Most Powerful Weapons In Skyrim, Ranked

Skyrim is a video game that needs no introduction. The date 11.11.2011 will remain seared in the minds of most open-world RPG fans, who enjoyed the privilege of playing through one of the richest and most engaging games in the genre to come out at that point. Skyrim took the world by storm, with its modding capabilities letting players augment the game to their heart's content and enjoy one of the best versions of this Western RPG that is tailored to each player's personal specifications and preferences.

With the three expansion packs and the base game, Skyrim players have access to a staggering number of powerful and useful weapons. Granted, with the enchanting skill, any weapon can become deadly and players will find that their own customized weapon beats a legendary sword or mythical bow any day. However, for those who want to find the most powerful weapon in Skyrim without putting in any work, there are a number of bows, blades, and axes that the player can use to become an unstoppable Dragonborn.

Updated February 1, 2025, by Hamza Haq: A key reason why Skyrim is still considered one of the greatest RPGs of all time is because of its build diversity. On a basic level, weapons go from Iron to Steel to Dwarven to Glass to Dragonbone to Daedric. Mix in hundreds of enchantments to make each weapon different, different weapon types, and dozens of uniques that follow their own rules, and you have a staggeringly large number of options to choose from. Whether they are fighters, mages, or thieves, players will have no trouble finding their pick among the most powerful weapons in Skyrim as long as they are thorough in their exploration or know exactly where to look.

32 Stormfang

A Unique Greatsword That Keeps On Giving

While direct damage is the most straightforward way to identify the best weapons, as the bigger the damage number, the better the result, enchantments, and special effects only available on unique weapons are what truly make the difference. Stormfang is a unique Steel Greatsword that can be obtained by defeating a Reaver Lord in the Brodir Grove in Solstheim during the course of the Dragonborn DLC. Stormfang's enchantment allows it to deal an extra 30 Lightning damage and 15 Magicka damage to the target in addition to the weapon's base damage.

What's great about this is that, unlike most unique items in Skyrim, players can actually disenchant Stormfang to permanently learn its enchantment and apply it to other weapons. In addition, Stormfang is a respawning weapon, which means it's possible to obtain multiple copies of it by repeating the dungeon where it's found after the enemies inside respawn.

31 Gauldur Blackblade

A One-Handed Weapon That Helps With Survival

One of the biggest reasons why Skyrim remains as popular as ever years after its release is that the sheer number of unique items, collectibles, weapons, and armor pieces inside the game beggars belief. And Skyrim does an excellent job of leading players towards the most valuable of these items through quests. One of these weapons is the Gauldur Blackblade, a unique Ancient Nord Sword that can be obtained by defeating the Draugr boss in Folgunthur during the course of the multi-mission side quest "Forbidden Legend".

Gauldur Blackblade's enchantment allows it to steal 25 points of health per hit to heal the Dragonborn. Considering its fast swing speed as a one-handed sword, it only takes a couple of seconds to refill the entire health bar with this weapon, making it an excellent backup option in almost every situation. Keep in mind, however, that the Gauldur Blackblade is a leveled weapon that scales with the level of the player who finds it. The strongest variant can only be obtained if players enter the Folgunthur dungeon only after reaching level 36.

30 Aetherial Staff

A Weapon From The Dawnguard DLC

Summoning help is one of the best ways to shift enemy aggro onto other figures in Skyrim. It's an easy way for players to manage their foes and take them out without incurring too much damage. However, mastering high-level summon spells is a huge ask. Players who have no interest in making the Dragonborn learn the ways of Conjuration can use unique items to fill this void instead.

The Aetherial Staff may not have any damage values to beat down enemies, but there's a different reason why it's considered by many to be one of Skyrim's best weapons. It summons a Dwarven Spider or Sphere for 60 seconds. Players can use this summon to make combat more manageable if they're being swarmed by too many powerful enemies at once.

29 Staff Of Magnus

A Unique Staff That Absorbs Magicka And Health

The Staff Of Magnus can be acquired during the course of the College of Winterhold questline, which begins atop the northeastern cliffs of Skyrim in Winterhold proper. Though it has a number of potent abilities and specialties in combat, it does not possess the usual characteristics of more traditional weapons in the game.

