- For other uses, see Heavy Armor.
- "Those trained to use Heavy Armor make more effective use of Iron, Steel, Dwarven, Orcish, Nordic, Ebony, Daedric, and Dragonplate armors."
- ―Loading Screen[src]
Heavy Armor is a skill in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Heavy Armor skill is raised by the use of certain kinds of armor that the in-game character can equip. Heavy armor typically weighs more than light armor, injuring speed and carrying capacity at the offset of added protection. Penalties to speed and carrying capacity can be countered using The Steed Stone, consuming Potions of Carry Weight, or using the Conditioning perk.
- Governing Guardian Stone: The Warrior
Books and quests
These books permanently raise the Heavy Armor skill:
- 2920, MidYear, v6
- Chimarvamidium
- Hallgerd's Tale
- Orsinium and the Orcs
- The Knights of the Nine
- Oghma Infinium - choosing the "Path of the Warrior" increases all combat-oriented skills by 5, including Heavy Armor.
These quests permanently raise the Heavy Armor skill:
Advantages/Disadvantages
- Main article: Armor (Skyrim)
Advantages
|
Disadvantages
|
Damage reduction
Armor increases the Dragonborn's armor rating, which decreases how much physical damage is dealt to them. The maximum damage reduction is capped at 80%, which is achieved:
- When wearing 4 pieces of armor plus a shield: 542 armor rating.
- 4 pieces of armor or less without a shield: 567 armor rating.
Perks
The following are the perks that become available to select as the skill is leveled up.
Perk (Ranks) | Requirements | Description |
---|---|---|
Juggernaut (5) | Heavy Armor 20/ 40/ 60/ 80 | Increases armor rating for Heavy Armor by 20% (+20% per additional rank) |
Fists of Steel | Heavy Armor 30, Juggernaut | Unarmed attacks with Heavy Armor gauntlets do their base armor rating in extra damage. Sneak attack bonus is two times the damage.
Khajiit and Argonians gain bonus unarmed damage from their claws, which stacks with this perk. Gloves of the Pugilist provides the Fortify Unarmed enchantment for further damage. |
Well Fitted | Heavy Armor 30, Juggernaut | 25% armor bonus if wearing all Heavy Armor: head, chest, hands, feet |
Cushioned | Heavy Armor 50, Fists of Steel | Half damage from falling if wearing all Heavy Armor: head, chest, hands, feet
Also reduces damage from environmental physics such as flying debris launched into the air by force shouts or other enemy attacks. |
Tower of Strength | Heavy Armor 50, Well Fitted | 50% less stagger when wearing only Heavy Armor
Force Without Effort can provide an additional 25% stagger reduction. |
Conditioning | Heavy Armor 70, Cushioned | Wearing Heavy armor no longer affects how much stamina is used when sprinting. Any heavy armor worn no longer counts towards the carry weight.
Of note, however, is any previously worn Heavy Armor that is unequipped will then count towards carry weight. |
Matching Set | Heavy Armor 70, Tower of Strength |
Additional 25% armor bonus if wearing a matched set of Heavy Armor |
Reflect Blows | Heavy Armor 100, Matching Set | 10% chance to reflect melee damage back to the enemy while wearing all Heavy Armor: head, chest, hands, feet |
Perk tree
Leveling
There are two main ways to level heavy armor, besides using trainers.
- "Regular wear and tear" - Just wear heavy armor while exploring and adventuring. Hits taken while wearing Heavy Armor increases skill level.
- "Punching Bag" – Intentionally allow strikes to land successfully over and over again to level the skill.
Skill experience is calculated based on the attack strength of the foe. For example, taking multiple attacks from a skeever or wolf levels Heavy Armor at a significantly slower rate than blows from giants or mammoths would. Being the victim of power attacks also grants more experience than a standard attack. The experience gained is based on damage before armor, not damage calculating armor. Therefore increasing armor rating does not decrease experience.
The key to leveling Heavy Armor is to find foes that will not kill the trainer, but allows a large volume of attacks to be performed. An example of this would be: having level 65 Heavy Armor and taking strikes from a Giant Club. Two or three attacks can be sustained at this level. Allow the attacks to land successfully, cast Restoration spells, drinking healing potions, or eating food to regain health and repeat the process. Regeneration potions allow such training without the hassle of constantly attending the game.
Remember that wearing multiple articles of Heavy Armor increases the speed at which experience is gained.
Trainers
- Gharol (Expert): Dushnikh Yal in The Reach.
- Farkas of The Companions (Master): Jorrvaskr, or the training area behind it, in Whiterun. Requires membership of The Companions.
- Isran of the Dawnguard (Master): Fort Dawnguard, in Dayspring Canyon. Requires the Dawnguard add-on and membership to the Dawnguard.
- Kuvar (Master): Thirsk Mead Hall near Lake Fjalding. Requires the Dragonborn add-on.
Armor types
The following is heavy armor sets that benefit from this skill:
Craftable armor
The Armors listed here are Heavy Armors that are able to be crafted by the Dragonborn given the appropriate perk.
- Chitin DB - Shield, Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Iron - Shield, Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Ancient Nord - Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Imperial - Shield, Helmet, Armor, Bracers, Boots
- Steel - Shield, Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Steel Plate - Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Dwarven - Shield, Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Bonemold DB - Shield, Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Orcish - Shield, Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Nordic Carved DB - Shield, Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Ebony - Shield, Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Stalhrim DB - Shield, Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Daedric - Shield, Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Dragonplate - Shield, Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
Non-craftable armor
The following Armors are Heavy Armors that are either given to the Dragonborn as a quest reward, bought, or found randomly throughout the world; they cannot be crafted. Some are unique items, others are non-craftable sets.
- Blades - Shield, Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Dawnguard DG - Shield, Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Daedric Artifacts - Shield, Helmet, Armor
- Spellbreaker - Shield
- Clavicus Vile's Masque - Helmet
- Ebony Mail - Armor
- Dragon Priest Masks
- Falmer - Shield, Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Falmer, Hardened DG- Helm, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Farmer, Heavy DG - Helm, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
- Unique Items
- Auriel's Shield DG - Shield
- General Tullius' Armor - Chest
- The Jagged Crown - Helmet
- Targe of the Blooded - Shield
- Wolf Armor - Helmet, Armor, Gauntlets, Boots
Armor sets
- Main article: Armor Sets (Skyrim)
An armor set is defined as a complete set of armor that includes one matching armor piece for the head, chest, hands and feet.
There are several different armor sets available in Skyrim, both in heavy and light variants. Certain armor sets can provide special bonuses if the full set is worn. See the main article for a full list.
Headgear
Cuirasses
Boots
Gauntlets
Shields
- Main article: Shields (Skyrim)
See also
Skills in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim | |
---|---|
The Mage | |
The Thief | |
The Warrior |
|