The world of Cyrodiil in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is vast and filled with countless items to discover, loot, and acquire. As you progress through your adventures, you’ll inevitably find yourself burdened by excessive weight, forcing you to make difficult choices about what to keep and what to discard. Understanding how to drop items effectively is a crucial skill for any aspiring hero or villain in Oblivion. This comprehensive guide will walk you through the process step-by-step, covering various scenarios, strategies, and considerations to help you manage your inventory like a seasoned adventurer.
Why Drop Items in Oblivion?
Before diving into the ‘how,’ let’s briefly explore the ‘why.’ There are several compelling reasons to drop items in Oblivion:
- Encumbrance: This is the most common reason. Each item in Oblivion has a weight value. Your character has a maximum carrying capacity determined by their Strength attribute. Exceeding this limit results in encumbrance, slowing your movement speed to a crawl. Dropping items allows you to regain mobility.
- Unwanted Items: You might pick up items that are simply useless to your character build or playstyle. Selling them is an option, but merchants have limited gold, especially early in the game. Dropping unwanted items frees up valuable inventory space.
- Quest Requirements: Some quests may require you to drop specific items in certain locations. Failing to do so can halt your progress.
- Roleplaying: You might want to leave items behind for roleplaying purposes, such as discarding evidence after committing a crime or leaving supplies for a struggling NPC.
- Strategic Placement: Some players use dropped items to mark locations or create temporary barriers, although this is less common than in some other RPGs.
The Basic Steps: Dropping Items
The fundamental process of dropping items in Oblivion is straightforward. Here’s a step-by-step guide:
- Open Your Inventory: The first step is to access your character’s inventory. This is typically done by pressing the Tab key on the PC, the Start button on Xbox 360, or the Options button on PlayStation 3.
- Navigate to the Item: Once your inventory is open, use the directional keys (arrow keys on PC, D-pad on consoles) or the mouse wheel to scroll through the list of items until you locate the item you wish to drop.
- Select the Item: Highlight the item you want to drop.
- Press the ‘Drop’ Key: This is where the specific control varies depending on your platform:
- PC: Press the ‘R’ key.
- Xbox 360: Press the ‘X’ button.
- PlayStation 3: Press the ‘Square’ button.
- Confirm (If Prompted): In some cases, particularly with quest-related items or items with a high value, the game may prompt you to confirm that you truly want to drop the item. This is a safeguard to prevent accidental disposal of important objects. If prompted, select ‘Yes’ to confirm.
- Observe the Item Drop: Your character will drop the selected item onto the ground directly in front of them. The item will appear as a 3D model on the game world.
Advanced Techniques and Considerations
While the basic process is simple, there are several nuances and advanced techniques to consider when dropping items in Oblivion:
Dropping Multiple Items at Once
If you need to drop a large number of identical items (e.g., multiple potions or arrows), you don’t have to drop them one by one. Here’s how to drop a specific quantity:
- Open Your Inventory: As before, open your character’s inventory.
- Select the Stackable Item: Locate the item you want to drop in quantity. This only works with items that stack, like potions, arrows, lockpicks, etc.
- Initiate the Drop Process: Press the ‘Drop’ key (R on PC, X on Xbox 360, Square on PS3).
- Quantity Selection: Instead of immediately dropping the entire stack, a slider or input box will appear, allowing you to specify the number of items you want to drop.
- Adjust the Quantity: Use the directional keys (or the mouse wheel on PC) to adjust the quantity to the desired number.
- Confirm the Drop: Press the action key (usually the ‘Activate’ key, typically E on PC, A on Xbox 360, or X on PS3) to confirm the drop of the specified quantity.
Weight Management Strategies
Effective weight management is crucial for a smooth Oblivion experience. Here are some strategies to keep in mind:
- Prioritize Essential Items: Only carry what you truly need for your current objective or playstyle. Leave unnecessary weapons, armor, or miscellaneous items behind.
- Utilize Fortify Strength Effects: Spells and potions that temporarily increase your Strength attribute also increase your carrying capacity. Use these when you anticipate needing to carry a heavy load.
- Invest in Feather Spells: Feather spells temporarily reduce the weight of specific items, allowing you to carry more without becoming encumbered.
- Enchantments: You can enchant armor or clothing with Fortify Strength or Feather effects for a more permanent weight management solution.
- Companions: If you have a companion, they can carry some of your burden. Be mindful of their carrying capacity as well, as they can also become encumbered.
- Horses: Horses significantly increase your carrying capacity. They are an excellent way to transport large amounts of loot, especially when traveling long distances. Be aware that horses can die, so protect them.
