Summary
The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remasteredhas been a real treat for both the series' hardcore fans and newcomers, especially re-exploringthe beautiful province of Cyrodiilwith its new, overhauled graphics.
Though much remains the same, there have been smaller tweaks to some parts of the original game, especially the changes to the difficulty and loot, which can make exploring areas feel a bit different this time around. Luckily, when starting out, players can prioritize certain locations and activities first to get some easy loot and experience early on and have a smooth ride for the rest of the game.
1Vilverin
The First Ayleid Ruin
An easy pick when starting is Vilverin, an Ayleid Ruin located just across the river from the Imperial City Prison Sewers exit after the game’s introduction. Ayleid Ruins are dotted throughout the map and can be great locations for some high-value items.
Vilverin specifically can be done right out of the gate. It contains only a handful of easy enemies, bandits, skeletons, and a couple of zombies, a piece of cake even on higher difficulty levels. Most notably, these ruins contain manyWelkynd Stones, which can be used one-time to fully restore magicka. Even rarer, the Varla Stone, which also has a one-time use function for recharging all enchanted items in a player’s inventory. They are both great to have on hand, but are also quite valuable, especially the Varla Stone, which can be sold to enchanting merchants for a few hundred gold each.
2Rockmilk
Marauders vs. Black Bow Bandits
Rockmilk Cave can easily be found in the southern part of Cyrodiil when traveling between Bravil and Leyawiin, and is made up of two main areas, Rockmilk Cave and Rockmilk Haven.
This seemingly normal cave has a unique twist compared to other locations in the game, though. Inside the cave are two rival factions, Marauders and Black Bow Bandits, who will attack both the player and each other, making for a pretty chaotic experience. Fortunately, they aren’t too different from the average bandit, so they are easy to deal with. On top of that, the Black Bow Bandit enemies will always drop their namesake Black Bow, which can be sold for around 100 gold each, making it a pretty profitable location to visit.
3Sercen
Another Ruin North Of The Imperial City
Just above the province’s capital, which most will visit first, is Sercen, another ruin like Vilverin, with some moreAyleid goodiesto start players off on the right foot in their playthrough.
Luckily, this one is much more concise than the other ruins, being a smaller location with essentially only one open room containing a handful of bandits, no big deal even at the lowest of levels. More importantly, it includes a fair amount of those aforementioned Welkynd Stones for some easy early-game septims, and a few chests scattered around with some more loot inside (thanks to the group of bandits). And with it being so close to the Imperial City, it’s an easy way to pick up a few hundred gold in a couple of minutes.
4Robber’s Glen
A Small Cave Just Northwest Of Bravil
With a name like Robber’s Glen Cave, it sounds like the perfect place to find a group of bandits or highwaymen and their stash of stolen items. While it might’ve been at one point, there are no bandits within this cave, or humans for that matter.
This location, just northwest of Bravil, is especially a great place to hit for any player focusing onalchemy, due to the abundance of the Imp Gall ingredient that can be found within. The primary enemies here are Imps - small, winged creatures that can use either fire, frost, or shock magic attacks. These are rather weak attacks overall and can easily be dodged, making the imps pretty trivial opponents. Aside from that, there are also a good number of chests lying about once the Imps are dealt with, making for some easy loot when traveling down to Bravil.
5The Arena
The Imperial City’s Colosseum
The Arena is one of the many activitiesThe Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivionhas always been known for, allowing players to fight to the death, or bet on the battles of others.
While betting can be a lucrative venture inOblivion, those who prefer to take an even bigger chance will be rewarded with copious amounts of gold for risking their own life in battle (if they survive, that is). As players continue with each fight, they can rise through the ranks and eventually become the Arena Champion, a title offeringits own benefitsas well. Aside from the big plus of gold for winning, the Arena is also a good way to gain experience on the side, and it’s a hard-to-miss location, being right within the capital that players usually visit first when starting the game.
6Fyrelight
In The Heart Of Cyrodiil’s Wine Region
Located in the West Weald region near the affluent city of Skingrad lies Fyrelight Cave, anothernetwork of caverns worth exploringin the early game. This cave is a bit larger than the other similar locations mentioned so far, being made up of three different areas.
The opposition will be some imps at first, not much to be worried about. But once players reach slightly higher levels, the enemies will change to ogres and trolls, which can be a bit more challenging, so it’s best to start with this location at a lower level. What makes the location great in the early game is the river system in the middle that leads to a small treasure room, containing some decent loot worth grabbing that can be sold to nearby vendors in Skingrad.
When traveling along the Gold Road between the Imperial City and Skingrad, players can stumble upon Greenmead, yet another cave system split into three areas with some decent loot on offer.
Greenmead is one of the more dangerous locations mentioned here, containing tougher enemies like Minotaurs, Spriggans, and the worst of all,Will-o-the-Wisps, which can only be damaged with magic attacks. If players are careful and come prepared, though, the cave system is brimming with loot. Including the possibility of some high-value enchanted items, which can fetch a pretty penny, so it can definitely be a worthwhile location to visit in the early levels.
8Garden Of Dareloth
One Mysterious Guild Meeting
While not a lucrative location itself, it’s certainly worth mentioning due to its significance in becoming a part of a certain “mysterious” guild.
Located within theImperial City’sWaterfront District is The Garden of Dareloth, where a guild meeting will take place around midnight after snooping around for some local rumors. From there, players can join the Thieves Guild, and, as the name suggests, they will offer all sorts of contracts for stealing high-value items in return for copious amounts of gold in the process. This path isn’t one for the moral players, but is easily one of the most profitable in the game if chosen.
