Archery in Skyrim has long been one of the most popular paths to take since a decently built stealth archer can one-shot kill virtually any enemy in the game from a great distance and without being detected. The downside to this approach, as countless players have learned, is that it can become incredibly dull as it reduces the game’s combat to a point-and-click adventure that occasionally triggers hilarious kill cams on backflipping ragdoll corpses. Consequently, archery has been the target of many mods over the years as content creators try to make the playstyle more engaging.
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The Skyrim Arrow Overhaul mod by MaGlas is the most recent and one of the most impressive archery mods for Skyrim, and despite the title, it does a lot more than just overhaul arrows. The mod adds a variety of special arrowheads that are best used in specific situations. For example, armor-piercing arrows are able to pierce heavy armor but do less damage overall while the throat-cutting crescent arrowhead is devastating on lightly armored necks, but will harmlessly ricochet off heavy armor. Special arrow types like the noisy whistle arrow can be used to lure enemies, while the fire arrow can ignite foes and illuminate dark areas.
The mod also comes with its own perk tree allowing players to further specialize with Skyrim’s bows and other ranged weapons. The tree branches into four paths with a focus on realistic skill development: strength, focus, trickshot, and fletcher. Strength perks improve damage, range, and draw speed, while trickshot perks focus on precise aim and can disarm opponents hit in the hand or deal extra damage on throat shots. Fletcher perks allow players to recover arrows and craft them on the go.
Skyrim Arrow Overhaul also gives NPCs limited ammo and access to these new arrows, and NPCs practicing archery on targets will walk up to the target to retrieve their arrows when they run out. Small animals will also need to be shot with hammerhead arrows to avoid damaging the pelts, and bandits also spawn with crossbows. For players looking to enhance their archery combat, this may be one of the best Skyrim mods to check out.
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim is available for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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Source: Nexus Mods, Gfinity
