10 Best Bows in Skyrim

Skyrim allows for customization of character builds, for a successful venture you have to select the best bow in Skyrim. Bows are a primary weapon for ranged attacks in Skyrim hence choosing the best alternative gives you an added advantage over your enemies. For this reason, we’re providing you a list of the best bows in Skyrim.

10. Ebony Bow

Ebony bow is considered as one the best bows amateur can explore when they begin playing Skyrim. You can acquire this bow at just level 18 in various locations in Skyrim. This bow can be upgraded at the Grindstone to a much more powerful bow. It has a base damage of 17 and a base value of about 1440. This bow can help improve your gaming experience as you level up in Skyrim.

9. Nightingale Bow

Unlike the Nightingale Sword, this bow does not disappear when upgraded. This bow’s ultimate feature is its enchantment which freezes a target then applies shock damage. It’s a levelled weapon but doesn’t contain any smithing perks. As a result of this it can’t be double improved hence limiting its viability. Another downside of this bow is the draw speed which is much slower compared to other bows of the same level. In addition it has a slow DPS compared to the likes of the Glass Bow of the Stag Prince and Firneal’s End. Lastly, its effectiveness largely depends on which level you acquire this bow thus the higher the level the higher the damage output.

8. Firneal’s End

This is a unique version of the Elven bow. You can only find it after the Dark Brotherhood quest is over. It has the exact damage and weight as a regular Elven bow. The Firneal End bow requires one refined moonstone to be upgraded and a smithing perk so as to achieve double improvement. Its enchantment has the ability to target 20 points frost damage which is much greater than its subordinates. This enchantment works best when you’re facing warrior type enemies in battle. It’s less effective when you’re up against enemies like warrior Vampires or Nords.

7. Glass Bow of the Stag Prince

One of the best defensive Skyrim bows. You have to acquire it from Falas Selvayn found in Ramshackle Trading Post or find a way to pickpocket it. It has the same weight and draw speed, compared to the regular glass bow it has a slightly better base damage output. Also the Glass Bow comes with a benefit of smithing perks. The Glass Bow of the Stag Prince has the best defensive mechanism because of its enchantments. This enchantment becomes stronger overtime provided you kill a certain enemy type, the more you kill the stronger it becomes. Additionally you’ll receive a boost in your health and stamina for every enemy killed. It works best with the Frostfall Mod and Hunting Mod for the best results. It’s a pretty much easier bow to use for both amateurs and expert players.

6. Gauldur Blackbow

The best version of this bow comes at level 36 and above. At that point you’re sure of receiving the highest base damage output as well as the best enchantment. This enchantment is absolutely advantageous when facing Mages or opponents who use Magicka in combat. Due to the fact that the enchantment drains their Magicka power hence making them weak, and this makes them an easy target to kill. Another added advantage to using the Gauldur Blackbow is its higher draw speed compared to other bows of the same level.

5. Dwarven Black Bow of Fate

It has one of the best enchantments in the game. The enchantment gives the player up to 50% chance of boosting Stamina, Health and Magicka. Additionally it benefits from the Dwarven smithing perk which allows for double improvement. It contains a bows eye perk that can paralyze certain opponents. The perk not only paralyses the opponents but can absorb health, stamina and magicka to the player’s advantage. It has a high fire rate shooting at a rate of 0.75 per second and a base damage of about 13 points.

4. Daedric Bow

No other bow apart from the Dragonbone beats the Daedric bow, when it comes to Base damage per shot in the entire game. One of the best craft able bows in Skyrim. It comes with a double improvement ability through Daedric smithing perk. You can enchant it at an arcane enchanter. The downside to this bow is that it has a slow draw speed compared to other bows in the game. Also its DPS falls short relative to others and it’s fairly heavy to carry around. You will only have an upper hand when using the Daedric bow in sneak attacks.

3. DragonBone Bow

The DragonBone Bow stands out as the best bow in Skyrim in terms of having the highest base damage among all other bows. It has a fast draw speed even though it’s a heavy weapon to carry. Another advantage is that it has a fast DPS hence a good weapon to be used in sneak attacks. It has a dragon armor perk which allows for double improvement like majority of other bows listed here. In order to acquire this bow you must be at least at level 100 and have at least 2 dragon bones.

2. Zephyr Bow

You can find this bow in Arkngthamz during the Lost to the Ages quest. It offers huge perks and has a high base damage of about 12. Not to mention its high damage per second rate. Additionally it offers close to 30% faster firing rate compared to the other bows in Skyrim. The only downside to using a Zephyr bow is when making a sneak attack ranged character.

1. Auriel’s Bow

Ultimately the best bow in Skyrim. Firstly, it has one of the fastest draw speeds in the game. Not to mention that it has a high fire rate and base damage than the Zephyr Bow. Secondly, it has one of the best enchantments in Skyrim. This enchantment can deal triple damage to the undead. Additionally this bow comes with its unique arrow types namely; the Sun hallowed and blood cursed arrows which pretty much easy and effective to use. Lastly, this bow can be used to launch sneak attacks because it’s specializes in light armor.