Archery | Skills TES V: Skyrim Guide
Last update: 05 December 2019
This TES V: Skyrim World Atlas page describes Archery skills. These skills are associated with the warrior and Archer archetypes. Our tutorial in addition to describing the skills will tell you how to develop them, and what related best features are worth unlocking.
How to increase skill: This skill can be increased by hitting the targets with arrows. The growth of the skill depends on how much damage the hero has dealt with each hit (only the arrows that injured someone count).
Main purpose of developing this skill: Increasing the damage done with bows and arrows.
Available perks: 16.
Best perks: Overdraw, Eagle Eye, Power Shot.
Comments:
- An important thing to know about bows is that the extent of the damage inflicted with them is based on two things. One of them is of course the quality of the bow, however the second element is the quality of arrows which were used for the attacks. You can switch arrows in your inventory.
- Better types of arrows are a rare thing. You should preserve them and use them only on the strongest opponents, but it's also wise to examine bodies of all fallen enemies, because sometimes the game will allow you to take back some of the arrows.
- Make sure to have crosshair activated (option in the game's menu), so that you'll have a much easier job when you're aiming. Also, remember that arrows don't fly in a straight line. Always take that for advisement, especially when aiming for very distant targets.
- All common light armors have a very weak armor rating. You can get used to this and focus your efforts on not getting hit too often or you can do something about it. Enchanting items, using smithing to forge better pieces of armor or finding better magical light armors are all good ideas.
- I strongly recommend that you rely on complete sets of light armor instead of just single pieces of armor. The reason for that is not only because you'll increase overall defense, but you'll also be given a chance to activate perks which grant bonuses for wearing armor sets. It's also easier to develop this skill tree when you're using a complete light armor, because all the damage you take is being counted towards it (and not divided into two separate pools).
- OVERDRAW
- EAGLE EYE
- STEADY HAND
- POWER SHOT
- QUICK SHOT
- CRITICAL SHOT
- HUNTER'S DISCIPLINE
- RANGER
- BULLSEYE
- AGILE DEFENDER
- CUSTOM FIT
- UNHINDERED
- WIND WALKER
- MATCHING SET
- DEFT MOVEMENT
OVERDRAW
This perk has five ranks and each time you unlock a new rank it gets better.
Requirements (rank 1): None.
Requirements (rank 2): Archery skill increased to at least 20 points.
Requirements (rank 3): Archery skill increased to at least 40 points.
Requirements (rank 4): Archery skill increased to at least 60 points.
Requirements (rank 5): Archery skill increased to at least 80 points.
Description (rank 1): 20% more damage dealt with bows.
Description (rank 2): 40% more damage dealt in total with bows.
Description (rank 3): 60% more damage dealt in total with bows.
Description (rank 4): 80% more damage dealt in total with bows.
Description (rank 5): 100% more damage dealt in total with bows.
Comments: It's a good idea to regularly unlock new perks from this group, increasing the effectiveness of your ranged attacks.
EAGLE EYE
Requirements: Archery skill increased to at least 30 points. Unlocked Overdraw perk (rank 1).
Description: Ability of zooming in the view while aiming with a bow by pressing the block key.
Comments: This is an extremely useful perk and you should unlock it as soon as you can. Zooming in the view (hold the right mouse button) makes aiming a much easier process and this comes in handy not only when you want to attack someone by surprise.
STEADY HAND
This perk has two ranks and unlocking the second rank makes it better.
Requirements (rank 1): Archery skill increased to at least 40 points. Unlocked Eagle Eye perk.
Requirements (rank 2): Archery skill increased to at least 60 points.
Description (rank 1): Time slows down by 25% when aiming with a zoomed-in view.
Description (rank 2): Time slows down by a total of 50% when aiming with a zoomed-in view.
Comments: Both perks from this group are a perfect match to Eagle Eye. You should consider unlocking them if you want the main character to become a skilled assassin at taking down targets from large distances. This isn't of course the only use for these perks, because you can also rely on time slowing down when you want to eliminate fast moving targets.
POWER SHOT
Requirements: Archery skill increased to at least 50 points. Unlocked Eagle Eye perk.
Description: 50% more chances of staggering an opponent when he's hit with an arrow.
Comments: This is definitely one of the most useful perks from this entire skill tree. Staggering an opponent allows you to perform other attacks without the risk of them resulting in a failure, however you can also use the opportunity to quickly move away from the enemy to prepare for the next attack. The method described above doesn't work for the strongest enemies, however you should still purchase it as soon as it becomes available.
QUICK SHOT
Requirements: Archery skill increased to at least 70 points. Unlocked Power Shot perk.
Description: Drawing a bow is 30% faster.
Comments: This perk may only become useful if you always like to fire as many arrows as possible. If you're using bows mainly as an assassin which relies on single, deadly hits it won't be of any use to you.
CRITICAL SHOT
This perk has three ranks and each time you unlock a new rank it gets better.
Requirements (rank 1): Archery skill increased to at least 30 points. Unlocked Overdraw perk (rank 1).
Requirements (rank 2): Archery skill increased to at least 60 points.
Requirements (rank 3): Archery skill increased to at least 90 points.
