Skyrim Companions

[Nocola]

Hi there,

I'm loving Skyrim but there is one thing that irks me, the companions. In previous Bethesda games namely Fallout New Vegas, when you got a companion there was a story to it. It wasn't just a fetch quest and then the option to "follow me" without any explanation appeared.

In F0:NV I had to actually have a conversation with most companions, even talk them into coming with me, and there was usually a good reason. I want to feel like my companion is just that, my companion. Not this guy I asked to just come here for a second. Basically I feel like the companions need more motivation/story, because right now it feels hollow.

EDIT: It just occurred to me I should probably have called them followers, not companions, but I think everyone understands me.

 

[Nulmas]

New Vegas wasn't made by Bethesda.

Even so, the Fallout 3 companions were a bit more fleshed out than Skyrim's.

It's part of the nature of the Elder Scrolls series. Things just don't tend to be as fleshed out as in other, less "sand-boxy" RPGs.

 

[Darth_Dude]

Yeah I am also pretty disappointed by Skyrim's followers, I honestly expected more depth to them.

But hey, it's still a great game regardless, who am I to complain?

 

[Clive Howlitzer]

It is a different breed. In Skyrim they are mostly just hired hands, followers, etc. They are not exactly your best friend or anything like that. I would prefer they had some deeper followers/companions myself. However I can see what they were going for, trying to just give a ton of options for followers so anyone could get the type they wanted without needing some random follower mod.
I used Faendal for the longest time until I picked up a Khajiit. Now I just need an Argonian, since they are 100% more awesome than anything else in Skyrim.

 

[Valagetti]

Yeah my companion was the same, only had two things to say, but she was forced to follow me, but still, some background would be much appreciated.
The thing that drives me up the walls with the companions is, there always get in the bloody way, all the time. Especially in doorwells and don't they get outta my way, so I have to strike him/her to get it outta my way and then the whole town comes down on me for assault. I don't use companions for that reason, sorry for the rant.

Still my GOTY so far, amazing game, apart from the damm companions, I hope they all take an arrow to the knee.

 

[SidingWithTheEnemy]

It is a different breed. In Skyrim they are mostly just hired hands, followers, etc. They are not exactly your best friend or anything like that. I would prefer they had some deeper followers/companions myself. [...]

You can actually marry most of them, which is quite weird "for not being your best friend". The whole marriage click, click, fast travel, click is rather weird as well.

 

[Phishfood]

I tend to keep lydia with me, she can carry heavy things and serves as a good meatshield.

Just in case people haven't done the mage guild questline yet.

Spoiler

The one from the mage guild I forget the name of...."here, try these scrolls that will blow up in your face" then "take me adventuring with you!" "what? so you can finish me off?!?"

 

[Thraxen]

It is a different breed. In Skyrim they are mostly just hired hands, followers, etc. They are not exactly your best friend or anything like that. I would prefer they had some deeper followers/companions myself. However I can see what they were going for, trying to just give a ton of options for followers so anyone could get the type they wanted without needing some random follower mod.
I used Faendal for the longest time until I picked up a Khajiit. Now I just need an Argonian, since they are 100% more awesome than anything else in Skyrim.

Had Lydia for five minutes. Kept getting in my way and stealing my kills. Booted her off.

Sounds like you could both do with Derkeethus, seeing as he's an Argonian but he tends to use Bow and Arrows, so he's not usually close enough to be worried by an ill-timed hammer blow or somesuch.

Now if only Frost would realise that he's a bit of a hazard too.

The thing that drives me up the walls with the companions is, there always get in the bloody way, all the time. Especially in doorwells and don't they get outta my way, so I have to strike him/her to get it outta my way and then the whole town comes down on me for assault. I don't use companions for that reason, sorry for the rant.

You know that if you sprint into them, they move back a fair bit?

 

[Clive Howlitzer]

It is a different breed. In Skyrim they are mostly just hired hands, followers, etc. They are not exactly your best friend or anything like that. I would prefer they had some deeper followers/companions myself. [...]

You can actually marry most of them, which is quite weird "for not being your best friend". The whole marriage click, click, fast travel, click is rather weird as well.

I have not used the marriage system yet but I heard it was pretty shallow.

 

[King of the Sandbox]

This is one of my main complaints too. Then again, I've only had two companions, Fandal (whom I sacrificed) and Benor, who basically wanted to fist fight, then follow me.

/shrugs

 

[Ranorak]

I slightly disappointed they don't grow stronger over the time.
As far as I know from wiki's, the followers level is made when you first enter the zone they appear in.
AKA Lidya will begin at the same level as you are when you first enter the Jarl's keep in Whiterun.

And they level up, but due to a bug of some sorts, they don't gain any stats.

I could be wrong, but it does seem that Lidya, despite her dwarven armour, is far weaker compared to her early times.

 

[Pearwood]

I have not used the marriage system yet but I heard it was pretty shallow.

It is, it's just a way to increase the rested bonus exp you get when you sleep in your house from 10 to 15.

And they level up, but due to a bug of some sorts, they don't gain any stats.

I thought that bug was specific to Lidia?

 

[Ranorak]

And they level up, but due to a bug of some sorts, they don't gain any stats.

