Clean-installed Oblivion for the 235346th time, going to do a main quest RP-friendly run.

At which point in the MQ is it deemed realistic to start wandering and exploring, doing insignificant side quests, maybe guilds and stuff? To me, it has always seemed like:

Thank you Emporer for getting me out of prison... OMG The Emporer was murdered, QUICK TAKE THIS AMULET TO JAUFFRE. Whew, made it in time... no WAIT! Have to pick up Martin in Kvatch. Man, Kvatch sure looks bleak and weird... WHAT THE!? Oblivion gate in front of Kvatch, need to close it!... Boy that was quite a hellish run, glad that's over... WHAT!? Now I have to help the Kvatch soldiers... Alright, done, now can I finally... oh hi Martin... oh what's that you MUST get back to Weynon Priory now? Okay let's go! Arrived at Weynon Priory... OMG Mythic Dawn assassins! QUICK retreat to Cloud Ruler Temple! ... etc etc etc

Unlike Morrowind -- where after every few quests, Caius tells me that I'm basically a noob and should take my time to get a freelance job or two, make a name for myself, hone my skills and gain some levels -- everything in the Oblivion Main Quest is so tightly put together that from an RP perspective, it's just unrealistic for me to go, "yo, I'm going to join the Mage's Guild first and become Arch Mage, can this Amulet of Kings business wait?"

In this particular character's run, I am strictly doing the Main Quest and NOT wandering off at all. I follow all the safe roads in Cyrodiil, and my gameplay is exactly how I described it above. For this reason, I am only Level 2 and about to do the quest to meet the Sponsor to get the 4th Xarxes book. I'd like my character to do some of the side content too, but I'm not sure if there's any point in the MQ where I can realistically wander off - besides AFTER the MQ has ended, becoming a Champion of Cyrodiil, and by then it feels weird to do mundane side quests because I consider myself the savior of the world already - not to mention most of the small side quests would be horribly unbalanced by endgame because Oblivion's level/monster/item scaling is weird.

Active Mod Files:

00  Oblivion.esm01  FastTravelDoubleFaceFix.esp02  Unofficial Oblivion Patch.esp  [Version 3.4.5]03  UOPS Additional Changes.esp04  Oblivion Citadel Door Fix.esp05  DLCShiveringIsles.esp06  Bashed Patch, 0.esp

No time is really good. That's why i like using Alternate start mods so my character starts without any main quest so i can free roam and it doesn't feel silly. Then when i'm ready to do the Main quests it's off to the sewers.

One can intersperse side/guild/misc. quests into a main-quest centric play-through without qualm. The trick is, in my opinion, to do so so that it seems natural. That's how my current avatar did it early on this play-through. Those long ago days remain a highlight for me. I retain many fond memories of the period. One legitimate approach is that from the get-go your avatar realizes he or she is in over his/her head, and needs all the help he/she can get. Thus my avatar traveled to Anvil, heard the Prophet, and became Divine Crusader. it was in that capacity, with the help of the Nine, that he battled Daedric invasion. Who better to counter Daedra than Aedra?

Likewise, he felt he needed to establish solid relations with Tamriel's two major non criminal guilds, though he would not rise to the top of those organizations until after the Crisis. (He also joined the Imperial Legion very early on, via mod.)

As to side quests, well, my avatar was constantly traveling from city to city, both as patrolling legionnaire and seeker of Gates to terminate. It seemed only fitting (and appropriate to his role as Divine Crusader) that he help citizens in need as time allowed. In any case, shutting down sixty-some Gates back to back with no break in the monotony can become too much of a good thing.

I agree that once one becomes CoC and / or Divine Crusader some quests lines no longer seem appropriate. The Arena comes to mind. My avatar simply didn't find the time to squeeze it in early on. Once the Crisis ended it made absolutely no sense to demean to titles of Champion and Divine Crusader by associating them with a circus act.

And of course my avatar turns his back on quests too overtly criminal.

As is obvious, my avatar tackled the Crisis as a goody-goody. There are certainly other, equally valid, approaches. The trick, again, is to do those things which make sense for whichever approach you settle on, and be leery of the rest.

-Decrepit-

I understand. I am also playing a good guy and I am definitely turning down any shady quests. It's just that with so much going on at this moment, I find it hard to justify running off to join the Fighter's Guild and gain some ranks, for example. Right now I have located the Mythic Dawn's base and am getting ready to infiltrate their base, see if I can get back the Amulet from them. Is now a good time to sort of stray for a couple of days, do some jobs for the FG to get some funds to get better gear so that I don't go in the MD base unprepared? Martin seems to be pretty safe for now, what with Baurus and Jauffre watching over him at the Cloud Ruler Temple...

Edit for clarification: This character will definitely NOT be a 100% completion, do-everything-be-everything kind of character and I'm prepared to leave some content untouched, but... I have a few things in mind that I'd like to find the time to do amidts all this Save-Tamriel business. Like killing vampires, finishing the Fighter's Guild... good things like that.