100 Fun Facts About Skyrim

On what date was The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim released worldwide?

Bethesda revealed the '11-11-11' date at the 2010 Spike Video Game Awards; a leaked Xbox 360 copy let modded consoles play it ten days early.

Which studio developed Skyrim?

A team of roughly 100 people built it, and Bethesda Softworks published it; Todd Howard directed.

Which technology, forked from the Fallout 3 codebase, powers Skyrim?

Havok's Behavior toolset handled the character animation, and Radiant AI from Oblivion was updated so NPCs could farm, mill and mine.

Skyrim is set how many years after the events of Oblivion?

It is deliberately not a direct sequel; the Empire has since lost the Great War and signed the humiliating White-Gold Concordat.

What is the name of the World-Eater, the dragon prophesied to destroy the world?

His name breaks into Al-Du-In, 'Destroyer-Devour-Master' in the dragon tongue, and he calls himself the First-Born of Akatosh.

How many playable races does Skyrim offer at character creation?

Todd Howard called the choice more important than in earlier games because Skyrim's culture contains more racism, though it never locks players out of quests.

Skyrim's 18 skills are divided evenly among which three schools?

Characters level indirectly by levelling skills; the class system of earlier Elder Scrolls games was dropped entirely, to widespread critical approval.

Traditionally, into how many holds is the province of Skyrim divided, each governed by a jarl?

The developers designed each hold to feel topographically distinct, and gave up generated landscapes in favour of hand-crafting the whole map.

Which deified human general do the Nords worship as a ninth god, in defiance of the White-Gold Concordat?

The Thalmor forced the ban into the treaty because a man becoming greater than any elf offended them, and the ban helped ignite Ulfric's rebellion.

Who is the last known dragon, secretly protected by the Greybeards atop the Throat of the World?

His name means 'Ambition Overlord Cruelty'; he was once Alduin's lieutenant, and the Blades demand you kill him.

What is the name of the pacifist discipline practised by the Greybeards, founded by Jurgen Windcaller?

Ulfric Stormcloak trained with the Greybeards too, which is how he can Shout; the Greybeards summon you with a shout heard across the province.

How many words of power make up a complete dragon shout?

Each word is unlocked by spending an absorbed dragon soul, and holding the shout button longer releases more words.

Which shout, forcing a dragon to land by making it comprehend mortality, must the Dragonborn learn to fight Alduin?

Arngeir refuses to teach it because it violates the Way of the Voice, so you learn it by reading an Elder Scroll at the site of Alduin's original banishment.

Which captured dragon flies the Dragonborn to the Nord afterlife in exchange for freedom?

His name Od-Ah-Viing means 'Snow-Hunter-Wing'; after the main quest you can call him down with a shout that is simply his name.

Which composer wrote Skyrim's score, having also scored Morrowind and Oblivion?

The 'Dragonborn' theme was sung by a choir of about 30 in the dragon language, layered three times to sound like 90 barbarians.

Bethesda's Adam Adamowicz created the Draconic language and a runic alphabet of how many characters?

New words were added to the lexicon, in Bruce Nesmith's words, every time the studio 'wanted to say something'.

Which Academy Award nominee voiced Esbern, the Blades loremaster?

The cast of more than 70 actors also included Christopher Plummer as Arngeir and Joan Allen as Delphine, across over 60,000 lines of dialogue.

Which actor voiced Arngeir, the spokesman of the Greybeards?

Charles Martinet, the voice of Mario, is also in the cast, as Paarthurnax; Lynda Carter voices Gormlaith Golden-Hilt.

Which Japanese magazine gave Skyrim a perfect 40/40, the first Western-developed game to earn it?

The four-editor score put it alongside a handful of Japanese classics; reviewers elsewhere still criticised the 'floaty' melee combat.

Roughly how many units of Skyrim had been sold by June 2023, according to Todd Howard?

It had already shipped 7 million in its first week and hit 65 million by July 2026; Howard blames the endless re-releases on the millions still playing.

Which of Skyrim's three add-ons revolves around a battle between vampire hunters and Clan Volkihar?

It adds crossbows, the Soul Cairn and the Forgotten Vale, and PS3 performance problems delayed it there by eight months.

The Hearthfire add-on lets the player build houses and adopt up to how many children?

Three plots of land are added, and the house is built from raw lumber and clay that you gather or buy.

The Dragonborn add-on takes place on which island belonging to the province of Morrowind?

Its antagonist Miraak, the First Dragonborn, was a dragon priest who learned from Hermaeus Mora how to bend dragons' will; the DLC lets you ride dragons.

Which Daedric Prince taught Miraak the power to bend the will of dragons?

