Don't know if it's been done before but I'd like to dedicate a whole topic to the body shapes, size, height, weight etc of the characters in Skyrim. I have a few questions that may have no answers yet.

1. Will all characters have the same body shape like in Oblivion? I mean, in Oblivion pretty much everybody was incredibly muscular and well-toned. Even fatties had six packs.

2. Will you be able to do something about your height and weight? Nords are naturally taller, it'd be good if being taller gives some bonus but also some handicaps, same for being shorter.

3. Are we going to see different body models? It'd be good if we could have fat people, as well as skinny people, muscular ones and others in between.

I ask all of this because I played Fallout 3, Mass Effect 1&2 and Oblivion, in these games everyone has the same body and it just makes the game unrealistic. Every guy is the same height and size, same for the girls. It would be great if there could be 4-5 different body models for characters, or just a tool that randomly generates bodies.

That's it for now. I'm sure some of these questions have been addressed but we never know.

Honestly, the whole thing about 'Each is a unique and beautiful snowflake" is a bunch of hooey. Ask anyone who sees a truly large amount of people in their career (Especially teachers), aside from the occasional outlier, many, many people look remarkably similar.

That said, I'm pretty sure there's going to be a couple body types for each race/gender, not sure how extensive it is, but until each person is a hand-sculpted, distinctly different model, there will be someone who will complain, and unjustly at that.

You mean like this guy http://www.thetraininglifestyle.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/six_pack_beer_bellyy.jpg ?



That would be nice. Nothing better than a thick sheet of fat under your skin to keep you warm in a cold climate.

I would like to see more variation, because not everybody of the same race has the same shape and build in RL. I want to see all different shapes and sizes.

Agreed. Still, I would like to see a few different body shapes. Everyone was so ripped in Oblivion. You recall Newheim the Portly? Dude look like a fat pig and when you removed his clothes, he was like a bodybuilder.


Yeah actually. There are fat people in real life. Why not in Skyrim? I'm not saying it should be really life-like but I think a few different bodies would be a nice addition.

this isn't too bad a topic, i remember one a few months ago about adding diabetes to the game, which enraged me.

No, you're absolutely right. And it's perfectly reasonable to expect 2-5 builds, depending on the race. But some people won't be satiated unless literally every NPC was a hand crafted unique variant on what is essentially the same thing.


Mass Effect is a bad example though. It would be implied that, given the technological state of the galaxy, most everyone would reasonably look like the current "Ideal" through optimized eugenics.

Someone seriously suggested that?! I'm sorry, but what a dunce! I have several diabetic family members, and not one of them would want to have diabetes in a game! Geesh! :facepalm:

I'm half expecting every nord male to be brimming with veins. not holding my breath for varying body types, especially when it comes to singular races.

Varying body types have already been confirmed haven't they? Or do you mean all body types will be in great shape regardless of the size?

That diabetes thing is a bit hardcoe lol.. a little message could pop up saying 'You feel lightheaded - eat an apple!'

LOL. You better increase your Alchemy so you can crush up the right plants to get your insulin! I've heard some crazy ideas for "realism", and I myself like to mod the game to be far more "realistic" than vanilla, but this sort of thing is a whole new level of strange to want. Made me really chuckle.

On topic, I really hope that instead of just a few body types that they would leverage a morph system where the body can be adjusted via sliders. If they start with that in vanilla, the modding community will take it further more easily because it will have a good base to work from, and by the time were done we'll have every body type imaginable I'd think. The biggest problem I forsee on something like that though is a lack of relationship between the body, neck, and head, such that a really fat person would have a neck and head of an average person, and look very odd, but hopefully this too can be overcome.

While that might be true for comparable individuals, it is very different for people living in different environments and leading different lifestyles. These two have a huge impact on the body, and I think it's strange for a role playing game to assume everybody basically lead the same life untill you start the game. :shrug:

Agreed. Look around when you go out in public--everybody does not look the same. There is a lot of variation in RL...

They confirmed body types, but i doubt it will be extensive. If you think about it, Obese people struggle to walk, and even moderately fatty people have different movement. I suspect that the variation of thin/fat body type will be restricted within a certain range in order for the basic NPC animations to still work and be realistic.

Yeah, no clarification on whether it's "there are 3 specific bodies, thin/fat/ripped" or "body proportion sliders" or something else. Alot of it depends on how the game puts clothes on people. (with body sliders, you need the game to be able to alter armor shape on the fly... with preset body types, you just need to make multiple specific armor models for each body.)

I don't really care for varying body types. Personally, it will just allow people to create ridiculous looking characters doing impossible things. I'm fine with grandma having a six pack. This is Skyrim and everyone is fit (there is no McDonald's here)!!!

I don't understand the ''doing impossible things'' part. Just because somebody looks ridiculous doesn't mean they could do ridiculous things. I also think they should give a maximum level of fatness and skinniness. No obese characters nor anorexic ones. Some pretty fat and some pretty skinny would be fine. Granny's have a 6 pack is just stupid.

So this granny is going to have a supermodel body?
http://i.neoseeker.com/n/4/riverwood01.jpg

bwhaahahaa How is this personal? its their own copy of the game let them do what they want in their own game

Specify impossible, we're the Dovahkiin. And this is a single player game, it's the player's own choice what kind of character they want to play.

In Oblivion the McDonald's was called The Feedbag. And do you know what Nords do? They drink! That's fattening.


I really, really hope not...

I really like this topic. I can't see why they can't do it. I mean if Rockstar could make CJ fat/skinny or muscular/scrawny in GTA III, why can't Bethesda? They did it where he would run slower and tire faster when he was fat. It could be tied into the "hardcoe" system (ie Fallout NV). I just thought that was a very detailed "finished" touch in GTA III. Well--my 2.5 cents

I don't think it's in sadly, it seems all the sites and journelists that have just been shown the game were shown the character creation section. Which is why they remark on how quick and simple it is compared to before because you only choose a race and design your appearance.

It seems far-fetched to me that they wouldn't mention something like this if they're trying to reveal as much as they saw. However I could be wrong. It could also be implemented a bit late.


Either way, I would like it. Not for any idealogical reasons or really for realism. I would just like some variation.

I'm thinking they'll be some form of body adjusting although I have no clue on height. I'd be concerned if a Male Wood Elf suddenly towers over a High Elf.

My only concern is armor mesh so unless the armor mesh is adjustable to whatever you changed to the body it'll have a set value. I'm thinking it's adjustable but we will wait and see.

I hope so. And please... no limits. If i wanna make a man 6 ft wide and 5 ft tall, LET ME! (of coarse I'm exaggerating). But, this is what's so good about TES games, its not a mmo, therefore you can't see other players' characters. Though, set limits for NPCs so no one comes out looking like Snookie, but if i wanna make a character based off Snookie, i don't want anyone stopping me.