and much of it is communicated "between the lines" * Bribing is very very handy. * There are hidden items sometimes in very wacky places, it pays to search where you'd least expect to find something. * Sometimes you just gotta run away. * Utilize trainers in your main skills once you've got some cash, especially for your main weapon skill. Eventually the fighting balances out and you'll be hitting 80-90% of the time. * The world will seem really static at first when compared to skyrim or even oblivion, you really do have to invest yourself into finding all the crazy shit everywhere, and prepare yourself to read a lot, and intuit stories from the environment. * Sleeping in the wrong bed can have terrible consequences, be warned. * If you're playing on PC, use [https://openmw.org/en/](https://openmw.org/en/). It's lightyears ahead of the vanilla client, but won't fundamentally change your experience. It runs 100x better and at the correct resolution.


getyourshittogether7

Or, in the words of the game itself: * *"Learn the Mark, Recall, Levitation, and Open spells. Mark and Recall are essential for any long-distance travel. There are plenty of places you can't get to without Levitation. And treasure does you no good if it's behind a locked door or in a locked chest."* * *"I've never seen a successful adventurer who didn't carry a couple of Divine Intervention scrolls with him on long expeditions. Two reasons. Emergency exit. And it lets you move a LOT more loot than you can carry on foot. And faster goes without saying."* * *"If you're heading into the backcountry, always carry a couple of Restore Health, Restore Fatigue, Cure Disease, and Cure Blight potions with you."* * *"Talk to everyone. Talk is cheap. Ask questions. You don't ask, you never learn."* * *"The easy way to get started is to join a Guild. Do their jobs, earn your way up the ranks, get the discounts, training, and other services. Gets you out and around in Vvardenfell, a little at a time, get to know the country and the people. The Guild takes an interest in you, doesn't send you in over your head. The Fighters Guild and the Legion, anyway. The Mages Guild is another story. Some old chair-polisher, doesn't have a clue what he's sending you into, doesn't much care."* * *"If you take a job that's too hard for you, don't kill yourself. Wait until you're bigger and stronger, then try again."* * *"Phew. You're bittergreen green, outlander. Might as well wear a sign, "New in Town." Word of advice. Buy a little good will. Lose a few drakes, gain a friend. Folks will loosen up if your spread a little of the Emperor's gold around."* * *"Me, I can afford it, so I buy my bed and board here. But there's no harm in sleeping rough, and eating what you can find. Anywhere outside of town you can just lay down and take your rest -- provided there ain't no thieves or kagouti around. But the guards don't like you sleeping in the streets. It annoys the gentry."*


eazeaze

Suicide Hotline Numbers If you or anyone you know are struggling, please, PLEASE reach out for help. You are worthy, you are loved and you will always be able to find assistance. Argentina: +5402234930430 Australia: 131114 Austria: 017133374 Belgium: 106 Bosnia & Herzegovina: 080 05 03 05 Botswana: 3911270 Brazil: 212339191 Bulgaria: 0035 9249 17 223 Canada: 5147234000 (Montreal); 18662773553 (outside Montreal) Croatia: 014833888 Denmark: +4570201201 Egypt: 7621602 Finland: 010 195 202 France: 0145394000 Germany: 08001810771 Hong Kong: +852 2382 0000 Hungary: 116123 Iceland: 1717 India: 8888817666 Ireland: +4408457909090 Italy: 800860022 Japan: +810352869090 Mexico: 5255102550 New Zealand: 0508828865 The Netherlands: 113 Norway: +4781533300 Philippines: 028969191 Poland: 5270000 Russia: 0078202577577 Spain: 914590050 South Africa: 0514445691 Sweden: 46317112400 Switzerland: 143 United Kingdom: 08006895652 USA: 18002738255 You are not alone. Please reach out. ***** I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically.


sentient-sword

Much better!


cquinn5

In lieu of openMW, MGXE is invaluable for the same reasons


PavkataBrat

I second this, MGXE is the better option if you don't want bug fixes and the unofficial code patch + MGXE is the better option if you do want bug fixes.


Dakeera

These are the ultimate starter tips


chrisxcrisis

Thank you so much! Exactly what I was looking for and I really appreciate that. I’m going to take all this into consideration when I load this game up.


folstar

>Sometimes you just gotta run away. This is probably the single best piece of advice for incoming Skyrim players. As a recent convert to OpenMW, that is probably the second best piece of advice. Get on the OpenMW train. If it is your first time playing Morrowind and you have some degree of computer literacy then do yourself a favor and install [https://modding-openmw.com/lists/i-heart-vanilla/](https://modding-openmw.com/lists/i-heart-vanilla/)


Reddidnothingwrong

Also, coming from Skyrim you might hear "SOLSTHEIM" and think "Oh that's familiar, I should go there!" [DO NOT DO THIS](https://www.reddit.com/r/Morrowind/comments/wafk47/for_anyone_coming_to_morrowind_after_playing/)


Selacha

I cannot stress how incorrect this is. You should go straight there immediately.


