Looking for ideas for a pure blacksmith roleplay (Vanilla / Switch)
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I want to try a Skyrim playthrough where my character makes a living as a blacksmith rather than being an adventurer or hero.
I'm playing on Switch with no mods, and I'd like to mostly ignore the main quest. My main goal would be to live a relatively simple life: mining ore, smelting it, crafting weapons and armor, selling my work, and using the money to pay for food, lodging, supplies, and other living expenses.
I'd also like to gather as many of my own materials as possible rather than simply buying everything from merchants.
The problem is that many mines seem to be located in places occupied by bandits, draugr, or other enemies. So I'm wondering:
- How do you handle combat when playing a blacksmith?
- Do you allow yourself to fight when gathering materials, or try to avoid combat whenever possible?
- Are there any good towns or locations that work especially well as a home base for a blacksmith?
- Would Survival Mode make this kind of playthrough more interesting, or would it just become tedious?
- What kind of rules or routines make a blacksmith RP more fun?
- Do you set yourself goals besides simply leveling Smithing, such as earning enough gold to pay for your living expenses?
- Are there any quests, locations, or activities that fit naturally into a blacksmith's life without turning the character into a typical adventurer?
I'm not looking for an optimized Smithing build. I'm more interested in making the character actually feel like a blacksmith living in Skyrim.
I'd love to hear how other people have approached this kind of playthrough, especially with vanilla Skyrim.
English isn't my first language, so I used AI to help me with the wording. Thanks for understanding!