Elder Scrolls Enthusiast Jack Tabb writes into ElderScrollV.com with some thoughts on Skyrim combat mechanics.

“From Arena to Oblivion, concepts of RPG combat has been outclassed with each installment of The Elder Scrolls. With the upcoming sequel Skyrim people like myself are waiting to see how the evolution of TES combat will be defined by Oblivion and it’s predecessors.
Disregard the type of combat that defines your character such as spells, perks, dual wielding, or enchantments. We are considering the simplest forms of combat – the simple trading of blows.

In Morrowind, when your character would strike his/her opponent there would be a dice roll that would determine whether you would hit the enemy or miss the enemy. This became rather bothersome while facing higher-level foes, for how were you supposed to defeat an enemy with your silver dagger while your short blade level hovered only above 18? In Oblivion the combat was changed to be very productive yet crude. Your character could hack away at an enemy to take its health – But that’s just it. In retrospect, all we did was hack. You beat the pulp out of them and hope not to lose too much health. Spells, enchantments, and poisons added depth to the combat but in the end you simply waited for the enemy to fall backwards, dead. It shouldn’t take a gazillion sword slashes to defeat a foe, but it sure did.

Skyrim looks hopeful. From what I have seen, Skyrim will change the face of TES combat, and then it will hopefully redefine the most simplistic form of it, “the trading of blows”. Now I can make only make deductions on the basics of battle in Skyrim, but it seems to be a lot more complex and this case – complex is good. Besides the damage calculations, dual wields, and perks, the look of the fighting style in Skyrim tends to be more natural. Your character swings with precision, and in some cases even looks like a seasoned swordsmen that can strike into the foe, not just randomly, but in places were more damage would be induced. After several strokes and when approaching the kill, your character will perform kill moves. These deadly moves seem to also come naturally. These finales match your swordplay and probably are used after a combo of some sorts. Now besides kill moves and being able to thrust your sword or swing your axe with precision, Bethesda has made the fighting sequences a lot more captivating. The player will no longer be able to just run backwards quickly to the nearest NPC or city guard, so they can have help when dealing with the higher-level foes. When fighting an opponent in Skyrim your avatar will be locked into combat, and the only chance of fleeing is sprinting as fast as you can the other direction. No longer will you be able to flee and fight at the same time with the lightning fast backtracking. All of the Elder Scrolls titles have been groundbreaking when it comes to battle and skirmishes. In that context, I am hoping to see that Skyrim quakes the very ground that RPG combat stands upon.”

How will The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim stack up with its predecessors??? Stay tuned to ElderScrollv.com for the latest Skyrim News!