-and how do you poison people?...i have all kinds of poisons and no idea how to use them
Select the poison with a weapon equipped. The poison will be applied and used on the next blow/arrow.
I think people have confused criticism in this regard. It's not that, "Hey the loot that I get out of caves sucks!" it's more that it's easier to build enchant and make the exact same thing yourself.
I think the goal of the design is to make random spelunking really attractive early on, as you always get a few decent things to sell, disenchant or maybe equip. And later on you are mostly working on quest lines. I'm not convinced those are really bad things either. I mean, it means that you'll have more fun having two characters with 50 hours invested than one character with 100.
I don't disagree there. 90% of the weapons I've ever used are ones I make (or improve) myself because they are superior to the vast bulk of the loot, especially once you get up to a decent level. The system encourages you to find your own treasure early on, and then if you invest in smithing and enchanting, are able to outclass what is out there. There's some natural tension in that they need to build rewards for both; I've put a ton of time into those systems and I want to make awesome stuff with them. But if I do, they outclass most of the loot. (Oddly, I find much more useful armor than weapons, possibly because I haven't spent the relevent enchanting perks.)
There are a lot of unique weapons that cannot be disenchanted and have their effects applied generaly (Mehrune's Razor, etc.), and it would have been good to see more along those lines. I consider the shouts a big part of the loot system, and really enjoy finding those dragon doors inside a dungeon, or hearing that faint chanting coming from the next room. I hope they're able to find some other kind of great hook like that in all their subsequent games.
Agree with the sentimen ton combat as well.
I'm talking about the ones that are farthest north, away from any land or map locations. Haven't found anything really around those.
Yeah that was a suprise. Related: commit a crime in Winterhold and choose to go to jail
*adds to the to-do list*
My next character, the Orc, will be getting the Achievement for 1,000 bounty in all holds. I'll make sure to take the trip to jail on that one.
What really got me wasn't so much what was inside, as what was waiting outside when I got there. 0_0