For the characters who can bring assistance to the Dragonborn in their adventures and aren't part of a faction or DLC characters. For other Skyrim characters, click here.
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Housecarls
In General
"Long life to you, Thane."
Housecarls are warriors assigned by the Jarl of a hold to protect the Dragonborn and their property. In order to earn a housecarl, you must become a Thane (in other words, an acknowledged hero of the hold), which generally involves directly assisting the Jarl in question, helping the citizenry of the hold, and, in the case of the major holds (Whiterun, Eastmarch, the Rift, the Reach, and Haafingar), purchasing property. With Hearthfire installed, you can also gain housecarls from Falkreath, Hjaalmarch, and the Pale's Jarls after purchasing land (Winterhold alone does not have purchasable property).
- Action-Hero Babysitter: With the addition of the Hearthfire DLC, the housecarls become these. They will do everything in their power to protect the Dragonborn's children from bandits and other random attacks.
- Artificial Brilliance: If a fight is beginning to look a little one-sided, they'll snatch up a staff they found lying on the ground and use it to even the odds.
- Badass Normal: They don't need fancy magic or an ancient language to keep up with the Dovahkiin. But they won't hesitate to use a staff if you give one to them, or it is lying around for them to use.
- Battle Butler: They carry your goods if you request it, and, when not following and protecting you, they stay at home to guard your house, your children and anything you own. Starting with Hearthfire, they share this position with your Stewards.
- Blonde, Brunette, Redhead: Jordis, Lydia, and Iona respectively.
- Bodyguard Crush: If you wear an Amulet of Mara while speaking to them...
- Bodyguarding a Badass: That badass being you, of course.
- Catchphrase:"Honor to you, my Thane."
"Long life to you, Thane."
"I am sworn to carry your burdens."
"As you will, my Thane. I will protect you with my life." - Did You Just Flip Off Cthulhu?: They have special trash talk reserved for dragons!"You'll die this day, dragon!"
- The Dragon: To an evil Dragonborn. They won't hesitate to murder a defenseless old lady if you give them the order.
- Hypercompetent Sidekick: They can generally scout traps and be aware of an enemy's presence before you are. They can absorb more punishment than you (technically, since they're difficult to kill) and at early levels, they might be stronger than you. Also, unlike you, they and all other followers have no cap on either armor or magic defense, allowing them to block nearly all damage, potentially, rather than capping at 80% for armor for the Dovahkiin or 85% magic and poison resist.
- Insult Friendly Fire: As almost all of them are Nords, they are prone to using "Skyrim for the Nords!" as well as various racial insults as a battlecry, even if they happen to serve a non-Nord.
- The Lancer: They are "your sword and your shield".
- No-Sell: They have no cap for their resistances, so they can potentially resist 100% of magic, poison and physical strikes.
- Only Six Faces: The female Housecarls seem to have the exact same faces, to the point where Lydia and Jordis the Sword-Maiden almost look like palette-swaps of one another. Iona at least has a different hairstyle.
- Static Role, Exchangeable Character: They all have the exact same role in the game, the same stats, almost the same equipment, and, before Dragonborn added some unique dialogue for Lydia, the same lines as well.
- Trash Talk: All of them use it when facing down enemies.
- Undying Loyalty: They will put up with almost anything you do and agree to almost any order. In fact, it's easier to list the things they won't let you get away with:
- Attacking them repeatedly.
- Becoming a Stage 4 vampire (if Dawnguard isn't installed) or werewolf (if they are not a follower).
- ...And making them sleep in someone else's bed."Not for you. Not for anyone."
- Particularly notable is that Housecarls will fight by your side even if you're fighting against the very Jarls who assigned them to you. Lydia and Jordis the Sword-Maiden will stay right by your side while invading Whiterun or Solitude, with Lydia actively participating in directly fighting the very Jarl who assigned her to you, personally.
For the housecarls of Falkreath, Hjaalmarch, and the Pale, see Skyrim: DLC.
Lydia
"I am sworn to carry your burdens...."
Voiced by: Colleen Delaney (English)note
Housecarl to the Dragonborn upon being named Thane of Whiterun. Most likely the first Housecarl you will obtain, and the one players remember the most.
- Action Girl: She's likely the first female follower you can recruit, unless you're doing a non-dragon run, and is a proficient warrior.
- Ascended Meme: Lydia originally had only one sarcastic line. This was upped in Dragonborn.
