A lot of the time when I start a new game I grind my character to level 81 by doing misc quests and training before doing any of the main quest, daedric quests and faction quests.

On my next playthrough I'm not going to do that though and I'm just going to play "naturally" and level up bit by bit following the main storyline. My idea was this:-

- Start the main quest

- Do the companions quests whilst levelling up/maxing out all warrior type skills

- Continue the main quest and continue doing "Dragonborn training" by learning shouts from dungeons

- When the Thieves guild is encountered during the main quest, do all of their quests whilst levelling up/maxing out all thief type skills

- Continue the main quest

- When the College of Winterhold is encountered during the main quest, do all of their quests whilst levelling up/maxing out all mage type skills

- Finish the main quest

- Do the Dark Brotherhood quests

- Do the Civil War Quests

My problem with the above is that I'm wondering at what point I should do the companions quests? At first I was going to just play the main quest up until after dragon rising and after being accepted as dragonborn by the greybeards and then I would do the companions quests, however a dragon would be quite hard to deal with at such a low level. It also seems a bit unrealistic that the dragonborn would just stop at that point neglect his duties and go and join the companions.

One thing I liked about Morrowind was that there was a clear break in the main quest where Cassius Cosades would suggest you go and join some guilds and train for a while before carrying the main quest on but there isn't really anything like that in Skyrim. Also the companions don't seem to even know who you are "I've never even heard of this outsider" which is a bit unbelievable when you've just became dragonborn on their doorstep. Therefore I think it may make sense logically and storyline wise to do their quests before even going to bleak falls barrow but this also has a downside because there is a word wall in one of the first dungeons in the questline which kind of spoils the magic of the bleak falls barrow word wall.

Does anyone else think as crazily as me like this?

Just remember that whenever you do decide to do The Companions

After that, you would not be receiving the resting bonus, so you would want to find and activate

Yes I know. I would probably level up BEFORE that point in their questline when that happens

Once you get out of Helgen, use CCs to set your PC's level to 50.

T'will be a different world.

I'm on PS3 so that's not possible but I'd rather play regularly. Sounds interesting though

Seriously though, all PC players should try it one point.

Pick only one of those factions and do the main quest. Dawnguard optional and Dragonborn before, during or after the main quest. It makes no difference.

The reason I can't do any other faction after some time in the game has passed is because I don't feel like the dragonborn should prove himself by killing an ice wraith when I have killed dragons, test my arm against Vilkas who has never even heard of me when I can scream at him and blow him through the skyforge, learn how to use a ward and asking begging Dumbledore to teach me how to use it when I can scream at him or steal from some argonian when I can should have the option to tell Brynjolf to [censored] off and say I'm the dragonborn and be able to make Maul (Farkas #6) cry.

All of the guild questlines are designed to be a tutorial and they feel like they should be started at level 1-5. Otherwise it feels weird having to let these people walk over me when I should have the option to tell these people I'm the dragonborn and they should kneel to me.

Haha. I feel the same way. The way I was going to rationalize this was that the dragonborn himself would consider these factions "training" in their specific fields and thereby to keep it realistic he would not use much magic at all until he joins the college of winterhold and would not use many thief skills until he joins the thieves guild at which point he would master those skills in order to be a better Dragonborn. The college and the thieves guild are both visited via the storyline though which makes it a bit better I think as the thieves guild especially recognise you as dragonborn hence the reason they let you join.

As for joining the Companions early I see this as the Dragonborn's new home. He has just arrived in Skyrim and needs a place to go. After stumbling across Aela and company fighting a giant he decides to join them as the companions seems like a good place for him to hone his skills. He "can handle" himself as he tells Kodlak plus at that point he isn't dragonborn so he can be treated like a whelp for now

One thing I really think Bethesda missed out on was perhaps the ability to spar with someone or practice on a training dummy to improve warrior skills. I hate having to go and clear out a dungeon only to find out that it doesn't respawn for some essential quest later on

I think though when it comes to playing the game "realistically" your character should be focused on only one faction. As said above, if you complete one and level up a bit and you are now fully aware that you are dragonborn and everybody should kneel to you, and then you go to another faction and they treat you like a weakling.
You don't have to do everything just because it's there, even if it's fun.
I guess though it gives you more quests, and it's easier to level up without having to grind your character.

I'mma go with the opinion that the most natural/realistic way to go about this is to only join one faction, or at the very least complete only one and still have ties to the others if you must. It's a little unrealistic that one would be skilled in every single discipline in the whole game in such a short amount of time. Becoming a master in more than a few skills within the character's archetype is already pushing it, IMO.

I'd put off doing the MQ for a while and join one faction, do some of their questline then, when you feel strong enough to deal with dragons, start the MQ and either go straight through or alternate with other quests (maybe the rest of the quests for faction you joined). Like everyone else, I don't see the point of spreading yourself thin or being all things to all people, but then I tend to approach the game from a roleplay perspective.

Why? To me, the fun is in getting to level 50, not just being there.

I think it does make sense that certain factions treat you as a beginner though because essentially you are as far as they are concerned. I also think it makes the main quest a lot more longer and epic if you do these other questlines as offshoots of the main quest. It just seems a bit stupid that you are rebuilding the thieves guild and college when dragons are terrorizing skyrim but I think there are some breaks during the questline when I can squeeze them in

I think what he means is that the bandits and npcs will be very powerful where as you won't

My most natural/realistic way to play Skyrim is to take only those actions that are appropriate to my character.

I meant in terms of the main quest and storyline i.e. the best way to play through that AND the sidequests without it looking like you've completely neglected the main quest