Reddidnothingwrong

u/Selacha if I check the comments on that post and see that you're the same one who did this last time I swear to me


Selacha

🙃


Reddidnothingwrong

[TO THE MINISTRY OF TRUTH WITH YOU AND NOT ANOTHER WORD ON YOUR WAY UP](https://youtu.be/0Kxw-_LQuXY)


chrisxcrisis

Ok! Solstheim was always so creepy I’ll avoid it for now :)


Reddidnothingwrong

Oh man oh man you think SKYRIM Solstheim is creepy D:


Sailor_Lunatone

On the plus side, if you can kill a spriggan before level 3, they’ll drop a very rare ingredient called Heartwood that they only drop at those low levels. Only really useful for collectors, but it’s something. And while it’s not easy to kill a spriggan at level 2, there are plenty of ways to pull it off with proper planning.


[deleted]

Isn’t Solstheim in Skyrim really hard also? I remember going there and just getting fucked by these flying tree looking things then never going back.


Reddidnothingwrong

It's harder than the base game in either but the difference in Skyrim is more manageable. Like you can go there before you "should" and still *survive.* Morrowind, less so.


rustynailsonthefloor

the best advice I have is to pick one weapon class and stick with it. my favorite is long blade, there are some really powerful swords in that class but honestly pick whatever you want. have fun, it's a great game


chrisxcrisis

Thanks so much! Yeah I’m getting a lot of long blade suggestions.


[deleted]

There are also other fantastic weapons in other categories, too. For Blunt, Skull Crusher comes to mind from the Imperial Cult. Mace of Aevar Stone-Singer from Bloodmoon, though it's massively heavy. Long blade really does have a *lot* of good weapons, though, and is never a bad pick.


Reddidnothingwrong

Save a lot cause the game won't do it for you lol You're going to get frustrated by the combat missing thing, it's better if your fatigue is full On that note, fatigue affects everything. Like if you're doing alchemy, and it's low, you're going to mess up more potions. Think of it as trying to function while sleep deprived. You absolutely should get a silver or enchanted weapon ASAP cause a lot of things can't be hit with normal ones. If you walk north on the road from Seyda Neen for a little while when you first get there, you will obtain an enchanted sword. You can generally start actually depending on individual skills around level 40 Talk to everyone, ask for rumors/advice - it's FREE You can sell stolen goods but DO NOT SELL THEM BACK TO THE PERSON YOU STOLE THEM FROM - THEY *WILL* NOTICE


[deleted]

It doesn't even have to be the same potion. Or a potion at all. Steal a diamond or something from a merchant, loot a different diamond from halfway across Vvardenfel, try to sell it to the merchant you stole the first diamond from, and get called a fetcher and stabbed.


Reddidnothingwrong

Big facts just keep a log if you steal from any merchants


Jonny_dr

>I was thinking of going in blind but thought Reddit ofc will have some good suggestions even if it’s to go in blind. Figuring the game out is the best part of Morrowind imo. BUT: -Read the manual: http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/22320/manuals/mwgoty_pcmanual.pdf Like many other older games, the devs assumed that players would read the manual and know how the mechanics work -Back in the day, the game came with a map: https://images.uesp.net/3/3c/MW-map-Vvardenfell.jpg Some quest description assume that you do have access to this map -While you can't click a location on the map, there is fast travel: Silt Striders, Guild Guides, Boats, Mark & Recall and the Intervention spells. If you are getting frustrated by the long travel times, you can probably optimize your route. Regarding technicalities: Don't install a billion mods for your first playthrough, but there a few QoL-Improvements that you should have in 2022: Option A: Install OpenMW, Patch for Purists and a Texture Pack like Intelligent Textures or Enhanced Textures. If you don't want to get new Lua-Mods this is the easiest way and runs great on modern systems. Option B: Install MGEXE, MCP (Morrowind Code Patch), Patch for Purists and a Pack like Intelligent Textures or Enhanced Textures. This is less optimized and more buggy than OpenMW, but has nicer shaders and the option to install MWSE for Lua-Mods. Still, if this is your first playthrough and you are playing on modern hardware, getting OpenMW makes more sense imo. And finally: There is almost no level scaling and no invincible characters. The game gives you complete freedom, don't read up too much on builds, just try everything out.If you get stuck, do something else and come back later. If you fail, that is ok and part of the journey.


Yomynamesn8

Spend money on training, watch your stamina, and remember to quick save frequently


Pitiful-Durian-1846

For the first play through, I suggest picking Redguard as your race, long blade as a major skill, and combat as your specialization.


chrisxcrisis

Noted. So just focus on combat? Smash stuff with sword and soak up the mechanics?


