The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Anniversary Edition - Weapons
The weapon families of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Anniversary Edition, organised by the eleven weapon types that share a skill and smithing category, the special material tiers added by the expansions, and the signature artefacts of the Daedric Princes and the Dragon Cult. Every weapon is built on...
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of 22 entries
· updated 2026-09-15
| Name | Type | Description | Stats | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| One-Handed Sword | One-Handed | The fastest of the one-handed bladed families and the default weapon for most builds. | Skill: One-Handed Speed: Fast Reach: Medium Damage Band: 7 (Iron) to 25 (Daedric) before tempering and perks Upgrade Material: Ingots matching the tier, plus a grindstone | Crafted at any forge, bought from blacksmiths, or dropped by bandits and draugr |
| One-Handed War Axe | One-Handed | A chopping one-handed family that trades a little speed for bleed damage over time on each hit. | Skill: One-Handed Speed: Medium Reach: Medium Damage Band: Higher base damage than a sword of the same tier, plus a bleed effect Upgrade Material: Ingots matching the tier, plus a grindstone | Crafted at a forge or taken from bandits, draugr and Stormcloak soldiers |
| One-Handed Mace | One-Handed | The heaviest one-handed family. Maces ignore a portion of enemy armour, which makes them the answer to heavily armoured opponents and Dwemer constructs, at the cost of a slower swing and higher stamina drain. | Skill: One-Handed Speed: Slow Reach: Medium Special: Ignores a percentage of enemy armour Upgrade Material: Ingots matching the tier, plus a grindstone | Crafted at a forge or recovered from Legionnaires and mercenaries |
| Dagger | One-Handed | The lightest weapon family and the backbone of stealth builds, since the Assassin's Blade perk multiplies sneak attack damage with daggers. | Skill: One-Handed Speed: Very fast Reach: Short Special: Assassin's Blade perk grants 15x sneak attack damage Upgrade Material: Ingots matching the tier, plus a grindstone | Crafted, bought, or looted from assassins and vampires |
| Two-Handed Greatsword | Two-Handed | The balanced two-handed family, pairing long reach with acceptable swing speed. | Skill: Two-Handed Speed: Medium Reach: Long Damage Band: 17 (Iron) to 25 (Daedric) before tempering Upgrade Material: Ingots matching the tier, plus a grindstone | Crafted at a forge or looted from bandit chiefs and draugr deathlords |
| Two-Handed Battleaxe | Two-Handed | The middle two-handed family, slower than a greatsword but with higher base damage and a guaranteed bleed effect on standing power attacks. | Skill: Two-Handed Speed: Slow Reach: Long Special: Bleed damage on standing power attacks Upgrade Material: Ingots matching the tier, plus a grindstone | Crafted at a forge or taken from Stormcloaks and reavers |
| Two-Handed Warhammer | Two-Handed | The slowest and hardest hitting family in the game. | Skill: Two-Handed Speed: Very slow Reach: Long Special: Ignores a large portion of enemy armour and staggers on power attacks Upgrade Material: Ingots matching the tier, plus a grindstone | Crafted at a forge or looted from giants' camps and Orcish strongholds |
| Bow | Archery | The primary ranged family and the centre of stealth archer builds. | Skill: Archery Speed: Draw-dependent Reach: Very long Ammunition: Iron, Steel, Orcish, Dwarven, Elven, Glass, Ebony, Daedric and Stalhrim arrows Upgrade Material: Ingots matching the bow tier | Crafted at a forge, bought from fletchers, or looted from bandits and Falmer |
| Crossbow | Archery | Introduced by Dawnguard, crossbows trade rate of fire for a pre-loaded shot that does not need drawing, making them ideal openers. | Skill: Archery Speed: Single loaded shot, slower reload Reach: Very long Ammunition: Iron, Steel and Dwarven bolts, including explosive variants Upgrade Material: Steel or Dwarven ingots | Crafted after the Dawnguard questline introduces them, or bought from Sorine Jurard |
| Shield | Blocking | Shields are armour pieces that double as weapons, power bashing to stagger enemies and interrupt spellcasting. | Skill: Block Damage: Bash damage scales with armour type and Block perks Special: Power bash staggers and interrupts; Shield Charge knocks enemies down Upgrade Material: Ingots matching the shield tier | Crafted at a forge, bought from blacksmiths, or looted from guards |
| Staves | Staff | Staves cast a stored spell on every swing and draw on the wielder's own magicka pool only for the charge. | Skill: Enchanting (charge) and the matching magic school (effect) Damage: Spell-dependent Special: Cast the stored spell without the matching school's magicka cost Upgrade Material: Refilled with soul gems; not tempered at a grindstone | Bought from court wizards, looted from conjurers and dragon priests, or crafted with the Staff Enchanter at Tel Mithryn |
