At the very beginning of our story as a species on planet Earth, some prehistoric genius thought to put a sharp rock on one end of a stick – and so, the spear was born.
Spears, halberds, polearms, pikes – all of these weapons give the wielder extraordinary range at a meager cost. This made them the go-to weapon for foot soldiers on Earth before the age of gunpowder – but the same can’t be said of Tamriel.
It’s anyone’s guess why Bethesda chose to leave spears out of Skyrim (and Oblivion before it), but it’s a design choice we don’t have to live with.
So let’s take a look at some of the best mods to get spears and polearms into your game.
We’ll kick things off with something simple and extremely high-quality, as everything created by famous weapon sculptor Billyro.
This Poleaxe is based on a real product from By The Sword, Inc, an international medieval apparel and weapon retailer – meaning that if you like it, you can actually get the real deal.
Since it’s based on a real weapon, this Poleaxe looks remarkably functional.
It lacks any intricate ornamentation, making it something a foot soldier or lowborn knight might use.
Natives of Cyrodiil rejoice for the weapons of our people have made their way to Skyrim.
Admittedly, I don’t know why creator MihailMods decided to call these “Imperial Halberds & Polearms” when the last time such weapons were in a Bethesda game was The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind.
The mod includes a whopping 38 new extended range weapons, ranging from basic spears and pikes to heavily ornamented or even enchanted halberds and poleaxes.
You’ll find these spread out throughout Skyrim, in the hands of bandits, travelers, and the Imperial Legion.
One mod that was continually recommended to me repeatedly when I started talking about spears around my Skyrim-loving peers was Immersive Weapons by HothTrooper44.
Instead of adding new models to the existing weapon types, Immersive Weapons aims to widen your combat horizons with 21 unique archetypes such as spears, scythes, and battle staves.
In total, there are 230 all-new weapons to discover – many of which fall under the broad category of “spear” or “polearm”.
Give it a try if you’re looking to a lot of new variety.
Something Immersive Weapons doesn’t do by itself is alter your attack animations – which is a shame considering how different a spear or a polearm can be to a regular sword or axe.
If you want to experience true extended-range combat, the Elder Souls Halberd by Miken1ke is the way to go.
It takes some time to setup the required mods to get it working, but once you do, this halberd has one of the most unique and visually appealing combat animations – all based on Dark Souls.
This one is actually part of an initiative to rework Skyrim’s somewhat basic combat to resemble Dark Souls, something I can definitely get behind.
Skyrim Spear Mechanic does two major things for spear-based combat:
It introduces 11 distinctive spears matching each of the 11 weapon materials, and it makes their attack animations unique in 1st and 3rd person.
Animations can also vary depending on how you brandish each weapon.
Wielding a spear with both hands is entirely different from pairing it with a shield.
By far, my favorite feature setting this mod apart from other spear animation add-ons is the javelin throw mechanic, which lets you use your spear as a powerful projectile capable of staggering enemies.
Another popular option that has kept on growing since its initial 2017 release is Bouboule’s True Spear Combat.
This mod makes fighting with spears and polearms much more immersive by introducing new animations for 1st and 3rd person view.
NPCs also have access to these new fighting styles.
True Spear Combat shines for the sheer amount of new animations. There are even idle animations involving spears, and you can choose between several blocking styles.
The mod does include some arms of its own, but I’d recommend pairing it with robust weapon packs like Immersive Weapons.
Once you’ve got your spears and animations all set up, you’ll need a companion who knows their way around blades on long sticks.
Netbadass’s Lintra Spearmaiden is a gorgeous warrior specializing in spear combat. The mod includes the character, badass custom armor and spear, and a pet dragon.
Yes, you read that right.
Lintra shows up to your game with a tiny dragon perched on her shoulder. The dragon – Aetis – will fight alongside its master when necessary, and they’ll shapeshift into a beautiful dragon-shouting girl in indoor spaces.
Just make sure you get the compatibility patches for True Spear Combat and similar mods.
To truly integrate spears into Skyrim, you need to go further than just adding the weapons and giving them custom animations.
Most mods just treat spears as one-handed weapons and apply the corresponding bonuses, but fighting with a short-range one-handed sword isn’t the same as brandishing a spear.
Spears Skills & Perks supercharges your spear combat by introducing a fully-functional skill tree, complete with different branches to customize your fighting style.
Despite being created by the same author as True Spear Combat, this mod is compatible with all major spear combat mods – including Skyrim Spear Mechanic and Animated Armoury.
Once you’ve gotten familiar with your new Spear-based skills, you can move on to halberds for even more mid-range destructive power.
This mod, also made by Bouboule, introduces the Halberdier skill tree which lets you develop your character in three forms of combat.
You can specialize in disarming your enemy, knocking them down, or returning the favor whenever you get hit.
Something really cool about these skill trees is they’re fully integrated into Skyrim, just like vanilla trees. You’ll even find books with stories about legendary halberd warriors that’ll improve your skill level!
If you’re getting spears and polearms into the game, logic tells me you’ll eventually be interested in other new weapon types.
If that’s your jam, then Animated Armoury should be your first stop.
This incredible add-on by NickNak is considered a must-have by many in the Skyrim community because it provides a fast and easy way to inject new weapons with custom animations into the game.
Once installed, you’ll find a fully functional rapier, claws, staves, whips – and of course there’s also spears, polearms, and pikes.
It even adds new animations for the classic dagger and mace weapon types for added consistency – plus it’s compatible with almost any big “new weapons” mod that you can think of.
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.
