One of the best things about Skyrim is how much customization you have over your character. Depending on who's playing, the Dragonborn can be just about anyone. Whether you prefer elves, Khajiit, Argonians, or just plain and simple Imperials, there's something there for just about anyone and for every play style.
Each race comes with their own bonuses, however, which is something you might want to take into account depending on which build you're going for, or if you just want to complete the game with the strongest possible build. Here are 5 of the best race powers and 5 of the worst race powers, to help you pick your character's race next time you play Skyrim.
10 Best: Dragonskin
Bretons are somewhere in the middle when it comes to utility. However, ultimately their kit provides more good than bad due to their versatility. Known as excellent combatants as well as mages, there's a lot of options if you're not quite sure what your build is and where you'd like to go with it.
Bretons have something called Dragonskin, which allows them to resist 50% of magicka from spells for 60 seconds once a day. Moreover, they have a natural 25% resistance to magic, which makes them great mages, but also resilient fighters against magicka users.
9 Worst: Command Animal
Bosmer are inhabitants of the woodlands, which is why much of their abilities will suit that environment. Their special power, Command Animal, does exactly what it states: it allows you to turn all surrounding animals into friends for about 60 seconds once a day.
Moreover, Bosmer have a natural 50% resistance to diseases and 50% resistance to being poisoned. These resistances are decent, but they're not necessary, since diseases are easy to cure at cities. There's also very few occasions when you'd need animals to fight on your side reliably, which is why these powers aren't that great.
8 Best: Voice Of The Emperor
Imperials are inhabitants of Cyrodiil and loyal people of the Emperor. Due to this, they're able to use a power known as the Voice of the Emperor. When used, it will calm every humanoid being nearby for about 30 seconds.
This is a nice bonus to have if you're fighting against a group of bandits, which is a common quest to get in Skyrim, or infiltrating a fort overrun by necromancers or other high level mages. Moreover, Imperials will always have a bit more gold in their loot, and if you're planning on purchasing all the houses in Skyrim this is a really nice advantage to have.
7 Worst: Adrenaline Rush
Redguards are fearless swordfighters, famous for their curved scimitars. As a result, their unique ability allows them to recover their stamina 10 times quicker for about 60 seconds once a day. All Redguards also have a natural 50% poison resistance.
These two abilities provide very little, unless your build is somehow focused on stamina-heavy combat. As for poison resistance, since poisons are generally not that potent or a big issue in Skyrim, it seems a bit of a waste to opt for it in favor of something more powerful.
6 Best: Highborn
The arrogant high elves might believe they're better than everyone else, and while they're definitely very strong, they don't quite make the top of the list. Altmer's have a power known as High Born, which allows them to recover 25% of their maximum magicka per second for about 60 seconds straight.
Furthermore, their bonus effects gives them +50 Magicka right off the bat, making them the most ideal pick for anyone wanting to build a powerful mage character. There's truly no better caster than an Altmer, which is why it's one of the best races in terms of powers.
5 Worst: Battle Cry
Nords are a big staple in Skyrim, and the main race that inhabits the province. Still, despite being the majority, their unique abilities are less than impressive. Nords can utilize a skill known as Battle Cry, which will scare off any nearby enemies for about 30 seconds. They also have a natural 50% frost resistance.
These skills are very basic, and won't carry a character through their adventures. Frost won't be the main issue when fighting powerful mages, and scaring off enemies might make it harder for a Nord to end a fight quickly.
4 Best: Berserker Rage
Orcs are another race known specifically for their ruthlessness and vicious fighting skills. If you're looking to make a powerful combatant in Skyrim, an orc should definitely be your first choice. Orsimer can use a power called Berserker Rage, which makes it so that you take half the damage and do double the damage for a whopping 60 seconds.
This is devastating against especially tough enemies, and great if you need to control a crowd of enemies. While they have no unique effect, as an orc you can enter any stronghold whenever you please, which sort of makes up for it.
3 Worst: Night Eye
Khajiit are a unique race, not just in appearance but in their traditions. Nomadic by nature, the other species tend to view the Khajiit as scheming thieves, perhaps even for a reason. Khajiit make decent stealth characters due to their Night Eye ability which gives them night vision for 60 seconds and can be used several times in a day.
Due to their claws, they also get a +15 damage boost whenever fighting unarmed. Unfortunately, both of these abilities are very lackluster. Since a torch or a spell can provide enough light in dark areas, Night Eye becomes a bit useless after a while. Plus, there will rarely be a time when your character will fight unarmed, which is why the small damage boost is never going to be truly useful.
2 Best: Histskin
Argonians might not look the most appealing. However, they have undoubtedly the best and the most versatile kit of powers in the entire game. Due to their Histskin ability, Argonians can recover health 10 times faster for 60 seconds once per day. On top of that, they have a 50% disease resistance and they're able to breathe normally underwater.
You might wonder what waterbreathing will do in the long term, but there's tons of buried treasure that lies in the water in Skyrim. Moreover, Histskin is a powerful regeneration ability that can save you in a tough situation. While diseases aren't really an issue, it's a small quality of life improvement that we can all appreciate on top of the two other powers.
1 Worst: Ancestor's Wrath
The Dunmer are the dark elves of Tamriel, originally from Morrowind and now forced to relocate after the eruption of the Red Mountain. Sadly, their racial powers are a bit anecdotal and won't serve you that well in combat. The Dunmer have something called Ancestor's Wrath, which lights up enemies around you with weak flames once per day.
You also get a 50% fire resistance, which is kind of nice, but since the first power is so anecdotal it almost feels like it's the only thing we're getting as a Dunmer. We would recommend passing, unless you fear fire.