It almost seems magical playing any well-made RPG title. Games like The Witcher 3 incorporate dialogue and companions so well it makes the world feel real. Skyrim and The Elder Scrolls series focus more on the world itself and how players can interact with it.
Modders have poured countless weeks and months into making amazing mods for the community to experience, free of charge. The most mindblowing part of the modding community, however, is the sheer talent on display with many of these projects. Some of the mods currently in development are as well made as AAA video games being created today. Here are 10 mods you should be excited about that are coming to Skyrim.
10 Olenveld
Similar to Roscrea, little is known about the mysterious island of Olenveld. An ambitious mod author is attempting to add this obscure location into Skyrim, complete with quests and dungeons.
Olenveld is an island off of the coast of Winterhold, mostly forgotten after being abandoned in the Second Era. Tiber Septim, an incredibly intelligent commander, used this island as a mass graveyard, further cementing its state as abandoned. It will be interesting to see where the mod author takes this setting, but the focus on mystery and exploration plays to The Elder Scroll’s strengths incredibly well.
9 Beyond Skyrim: Atmora
Atmora is a location on Nirm that is rarely talked about. It is an ancient continent across the Sea of Ghosts, filled with the ruins of past civilizations and the birthplace of humanity itself.
Beyond Skyrim: Atmora takes players on an expedition to the mysterious continent, complete with unique quests and locations to uncover. These quests are taking queues from traditional RPGs, including consequences that impact other quests alongside branching quests.
8 Lordbound
Lordbound is a mod focused on expanding the region between Skyrim and High Rock called the Druadach Valley. This mod will feature non-linear quests and multiple storylines.
Three factions are fighting over the Valley: the Imperial legion, Orcs, and the natives to Druadach. The mod promises non-linear quest design and plenty of dungeons to explore. Unlike other open-world mods, Lordbound is much more focused on its interwoven narrative with the three main factions, together making the main quest larger than anything seen thus far.
7 Skyblivion
A dedicated group of modders, separate from the Skywind team, are trying their hand at recreating the entirety of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion into Skyrim’s Creation Engine.
They are bringing everything from that game forward, including Oblivion gates and even spell crafting. Incorporating every area of Cyrodil will be no easy task, but the progress made on this mod so far is simply inspiring.
6 Beyond Skyrim: Roscrea
Players will set sail towards Roscrea in Beyond Skyrim: Roscrea. This archipelago of islands is out in the Sea of Ghosts, making this a treacherous adventure filled with mystery.
What makes Roscrea so interesting is how little is known about it. Few NPCs mention this area in any of the games, rarely getting so much as a sentence in books. The ancient cities and expansive wilderness will be a great mixup from the Nordic tombs and mountains that Skyrim offers. It will be a joy to see this mod released to the public when it’s ready.
5 Apotheosis
When you die in Skyrim, nothing interesting happens. You see your character fall to the ground and a checkpoint is reloaded, allowing you to continue as you normally would.
Death is only the beginning of Apotheosis, though. This mod takes players to a state of limbo between every plane of Oblivion. Unique quests will be housed here to allow players to earn their right as a god. This quest mod has some jaw-dropping visuals that remind players of games like Dark Souls. While it’s shacky on when this mod will release, this is definitely a mod to keep your eye on.
4 Inigo V3
Inigo is the pinnacle of companion mods for any RPG. This witty Khajiit has an entire questline tied to him, but it isn’t finished just yet. That is what Inigo V3 is trying to accomplish.
Instead of having a simple companion mission like Mass Effect does, V3 is going to include an entirely new zone filled with dungeons and places to explore. This expansion on Inigo as a companion is going to be massive on its own, but the inclusion of new areas just to flesh out this companion is something seldom seen in the gaming landscape, not just modding.
3 Odyssey of the Dragonborn
Legacy of the Dragonborn is one of the best mods Skyrim has, capitalizing on the unique loot the game offers while also adding professionally made quests into the mix.
This same mod author is working with other talented modders to take this to the next level. Odyssey of the Dragonborn is equivalent to a second act in Skyrim’s story, expanding on the duties of the Dragonborn. You will head to areas that haven’t been seen since Arena or Daggerfall, obtaining ancient relics and items once though lost. It seems to be Legacy cranked up to 20 in ambition and scope. Hopefully, this mod will be worth the wait.
2 Combat Gameplay Overhaul
Many Skyrim fans might not have heard of DServant’s Combat Gameplay Overhaul mod. This mod makes so many amazing changes to Skyrim’s combat that it will play like a modern aRPG.
Your character will procedurally lean as they are about to get hit, and the animations for weapons has seen massive changes. There are grip changes, first and third-person rolling, mid-air combat support, and so many quality of life changes that it makes Skyrim play closer to a modern RPG like The Witcher 3 than a game made in 2011. This is the most game-changing mod you should keep your eye on.
1 Skywind
The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind is one of the most beloved RPGs ever created, offering a degree of freedom that was seldom seen on consoles and even PCs.
Its age is readily apparent on recent playthroughs, unfortunately. That is why a group of modders have taken it upon themselves to completely recreate Morrowind in Skyrim’s engine. Story missions, environments, dialogue, everything you can imagine is being recreated to fit the more modern RPG standard, all without compromising on the endless depth and charm from the original. If the talented Skywind can pull this off, it might very well be the best RPG released this decade.
NEXT: 10 Things You Never Noticed About The Hidden Skyrim Dev Room
