Highlights

• Fortify Barter: Prioritize selling goods at higher rates to accumulate gold quickly and avoid financial restrictions.
• Fortify Illusion: Invest in high-level Illusion skills to bamboozle and destroy enemies effortlessly.
• Fortify Alteration: Boost Alteration skills for creative spells that make sneaking and thievery easier and more enjoyable.

Although the world of The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim is filled with great loot, including amazing enchanted armor, it's a pretty good idea to also try and invest a few perks into the Enchanting skill tree. Through this skill tree, the player will pretty much be able to create their very own custom-made enchanted gear, with just the enchantments they want. With well over thirty different enchantments available for gear, the choice can be a bit difficult. There are no wrong choices, as each character will have its own specialization, but there are a few that are incredibly powerful and recommended for most Skyrim players.

There are so many enchantments in the game, with the sheer wealth of options seeming rather overwhelming at times. However, it only takes a few hours for players to come to grips with the game and how things work, making it easy to specialize in certain departments. There are numerous skills that players can mess about with in the game, and people love the idea of using certain enchantments to make the Dragonborn even more powerful.

Updated on January 19, 2024 by Ritwik Mitra: Skyrim is one of the best video games ever made, and its legacy continues to go strong even now. Now that Starfield has released to a pretty middling reception, more people have come to appreciate the beauty of this game and how its fuzion of seamless exploration and power fantasy made for a tantalizing experience. To this day, fans can't get enough of Skyrim's broad wealth of options to play around with, and there are several armor enchantments that players can mess around with if they want to make the Dragonborn even more OP than they already are.

31 Fortify Barter

Applicable To: Amulets

Some people may scoff at the idea of giving Barter so much importance in Skyrim. After all, players can amass a small fortune in no time as long as they're diligent about looting and selling items.

However, in the early going, players should definitely prioritize selling goods at higher rates. This will let them accumulate a ton of gold in no time at all and keep them from being blocked by financial restrictions for the rest of the game. Fortify Barter helps out a lot here, even if players will eventually move on from this skill to the many others that have more practical applications in both the mid and late-game.

30 Fortify Illusion

Applicable To: Hands, Feet, Amulets, Rings

There are many schools of magic that players can mess around with in the game, and it's a shame that most only focus on Restoration and Destruction because of their immediately apparent benefits. The other schools of magic can also allow the Dragonborn to cast a number of powerful spells, and Illusion is no exception to this golden rule.

High-level Illusion skills can be helpful both in and out of combat, which is why most veterans of Skyrim won't shy away from the Fortify Illusion enchantment. With enough points in Illusion, players can bamboozle and destroy most enemies without breaking a sweat.

29 Fortify Alteration

Applicable To: Head, Chest, Amulets, Rings

Alteration is another great skill that players can make the most of if they're smart with it. Skyrim veterans are well aware of how spells from this school of magic can be used to make sneaking and thievery a cinch, with the creative spells that players gain access to making Skyrim feel fresh and engaging once again.

Suffice it to say, investing points in Alteration is a great way to make these creative spells more creative. Fortify Alteration may not be the best enchantment that players can get their hands on, but it has its uses that can make the act of exploring Skyrim and engaging with the game's systems more entertaining in every way.

28 Fortify Pickpocket

Applicable To: Hands, Feet, Amulets, Rings

Most people write off pickpocketing as a rather boring way to play the game, and it's easy to see why this is the case. After all, most people aren't huge fans of sneaking behind every character in the game and enjoying the smallest chance of stealing some minor goods, with the risk being huge. Getting spotted leads to the Dragonborn incurring a bounty and potentially being arrested by the guards in a city.

However, while pickpocketing can be slightly boring early on, increasing the Dragonborn's skills in this department can allow players to straight-up disarm enemies and remove the items they're carrying, which makes combat slightly more manageable. Fortify Pickpocketing ensures that this sneaky act can be carried out with greater ease without the player needing too many points in this skill.

27 Fortify Unarmed

Applicable To: Hands, Rings

There are so many weapons to choose from in Skyrim that most people won't even bother to fight anyone unarmed unless a situation calls for it. Suffice it to say, this renders the Unarmed skill pretty much useless for most people who have absolutely no intention of punching their enemies to death, no matter how novel or hilarious this idea may seem.

