How to Be an Assassin in Skyrim
Raise your Sneak skill., Use light armor., Make use of sneak attacks., Hope for the best, prepare for the worst., Establish an escape route., Keep an eye on your surroundings., Invest in various perks., Stay undetected if you don't want to get...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Raise your Sneak skill.
The higher your Sneak skill, the harder you are to detect and the more useful perks you can acquire.
Sneaking without being detected raises the skill level, so practice often.
Use invisibility spells or potions to help you sneak successfully.
For example, the Shadow Stone grants a 60 second spell of invisibility that can be used once a day.
You could also use the Thief Stone, southwest of Riverwood, which increases the speed of learning stealth skills by 20%.
Try sneaking around people who are sleeping
- you're less likely to be detected! The Sneak skill trainers are Khayla (Adept) who can be found with the travelling Khajiit Caravans, Garvey (Expert) in Markarth and Delvin Mallory (Master) at the Thieves Guild, Riften. -
Step 2: Use light armor.
Light armor (Hide, Leather, Elven, Scale and Glass armor) is less noisy than heavy armor, making sneaking easier.
Some of the best armor sets in the game for assassins are given to the Dragonborn at various stages in the Dark Brotherhood and Thieves' Guild quest lines, for example, the Nightingale Armor.
Raise your light armor skill, which increases the armor's effectiveness.
You can do this by receiving damage while wearing light armor, or by using trainers or skill books. , If you're undetected, these can cause much more damage than regular attacks.
Perks in the Sneak tree, for example, Deadly Aim or Assassin's Blade, can raise the damage multiplier even higher.
A bow, as a ranged weapon, is perhaps the best choice for a sneak attack.
Poison your weapon for even higher damage. , Always be prepared for open combat with a decent melee weapon (daggers are a great choice, as they can be used for effective stealth kills and close-up combat; swords are also useful, as is destruction magic).
Always have extra potions and poisons handy. , If you're about to attempt a kill that will have overwhelming consequences, find the quickest way to get out of the area before you kill your target. , Guards or witnesses could turn around corners at any second, and certain pathways or hard-to-reach areas may be helpful.
Know who and what is around your character, and take advantage of things like high rock outcroppings above your target or access to a rooftop. , The Sneak, Light Armor, Archery, One-Handed, Lockpicking, and optionally some schools of magic should be your main skills.
Perks for these skills will be very useful. , If you see the eye icon (which indicates whether NPCs are aware of you) open slowly, freeze.
When the eye stops opening, quietly sneak into the shadows. , The quests will allow you to practice your skills and technique and the rewards are well-suited for an assassin character build.
Speak to Aventus Aretino in Windhelm to get started. -
Step 3: Make use of sneak attacks.
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Step 4: Hope for the best
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Step 5: prepare for the worst.
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Step 6: Establish an escape route.
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Step 7: Keep an eye on your surroundings.
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Step 8: Invest in various perks.
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Step 9: Stay undetected if you don't want to get caught.
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Step 10: Join the Dark Brotherhood.
Detailed Guide
The higher your Sneak skill, the harder you are to detect and the more useful perks you can acquire.
Sneaking without being detected raises the skill level, so practice often.
Use invisibility spells or potions to help you sneak successfully.
For example, the Shadow Stone grants a 60 second spell of invisibility that can be used once a day.
You could also use the Thief Stone, southwest of Riverwood, which increases the speed of learning stealth skills by 20%.
Try sneaking around people who are sleeping
- you're less likely to be detected! The Sneak skill trainers are Khayla (Adept) who can be found with the travelling Khajiit Caravans, Garvey (Expert) in Markarth and Delvin Mallory (Master) at the Thieves Guild, Riften.
Light armor (Hide, Leather, Elven, Scale and Glass armor) is less noisy than heavy armor, making sneaking easier.
Some of the best armor sets in the game for assassins are given to the Dragonborn at various stages in the Dark Brotherhood and Thieves' Guild quest lines, for example, the Nightingale Armor.
Raise your light armor skill, which increases the armor's effectiveness.
You can do this by receiving damage while wearing light armor, or by using trainers or skill books. , If you're undetected, these can cause much more damage than regular attacks.
Perks in the Sneak tree, for example, Deadly Aim or Assassin's Blade, can raise the damage multiplier even higher.
A bow, as a ranged weapon, is perhaps the best choice for a sneak attack.
Poison your weapon for even higher damage. , Always be prepared for open combat with a decent melee weapon (daggers are a great choice, as they can be used for effective stealth kills and close-up combat; swords are also useful, as is destruction magic).
Always have extra potions and poisons handy. , If you're about to attempt a kill that will have overwhelming consequences, find the quickest way to get out of the area before you kill your target. , Guards or witnesses could turn around corners at any second, and certain pathways or hard-to-reach areas may be helpful.
Know who and what is around your character, and take advantage of things like high rock outcroppings above your target or access to a rooftop. , The Sneak, Light Armor, Archery, One-Handed, Lockpicking, and optionally some schools of magic should be your main skills.
Perks for these skills will be very useful. , If you see the eye icon (which indicates whether NPCs are aware of you) open slowly, freeze.
When the eye stops opening, quietly sneak into the shadows. , The quests will allow you to practice your skills and technique and the rewards are well-suited for an assassin character build.
Speak to Aventus Aretino in Windhelm to get started.
About the Author
Isabella Gonzales
Professional writer focused on creating easy-to-follow practical skills tutorials.
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