Oblivion:Sneak

The UESPWiki – Your source for The Elder Scrolls since 1995

Jump to: navigation, search

Oblivion: Skills | Crime

Skill: Sneak
Sneak
Governing Attribute:
Agility
Specialization:
Stealth

The sneak skill allows you to move around undetected, pick pockets, and do more damage to targets if you attack while sneaking.

Contents

[edit] Mastery

[edit] Mastery Perks

  • A Novice gains a 4x damage bonus for one-handed weapon and hand-to-hand attacks, and a 2x damage for marksman attacks, when undetected.
  • An Apprentice gains a 6x damage bonus for one-handed weapon and hand-to-hand attacks, and a 3x damage bonus for marksman attacks, when undetected.
  • A Journeyman receives no penalty to his chance of detection while sneaking for the weight of his boots.
  • An Expert receives no penalty to his chance of detection for running while sneaking.
  • The attack of a Master on an opponent ignores the opponent's armor rating as long as the player is undetected.

[edit] Skill Increases

You gain 0.75 experience points every second (real time) spent moving in sneak mode without being detected, but only if there is a person or creature nearby. No experience is gained when sneaking with nobody nearby or if you are standing still. You also gain 2.00 experience points every time you successfully pickpocket someone (regardless of the value of the item stolen, and even if you steal no item).

You will gain sneak skill more rapidly if you spend most of your time exploring the wilderness and caves in sneak mode. However, you will move more slowly, and most of the time you will not be gaining any experience (because nobody is nearby); you could instead be gaining Athletics skill during that time.

Tips for increasing sneak skill somewhat more artificially include:

  • Sneak near people who are asleep:
    • People sleeping in guild houses of which you are member
    • City/castle barracks that are open to the public are also acceptable (no locked doors to open - hence one is not trespassing)
    • Homeless NPCs
    • The sleeping prisoner (never awakens), if you have the Vile Lair plugin
    • Rufio, who can be found sleeping in the basement of the Inn of Ill Omen
    • Sneak in the crawl space in Baenlin's house in the Accidents Happen Quest. Gromm sleeps on the other side of the wall from the crawl space, and they never leave the house, so this will work at any time of day.
  • Sneak behind walls that hide you from nearby people or creatures. Guardsmen in towns are good targets. Or any time you detect a creature in another room using Detect Life, you can keep sneaking and gain experience.
    • Sneak towards the wall at the very start of the game, before you approach the cell door (and hear Valen Dreth's taunts).
    • Sneak near the goblin that is roasting a rat in the Tutorial.
    • Sneak in Jauffre's room with the door shut in Cloud Ruler Temple. There is a Blade outside 24 hours a day.
  • Use Invisibility or Chameleon and sneak around any awake person.
  • Sneak behind an Imperial City guard on the night patrol.
  • Go to the Bastion and sneak behind the Prison guard sitting behind the desk (keep in mind they change shifts).
  • Go to the The Grey Mare Inn in Chorrol. Walk up to the top of the stairs, turn around and there is a ledge. Jump onto the ledge and keep walking into the wall. The innkeeper never moves, so you can sit there as long as you want while sneaking.
  • Sneak skill can very easily be auto-trained: face a wall (using any of the above tips) and hold down the W key or press Q once to auto-run (on PC) or hold the joystick forward(on Xbox-or use a rubber band to hold the analog stick in place).
  • There are some characters who don't mind if you pickpocket them, and pickpocketing increases your sneak skill fairly rapidly. You can repeatedly hit the pickpocket key to open and close the inventory screen. Just be sure to be out of sight of any guards at the time:
    • Pickpocket a Highwayman (after you've let him rob you). He will just mumble something and ignore you.
    • Pickpocket the Adoring Fan. Tell him to stay, then sneak behind him and start picking his pockets.
    • Pickpocket Amusei.
  • Your horse counts as a creature to sneak around. Ride to a corner, turn your horse away from the corner, and sneak into the corner. This will allow you to to keep walking forward in sneak mode without actually moving and remain close enough to the horse to be considered sneaking.


See also:

[edit] Dialogue

When your skill reaches 70 or higher, NPCs will start saying: "You're a sneaky looking sort."

[edit] Character Creation

The following races provide initial skill bonuses in sneak:

The following standard classes include sneak as a major skill:

[edit] Remaining Undetected

When in sneak mode, pay careful attention to the sneaking eye in the center of the screen. If the eye lights up, that means somewhere an NPC or creature can see you right now. Never steal, pick locks, pick pockets, etc. when the eye is lit! Reposition yourself so that the eye goes dim and you can do your dirty work in 100% safety. It's really that simple, no matter how many NPCs are standing around, how bright it is, how close they are, just watch the eye. "If the eye is dim, you're in like Flynn!". However, the eye lights up even when it is your horse or your summoned creature that is seeing you.