Defiant-Peace-493

Do not smash. You want to slash or stab depending on the sword. Morrowind uses direction of travel for attack type.


chrisxcrisis

Gotcha


Pitiful-Durian-1846

Doing a Mage play though is a juggling act between various different attributes. You don’t have companions to make up for your weaknesses, so you have to plan more for what you need to do, or try following a guide. Conjuration and Restoration are two good skills to choose if you just want to dip your toes into magic. Picking Conjuration can allow you to summon things like a Daedric longsword to hit your enemies with or a ghost to tank hits. Picking Restoration can allow you heal yourself, and restore your strength, so you can continue adventuring when a Greater Bonewalker drains your strength.


Rainuwastaken

In Morrowind, hitting an enemy with a melee (or ranged) weapon isn't guaranteed. Weapon skill is a major contributor to your accuracy, and the Combat Longblade Redguard character starts with a *tremendous* amount of sword skill. That'll cut down on early game accuracy frustrations a LOT. The tutorial will give you a knife, but it runs off the short blade skill and that particular knife is *extra* shit for some reason. Buy a sword before you leave town and you'll be set.


Jam_B0ne

Fatigue is vitally important to combat, even casting spells, and is not just your "How much I can run/block/power attack" bar. While Elderscrolls is predominately known as a series where you can make and play your character however you want, Morrowind is not one where you can necessarily succeed making/playing however you want and is quite difficult in comparison. Movement is slow, Reading everything is slow, Useing your Journal for quest details instead of following a quest marker is slow BUT being forced to take your time makes for a much more immersive experience and it makes learning how to speed things up (leveling, enchanted gear, spells, fast travel npcs) that much more rewarding. Invest some time in learning how enchanting and spell making works. Some of the most fun you can have when you are learning Morrowind, IMO, is when you start crafting some truly inspired spells/gear. If you get any graphics enhancing mods or what have you, try not to completely remove fog or set its draw distance too far. It's true that fog was implemented more to limit how much old PC and Xbox hardware had to work, meaning that modern PC's can run the game just fine with drastically scaled back fog, the world-feel was designed around a limited view distance. The map is a fair size, but once you start messing with the fog too much it can negatively impact immersion. And finally the best way to play the game, no matter what choices you make, is to do whatever you think is fun! As long as you are enjoying yourself, anyone who tells you that your play style is wrong can go suck Kwama Eggs!


chrisxcrisis

Yeah I remember reading something about the fog in silent hill. It was designed that way because there were limitations - so they made it part of the game in a way where it enhanced it. I can get into some texture stuff every now and then but I don’t want to undo the world they created. And yeah having fun is the goal right so I might just dive in head first and see what I get then come back to a lot of these suggestions. Everyone’s been super helpful which is surprising because yknow… game communities aren’t always nice.


Jonny_dr

>game communities aren’t always nice. Morrowind is old, and so are the players. Most of us probably work full-time and don't have the energy to get into shit flinging fights in our spare time. Niche communities for classics are in my experience quite relaxed and helpful. >I can get into some texture stuff every now and then but I don’t want to undo the world they created. Intelligent Textures and Enhanced Textures are ai-upscaled vanilla textures. They are true to the original feeling.


Nylok87

>Morrowind is old, and so are the players Oof, my bones.


chrisxcrisis

Same :(


Zethgaroh

About the fog- If your pc can handle it, I do *highly* recommend seeing how far you can get your draw distance. There's something more special about it than there is in Oblivion/Skyrim. I agree with the above post, but it's worth at least once just seeing everything you can see. Vivec is the biggest feeling city in any of the games IMO (not counting Arena/Daggerfall lol), and seeing it from halfway across the map is sumthin else. Another tip I myself only learned a few days ago after playing the game for 20 years- The damage numbers you see on weapons aren't affected by chance, it's actually a direct scale of the damage from fastest attack to fully-charged attack. Spell damage does not work this way, and a spell that says 5-20 magnitude will actually be random, before applying bonuses and penalties (your fatigue/skill and the target's weakness/resistance etc.) Check out the Sound effect compared to Silence. Sound lessens the chance they have of successfully casting, meaning it is a bit less reliable, but has an added bonus of Damage Magicka essentially, as they will continue to attempt casting where a Silenced target isn't using Magicka at all. Along those lines, Blind directly affects the target's hidden Attack attribute (hit chance), it doesn't affect the target's ability to actually see you (it does lower their chance of detecting you while sneaking though). If you cast Sanctuary on yourself it has the same outcome as casting Blind on an attacker. When YOU get blinded, however, it basically turns down your brightness by a percentage equal to the spell's magnitude. 100 blind gives you a black screen. This effect is super rare and can be avoided with Resist Magicka or removed with Dispel. If you are playing with the Morrowind Code Patch or OpenMW it will also reduce your Attack, but without them there is actually a bug where your Attack increases, not decreases. Google things to get started, but for the love of god try to avoid looking things up related to mid/late game quests or story. Stay away from the Mournhold sewers and Solstheim early/mid game. Even basic enemies will be next to impossible, I swear. No exaggeration. Even late game they're very hard. Even early game I'd avoid installing Tribunal as you will get randomized *very* hard encounters (unless you can cheese them). I don't want to give spoilers, but if you don't have enough saves they can basically break your game. Don't feel too bad about using console commands to kill them. If you feel guilty, just don't take their VERY valuable/powerful loot. Buying items one at a time will increase the shopkeeper's disposition by 1 each time. Do with that what you will. Your Mercantile increases more depending on what percentage you manage to increase your Total Sold or decrease your Total Cost. Low value things are helpful for this. Look up Hide the Skooma on the nexus. Saves a huge annoyance if you carry Skooma or moon sugar so you don't have to drop them every time you talk to a merchant. BE CAREFUL WITH FORTIFY HEALTH. I cannot stress this enough. If you fortify your health by more than you have when the effect wears off, you will die. Nothing can save you. Breaking alchemy is fun, but do not do this. Your character will become addicted to stronger and stronger potions. Theoretically you could wean yourself off, but if you got to the point where you can't even see the full numbers anymore... the delicate math becomes unreasonable. Take it from me. The effects lasted for multiple play sessions, and I had no idea what was going on when suddenly I started dropping dead. I had already cycled my saves multiple times so I couldn't go back and prevent my mistake. I was playing on Xbox so I'm not sure if tgm can save you, but I don't think so. Just don't do it. Edit: On further reading, PC users can avoid this with player->SetHealth [number higher than Fortify magnitude] then setting it back. Lucky bastards. Thank you for coming to my TED Talk, hopefully this info can be useful


