How about if your character commits too many crimes, you get permabanned from the city (unless you sneak back in illegally) and marked with a tattoo or brand that cannot be removed. Add real consequence to commiting crim. If you are marked with a cirminal brand, depending on the brand, people should know what you did and react accordingly. If you are a marked murderer, people should have a lower disposition with you, not want to talk to you, guards will be more suspicious, etc. If you have been caught thieving, perhaps bystands can walk by, muttering something along the lines of "Great, just what this city needs, another lawless pickpocket. Time to buy a new lock for the house."

Commiting serious crimes should have a lasting impact. In oblivion, I went on a rampage in the Imperial City, killing about 30 guards. Even in current day America, with all our civil rights and modern outlooks, would put such an individual to death. I find it hard to believe that in Cyrodill such actions only cost you about a year in jail.

Well, to be fair, it would essentially just be a non-standard game over, since if you get executed, you still die, just not in battle, and if players are given the choice between resisting arrest and taking their chances with the guards, or getting arrested and getting an assured death by execution, of course they'll choose the former.

Of course, there's always the chance to escape and run from the law, if you're sentenced to death, you would presumably be held prisoner until it's time for your execution, during which you could try to escape, though if you did so, I'm sure the guards would have no qualms with killing you afterwards, after all, they're just going to kill you if they arrest you again anyway.

I would say that the system for crimes and law enforcement could certainly do with some reworking, in any case. When you can murder dozens of people, get caught, pay the guards some gold, and walk away without further troubles, something is wrong. If nothing else, being a known criminal should have a lasting impact on your reputation, even after your bounty is gone. I mean, would you trust someone you knew to be a murderer?

Personally i think that the brand idea (^ up there ^) sounded great. Maybe make it that once your branded you have to kill the guard at the gate to get back in the city or visit some mage thats powerful enough to remove the brand from your arm if you complete a quest for them? Honestly though I don't think that escape from jail should be governed by holding a lock-pick. There should be some way to escape that the player must discover. Like an interactive cell room that you must combine things together to escape.

As far as being put to death, I think it would be awesome to have to escape from jail to prevent from being executed. I think that getting your things out of the armory should be extremely hard and you should almost be forced to go on without them and start over item wise. That would be realistic and a fitting punishment for a hasty escape from certain death.

Honestly though I don't see them putting any of this into the game at this point. I also don't see them putting executions into the game because they would be to hard to make well. I mean would you just be killed and start from your last save? Awwwww........so whatever then! I mean they should make it some how that if you are executed and you escape or your brought back to life, you lose all your items. All you have is a sack cloth and shirt and have to start over from there. You know, like you get in prison. Should be interesting to see if they even dare to try........

The problem with this idea is that it would become a "break out of jail" minigame similar to lockpicking. It sounds like a good idea, maybe for a one-off quest. But it would be boring as a minigame you do every time you get arrested.

well in skyrim it might be a tribunal, where your punishment is an axe in the face.

If they did this right it certainly would add a lot to the game world. However I won't miss it if they don't add it :shrug:

I don't know about you, but I plan on committing a LOT of crimes. I'd like a massive part of my gaming experience to be fleshed out as much as it can be. I'd at least like there to be various options according to the nature of your crime. If I have to hear one more "Your stolen goods are now forfeit!!!1" when I just clubbed someone over the head in broad daylight...

The Skaal disagree.

The especially fun thing to do in Oblivion was if your disposition with a guard was high enough and you had really high personality you could stab them with a sword and get a response like "Oh it's you. Normally you can't do that but since we are friends you can get away with it just this once." The best thing is you could do it again, maybe even a 3rd or 4th time before their disposition was low enough. I thought it was ridiculous that I could stab someone 4 times in the chest and then finally get the 40 septim assault charge.

Yeah I guess it could be a good addition. I mean punishments should be stronger than a simple fine or something like that, especially for murder. My main concern though is that it just not get out of control.

Complete strangers should not be able to buy off murders for 1000 gold.

Bring the trial system from Daggerfall back I say. You could have representatives from the factions you've joined who plead for your case, maybe reducing jailtime and/or increasing the chance of you being declared not guilty when you plead so. Whatever reputation system the game will have could also influence the outcome.

If you plead not guilty but you are found guilty you'd get a longer jailtime than when you're guilty and you plead guilty. The bigger the offence, the smaller the chance of getting away with it is.

Now we're talking. These imply some fun side-quests for a theifish character as well - sneaking into a town you're barred from, accompanying someone somewhere dangerous as part of "community service" (although it needs another name, like "Retribution"), perhaps being tracked down by bounty-hunters if there's a reward for your capture/death.

The part I'm not liking is the word "courthouse". I'm not big on Elder Scrolls lore but it sounds the wrong kind of law-and-order for Nords. I imagine it's more likely you'd get dragged before a lord, with perhaps a rabble of watching peasants and the accuser present, and you'd get whatever judgement he saw fit. I don't see a jury, a lawyer or a Nord in a wig with a hammer.



This definately. Although you should still have a fighting chance of escaping from the gallows, and if the worst comes to the worst there would have to be a big fat prompt to save your game before you get sentenced.

Edit: Also, props to the "brand" idea above. Different brands for different crimes. Hardened criminals would wear them like trophies.

I completely agree with this. Bring back this system and spice it up a bit. Add lots of other ways of escaping justice apart from pleading not guilty - you should be able to escape the guards for real, and you should be able to break out of prison (possibly with the help from your Thieves Guild / Dark Brotherhood colleagues). TG/DB might've also bribed the judge. And the punishments should be more varied... getting an outlaw tattoo sounds like a brilliant idea, but also maybe simple stuff like "one hour in the pillory" for lesser crimes.

Yeah, i see justice being slightly less polite up north. Maybe being made to fight to the death rather than simply executed or given a special quest to redeem yourself. Hell even a fight against your accuser to determine your guilt.

True but you get the idea. I mean in Oblivion it was just kind of lame how you had 1 lock-pick left. I mean where the heck did you hide it!? (no answer required :sweat: )

Just something more enthralling or realistic.


I think the brand is a must though! Sadly I'm sure the devs don't even read these forums and the idea will go to waste