Miraak turned on his winged overlords and slaughtered them, so the dragons razed his temple; Mora protected him but trapped him in Apocrypha.

Which city is the capital of Skyrim, seat of the High King, and built on a natural arch over the Sea of Ghosts?

Jarl Elisif the Fair, widow of the murdered High King Torygg, rules from the Blue Palace; the Bards College and Imperial Legion HQ are also there.

Which city is built inside an ancient Dwemer city, with much of it carved into the surrounding rock?

Its Silver-Blood family owns half the city and Cidhna Mine, said to be the most secure prison in Skyrim.

The Thieves Guild inhabits the sewers beneath which city?

The tunnels are called the Ratway; guards demand a 'tax' at the gate, which you can pay, talk your way out of, or pickpocket the key for.

Which family, headed by Maven, controls the Rift's meadery and has ties to the Thieves Guild and Dark Brotherhood?

If the Imperials take the Rift, Maven replaces Laila Law-Giver as jarl.

Windhelm's Dark Elf refugees are confined to a cramped slum called what?

It was previously the Snow Quarter; the Dunmer fled Morrowind after the eruption of Red Mountain, and Ulfric turns a blind eye to their plight.

Which Whiterun citizen famously asks whether you get to the Cloud District very often?

He owns Chillfurrow Farm and claims to advise the Jarl, but never sets foot in Dragonsreach and sleeps at The Drunken Huntsman.

Which mead hall in Whiterun serves as headquarters of the Companions?

It sits in the Wind District beside the Skyforge, worked by Eorlund Gray-Mane, the greatest smith in Skyrim.

Lydia becomes your housecarl after the Jarl of Whiterun names you thane. What is her stated duty?

She is likely your first housecarl and moves into Breezehome if you buy it, ready to be sworn to carry your burdens.

How much gold does Breezehome, the first house offered to you in Whiterun, cost from Proventus Avenicci?

It is the cheapest house in the game and the only one without an arcane enchanter; fully upgraded it comes to 6,800 gold.

Which Daedric Prince hands you the Wabbajack, a staff that turns enemies into chickens or cheese?

You meet the Prince of Madness on 'vacation' inside the mind of the mad Emperor Pelagius III, in the Blue Palace's Pelagius Wing.

The Ebony Blade grows stronger only when you use it to kill whom?

Mephala's artifact gains 4 points of Absorb Health for every two betrayed friends, maxing at 30 after ten victims.

What is the only place in Skyrim where crimson nirnroot grows?

The vast Dwemer cavern under Skyrim is reached through Alftand, Mzinchaleft or Raldbthar and is now claimed by the Falmer.

Konahrik, the strongest dragon priest mask, requires collecting how many other masks?

That is the eight named masks plus the Wooden Mask; wearing it can summon a spectral dragon priest to fight for you for 60 seconds.

Which Khajiit wanderer in Morrowind, Oblivion and ESO breaks the fourth wall with jokes about the game?

He carries three bottles of skooma and, after three lines, tells you 'M'aiq is tired now. Go bother somebody else.'

Kodlak Whitemane, Harbinger of the Companions, wants to be cured of lycanthropy so his soul can go where?

A werewolf's soul otherwise belongs to Hircine; if you finish the Companions questline first, Kodlak appears among the lost spirits in Alduin's mist.

Which Nightingale betrayed Nocturnal by taking the Skeleton Key and murdered his predecessor Gallus?

He carries a Dwarven Sword of Devouring, and his manor in Riften is guarded by Vald because he is never there himself.

Most of the city of Winterhold fell into the Sea of Ghosts in an event known as what?

Locals blame the College; the College blames the earthquake in Vivec and the eruption of Red Mountain in Morrowind.

Which Thalmor 'advisor' at the College of Winterhold is behind the plot involving the Saarthal orb?

He claims to advise the Arch-Mage but spends his time eavesdropping in the Hall of the Elements.

Which town's most distinctive feature is a large cemetery that inspires the names of several local businesses?

Its economy runs on lumber; the Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary sits nearby but has nothing to do with the town.

In the vampire add-on, shooting the sun with Auriel's Bow and Bloodcursed Elven Arrows does what?

Sunhallowed arrows do the opposite, making the sun fire rays of light at your enemies.

Serana, found sealed in Dimhollow Cavern, is the daughter of which pure-blood vampire?

She is carrying an Elder Scroll when you find her, and her mother Valerica holds another.

Which title was Bethesda's last release on a Nintendo console before Skyrim came to Switch in 2017?

The Switch port supports Amiibo and Joy-Con motion controls; a year later Bethesda joked with 'Skyrim: Very Special Edition' for Amazon Alexa, which really worked.

Skyrim: Very Special Edition, the E3 2018 joke, really ran on which platform?

