Not all armaments are created equal, and having a list of the best weapons for dual wielding in Skyrim will help you cut through the chaff and focus on those of the highest caliber. Since there’s a multitude of fighting styles to choose from depending on your build — and if you own the Anniversary Edition — not every top-tier choice will suit you, and only a handful of categories even allow for the fighting style. Regardless, we’ve collected some options for you.
Best Weapons for Dual Wielding in Skyrim
These are the best weapons for dual wielding in Skyrim:
- Individual Weapons:
- Best Weapon Combos:
When it comes to the best weapons for dual wielding in Skyrim, you’ve got a few options. You can use the same type of armament in both hands — which is typically what I use — or you can use a weapon and a spell. In this guide, I’ll focus on having weapons in both hands, which can increase the number of enchantments you have access to. Categories you can dual wield are:
- Dagger
- One-handed Sword
- Once-handed Mace
- War Axe
- Staff
The fastest attacks will come from using two daggers, while the most damage will come from wielding two maces. A good balance is using a dagger and mace or a war axe and sword.
Another benefit of wielding two weapons is using less stamina while dealing more damage to execute a dual-wield power attack. This is a little different depending on the items you’re using, with only duo daggers getting a visual difference. (This difference does seem to slow down the attacks by about a second, however, which can be something to consider.)
Best Individual Weapons for Dual Wielding
Mace of Molag Bal
- Type: One-Handed Mace
- Base Damage: 16
- Enchantments:
- 25 damage to Stamina and Magicka
- Traps soul if the target dies within 3 seconds
- How to Get: Complete the quest The House of Horrors in Markarth
The Mace of Molag Bal is one of the hardest-hitting one-handed weapons available in Skyrim. With 16 base damage, hits to stamina and magicka, and the ability to trap your enemy’s soul, it’s a great option. Since it’s one of the slower weapons, pairing it with a dagger or sword is probably a good idea.
Staff of Sheogorath
- Type: Staff
- Enchantments: Targets in a 75ft radius that fail to resist are paralyzed for 10 seconds
- How to Get: Complete the Put a Fork In It quest, available in the Anniversary Edition of Skyrim
The Staff of Sheogorath possesses the power to Paralyze opponents for an amazingly long period of time. Ten seconds of unblocked damage is more than enough to take out most enemies and reduce the HP of bosses and high-level Dragons significantly. While the staff doesn’t do damage itself, pairing it with a high-damage axe or mace can make up for it.
Bloodthirst
- Type: One-Handed Sword
- Base Damage: 14
- Enchantments:
- Absorbs 15 points of health
- Increases speed by 7%
- Targets takes increased Bleed damage
- How to Get: You’ll find this during a quest called A Soul Divided in the Anniversary Edition
Bloodthirst isn’t the highest damage sword in the game. Instead, what makes Bloodthirst a great weapon is its enchantments, earning it a place on this list of best weapons for dual wielding. Increasing the speed of your attacks while replenishing your health and dealing increased damage is a deadly combo. That’s just from this single blade, never mind what you have equipped in your other hand.
Cleaver of St. Felms
- Type: War Axe
- Base Damage: 14
- Enchantments:
- Burns target for 30 points and increases total damage dealt
- Absorbs 25 Magicka
- How to Get: Trade with Vesparth the Toe if they follow you. If they’re your enemy, kill and loot them
Another Anniversary Edition weapon, the Cleaver of St. Felms is a fiery one. Burning targets for 30 points of damage with each hit, it causes the enemy to take fire damage over time. Of course, this won’t work against fire enemies such as the Fire Atronach, but there are plenty of potential victims — and weapon combos — that having this is a good idea.
Torment
- Type: One-Handed Sword
- Base Damage: 18
- Enchantments:
- Burns target for 30 points and increases total damage dealt
- How to Get: Kill Valkyn Methats during The Cause side quest.
Rounding off our list of awesome Anniversary Edition weapons is Torment. It deals a large amount of base damage while also burning the target for 30 points when the attack connects. Not too shabby.
Mehrunes’ Razor
- Type: Dagger
- Base Damage: 11
- Enchantments:
- Chance to instantly kill an enemy
- How to Get: Kill Silus Vesuius at the end of the quest called Pieces of the Past
Mehrunes’ Razor is one of my personal favorite daggers in Skyrim, and a great choice for dual-wielding. While its damage is low, the chance to instakill a target — even big, old dragons — is just amazing. Pair it with another dagger for the fastest dual-wielding attacks or with a mace for big damage.
Best Weapon Combinations
Narrowing down the best weapons for dual wielding in Skyrim can be a timely endeavor. But we’ve done the work for you.
- Bloodscythe & Soulrender: These two swords were designed to be used together. They get boosted further if you’re wearing the Deathbrand armor set.
- Blade of Woe & Mehrunes’ Razor: Both blades have low base damage but amazing enchantments. The Blade of Woe drains health, while Mehrune’s Razor has a chance to kill a target on hit. When dual wielding, this is the build I typically go with.
- Harkon’s Sword & Mace of Molag Bal: Harkon’s Sword drains health, magicka, and stamina on hit, but it runs out of charges quite quickly. Enter the Mace of Molag Bal, which absorbs a soul if killed within 3 seconds. This will keep your stash of Soul Gems filled and ready to use for Harkon’s Sword.
Those are the best weapons for dual wielding in Skyrim. For more on Bethesda’s massive open-world RPG, like the best bows in the game, how to build a house, or the full list of potions, check out our guides vault. You won’t need to lockpick your way in, either.
