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-At the start of Morrowind your character was locked inside a cell.
-At the start of Oblivion your character was locked inside a cell.

In Skyrim, will your character be locked in a cell as well? I'm tired of this...


The purpose of this *lame* thread is to discuss ideas, opinions and thoughts. What are your thoughts about this? Do you have some ideas about where our character can be found at the start? (Apart from a jail, of course)......

I was thinking about a place, like a border near Skyrim. Eventually you'd cross the border and would come inside the place to greet the mighty barbarians.......

Err, a farm? That gets destroyed by a dragon, or whatever the main antagonists are.

I'm not sure about Daggerfall, but you start of in a prison in Arena as well. I could see you starting off in a Bar/Tavern though.

"To fight, you must draw your weapon. Good, now try hitting the ugly Nord over there."

The prison motive is used because it keeps the character nameless and allows for any possibility of back stories to be created. You also get a sense of worthlessness that slowly improves as you level up.

I think Bethesda should keep the prison motive.

I_am_one wrote:I'm not sure about Daggerfall

Your on a boat or something, then your in a dungeon

Anyway, tbh I can see the tutorial starting off in a Arena of some sort, and you need to fight from your freedom. That'd be cool. But you don't directly go into combat, you have a small amount of training first, learn the controls etc then go and win a match for your freedom.

How come convicts never save the world from certain destruction in real life? Well, except for Mandela.

I_am_one wrote:I'm not sure about Daggerfall, but you start of in a prison in Arena as well.

Daggerfall is the only exception: you're the Emperor's personal little champion sent off to make things right. Classy, in true Septim fashion.

Honestly, anything except a prison start would suit me. I'd take the cheesiest possibility ever over another "Here you go, criminal scum" sort of situation any day.

ShadowWarrior wrote:

I_am_one wrote:I'm not sure about Daggerfall

Your on a boat or something, then your in a dungeon

Anyway, tbh I can see the tutorial starting off in a Arena of some sort, and you need to fight from your freedom. That'd be cool. But you don't directly go into combat, you have a small amount of training first, learn the controls etc then go and win a match for your freedom.

Does Skyrim have Slavery, because if they did, that could work pretty well.

I_am_one wrote:

ShadowWarrior wrote:

I_am_one wrote:I'm not sure about Daggerfall

Your on a boat or something, then your in a dungeon

Anyway, tbh I can see the tutorial starting off in a Arena of some sort, and you need to fight from your freedom. That'd be cool. But you don't directly go into combat, you have a small amount of training first, learn the controls etc then go and win a match for your freedom.

Does Skyrim have Slavery, because if they did, that could work pretty well.

Dunno, though you could still be a prisoner and that's one of Skyrim's Law ways of letting you get out.
Like in SI, when you get arrested, if you can escape from the Dungeon, you're free with all your possessions.

I have no problem with starting in a cell, and I agree with Spiney.

Yeah, I like the whole "And he rose from the dirt and saved us all!"-feeling.

There are so many other possibilities for backstory creation other than a prison cell, though. I mean, really. You could just be a hapless nobody (or somebody - who knows) who wanders into the wrong place at the wrong time. Or right place, I suppose, all things considered.

Which presents a challenge: if not the prison cell, then what else is a good open idea?

You're a simple servant at some manor?

It's okay if you start in a prison, but they should make the tutorial shorter! It's annoying to replay it every time you create a new character.

mulder wrote:It's okay if you start in a prison, but they should make the tutorial shorter! It's annoying to replay it every time you create a new character.

Exactly. That's the only thing I don't like with Oblivion's tutorial. It's waaay too long.

@Avron: Well, you could always ride some caravan or something, coming from your home country, as a slave or something, and are freed by someone.

It would be nice if they threw some questions when you're about to finish your character (like in Mass Effect) and depending on how you answer them you'd end up in a different place when you start playing for real. Who knows, it might work....

EDIT: What I wrote was right? The thing with the "threw" I mean. I'm not english/american, you see....

You wake up in a cave and discover some people have set up camp at the mouth of it. You walk up, and they are alarmed for a moment.

But, seeing that you're unarmed and looking ragged from a long journey on the road, they invite you to warm yourself by the fire.

Any attempt they make to get your backstory is answered with curt evasions. You see that the campers are part of a trade caravan moving towards town. They offer you the chance to join the caravan.

If you agree, you take part in a tutorial where you learn in-game navigation and basic combat by defending the caravan as it makes its last leg into town.

If you refuse, they give you a knife in pity charity, then you're free to tramp off into the world and start the game quickly.

That's a great idea, Dark Spark. I like your creativity!

ShadowWarrior wrote:Anyway, tbh I can see the tutorial starting off in a Arena of some sort, and you need to fight from your freedom. That'd be cool. But you don't directly go into combat, you have a small amount of training first, learn the controls etc then go and win a match for your freedom.

Good idea...

I have to say, Dark Spark's idea would be one of the best game openings of all time.

I would like to keep the prison thing

I'm with the others in that a cell is a must.
It's like, tradition!

Maybe you could pick a nobility class (along with the usual skill class) like, farmer, commoner, noble, prisoner, begger, slave - they could have different starting quests, and it could affect some other things (like if you are a farmer you can get things like horses for cheap, and nobles can just walk into high-status places where others would have to sneak in).

it'd be cool if they had like 4 or 5 canned openings you could pick from to try and keep everybody happy. Like prisoner, servant, farmer, caravaneer etc.

personally i like the prisoner opening because its perfect for my orc barbarian

The cell theme is the easiest to work with and its traditional with the ES games.

I hope they dont do something like the beginning of Fallout 3

I, too, tire of starting life as a criminal. I resent the implication, especially considering my persecution complex.

EDIT: Dark Spark, you are a genius.