Did you folks also encounter sudden difficulty spikes from time to time for no apparent reason.
Like clearing out a cave of bandits and all of a sudden a guy appears (no boss) who is basically
on speed and 2 shots you ^^ They look like the same as all others but are insanely more powerfull.

Bandit outlaw? Bandit highwayman? I think it's meant to be like that

Most of the times they actually are some kind of mini-bosses, like Bandit Chiefs or Draugr Overlords. They can royally kick your ass if you are caught off-guard.

Normally i detest large difficulty spikes in games, but in Skyrim it isn't so bad. If you are just rushing through dungeons with 1/2-shot kills for too long, and it gets a bit boring, entering a bandit hideout which contains some skilled fighters can be quite refreshing.

And especially in the first couple of levels, you enter places where you just shouldn't be, yet. I really like that kind of natural restriction in games ; "i'm way over my head here, i should come back later"

No thats not what i mean. Like same name as all others but much more powerfull.
I somehow seen this many times now.

Occasionally. But it's more like an enemy type I've not yet met, so haven't had a chance to figure out a strategy for.

Fore example, when I first encountered the Forsworn I picked off all their normal warriors and archers easily, until I encountered their Mage. He had higher level ice spells than I had encountered up to that point.

In short, he kicked my ass. Over and over again. And any companion I brought with me too.

So I left the area, bought some ice resistance potions, a LOT of healing potions, upgraded my sword at the smiths and went back. It took a fair few potions to keep me alive but I bested him soon enough.

I got a What the **** moment when I met the first Jyrik Gauldurson main guards.

Yup... I've seen this exact thing a couple of times. The super mobs have exactly the same name, type and loot as all the others around them, but are insanely more powerful. The Silver Hand seems particularly good at hiding a super mob within their ranks!

It seems as if some mobs are considered 'elite', they look the same as regular version, but have 10x more hp and deal more damage. Instead of Bandit you get Bandit Highwayman or Marauder, etc.

I was fighting in a random dungeon that i had stumbled across yesterday Varumdar (sp?)

Lots of Dragur so i equip Soul Trap in left and Fireball in Right, Im happily running through filling up my soul gems when i come across a Throne at one end of a room.
I thought to myself there is probably a guy sitting in it so i fire a dual fireball at him, sure enough he stands up, takes aim with his bow and 1shot's me...

2nd attempt i run back in and pummel him with lower level fire for stuns - he shouts me then 1shot with arrow..
did this a couple more times experimenting with Atronachs etc until i slowed time and Stun locked him to death =D

Turns out he was holding an Ebony bow and Ebony Arrows - nice little earner!
Weird difficulty spike tho, keeps it interesting!

i have had instances like that, im sure i was fighting 2x bandit highwayman, one i dropped easy, the other absolutely battered me!

still, quite refreshing, keeps me on my toes :toughninja:

yea i know what you mean

I had this exact problem tonight when facing a forsworn briarheart enemy. I am a warrior type in all ebony armor playing on adept difficulty. He wasn't carrying anything special at all, just dual wielding a forsworn sword and war axe. Even when I blocked his attacks with my EBONY shield, I died with 2 swings. Definitely a WTF moment.

Happened several times. You casually 1-shot most of mobs, and then suddenly something that has same name appears and can 2-3 shot you and take hell of a beating.

I remember first encountering a really deadly bandit archer. I'd shrugged off their arrows from about levels 1-17, but now this guy was taking half my health in 1 shot. I managed to kill him and discovered he was wielding... a hunter bow and iron arrows. So those upgraded bandits definitely have higher skills (and perks?). Who knows.

One time I was steamrolling some Forsworn, no trouble at all, health never dipped under 95%. Killed a dragon in a few hits, then a Forsworn Briarheart ran up to me and killed me in two hits, no exaggerating.

I reloaded and killed the Briarheart. Turned out he was carrying some very high-damage poison, which is what killed me. Kind of pissed me off since I play an Argonian and I haven't been able to mod my poison immunity back in yet because the CS isn't out.

So this is confirmed then. I definitely like a challenge but this concept svcks!
At least the supermobs should be named differently so you can prepare your
approach. And maybe some better loot. Its kinda stupid to get faceraqed by some
standard bandit for no apparent reason..

same, i had to fight 2 deathlords and 3 scourges on my sneak account. died so many times, then when i got to Jyrik I 1 shotted him with an axe and was like...wow....

I have to say that surprise is what makes your blood boil when you encounter an enemy. Cause you are never sure of what you will find.

I play on master and each encounter is a hell of an adrenaline push. I never had that, with any game, in my life.

I like that.

Knowing that when you creep around the next corner you might run into someone who ain't messing around is what keeps it interesting.

Otherwise you're just grindin bandits.

I really wait for the CK to be released... currently the difficulty is just too strange... How can a random orc be stranger than a Dwemer Centurion Guardian..? Seriously... both of them were at the same map part, so it's not about low or high lvl areas..

Yep I was slicing through everyone in a cave yesterday and here's comes the marauder to one hit me with lightening. Over And over. Had to sneak now him and hide beside the door he would walk through , un. Rel. force shout him and hack away, he still got up and zapped me almost dead, 3 potions later and one more power move and I finally got him. It was a big surprise but I liked the challenge, keeps me on my toes

Similar experience here - also surprised that the Forsworn mage was a much tougher opponent than the Hagraven I'd just taken down.

Yeah I have noticed some falmers that can 1 and 2 shot me. I think they are stacking poison or something because it bypassed block completely and just nails you. The briarhearts! man some of them die easy and some with 1 shot you. You won`t even see it coming. Earlier on I was running by a keep and something killed me with 3 zaps of some spell hitting me. I didn`t even see what it was. I figured I would sprint by but this guy had the bionic eye and dropped me dead full sprint. Some of those forsworn that duel wield can rip you up too. You are dead before they finish the attack animation and they mix them in with the low lvl ones so you kill one or two and when you go for the third you get a dirtnap hard.