Skyrim is one of the greatest narrative-driven pieces of media to emerge from contemporary society. The NPC characters in Skyrim have become iconic over the years for their voices, behavior, and roles within the game’s universe. Today we will look at 10 of the most Notable Skyrim NPCs in my opinion. Honorable mentions will also be included before #1.
Septumis Signus: Craziest Skyrim NPC
This babbling fool is a castaway who lives in an icy hideout by the College of Winterhold. He sits in his shack while his mind is actively being afflicted by the Daedra Hermaeus Mora. In lore, Mora is the Daedric Prince of deceit and master of the Apocrypha Dimension. Players are able to go to this absolute zoo in the DragonBorn DLC. Nothing makes sense here, It’s a dimension full of tar and tentacles. Things bend and most physical things the player is able to interact with here are illusory. Septimus also employs the Dragonborn to fill a vial with various types of elf blood. The vial is actually a key to open up a dwarven ruin inside of his hideout that Hermaeus Mora tells him contains unforeseen knowledge. This video from Azvelyn on YouTube shows how demented the mind of this old geezer is.
Signus is one of the funniest Skyrim NPCS because he has the Elder Scrolls equivalent of Schizophrenia. To be fair I can imagine it would be hard to stay mentally healthy with the Apocrypha dimension existing in your mind perpetually. This does not make Septimus Signus’ battle with madness any less comical. The peak of Signus’ character as a joke is when the key is used to open the ruin and both the player and Signus are presented with “The Oghma Infinium”. His death scene makes me laugh every time.
(Via @DarkSagor on YouTube Shorts)
Tsun: Chillest Skyrim NPC
Tsun is so chill, he is the bouncer who keeps all the undesirables out of the Hall of Valor in Sovrngarde. He is a Skyrim NPC that looks like a Barbarian. Tsun wields a big axe, has braided hair, and fur armor to complete his aesthetic. But he isn’t brutish, he speaks eloquently and softly. He challenges you to battle in order to prove you are worthy to enter the mead hall for your sake. And he doesn’t doubt your ability to gain entry. He also reacts to your different faction affiliations in custom dialogue options.
(Via The Destati on YouTube)
This dude just wants to box with everyone he sees who wants to cross the bridge he guards. For sport, it seems. This Skyrim NPC is no frills and seems to simply enjoy a good scrap. I mess with him for this.
J’zargo: Most Memed Skyrim NPC
I could’ve put three different Khajit characters here but we’re going with J’zargo. All This Skyrim NPCs does is hook you up with some cool spell scrolls and deliver quality voice lines. He refers to himself in the third person as well, we like the funny cat man.
(Via George Betts on YouTube)
Serana: Foxy Vampire Woman
No matter what I do, I always end up keeping Serana with me in my playthroughs after I begin the Dawnguard quests. This is far and above the best follower to have in a vampire playthrough. Because Serana is able to make cursed elven arrows. You can shoot these at the sun using Auriel’s Bow to blot it out and boost vampiric abilities. Her and the way she leaves Castle Volkihar is a central plot point in the DLC as well. Once you finish the main quest of Dawnguard, the Dragonborn can even convince Serana to go cure herself of vampirism. Serana is so real. She has to make this list.
Her eyes kind of freak me out but she’s still alright with me.
Belethor: Best Voice Out of Any Skyrim NPC
You can already hear the meaty Breton voice as soon as you read his name. Belethor not only has the most valuable store in Whiterun from the perspective of making money, but he is also a charming bloke. He has the same voice lines as other merchants plus a few custom lines that he doesn’t share. other merchants’ delivery of their lines just doesn’t hold a candle to the inflection Belethor puts on every one of his statements. Belethor is just good vibes, he checks out.
(Via Rocky Price on YouTube)
Grelod the Kind: Mean to Children
This character is funny. She exists just to be killed in order to start the Dark Brotherhood Questline. But the devs justify this by making her intensely rude to orphans. The combination of how much she hates the children she is responsible for and how rude she is to the player makes doing the deed a nearly comical act. The orphanage kids are so savage too, they stand around the body of Grelod and cheer for you, the guy who just committed a first degree. As a child, I would have turned white after having witnessed a real murder involving someone I know, even if the victim were a crone like Grelod. This is a montage of Van Der Plancke serving Grelod the Kind some frontier justice.
Jaree Ra: Treacherous Bandit
Oh my Gosh Man, what a hoodlum this guy is. This goofball hangs out in Solitude looking real shady and asking the player if he wants to make some gold. If one does inquire, he will detail how he wants you to go put out a lighthouse in the nighttime so that a ship carrying valuables will crash. In doing this we meet Deeja, (Jaree Ra’s Skyrim NPC sister) in act one to salvage the ruins of the shipwreck. She betrays us though, and has to walk the plank for this. This short upload from CoolBones05 on YouTube shows what the confrontation with her looks like.
Once she perishes, a note on her person will uncover Jaree Ra as the person who gave the order to kill you. He is hiding away in a cave where the Dragonborn must enter and destroy him and his mercenaries. The whole ordeal seems like lots of trouble for this character to go through, especially when considering how he makes no money through the entire process. Jaree Ra himself is not an inventive take on a criminal in games. He’s a goon Who immediately falls on his sword when face to face with the Dragonborn. In real life, I’d think Jaree Ra is a federal informant who is wearing a wire. He also gets meme treatment online like in this AI cover of God’s Plan By Drake uploaded by GentCena.
