I would like to know how Skyrim determines whether I was detected killing someone. For example: There is this temple in Makreth, where there are some women down below the main hall. I lockpicked my way there, they stopped me and things ultimately led to a fight. I killed them, nobody was around to see it, yet when I came out of the temple, the guards were all over me…
I wasn't in stealth when fighting, because there were no witnesses whatsoever, so why was I still considered a killer?
Best Answer
I've found that if you attack some one and they survive the first hit, they some how telepathically tell the guards, at least in towns.
A "stealth kill" is really any situation where you one-hit kill someone and no-one sees.
This is normally done while sneaking as you will get the damage multipliers (i think its X2 for bows and X3 for melee without perks) which make it a lot easier to do.
It's 3x for bows, 6x for one handed, 15x for daggers, and 2x for anything else with the relevant perks (Deadly Aim, Backstab, Assassin's Blade)