The gag mocked Bethesda's habit of porting the game to everything; the voice-driven Alexa skill was a genuine Bethesda product.

The first Skyrim mod, made by Bethesda with Valve, dropped what object from the sky?

Voiced by Nolan North, it then follows you around Skyrim dispensing space-related comments.

Alexander J. Velicky built the Falskaar mod as a job application and was hired in 2013 by which studio?

Falskaar added a new landmass, 25 hours of play and 29 voice actors; another modder, Elianora, was later hired for Starfield.

Which 2015 Skyrim mod was later remade as a standalone game released on PC and consoles in 2021?

Enderal: The Shards of Order, by contrast, remained a free total conversion, released first in German in 2016.

Which new top difficulty setting did Patch 1.9 add in March 2013, along with resettable skills?

Earlier patches had added mounted combat (1.6) and Kinect support with over 200 voice commands on Xbox 360.

The Anniversary Edition of 2021 bundled how many Creation Club 'Creations' with the Special Edition?

It also introduced fishing and player-owned aquariums, and reached the Switch in 2022 and the Switch 2 after that.

Skyrim's Collector's Edition shipped with a 12-inch figurine of which character?

It also came with a cloth map, a 200-page art book and a making-of DVD.

How many named dragon shouts can be learned in the base game before add-ons?

Dawnguard adds three and Dragonborn four, taking the total to 27.

Which shout must you show Arngeir on first meeting the Greybeards, to prove you are Dragonborn?

Its words Fus Ro Dah became one of the game's biggest memes; the full version ragdolls enemies.

How many people designed Skyrim's 150 dungeons, compared with a single designer for Oblivion's?

The team also abandoned generated landscapes, hand-crafting 244 quests and over 300 map-marked points of interest.

At which televised ceremony did Todd Howard first unveil Skyrim in December 2010?

Todd Howard presented the trailer onstage and revealed the 11-11-11 release date.

Layering three recordings of a 30-man choir gave Skyrim's main theme the effect of how many voices?

Todd Howard had imagined the Elder Scrolls theme sung by a choir of barbarians, in the fictional dragon language.

In 2014 Bethesda partnered with 2K Games to bundle Skyrim with which other game?

The two-game bundle arrived on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in February 2014.

Which magazine's February 2011 cover story gave the first details of Skyrim's story and gameplay?

Journalist Matt Miller's fifteen-page article followed the game's reveal two months earlier.

Skyrim's open world of tundra, fjords and mountains is modelled on which real region?

The team abandoned the generated landscapes used in Oblivion and built the whole province by hand.

Ulfric Stormcloak, who leads the rebellion against the Empire, is jarl of which city?

His revolt is driven partly by a treaty clause that bans worship of the Nords' ninth god, forced on the Empire by the Thalmor.

Which jarl does the Dragonborn warn after escaping the dragon attack in the opening?

His city stays neutral in the civil war, which is why a truce has to be brokered before a dragon can be trapped there.

Which general commands the Imperial Legion during Skyrim's civil war?

The player can join either the Legion or the Stormcloaks and fight the war to its conclusion for that side.

Which joinable faction is made up of poets, writers and public speakers?

It sits alongside the Companions, the College of Winterhold, the Thieves Guild and the Dark Brotherhood as a faction with its own quest line.

Besides player-owned aquariums, which new pastime did the 2021 Anniversary Edition add?

The same edition reached the Nintendo Switch on September 29, 2022, and was announced for Switch 2 in December 2025.

The Anniversary Edition launched on November 11, 2021 to mark which anniversary?

It bundled every Creation Club pack released for the Special Edition between 2017 and 2021.

Todd Howard considered which Oblivion setting less interesting than Skyrim's province?

Although the two worlds are similar in size, Skyrim's mountains make it far harder to cross than its relatively flat predecessor.

Skyrim is the northernmost province of which continent?

The continent sits on the planet Nirn, and the other three options are lands its people know almost nothing about.

Which ranged weapon, new in the first add-on, stays loaded while you walk around?

It uses the Archery perk tree, and its bolts can be crafted with enchantments for extra magical damage.

Which of the character's three primary attributes is depleted by casting spells?

Each attribute's status bar only appears on screen once the value drops below its maximum.

The 'arrow in the knee' meme comes from a guard of which city?

Players reach that city early because it is close to the starting area, so the random line was heard in the first minutes of countless Let's Plays.

Which god gave the Dragonborn line its power to learn shouts by absorbing dragon souls?

Prophecy holds that a Last Dragonborn will appear to defeat the World-Eater, though many Nords are sceptical.

Which actress, TV's original Wonder Woman, is part of Skyrim's voice cast?

