A Skyrim player has shared a video clip showcasing a strange and hilarious bug tied to the game's Greybeard NPCs. The physics in The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim is an endless source of fun and surprising glitches. Videos have been shared since Skyrim first launched in 2011 showing how the game can be broken in some hilarious ways, some by intentional design and some through glitches. This latest Skyrim clip, featuring the Greybeards of High Hrothgar, falls somewhere in between.
The Greybeards in The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim are known as the masters of Thu'um, also known as the Voice. This is a power that the player in Skyrim inherits as the Dovahkiin, the Last Dragonborn. As such, the player is tasked in Skyrim to seek out the Greybeards so that they can teach and test the Dragonborn. Learning the powers of Thu'um enable the player to do incredible things, and also happens to be the source of many of Skyrim's most infamous bugs.
In the video clip shared by Reddit user Tinoe_The_Tanuki, the player is currently being taught and trained a new Thu'um shout. The shout is named Whirlwind Sprint and it allows the player to near-instantly travel a short distance. The player is first taught the spell and then the Greybeards show an example of its use. The Greybeard Arngeir asks Wulfgar to demonstrate, with Borri opening a gate a short distance away. Wulfgar then casts the shout, launching themselves into the stratosphere.
It isn't entirely clear why Wulfgar launches into the sky at the end of using Whirlwind Sprint. The most likely scenario is that they cast the spell, but accidentally run into or glitch into part of the terrain at the end of the spell. Skyrim then corrects the issue by forcing Wulfgar in another direction, which launches him into the air. Once Wulfgar is in the air, Skyrim doesn't know what to do with him, so he's left floating ominously.
Whirlwind Sprint is one of Skyrim's glitchiest abilities, though there are many. One other recently discovered example is that being paralyzed by an enemy while using Whirlwind Sprint will launch the player forward, maintaining their momentum even after their teleport is finished. Some players have launched themselves off of mountains with this technique, discovering that they don't take fall damage as a result.
In the end, this is just another of Skyrim's fun but ultimately harmless glitches. Even if the player is forced to load a save file, the glitch is unlikely to happen again. It's a once-in-a-million chance. Plus, it's fun to have experienced it even if it's annoying to deal with. Even if it was a game-breaking bug, a fix would be unlikely. It's been over 10 years since Skyrim was released, after all.
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.