- Breakout Character: She's pretty much the poster girl for the game, as the first housecarl met in the main questline and likely the player's first companion (Sven or Faendal in Riverwood can be missed easily), and she has a bit of sarcasm and badassery to make her memorable. The Hearthfire and Dragonborn DLC further expand her personality in subtle ways with new dialogue and changes to her behavior, something done for no other Housecarl.
- Cuteness Proximity: A very strange example. When fighting the diminutive but murderous Rieklings:Lydia: I don't know whether to kill it or pet it.
- Deadpan Snarker: Aside from the classic line above, Lydia gets a tremendous boost to her snarkiness in the Dragonborn DLC, especially if you start using the Black Books.
- Disc-One Nuke: She's one of the first followers you can recruit, and her invincibility combined with her high stats and strong default equipment make her possibly more powerful than you when you recruit her. She'll continue to be just as powerful late into the game, since she levels to 50 like all housecarls and due to that, her One-handed, Block and Heavy Armor stats are maxed out at 100 and her Archery is sitting pretty at 98.
- First Girl Wins: If married. She's your first houscarl and likely to be your first follower.
- No Hero to His Valet: No matter how badass, famous or influential the Dragonborn is, Lydia will keep snarking the same or otherwise harmlessly disrespect them.
- Sarcastic Devotee: She is sworn to carry your burdens. Doesn't mean she's happy about it, though. With Hearthfire, she eventually drops the snark the more you travel with her. She has a lot more sarcastic dialogue in Dragonborn.
Calder
Voiced by: Michael Gough (English)note
Housecarl to the Dragonborn after being named Thane of Eastmarch in the capital of Windhelm.
- Hot Blooded Sideburns: He sports an impressive pair of muttonchops.
Iona
Voiced by: Claudia Christian (English)note
Housecarl to the Dragonborn after being named Thane of The Rift in the capital of Riften and helping to clear out a den of skooma dealers.
- Action Girl: Like all female companions, she's a very powerful fighter.
Argis the Bulwark
Voiced by: Popeye Vogelsang (English)note
Housecarl to the Dragonborn after being named Thane of The Reach in the capital of Markarth after taking care of several Forsworn camps.
- Continuity Nod: His name and the house he protects, Vlindrel Hall, are both nods to Knights of the Nine. Fort Bulwark was where you found the Shield of the Crusader, and Berich Vlindrel was one of the original knights.
- Facial Markings: The only housecarl with war paint.
- Hunk: Among the most traditionally handsome male followers and potential husbands.
- Luckily, My Shield Will Protect Me: As his sobriquet implies, he prefers a shield and one-handed weapon combination, and utilizes blocking and shield bashing in combat.
- Manly Facial Hair: His goatee adds to his masculine appearance.
- The Quiet One: Argis uses the Male Brute voice set, so his lines are short and to the point.
Jordis the Sword-Maiden
Voiced by: Corri English (English)note
Housecarl to the Dragonborn after being named Thane of Haafingar in the capital of Solitude and helping to save Solitude from a crisis.
- Action Girl: Her name says it all.
- Awesome, but Impractical: As stated before, all housecarls are equal in stats, which is unfortunate considering how much cost and effort one must undertake to get Jordis.
- Badass Adorable: She has the default "young lady" voice, and tends to express glee when brought along into exotic and impressive locales.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Her voice and dialogue give the impression that she's the friendliest out of the housecarls. Doesn't make her any less brutal in a fight, nor does it keep her from yelling threats in battle.
- Precision F-Strike: She might yell, "Die, damn you!" in the middle of a fight.
- Department of Redundancy Department: Name version. "Jordis" means "Sword Maiden" in Norwegian, which makes her name Sword Maiden the Sword-Maiden.
- The Fettered: She takes her oath to serve you very seriously. Unlike Lydia, she says "I am sworn to carry your burdens" without a hint of sarcasm.
- Nice Girl: Nothing short of the nicest character in the entire Elder Scrolls franchise, and that is just the vanilla version. Mods replacing cut dialogue make Jordis three times as vocal and helpful, and she is such a sweetheart and so kind and friendly that she is a popular voice option for fan made content.
- Single Woman Seeks Good Man: Well, man or woman. Cut dialogue has her latch onto the Dragonborn like they were already married, and if you go through with it, Jordis is this up to eleven.
