So here's my problem:

Normally I just put games on the hardest difficulty and play them like that. The problem is, with The Elder Scrolls, in my experience, all that does is make the game 1000x more boring and tedious. I end up grinding Apothecary to get my character to a point where I don't die to everything in a single shot, but then by the time I finally level past that point, suddenly combat is easy. I go from overkill odds against me to overkill odds in my favor.

Where's the compromise? Where will the game feel difficult without requiring a grind, or am I missing something and it can be played on hardest difficulty without a grind. I just want the type of difficulty where I'm not "special;" where I take just as much damage as the average NPC and deal just as much damage.

So what's a good difficulty setting? Anyone know a good one, or at the very least, know whereabout on the difficulty slider I'd achieve x2 damage recieved but 1/2 dealt? From what I hear, maxed difficulty is x6 or x12 recieved...