I don’t get enough human interaction, let alone female.
Now I can’t just sit around waiting for Zuckerberg to finish developing the Metaverse so I can plug into the Matrix. It’s either going out and joining the local Tango classes to meet new friends, or playing Skyrim.
So, of course, we’re playing Skyrim.
What can I say? I know these people like the palm of my hand.
I can take Ysolda out on a date or ask Lydia to help me carry my burdens – emotional or otherwise.
Still, I’m always looking for fresh faces to bring into Skyrim.
Because there’s no adventure like getting to know someone new – and you can’t ask for better company than these custom female followers.
One of my favorite things about the Anniversary Edition was trying out the Pets of Skyrim add-on. Specifically, I loved getting a goat to help Lydia carry stuff around.
Another great option that doesn’t require giving Bethesda more money is Cyril the Porter, a custom-voiced female follower who’s the closest thing Skyrim has to a trading tanker.
That’s because Cyril can carry a seemingly infinite number of things, weight notwithstanding.
Cyril is also Skyrim’s best auto-loot mod.
She’ll constantly scavenge around for valuables and sell them next time you hit Belethor’s or any other general goods store.
Lovers of World of Warcraft rejoice, for the evilest Warchief of the Horde has arrived in Skyrim looking to quench the ground’s thirst for blood.
Sylvanas is easily the most powerful and influential woman in WoW history and one of the most chaotic.
At her core, she’s a spirit of vengeance, and only suffering surrounds her.
At least, that’s how it is in Azeroth.
In Skyrim, maybe she can have a different life, depending on your choices – which start with whether you want her in banshee or regular blood elf form.
Serana is easily the most popular vanilla follower – and a couple enhancement mods can make her even better.
Your primary tool to make Serana the best she can be is the Dialogue Add-On, which opens up her chitchat options and gives her a lot more depth.
Talking to Serana about her experience returning to human form after hundreds of years and listening to her insightful comments as you explore is a pleasure.
It makes adventuring with Serana a lot more immersive.
Vampires and werewolves are fine and dandy – but what about werecats?
Miri is a hybrid Khajiit – AKA a catgirl – specializing in lightning-fast “unarmed” combat.
She’s actually using some ebony daggers attached to her gauntlets, but that’s beside the point.
She won’t say much of interest, but looking back and seeing this adorable furry angel following you like you’re some sort of hero is what dreams are made of.
Get this if you like to set unrealistic beauty expectations for your followers.
Whenever I’m not writing for you guys, I listen to a philosophy podcast or re-read Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations.
If you’re anything like me, you’ll love having Aurlyn Dawnstone pondering the meaning of life while you put down Draugr deep in some crypt.
This Reclusive Philosopher has over a thousand lines of fully-voiced dialogue that reflect her vast knowledge about Tamriel. She can share meaningful insight about almost every relevant location in the game and react dynamically to your actions like only a philosopher would.
After a lifetime of questioning whether good and evil were even real, this Aldmeri Dawn Sorceress is ready to take a side and push back evil once more.
For a more energetic and spontaneous follower, consider Caesia, a powerful but cocky mage that’ll surely make your adventures a lot more fun.
Caesia was developed as part of the work-in-progress Borne of Magic quest mod, but this follower is 100% standalone.
Still, she’ll make references to the events of the mod here and there, giving her an air of mystery and making her personal life seem realistically as eventful as your own.
She’s a beautiful dark-skinned woman with the cutest short hair I’ve ever seen in Skyrim.
And her creative dialogue will definitely get a laugh out of your cold gamer heart.
In Skyrim, it’s easy to scale up and become an overpowered soldier of death.
You just need a few Daedric artifacts, a good set of armor, and some nifty spells to become a one-man army.
This makes almost any vanilla follower get relegated to “sidekick” status. No matter how good a fighter you are, the Dragonborn’s power level is well over 9000.
But Luna isn’t a vanilla follower.
This overpowered fighter descends from a race more ancient than even the Snow Elves and houses a dark power comparable to the Dragonborn.
Not only are her spells devastating, but her mastery over the dead allows her to resurrect her fallen enemies as thralls bound to her will.
I remember the first time I was asked: Gray-mane or Battle-born?
At the time, I answered Battle-born, just because I could see the name of Idolaf Battle-Born asking. I’ve regretted it since.
The Battle-Borns may have money and status, but they’re absolute pricks.
They’re the #1 reason for Stormcloak radicalization among Whiterun youth. They’re just despicable.
On the other hand, the Gray-Mane have history, integrity – and, now, the most beautiful follower in the land.
Aesthetically speaking, Freya Gray-Mane is basically Ciri from The Witcher – and she’s about as fierce. This Stormcloak heroine is ready to drive the Empire out of the North.
Neisa is one of the cutest followers you could ask for.
She’s also a competent healer and a fantastic tank.
Tanks aren’t usually tiny, adorable gals whose skin looks smooth and soft as a baby’s butt – but these are Skyrim mods we’re talking about. You’re supposed to push boundaries!
Her cuteness isn’t the only way Neisa pushes boundaries. She’s also famous for her anime-level cleavage, which showcases her generous proportions.
With a custom voice, some immersive quests, and tons of fanservice, Neisa is a must-have.
Speaking of followers with enviable figures, meet Celestine – the only healer you’ll ever need.
The mod’s lore says Celestine is a “true Breton,” but she honestly looks like she came from the Vatican. Well, a very risqué version of the Vatican.
The white, red, and gold color palette of her equipment give her the pure and regal look of an angel. The floating wing-like ornaments on her back contribute to the divine vibes.
Just as she can help you in battle, she also provides Quality-of-Life improvements.
She’ll light up your way in caves, go invisible whenever you’re sneaking, and even convert your ore into ingots on the go.