- They Call Him "Sword": Her sobriquet.
- What the Hell, Hero?: If you don't fight back against enemies attacking you, Jordis will call you out on it and demand you defend yourself.
Followers from Eastmarch
Adelaisa Vendicci
Voiced by: Claudia Christian (English)note
An Imperial commander who is a troubleshooter for the East Empire Company.
- Bow and Sword in Accord: She will use a bow against distant targets and her sword against close ones.
- Colonel Badass: She's implied to be of high rank in the Imperial Army or at least the East Empire Company, since Orthus says she's one of the higher-ups.
- Gameplay and Story Segregation: She's supposed to be a warrior, but her top skills are Alchemy, Smithing and Enchanting. The Unofficial Patch changes her to a one-handed warrior type.
- Old Soldier: She's noticeably silver-haired, and her face is quite lined.
- Surrounded by Idiots: She's very pleased that the Dovahkiin is competent and getting things done.Adelaisa: Glad Orthus was able to find someone competent to help out.
Annekke Crag-Jumper
Voiced by: Colleen Delaney (English)note
A miner in Darkwater Crossing who prefers adventuring to getting stuck in the mine, unlike her husband.
- Action Mom: She has a daughter.
- Be Careful What You Wish For: While the ore vein she discovered was prosperous enough to establish the settlement of Darkwater Crossing and its associated mine, this unfortunately led to Small Town Boredom when she realized she was now tied down in one place.
- Follower-In-Law: The Dragonborn can marry her daughter.
- Founder of the Settlement: She was the one who discovered the mine, leading to the establishment of Darkwater Crossing.
- Older Than They Look: She has a full-grown daughter, which would make her in her late thirties or early forties at least. She certainly doesn't look it; in fact, when standing next to her daughter, they look like they could be sisters.
- Parenting The Wife: Her husband, Verner, desperately wants her to act her age. It doesn't work.
- Retired Badass: Until/unless she returns to adventuring alongside the Dragonborn.
- Small Town Boredom: Her reason for following the Dragonborn.
- Wet Blanket Wife: Inverted. She wants to do some adventuring, to the annoyance of her husband.
Derkeethus
Voiced by: Tim Blaney (English)note
The only Argonian follower, a miner at Darkwater Crossing who was apparently a prisoner of the Falmer.
- Artificial Stupidity: Due to a glitch, he can become inexplicably trapped in the cave where you find him, unable to follow you out of the exit.
- Catchphrase: "Ours is to follow, friend."
- Dual Wielding: Will use his pickaxe as well as another weapon you give him.
- Idiot Ball: How he got imprisoned by the Falmer. Upon freeing him, the first thing he does is to kick himself for about how utterly stupid it was to swim into an unexplored cave when he didn't know what was in there first.
- I Owe You My Life: Derkeethus follows you because you saved his life and will stand by your side no matter what. "To Oblivion and back, as they say."
- Lizard Folk: As an Argonian. He's also the only Argonian follower in the game.
- Made of Iron: Due to the incredibly buggy nature of his recruitment quest, his essential status never gets removed, making it impossible for enemies to kill him. This means that, while his stats are average at best, he's actually one of the most useful followers in the game.
- Recruitment by Rescue: You recruit this guy by rescuing him from a Falmer den.
- Rescue Romance: If you choose to marry him.
- Runaway Groom: Because of a glitch, when attempting to marry him, he has a tendency to sprint out of the chapel in the middle of the ceremony.
- This Is Gonna Suck: Entering a vast room with no enemies to be seen? He sees this a mile away.
- Weapon Specialization: The bow, which he will use as long as he has arrows, even if you give him ridiculously powerful melee weapons. The solution, of course, is to give him ridiculously powerful bows instead. In melee combat, he almost always uses his pickaxe and will simply resort to Dual Wielding if given another melee weapon.
Followers from Falkreath Hold
Followers who are part of the Dark Brotherhood can be found in Skyrim: Factions. Barbas
Voiced by: Stephen Russell (English)note
A talking dog found outside Falkreath.
- Animalistic Abomination: Only looks like a Big Friendly Dog.
- Arbitrary Skepticism: Calls the player out on this, if they make the You Can Talk? observation.Barbas: Yeah, Skyrim is full of giant, flying lizards and two-legged cat-men, and you're surprised by me? Yeah, I just talked. And am continuing to do so.