With the Fortify Unarmed enchantment, players who are serious about pummelling enemies with their fists can enjoy a much-welcome boost in this regard. While this is rather subjective and a lot of people won't really benefit too much from this enchantment, players opting for a unique build that relies on punching enemies into submission will love what this brings to the table.

26 Fortify Conjuration

Applicable To: Head, Chest, Amulets, Rings

Magic in Skyrim takes on several shapes and forms, and it's a shame that most people only focus on either Destruction or Restoration for the majority of their playthrough. While it's true that these two schools of magic have the most use across numerous scenarios, they do end up overshadowing some of the more unique magic schools in the game, with Conjuration being a great example of the same.

Expanding one's skills with this magic tree allows players to summon everything from weapons to creatures to help them tackle Skyrim's many foes. It's one of the most entertaining ways to play the game, and the Fortify Conjuration mod ensures that players can call forth some really powerful help to take out any foe that is giving them a hard time.

25 Fortify Lockpicking

Applicable To: Head, Hands, Amulets, Rings

During the Dragonborn's adventures in Skyrim, they'll come across their fair share of locked chests and containers. There's nothing more infuriating than being faced with an impossibly hard lock that takes all of the player's lockpicks after multiple failures. Thankfully, Fortify Lockpicking is an enchantment that can help with this issue.

It's an enchantment that suits any character build, though the reason it ranks the lowest here is that Lockpicking as a skill will naturally develop quite quickly on most character builds, given the number of chests players have to pick. The real reason Fortify Lockpicking is good is mainly its ability to save players time making the picking easier and sparing them from wasting lockpicks.

24 Fortify Sneak

Applicable To: Hands, Feet, Amulets, Rings

Not to be confused with the Muffle effect, Fortify Sneak simply improves the wearer's Sneak ability. It has nothing to do with moving more quietly. It simply lets the Dragonborn remain undetected for longer periods of time, as they would with a much higher Sneak skill.

Again, this enchantment is a bit more niche, but not by any means bad. In fact, it's absolutely fantastic when paired with stealth character builds that rely on extremely high Sneak ability to perform in combat. Given how much fun it is to sneak around and one-shot enemies in the game, it's obvious why players would love a bonus to their sneaking prowess... however temporary it may be.

23 Fortify Restoration

Applicable To: Head, Amulets, Chest, Rings

Restoration is one of the most useful skills that players can have in Skyrim, especially early on in the game when they don't really have that many potions to rely on anyway. Having a Restoration Spell ensures that lack of healing items isn't a deterrent to exploring this vast and dangerous world.

With Fortify Restoration on a piece of body armor, players can easily increase the effectiveness of their healing spells. Of course, the lack of healing pretty much becomes a non-issue as players progress further into the game, but it's still a good bonus to have regardless.

22 Fortify Alchemy

Applicable To: Head, Hands, Amulets, Rings

Alchemy might be something beginners or newcomers might consider useless, but it's actually a skill tree that has become more powerful and important in the Skyrim community as years have gone by. As such, the Fortify Alchemy enchantment is really not a terrible option, if the character build the player chooses relies on it.

That said, it's probably best to not put this enchantment on any main gear a character might have since there are overall just far better options out there. However, having one piece of gear with Fortify Alchemy at hand for potion-making, in particular, can be a good idea.

21 Fortify Block

Applicable To: Amulets, Hands, Shields, Rings

Blocking is critical to deflect some damaging attacks and negate the damage from such blows. Players who want defensive options to mess around will be pretty well-serviced by investing in the Block stat and a shield. Of course, players can use the benefits of the Fortify Block enchantment to make things better for themselves too. It's a simple yet great fortification that shield builds will have a great time with.

While it's true that most players don't mind absorbing damage in the game because of Skyrim's inverted difficulty curve, shields can still be quite helpful in a bevy of combat situations. Some end-game combat encounters can drain a player's lifeforce quickly, making it important to lessen this damage as much as possible — something that a shield excels in.

20 Resist Shock/Fire/Frost

Applicable To: Feet, Shields, Amulets, Rings

The three elements of Skyrim are common in most encounters players can expect to face while adventuring. While it depends largely on the type of enemies the Dragonborn faces, having a few pieces of gear with elemental resistance of any type on it is generally a good idea.

That said, it's also a bit redundant, given how easily most of these elements can be countered with alchemy potions. If a powerful boss is using Fire spells, it's best to just prepare Resist Fire potions rather than wear Resist Fire gear. The cost of it is just way smaller since players will save up on Soul Gems for better enchantments. Ultimately, however, it's a bit of a preference question, and elemental resistance is never an entirely bad idea either.

