The Best Dragon Shouts In Skyrim [Expert’s Deep Dive]

In the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, the Dragonborn players will have one of the best shouts that they can learn. There are 27 different Dragon shouts for the players to cast in the game. There is no doubt that Dragon shouts are the most useful ability in Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, and that is why it is important to learn some of the best shouts in order to counter enemies in the game. 

All Shouts Picks In Comparison Table

Here is a quick preview of all the Best Shouts in Skyrim:

The Dragonborn will have a special ability that will allow them to speak words of power to cast powerful spells found carved into the walls of deep dungeons and ancient temples. 

In order to use these shouts, the players will have to find 3 Words Of Power. Doing so will allow them to unlock the full potential of the shouts. Since there are so many to choose from, it is important to know the best ones in Skyrim so the players can focus on unlocking them in the game. 

Become Ethereal 

Become Ethereal is one of Skyrim’s most underrated shouts, granting players temporary invincibility. It empowers players to dictate combat scenarios, engage in risky situations, and navigate treacherous terrain without fear of harm. Once all three words are mastered, players can become ghost-like for 13 seconds, absorbing damage effortlessly and traversing high areas without fall damage concerns. This shout acts as a tank, allowing players to withstand damage while health and magicka regenerate, albeit without stamina recovery.

Marked For Death 

Marked For Death stands out as one of Skyrim’s most potent offensive shouts, particularly against formidable foes like Dragons. It applies a debuff, gradually reducing enemy armor and health over 60 seconds. With all three words unlocked, enemies lose 75 armor and 3 health per second, totaling 4500 armor reduction and 180 damage.

The 40-second cooldown allows for strategic use, and the Words of Power are conveniently located in Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary, Forsaken Cave, and Autumnwatch Tower.

Unrelenting Force 

Unrelenting Force, earliest and easiest-to-find shouts, proves invaluable in countering adversaries. With all three words unlocked, it becomes a formidable tool capable of instantly killing weaker enemies, stunning larger foes, and sending enemies flying off cliffs to their demise. The shout’s knockback effect can be strategically used near cliffs for maximum impact.

Words of Power are obtained during the Dragon Rising quest after defeating Mirmulnir or in Bleak Falls Barrow and High Hrothgar.

Slow Time 

Slow Time proves invaluable, granting players the ability to slow down time and gain a significant advantage over foes with high-speed attacks. This shout allows players to escape from tough situations and strategically deal damage while enemies move sluggishly. Though player mobility is affected, they remain faster than their surroundings, enabling them to handle multiple attacks efficiently. Slow Time is particularly potent in the game’s early stages and extends the duration of potions and enchantments.

Words of Power can be found in Labyrinthian, Korvanjund, and Hag’s End.

Summoning Durnehviir 

Summoning Durnehviir from the Dawnguard DLC presents a unique opportunity. Unlike other dragons, Durnehviir is undead and decaying, with the ability to summon creatures to aid in battle. When summoned, players can utilize Durnehviir’s abilities, including Frost Breath and Drain Vitality, expanding combat options beyond the typical Fire Breath attack.

This shout offers substantial assistance in battles and can be summoned indoors, with Words of Power found during the quest Beyond Death.

Bend Will 

Bend Will offers players the ability to control and ride dragons, making it highly sought after. With all three words unlocked, players can ride dragons akin to Miraak. Even with only two words, players can efficiently tame dragons. Using Bend Will in combat is particularly effective against groups of enemies, as it summons a dragon to aid in battle.

Words of Power can be found in Skaal Village, Black Book Epistolary Acumen, and Saering’s Watch.

Battle Fury 

A great shout that will allow the Dragonborn and their allies to deal more damage to enemies. The shout will increase the damage of weapons wielded by your allies.

However, if you want to unlock the true potential of the shout, it is important to have a follower who uses a powerful weapon. Any solo players won’t benefit much from this shout, as it only works on allies. Furthermore, the shout is great to use in case you are summoning zombies to fight alongside you. 

Dragon Aspect 

Dragon Aspect is a powerful shout in Skyrim, enhancing players’ attack power, shout damage, armor rating, and resistance to frost and fire. It also decreases shout recharge time by 20%, enabling more frequent shout usage in battle. The effects last for 5 minutes, providing a significant advantage.

At the second level, players can summon a dragon to aid them. However, the shout can only be used once a day. It’s particularly effective against powerful enemies and in longer battles. Words of Power can be found in the Temple of Miraak, Raven Rock Mine, and Apocrypha.

