Still get the Oghma Infinium if Septimus is dead

Okay. I decided I'd stay up and play-test my original solution anyway. I've gotten the "up to level 15" part knocked out, which covers answering this question. I'll see exactly how playable it is in terms of getting the Oghma Infinium later.

Here's my process. Total cost to the player nets out to only about 454 gp. Start-up capital is minimum 1,000 gp. More comfortable progression through later processes can be attained by having a start-up capital of around 3,060 gp.

Costs break down as follows:

• Cost to train Archery at level 50: 540 gp (refundable)
• Cost of travel to Riften: 20 gp (non-refundable)
• Cost of bribing Ungrien until Speech level 25: Approx. 440 gp (non-refundable)
• (Optional) Cost to train Archery through levels 46-49: 2,060 gp (refundable)

Of course, you might be able to turn some non-refundable costs in to refundable ones via pickpocketing. But, I wouldn't rely on it.

Time to complete is about two hours of gameplay.

The Process:

1. Getting out of Helgen.
   It really doesn't much matter how you do this, or with whom. For my play-test, I just rushed through it by doing only what was absolutely necessary. However, there are a couple things you could do to make building the start-up capital easier.
   • Loot everything. Focus on items that have a high value-per-weight ratio. Sell whatever you don't need when you get to town.
   • Follow Ralof. This will later give you 24x7 access to Hod, which is handy for when you want to sell wood.
2. Get to Riverwood.
   Again, it really doesn't matter how you do this. You can follow the person who led you out of Helgen, or you can just head straight there yourself. I chose the latter.
3. Gain Faendal as a follower.
   Find Faendal in Riverwood. Talk to him about Sven, to start A Lovely Letter. Resolve that quest in Faendal's favor. Then, ask him to follow you.

4. Go chop wood.
   Okay, perhaps this isn't the most glorious - and maybe not even the fastest - way to make money. But it is reliable, it's safe, and it's 100% profit. You'll want to do this until you've gotten at least 1,000 gp built up. To make the later processes ultra-smooth, you'd want around 3,060 to start. But, there does come a point where the time saved later on just won't be worth the time spent at the block.

   1. Make sure Faendal is following you.
   2. Get the Woodcutter's Axe from the workbench behind the mill.
   3. Find a Wood Chopping Block nearby, and use it.
   4. Repeat step 3 until overencumbered.
   5. Give Faendal as much wood as he can carry.
   6. Repeat step 4.
   7. (Optional) Unload just enough wood so that you're no longer overencumbered.
   8. Find Hod, stand next to him.
   9. Have Faendal give you all the wood he's carrying.
   10. Sell all the wood to Hod.
   11. Repeat steps 1-10 until you've got whatever amount of start-up capital you've decided you want. Two or three trips should be plenty for the minimum.

5. Get to Riften.
   You could probably walk all the way, if you're sure you know where you're going. But that would be extremely tedious and potentially treacherous. The easiest way to do this, for only 20 gp (already factored into the start-up costs), is to hire the carriage outside of Whiterun Stables to take you there. If you've done nothing except for these steps so far, Whiterun should already be on your map. The stables are just south-west of there. Oh, and do make sure Faendal is still following you.

6. Get to the Black-Briar Meadery.
   The guards outside of Riften will try to shake you down. Use the Persuade option, and they should let you pass for free. This should also give you a little extra Speech XP to start off with. From there, head for the Black Briar Meadery. This is where we'll finally be doing our leveling.

7. Level up with Faendal & Ungrien.
   Faendal is still following you... right? Also, you may want to save around now.

   There's two exploits we're going to leverage here, which I'll cover below. One involves Faendal being both a Trainer and a Follower. The other involves Ungrien's habit of buckling under pressure when it comes to bad-mouthing his boss.

   You'll want to start off by working the Faendal angle as much as you can first. Then, when his training isn't enough on its own to put you up to the next character level, use the Ungrien exploit. Once you've hit the next character level, switch back to Faendal. Repeat until Faendal can't train you anymore (Archery level 50), and then just stick with Ungrien until you're done.

Faendal
1. Ask Faendal to follow you, if he isn't already.
2. Have Faendal train you until you're low on money, or have maxed your training sessions.
3. Tell Faendal you want to trade with him, and take your money back.

Ungrien
1. Talk to Ungrien, ask about Maven.
2-a. If your Speech is lower than level 25, you'll have to bribe him for the truth. This cost me 24-31 gp per shot, and has been factored into the start-up capital.
2-b. Once your Speech is up to level 25, you should be able to use the Persuade option successfully.

I was able to hit character level 15 after fully training with Faendal (Archery 50) and working Ungrien until my Speech was 73. However, I had picked up a couple levels of Destruction on the way out of Helgen. I was also playing a Nord, so my Speech started with a +5. So, your mileage may vary slightly depending on race and skill usage along the way.

Exploit References

Faendal: http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Faendal#Bugs
Ungrien: http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Speech#Gaining_Skill_XP

UPDATE: After a grand total of 4 hours and 11 minutes of play time, I now have a level 16 (popped another level during Discerning the Transmundane) character who is in possession of the Oghma Infinium.

Getting through Discerning the Transmundane was a little tricky since I hadn't really leveled any combat skills except Archery, and I hadn't chosen any perks yet. With the combat level set to Novice though, I was able to make it through with still a few healing potions to spare.

Now, if I can just find a bookshelf...

UPDATE: I finally gave in and completed the Dragon Rising quest, followed by some quick fund-raising to purchase and upgrade Breezehome so that I could use a bookshelf there. Now, I've gotten the character up to 81 with the Oghma Infinium glitch.

But, I'm still interested in any information about bookshelves that don't require a player purchase.

Yes you do need to own the bookshelf. An easy way to make money is to simply go into somewhere where they like you, like the Whiterun castle, take everything that doesn't count as stealing, and sell it. Goblets, plates, books, everything. I'm only level 10 and I already have over 10,000 gold after buying the house in Whiterun, fully stocking it, buying a horse, and the best armor & weapons I can use.