One of the first big decisions you have to make in The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim is the type of character you're going to play. After your ride to Helgen as a prisoner, you're sent to character creation, where you pick your race and customize your appearance. Generally speaking, the races in Skyrim are pretty balanced. You're not heavily penalized for picking whatever you like based on cosmetic reasons, so if you wanted to make a magic-wielding Nord or a tanky Bosmer who wears heavy armor and fights full-melee two-handed style with swords and such, you totally can, and it's not a big deal.
25 Best Skyrim Mods That Improve NPCs
NPCs really help the world of Skyrim come to life. These amazing mods improve the quality of every interaction in the game.
That said, the whole point of this list is nitpicking, and we're going to dive a little deeper into what some of the most overpowered races in the game actually offer. Because yes, there are some races that have features that could be considered a tad OP. We'll discuss these features in-depth while ranking the five of the most OP races to pick, and we'll also talk about some alternatives and why they didn't make the cut this time. Let's jump into it.
Nord
Massive Frost Resistance Covers A Lot Of Enemies
There's a case to be made for Nords, which might surprise some players. Canonically, it's the choice that makes sense, and it's probably what's featured on the box art of Skyrim. However, Nords also come with some pretty interesting specialties, abilities, and passives. For one, they have a 50% resistance against Frost, and that's a damage type you're going to be encountering a lot in Skyrim. You can pretty much assume you have a constant passive 50% damage resistance, depending, of course, on the type of enemy. Against Frost Dragons, it's especially handy.
You also get a pretty cool once-a-day racial ability that can scare off enemies for about 30 seconds. If you're getting overwhelmed and swarmed in a dungeon, this could be a nice ability to have in the back pocket, though far from the best. Skill-wise, you'll be leaning more towards melee weapons, with the highest starting value in two-handed. The only downside and sort of strange feature is that Nords specialize in light armor instead of heavy, so keep that in mind when building your ideal Nord.
Bosmer
The Fast Track Choice For Stealth Archers
The stealth archer build is the strongest build in Skyrim, no doubt about it, and if you're looking get into archery and have a powerful start, Bosmer is your pick. But what about Khajiit? The feline race of Skyrim is also a really solid pick, but I would argue that having a higher starting skill rating for Light Armor is nicer in the long term over what Khajiits have to offer (which would mostly be a 60-second Night Vision once a day as their racial ability). So, Bosmer it is.
Your starting proficiencies all land in good spots, with the highest Archery proficiency in the game in the beginning at 25, and 20 in Light Armor, Sneak, Lockpicking, Alchemy, and Pickpocket. This gives you a great boost right off the bat to start building your stealth archer, compared to all other races. You also have a natural 50% resistance against poisons and diseases, which isn't the best feature around, but it's better than nothing. The unique racial ability is Command Animal: once a day, you can turn a wild animal into your ally for 60 seconds. It's a fairly niche skill, and granted, worse than the Khajiit one, but as I said, the Light Armor bonus is simply too good to ignore in my opinion.
Altmer
An Incredibly Powerful Choice For Mage Builds
If you lean more towards magic instead and would like to make a mage, one of the most powerful races to pick is the Altmer. An alternative option would be Dunmer, especially if you really want to crank out everything into Destruction magic, as it starts at 25 versus the 20 that Altmer starts with, and gets Light Armor points, too. That can be handy if you're not used to playing a glass cannon character just yet. However, Altmer consistently has 20 in all schools of magic save for the 25 in Illusion, so it's a far more balanced blank slate to start with if you haven't decided yet what kind of specialty to take.
Skyrim: Broken Character Builds That Are A Lot Of Fun
Looking to breeze through Skyrim on Legendary? These builds help players make short work of dragons and draugr.
As an Altmer, you get a nice +50 boost to your Magicka, which gives you a huge starting advantage for your magic pool. The racial ability is where things get really exciting, even if you can only use it once a day. You'll regen 25% of your max Magicka every second for a full minute, which essentially makes it the perfect emergency ability to use if you're in the middle of a tough fight and really need to replenish your Magicka without using any potions. All in all, it's a no-brainer choice for anyone who wants a powerful mage character from the get-go, but expect to be squishy if someone engages you in close quarters. You might need summons or a tanky companion to protect you.
Breton
Mindblowingly High Magic Resistance Once A Day
Bretons are very similar to Altmers in terms of their skills and utility, but far easier to use in higher difficulty games, or just if better if you prefer to have a tankier mage at your disposal and don't want to settle for a Dunmer. Bretons start with a bonus in Conjuration, which is very handy for mages to have, as you generally want to pull aggro with companions or summons so you can do free damage on enemies without getting hit yourself. Destruction might be low here, but that's all fine, considering the racial ability and passive effects that Bretons get.
Skyrim: The 34 Best Heavy Armor Sets, Ranked
For the Skyrim player who likes a close-combat, heavy-damage Dragonborn, they'll need a sturdy, heavy armor set, like Daedric or Ebony.
Not many players might know this, but Bretons actually get a 75% magic resistance once a day for a full minute. This is due to their passive 25% magic resistance they have all the time, and when stacked with their racial ability, which can only be cast once a day, which absorbs 50% magicka from any spells targeting you, it really does turn you into a tank against other spellcasters and magic-wielding enemies. Some of the toughest foes in the game use magic quite a bit, so it's no surprise that many lean towards Breton to get the most bang for their buck.
Orsimer
Double Damage, Double The Fun
It's pretty universally agreed upon that Orsimer is the strongest race in Skyrim. If you dream of making the toughest, tankiest, bloodiest melee build known to the world of Skyrim, picking an orc is simply a must. They're even better at Nords at what they do, and though something can be said for the stamina of Redguards, orcs remain the kings of the bonk-melee gameplay. Their passive skill just lets you enter freely into any orc stronghold, which isn't anything revolutionary, but the racial ability is where it gets really interesting.
Once a day, for 60 seconds, you take 50% less damage and do double damage. This is absolutely busted. Pair this up with really good armor and a powerful weapon, and you have the most monstrous Last Dragonborn ever created in your hands. Orcs are by far the best pick for any melee-oriented pick overall, with solid 20 points for all things Two-Handed, One-Handed, and Block. Their highest score is in Heavy Armor at 25, so the real question really is, would you like to have a shield, or would you rather just hack away with a massive axe or sword?
-
OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 81 /100 Critics Rec: 83%
- Released
- November 11, 2011
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Use of Alcohol
- Developer(s)
- Bethesda Game Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Bethesda Softworks
WHERE TO PLAY
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