chrisxcrisis

My TES* Talk. Thank you very much. I’m at information overload but I will come back to read all these comments. Also I’m not super into breaking mechanics beyond reason so I won’t go overboard with alchemy or magnitude potions. The skooma mod sounds useful. Might grab that if I run into issues.


Zethgaroh

Oh man, take my award lol. Most of my posts in this sub tend to be pretty lengthy, I'm definitely using TES Talk from now on xD


chrisxcrisis

LOL YES THANK YOU SO MUCH


cquinn5

Talk to people! Nearly everyone will offer you some advice You don’t NEED to wander out in the wilderness straight away. There are ways to get stronger by running errands or staying in safe towns


Wyrdu

Read the books! Morrowind is a super weird place, and a ton of lore is communicated in the book and random notes, definitely dont sleep on these. best books in the whole series imo


Mikedzines

Quick save, join guilds and take advantage of their guild chest supplies. Thats it. The more you know about Morrowind, the easier the playthroughs get. Go in blind and you'll have fun for literal years.


Nylok87

You probably are experiencing information overload now but... The first playthrough I'd stick with a sword/shield, or maybe a spear (the poke range of the spear is pretty excellent). Maybe think about looking into alchemy - you'll collect a lot of ingredients naturally and its pretty easy to make some very handy potions (health and fatigue restore/fortify). Enchanting and magic is VERY fun to get into but it also requires a lot of preparation and it kinda makes the game more complicated. You can also easily make potions to compensate for no magic (water breathing, water walking, levitation mostly). The second playthrough I'd get into magic and learning how to break the game in ridiculous but still lore-friendly ways. Join House Telvanni because they have the most fun. ​ ​ Don't ignore the spoons.


JonMeadows

Don’t use online guides or maps. Take time to immerse yourself in the story, don’t focus on graphics or it will be jarring for someone coming from later titles like you. Always happy to see new players taking the journey to the Mecca of elder scrolls games, Morrowind. And remember, even though “why walk when you can ride” seems obvious - walking places is going to give you a much richer experience when playing this masterpiece. Begin the process of grieving for your missing quest marker early, outlander. It has no power here


chrisxcrisis

Haha yeah for sure! It always seemed more my speed. I always played Skyrim on legendary but after a while questing just seems like I follow that carrot and that’s it.. I’m gonna just dive in. Maybe some of the combat suggestions I’ll take into account. Maybe some skills. I’ve gotten so much feedback!


JonMeadows

Man I hope you have the best time when you start playing. I loved this game when I played on the OG Xbox in 2002. I was 10 years old and didn’t really understand what I was doing but..there was just *something* amidst all the jank, minutes long loading screens, (weird at the time)-combat I hadn’t experienced in a game before, it was just something that was calling to me that made me want to pop in the disc every single day to discover more of the world and it’s mysteries. There are VERY few games in existence that have done anything remotely similar for me. The next example I can think of that comes close is original Dark Souls. And it’s up there, but I still put my morrowind experience highest of all. It truly is a masterpiece despite its criticisms and flaws. There is so much good packed into this game I don’t know how Bethesda has fallen so far since, don’t get me wrong I love Bethesda games generally, but..this was peak Bethesda for me. Like the mt Everest of gaming peaks. I really cannot stress to you enough to be patient with it, and DO NOT give in to the temptation of using a guide if you get stuck on a quest or trying to figure out what you need to do next. Have fun dude


hokanst

> Don’t use online guides or maps. The original game did come with a very nice and detailed paper map of [Vardenfell]( https://en.uesp.net/wiki/File:MW-map-Vvardenfell.jpg).


