One handed or two handed

[Ron]

Im using a nord in heavy armor and he is going to be joining the dawnguard companions ans do the main questline.

 

[blue 468]

I like sword and shield it's just more fun bashing with a shield especially you get shield charge.

 

[Aquillus]

I've been doing a lot of one handed dual wielding lately.

 

[morguen87]

I like one hand and shield for a warrior in all rpgs cause I value defense over offense. In Skyrim you can dual wield too, so try all 3 and see which feels best for you.
Personally I don't like dual wield because I run out of stamina very quickly and then feel like I have two wet noodles in my hands. Though if you invest heavily in stamina and/or play a redguard (their racial ability lets them regen stamina quickly) it'll probably help.
I don't like the Battle Axes or Warhammers either just because of how slow they swing, they feel too clunky and I don't like the delay in pressing the trigger to swing and then having it happen. It throws off my aim.
Greatswords are pretty fun though, it doesn't feel like they take an eternity to swing and they have pretty good range. (haha, it looks pretty cool on your character's back, too)

Overall I still like the one handed weapon with shield. The shield makes for more effective blocking and even if you don't block, it's another passive piece of armor which certainly doesn't hurt. I use the greatsword when I want to feel like a badass, but I don't like the other 2 handed weapons and I don't like dual wielding.

That's just from personal experience though, go clear dungeons with your current character with different weapons and see which feels the best for you and you'll get an idea which route you want to go with a new character or even if you're existing one if you haven't wasted in perks in something you don't want to use.

For the most part, don't even get hung up on the weapon specific skills - like the bleeding damage for axe, crits for swords, or ignmore armor for hammers, none of them are very good.

 

[nordicowboy]

Sword and Board can get boring once your heavy armor, blocking, and smithing skills get high enough. Eventually enemies aren't going to be able to put enough of a dent in you for the game to be a challenge.

A few ideas:
1. Limit your player to a mid tier weapon or armor set. (Elven weapons and Dwarven armor for example)
2. Only equip items that you loot and do not improve them.
3. Dual wield. You will take more damage, but gives you an opportunity and reason to level Resoration or Alchemy more.
4. Stagger your skill points. 3:1 towards health or stamina, or 2:1:1 if you want to mix magica in there.

Or ignore everything above if you're not worried about strategy and just want to bulldoze the fluff out of everything.

 

[morguen87]

Sword and Board can get boring once your heavy armor, blocking, and smithing skills get high enough. Eventually enemies aren't going to be able to put enough of a dent in you for the game to be a challenge.

A few ideas:
1. Limit your player to a mid tier weapon or armor set. (Elven weapons and Dwarven armor for example)
2. Only equip items that you loot and do not improve them.
3. Dual wield. You will take more damage, but gives you an opportunity and reason to level Resoration or Alchemy more.
4. Stagger your skill points. 3:1 towards health or stamina, or 2:1:1 if you want to mix magica in there.

Or ignore everything above if you're not worried about strategy and just want to bulldoze the fu** out of everything.

Easy solution for every build = No smithing! It took me 40 levels to reach a 400 armor rating and by then my character is basically done anyway. Similar to #2, but I think it's ok to buy things from merchants too.

 

[Kalin of High Rock]

I go with a one handed sword. I like to have an offhand free for a shield, a ward, a heal, a ranged spell or a close range spell.

I especially like having a greater ward at the ready. Nothing makes me feel like a boss more than seeing a dragon breath fire at me and I hold up my hand and the flames break around me like water on a rock. When the beast lands and I close in to melee range I switch to a shield. Or Wall of Flames. For no practical reason other than kill cams are just that much cooler then things are on fire.

Wards also stop all thu'ums in general, so I normally have a one handed sword and ward ready in any drogaur infested ruin. Because being Fus Roh Dah'd is only funny when it's not happening to you.

Though Nords in general hate magic and mistrust mages, there are some that take a more practical approach to the arcane. A one handed weapon would allow you to wield one of the new undead-focused day light spells available to the Dawnguard, as well as any number of the spells in the restoration school focused on the destruction of the undead. A must-have in any vampire slayer's tool kit.

