Axes are brutal, daggers are sleek, and maces project power – but the real protagonist of fantasy weaponry are swords.
Whenever have you seen a legendary mace be at the center of a story?
When has the heroic king risen to glory thanks to an ax?
It’s always a sword that’s slaying the dark lord, cutting down the greedy dragon, and pointing the hero in the right direction – and Skyrim is no different.
Skyrim has plenty of wonderful blades to cut your way to victory. But real medieval fantasy heroes never have enough swords – and thanks to modding, you never have to stop getting new ones.
Before we get into adding some new blades to slay our enemies in style, we should take a moment to improve what’s already available in the vanilla game.
I actually love most of the weapon designs in Skyrim. But one thing that’s always bothered me are the sheaths and scabbards for most weapons.
Some don’t even have them, and the ones that do only make them look worse.
The Greatsword Sheaths and Scabbards mod improves the situation in two ways.
First, it introduces all-new custom sheathes and scabbards that simply look better – and, optionally, it makes all blades just a little thinner to look more realistic and, therefore, better-looking when sheathed.
Something else that could use an improvement is Elven weapons – or, rather, Elven swords.
Elven swords in vanilla Skyrim are just too broad.
When I think of elves in combat, I picture swift movements and elegant weaponry – instead, Skyrim gives us goofy and oversized blades that look ceremonial at best.
This Elven Blades mod includes five different styles to replace both the Elven Sword and Greatsword.
Whether you choose the vanilla-like variant, the full replacement, or even the curved version, they’re all much better than Bethesda’s original models.
It doesn’t matter what game you’re playing – if there are swords and an active modding scene, it’s only a matter of time before you get a Star Wars-inspired Lightsaber mod.
But this isn’t your average lightsaber mod.
Instead of just adding a rainbow-colored array of sabers with the same model and function, this add-on includes several “unique” lightsabers from all across the Star Wars mythos – from the movies to the Extended Universe.
There are lightsaber pikes, daggers, tonfa – and even Kylo Ren’s crossguard saber, all with customizable colors and effects!
If you want a bit more Star Wars in your Skyrim, you can also teach your character how to use The Force.
Swords aren’t only for burly warriors with hair on their chests and gigantic biceps.
If you know the right spell, even the frailest wizard can have a swarm of swords at their disposal.
That spell is Eo Geom – the words to control and rule the sword.
Once cast, you’ll gain six floating swords that’ll follow behind you until you’ve used them all. Both regular and charged attacks have custom animations and let you damage enemies in the mid-range.
You’ll find several versions of the spell in the mod’s download page, each corresponding to a different sword. Whether you want Daedric Daggers, an elegant rapier, or wooden swords – it’s up to you.
When it comes to equipment mods, I love large packs of new items that overhaul my game’s experience entirely.
BillyRo’s Ultimate Swords Anthology brings you a whopping 60 new swords ranging from medieval steel weapons to mystical blades of glowing crystal.
There are pirate cutlasses, curved falchions, swords with blood notches, golden swords – most of them with stylish scabbards – and that’s just scratching the surface.
With such a massive variety of swords at your disposal, you need ways to show off your arsenal – and the Sharpen Other Swords mod is a great, immersive way to do it.
Something that’s always bothered many players in vanilla Skyrim is how the animation of sharpening a blade is always done with an Iron Sword – even if you don’t have any in your inventory.
This mod fixes that by making your character sharpen a blade of the most expensive weapon set you’re carrying.
The Witcher 3 Weaponry lets you conjure up a special forge where you’ll be able to craft a wide array of blades from TW3, including both steel and silver options.
What I like most about this mod (and why I gave it such a high spot on our ranking) are the two upgrade-able blades – the Ursine steel & silver swords, respectively.
Just like in the game, you’ll be able to craft four increasingly powerful versions of these weapons depending on your Smithing level and whether or not you can get suitable materials.
If you’re going to download just one of these mods, let it be JaySuS Swords – a legendary weapon pack including 50 distinct weapons to be crafted, looted, or obtained as rewards at the end of a dungeon.
I’ve chosen this weapon pack over others thanks to the vibrant variety of blades and hilts.
I appreciate consistency in themed sword sets, but if you’re looking to shake things up, 50 unique blades will do the trick.
One of my favorite examples is the Blade of Dibella, which has a brass sculpture of a voluptuous lady for a handle.
I’m 100% sure Dibella would favor a champion with such excellent taste in weaponry.
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.