- Artificial Stupidity: He has a habit of pushing players off cliffs. He is also set to stay very close to you.
- Big Friendly Dog: He's really this terrifying Daedric creature, and yet he still barks at butterflies.
- Deadpan Snarker: Much like his master, in fact, but not at all malicious.
- Made of Iron: He seems to be completely invincible. Justified in that he's an aspect of sorts to Clavicus Vile, who - as a Daedric Prince - can't be killed. With one exception: taking up Clavicus Vile on his offer to give Barbas the axe. Literally.
- Morality Pet: Literally, to Clavicus Vile. He says this in a bit of unused dialogue:Barbas: I tend to be the voice of reason and he finds that... irksome.
- Talking Animal: The Dragonborn can bring up this fact, whereupon Barbas will comment on their Arbitrary Skepticism.
- Taken for Granite: Reuniting him with Clavicus causes him to reclaim his post as the other half of the Daedric Prince's statue.
- Unexplained Accent: Barbas speaks with what sounds like a Brooklyn accent. Though a good number of characters speak with (nondescript) American accents, such a specific accent can come off as... out of place.
Followers from Haafingar
Ahtar
Voiced by: Popeye Vogelsang (English)note
The headsman and head jailer of Solitude. He can be made a follower if you grant him a request of eliminating a prisoner he accidentally let escape.
- Dark Is Not Evil: Despite his duties, he comes off as a fairly decent person who treats his job as what it is: a job.
- Establishing Character Moment: You'll likely notice him immediately upon entering Solitude, as the headsman in charge of executing Roggvir.
- Off with His Head!: He's a headsman, so his job is to behead prisoners. He's pretty blasé about it, however. Ironically, he doesn't have the Devastating Blow perk that would allow him to lop off heads in combat.
- Scary Black Man: Aside from his job, he's notably much larger and more muscular than other Redguards as well as having a rather deep voice.
Belrand
Voiced by: Michael Gough (English)note
A Nord mercenary found in Solitude's inn.
- Adventurer Archaeologist: He shows excitement when visiting ancient Nordic tombs.
- Deflector Shields: He often uses the Ward spells.
- An Ice Person: Knows Ice Spike, with the Unoffical Patch.
- Magic Knight: Prides himself on being a spellsword. Without the Unofficial Patch, however, he knows no destruction spells."Versatility is the key to survival. Hire me, and you'll well-prepared to face threats both magical and mundane."
- Nice Guy: Stands out among the followers as this. He doesn't have a Dark and Troubled Past, a dark secret, or a hidden agenda; he's just a mercenary who loves life and will happily adventure across Skyrim at your side. Even his obligatory inventory-carrying joke is more lighthearted than passive-aggressive.
- Stone Wall: He can be even tougher than housecarls because he buffs and heals himself.
Borgakh the Steel Heart
Voiced by: Diane Salinger (English)note
An Orc warrior, and the daughter of the chieftain of Mor Khazgur stronghold. Her eventual fate would have been to be married off to another stronghold, which the Dragonborn has a chance to prevent - by either passing a Speechcraft check to talk her into running away, or by paying off her bride-price.
- Action Girl: As a female Orc, this is a given.
- Amazonian Beauty: She's a tall, muscular woman who is quite pretty.
- Arranged Marriage: She joins up with you to escape one. She seems pretty unwilling, in any case.Bagrak: Soon you will be of age.
Borgakh: I would sooner join the Legion than be married to some weak chief! - Badass Normal: Not a mage or anyone specially trained, just a Orc warrior.
- Blood Knight: One of her random comments is, "My blood's calm. I prefer it boiling."
- The Chief's Daughter: She has most of the traits, but wants to escape a arranged marriage.
- Don't You Dare Pity Me!: A minor example, but if you use Healing Hands on her to heal her wounds, she'll complain that an Orc lets wounds heal naturally.
- Hot Guy, Ugly Wife: Possibly (she can be married); but for an Orc, she's fairly attractive.
- Luckily, My Shield Will Protect Me: An odd case in that her stats are geared for a sword-and-shield one-handed approach, but she seems to prefer using bows at long range in battle instead unless you make sure she doesn't have any bows or arrows.
- Marry for Love: She does this, happily, if you ask her to marry you. She comments that marriage feels right this time and compliments your cleverness and strength.