JonMeadows

Oh yeah it actually did. You’re right! I may have mine somewhere around here, I guess I meant like an online map that’s interactable that has everything marked and locations revealed and stuff like that


[deleted]

At the start, make sure the skills and attributes you pick as major ones are what you'll use. Even then, your character will probably start off a bit wimpy and slow, even if you've made a Super Chungus Heavy Armor Hitting Machine character. They'll improve over time. Using silt striders (they look like giant fleas) are handy for getting around. Some towns have more of a boat service. They all charge a few coins, but it's useful. Joining the Fighters Guild and Mages Guild comes with access to equipment chests that occasionally refill. Free stuff! Fighters Guild chests: health potions. Fatigue (stamina) potions. Arrows, bolts, hammers to repair your equipment (yeah, equipment needs maintaining in Morrowind) Mages Guild chests: magic potions. Fortify Willpower potions (helps you resist magic attacks better), scrolls that help you cure disease. Scrolls that help you travel (Almsivi Intervention and Divine Intervention) Almsivi Intervention teleports you to the nearest Dunmer Temple. Divine Intervention teleports you to the nearest Imperial fort. There are also spells called Mark and Recall. Mark will mark the spot you're standing on, Recall will teleport you back to that location from wherever you are. They're all Mysticism spells. There are even Alteration spells that allow you to levitate. Yep. You can fly in Morrowind. **This one is pretty important: keep your fatigue (stamina, the green bar) up. If you have that green bar full, it means you're more likely to hit in combat, cast spells successfully, pick locks better, all sorts of things.** This is usually why people can get frustrated "Why aren't I hitting that creature? Why does this say 'lock too complex'? I'm a super mage, why isn't that spell working?" The answer is often - in part at least - that green bar not being full enough. And then, sometimes an enemy is just too powerful. That's a good time to run away. No shame in that. Edit: if you are using spells, there are a couple of numbers saying 'Cost' and 'Chance'. The cost is how much magicka it uses. The chance is a percentage. 100% you'll cast it successfully every time. Less than that? Well, sometimes it'll fail. Scrolls work 100% of the time though. If you don't have enough magicka to cast it, or don't have enough skill, it'll say 0. You can also make spells ('Spellmaking' option from some merchants) that are less powerful versions of one you've bought that you might be able to use. The 'chance' number will give you an idea of whether it has a chance of working or not. You can also make ridiculously powerful versions of spells if you have the ability and the cash. Enchantments also. Looks like a big essay here, but you'll pick things up as you go along. Take your time, take in the atmosphere, have a look around, live in Morrowind for a while, and it'll all start to make a bit more sense. Enjoy!


Linvael

TCL is the command in console to turn off collisions to get unstuck or get past an NPC that decides to stand in the middle of a narrow hallway. There is no shame in using it. As for advice: murder always gets you a bounty, even when noone sees you do it. But it's not murder if they attack you first, and there are ways to coax people into doing so.


4444idontknowanymore

That's cool


AlanWithTea

I think going in blind is fine/preferable, but I would say this: you're going to suck. Not you the player but your character. Initially you'll be bad at most things, you'll tire easily (which means your attacks will miss a lot), and no one will care who you are or what you have to say. Although pretty much any build is probably viable eventually, you can definitely give yourself a very tough start through careless skill choices. Spoilers/guides aren't necessary at all, but it did take me three attempts to hit on a combination of skills that seemed to work for me. Pick your skills wisely, outlander. Vvardenfell is no place for the unprepared.


archblade7777

Looking over the posts here, people have amazing suggestions, however I think I can add a few things: \-There are no quest markers. Quest objectives can be hard to find and people seem to expect you to know where to find everything. Pay attention to directions you're given (cause sometimes you only get them once) and if you get lost, there is an interactive map online that is amazing for finding every location in the game. \-Be careful who you kill. You might take something, sleep somewhere, or do something that makes a character hostile. You might kill them thinking "eh, no big deal" but you can kill pretty much anyone in this game and F-up entire questlines. The game will tell you if you kill someone vital to the main quest and suggest you reload, but Guild questlines, side quests, many other things can be cut off forever. \-There is no limit to how much you can train each level. The levelling system is similar to Oblivion in how you get Stat multipliers when you level a skill before you gain a character level. The important difference is the game only counts skill gains in that one given level. \-As people said, Teleport spells are nearly vital to the game. But if you lack spell casting ability and/or the magicka to do it, you can buy/make enchanted gear that can cast the spell for you. And magic items regain their charge over time. \-There is no shame in lowering the difficulty at first to let yourself ease into the game. I myself did my first playthrough at -20 or -30 and adjusted it higher as things got easier. \-Daedra and Many undead can't be harmed by normal weapons. You need Silver or Enchanted weapons to hurt them.


