The Difficulty option allows you to choose how challenging the game, generally in combat, is. Throughout The Elder Scrolls, there have been a multitude of ways to change the difficulty and multiple difficulties to choose from. This slider was used to change the difficulty in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion.
Morrowind
At launch Morrowind did not include difficulty settings, but they were later added with a patch. Difficulty is changed by moving a slider left or right: moving the slider to the left decreases the difficulty, while moving the slider to the right increases it.
Oblivion
Difficulties in Oblivion are controlled by the Slider seen above.
- If you move the bar to the left, monsters will do less damage to you and will be more vulnerable to your attacks, thus making the game easier.
- If you move the bar to the right, monsters will do more damage to you and will be more resistant to your attacks, thus making the game harder.
Skyrim
The difficulty in Skyrim can be changed by opening the pause menu and accessing "Settings" under the "Gameplay" Tab. Difficulties in Skyrim change the damage multiplier causing direct changes to skills that rely on them. There are six difficulties, ranging from Novice to Legendary, from less to more difficult, respectively. In Skyrim, difficulty can be changed during combat. This allows players to take advantage and make fights easier while they are happening. This is advertised as a loading screen hint.
| Difficulty | Player Damage Dealt | Player Damage Taken |
|---|---|---|
| Novice | 2x | 0.5x |
| Apprentice | 1.5x | 0.75x |
| Adept | 1x | 1x |
| Expert | 0.75x | 1.5x |
| Master | 0.5x | 2x |
| Legendary | 0.25x | 3x |
Trivia
- At difficulty settings easier than Adept, weapon and magic (Destruction, etc) skills level quicker than armor skills because (as shown above) the Dragonborn does more damage and receives less damage. Settings harder than Adept create the reverse scenario. On Adept, such skills level at the same rate.