I thought that bug was specific to Lidia?[/quote]

According to one wiki:

There is a bug related to companions' stats, which aren't updated on leveling (followers have the same level as player). There is an workaround (PC): Dismiss and wait until "Follower dismissed" message, open console, select follower with mouse an type "disable" (without quotations) and then "enable" commands. This is partially inventory-safe, and followers have no penalty for being dismissed, so you can hire them again for free. Equipped items on the follower will be replaced by the follower's default gear, so either take away any armor and weapons they wear or perform this while they are at their home location where they typically use their default gear over other items.

http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Followers

A follower's stats are determined based on the level the player is at when he or she first enters the zone that the follower is in. Once generated, the follower's stats do not increase at all.

http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Followers#Companions_Followers

 

[trouble_gum]

Had my first "companion" experience when the Companions teamed me up with Farkas for a mission.

Rapidly decided I was never hiring anyone ever.

I'd regard the FO and FO:NV characters as more "party members" and the ones you get in Skyrim as being more "henchmen." Granted, to get the option to hire out some of them, you have to actually do soemthing; whether its drinking weird potions that let you travel through other people's memories or retrieving their lost swords from Dwemer ruins before you can tap them to be your backup. The rest are basically mercs sitting around in taverns waiting for an adventurer to arrive and demand of the innkeeper: "Four pints of foaming ale, landlord and what's the local rumours?"

Thus; they don't really have the attached background or storyline that you extract from your followers in FO:NV or DA:O. Then again, both of those are very different games to Skyrim and I don't really feel Skyrim loses anything from not providing you with a posse of potential party members, each with their own hidden stories of personal tragedy for you to tease out of them as the story unfolds.

I'd far rather moan about having to smelt each iron ingot seperately and why on Nirn can't I enchant a suit of ARMOUR with damage type resistance?

 

[Rawne1980]

Hi there,

I'm loving Skyrim but there is one thing that irks me, the companions. In previous Bethesda games namely Fallout New Vegas, when you got a companion there was a story to it. It wasn't just a fetch quest and then the option to "follow me" without any explanation appeared.

In F0:NV I had to actually have a conversation with most companions, even talk them into coming with me, and there was usually a good reason. I want to feel like my companion is just that, my companion. Not this guy I asked to just come here for a second. Basically I feel like the companions need more motivation/story, because right now it feels hollow.

EDIT: It just occurred to me I should probably have called them followers, not companions, but I think everyone understands me.

That is because New Vegas was made by Obsidian.

Bathesda did Oblivion and Fallout 3 (as well as all the other previous Elder Scrolls titles).

Best way to get a decent companion is to wait for mods, and i'm not joking.

Some of the mod made companions for Oblivion are awesome (Check out Vilja).

 

[WolfThomas]

Used Faendral initially to abuse his archery training to level fast. Then Lydia for a while as melee backup. Then had Aela as my wife to back me up and again train archery (I don't even use it) and cover me with a bow. Then Jordis Shieldmaiden for the same reasons as Lydia but she's a higher level due to the the time I met her. Then Belrand briefly when I though I needed mage back up, but all he did was summon familars. Then Marcurio till he pissed me off. Now I use J'zargo whose a badass Khajit in full daedric except wearing the Diadem of the Savant and wielding a staff of fireball and a daedric sword.

I tend to keep lydia with me, she can carry heavy things and serves as a good meatshield.

Just in case people haven't done the mage guild questline yet.

Spoiler

The one from the mage guild I forget the name of...."here, try these scrolls that will blow up in your face" then "take me adventuring with you!" "what? so you can finish me off?!?"

I saw J'zargo (his name), punch a dragon to death. He's worth any risks.

I have not used the marriage system yet but I heard it was pretty shallow.

It is, it's just a way to increase the rested bonus exp you get when you sleep in your house from 10 to 15.

And get food that adds bonuses and usually cash as they open a shop. But still pretty shallow. For some reason I don't get the lovers bonus with Aela though, hmmm.

The thing that drives me up the walls with the companions is, there always get in the bloody way, all the time. Especially in doorwells and don't they get outta my way, so I have to strike him/her to get it outta my way and then the whole town comes down on me for assault.

Hold down the talk button (A for me on xbox) and you can issue orders to tell them to move somewhere.

 

[Clive Howlitzer]

I have not used the marriage system yet but I heard it was pretty shallow.

It is, it's just a way to increase the rested bonus exp you get when you sleep in your house from 10 to 15.

And they level up, but due to a bug of some sorts, they don't gain any stats.

I thought that bug was specific to Lidia?

I know that when I used the disable/enable trick in the console on Faendal, he got a lot better since I had been using him since lvl. 1 and was lvl. 40 at the time. I think it applies to all followers but I could be wrong.

 

[VoidWanderer]

At least it makes the Mace of Molag Bal a weapon worth feeding. (By killing your 'friends')

 

[MarsProbe]

I tend to keep lydia with me, she can carry heavy things and serves as a good meatshield.

Just in case people haven't done the mage guild questline yet.

I tried to keep my Lydia with at all times. I use the past tense as she seems to have gone missing (lost track of her in the middle of a skirmish between a group of bandits, a giant and a mammoth). She's likely dead, but as I haven't seen a body, I'm still hoping she will turn up at one of my houses eventually.

I hope so, as she was carrying a fair amount of my stuff. I've yet to find anyone else I can be bothered taking with me. There is that priestess from the shrine of Azura, not sure how much good she'd be in a fight.