When it comes to adventuring in the frozen wilds of Skyrim, it pays to make sure that the Last Dragonborn is equipped with the best gear money can buy. Late-game dragons and vampires are easily able to kill an unsuspecting player if they are unprepared, after all. While most enemies in Skyrim scale to the player's level, there are a few enemies whose levels are locked and can make combat difficult for low-level characters.
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Luckily, there are many pieces of armor and weapons that can be found in Skyrim that aren't locked behind a particular level. Unfortunately, some of the best armor in the game, such as Daedric and Ebony, doesn't start appearing until much later levels. While it's probably a good idea to strive for better gear eventually, there is some decent gear that you can find immediately after leaving Helgen.
Updated on September 9, 2022, by Gabrielle Huston: Starting a new character to try out survival mode, play again after a long absence, try out new mods, or just because you can? We've spruced up this article to ensure that you'll have the gear you need to kick butt early on!
12 Bolar's Oathblade
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Orcish Battleaxe | |
|---|---|
Weapon Type | One-Handed Weapon |
Damage | 11 |
Weight | 10 |
Enchantment | Each attack also deals 25 Stamina damage and any creature or human enemy under level 12 will flee from you for 30 seconds |
Bolar's Oathblade is a unique Blades Sword just lying out in the world for you to pick up! These swords are incredibly valuable as is, but there's even a special enchantment on the blade, too! If you're level one you probably won't have to worry about this, but make sure to get it before starting the 'Ill Met By Moonlight' quest.
How To Get It
It's found inside a cave called Bloated Man's Grotto. Conveniently for new players, it's near Whiterun! Go west out of the city and follow it south. At Fort Greymoor, follow the dirt path to reach the cave. Bolar's Oathblade will be beneath the shrine of Talos.
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11 Bound Sword & Bound Battleaxe
Bound Sword | Bound Battleaxe | ||
|---|---|---|---|
Weapon Type | One-Handed Weapon | Weapon Type | Two-Handed Weapon |
Spell Length | 120 seconds | Spell Length | 120 seconds |
Damage | 9 | Damage | 17 |
While they aren't weapons in the traditional sense, the Bound Sword, Bound Battleaxe, and Bound Bow are all quite powerful (even before you take the Mystic Binding perk to increase their damage output). These weapons are actually spells that you can cast!
Only the Bound Sword and Bound Battleaxe can be used by first-level characters; the Bound Bow and Bound Dagger are higher-level spells.
How To Get Them
The Bound Sword and Bound Battleaxe can be bought from most mage vendors.
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10 Poacher's Axe
The Wabbajack | |
|---|---|
Weapon Type | One-Handed Weapon |
Damage | 5 |
Weight | 10 |
Enchantment | Does three extra points of damage to animals |
The Poacher's Axe may not do as much damage as other weapons on this list, but it is a unique weapon that can also serve as a woodcutter's axe for wood and does extra damage when attacking animals. It's especially useful for anyone playing the new Survival Mode as part of the game's anniversary.
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How To Get It
The Poacher's Axe is wielded by an Orc Bandit who is at the Halted Stream Camp in Whiterun hold, east of Silent Moons Camp. Kill him (he's usually found using or near the grindstone) and loot it off his body! On the off-chance that it doesn't spawn, just leave, let the enemies respond, and return again.
9 Orcish Armor & Weapons
Orcish Armor | Orcish Boots | Orcish Gauntlets | Orcish Helmet | Orcish Shield | Orcish Battleaxe | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Armor Class | Heavy | Armor Class | Heavy | Armor Class | Heavy | Armor Class | Heavy | Armor Class | Heavy | Weapon Type | Two-Handed Weapon |
Armor | 40 | Armor | 15 | Armor | 15 | Armor | 20 | Armor | 30 | Damage | 19 |
Weight | 35 | Weight | 7 | Weight | 7 | Weight | 8 | Weight | 14 | Weight | 25 |
If players want to make a Heavy Armor-focused warrior, they can do much better than the Iron Armor that can be found on several low-level bandits. You can get the much stronger Orcish Armor surprisingly easily.
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How To Get Them
In Largashbur, the orc stronghold southwest of Riften, there is a nearly full set of Orcish Armor, including a Shield and Battleaxe, lying out in the open.
This stronghold normally doesn't open until the player is level 9 or higher, but you can simply climb up the hill to the lefthand side of the stronghold and drop down behind the wall. The armor and weapons will count as stolen and the orcs will send Thugs after you, but with near full Orcish Armor, they won't be much of a problem.
8 Elven Bow
Elven Bow | |
|---|---|
Weapon Type | Archery |
Damage | 13 |
Weight | 12 |
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The Companions may be known for their melee abilities, but they aren't against using a bow when the occasion calls for it. Elven Bows aren't the best bow type you'll be able to find in Skyrim, but they're pretty significant for first-level characters.
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How To Get It
Inside Jorrvaskr, in the room where you give Aela her shield during initiation, there is an Elven Bow in a locked display case right behind where she stands that players can steal.
While the lock itself is quite high at Expert level, the display case doesn't function properly and you can, at the right angle of approach, grab the bow without opening the case at all. It takes some time to find the right angle, but the best approach is to couch and aim into the opening along the right-hand side.
7 Diadem of the Savant
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Diadem of the Savant | |
|---|---|
Armor Class | Light |
Armor | 7 |
Weight | 4 |
Enchantment | All spells cost five percent less Magicka to cast |
Unlike other crowns, the Diadem of the Savant counts as Light Armor and has a base rating of 7, but it also doesn't interfere with the Alteration perk Mage Armor, meaning it is a good option for players wanting to use Flesh spells instead of wearing armor.