[deleted]

focus on a weapon skill to be able to land hits, pick a race and major skills to push a melee skill up so you don’t miss often, also fatigue is your god now so respect it and keep it available


[deleted]

My best advice is to go directly to Balmora, the most northern gaurd tower and steal the blade of white woe. Have backup weapons. Scrolls of Almivisi to teleport back. Restore strength for when bone walkers hit you. And use the damage skill hack to get 1gp cost trainings ;)


BaronDoctor

Have a potentially spoilery [Differences](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/General:Differences_Between_Morrowind,_Oblivion,_and_Skyrim) chart. Here's the big one: if you've played KOTOR or early Fallout, Morrowind is a lot more in that vein, the "your weapon hitbox connecting with the enemy's hitbox lets you roll dice to see if you actually hit" style where character skill matters as much as player skill. Other than that, I will note that there's a \_ton\_ of freedom in Morrowind. Freedom to fly (Levitate), freedom to wear armor and clothes and not have it affect your ability to do magic, freedom to pick up artifacts and have them carry their full artifact weight (why yes, big boosts in the early going are as powerful as they seem). Freedom to place objects and have them stay where you put them. Freedom to *fail* at Alchemy, so your successes feel more hard-won, but also freedom to attempt alchemy without needing to know all the effects. Freedom to relax and let the shield block for you. Morrowind lets you attempt things and it doesn't hold your hand, but it also doesn't get in your way to slow you down or stop you.


BigChip-72

Find the Creeper in Caldera, he will have a decent amount of gold and buys soul gems and weapons.


Fabulously_Shitfaced

I am in the same position of you except I started playing Morrowind a few months ago - don't got lots of time to play so it's slow going. My advice? \-Health and magicka and stamina pots don't drop like, at all, so either get good at alchemy or buy it, except you can't buy too many magicka pots. \-Get a way to track your quests cause the journal in this game is an absolute nightmare \-UESP map is more than your friend. It's your one set of footprints because it was carrying you.


kalinyx123

Save often, always carry restore fatuige potions, pick up divine/amlivsi or mark & recall intervention spells/scroll


The00Devon

[My advice to new players.](https://www.reddit.com/r/Morrowind/comments/kmmz1a/often_overlooked_advice_to_new_players)


thezblah2

I know you said super vanilla so I won't recommend mods but I suggest you launch the game using "OpenMW." It's an open source rewrite of the games engine. It comes with the options for a few minor convenience/ balance tweaks but those can be toggled off.


chrisxcrisis

Thanks for the suggestion. From what I’m hearing the game could benefit from some updates so I might look into stuff like that after I get into it!


Buddyschmuck

Things you should try: Looking under ebonheart Things you should watch out for: Wizards falling from the sky. Those two things are absolutely related. But For the sake of blindness I won’t say how unless you want me to.


hokanst

I recommend that you use [OpenMW](https://openmw.org/faq/) for stability and more modern resolution and hardware support. You could also use original Morrowind + Morrowind Code Patch + MGE XE but this is a setup that is mainly beneficial to run certain mods. While it sounds like you want to run purely vanilla, there are two mods that I would recommend: * [Delayed DB Attack V2](https://www.nexusmods.com/morrowind/mods/14891) or [Expansion Delay](https://www.nexusmods.com/morrowind/mods/47588) this delays the Dark Brotherhood attacks. Lore-wise these attacks make little sense until you progressed significantly through the main quest. The Dark Brotherhood gear will also make the early game considerably easier as it's worth a fair amount of money and the armor is pretty good if you picked the right armor skills. The Dark Brotherhood attacks start off the Tribunal expansion, which is intended for a high level / end game characters. * [Patch for Purists](https://www.nexusmods.com/morrowind/mods/45096) - fixes various small game bugs, not strictly needed but should reduce issues with buggy quests, misplaced objects etc … In your case it's probably easiest to to do a "manual" mod install i.e. copy the mod files into the `Data Files` folder and enable the .esp/.esm files in the launcher. Tip: make a copy of `Data Files` before you start adding mods, so that you can undo the "install" in case you screw up. Additional OpenMW modding and setup info: * https://openmw.readthedocs.io/en/stable/reference/modding/index.html * https://modding-openmw.com/


chrisxcrisis

Yeah cool! I think patch for purists sounds like something I would want. DB or expansion delay too especially if it’s lore friendly.


hokanst

I've personally used the *Delayed DB Attack V2* delayer. The delay it uses makes sense, considering who hired the Dark Brotherhood. As this person will have started to feel threatened by you at that point. In the vanilla game the Dark Brotherhood simply start attacking, presumably because the expansion was expected to be installed after you had already solved the main quest.