  • The amount of light that hits your character does matter, so always try and stay in the shadows (and unequip that torch!)
  • Until you become an Expert, walking will make you easier to detect than standing still, and running will make detecting you even easier.
  • The weight of your shoes has an effect until the Journeyman level, so take off those nine pound iron boots if you're going to sneak, barefoot is quietest. You can assign your boots to a hotkey if you want to be able to quickly put them back on.
  • Actions like picking a lock or picking up items (the heavier the item the more so) increase your chance of being detected.
  • Invisibility and Chameleon decrease the chances of being seen. Sneak mode complements these spells by also decreasing the chance that you will be heard.
    • Invisibility is 100% effective, but prevents you from doing anything other than moving. The spell is canceled as soon as you attack or activate anything (including doors or Oblivion gates).
    • Chameleon allows you to do any actions, but is less than 100% effective. (The implications of combining multiple Chameleon enchantments to reach 100% effectiveness are discussed at 100% Chameleon).
  • Some creatures and NPCs detect characters in sneak mode more easily than others. Some high-level creatures like Ogres and Storm Atronachs can be hit from a distance (with arrows or spells) multiple times, and they will just look around. Other creatures like Xivilai will actively search and probably spot you (even at 95% chameleon) and engage.
  • If an NPC is just standing still, yet their line of sight includes somewhere you'd like to sneak to/steal from, you may be able to bump them out of the way. Sneak up from behind and run into them just a little bit. You will bump into them and they will slide forward a little bit. Make sure you don't bump them too hard or you may slip in front of them where they can see you. With practice, you can bump them until their nose is touching a wall, or even better, stuck in a corner. Voila! You can now sneak/steal anything in the room with them standing right there and they'll never notice!

[edit] Picking Pockets

If you activate a NPC while in sneak mode, you pickpocket them. This is difficult and requires high sneak skill for success. Chances for success depend on the size of the items (gold in this respect counts as 'huge') so you may succeed in picking some items while failing with others. Pickpocketing also takes into account your distance from the NPC, so try to get as close as you can before attempting to pickpocket them or your chances may go down. You can fail even if you don't steal anything (i.e., by just seeing what the person is carrying). If you fail, the NPC becomes hostile and calls the guards, so remember to switch sneak mode off before attempting to talk to people or you may be in for an unpleasant surprise, especially if your Sneak skill is low.

If you are caught pickpocketing, you will not be able to pickpocket that NPC again until the next day; the reset occurs at midnight.

[edit] Reverse Pickpocketing

Once you have activated an NPC for pickpocketing and you are in the inventory menu, it is possible to reverse pickpocket the NPC: you can give the NPC an item, transferring it from your inventory into the NPC's inventory. You first need to toggle the inventory so that your inventory is displayed instead of the NPC's inventory. Then select the item(s) you wish to give the NPC. The primary limitation is that this only works for zero weight items.

There are two main applications for this trick:

[edit] Sneak Attacks

Attacking while unseen increases the weapon damage (Not magic damage), depending on your sneak level. At novice level, you receive a 4x multiplier for one-handed melee weapons and 2x for ranged weapons; at all higher levels, you receive 6x for one-handed melee weapons and 3x for ranged.

  • The sneak attack modifier only affects the physical weapon damage, not poisons or enchantments.
  • Two-handed weapons do not get the damage bonus for sneak attacks. If you like to sneak around and use two-handed weapons, keep a one-handed weapon in reserve, and use it whenever you want to stab someone in the back.
  • Spells do not get any sneak attack bonus.
  • The sneak attack damage multiplier is based on the weapon that you have equipped at the time damage is done. Therefore, you can get the maximum 6x sneak attack bonus when firing an arrow at a target if you switch to a melee weapon (or become unarmed) before the arrow strikes. This is most easily achieved with a short duration Bound Bow spell and firing at the last second.
  • While in sneak mode it is possible to murder an unsuspecting NPC, even in front of a guard. Of course this is most easily done with a bow. If you're close enough, you'll hear the guard mumble about "a murderer is on the loose" and "the body's still warm". However, as long as you were not seen making the shot, and the shot killed the NPC instantly, you will be exempt from suspicion. If you are spotted taking the shot, then quickly take the items and turn yourself in. You get to keep the items. If you do not take the items, but turn yourself in, the body may not be there when you come back.

[edit] Melee Sneak Attacks

  • When using a melee weapon (blade or blunt) multiple sneak attacks are possible if you are directly behind your target. Your target is briefly stunned by the attack. If you can attack quickly before they have a chance to turn around and see you, you will get another sneak attack. The key to success is speed, so using a fast weapon (such as a dagger) increases your chance of success. You may need to slightly readjust your position to stay directly behind the target on each swing and avoid getting spotted. (This method can also be used with hand to hand attacks.) For some reason, this is not possible with all monsters. A notable exception from the Shivering Isles is the Grummite Deathdealer. It will instantly turn to face you as soon as you attack it.