- Containers: Utilize containers like chests, barrels, and sacks to store items in safe locations. This is particularly useful for storing items you might need later but don’t need to carry with you constantly. Be aware that some containers are owned and storing items in them is considered stealing.
- Sell Regularly: Visit merchants frequently to sell unwanted items and convert them into gold. This is a more efficient way to manage your inventory than simply dropping everything.
- Alchemy: Alchemy allows you to convert raw ingredients into potions, reducing the weight of your inventory and potentially creating valuable items for sale or personal use.
- Light Armor Skill: Leveling your Light Armor skill increases your character’s agility, potentially allowing you to carry slightly more weight before becoming encumbered.
Quest Items and Dropping Restrictions
Oblivion implements certain restrictions on dropping quest-related items to prevent players from accidentally breaking quests. Here’s what you need to know:
- Essential Quest Items: Some quest items are marked as ‘essential’ and cannot be dropped under any circumstances. These items are typically crucial for completing the quest.
- Conditional Dropping: Other quest items may be droppable only under specific conditions, such as after a certain stage of the quest has been completed.
- Warning Prompts: When attempting to drop a quest item, the game usually provides a warning prompt, asking you to confirm your decision. Read these prompts carefully before proceeding.
- Reacquiring Dropped Quest Items: If you accidentally drop a quest item that is not essential, you can usually retrieve it from the ground. However, be aware that dropped items can sometimes disappear if you leave the area or if the game world resets.
Consequences of Dropping Items in Public Places
While dropping items in Oblivion is generally safe, there are a few potential consequences to consider, particularly in populated areas:
- Theft: If you drop valuable items in a public place, NPCs may attempt to steal them. If they are successful, you will lose the item permanently.
- Guard Attention: Dropping items that are considered illegal, such as stolen goods, in front of a guard may attract their attention and result in a fine or arrest.
- Clutter: Dropping excessive amounts of items in a small area can create clutter and potentially impact game performance, especially on older systems.
- Item Disappearance: Dropped items are not guaranteed to remain in the game world indefinitely. They can disappear due to game mechanics designed to prevent excessive clutter.
Alternative to Dropping: Stashing and Selling
Before resorting to dropping items, consider these alternatives:
- Stashing: Find a safe location, such as an abandoned house or a secluded cave, to stash your excess items. Use containers like chests or barrels to organize your loot. Be aware that containers in dungeons and some homes will respawn their contents after a certain amount of time, which will cause you to lose the stashed items.
- Selling: Regularly visit merchants to sell unwanted items. Invest in your Mercantile skill to get better prices. You can also use Speechcraft to persuade merchants to offer more gold. A good strategy is to sell items at a merchant, then use persuasion to get the merchant’s disposition high enough to then steal back a valuable item from them.
Mods That Enhance Item Management
For PC players, several mods can significantly improve item management in Oblivion:
- Inventory Management Mods: These mods often provide enhanced inventory interfaces, sorting options, and weight display features.
- Weight Adjustment Mods: Some mods adjust the weight of specific items, making it easier to carry more without becoming encumbered.
- Container Mods: These mods add new containers to the game world, providing more options for storing your loot.
- Merchant Mods: These mods can increase the amount of gold merchants have available, making it easier to sell your unwanted items.
Troubleshooting Common Issues
Here are some common issues you might encounter when dropping items and how to troubleshoot them:
- Cannot Drop Quest Item: As mentioned earlier, some quest items cannot be dropped. Check your quest log to see if dropping the item is a requirement for the quest.
- Item Disappears After Dropping: Dropped items can disappear due to game mechanics. Avoid dropping items in crowded areas or areas that are prone to resetting.
- Encumbered Despite Dropping Items: Double-check your inventory to ensure you have dropped all unnecessary items. Remember that even small items can contribute to your encumbrance. Also, verify if any of the items you are wearing have high weights.
- Accidentally Dropped Important Item: Retrace your steps to the location where you dropped the item and search thoroughly. If you cannot find it, you may need to reload a previous save.
Conclusion
Mastering the art of dropping items is an essential skill for navigating the challenges and opportunities of Oblivion. By understanding the mechanics of item dropping, utilizing weight management strategies, and considering the consequences of your actions, you can efficiently manage your inventory and embark on your adventures without being burdened by excessive weight. Whether you’re a seasoned veteran or a new adventurer, this guide provides the knowledge you need to become a master of inventory management in the world of Cyrodiil. So, go forth, explore, and loot, but remember to drop what you don’t need!