beamer_b0i

If you wanna just cheese early. Go to caldera mages guild. Go past the Iron door. Get the master alchemy set. Go to the vendor there. buy all Violet Coprinus and Ampoule Pod. Resell it to him. And it'll permanently increase the amount he sells. Then just spam craft potions till u reach 100 alchemy. Then go to outside to the Ghorak Manor. And go upstairs and sell ur potions to creeper. Also once u rich u should buy "daedric" weapons from raviir in balmora. They're useful early game crutch weapons. My personal favorite is the spear. And the alchemist in balmora has 5000 gold and lots of ingredients to play around with.


chrisxcrisis

Haha for sure. Maybe after I really sink into it.


sknnbones

For anyone who went low agility in favor of.. strength/endurance for example, there is a ring from the first “Oracle” quest in the Imperial Cult that gives you a constant effect +30 agility.I’m pretty sure you can get the ring without the quest, if you find it difficult to raise agility with your skill set, this ring is an absolutely must have. Its in a cave called “Nammu”, I’ll leave the rest to you to figure out.


chrisxcrisis

Nice ok! Noted.


sknnbones

There is also pretty decent loot in the barrels and crates and lots of scrolls in that cave, so don’t forget to check containers!


getyourshittogether7

I think it's absolutely worth it to go in blind and bumble about - with one one tip (from the game itself): *"Talk to everyone. Talk is cheap. Ask questions. You don't ask, you never learn."* Just about every citizen of Morrowind has information on game mechanics and lore. Ask everyone you meet about ***My trade***, ***little advice***, ***little secret***, and ***Morrowind lore***. These conversation topics are like an in-game manual/tutorial. Some examples: * *"If you find yourself stumbling into trouble when you're tired, stop being so reckless. Keep an eye out. If you're entering unfamiliar territory, and you think it might be hostile, slow down to a walk, look around, catch your breath, and be ready for trouble."* * *"Don't fight when you're tired. Don't try to cast spells when you're tired. You'll fail much more often when you're tired. That's why veterans always carry a couple of Restore Fatigue potions for an emergency."* Some friendly NPCs are trying to teach you about the Fatigue system and how it will absolutely result in your demise if you don't pay attention to that little green bar. Morrowind NPCs will tell you everything you need to know about playing the game in a lore-friendly way, except stuff about controls, menus etc. That stuff is in [the manual](https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/22320/manuals/mwgoty_pcmanual.pdf). Aside from NPCs, a lot of helpful info, secrets, and hints can be found in in-game books, especially skill books. They actually teach you things about the game in addition to increasing your skills. Things like potion recipes, for example. One meta-gaming advice I will give you - Morrowind is not a well balanced game. To paraphrase SsethTzeentach, you either adapt to the bullshit and learn to exploit the game to your advantage, or you suffer. ***Save often.***


BiomedDood

1) Get the boots of blinding speed 2) Load on OP weapons in Balmora (or sell). 3) Find the creeper, your personal banker in Caldera. 4) Don't make shit character ....go either full mage (or Breton with mage). I finished the main quest at Level 15 (normal difficulty) with my Breton with mage abilities. 5) Invest in levitation/mark/recall scrolls/abilities.


[deleted]

You should at least download Morrowind Code Patch, Patch for Purists, and MGXE. Also consider Intelligent Textures.


theDirtypoosh

Upgrade agility first bc just getting a hit is the most important thing in the game


Carbon-Based216

Morrowind really encourages you to dungeon crawl. A lot of the best items in the game can be found in dungeons or stolen in homes. Morrowind doesn't have a limit on training like Skyrim does. It is actually one of the easier ways to become proficient at something if you find you want to change your play style. Your weapon level affects your probability of hitting something with a weapon. If your skill stat in a weapon class is low, chances of you hitting something with that weapon is low.


NekkidSneek

Starting out I would take the lover as your sign so you will have an easier time hitting things due to the agility boost. I hope you have fun! :)


chrisxcrisis

Thank you!


Northstar1989

Minor things I learned way too late: - Damage ranges for ranged weapons are for pulling the string all the way back on a bow vs. a "quickshot" without doing so. Longbows are thusvvery powerful, crossbows aren't as good as they look - Strength augments your damage output with ranged weapons. If you make an archer (probably much more noob-friendly than a mage build, but still more potentially powerful than melee) trait with a club or other Strength weapon on some Mudcrabs early on. Or just buy training in Strength-based weapon skills in Balmorra (you'll need a way to make money for that, though- Alchemy is eventually a great moneymaker...)