How To Get It
The Diadem of the Savant is supposed to be a reward for players who complete Shalidor's Maze, as it is normally found on the body of a dead Dremora Mage during the Conjuration trial. However, players can also find one sitting on a log outside of Froki's Shack, southeast of the Throat of the World, and near a Shout wall against the mountainside.
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6 The Longhammer
The Longhammer | |
|---|---|
Weapon Type | Two-Handed Weapon |
Damage | 21 |
Weight | 18 |
Enchantment | Swings 30 percent faster |
Although The Longhammer is a fairly well-known weapon in Skyrim, not many players know that it isn't locked behind a quest or a certain level for the player. It's great for you if you're looking to be a heavy-hitting fighter.
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How To Get It
This unique Orcish Warhammer can be found inside Liar's Retreat, a cave system that is home to a small war between the Forsworn and the Falmer who are invading it. The Falmer are quite hard to kill at lower levels, but players can rush through the cave to the end where The Longhammer is placed without too much trouble. You can also hire a bodyguard to help take some of the load off when battling them, though they can still kill you in a couple of hits at low levels.
5 The Mace of Molag Bal
The Longhammer | |
|---|---|
Weapon Type | One-Handed Weapon |
Damage | 16 |
Weight | 18 |
Enchantment | Deals 25 damage to the enemy's Stamina and Magicka and fills a soul gem if the opponent dies within three seconds |
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One of the more powerful Daedric Artifacts, as well as one that doesn't have a level requirement, is the Mace of Molag Bal. Since it fills soul gems, it's great to help new characters get started with Enchanting.
How To Get It
It can be obtained as soon as players can get into Markarth and through the quest "The House of Horrors." There are several powerful enemies that need to be killed in this questline, but with some hired help and a little luck, the player can easily complete the quest and be given a mace with the same base damage as a Daedric Mace at level 1.
4 Ancient Shrouded Armor
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Ancient Shrouded Armor | Ancient Shrouded Boots | Ancient Shrouded Cowl | Ancient Shrouded Gloves | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Armor Class | Light | Armor Class | Light | Armor Class | Light | Armor Class | Light |
Armor | 33 | Armor | 12 | Armor | 15 | Armor | 12 |
Weight | 5 | Weight | 0.5 | Weight | 1 | Weight | 1 |
Enchantment | Your Poison Resistance is increased by 100 percent | Enchantment | Your movement is muffled and you move silently | Enchantment | Your bow attacks do 35 percent more damage | Enchantment | If you sneak attack with a One-Handed weapon, you do twice as much damage |
Normally, the Ancient Shrouded Armor is a reward item given to the player if they meet certain criteria during the Dark Brotherhood questline. However, players can obtain the armor without ever joining the Dark Brotherhood and gain access to one of the best Light Armor sets in the game for an assassin or thief.
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How To Get Them
By heading through Deepwood Redoubt, found west of Solitude, you can access Hag's End and the room where the hidden door to the Assassin of Old is, though the mechanism to open the door won't be there. By taking the Ritual Stone and activating its effect while standing right up against the door, you can revive the Assassin of Old, then head outside of Hag's End to make him spawn next to you, where his armor can be taken once the effect wears off.
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3 Wabbajack
The Wabbajack | |
|---|---|
Weapon Type | Staff |
Damage | 27 |
Weight | 10 |
Enchantment | Each blast will cause a random effect, which may be beneficial for or harmful to you |
Like the Mace of Molag Bal, the Wabbajack is a decent Daedric Artifact that doesn't have a level requirement. The Wabbajack's questline also doesn't have much in the way of combat and is easier to obtain without dying.
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How To Get It
Simply fast travel to Solitude once you reach Whiterun's horse and carriage. While there, you'll be approached by a man named Dervenin, who wants help rescuing his master. Accepting the job will start a quest called 'The Mind of Madness.' Complete that quest and you can have a decently powerful staff that can help immensely if you are going after the likes of the Mace of Molag Bal or the Ancient Shrouded Armor.
2 Skyforge Steel Weapons
Skyforge Steel Battleaxe | Skyforge Steel Dagger | Skyforge Steel Greatsword | Skyforge Steel Sword | Skyforge Steel War Axe | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Weapon Type | Two-Handed Weapon | Weapon Type | One-Handed Weapon | Weapon Type | Two-Handed Weapon | Weapon Type | One-Handed Weapon | Weapon Type | One-Handed Weapon |
Damage | 21 | Damage | 8 | Damage | 20 | Damage | 11 | Damage | 12 |
Weight | 21 | Weight | 2.5 | Weight | 17 | Weight | 10 | Weight | 12 |
Skyforge Steel weapons have the same base damage rating as Elven weapons, so they are a decent choice until higher damage weapons begin to spawn.
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How To Get Them
Skyforge Steel weapons can be bought from Eorlund Gray-Mane after joining The Companions, but he will also gift the player any weapon they choose after the quest "Proving Honor" has been completed.
1 Staff of Jyrik Gauldurson
Staff of Jyrik Gauldurson | |
|---|---|
Weapon Type | Staff |
Damage | |
Weight | 8 |
Enchantment | Your enemy will take 25 Health damage and 50 Magicka damage |
Magic staffs don't do damage in and of themselves; instead, they do magical damage through their enchantment and will need to be recharged. One good, easy option you can get quickly is the Staff of Jyrik Gauldurson.
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How To Get It
The Staff of Jyrik Gauldurson can be found in the same room as the Eye of Magnus during the College of Winterhold quest "Under Saarthal" and helps a lot in the battle against Jyrik Gauldurson. This quest also begins the "Forbidden Legend" side quest where players can obtain the Gauldur Amulet, a powerful unique necklace that increases magicka, stamina, and health when worn.
NEXT: Skyrim: Crazy Things You Didn't Know About Meridia
