There is an incredible amount of content for players to find and experience throughout a playthrough in Skyrim. However, there are still some enemies and quests that stand out among the rest and have become memorable pieces of content beloved by the game's massive community of fans. One of these is Skyrim's Dragon Priests. Dragon Priests were an entirely new enemy type introduced in Skyrim, and although they later appeared in Elder Scrolls Online, their introduction in Skyrim was an impactful addition that players enjoyed.
The Dragon Priests were also made memorable by appearing by walls with new words of power for the player to learn, as well as each one dropping a unique mask for players to equip. The Dragon Priest Masks are incredibly powerful, and each has a unique look and enchantment, so there is at least one that will suit every playstyle in Skyrim. The Dragon Priest Masks have become so iconic that some Skyrim fans have taken to making their own in real life. However, many fans also don't know the interesting lore behind the Dragon Priests and their masks. Luckily, there's information about them throughout the game's various books for any who want to dig into Skyrim's lore a bit more.
The Lore Behind Dragon Priests in Skyrim
The story of the Dragon Priests dates back thousands of years before Skyrim, when dragons ruled over the land of Skyrim with an iron fist. The Dragon Priests were originally living people who served and worshipped the dragons, helping them maintain power and order across the land. For their service, the Dragon Priests were granted great power, as well as great knowledge in magic and arcana. The powers they were given by the dragons were so great that the Dragon Priests are some of the most powerful bosses in Skyrim, and they maintained a cult worshipping the dragons for many years, until there was a rebellion across the land that defeated them.
To avoid death, the Dragon Priests hid in caves and ruins to await the return of Alduin, the most powerful of the dragons. They took with them the knowledge of the dragons in the form of word walls while they used their expanded knowledge of magic and arcana to resurrect themselves as liches after death. They took with them their leagues of loyal followers so that they could be resurrected as draugr after the Dragon Priests were able to come back as liches. With their immortal lives as undead, they sat in their caves, raising their armies and preparing for the return of the dragons by making powerful Dragon Priest Staves in Skyrim to help them retake the country.
Dragon Priest Masks in Skyrim
In total there are nine unique Dragon Priests scattered across Skyrim hidden throughout various caves and ruins. Each Dragon Priest has a unique name, abilities, and each one made from one of the many different armor materials in Skyrim. The names of the Dragon Priests are Hevnoraak, Krosis, Morokei, Nahkriin, Otar, Rahgot, Bokun, Volsung, and Konahrik. Each mask has its own appearance while also having a unique enchantment and being classified under either light or heavy armor. As the Dragon Priests largely exist around word walls, the easiest way for players to find them all is to get quests to gather word walls from Arngeir in High Hrothgar.
The mask of Hevnoraak makes the player immune to disease and poison and can be found in the ruin of Valthume. The mask of Krosis gives the player +20% to Lockpicking, Archery, and Alchemy, and can be found in Shearpoint. The mask of Morokei gives the player +100% Magicka regeneration and can be found in Labyrinthian. The mask of Nahkriin gives the player 50 Magicka as well as -20% Restoration and Destruction spell cost and can be found in Skuldafin. The mask of Otar boosts the player's elemental resistance and is found in Ragnvald.
The mask of Rahgot gives the player more stamina and is found in Forelhost. The mask of Vokun decreases the cost of Alteration, Conjuration, and Illusion spells and is found in the High Gate Ruins. Volsung's mask lets players carry more loot, get better prices, and breath underwater and is in Volsygge. Konahrik's mask can only be collected after collecting all the others and gives players a chance to heal and damage nearby enemies when their health gets low. This makes collecting all the masks a great side quest to do in Skyrim for players who want to really get more powerful or see everything the game has to offer.
Dragon Priests in Skyrim's Dragonborn DLC
The popularity of the Dragon Priests and their masks led to them returning in Skyrim's Dragonborn DLC. The DLC sees the player traveling to the island of Solstheim to battle against the Dragon Priest Miraak, who once controlled the island in the time of dragons. The DLC added four more Dragon Priests with four more masks for players to earn. The masks do not have as varied of enchantments as their counterparts in the main game, but they do offer some of the highest armor ratings for headgear in both heavy armor category with one mask also being able to offer the highest for light armor as well.
The first mask is Ahzidal's, which gives the player 50% resistance to fire while increasing the damage of their fire spells by 25%. The mask can be found in the ruin of Kolbjorn Barrow. Dukaan's mask has a similar effect but for Frost damage and can be found at White Ridge Barrow. Zahkriisos' mask does the same effect but for Shock damage, and is found at Bloodskal Barrow.
Miraak's mask, however, can only be obtained by completing the DLC's main questline and increases the player's Magicka by 40-70 points while also being able to be either heavy armor or light armor. The mask has the highest armor rating for headgear in either category and is a great addition to any Dragonborn's arsenal. Hopefully, players will get to see more cool and interesting gear like the Dragon Priest Masks in The Elder Scrolls 6.
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim is available now on PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Switch, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.