http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/33943

In the vast and complex Elder Scrolls games, small gameplay and balance changes can yield a cascade of side-effects through seemingly unrelated systems. In my experience modding Oblivion, it became progressively harder to maintain balance even between my own mods, since I assumed an unmodified game as the basis for each. Add mods by other authors, and all bets were off!

Skyrim offers a clean slate, so I'm adopting a different basis: Borealis.

Borealis is a family of mods. When designing each of them, my assumption is that you're using them all. This doesn't mean I'm throwing all external balance considerations out the window; but when I'm forced to choose between playing nice with an unknown multitude of other mods, versus creating the most cohesive and consistent experience possible within my own work, I will choose Borealis.

You can, of course, use some components and not others. That's why they're kept separate, instead of merged into a true overhaul: I can't expect anyone to use nothing but my mods! If you have compatibility issues or simply prefer someone else's take on a particular game aspect, it's perfectly safe to skip over some Borealis components while using the rest; it just becomes your responsibility, not mine or another author's, to ensure balance between the mods you've picked.

Small Components

Armor Scaling

• Goal: Make it harder, but not impossible, to hit the armor cap.
  
• The perks Juggernaut (Heavy Armor) and Agile Defender (Light Armor) give greatly reduced benefits.
  
• Improving armor through Smithing gives slightly reduced benefits.

Falling Damage

• Goal: more realistic falling based on real-world phsyics and fatality rates.
  
• Damage begins at about 9 feet, and increases with the square of distance.
  
• A fall of about 30 feet deals 100 damage. (Tweaked to guarantee survival with 100 health for a certain fall required by the main quest.)
  
• NPCs follow the same falling rules as the player.

Soul Values

• Goal #1: It shouldn't be so easy to buy filled gems to level up Enchanting.
  
• Goal #2: Buying empty gems and selling filled ones should yield a profit.
  
• The value of filled gems now ranges from 125 (petty) to 1500 (grand/black).
  
• NOTE: for goal #2, you'll also need the http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/14559 SKSE plugin by shadeMe.

Trade Rates

• Goal: (Insert a bunch of math here.) It's a small but significant tweak.
  
• At 15 skill, trade prices are about 25% worse. At 100 skill, about 15% worse.

Reserved #1

Racial Adjustment

Starting Spells:
The player does not automatically start with Flames and Healing. If your race does not grant a starting spell, you will start with no spells at all.

Base regeneration rates:
Health no longer regenerates faster outside of combat, but the in-combat rate is slightly increased. Base health regeneration is 100% in 180 seconds. NPCs are affected by this change.

Miscellaneous:
Werewolf and Vampire night-eye abilities are now toggled, with no duration. Unless otherwise specified, the unarmed damage of all races is 4.

Argonian

• Traits:
  65% resistance to Poison
  40% resistance to Disease
  +85 Armor
  +20 Health, Magicka and Stamina
  15% increased movement speed
  Unarmed damage is 10
  Waterbreathing
  
• Sap Tongue: Greater Power
  Base regeneration is increased to return 100% in 12 seconds, for 60 seconds.

Breton

• Spell: Conjure Famliar
  
• Skills:
  +10 Alchemy, Conjuration
  +5 Speech, Illusion, Restoration, Alteration
  
• Traits:
  40% resistance to Shock
  15% increased spell power
  
• Dragonskin: Greater Power
  40% Spell Absorption and 85% resistance to Magic, for 60 seconds.

Dark Elf

• Spell: Flames
  
• Skills:
  +10 Light Armor, Destruction
  +5 Sneak, Lockpicking, Illusion, Conjuration
  
• Traits:
  65% resistance to Fire
  
• Blood of Red Mountain: Greater Power
  65% increased attack damage and spell power, for 60 seconds.

High Elf

• Spell: Fury
  
• Skills:
  +10 Illusion, Enchanting
  +5 Alchemy, Conjuration, Destruction, Alteration
  
• Traits:
  30% weakness to Fire, Frost and Shock
  40% resistance to Disease
  +40 Magicka
  +30% base Magicka regeneration
  
• Highborn: Greater Power
  Unlimited Magicka, for 30 seconds.

Imperial

• Spell: Healing
  
• Skills:
  +10 Block, Restoration
  +5 Heavy Armor, Pickpocket, Speech, Enchanting
  
• Traits:
  +15% base Magicka and Stamina regeneration
  10% improved barter rates
  
• Star of the West: Greater Power
  Absorb all Stamina and Magicka from enemies within 15 feet.
  
• Voice of the Emperor: Greater Power
  Calm people within 75 feet, for 60 seconds.

Khajiit

• Skills:
  +10 Sneak, Lockpicking
  +5 One-Handed, Archery, Light Armor, Pickpocket
  
• Traits:
  20% resistance to Frost and Shock
  Unarmed damage is 20
  
• Sugar: Greater Power
  +65% movement speed and +35 unarmed damage, for 60 seconds.
  
• Eye of Night: Lesser Power
  Night Eye, toggle at will.

Nord

• Skills:
  +10 Two-Handed, Speech
  +5 Smithing, Heavy Armor, Block, Restoration
  
• Traits:
  40% resistance to Frost
  +30% base Stamina regeneration
  
• Shor's Boast: Greater Power.
  Cause fear in enemies within 75 feet, for 60 seconds.
  
• Ysmir's Woad: Greater Power.
  Enemies within 30 feet suffer 40% reduced attack damage and spell power, for 30 seconds.

Orc

• Skills:
  +10 Smithing, Heavy Armor
  +5 Block, Two-Handed, One-Handed, Enchanting
  
• Traits:
  20% resistance to Magic
  +100 encumbrance capacity
  +40 Health and Stamina
  Blood-Kin

Redguard

• Spell: Oakflesh
  
• Skills:
  +10 One-Handed, Alteration
  +5 Smithing, Two-Handed, Archery, Destruction
  
• Traits:
  40% resistance to Disease and Poison
  +15% damage with melee weapons
  
• Adrenaline Rush: Greater Power.
  Unlimited Stamina, for 60 seconds.

Wood Elf

• Skills:
  +10 Archery, Pickpocket
  +5 Light Armor, Sneak, Lockpicking, Alchemy
  
• Traits:
  65% resistance to Disease
  +65% base Health regeneration
  +15% damage with ranged weapons
  
• Beast Tongue: Greater Power.
  Command animals within 75 feet, for 60 seconds.