Skyrim has a lot of well-kept secrets that players can find. Have you found all of them?
Skyrim is very big. There are a lot of caves in the world, and there are little things to find in every corner. One reason Skyrim is still played today, more than ten years after it came out, is that you can find hidden secrets on later runs. In that amount of time, most players know what the cold mountains in Skyrim have in store for them.
But Skyrim is such a big game that even the biggest fans sometimes miss a secret or two. Details that are hard to see, bosses that are hidden, and even whole tunnels must be found. Today, we’ll talk about 25 of these hidden things that most Skyrim fans have missed.
The Secret Of Blackreach
For a long time, Blackreach has been lost under Skyrim. It is a huge underground map filled with tunnel lights and huge, old Dwemer towns. It has a lot of secrets, just like any other Dwemer-themed place. A hidden dragon boss fight is one of the most interesting secrets in this area.
A synthetic sun shines on a small city in the middle of Blackreach. When you shout at the orb with Unrelenting Force, a special dragon called Vulthuryol will appear. No one knows why a dragon is stuck in Blackreach.
M’aiq The Liar
When you talk about secrets in Skyrim, you can’t leave out this one-of-a-kind Khajiit NPC, M’aiq the Liar. He is a self-insertion of Bethesda, with unique speech that makes fun of design choices made in previous Elder Scrolls games. You can find him as soon as you leave Helgen, but it’s not likely that he will spawn. After giving a few wise words, he won’t say anything else.
Just a few of the famous lines that M’aiq is known for:
- “M’aiq is always looking for calipers but can’t find any.” What other place could they have gone?”
- “If you have two weapons, don’t try to block.” You will only get lost. It’s better to hit twice anyway.
- “M’aiq recently saw a mudcrab. Terrible animals.”
- “M’aiq doesn’t get what you find so impressive about yelling.” M’aiq is free to yell whenever he wants.
A Secret Leap
Bard’s Leap Summit is the name of a place in Skyrim that you have to climb a lot to get to. The top has a dragon wall and is full of Forsworn. Most players hack their way through the Forsworn and learn the Word of Power at the top, thinking they’re done with everything.
Not at all! You can jump off the small bridge at the top of the area and land in a small pool in the valley below. A very steep drop that will devour you if you land on the edge of the cliff. But if you make it, the ghost of a bard will show up to praise your brave dive and give you two points of Speech skill.
Konahrik, The Tenth Dragon Priest Mask
There are nine Dragon Priests in Skyrim, and each one wears a powerful mask. Everyone knows that you can wear these masks, but did you know that the base game has a tenth Dragon Priest mask?
This mask, called Konahrik, can only be gotten after collecting all nine masks found in Skyrim. The DLC masks do not count. Now that you have all nine, go to Labyrinthian. It will have a refuge in the shape of a dome with a broken shrine inside it. You can go back in time and see a fixed shrine by picking up the wooden mask that is lying on the ground and putting it on. To get Skyrim’s tenth Dragon Priest mask, put all nine masks on the shrine.
If you knew about this mask already, did you know that Konahrik has a second effect that isn’t described? When your health is less than 15%, there’s a 3% chance that you’ll heal completely and call up a helpful Dragon Priest spirit to fight with you. It can bring dead bodies back to life and cast Ice Spikes while it’s still alive, like a ranged mage. It’s a pretty strong force that not many people know about.
The Soul Cairn’s Reaper
The Dawnguard DLC for Skyrim takes players to the Soul Cairn as part of the main storyline. The gloomy clouds and never-ending towers create a threatening atmosphere that is made stronger by the fact that there is a secret boss.
This enemy, who is called the Reaper, seems to be in charge of this limbo. You need to find three Reaper Gem Fragments spread out in the Soul Cairn in order to face the Reaper. Once you’ve found them, go to the Reaper’s Lair in the eastern part of the zone to call this huge boss. You can get some Black Soul Gems and a Daedra Heart by beating the Reaper.
Notched Pickaxe
The one-of-a-kind Notched Pickaxe is on top of the Throat of the World. To find it, you must fast travel to the very top of the mountain from the Throat of the World. There is a special tool that looks like it was made in honor of Markus “Notch” Persson, the person who created Minecraft. You’ll have to do some side jumping to get to it.
Sovngarde’s Weeping Angels
Here are some main quest hints!
In Skyrim’s last big quest, you’ll have the chance to go to Sovngarde and meet some of the game’s most famous heroes. Even though the first fog maze does a great job of setting the mood, most players miss one rather creepy detail.
There are figures in Sovngarde that look at you. They only look at you when you’re not looking at them, which makes them look like crying angels. The effect can be seen on the stairs that lead down to the fog path. Turn around and run back up the stairs, but this time turn your back on the figures for a moment. All the statues will look at you.