19 Waterbreathing

Applicable To: Head, Amulets, Rings

Players will be swimming around quite a bit in Skyrim. That being said, some people can argue that having an enchantment that lets players breathe infinitely in water is only situationally useful. Regardless, waterbreathing is still a decent enchantment to have in the more waterlogged areas of Skyrim.

Of course, it's better to have this enchantment on a lighter secondary piece of armor instead. After all, players would only want to wear this armor when the situation calls for it, and having to lug around something heavy can be pretty irritating if players get over-encumbered all the time while exploring this massive continent.

18 Muffle

Applicable To: Feet

Though its ranking might be low, Muffle is actually an incredibly good enchantment to have. The only reason why it doesn't deserve a spot much higher is that it is a bit niche compared to some other enchantments on this list. That said, it's immensely powerful and a necessity in some character builds.

Muffle basically allows the player to move in complete silence, which makes stealth characters ridiculously overpowered. There are a few unique items in the game with this enchantment that are worth getting solely because of this. Becoming a stealth archer and mowing down enemies in the shadows becomes way more engaging with this particular enchantment.

17 Fortify Magicka

Applicable To: Head, Amulets, Hands, Rings

Magic builds in Skyrim are a ton of fun to use, although this means that players will have to keep track of Magicka. Running out of this useful resource means that hardcore magic users will be left vulnerable to the might of their enemies. Thankfully, the Fortify Magicka enchantment ensures that players have a bigger stock of Magicka with them. This ensures that little to no problems come in the way of a magic user's casting.

Players will realize the true value of this enchantment when they're in an intense battle against a powerful foe, only for their magicka to run out right before casting a spell that leaves them open to enemies who will waste no time in ending the Dragonborn's journey prematurely.

16 Fortify Stamina

Applicable To: Chest, Amulets, Rings, Feet

Stamina is another stat that players need to keep track of in battle. Swinging a weapon is no easy feat, and every single swing or block takes away a chunk of the Dragonborn's stamina.

With the Fortify Stamina enchantment, players can swing their weapons with a bit more confidence. Stamina management becomes slightly more manageable, which is a huge bonus for most players.

15 Fortify One-Handed

Applicable To: Hands, Feet, Amulets, Rings

One-handed builds are some of the most popular choices among players due to the versatility they bring along. It allows the creation of half-mage half-warrior characters for players who can't quite decide whether to go for a full mage or full warrior build.

As such, adding Fortify One-Handed to enchanted armor is a great idea. It can be added to hands, feet, and any amulet or ring. Overall, it's a nice boost to a player's primary combat ability and one that shouldn't be ignored.

14 Fortify Health

Applicable To: Chest, Shields, Amulets, Rings

When it comes to healing and overall health, Fortify Health isn't the best possible option since it simply increases the character's maximum health. When in a fight, it's much better to have potions and gear that fortify the regeneration of health. That being said, for tanky characters, this is still a pretty good option.

Fortify Health can be added to any chest piece, shield, amulet, or ring. Moreover, it's found on a few unique items scattered around Skyrim, namely the Amulet of Arkay which can be found pretty commonly in the wild, as well as in the shield of Ysgramor found at the end of the Companions guild quest.

13 Resist Poison

Applicable To: Chest, Shields, Amulets, Rings

Poisons aren't a majorly annoying thing in Skyrim, but they can be a real headache when the effects are chained from multiple targets like spiders. Resist poison can be added to any chest piece, shield, amulet, or ring as the player pleases.

There are some very powerful unique armors and pieces that provide this effect as well, namely the Ancient Shrouded Armor which gives the player 100% resistance to any poison. The Hevnoraak dragon priest mask also provides this protection, but a simple Shrouded Armor or the Savior's Hide gives a decent 50% resistance.

12 Fortify Light Armor

Applicable To: Chest, Hands, Amulets, Rings

Light armor shouldn't be ignored. It allows the player to stay light and quick on their feet, while still providing a bit of protection. Archers, namely stealth archers or otherwise stealthier characters will greatly benefit from any light armor buffs.

Fortify Light Armor can be put on any chest and hand armor piece, as well as rings and amulets. It buffs the general light armor skill rating for the player, and due to how versatile light armor is it's a fantastic option for a number of builds.