On top of the utility of having a free hand, one handed weapons with the proper skill and enchantments can hit like absolute trucks. Two handed weapons really can't compete, they hit harder but have limited defensive abilities and stop the user from using magic while their weapon is drawn. Someone with a free hand can do anything. Even pick up a second weapon.

 

[Aden Dovah]

I like one handed more... Since i can equip the shield in the other hand but when it gets boring i just use the blade without the shield....

 

[SilentCO1]

I just started a Breton using a 2h sword and using magic for ranged attacks instead of a bow. It's hard to start off due to my 3 main abilities I'm using start at 15 but it's really fun. 2h swords are awesome for just mowing people down.

 

[Declando]

I maxxed out both my One Handed and Heavy Armour skills, and I also had the perk which increased attack speed when dual wielding. So I ran around town wearing Daedric Armour with two Daedric swords just beating the crap out of anything hostile that even looked at me.

After a while this got boring and I also wanted to level up, so I got me some Glass armour and a Daedric greatsword and began to level up my Two-Handed and Light Armour skills.

Both techniques are efficient in their own ways.

 

[i K33L n0085]

I use one handed most of the time, because I don't like limiting myself to using one weapon at a time.
But there is one exception, the Ebony Blade, that thing does so much damage it's like using 3 weapons at a time.

 

[nolandman]

I use one-handed weapons (typically swords) alongside wards and shields because I value speed and adaptable defense. In terms of keeping the off-hand versatile I've heavily invested in Destruction, Restoration, and Alteration spells each corresponding with a specific tactic I like. Typically I'll use Destruction for the long range, with a sword in the main hand when the opponent is capable of both getting in close, and disrupting me from a far, in an attempt to close the potential gap that can occur whilst dealing damage (Alteration-Paralysis is also effective for closing the distant between you and such an enemy, but you eliminate the ability to strike out as you advance). Restoration can be used to the same kind of end by blocking spells and shouts as you close in on a target. However I typically combine all of the aspects for most bouts (ex: 1.Ebonyflesh-Alteration to start off, switching that hand to 2.Greater Ward-Restoration, and in terms of offense using either the sword, or 3.Icy Spear in the main hand). Throw a shield in there for absorbing physical damage and charging where necessary and you pretty much have my offensive/defensive playing strategy. I am a heavy bow user and sneaker when I want to avoid fighting head on though. Doesn't hurt to toss a Muffle spell into the mix either when doing so. So I've invested accordingly.

 

[The Fatalist]

I generally go two handed. Sure, It may be slow, but every power attack is pretty much guarenteed to be a stagger, and the amount of damage it does over one handed is pretty respecatable. Plus you get the ability to block as an added bonus.

That, and the greatswords decapitation is AWESOME.

 

[nolandman]

I generally go two handed. Sure, It may be slow, but every power attack is pretty much guarenteed to be a stagger, and the amount of damage it does over one handed is pretty respecatable. Plus you get the ability to block as an added bonus.

That, and the greatswords decapitation is AWESOME.

*nods* I can respect that. Side-note though: where did you take that color quiz on your sig?

 

[Nick_Tbolt]

I use a light armor set with dual Wielding weapons, usually war Axes, but i sometimes use swords too. I just put the shield of solitude enchantment of a neclace and ring, and just go with a 50% magic resistance, might try to go up to 75% if the mages keep kickig my ass, I know why Nords hate them Lol

Level 62 Nord - Dual Wielding Dragon War Axes

 

[nolandman]

*nods* I can respect that. Side-note though: where did you take that color quiz on your sig?

Never mind, got it!

 

[Bruce of High Rock]

I do both. one handed is 100 two handed is 92

 

[nordicowboy]

Easy solution for every build = No smithing! It took me 40 levels to reach a 400 armor rating and by then my character is basically done anyway. Similar to #2, but I think it's ok to buy things from merchants too.

Maybe it's just MY game, but I put #2 down because I tend to find way better enchanted items with merchants. On my current Khajiit playthrough, I only buy items if I turn around and disenchant them. Trying to make things a little more difficult this time around.