Plenty of items scatter Skyrim’s landscape, from armor to weapons to potions. Players have hundreds of tools at their disposal to match their playstyle, making every character unique and fun to play.
The very best items are locked behind massive triumphs, which can be obtained by high level crafting or exploring hard dungeons. People who fancy light and heavy armor alike might be interested in the Deathbrand armor set found in the Dragonborn DLC. Completing the quest associated with it provides one of the strongest armor sets in the entire game. Here is how you obtain it, along with some trivia about the Deathbrand armor.
10 How To Get The Deathbrand Armor
This unique set of armor can be found throughout various locations on Solstheim that the player must uncover themselves by using a treasure map. Various enemies will protect the coveted armor, so be ready for a few fights.
The chest armor can be found north of Earth Stone along a coastline. The Boots are uncovered west of Tel Mithryn near the shore. Look for a group of Ash Spawn that are guarding it. Deathbrand Gauntlets can be found south of Bristback Cave near a river—lookout for a ditch inhabited with Mudcrabs. Finally, the helmet is in Haknir’s Shoal. Players can find the Shoal if they head north of the Wind Stone near the top of Solstheim.
9 This Armor Belonged To A Pirate King
Haknir Death-Brand was a legendary pirate king that lived a long time before Skyrim takes place. He ruled the northern seas and was a formidable fighter, mainly thanks to his set of armor the player can obtain.
The pirate king wanted to be bested in combat before giving away his wares, but a worthy adversary never came. As his dying wish, Haknir wanted his crew to place his items throughout Solstheim, thinking only a worthy adventurer would find all of his Deathbrand armor.
8 Deathbrand Armor Is Stalhrim Light Armor
The armor values on this legendary armor set are rather high but do not mistake this set for Daedric or Glass. Despite its high armor rating, this is light armor made of Stalhrim material.
Stalhrim is a rock-like substance that is incredibly resilient, rivaling all but dragonscale armor. The lightweight for the set also helps with encumbrance as well, meaning players can carry more items throughout their adventures to use or sell.
7 Deathbrand Has Set Bonuses
Players can craft Stalhrim armor, but they can not make set bonuses for armor. This feature is what makes the Deathbrand armor set one of the best Skyrim has to offer.
For those who aren’t aware, each Deathbrand armor piece provides an enchantment bonus that most would expect. However, this bonus increases for every Deathbrand armor piece currently equipped. This means that with a full armor set, each scaling enchantment is four times more powerful than normal, making the enchantments on this item rival what players can make.
6 It Can Be Improved
Most players will notice that this armor can not be improved when they first acquire it. This may seem discouraging as you can improve other items, but it is possible to temper the Deathbrand set.
Players will need the Arcane Blacksmith perk in Smithing to improve the armor. While it needs a 60 Smithing rank to obtain, it is worth it. Improving this armor raises its armor value well above any other item in the game, meaning this is one of the best armor sets any light or heavy armored character could use.
5 Hidden Bonus
Besides the fantastic enchantment scaling, the armor also has hidden bonuses most players do not know about. This armor set gets a bonus when wearing a full set.
When players obtain all 4 pieces and wear them simultaneously, they get an additional 100 armor value to their character while it is on. This means that the total armor value is 178.5 untempered, easily being the best light armor in the game. It may take some time to acquire, but the reward is absolutely worth it, beating out even dragonscale armor.
4 Better Than Untempered Daedric Armor
Craziest of all, however, is how this armor bonus contributes to the effectiveness of this armor. Deathbrand beats out most heavy armors!
Deadric armor provides 144 armor when a full set is used, beating out even dragonbone armor. This armor, when wearing a full set, grants 178.5, beating out untempered Daedric gear. That’s right, this ancient pirate king armor beats out heavy armor crafted from the hearts of Oblivion monsters! It is easily the best non-crafted set in the game.
3 Stalhrim Was In Morrowind
Morrowind is a pretty old game, but avid fans might remember that Stalhrim was in that game as well. It was originally called Ice Armor in Morrowind, being a fantastic armor set in that game as well.
It may not have had insane enchantments, but the medium armor introduced in Bloodmoon was a powerful set most players wanted to earn. Just like in Dragonborn, players had to acquire a special pickaxe to mine the special material and craft this armor. The armor looked vastly different, however, looking closer to Imperial armor in Oblivion than the Nordic influenced set in Skyrim.
2 The Only Quest That Requires Lockpicking
While it does not pertain to the armor set itself, “Deathbrand” is the only quest in Skyrim that is built around the player having to lockpick something.
Most quests provide players with ways to bypass locks, usually from keys. Sometimes, NPCs can assist in unlocking something, while other times unlocking something isn’t even required. Well in “Deathbrand,” players have no choice but to pick the locks on each chest holding the coveted set. There are no keys to help in this quest.
1 Benefits From Investment In Light And Heavy Armor Smithing
Players who have invested heavily in Smithing will be happy to know that their time has paid off! This armor set benefits from both light and heavy temper perks.
It sounds strange, but having Ebony Smithing improves the effectiveness of this armor despite it being light armor. Stranger still, the weapons players can earn are not able to be improved unless the player obtains Daedric Smithing, one of the last upgrades players will unlock. If you are willing to grind out the Smithing tree, you can improve this armor massively, potentially hitting the armor cap Skyrim has.
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