| Bound Weapons | Conjuration | Conjured blades, bows and battleaxes summoned by Conjuration spells. | Skill: Conjuration Duration: About 120 seconds, Soul Stealer perk adds soul trapping Special: Zero carry weight; Mystic Binding raises damage to Daedric equivalence Upgrade Material: None; improved only through perks | Learned from Conjuration spell tomes sold by court wizards |
| Dragonbone Weapons | Two-Handed and One-Handed (expansion tier) | The highest smithing tier introduced by Dawnguard, forged from dragon bone and scales. | Skill: Smithing (Dragon Armor perk required) Damage Band: Top tier, above Daedric on several families Upgrade Material: Dragon bone and scales Special: Light weight for its damage, no enchantment restrictions | Crafted at a forge after taking the Dragon Armor perk |
| Stalhrim Weapons | One-Handed and Two-Handed (Dragonborn tier) | Weapons carved from the enchanted ice of Solstheim. | Skill: Smithing (Ebony Smithing to carve, after completing the Stalhrim source quest) Damage Band: Above Glass, below Daedric Special: Stronger frost enchantments than any other material Upgrade Material: Stalhrim | Crafted after unlocking the source on Solstheim during the Dragonborn questline |
| Nordic Weapons | One-Handed and Two-Handed (Dragonborn tier) | Ancient carved weapons recovered from Solstheim's draugr and barrows, sitting between Steel and Dwarven in damage but carrying a chance to inflict frost damage as an inherent effect. | Skill: Smithing Damage Band: Between Steel and Dwarven Special: Inherent chance of frost damage on hit Upgrade Material: Quicksilver and steel ingots | Looted from Solstheim barrows, or crafted at a forge after the crafting knowledge is learned |
| Dawnbreaker | One-Handed Sword (Daedric artefact) | The sword of Meridia, recovered from her shrine's temple after cleaning the beacon. | Base Damage: 12 (equivalent to a Steel sword, but the enchantment does the work) Enchantment: Burns undead for extra damage; chance to trigger Meridia's Retribution explosion on undead kills Charge Cost: High, needs soul gems Upgrade Material: Not temperable without mods | The Break of Dawn, Meridia's Shrine |
| Mehrunes' Razor | Dagger (Daedric artefact) | A Dagger of the Daedric Prince of destruction whose enchantment carries a small chance to kill any target instantly, including dragons and bosses. | Base Damage: Low for its tier Enchantment: Chance to instantly slay the target, and does not need recharging Special: Works on bosses and dragons Upgrade Material: Daedric smithing pieces | Pieces of the Past, Dawnstar Museum quest |
| Mace of Molag Bal | One-Handed Mace (Daedric artefact) | The mace of the Prince of domination, taken from the abandoned house in Markarth. | Base Damage: High for a one-handed mace Enchantment: Absorbs 25 stamina per hit and soul traps on kill Charge Cost: Low Upgrade Material: Daedric smithing pieces | The House of Horrors, Markarth |
| Volendrung | Two-Handed Warhammer (Daedric artefact) | The hammer of Malacath, found in the Dwemer ruin of Largashbur after helping the Orc stronghold. | Base Damage: High, among the best warhammers Enchantment: Absorbs 50 stamina per hit Charge Cost: Low Upgrade Material: Not temperable without mods | The Cursed Tribe, Largashbur |
| Ebony Blade | Two-Handed Katana (Daedric artefact) | Mephala's whispering blade, sealed behind a door in Dragonsreach that only opens once the player has helped enough Whiterun citizens. | Base Damage: Greatsword tier Enchantment: Absorbs health on hit and grows with each friend killed, up to a dramatically larger drain Speed: Katana speed on a two-handed frame Upgrade Material: Not temperable without mods | The Whispering Door, unlocked through a conversation in the Bannered Mare |
| Wabbajack | Staff (Daedric artefact) | Sheogorath's staff, which transforms its target into something else entirely with each use: a sweetroll, a chicken, a pile of gold, or in rare cases an instant kill or a fully healed enemy. | Effect: Random transformation, damage, healing or disintegration on hit Charge Cost: Consumes the staff's charge like any other staff Special: No reliable damage output, endless entertainment Upgrade Material: Not temperable; recharge with soul gems | The Mind of Madness, Pelagius Wing of the Blue Palace |
| Auriel's Bow | Bow (Dawnguard artefact) | An ancient elven bow recovered from the Forgotten Vale during the Dawnguard questline. | Base Damage: High, one of the strongest bows Special: Bloodcursed arrows blot out the sun; Sunhallowed arrows call a sunburst Ammunition: Requires elven arrows blessed at the wayshrines Upgrade Material: Not temperable without mods | Touching the Sky, Forgotten Vale |
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