The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Lore & Background

The game is set 201 years after the events of Oblivion and takes place in Skyrim, the northernmost province of Tamriel, a continent on the planet Nirn. Its main story focuses on the player character, the Last Dragonborn, on their quest to defeat Alduin the World-Eater, a dragon prophesied to destroy the world.

In Their Own Story

The wind howls across the Throat of the World, carrying the scent of pine and ash. You stand atop a frozen ridge, your sabers glowing with red and blue light as the first notes of a familiar melody swell in the distance. A dragon circles overhead, its roar syncing perfectly with the heavy beat. As the rhythm accelerates, you slash through invisible blocks, each strike echoing like a spell cast against the encroaching darkness of the night.

Reader's Guide

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is a fantasy action role-playing game, playable from a first- or third-person perspective. The player may freely roam over the land of Skyrim, an open world environment. Players may navigate the game world more quickly by riding horses, paying for a ride from a city's stable, or utilizing a fast-travel system. At the beginning of the game, players select their character's sex and race, with 10 choices. Characters have three primary attributes: health, magicka, and stamina. The 18 skills are divided evenly among the three schools of combat, magic, and stealth. The player may dual-wield weapons and magic at the same time. Non-player characters (NPCs) populate the world; the player may engage them in conversation, marry one from a predetermined set, or engage them in combat. The player can absorb the souls of dragons to use dragon shouts.

Did You Know?

• Skyrim was developed using the Creation Engine.
• The game shipped over seven million units within the first week of its release and had sold over 20 million units by June 2013.
• Three downloadable content (DLC) add-ons were released: Dawnguard, Hearthfire and Dragonborn.
• A remastered version subtitled Special Edition was released in October 2016.
• A sequel, The Elder Scrolls VI, is in development.