Carriage Drivers: Always Down to Handle Getaway
Never any questions or nonsense. Just “Climb in back, and we’ll be off.” This Skyrim NPC is the best friend you can ever have in a new playthrough. After your initial cash injection via selling loot from raiding ruins, The carriage drivers give players the freedom to explore any of the major holds for a small amount of coins. Once unlocked these locations can be fast traveled to. These guys work like the rent is due, there is a different guy in each city always ready to take you to the next place you want to go. They don’t even discriminate if the players has thousands of gold worth of bounties on their head. They will wake up out of a dead sleep to take you across the map at 3:00 AM. For some reason, they all sound the same though. regardless, I tip my hat to these working men.
Jarl Balgruuf: Jarl Ballin’
This Skyrim NPC is an absolute Chad. Yes, he supports the Imperials as a Nord, which is lame. But Jarl Balgruuf still endorses religious freedom in his city despite whatever the Thalmor think. He lives in Dragonsreach and he rocks with the player heavily. His thane draws a sword on you when you first meet him, but he tells her to calm down and then hears you out even though you come unannounced. Balgruuf is such a homie. He gives you Lydia as a housecarl and the option to buy a home in his city just for playing through the main quest. He lets you capture a dragon in his keep and also gets diplomatic in the Greybeards’ meeting to keep the peace during the war so we can do what we have to do. I have not even mentioned the finger thing he does while sitting down yet. Jarl Balgruuf is him and he’s been him.
(Via Amy Chairman on YouTube)
Honorable Mention Skyrim NPCs
Ysolda
Rizzing Ysolda and marrying her is one of the first things I’d usually do after buying the house in Whiterun when I was much younger. If you give this sheila a mammoth tusk she’ll let you sleep at her crib and take things from inside of it. She’s a nice lady and if you marry her she will grant you access to a shop within your home by becoming a merchant. She also doesn’t have any negative voice lines about living in a small house when the player isn’t balling out of control. She understands you’re trying to get to those septims and is supportive. Definitely an honorable mention.
Big ups Ysolda
Kodlak Whitemane
This is one of the more philosophical Skyrim NPCs. His writing is so good, that it prompts the player to consider the hypothetical soul of the avatar they’ve created. He is the harbinger of The Companions, a guild that houses the “blessing” of Hircine, the Daedra of the hunt. This made up entity’s gift to The Companions is his blood which makes men into werewolves. The “great power” that comes from this transformation is exchanged for eternal service to the Daedra in life and in death.
If only he knew how many times I’ve stolen the Daedra heart on his desk.
Kodlak knows his fate is to hunt with Hircine in the Afterlife and not go to Sovngarde (Nord Heaven) if his soul is not pure upon death. He asks the Dragonborn to claim the head of a “Glenmoril Witch” and burn them in a specific tomb. This is done in order to cure Kodlak of lycanthropy so he can die in peace. The player then faces a decision to purify their own soul by burning a second head. Kodlak’s reasoning for not wanting beast blood is sound, maybe enough for the player to want to follow in his footsteps. The Werewolf transformation without mods is pretty underpowered at higher difficulties anyway. So it makes sense why Kodlak felt like it wasn’t worth his well-rested bonus. A super respectable character.
Tolfdir
Tolfdir is so real. His introduction is as a teacher in the College of Winterhold hosting a seminar on ward spells. From there you and him get closer after exploring ruins together and calling on him to explain things from conversations the players has with the Psyjic monk. At the end of the Mage College quest line, he vouches for your promotion to Archmage. Even though it should be him who leads really because Tolfdir is super kind and inquisitive. Unlike Savos Aren who is sniveling and always looking down his nose at others. Tolfdir is a true gentleman and scholar.
This Skyrim NPC is the coolest professor at the College of Winterhold.
Delvin Mallory
Who says there isn’t honor amongst thieves? I immediately subscribed to this character upon our first interaction due to his rough English accent. He gives the player jobs and money for collecting odd trinkets located in random parts of the world. This Skyrim NPC is good people, and so is his brother Glover. Players who are in the Thieves’ Guild when going to Raven Rock can meet up with this town’s blacksmith and reveal him to be the brother of our favorite antique collector, Delvin. Give him a greeting from The Ragged Flagon in Riften, and he’ll give you a set of special blackguard’s armor not in the base game.
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- This is the only Skyrim NPC with a English/ Cockney accent in the game.
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- Glover Mallory is an NPC in Skyrim who gives you a hard fit.
Paarthurnax: Greatest Skyrim NPC
This is the realest homie in the game. A talking dragon that lives at the “Throat of the World”. He is the leader of The Greybeards and has wisdom that you wouldn’t expect to be within a big ol’ lizard. The Blades (Delphine, and Esbern) want him dead for being Alduin’s right hand back in the day. But Paarthurnax is my boy and I believe people change. Dragons… change. This man will teach you how to breathe fire like a dragon and he sounds like the guy who does the Arby’s commercials. This is one Skyrim NPC you just do not kill. Dfd_Free_Speech has a nice clip of Paarthurnax dropping some knowledge on his YouTube channel.
Jessica Major
As a stealth player, I don’t always like having a follower but Seranas story was fun to play
Whenever i see him, I like to talk to Ma’iq until he tells me to go away
Youssef ElKhedry
No Brynjolf? Ay lass, I’ll assume it is because he isn’t an NPC and instead he is the GOAT.