Soul Tear  

Soul Tear is a powerful shout obtainable from Durnehviir in the Dawnguard DLC. It deals fixed 300 damage, allowing players to control battles by strategically finishing off enemies at half health. Enemies below level 100 killed by the shout become zombies, fighting alongside the player for a minute.

Though damage doesn’t scale, players can revive powerful NPCs like the Ebony Warrior for combat assistance.

Throw Voice 

Throw Voice, often underestimated, is obtained early in the game at Shearpoint. While comical, it’s potent for stealth builds. Players can insult enemies with funny prompts, luring them away and aiding in evasion. Rogue and assassin players benefit most, using insults to distract enemies effectively. The shout has a short cooldown of five seconds, making it versatile for setting up decoys and escaping threats.

Storm Call 

By using the shorter, players will be able to call a thunderstorm that will last a total of 3 minutes in the battle. They will strike everything and anything that lies within 150 feet, dealing massive damage to them. It will strike all enemies nearby with random flashes of lightning and deal about 80 damage on each strike.

The only downside to the shout is that it does not discriminate between friends and foes. So, any bystander or followers standing in the way will also get damaged. So, the players should be very cautious when using the shout and avoid using it in public areas. When the players upgrade it fully to the third level, they will be able to get a cooldown of 600 seconds.

Furthermore, when it is fully upgraded, the place might be able to use the Shout indoors, which limits the power of the shout. We recommend the shout to any players who are traveling solo so they will avoid hurting their followers. The words of power can be obtained in locations like the High Gate Ruins, Skuldafen, And Forelhost. 

Whirl Wind Sprint 

Whirlwind Sprint doesn’t enhance damage or armor but boosts mobility for swift traversal. Obtainable during the main campaign, it allows players to bypass obstacles and jump over gaps without fear of falling. Useful for evading enemies and navigating trapped hallways in dungeons. Can also speed up travel to locations and help in situations where collision detection is faulty.

Dragon Rend 

Dragon Rend is essential for combating Dragons, nullifying their aerial advantage and forcing them to land. This allows direct attacks, including melee, without fear of evasion.

The shout is acquired during the quest “Alduin’s Bane” and doesn’t require all words of power to be effective; additional words only extend the duration Dragons stay grounded. Effective only against Dragon enemies.

Fire Breath 

Everyone knows that a Dragon’s most powerful trait is its capability to breathe fire. As the name suggests, the shout will allow the Dragonborn to do just that. By using the shout, the players will be able to deal fire damage to enemies.

Keep in mind that the fire attacks done by the Dragons are extremely powerful and can be very devastating to enemies. The best part about the fire breath is that it works even on longer ranges, and the enemies will burn for a period of time, therefore taking in more damage.

Not only will the fire breath allow you to set your enemies and your environment on fire, but it will also give them knockback damage. The more words you unlock for the shout, the greater the damage will be caused by the fire breath. When unlocked to the maximum potential with all three words of power, you will be able to deal 95 damage to your enemies.  

Drain vitality 

Drain Vitality, introduced in the Dawnguard DLC, is a powerful skill possessed by legendary Dragons. It drains the player’s health, stamina, and magicka simultaneously, making it challenging to counter. However, players can learn the shout themselves to drain these attributes from enemies. When leveled up, it drains 5 points per second for 30 seconds.

While it doesn’t restore the drained points to the player, it’s effective for damaging enemies, particularly those with high health or reliance on stamina and magicka. It’s most useful in the early stages of the game and less effective against higher-level enemies in the end game.

Disarm 

Disarm is a highly effective shout, allowing players to disarm enemies and force them to drop their weapons. This is particularly useful against high-level enemies reliant on melee attacks. The shout works on enemies up to level 30 and enables players to pick up dropped weapons to use against their foes. However, it doesn’t affect dragons, automatons, or animals. Swift action is crucial to prevent enemies from reclaiming their weapons.

Cyclone 

Cyclone, similar to Unrelenting Force, provides a powerful updraft to send enemies in the direction of their foes. While not as potent as Unrelenting Force, it can be effective, especially early in the game. Enemies caught in the cyclone suffer significant damage and may take fall damage afterward. Useful for pushing enemies off cliffs or high places.

Elemental Fury 

If you are one of the Dragon-borns who love dealing damage to the enemies by using melee weapons, then the elemental fury is a must-have shout for you. It is a very powerful shout that will allow the players to use the spirit of wind to increase the damage their attacks will do.

When the shout is used, the Dragon borns will obtain an increase in their attack speed for about 15 seconds. However, you will not be able to use the shout on any enchanted weapons in the game. The shout can be useless for some and useful for others.