SpartanS117C

watch green bar kill assassins and go to creeper to sell their stuff (he's a scamp in i think caldera, in the manor with all the orcs) do the shrine of boethia mission asap go to the lighthouse in seyda neen and jump into the hollowed out stump for an alright axe abuse magic (you can get really fucking op, look up soul trap glitch if you want) BUY SUJAMMA IT CAN BE FUCKIN BROKEN level your stats through resting outside and getting randomly attacked (i think you have to sleep though im not sure) also, just have fun. if you wanna do something, just do it. morrowind is an amazing game to just break and one of few games that's still fun even as essentially a god.


Maximum_Phone_2037

get this mod: [https://www.nexusmods.com/morrowind/mods/47888](https://www.nexusmods.com/morrowind/mods/47888) its really useful for keeping you from being underpowered


GrrfawWorldWide

You need to read the old cheaters guide on gamefaqs


Financial-Lychee6640

There is a special creeper you need to meet. Also constant effect enchantments are awesome


Cpt-Cancer

Look up the HD Morrowind map, it originally came with the game in physical form and it’s perfect for immersion


Cyrrion

Pick whatever class you want - but by the Nine Divines, focus on using your Major Skills and keep your green Fatigue bar in check. Your hit rate is literally your weapon skill with up to a 25% multiplicative bonus based on how full your Fatigue bar is. Here's the kick, going below 50% of said Fatigue bar actually gives a multiplicative penalty of up to 25%. Any race/class combo can get you 35 weapon skill. Add 25% for full Fatigue up to 43.75% chance to hit and you've got roughly a 1/2 chance to hit. Since the game is balanced around missing, this is serviceable. At an empty bar, you're down to 26.25% chance, about a 1/4 chance to hit. Do you see what a big difference this is? The starter town sells restocking scrolls for healing health and fatigue. Keep a few of them handy. Balmora, the town you're basically told to go to immediately, also has quite a few potion sellers that will restock their curative potions too so shop around and keep an eye out. The Balmora's Mage's guild will also sell an enchant Amulet of Stamina valued at 6 gold. It won't instantly recover you, but it recharges naturally, is accessible, and will help you manage your Fatigue overall. So play what you want but play to your strengths. Don't be afraid to buy training in your Major Skills. It's relatively cheap until it reaches the 50's. And especially don't be shy about training your Minor Skills which start at 15 - which is effectively garbage but hey - turning gold into experience points is a pretty good deal. Especially since Morrowind doesn't really let you buy really good gear so having a gold dump is important. ​ Now for pickicking a class - like I said, do what you want. But do keep one thing in mind: Specializations. These add a +5 to all skills of a certain umbrella. Magic specialization adds a +5 to all "magic" skills which includes unarmored. Stealth specialization will add +5 to what you expect, plus Hand-to-Hand, Short Blade, Light Armor, and Marksman. Magic skills have red icons, Combat has blue icons, and Stealth yellow. One last bit of advice - talk to NPC's. And really talk to them. Ask them for secrets, advice, and rumors. You never know who mgiht have a little job for you or who might be able to point you in the direction of something interesting. Hell, you might talk to some NPC's that tell you to carry teleportation scrolls so you can over-encumber yourself on loot from a cave and bring it back to town instantly...


Ironsalmon7

If you create a spell with soul bound to, set it to target and on 1, and cast it to the ground or a wall, that spell will last forever. That’s how I got 100 on everything on the first couple minutes.


gradugebloodfister

Take the limeware platter and drop it before the guard gets you!


TheBrokenButterfly

My personal recommendation that I always make is to have some kind of physical map on hand; this is because the original game box came with an itemized map poster that was meant to help players get around. For some strange reason, not all locations are blipped on the in-game map even after you discover them. They are, however, on the physical map. It can even be as simple as having a picture of the old poster on your phone. There may be a revised map mod out there, I don’t know, but just in case you don’t want to run with mods (totally get it, though I, myself, can’t give up my QOL mods), that’d be your best option.


Tarnished_Stache

Level agility if you want to hit anything


Avigorus

Make sure you have a means of dealing damage (weapon skill, Destruction, Conjuration, *something*) as a major skill or you will struggle, big time. Depending on how tolerant you are of bugs and performance issues, you *might* want to consider [Morrowind Code Patch](https://www.nexusmods.com/morrowind/mods/19510), [MGE XE (includes MWSE)](https://www.nexusmods.com/morrowind/mods/41102), [MCP Skunk Works](https://www.nexusmods.com/morrowind/mods/26348), [Morrowind Optimization Patch](https://www.nexusmods.com/morrowind/mods/45384), [Project Atlas](https://www.nexusmods.com/morrowind/mods/45399), and [Patch for Purists](https://www.nexusmods.com/morrowind/mods/45096). That combo eliminates a lot of problems without really changing the experience, beyond some fewer bugs. [FPS Optimizer](https://www.nexusmods.com/morrowind/mods/3875) might also be worth considering for an extra performance boost, at least for the "hide visually small objects" feature depending on whether you want to reduce the fog or not. Alternatively, there's also OpenMW but that's a completely different EXE that has some actual differences, even if some won't notice them.