Horses: What's the point?

[kyleekay]

So I recently acquired Frost for free. I never would have purchased a horse but I figured, what the hell? May as well use it since I've got it.

So far, I have seen NO point in using a horse. Sure, you climb mountains a bit easier and travel a bit faster... But I hate having to dismount the damn thing constantly. Those mountain flowers and butterfly wings aren't going to collect themselves, you know.

In all honesty, I was okay with the minor annoyances of riding a horse in exchange for faster traveling abilities, until I came down a mountain at the wrong angle. Next thing I knew, the horse was flying from underneath me and Dar'Ajira lay dead in a crumpled pile. A good twenty minutes of wandering, all for naught. Needless to say I left Frost behind as I restarted my adventure. And guess what? I made it down that mountain with no problems. Though I suppose my thumb was a bit sore from spamming the Y button to climb the mountain.

So, the question remains... What's the point of a horse? Limited fighting ability, dismounting constantly, and apparently easy death if you're not careful. I just feel like Bethesda didn't put enough thought into horse usage for skyrim. Thoughts?

 

[Uskyldig]

Horses will always bring this issue, it's a given .
Personally I think horses bring a nice aesthetic value not found when you're running around, though apart from the faster travelling it does little else.
Horses and alchemists don't mix either as you've mentioned .

 

[Gehenna]

Horses are cute and cuddly! Okay, I know that doesn't really factor in from a gameplay perspective but for someone like me who has dreamed of owning that pony since I was a little girl, it's a little bit of additional fun.

 

[Brizzle Kicks]

They taste pretty good ohhhh wrong thread....

 

[Soloquendi]

The idea of horses is good, but the actual implementation in the game sucks.

 

[Lady Imp]

Horses are a necessity. There are no empty halves of coconuts for your follower to bang together, after all.

 

[Hildolfr]

Yeah, I don't really use horses, either. Basically, for the reasons you explained. I mean, I think it would have been silly if they had omitted horses from the game, but I don't really see their usefulness.

A personal pet-peeve of mine when it comes to horses is the fact that followers don't get the option to ride with you. I guess if you're playing an evil character, you don't mind your follower to run after you on foot, but if you're a good person, you can't help but feel like a total douche for riding along while your friend/wife/brother-in-arms walks on foot.

 

[kyleekay]

All good points. I expected to see the opinions of "they're a necessity" and that aesthetically, they're quite nice. I suppose I just wish the execution of horses was better, so that I'd actually enjoy using one. They are more of a burden than anything. Hopefully Bethesda will take that iinto account next time, and make the game play more enjoyable when using a horse.

Cause at this point... Frost is pretty much only good for the meat. Hmm....

 

[Uther Pundragon]

Horses are just another RP tool for me to take advantage of. Obviously if I'm riding a horse, I won't be doing ingredient runs or anything like that.

 

[Saozig]

I think they included horses just to give players options of travel other than fast-travel and to help with the immersion aspect of the game. If they don't do anything for you then they're pretty easy to ignore, at least.

As a former equestrian I like them although I have to restrain myself from getting too nitpicky like the archery guy who was complaining about metal bows. Anyhow, I wish they didn't die so easily--that's a big deterrent from using them, especially at higher levels--and I hate that they can only full gallop/"sprint" for short bursts. I get it, they're draft-type horses so they're not Thoroughbreds, but a healthy draft can gallop a good distance and would have great stamina. I used to show (hunter-jumper) on a half-Clydesdale--he was indefatigable.

And a faster type of horse would have been a smart addition--can't tell you how many horses I could have saved if only they could have outrun bleeping Forsworn.

I don't use horses often in my gameplay--I tend to use the carts more. So horses are really for when I'm a little bored and need something a little different to do around Skyrim. My Bosmer mainly uses "Gyspy"--the horse he got with Windstad Manor and rode once so now she fast-travels/cart rides with him everywhere (and yes I name my horses)--to ride over to Honningbrew Meadery from Whiterun and back to fence stuff. It's just a nice change of pace from either fast-traveling or running over there on foot.

And I had my Dunmer buy her first horse ever--aptly named "Serjo"--and she rode from Whiterun to Dragon Bridge, with poor Kharjo trotting behind on foot (er, paw?). I'm actually pretty good at hunting deer/elk on horseback now, but for combat I usually need to dismount. However, I discovered with a follower, if wolves or a sabrecat attack, I can have to the horse gallop in a circle and get the beasts to chase after me, and my follower can pick them off with arrows. Kind of fun, especially if you're bored with killing your 1367th wolf.

 

[Neriad13]

I use horses all the time to escape from dragon and/or sabrecat attacks. They can run much faster than I can and normally leave monsters like that in the dust. It's also nice to get off your feet every once in a while if you never fast-travel or use carts like me. Sometimes, you're just on a dire mission, have to get somewhere fast and a horse is the way to go. And as for me, I've never used my horse for mountain-climbing. That's just not something that I believe they were truly designed for. It's a given that taking a large animal up the side of cliff is going to be dangerous - it's not like they're nimble-footed mountain goats.

 

[Uther Pundragon]

Horses makes sense for some type of characters and less so for others. Horses have never been a really viable option as far as game play mechanics go, at least not in TES series. But they were more useful in Daggerfall as you could also attach a cart to the horse and load it up, then hop on and be on your way. This was way handy when RPing as a merchant.

Skyrim, horse are not that useful in my opinion other than for role playing purposes. For example if you are fighting one one side in the civil war. With mods you could be leading a small group of mounted soldiers, scouting, etc, then riding back to army camp and getting some grub and talking around the fire. Etc.

 

[doc108]

Horses are a necessity. There are no empty halves of coconuts for your follower to bang together, after all.

Did they migrate away by any chance?

 

[Lady Imp]

Did they migrate away by any chance?

So are you saying a Tamrielic swallow brought them?

 

[Daedra'Mc'Bitch]

I find horses useful if:

1.) I omit fast traveling for immersion purposes. The boost in speed helps.

2.) I'm in open combat with multiple enemies. Shadowmere makes a wonderful damage sponge.

Some changes would be really nice, though. Improved mobility,a boost in speed, and an extra carrying capacity of 400 to carry your junk! That would be great.

 

[doc108]

So are you saying a Tamrielic swallow brought them?

Of course not those are too small. A mere 5 ounce Tamrielic swallow could not carry a coconut. It would take an Akaviri swallow to carry one of those.

 

[Lady Imp]

Of course not those are too small. A mere 5 ounce swallow could not carry a coconut. It would take an Akaviri swallow to carry one of those.

It could grip it by the husks!

 

[DrunkenMage]

I used to just run everywhere, but with the added combat on horses. I used the horse during the Civil war, storming the fort on horseback, charging up the stairs and along the walls hacking and slashing.

Though I prefer the horse you get from Soul Cairn, since I'm a Necromancer I like summoning an undead horse, that and I don't need to chase down the bastard because it wanders off, I can summon it when needed.

I don't like horses in Skyrim, they're snitches when you commit crimes and you have to chase it down.

 

[Punz]

Aesthetic appeal, perhaps? It would be nice if my horse didn't attack everyone I did. That annoys me to no end. I wish Bethesda would've added the option to tell your horse to wait or at least tie them up to a stall or tree.

 

[g33k5quadstud]

I think horses are just another form of transportation for the player. Or even a meat shield in some cases...much like followers in my book.