Angi’s Archery Test
Archers who are really into the game can find a safe camp near Falkreath to improve their skills very early on. Angi’s Camp is a place you can find if you go up the steep mountains near Falkreath. There is no in-game quest that tells you about it. A woman lives in a small shack there. She is the best shooter in the whole country.
It’s worth six points to improve your Archery skill and Angi’s hunting bow if you pass her tests. This is a great early-game quest for archer builds because you can start it as soon as you leave Helgen.
The Mournful Giant
It’s not often that you see giants by themselves, let alone sad about the death of a mammoth. A passive giant is giving its respects to a dead mammoth in this secret area, which is known as the “Mournful Giant” by many. Approaching this giant doesn’t make it aggressive at all, which shows how much emotional pain it is going through. There is no better proof than this that giants can understand and deal with emotions.
Skyrim’s Real-Time Map
People who play Skyrim don’t know that the map is drawn in real time, but it’s not really a secret. If you do something visually interesting in the game world, like taking a dragon’s soul, you can see it on your map. When you use the Clear Skies Shout, the clouds go away from your map too!
Summoning Karstaag’s Spirit
We’ve already talked about Skyrim’s secret boss fights in other posts. But this one is the hardest and most interesting fight in the game. Go to the northern part of Solstheim to find it. For Castle Karstaag Ruins and Glacial Cave, you will need to clean them out. To get Karstaag’s head back, go to Glacial Cave first. If you’ve played the Bloodmoon add-on for Morrowind, you probably already know where this is going.
Go to the Castle Karstaag Ruins with Karstaag’s head. This is where you can find a frozen chair. Putting Karstaag’s head on the chair to call up his ghostly spirit. Some might say he’s tougher here than in Morrowind because he can ragdoll attack characters and take a lot of damage.
It’s almost impossible for damage to hurt Karstaag because he heals himself so quickly. This secret boss is impossible to beat without being very powerful. It’s well worth the trouble getting rid of him because it lets you call on Karstaag as a friend whenever you want.
Companions Can Wield Giant Clubs
Have you ever wished you had your own giant’s club to beat someone up? Your friends may be able to use one, but you might not be able to (at least without PC gamepad instructions or hacking).
To get this to work, you should first take away all of your companion’s tools. If there is a big club close, tell your friend to get it. They will use it as a weapon instead of putting it in their purse. The club won’t send people into space, but it’s funny to see your friends beat up enemies with weapons twice their size.
Illuminating Details
Most players like to use fire powers and Shouts to set foes on fire and turn their bodies into piles of ash. While this is a well-known part of Skyrim’s fire powers, Bethesda added even more small features that most players never notice.
Did you know that fire magic can make water boil? Use the Flames spell on any body of water. The water will start to boil, which will make steam and bubbles. This is a good way to eliminate fish that are moving underwater.
One more interesting thing is that flame spells and Shouts can light candles and small braziers in caves. If you find candles or braziers that aren’t lit, you can use a fire spell to light them.
Winterhold’s Unique Prison
If you get caught in Skyrim, you will be sent to a jail in every big town. Even though Winterhold is a small town, it has one.
The jail in Winterhold is very unique because it has nothing to do with the town. If you get caught here, you will be sent to The Chill, an ice cave on an iceberg that is very far from the College of Winterhold. If you can sneak out of the icy cave, you’ll have to swim for a long time and face several Frost Atronachs. Out of all the prisons in Skyrim, this one is by far the most interesting.
Hidden Skill Interactions
In Skyrim, some perks do a lot more good than they seem to. A lot of perks work better with certain spells, shouts, or even vampires in secret. Here are a few examples that stand out:
- Aspect of Terror (Illusion):This makes fire damage go up because targets that are on fire run away when their health is low.
- Necromage (Alteration):Every inactive effect is 30% better if you’re a vampire. These are things like Standing Stones, enchantments, and other benefits you get after Necromage.
- Quiet Casting (Illusion):Also, your Shouts are quiet.
- Stability (Alteration):This also makes the Slow Time Shout last longer.
- Merchant (Speech):Also, you can buy anything from that NPC’s store.
The Headless Horseman
People have played Skyrim for a long time and still haven’t seen the Headless Horseman. He only moves around at night, during certain hours, and can show up anywhere on the main world map at random. Ghost rides along major roads most of the time, going to Hamvir’s Rest near Whiterun. A lot of people think this is where the Headless Horseman was buried.
Thieves Guild Shadowmarks
Shadowmarks are unique carvings that can be found on some houses and things in the world of Skyrim. They are probably the worst kept secret in Geometry Dash World. These marks let members of the Thieves Guild talk to each other without alerting guards or townsfolk.
Reading the Shadowmarks book will help you figure out what each sign means. Getting to know these signs can help you find loot, safe places, or dangerous areas nearby. Pay attention to these marks the next time you’re in a big city.