More than 70 actors recorded the game's dialogue under casting director Timothy Cubbison.

Which actor, the long-time voice of Nintendo's Mario, appears in Skyrim's cast?

He shared the recording booth with Battlestar Galactica's Michael Hogan and The 13th Warrior's Vladimir Kulich.

Which store released a DRM-free Special Edition on September 29, 2022?

Steam owners of the original game and all its DLC had been given the Special Edition for free back in 2016.

Patch 1.6 in May 2012 added which long-requested feature to Skyrim?

Patch 1.5 had already brought the archery and spellcasting kill cams two months earlier.

Which Bethesda designer wrote the guards' 'I took an arrow in the knee' line?

He pictured a semi-retired 'worn out fantasy beat cop' and expected most players to hear the random line rarely, if ever.

Bethesda promised to put YouTuber Shirley Curry, 'Skyrim Grandma', into which game?

Curry, born in 1936, passed a million subscribers in 2022 and earned a Gold Play Button.

Which actress voices Serana, the vampire found sealed inside a statue in Dimhollow Crypt?

Serana carries an Elder Scroll when found and asks to be escorted to her family's castle off the coast near the capital.

Clan Volkihar's founder pledged his soul to which Daedric Prince to gain vampirism?

The former mortal king sacrificed 'a thousand innocents' to the Prince of Domination, who is called the father of his kind.

Which shout, learned from the Black Books, lets the Dragonborn subdue Miraak's dragons?

Its final word costs the Skaal their secrets, which the Daedric Prince drains from the shaman Storn, killing him.

Reading a Black Book transports the player to which realm of Oblivion?

It is the library-realm of the Daedric Prince of Fate, Knowledge and Memory, guarded by Seekers and Lurkers.

The island setting of the Dragonborn add-on first appeared in which Morrowind expansion?

Half the island is glacial like northern Skyrim; the other half lies buried in ash from the Red Mountain eruption.

How many followers can be recruited in the base game, before the add-ons added 13 more?

Only one follower can travel with the Dragonborn at a time, and some must first have a quest completed for them.

In which country did Skyrim legitimately go on sale on November 7, 2011, four days early?

A leaked Xbox 360 copy had already let owners of hacked consoles play the game ten days before release.

Which team developed Enderal: The Shards of Order, the total conversion mod for Skyrim?

A team of fourteen spent five years on it, and its project lead went on to write for the SpellForce series.

Which author's novel was falsely rumoured to have inspired the 'arrow in the knee' line?

The legend pointed to The Name of the Wind; the line's writer denied it, and a separate myth calls the phrase Old Norse slang for marriage.

Shirley Curry got into gaming when her son taught her which 1996 strategy game?

She had retired from a Kmart clothing department in 1991 and uploaded her first Skyrim video in 2015.

The vampire hunters' fort sits in a small canyon just outside which hold?

Their enemies' stronghold, Castle Volkihar, sits on an island off the Haafingar coast at the opposite corner of the map.

Serana's estranged mother, who fled the castle with an Elder Scroll, is named what?

She hides in the Soul Cairn and warns that her husband plans to kill their daughter to fulfil the prophecy.

Which ship carries the Dragonborn to the Dunmer settlement of Raven Rock?

Raven Rock is run by House Redoran, one of Morrowind's five Great Houses, and policed by the Redoran Guard.

Which Uncharted actor voices the talking sphere in Skyrim's first mod, made with Valve?

The device drops from the sky, then follows the player around dispensing space-related comments.

Roughly how many people were playing Skyrim on Steam at once on launch day?

Valve called it the fastest-selling game in Steam's history, and it soon had double the players of second-placed Team Fortress 2.

Which art director described Skyrim's look as 'epic-realism'?

The team hand-built the landscape rather than generating it, hoping to recapture Morrowind's 'wonder of discovery'.

A 2025 fossil crocodile relative named after a Skyrim dragon was found in which US state?

The skull was dug up in the 1970s, but the genus only got its draconic name in 2025, with no explanation offered for the choice.

Which of Miraak's dragons does the player tame and fly to his tower?

Miraak later sacrifices him and his two other dragons to heal himself mid-battle before the Daedric Prince intervenes.

How many quests does Skyrim feature, alongside 300-plus map-marked points of interest?

The Radiant AI system also lets NPCs farm, mill and mine, and some side quests adjust to nearby unexplored areas.

Which middleware toolset handled Skyrim's character animation and real-time NPC chats?

It let NPCs walk and gesture mid-conversation, replacing Oblivion's frozen-time, zoomed-in dialogue camera.

Which dragon guards the Soul Cairn and, once beaten, grants a shout to summon him?

His summon joins Drain Vitality and Soul Tear as the three shouts added by the vampire add-on.