When you start looking for the best magic mods for Skyrim, it’s easy to fall victim to the endless rabbit hole that is the modding community. The Elder Scrolls V has endured the test of time thanks to its dedicated modding community, providing thousands of hours of replayability to the game. However, it can be daunting to look for a mod to spice things up, only to have decision paralysis. There are so many great mods for the fifth entry of the Elder Scrolls franchise that making a decision can be intimidating.
Fortunately, I’ve gathered for you some of the greatest Skyrim magic mods for all of you mages out there who want to replay Skyrim from a different lens.
Colorful Magic
Easily one of the most popular magic mods for Skyrim, Colorful Magic incorporates over 345 spells. A lot of the spells are flashy, destructive, and colorful. You can buy most of the new spellbooks with the vendors in Winterhold or Whiterun.
That’s not all. The mod also introduces new enemies with their magic flavor, adding some much-needed variety to the game. Some of the new magic items and enchantments can only be found in mod-specific quests.
Spell Crafting for Skyrim
Many gamers have dreamed of an RPG like Skyrim, where you can create and customize your own spells. Well, the wait is over since now you can explore the vast open world of Skyrim with the ability to combine over 40 different magic effects thanks to Spell Crafting for Skyrim. This magic mod for Skyrim lets you craft spells with up to five magic effects.
The duration, target type, amount of damage, level of targets are some of the few ways to combine these magic effects, with potentially thousands of different combinations. For instance, you can combine the effects of a Destruction spell with one of a Fury sleep to induce damage on the target while it goes berserk.
Likewise, you could combine Restoration effects with Alteration so that way you can fortify your follower’s armor as well as their one-handed skills. You can go wild! With this much freedom, only you can decide how to be the best mage Skyrim has ever seen. And while ‘balance’ is not on this mod’s vocabulary, it more than makes up for it in fun you’ll be having to craft your own magic system.
Magical College of Winterhold
The Magical College of Winterhold does a fantastic job at inspiring awe and a sense of mystery to the magical arts of Skyrim. There are a few caveats, though. While the College seems like a place where you can unravel the mysteries of magic and learn new spells, the area doesn’t look too different from Skyrim’s. Cobwebs, fur decor, it all looks pretty nord-like. So the creator of this Skyrim magic mod decided to touch it up a bit with excellent results.
Each NPC has its own unique decor. The Nord theme is swapped for a cleaner, more ‘magical’ atmosphere. This new, more ethereal-looking makeover really fits the personality of the place. With this magic mod, the Magical College of Winterhold lives up to its name.
Forgotten Magic Redone
Unlike most of the magic mods for Skyrim, Forgotten Magic Redone doesn’t introduce hundreds of unbalanced and wacky spells. Instead, this mod introduces over 30 spells that are carefully crafted and balanced. The spells are introduced seamlessly into the game, making them feel like they’re part of the vanilla experience.
These spells gain experience the more you use them and allow you to unlock new effects when leveled up. If you’re looking to spice things up with your mage playthrough without breaking the game, then Forgotten Magic Redone is the perfect fit.
Gifts of the Outsider – Dishonored In Skyrim
As an avid fan of Dishonored, it’s exhilarating to find a Skyrim magic mod like this. The creator of Gifts of the Outsider imagines what it would be like if the Outsider, a being from Dishonored beyond physical boundaries, were to exist in the Skyrim universe.
Gifts of the Outsider not only adds all six of the iconic abilities present in Dishonored but also a fully-voiced side quest to unlock them. The creator of this mod went above and beyond to bring the Dishonored universe to Skyrim, and they deserve all the praise for that.
Summermyst – Enchantments of Skyrim
Enchanting is an underrated skill in Skyrim. While it is extremely easy to exploit Enchanting even in the vanilla game, it is often overlooked in online discussions or even the lore.
Many Skyrim players focus on Archery if they’re going for sneakiness, either One-Handed or Two-Handed Weapons plus Heavy armor if they decide to be the Warrior-type character, or in Destruction and Conjuration spells if they’re a mage. Enchanting is one of those amazing skills that can be useful for any player. Besides, like Alchemy, it asks more from the player than simply assigning perks to a tree.
This is why I’m in love with Summermyst – Enchantments of Skyrim, a magic mod that focuses entirely on Enchantments. This Skyrim mod adds over 120 new enchantments that feel like they could’ve been part of the game all along, as well as making some improvements into the vanilla enchantments.
These new enchantments are balanced and have been created with the lore in mind, so you won’t have to worry about breaking immersion when playing with this mod. The new enchantments can be bought or looted from enemies, which means that enemies can also spawn with them and use them against you. Definitely worth a try to those who love using enchantments in Skyrim.
Apocalypse – Magic of Skyrim
Easily one of the most popular, if not the most popular, Skyrim magic mod out there. Apocalypse – Magic of Skyrim has 155 new unique, lore-friendly, and balanced spells with custom visuals that seem to be pulled straight out of the vanilla game. The list of spells is long and varied, with many different combinations that give any mage playthrough a refreshing feel.
With over four million downloads, it’s safe to say that Apocalypse – Magic of Skyrim is loved by many. Throughout the years, this mod has been updated, made better, and adapted to the point where it is also compatible with SkyUI, another very popular mod that changes the main HUD for Skyrim for a cleaner, simpler one.
Arcanum – A New Age of Magic
Arcanum – A New Age of Magic is one of the most ambitious magic mods for Skyrim out there. Not only does it add over 200 spells, with the promise of adding 100 more, but it also allows you to experiment with different schools of magic and different styles, creating a synergy that is simply not seen in Elder Scroll games. This makes your character more adaptable and able to perform combos depending on the situation. Not to mention that the visual effects for the magic are top-notch.
Since the magic system is more complex with this mod, the more powerful spells will require more experience, more preparation, and rituals to pull off successfully. The creator of this mod went the extra mile to make sure that Arcanum had the best of most magic mods while also being unique in its own right.
Mysticism – A Magic Overhaul
Mysticism – A Magic Overhaul fixes a lot of bugs prevalent in vanilla magic. It improves the pacing of the game’s skill progression and adds several new spells available in previous Elder Scrolls titles.
These new 200 spells added feel organic to Skyrim and its lore. Considering it’s based entirely on the Elder Scrolls universe, it makes you wonder why Skyrim decided to stream down the magic system as much as it has compared to older games.
Phenderix Magic Evolved
Like many other Skyrim magic mods, Phenderix Magic Evolved adds a huge variety of spells to the game while also introducing new features. Unlike most mods, however, this mod is gigantic in nature. It introduces a lot of amazing features, such as spell combos, where you can combine magical spells for greater effect.
Not only that, but Phenderix also adds an entirely new location to the world of Skyrim called Manantis. This new location is totally optional for this mod since most spells and weapons are available elsewhere. However, it is an excellent opportunity to explore a new, exciting location with some fun challenges. This mod also has several references to the Harry Potter universe, funnily enough.
Odin – Skyrim Magic Overhaul
Odin – Skyrim Magic Overhaul has the sole purpose of improving the vanilla magic system in Skyrim by adding a few lore-friendly spells to each school of magic, improving the ones already in the game, and fixing bugs, visuals, and balance issues. This mod also fleshes out scrolls and staves, making their spells just as powerful as the regular spells.
This new content is so carefully integrated into the game that you’ll have a hard time figuring out which spells are new if you’ve never gone through the mage route. This Skyrim magic mod is perfect for newcomers who want to enhance their magical vanilla experience.
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