Are Leather Bracers really the best to smith?

[xsneakyxsimx]

Ever since 1.5, with the change to Smithing using the values of items, I've always wondered whether the old rule of Smithing Leather Bracers was really the best way to level. I mean, they do use the least amount of material, but they aren't exactly worth much. So, with some calculations to back me up, I hope to answer this question, if only for myself.

To start, I wanted to find out the minimum amount of material (Raw Leather) needed to smith the different parts of Leather armour, without any excess (no leftover Leather Strips). Here's the numbers:

• For Chestpieces, a minimum of 19 pieces of leather makes 4 pieces of armour.
• For Boots, 5 pieces of leather makes 2 pieces of armour
• For Bracers, 3 pieces of leather also makes 2 pieces of armour
• And for Helmets, 9 pieces of leather makes 4 pieces of armour.

Currently, Bracers still look like the best option because of the fact the only use 3 leather. But that's only small scale, and the numbers don't really mean much by themselves. So the next part, comparison. For this, I needed to find the smallest number that when divided by each of the Raw Materials number,equals a whole number. I simply did this by multiplying the number of Leather for chestpieces by multiples of 5, and divided that number by the others. The number I arrived at was 855. So from here, the calculations are:

• 855 / 19 = 45
• 855 / 5 = 171
• 855 / 3 = 285
• 855 / 9 = 95

Once again, the bracers still look like the best option. But there is two more calculations to do: adding those numbers to the respected numbers of armour pieces, then adding that number to the values of said pieces. This is what those calculations look like:

• 45 * 4 = 180 * 125 = 22,500
• 171 * 2 = 342 * 25 = 8,550
• 285 * 2 = 570 * 25 = 14,250
• 95 * 4 = 380 * 60 = 22,800

So, the final numbers show that, the item that, in theory, gives you the most experience for Smithing is the Leather Helmet, but only just. The Bracers are the second worst, beaten only by the Boots. So, that's proof that using your head really works! (Cheesy joke to end a boring post )

 

[AS88]

Thanks for this, I always thought that the helmets would work out the most useful for gaining XP, but could never be bothered to actually do anything like this

 

[xsneakyxsimx]

Thanks for this, I always thought that the helmets would work out the most useful for gaining XP, but could never be bothered to actually do anything like this

No worries.

 

[DJ Luigi]

Wow, I wasn't aware of the Smithing changes in 1.5 til I read your thread! Thanks for the heads up! (pun intended)

 

[xsneakyxsimx]

Wow, I wasn't aware of the Smithing changes in 1.5 til I read your thread! Thanks for the heads up! (pun intended)

No problemo.

 

[St1ngray]

thanks! :-)
I read somewhere ( maybe on these forums) that jewellery was now the way to go. how does that sit within your analyses.

 

[xsneakyxsimx]

thanks! :-)
I read somewhere ( maybe on these forums) that jewellery was now the way to go. how does that sit within your analyses.

Jewelry is definitely one of the better ways, especially at the start. With use of Alteration, it's simple and easy to start, plus you can use the gems that you either find or mine up with the ores to boost it further. But if you do use Transmute Ore, it's best to go for silver first if you have any gems, because the cheapest ring WITH a gem (Silver Garnet [160]) is worth more that the Gold Rings (75 each, 2 per ingot).

 

[AS88]

Also, Dwarven Bows are pretty much my favourite smithing leveller once I'm high enough level to survive Dwarven ruins - just pick up everything you see and smelt it all down. 2 Dwarven ingots and 1 Iron for a piece worth 270 Septims

 

[Alysa Roesch]

I feel like I've been lied to! Thanks for this though 'cause I've been using leather braces to level up my smithing lately.

 

[Cherry]

Also, Dwarven Bows are pretty much my favourite smithing leveller once I'm high enough level to survive Dwarven ruins - just pick up everything you see and smelt it all down. 3 Dwarven ingots and 1 Iron for a piece worth 270 Septims

Agreed. Although, it's only 2 dwarven metal ingots + 1 iron for a bow

Slightly off-topic, but if you also enchant all the bows you create, and then sell them, you'll also gain a lot enchanting xp AND loads of money.

 

[xsneakyxsimx]

I feel like I've been lied to! Thanks for this though 'cause I've been using leather braces to level up my smithing lately.

You weren't, you just didn't know the whole truth.

Agreed. Although, it's only 2 dwarven metal ingots + 1 iron for a bow

Slightly off-topic, but if you also enchant all the bows you create, and then sell them, you'll also gain a lot enchanting xp AND loads of money.

All in the name of progress, so no, you're not THAT off topic...

 

[AS88]

only 2 dwarven metal ingots

You're right, edited typo

 

[Drax Rifter]

thanks! :-)
I read somewhere ( maybe on these forums) that jewellery was now the way to go. how does that sit within your analyses.

Jewelry is great but you have to sit there transmuting iron to silver and then to gold. If your character doesn't do enchanting or perk in alteration that becomes rather tedious.

Leather is readily available and cheap. I just buy out the smiths in every town I visit. I believe it takes about 800 leather to level smithing to 100. Most smiths stock 15 leather + 20 strips, so that's roughly 50 shopping tips, which you should be able to do while questing.