- Proud Warrior Race Guy: Once again, as a female Orc. When married, she'll frequently tell you "Conquer your enemies, my love."
- Rebellious Princess: As the daughter of the chief, she doesn't want to be "the third wife of some lowly chieftain" and will gladly follow you should you persuade her to do so.
- Statuesque Stunner: Since she's a orc, and a attractive one at that, she's taller than any race but Altmer.
- Stealth Expert: She's got surprisingly good sneak ability, tied for 10th best in the game for a follower.
- Stone Wall: She's skilled in heavy armor and her default armor levels up to Orcish in quality, giving her good defense, and you can give her even better armor.
- Technicolor Eyes: She has yellow eyes with cross-shaped pupils and smaller dark specks in the irises.
- Tiny Guy, Huge Girl: If you're playing as anyone but a Nord, Altmer, or another Orc, she'll be noticeably taller than you.
- Tribal Facepaint: Has blood-red tears painted on her face (as if her eyes are welling up and running over).
- Video Game Caring Potential: She's going to be forced into a Arranged Marriage against her will, and you can either pay off her bride-price or persuade her to opt out of it. You can even have her marry you or join the Blades.
Followers from Hjaalmarch
Benor
Voiced by: Popeye Vogelsang (English)note
A Nord warrior hanging around the Guardhouse in Morthal. He will follow you upon beating him in a brawl.
- Above the Influence: It's possible for Alva to hit on him, and Benor says he'll agree, if Alva leaves that "kinslayer" Hroggar. Alva says Hroggar doesn't have to know, but that causes Benor to flatly turn her down, refusing to "cuckold" Hroggar even if Benor thinks Hroggar's a murderer.
- Defeat Means Friendship: How you recruit him. It also allows to marry him.
- Dirty Coward: Benor's AI personality traits list him as unaggressive in combat, of average confidence, and being unwilling yo help anyone. This means in combat he's more likely to flee or cower in fear of a decently strong foe than help the player fight them as a follower.
- Gameplay and Story Segregation: During the "Laid to Rest" quest, he's part of the Torches and Pitchforks party who goes to Morvath's lair, and then is too afraid to actually enter the vampire's den. At this point, he's normally scripted to go back to Morthal with the other NPCs, but if he's already available as a follower, asking him to team up with you results in Benor entering the cave anyway, with no other consequence.
- Knight in Sour Armor: He's not pleased with the Jarl of Hjaalmarch, whom he feels isn't doing enough to protect the citizens of Morthal. He feels that Morthal used to be a quiet place, back when the world made sense. So what does he do about it? He joins up with Morthal's guards to help them out.
- Not Distracted by the Sexy: Well, not distracted by Alva's sexy, anyway, as described in the Above the Influence trope. The player can marry him, though.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Sort of. He's the blue oni to his good friend Gorm's red. You can learn this in a minor conversation, but Gorm wants to do something immediately about his and Benor's mutual dissatisfaction with Morthal's Jarl, while Benor would prefer to wait until the time is right, when they're sure.
Followers from The Pale
Erandur (formerly Casimir)
Voiced by: Keith Szarabajka (English)note
An aged Dunmer priest, Erandur joins you following the "Waking Nightmare" quest, which can be started in Dawnstar.
- The Atoner: Used to be a Daedric Lord's priest, but abandoned his order and became a priest of Mara instead.
- Badass Preacher: Being a priest of Mara and being a powerful mage are not mutually exclusive.
- The Bard: He used to attend the Bard's College in Solitude, but was kicked out for worshiping Vaermina.
- Battle Cry: "Feel the benevolence of Mara!"
- Catchphrase: "Blessings of Mara upon you."
- Developer's Foresight: Erandur is one of the few followers with different remarks for basically every location in Skyrim, from major cities to bandit camps. The most notable is his remark that he's always wanted to make a pilgrimage to the Temple of Mara, should you take him there.
- Good Parents: He claims that he had good parents and has no bad memories of them; he thinks he'll visit their resting place sometime.
- Heel–Faith Turn: He used to worship a Daedric Prince, but turned good and started worshiping Mara instead.
- Kill It with Fire: One of his favorite spells is a ramped-up fireball.
- Kung-Fu Wizard: Erandur can take almost as much of a beating as Lydia or your other companions.
- Magic Knight: He often uses a mace and a fire spell. He's also a mean hand with Destruction staves.