It entirely depends on how magically enhanced your weapons are by the time you obtain the shout. We recommend the shout for players who have a particular weapon that is not enchanted but has higher base stats. 

Aura Whisper

Last but not least, we have the aura whisper shout, which will allow the players to see the location of their enemies around them or in a particular dungeon. No doubt, sometimes finding your enemies can be quite a daunting task in Skyrim.

Therefore, if you are looking for a shout to help you with that, the aura whisper is one of the best shouts to consider in Elder Scrolls V Skyrim. The players will also be able to see through walls. This will allow the players to dodge any incoming attacks from any enemies hiding in the dark corners of the dungeons.

The best part about the aura whisper is it will drag all kinds of enemies, including the undead. Therefore, you will be able to explore without having to worry about any enemy attacking you. 

Call Of Valor 

Call of Valor allows summoning Hakon One Eye to aid in battle for 60 seconds, learned from Tsun during the main story. However, its utility is limited as players already receive NPC assistance in battles, rendering the shout relatively underpowered. Additionally, the 3-minute cooldown restricts its frequent use in combat.

Call Dragon  

By using the shout, the players can summon a dragon called Odahviing to help them in the battle. The dragon will stay in the fight until the end after you have successfully defeated all your enemies. The best part about the summon is that no enemy will be able to kill Odahviing. So it is a great alternative to other summon shouts where any ally you summon is prone to damage.

However, the only reason we ranked it so low is that the players won’t be able to use the shout again for five minutes. Furthermore, after using the shout, you will have to wait quite a bit before the dragon comes and helps you. Call Dragon is one of the shouts which has the longest cooldown rates which makes it not a great option for critical combat situations. 

Dismay 

Dismay is effective against Dragon enemies, stunning them in battle and allowing for uninterrupted attacks. However, it’s less potent against stronger foes. Illusion spells offer better options for stunning higher-level enemies for longer durations. While similar to Dragon Rend and Unrelenting Force, Dismay is less desirable if those shouts are already mastered. It can be useful if other stun or freeze shouts are unavailable.

Frost Breath 

Next up, we have frost breath that will allow the players to deal Frost Damage to their enemies. The shout is capable of freezing the enemies for some time and slowing them down. If you manage to obtain the shout early on in the game, you will be able to use it against powerful enemies.

However, the only reason it is ranked low is that its damage doesn’t scale as the Dragonborn levels up. Therefore, you will not be able to do much damage using this shout against end-game enemies.

Furthermore, the dragonborns will not be able to use it against enemies that are immune to frost damage. These enemies include the frost trolls and ice wolves. The words of power for the child can be found in places like the Skyborn Altar, In Folgunthur, And Bonestrewn Crest. 

Ice Form 

By using the shout, the players will be able to freeze any enemies around them. It is one of the best shouts that you can use to stun enemies during combat. After freezing the enemies, you will be able to attack them without getting any damage yourself.

You can also use the attack if you are in a critical situation and want to escape. However, keep in mind that, like other attacks with frost damage, any enemies that are immune to frost will not be stunned by this shout. Furthermore, you won’t be able to use it against any powerful enemies like mammoths. You won’t be able to do much with this shout against Dragons as well. 

Clear Skies 

In case the weather is not on your side, then you can use the clear skies shout to clear up the weather. The effect will last for 60 seconds.

By using the shout, you will be able to clear all the weather effects, including snow and rain. You will be able to clear the meteor storm as well by using the Clear skies shout. The words of power for the shout can be learned during the quest called the Throat Of The World. 

Kyne’s Peace  

It is definitely one of the worst shouts in Skyrim. By using the shout, the players will be able to calm down any wild animals nearby. Therefore, they won’t be able to attack you whenever the shout is used. 

It is ranked so low in our list of best shouts because it is pretty useless in the mid and late-game as the animals won’t pose much threat to players after they have progressed significantly in the game. You can use the shout during the early game against wild animals. 

Animal Allegiance 

By using Animal Allegiance shout, the players will be able to get help from animals during combat. However, they won’t do much damage to enemies, and that is why this shout is pretty useless.

Conclusion 

With this, we conclude our detailed guide on the best shouts in Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. While you are at it, don’t forget to check out our detailed guide on how to get the Nightingale Armor. Also, check out our guide on how to get Serana as a follower in Skyrim. Don’t forget to check out our detailed guide on the best Skyrim Mods and the best One-Handed Weapons that you can use in the game. Before leaving our page, we recommend checking out our guide on how to cure Vampirism in Skyrim. 

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