 

[Agentoringe]

Yeh, best way to level smithing IMO is using the fortify resto trick w the alchemy gear and making a fortify smithing potion w a HUGE% value, then go make like 20 iron daggers, then get the iron ingots to improve them, pop the potion and improve them all, after 2-3 your smithing should be 100 and you can sell them for enough to level your speech after sellin to both vendors at war maiden and Belethor...it's a lot easier than the mindless material grinds back and forth.

 

[Daelon DuLac]

Do any of you mine your own gold? I know 1/2 a dozen places that I go to on a regular basis, mine it, convert it to ingots and go for the jewelry (I always have lots of gems!). Great for upping smithing and, for me, cheap (other than the constant ache in my shoulders and lower back). Plus, wherever I go for the gold ore, there are always a bunch of folks to slaughter and, inevitably a chest or two. I also have a habit of carrying a pickax with me all the time and mining everything I find, regardless of type. Once it's converted it adds up.

My issue is that I can never find anybody with enough money to sell anything. Fah! I have so many potions, enchanted items and just plain ole stuff and nobody every has more than 750 at the stores or 1500 at the forges. Any suggestions on that until I can perk up my speech high enough?

 

[Perkless in Skyrim]

Do any of you mine your own gold? I know 1/2 a dozen places that I go to on a regular basis, mine it, convert it to ingots and go for the jewelry (I always have lots of gems!). Great for upping smithing and, for me, cheap (other than the constant ache in my shoulders and lower back). Plus, wherever I go for the gold ore, there are always a bunch of folks to slaughter and, inevitably a chest or two. I also have a habit of carrying a pickax with me all the time and mining everything I find, regardless of type. Once it's converted it adds up.

My issue is that I can never find anybody with enough money to sell anything. Fah! I have so many potions, enchanted items and just plain ole stuff and nobody every has more than 750 at the stores or 1500 at the forges. Any suggestions on that until I can perk up my speech high enough?

I was a miner like you ... then I took a pickaxe in the knee.

Being able to Transmute iron to gold takes some of the fun out of discovering a gold mine. I had one character that stockpiled gold and silver ingots because she was so rich there was no point in selling them.

I know what you mean about carrying a pickaxe with me at all times though. I frequently wander out into the middle of nowhere and have often been thankful I had one with me.

Upping your Speech will just make things worse, as you'll get better and better deals and need to sell less to suck them dry. I usually do the Thieves' Guild questline as it opens up fences for stolen goods and if you do the radiant quests you open several more stores in the Ragged Flagon. Everyone also gets a boost to their gold though I don't remember how much.

But really, there's not much point to it except to see how rich you can become. Not many money sinks in Skyrim unless you like killing horses or accumulating large bounties.

 

[Daelon DuLac]

I actually heard the "arrow in the knee" comment for the first time the other day and thought of all of you. Oddly, I heard exactly the same line from the Bandit Leader that complains about the illegitimate child yesterday and from a Master Necromancer the night before (? she was shot in the knee? how?).

 

[Agentoringe]

You can increase vendors gold by up to 1500g total from what you see on them to start with, both acquired through the speech perks...aside from that, read up there where I posted about the fortify resto+smithing potions to make iron daggers super upgraded and then turn around to sell them, it doesn't matter of they are worth 10k and the vendor only has 1200g, the speech xp gain is based on the value of the item sold/bought from the vendor (albeit the vendor has to have at least 1g or else it wont work selling him stuff, but that will level your speech in 2 sales, then all you do is wait in a town like white run where there are 6 merchants+ stall vendors and sell the iron daggers, wait 2 days, do it again until you have the money value you want, don't matter if you oversell them, it's about acquiring the most gold for the cheapest cost to you, and the iron daggers über upgraded is the way to go

 

[Daelon DuLac]

You can increase vendors gold by up to 1500g total from what you see on them to start with, both acquired through the speech perks...aside from that, read up there where I posted about the fortify resto+smithing potions to make iron daggers super upgraded and then turn around to sell them, it doesn't matter of they are worth 10k and the vendor only has 1200g, the speech xp gain is based on the value of the item sold/bought from the vendor (albeit the vendor has to have at least 1g or else it wont work selling him stuff, but that will level your speech in 2 sales, then all you do is wait in a town like white run where there are 6 merchants+ stall vendors and sell the iron daggers, wait 2 days, do it again until you have the money value you want, don't matter if you oversell them, it's about acquiring the most gold for the cheapest cost to you, and the iron daggers über upgraded is the way to go

Great suggestions, but, I'm really not that in to all that money, just the perks. I guess I could just sell them and sell them and sell them since it perks up my speech so much as well. I don't really need the money, but I want all the points! I've so many of those damnable daggers now, I don't know what to do with them.

 

[Agentoringe]

Yeah, just make an epic potion (or 3) of fortify smithing to the 1000000% kind of thing, then upgrade them all...2lbs of rich floating around, keep about 10 on you at any time and just buy what you want from the vendor and sell them a dagger, I do that to all the smiths across skyrim for a MASSIVE amount of smithing materials, for making whatever I want, AND for making all the building mats I can stand to have, cause nothing pissed me off more on hearthfire than being 2 nails short of finishing something... -_-