Description (rank 1): 10% chance of inflicting critical damage with a bow.
Description (rank 2): 15% chance of inflicting critical damage with a bow.
Description (rank 3): 20% chance of inflicting critical damage with a bow.
Comments: It would be wise to unlock all three perks from this group sooner or later. The main reason is that with each new rank not only are the chances for a successful critical show increased, but also how much damage a critical shot takes (+25% damage for rank 2 and +50% damage for rank 3).
HUNTER'S DISCIPLINE
Requirements: Archery skill increased to at least 50 points. Unlocked Critical Shot perk (rank 1).
Description: Possibility of recovering twice as much arrows from the body of an enemy killed with a bow.
Comments: This perk isn't useful at the beginning of the game, because you'll probably be using common arrows which are cheap and which can be found in most locations. It becomes more useful later in the game, because this is when having rare arrows becomes important and each arrow should be preserved to be used in the best possible conditions.
RANGER
Requirements: Archery skill increased to at least 60 points. Unlocked Hunter's Discipline perk.
Description: Ability of moving fast with a drawn bow.
Comments: This isn't something you should especially be interested in. If the main character is in danger it's better to just avoid aiming at all and to quickly run somewhere else.
BULLSEYE
Requirements: Archery skill increased to 100 points. Unlocked Quick Shot perk or Ranger perk.
Description: 15% chance of paralyzing the target when he's struck with an arrow.
Comments: This perk doesn't have to be high on your list of priorities and in my opinion it's much better to work on improving overall damage and on chances of inflicting critical hits. Remember that you can paralyze your targets using spells or poisons.
Light Armor
How to increase skill: This skill can be increased by receiving damage during battles while wearing light armor. The growth of the skill depends on how much damage the hero has taken and how many pieces of light armor he is currently wearing (preferably an entire set).
Main purpose of developing this skill: Increasing the value of character's defense and therefore receiving less damage.
Available perks: 10.
Best perks: Agile Defender, Custom Fit, Wind Walker.
Comments:
AGILE DEFENDER
This perk has five ranks and each time you unlock a new rank it gets better.
Requirements (rank 1): None.
Requirements (rank 2): Light Armor skill increased to at least 20 points.
Requirements (rank 3): Light Armor skill increased to at least 40 points.
Requirements (rank 4): Light Armor skill increased to at least 60 points.
Requirements (rank 5): Light Armor skill increased to at least 80 points.
Description (rank 1); Armor rating increased by 20% (only for light armors).
Description (rank 2); Armor rating increased by a total of 40% (only for light armors).
Description (rank 3); Armor rating increased by a total of 60% (only for light armors).
Description (rank 4); Armor rating increased by a total of 80% (only for light armors).
Description (rank 5); Armor rating increased by a total of 100% (only for light armors).
Comments: It's very important that you unlock all five perks from this group as soon as possible, because almost all light armors have a very weak standard armor rating and therefore it's crucial to improve it by any means necessary.
CUSTOM FIT
Requirements: Light Armor skill increased to at least 30 points. Unlocked Agile Defender perk (rank 1).
Description: Armor rating increased by additional 25% if the main character is wearing a complete light armor set.
Comment: This is also a very important perk, especially since the bonus provided by it will be cumulated with all bonuses received from the Agile Defender perks. Make sure to use a complete set (headgear, bodygear, hands and legs protection - a total of four items), because otherwise the armor rating will remain the same.
UNHINDERED
Requirements: Light Armor skill increased to at least 50 points. Unlocked Custom Fit perk.
Description: Removal of all penalties to character's agility caused by wearing a light armor.
Comment: This perk is far less valuable than a similar one from the Heavy Armor skill tree (Conditioning). The reason for that is very simple - a light armor, even the worst kind, doesn't slow down the movements of the main character in any major way. Remember that purchasing this perk doesn't change the armor's weight, so you can't count on your inventory suddenly gaining more carrying capacity.
WIND WALKER
Requirements: Light Armor skill increased to at least 60 points. Unlocked Unhindered perk.
Description: Stamina regeneration improved by 50% if the main character is wearing a complete light armor set.
Comment: This is an incredibly useful perk, especially if you like to use a bow or perform a lot of power attacks with a melee weapon, because all of these actions consume stamina very quickly.
MATCHING SET
Requirements: Light Armor skill increased to at least 70 points. Unlocked Custom Fit perk.
Description: Armor rating increased by additional 25% if the main character is wearing a matched and complete light armor set.
Comment: This perk appears to work identically as Custom Fit, HOWEVER it requires a MATCHED light armor set. This means having four different light armor parts isn't enough, because they must be from the same "manufacturer". You can search for matched sets on your own or craft one using your smithing abilities. All of these restrictions make this perk a less interesting proposition, however if you possess a good matched set you should of course quickly unlock it.
DEFT MOVEMENT
Requirements: Light Armor skill increased to 100 points. Unlocked Wind Walker perk or Matching Set perk.
Description: 10% chance of avoiding damage in a melee attack.
Comment: This isn't a useful perk, especially since 10% is a very small chance. It's much better to spend skill points on other light armor parks that work automatically and don't rely on you being lucky.