Mirai is a fully-voiced follower with excellent dialogue that’ll make you fall in love with her – but first, you’ll have to earn her trust by adventuring together and completing her own questline.
Unlike some other entries on the ranking, this adventurous gal won’t take down armies with one hand and make you immortal with the other.
She’s light on her feet and good with novice-level spells, but that’s it until you finish her quest and unlock some new abilities.
If you end up falling in love with Mirai, you can marry her – and she even has a custom wedding dress.
The Witcher 3 was the biggest thing in open-world fantasy gaming since Skyrim.
It had the magic, the dragons, the wars, and incredible quests that put Skyrim to shame a lot of the time.
As long-time Skyrim fans started experiencing Geralt’s adventure, more and more The Witcher-themed mods began popping up, including weapons, armors, and followers.
One of the best is Yennefer of Vengerberg, a fully-voiced custom follower based on Geralt’s true love (sorry, Triss).
Let the smell of lilac and gooseberries guide you to this sorceress, or go ahead and give Triss Merigold a chance.
Those of you who’ve been in Tamriel so long your skeleton has naturally turned into Bonemold will remember Vilja, the quirkiest, most adorable custom follower for Oblivion.
Voiced followers are common nowadays, but it was an incredible feature back in the Oblivion days.
Vilja was a pioneering follower with extensive dynamic dialogue, full voice acting, and her own mission in Cyrodiil.
By the time the Dragonborn appears to challenge Alduin, it’s been 200 years since the Oblivion crisis, and Vilja is long gone – but her great-great-granddaughter is looking for an adventure in Skyrim.
She inherited the same charming personality that made the original Vilja so well-liked. Her appearance isn’t much at first, but you can give her a facelift with Vilja Re-Imagined.
The Dragonborn has rubbed shoulders with some of the most influential people in Tamriel. Even the Emperor, if you go through the Dark Brotherhood storyline!
Still, none of them had wanted to follow you – until now.
Ambriel is an ancient princess of Tamriel who lived her youth in antique times – around 280 years before Oblivion, and 480 years before Skyrim.
Somehow, she became immortal, and now she’s seeking your help to protect the realm and fight back the Thalmor.
So many years of hiding and fighting to protect Tamriel have made her pretty powerful, creating a great companion for greater difficulties.
Reading the Quest Log, I’ve always imagined the Dragonborn taking notes on their adventures that someday may be edited into a book.
If that fails, we have Recorder.
This fully-voiced custom follower is an agent from an organization of inter-dimensional journalists who tail heroes and write down their stories.
Recorder has a witty remark for every situation, some of which include funny references to other games – or, rather, heroes she’s met in other dimensions.
She’ll also have a couple fun interactions with Ambriel, which is hilarious considering they’re both voiced by PotasticPanda.
As an environmentally-conscious person who loves nature and wishes he could move to a cabin in the woods, I’m a big fan of Wood Elves.
Defending the forest with a bow and arrow and living a life in tune with nature sounds like a life worth living – especially if it’s next to someone like Auri.
This Bosmer archer has over nine hundred fully-voiced dialogue lines that range from idle small-talk to deep dives on some aspects of Bosmer culture.
She’ll interact with vanilla followers like Serana and Faendal and even some popular modded ones like Lucien and Inigo.
The creator even bothered to give her a custom mount she’ll summon whenever you get on a horse!
No more standing around waiting for the marathon-runner Lydia to catch up.
The game will go to extreme lengths to draw you in, but some characters and situations are just cartoonishly absurd – and that’s not to mention how hilarious ragdoll deaths tend to be.
The humorous adventures you can have in Skyrim are among my favorite parts of the game.
And a follower like Sofia can take this medieval fantasy comedy to the next level.
She’s spontaneous, a rebel without a cause, and more than a little fond of Honningbrew Mead. Wherever she goes, trouble follows – but I guess that applies to the Dragonborn too.
Those of you who just want to choose one mod and be done with it will love Pandorable’s Heroines – a pack of eight varied and beautiful female companions to fight alongside you on your travels.
The mod includes followers from all kinds of classes and backgrounds.
There’s a Khajiit brawler, an Imperial wizard, a Nord shieldmaiden, and even an Orc/Dunmer hybrid who’s unmatched with a two-handed weapon.
Pandorable’s Heroines can take care of your follower needs for at least an entire playthrough.
My favorite kind of followers are those I can actually get to know.
In Skyrim, some people will risk their lives for you just because you won a fistfight against them but won’t elaborate further about their background, interests, or anything of note.
M’rissi is the polar opposite of these basic followers.
She’s a complex companion with a dramatic backstory you’ll learn about as you advance through her custom questline. It’s intense, and I wouldn’t recommend it to the faint of heart.
With over eight hours of content and over 2000 recorded voice lines, this is one of the most extensive follower mods ever made.
I set out to find the absolute best female follower to mod into Skyrim.
This wasn’t about the most technically advanced, beautiful, or strongest – just “the best”.
By Akatosh, I might have found the one.
Many of you will remember Shirley Curry, the “Skyrim Grandma,” who rose to fame at age 80 as a prominent Skyrim content creator.
It was a bit magical to see her embracing this brave new world, and it reminded us that sometimes, age really is just a number.
Bethesda has announced they’ll be paying tribute to her in TESVI as an NPC, but modders have already done so in Skyrim with Shirley – a custom follower voiced by the legend herself.
She has her own custom home, tons of interesting dialogue, and looks just like the real deal!
Nelson Chitty is a Venezuelan expat living in Argentina. He’s a writer and translator passionate about history and foreign cultures. His ideal weekend is spent between leisurely playing games of Civilization VI and looking for the next seinen anime to marathon.