[edit] Ranged Sneak Attacks

Multiple strategies can be used to allow multiple sneak attacks when attacking with ranged weapons (i.e., bow and arrow).

  • Your chance of being detected when hitting an opponent with an arrow while sneaking is based, at least in part, on how far away you are. If you shoot while nearby, the enemy will likely spot you immediately and attack. If you are far away, you may be able to remain hidden. Line of sight is also a factor. If you are partially hidden you can remain undetected longer than if you were out in the open.
  • The enemy doesn't start looking for you until hit, so you can take cover and remove yourself completely from the enemy's line of sight right after you release the arrow, while it flies, before hitting the enemy.
  • When you sneak-hit an enemy with other enemies nearby, their reaction depends upon your distance to the enemy that you hit, not on the distance between you and nearest enemy, so sometimes it is better to try to hit the enemies that are farthest away.
  • If you are directly behind a target, it is possible that it will not even move after getting hit and will make no attempt to turn around and see you. If you find such a sweet spot, you can shoot repeatedly and keep getting the sneak bonus over and over until they are dead.
  • Many monsters and NPCs will run towards the area the shot was fired from even if you stay undetected, so it is usually best to scout out a position you can move to after firing the shot. It is often easiest just to sneak back to where you came from after firing the shot. Having at least two or three shooting locations decided before starting the battle is essential in battles where your success will depend on getting enough stealth attacks in before being noticed.

[edit] Playing a Stealthy Character

  • Playing a stealthy character means fighting smarter, not harder. Toe-to-toe battles can almost always be avoided. You never want to be in this situation; thankfully if you play smart, rarely are you forced to fight a fair fight. Use all of your surroundings to your advantage. If your opponent is on or near a wall/ledge, maneuver yourself so your first sneak attack sends them flying over the edge and the fall will kill them. Goad enemies into chasing you and run up to a guard who will kill them for you. Traps found in dungeons can also be carefully used to damage enemies.
  • Night-Eye and Detect Life are very helpful effects for stealth. It's easier to sneak in the dark, so it's imperative to see well yourself and know when something (or someone) is around the corner.
    • Get these effects from your race/birthsign if you can - you will have them both on constantly.
    • Being a vampire adds the Hunter's Sight spell, for a very low cost (5 magicka).
    • With access to the Arcane University you can enchant a ring or other item with Night Eye and Detect Life; you may also find such an object on your adventures.
    • A useful unique magic item is Fin Gleam, a helmet that gives you a constant Night Eye, Water Breathing, and Detect Life 20 feet on self.
    • Hotkey such items, so you can toggle their effects on and off quickly and easily, for instance, to check how well concealed you are in the shadows.
    • Night-Eye can sometimes be a handicap, as it makes it much harder to spot dark areas and keep out of the enemy's sight.
    • Detect Life can also be a handicap, because the diffusing glow can make it difficult to see which direction an NPC is facing.
  • Alchemy is a very useful skill at higher skill levels, especially for stealthy characters. It is possible to make poisons that can deal around 700 damage over a span of 30 seconds or so, or potions that collectively restore amounts of Health, Magicka, and Fatigue near or in the thousands.
  • Use enchanted/poisoned weapons as appropriate for each monster:
    • Acquire/enchant a weapon with the silence effect for use against spell casters. They go down fast when they can't summon and heal themselves.
    • Acquire a weapon with the paralyze effect (if possible; this may be easier said than done) for NPCs and creatures with a lot of health and offensive power.
    • For a very effective sniping bow, place Drain Endurance 100 (1 second) and Drain Health 100 (1 second) on a bow in addition to normal damage effects. This works equally well with a melee weapon.
    • If you get into a pinch, do not be afraid to use any poisons you might have. You can use one per swing if need be, and this can easily be the deciding factor in the outcome of an otherwise-fatal battle.
    • It may be worth taking a look at the useful enchantments page as well, for more ideas for equipping a stealth character.
  • The best weapons for sneak characters are the kind that kill instantly (1 sneak hit = 1 kill). At higher levels it is very hard to create or find such weapons (draining health and endurance are the best enchantments, combined with the sneak attack damage bonuses), especially against tough creatures and warrior NPCs. High damage spells from afar are also great.

[edit] Notes

  • Once your renown reaches 10, you can visit the Jone heaven doomstone to receive the greater power Jone's Shadow. One of several benefits of this power is that it fortifies your sneak skill 30 points once a day for 120 seconds.
Retrieved from "http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Oblivion:Sneak"
Sponsored Links
Personal tools