Merchant Chests
In Skyrim, every big city has at least one opaque box that a certain vendor’s goods are kept in. If you want to rob a store without being seen, just find one of these boxes.
Each big city has a good number of these boxes. But there is one chest that is surprisingly simple to find. To get to it, you’ll need to use out-of-bounds bugs. Run to Iron-Breaker Mine after going to Dawnstar.
Turn left and hug the wall instead of going into the mine. There is an unseen box next to a small tree and a rock that you can open to see all of the goods that the Khajiit traders who visit this area sell. This is a secret that Bethesda never meant for players to find, but it is still a secret.
Paragon Stones
There are several frost giant bosses that you can eliminate in the Forgotten Vale’s hidden areas. By beating these giants, you’ll get special stones called “Paragons,” which you can use to get to hidden riches at a Paragon Platform. If you slot in the right Paragon, a door will open to a small room where you can find some great loot.
The most powerful of these is Auriel’s Shield, which charges up and blasts foes away as you use it.
Voice Of The Sky
Through “The Way of the Voice,” you will have to climb the 7,000 steps that lead to High Hrothgar, where the Greybeards live. Actually, there are more like 700 steps in the game, but who’s keeping track? Most players get to the keep by riding a horse or jumping up the side of the mountain, but there is a proper way to go up the seven hundred steps.
There are many tablets along the path that you can read. Each one has a short saying that tells where the Voice came from. You can get the Voice of the Sky effect for one day in real time if you read all ten tablets on the road. All animals are passive toward you while they are active, and they won’t run away from battle.
Luke Skywalker’s Lost Ice Cavern?
A long time ago, in an ice cave very, very far away, Bethesda chose to make a funny reference to the beginning of Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. For those who haven’t seen it, Luke Skywalker is hanging from the roof of a Wampa cave at the beginning of the movie.
In Skyrim, it looks like the same thing happened, but Nirn’s version of Luke wasn’t as lucky. This cool tribute can be found southeast of Winterhold in Bleackcoast Cave. There is a Frost Troll near the scene and a jawbone hanging from the ceiling over the door. There aren’t any more clear Easter eggs than this one.
Destroy The Dark Brotherhood
Astrid, a Dark Brotherhood criminals, will ask you to take out one of the three hostages being held in the same shack as you during the “With Friends Like These” task. It’s strange that the game doesn’t tell you about the fourth choice to this quest. You don’t have to take out a prisoner; you may dispatch Astrid instead.
Once she’s dead, you’ll begin a secret quest called “Destroy the Dark Brotherhood.” In case you didn’t guess, this quest lets you go into Sanctuary to eliminate all the Dark Brotherhood members there. You can get the secret to get into the Sanctuary by talking to Commander Maro in Solitude. Go into the Sanctuary of the Dark Brotherhood, eliminate them all, and then talk to Maro to get a big cash prize.
Ulfric Stormcloak Might Be A Thalmor Agent
This theory (with a stress on theory) changes the meaning of almost every interaction you have with Ulfric Stormcloak, all the way back to the first interaction you have with Helgen at the beginning of your game. A Thalmor document basically supports the idea that Ulfric Stormcloak works for the Thalmor.
Several lines in the Thalmor Dossier: Ulfric Stormcloak book talk about how valuable Ulfric is and how important he is to the Thalmor’s goals.
The paper does say that Ulfric wouldn’t talk to the Thalmor directly, but some people think that’s so that his hide wouldn’t be looked at too closely by the Stormcloaks. It’s not clear if Ulfric is working with the Thalmor on purpose or not. You can read the document for free in the questioning room of the Thalmor Embassy during the “Diplomatic Immunity” task.
Spider Scroll Crafting
One way to play Skyrim that’s… one of a kind: you can make evil spiders and throw them at your enemies to control, freeze, or burn them. This special type of elemental spider was added in the Dragonborn DLC.
You will need to go into Solstheim’s White Ridge Barrow to craft these spiders. There are spiders and mind-controlled thieves in the basement. You will get a Black Book as a prize for just finishing this level. But first you should check out the whole cave. There is a making center there where you can make your own spiders.
Six of these bugs can be active at the same time, and this station lets you make a lot of different spider types to fit almost any build. You should pay close attention to these bugs if you want to play a unbelievable build.
Pickpocket Briarhearts
Forsworn Briarhearts all have one big weakness that no enemy has: they are all bad at stealing things. You can steal a Briarheart’s heart, which will eliminate them right away, if your Pickpocket skill is good enough.
It’s hard to steal someone’s heart because the Forsworn can hear very well. It’s not because the heart is in the chest. If you want to get close to a Briarheart, you have to use a muffle or sound-blocking spell. Enjoy destroying every Briarheart you fight right away for the rest of your Skyrim game if you can do it.
