Daedric artifacts are some of the more interesting items you can find in the Elder Scrolls universe. The methods of obtaining them are always great quests that are really fun and the items themselves are usually really useful. It would be very difficult to pick 10 of the best, never mind put them in order but I’ve managed to choose what I think are the best deadric artifacts in Skyrim. Bear in mind that every Daedric artifact is really good, this list takes into account easiness to obtain and usability to any play style.

 

 

 

 

10. Skeleton Key

I’m sure you’ve heard of this outside of the Elder Scrolls games, the Skeleton Key in “real life” can open any door whereas the one in game is the same as a lockpick but it can’t break. This means you can open any kind of chest (Master for example) without any fuss. The downside is (STORYLINE SPOILER) you only obtain it through the Thieves Guild quests and if you want to complete the entire quest line you have to give it back. I recommend obtaining it, using it until your lockpicking is 100 and then continue with the quests.

 

 

 

 

9. Spellbreaker

This shield is the Daedric artifact of Peryite and belongs to the Heavy Armour class. It has the highest base defence out of any shield in the game, so physical attackers won’t stand a chance. When blocking it also creates a magical ward that absorbs 50 points of magic damage, combine this with the Block perk that allows you to move faster while blocking and you’re a walking juggernaut. It’s only entry number 9 because shields aren’t widely used when compared to other things (like swords or useful items).

 

 

 

 

8. Dawnbreaker

Dawnbreaker comes at just entry number 8 not because there’s anything wrong with it, it’s because the others are pretty much a lot better (and easier to get).

See here for a better description

 

 

 

 

7. Wabbajack

This staff allows you to have some of the most fun in Skyrim, it is the artifact of Sheogorath and the effect description sums it up perfectly “A blast from the Wabbajack has an unpredictable effect”. Here’s the most awesome effects.

– Disintegrates the enemy

– Transformation (into an animal, Daedra or even a pile of sweetrolls)

– Instant kill

– Un-equip armour

– Switch places

– Replaces enemies with a random amount/variety of cheese

As you can see it’s pretty funny, these effects happen at random too so you never really know when or what will happen. That’s the downside, because of the unpredictability it doesn’t have much viability in battle.

 

 

 

 

 6. Masque of Clavicus Vile

This mask can be obtained by completing the “A Daedra’s Best Friend” quest, it is a powerful heavy armour helmet that increases Speech by 10 points, magicka regenerates 5% faster and prices are 20% better. It’s not too useful in battle but if you’re planning on buying a lot of items, you should equip this. If you wear heavy armour and currently don’t have a good enchantment on your headgear, I recommend obtaining this as soon as you can.

 

 

 

 

5. Ebony Blade

The Ebony Blade is a strange artifact, it is a two handed sword obtained by completing the “The Whispering Door” quest. The enchantment is slightly complex but it starts off with the absorb 10 points of health effect. You increase the absorb effect (up to a huge 30 points) by killing “friendly” characters, like those who you have done quests for. The enchantment never needs to be recharged which makes it a no brainer to those starting off and wanting to use a two handed weapon, just the original enchantment is already awesome. I’d recommend giving this to one of your followers, especially if they’re a tank.

 

 

 

 

4. Mehrunes’ Razor

This dagger is one of the more easy to obtain Daedric artifacts, you get it by completing the “Pieces of the Past” quest, as well as some ES:Oblivion nostalgia. The dagger has a 1.98% chance of instantly killing, with the attack rate of a dagger it can be very powerful, especially utilising other methods of increasing attack speed. When using it to dual wield, I suggest placing it in your left hand as power attacks hit twice with your left hand. There’s not really a reason not to obtain this, it’s powerful and you can get it quickly.

 

 

 

 

3. Black Star

This item is surprisingly obtainable by completing the “The Black Star” quest, it is the artifact of Azura along with Azura’s Star. These stars are basically soul gems that are not removed when used and can hold any size soul. The reason I chose the Black Star over Azura’s Star is because Azura’s Star can only hold white souls, whereas the Black Star can hold both black and white souls. It’s an incredibly useful item that literally any player should obtain at some point. Combine this with an item that has soul trap (along with another enchantment, like the Mace of Molag Bal) and you will never run out of charge.

 

 

 

 

2. Ebony Mail

Obtained from the “Boethiah’s Calling” quest, the Ebony Mail is the artifact of Boethiah and has some pretty unique properties. It has the enchantment Muffle which greatly reduces the sound you make, it also deals 5 poison damage per second to any enemies who get close to you. It’s classified as heavy armour so it is useful in battle as well as sneaking and when sneaking you get some cool black smoke around you. I’ve not obtained this yet so can’t comment on how easy it is to obtain, but by the look of it, it could be useful to a lot of players and a lot of play styles.

 

 

 

 

1. Oghma Infinium

Easily the best and most useful Daedric artifact, if not the most useful item in the entire game. It is the artifact of Hermaeus Mora and is obtained by completing the “Discerning the Transmundane” quest. It’s fairly easy to obtain as you can meet the quest requirements by just going about your business as usual. The effect is amazing, here’s what it does: Upon obtaining it, you read it and you have a choice of one of three effects:

– Path of Might (Increases Heavy Armour, One-Handed, Smithing, Two-Handed, Archery and Block by 5 points each)

– Path of Shadow (Increases Light Armour, Speech, pickpocket, Alchemy, Sneak and Lockpicking by 5 points each)

– Path of Magic (Increases Destruction, Restoration, Conjuration, Illusion, Alteration and Enchanting by 5 points each)

As you can see, it’s a very powerful item that will greatly enhance the strength of any character, regardless of the play style. There was a glitch that allowed players to read this book as many times as they wanted, thus power-levelling themselves (although I don’t see why people did that, it’s a single player game that revolves around you building your character up). The glitch was patched as of version 1.9 thankfully.

 

 

This list is of course completely opinionated (as are most of my lists) so if you don’t like the entries then I’m sorry, if you feel there’s a real need for entries to be changed then let me know and I will change it if I agree with you!