To level up fast in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, raise any skills you like, because every skill now feeds your level rather than only your seven Major Skills, then sleep in a bed to bank the level and spend 12 virtue points across up to three attributes. That is a different system from the 2006 game, and most old advice about efficient leveling is now wrong. This guide covers how the remaster’s leveling actually works, the fastest skills to train, how to spend your points, and what Bethesda’s own tips page recommends.
How leveling works in the remaster
Bethesda’s official Tips and Tricks page states the two rules that matter: “you gain experience as you play and use your skills, but you will not level up until after you sleep.” Every skill increase adds to a single experience bar, and when it fills, the next time you sleep in any bed the level-up screen appears. Waiting does not count; only sleeping does, so keep a bed in mind when the bar is nearly full. Guild halls, inns, bedrolls in cleared dungeons and any house you own all work.
The detail Bethesda’s page does not spell out, but which the unofficial UESP remastered leveling page documents, is that all skills contribute, “just as in Skyrim”. In the original only Major Skills advanced your level and Minor Skills merely fed attribute bonuses. Now a Minor Skill and a Major Skill both push the bar, though Major Skills still start higher and still define your class. UESP also notes that experience from the skill points your class grants at character creation counts, so picking your class at the sewer exit can tip you straight into level 2.
Spending your virtue points
The level-up screen is where the remaster departs furthest from the original. There is no multiplier table to game any more. Per UESP, on each level you receive 12 virtues to distribute among your attributes, with these limits:
- Each virtue raises an attribute by one point.
- A single attribute can take at most 5 virtues per level.
- You can raise at most 3 different attributes per level.
- Luck costs 4 virtues per point and can only rise by 1 per level.
So a typical level is +5, +5, +2 across three attributes, or +5, +4, and a Luck point for 4. Because no attribute depends on which skills you raised, you can level Athletics all day and still put every point into Intelligence. UESP adds that Endurance now applies retroactively to health, so raising it late is no longer a wasted choice the way it was in the original.
Enemy scaling was also adjusted for the remaster per UESP. It still exists, so a character who levels fast on Athletics and Acrobatics alone will meet tougher enemies without tougher combat skills, and that is the one way “leveling fast” can still hurt you.
The fastest skills to train
Bethesda’s tips page names the two free ones: “running and jumping increase Acrobatics and Athletics and you can always run and jump,” and magicka regenerates, so “if you have magicka to spare, you can use spells unnecessarily to increase their level.” A few remaster-specific details sharpen that advice:
- Sprint everywhere. The remaster added sprinting (Left Shift on keyboard, press the left stick on a controller), and per UESP, Athletics gains experience faster while sprinting than while running. Our sprint guide covers the fatigue cost.
- Cast expensive spells, not cheap ones. Magic experience now scales with a spell’s base magicka cost on top of a flat amount per cast, per UESP. The old trick of spamming the cheapest spell in a school is the slowest option in the remaster. Cast the most expensive spell you can afford, then recover; see how to use spells and how to increase magicka.
- Sell in bulk for Mercantile. Experience is now based on the total value of what you sell rather than a flat rate per transaction, per UESP, so one expensive sale beats a hundred cheap ones.
- Auto Attempt locks for Security. UESP reports Security experience is granted for every Auto Attempt press, whether it succeeds or fails, which the original did not do. Our lockpicking guide covers the button.
- Persuade everyone. Speechcraft trains fastest on rounds that raise disposition, per UESP, so play the wheel properly rather than spamming it.
Trainers and skill books still work as they did: pay a trainer for direct skill points, and read the books scattered through dungeons and shops. The original limited training to five sessions per level; Bethesda has not documented a change, so budget for that limit.
Planning a build in the new system
Because attribute gains no longer depend on skill use, a build in the remaster is about two things: which skills you want high, and which attributes you spend virtues on. Major Skills still matter for the head start they give and for the class you are shown, but they no longer gate leveling, so choosing “easy” Major Skills to level faster is pointless. Pick the skills you will use in fights and put the free training (sprinting, jumping, spare magicka) on top.
For attributes, five points a level into Endurance early pays out retroactively in health, Strength raises carry weight (Bethesda’s tips page puts it at five times Strength) and melee damage, and Intelligence and Willpower feed magicka and its regeneration. The birthsign you pick at creation adds flat bonuses on top and cannot be changed later.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do Minor Skills level me up now? Yes. Per UESP’s remastered leveling documentation, every skill contributes to your level in the remaster; the original counted only Major Skills.
Do I still have to sleep to level up? Yes. Bethesda’s official tips page says you will not level up until after you sleep. Waiting does not trigger it.
How many attribute points do I get per level? Twelve virtues, per UESP, with a maximum of five in any one attribute and at most three attributes raised per level. Luck costs four virtues per point.
Is the old +5 attribute trick still a thing? No. Attribute gains no longer depend on which skills you raised, so there is nothing to track before you sleep.
Does leveling fast make enemies harder? Enemies still scale with your level, with the curve adjusted for the remaster per UESP, so keep at least one combat skill growing alongside the easy ones.
Our Elder Scrolls guides hub covers the rest of Cyrodiil.