The story of Skyrim is one of a legendary hero, the Dragonborn, whose arrival has been foretold for ages. Noble and strong, this hero will save the world from the threat of dragons—or, if the player wishes, they'll pick pockets, jimmy locks, and stab backs. Some players might like to live up to their calling as Dragonborn, but others prefer to rule the criminal underbelly of this fantasy world.
There are a number of skills associated with the Thief play style in Skyrim, but which of these are most helpful? All of them have their uses, but some are more niche while others have a wide variety of applications. Here's a list of all Thief skills, from worst to best.
6 The Pickpocket Skill
Pickpocket is far from a useless skill. However, it takes a lot of practice and many, many failures for the player to get good at it. Lifting an item off an NPC requires not just Pickpocket prowess, but also a high enough Sneak skill that neither the target nor bystanders see them do it.
Leveling Pickpocket is a tedious process. At low levels, players can only steal low-value items, which barely raise the skill. It takes a long time before the Dragonborn can purchase Pickpocket perks, which still aren't that great. Some are handy; for example, the Poisoned perk, which allows the player to harm enemies by reverse-pickpocketing poisons. However, most others, like Cutpurse and Keymaster, are a letdown.
5 The Light Armor Skill
Like Pickpocket, Light Armor takes a while to get good. Starting out lightly armored at lower levels leaves the player vulnerable, even if they are marginally stealthier. With the right perks, light armor can be just as protective as heavy. However, players usually wind up mauled to death a few times before they get to that point.
Players who utilize this skill should heavily invest in the Light Armor perk tree to improve their defenses. Smithing can also help increase survival odds when using light armor, if the player improves their pieces. To maximize Light Armor potential, though, the best choice is to travel to Solstheim and track down every piece of the Deathbrand armor set.
4 The Lockpicking Skill
Lockpicking is an incredibly handy skill, giving the Dragonborn access to chests full of loot and shops full of items to steal. However, the way that the game handles the lockpicking skill isn't very well done, and many longtime Elder Scrolls players were disappointed with the way the feature was gutted.
Most of the Lockpicking perks aren't particularly useful. Making leveled locks easier to pick doesn't really matter, and unbreakable lockpicks are made obsolete with the Skeleton Key. Even without Nocturnal's artifact, lockpicks are so cheap and common that it doesn't really matter how many of them break. Raising this skill is absolutely worth a thief's time and effort, but players should find other places to invest their perk points.
3 The Speech Skill
Speech is a handy skill not just for rogues and thieves, but for pretty much any player wandering Skyrim. Whether they're looking for a deal on a new weapon, trying to gain access to restricted areas, or hoping to learn some juicy information, a high Speech level will never let them down. Intimidation and persuasion allow players to progress several quests without having to jump through additional hoops.
The perks in the Speech skill tree can actually come in handy, especially for thieves. Bribery lets the player pay guards to ignore crimes, while Fence allows them to sell stolen goods to any merchant. The Speech skill is easy to level as well: Buying and selling high-value items raises it quickly.
2 The Alchemy Skill
Like Speech, Alchemy is a useful skill for just about any play style. There's no shortage of useful flowers and fungi throughout Skyrim to brew into powerful potions. Even common ingredients like wheat and blue mountain flowers can create life-saving mixtures. Power attackers can increase their stamina, mages can power up their spells, and thieves can avoid detection with invisibility.
As with any crafting skill, Alchemy takes practice. However, the advantages it provides are well worth the effort. Players can buff themselves up or devastate enemies, especially with the aforementioned Poisoned perk. Not to mention, certain potions can sell for up to thousands of Septims, a rare way for a thief to make some legitimate coin.
1 The Sneak Skill
Sneaking is what makes most of the other thief skills work. It's difficult to pick locks and impossible to pickpocket without a decent Sneak level. Whether the player prefers sniping their enemies with arrows or stabbing them in the back, this skill is essential for effective stealth attacks. Furthermore, the perks in the Sneak skill tree multiply sneak attack damage by up to fifteen times.
It's also not too tricky to level this skill. Just crouch and creep around non-hostile characters, such as town guards or shopkeepers, to raise Sneak without consequences upon being discovered. Stealth builds can branch in a variety of different directions, but there's no such thing as a stealth-based character without a high Sneak skill.