Elven weapons and armors land about halfway up the pack of Skyrim’s base-game offerings, beating out Iron, Steel, Orcish, and Dwarven weapons and armors, but coming just under the Glass sets. Aside from their stats, many players choose the Elven sets because of their refined, sleek golden designs that offer both practicality, and style.
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S-Tier
Gilded Elven Armor: The best of the Elven armor variations, this set includes the standard Elven boots, gauntlets, and helmet, but swaps out the regular Elven armor piece for a Gilded variant. The Gilded cuirass has a higher base protection stat of 35, which in turn increases the overall armor set protection from 58 to 64. This armor should take players through some of the tougher areas of Skyrim. Elven Warhammer: While they aren’t known for their two-handed weaponry, the Elven Warhammer is the best Elven two-handed option. With a base damage of 23, the Elven Warhammer is more than capable of dispatching some of Skyrim’s deadliest enemies. Elven Dagger: Though it may only offer eight points of damage, the Elven Dagger is one of the best early-mid game weapons for any stealth build. Incredibly fast strikes, and a sleek visual design puts the Elven Dagger at the top of this tier list.
A-Tier
Regular Elven Armor: While its Gilded version is better, the standard Elven Armor set is still one of the best light armors in Skyrim’s mid-game. Offering a healthy base protection of 58 when all pieces are worn, the Elven Armor set can take a hit, whilst also allowing the user to sneak more efficiently, and move faster. Elven Mace: It may not be the hardest hitting Mace in the game, but the Elven Mace is possibly the best one-handed Elven weapon in Skyrim. With an undeniably cool design, a base damage of 13, and a fast attack animation, the Elven Mace is a great early-mid game one-handed weapon. Elven Bow: A staple of their species, it only makes sense that one of the best Elven weapons is the Elven Bow. Much like the majority of the Elven weapon sets, the Elven Bow doesn’t hold a candle to the likes of the Ebony or Daedric Bow, but it packs a hard punch for the beginning of the game, and can easily be found by visiting Jorrvaskr early on.
B-Tier
Light Elven Armor: Being available from practically the start of the game, the Light Elven Armor set will give the user a solid base protection stat of 52 when all pieces are worn, which should be more than enough to take on Skyrim’s early game foes. Elven Battleaxe: A solid option for any two-handed builds, the Elven Battleaxe gives the user a base damage of 21, which should be enough to fight the full range of Skyrim’s early-mid game enemies. Elven War Axe: Functioning similarly to the Mace, the Elven War Axe prioritizes speed over damage, but should make quick work of Skyrim’s opening dungeons and crypts, especially if the weapon is enchanted. Elven Sword: Though technically worse in damage by a few points than the War Axe and Mace, the Elven Sword is still a viable weapon for a decent stretch of Skyrim’s runtime, though players may struggle a bit to take on the game’s tougher enemies.
C-Tier
Elven Shield: Offering just 21 points of base damage protection, the Elven Shield is markedly worse than the Orcish counterpart. Though Elven weapons are technically better than their Orcish equivalent, the same can’t be said for armor. If a player has an Orcish Shield, they’ll likely want to keep its 30 points of protection over the Elven Shield’s 21. Elven Greatsword: The Elven Greatsword offers the least damage of the Elven two-handed weapons, with a base stat of just 20. It isn’t bad, but it isn’t great either, and lands it at the bottom tier of this list.
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