To get the most out of this weapon, players must be prepared to quickly drain an opponent’s Magicka. Otherwise, they need to be patient while the Staff of Magnus does that job. Once the target is drained of Magicka, the Staff of Magnus will drain health instead. Against traditional enemies, it’s not the greatest, but against Magicka users this thing is devastating.

28 Blade Of Sacrifice

A Dagger That Serves A Twisted Purpose

At a glance, some people may wonder why the Blade of Sacrifice is special. It may boast a unique appearance and patterns that make it different from a regular ebony dagger, but the lack of enchantments would indicate that this weapon's usefulness will be limited.

Related

The Top 10 Standing Stones In Skyrim, Ranked

Skyrim is full of hidden perks and secrets that can help you grind levels, carry more goods, or even gain new powers. Some of these are available through the Standing Stones located throughout the realm. So today on TheBestWarGames, we’re going over the 10 best Standing Stones in Skyrim.

Posts

By  Holden Jones

However, not only is this weapon obtained during one of the cooler and more twisted sidequests in the game, but the Blade of Sacrifice weighs slightly less than an ebony dagger while still maintaining the same level of attack power. This makes it a great backup weapon in Skyrim that players can carry without it being too much of a load on them.

27 Mehrunes' Razor

A Dagger With The Ability To Instakill Foes

Most players don't use daggers that much, unless they really want to hammer in their personal brand of role-playing. As a result, Mehrunes' Razor ends up being ignored, which is a shame.

Not only is this weapon a blast to use, but it also has a chance to instantly kill a foe with a hit. This may be a rare occurrence, but it still doesn't fail to wow the player regardless.

26 Okin

A Tough One-Handed Axe That Hits For Serious Damage

One-handed weapons are a blast to use in Skyrim. The Dragonborn can wield two of these weapons at once, a first for the series. This may not seem all that fresh or engaging nowadays, but long-time fans of the series couldn't believe how much fun it was to dual-wield weapons and slice enemies into ribbons.

Okin is a powerful axe found in one of Skyrim's most infamous dungeons, the crypt known as Volunruud. The trek to obtain this weapon is worthwhile. Frost Damage is a great way to tire out foes and force them to become a punching bag for the Dragonborn after a few attacks.

25 Grimsever

A Great Weapon To Shave Off Both Health And Stamina

The fact that glass is used to forge weapons and armor in the world of The Elder Scrolls is both awesome and hilarious at the same time. This idea may seem ridiculous, but players need only take a look at the amazing appearance of the glass armor and weapons to see why players love using this gear.

Grimsever is a unique glass sword that hits like a truck and is enchanted with Frost Damage too. This means that players can whittle down an enemy's health while also reducing their stamina, reducing the threat they pose to the Dragonborn.

24 Champion's Cudgel

Combine Random Elemental Damage With Clubbing Blows

Two-handed weapons hit like a truck in The Elder Scrolls, but only players who don't mind reducing their defenses should think of using these weapons to turn up the heat on their enemies in battle. Finding great two-handed weapons that are worth their weight is easier said than done. Thus, fans of this type of offense will be glad to know that the Champion's Cudgel is an excellent weapon that hits like a truck — in more ways than one.

The randomized elemental damage can be a pain against certain enemies, but this situation won't arise all that often. In this instance, players can just switch to a different weapon, saving the Champion's Cudgel for enemies who have no protection against the combination of regular and elemental damage dished out by this powerful weapon.

23 Nightingale Blade

Perfect For Unleashing Combos In The Heat Of Battle

The Nightingale Blade may be dwarfed by other blades when it comes to sheer damage, but don't let that take away anything from this weapon. After all, its biggest advantage comes from how it absorbs both health and stamina with each hit.

This means that players can wail at enemies and unleash multiple strong attacks without a care in the world since their health and stamina would regenerate anyway. It's certainly not a sword befitting a thief, since its special effect makes it more suited for full-on battles.