- Master of None: Sadly, he becomes this at higher levels, despite being a Crutch Character at lower levels; it's because he uses the Priest class, which is not only a civilian class, but also has terrible synergy with his abilities. He will end up with an above-average HP pool because of his high level cap, but because he has no armor skills, he can't serve well as a tank, and he also gets a huge stamina pool, but because he has no weapon skills, he isn't a good offensive fighter either. He can cast some spells, but his Magicka pool is a very tiny 50 points and never increases, making him sub-par as a mage as well.
- Nice Guy: One of the few followers who are fine with hauling your stuff around.
- Older Than They Look: He states that he grew up in The Pale and has lived there for most of his life, which is longer than the Dovahkiin may think.
- Ooh, Me Accent's Slipping: Erandur's battle dialogue and some of his unique lines said when he isn't being spoken to directly are in the normal, nasal Dark Elf voice, as opposed to his usual deep voice. Keith Szarabajka wasn't able to go the full Joshua Graham route for this preacher.
- Sadistic Choice: It's either have him as follower, or kill him and gain possession of a nice magic staff. Of course, it's not really sadistic if you're a good guy, since doing the bidding of the Lady of Nightmares is not something you'd be inclined to do even if it didn't involve killing a decent man. However, if you're attempting to get the "Oblivion Walker" achievement, letting him live means giving up the chance to acquire one of the fifteen required artifacts. (Your best bet in that case is to leave his quest for the last of the fifteen, save the game before the choice, and then wait until the achievement unlocks before reloading.)
- Stuff Blowing Up: Tends to favour using Destruction magic in battle, despite his stats revealing that he's far more skilled at Conjuration. One explanation for this might be that his Heel–Faith Turn from a Daedra worshiper is why he doesn't use it anymore, since that school is heavily associated with the Daedra and Oblivion.
- That Man Is Dead: "I no longer use that name [Casimir]. I'm Erandur, priest of Mara."
- Unexplained Accent: He has quite a fantastic one compared to other followers, though it's mainly because no other follower in the game shares his voice type.
Followers from The Reach
Cosnach
Voiced by: William Salyers (English)note
An alcoholic Breton that works as a porter for Lisbet at Arnleif & Sons.
- The Alcoholic: He drinks constantly because "There's no shipments coming in, so I do nothing. Just drink." If you use Healing Hands on him, he says "Hey, my hangover's gone!".
- Best Him To Bed Him: If you beat him up, he'll become available for marriage.
- BFS: The Unofficial Skyrim Patch changes him to a two-handed Barbarian warrior to suit his armor better, so giving him a greatsword, battleaxe, or warhammer would be best.
- Bow and Sword in Accord: Uses his mace for close enemies, and a bow for more distant enemies.
Eola
Voiced by: Susan Eisenberg (English)note
A follower of the Daedric Prince Namira.
- Affably Evil: She's rather polite for a bloodthirsty cannibal.
- Beware the Silly Ones: Don't let yourself be fool by her first impression; she's pretty much a psychotic cannibal.
- Cloud Cuckoolander: She seems a bit like this when you first meet her, especially as she goes on about how she knows you know what it's like to be a cannibal... even if you haven't actually eaten any human flesh up to this point in the game. Even though the Dragonborn has a Multiple-Choice Past already, it's likely this is just a seduction tactic; tellingly, if you flat out refuse her right off the bat, she'll just say "To Oblivion with you, then!" and attack you.
- Dark Action Girl: Female, psychotic, and very good at kicking ass.
- Handicapped Badass: Being blind in one eye doesn't hamper her any.
- I'm a Humanitarian: She's part of a cult of cannibals who worship Namira.
- Magic Knight: Efficient in One-Handed combat and Destruction magic.
- Necromancer: Eola is the only follower in the base game capable of reanimating fallen enemies.
- Nightmare Fetishist: She is part of a cannibal cult worshiping the Daedric Prince of Revulsion. Can hardly fit the trope better.
- Psycho Sidekick: Granted, the game's universe is a huge case of Grey-and-Gray Morality, but Eola's right up there with Cicero when it comes to psychotic followers.
Ghorbash the Iron Hand
Voiced by: Noah Nelson (English)note
An Orc warrior who can be found at the Orc stronghold of Dushnihk Yal, slightly southeast of Markarth. He's the brother of the stronghold's chief and can become a follower if you pass a Speech check.
- Nobody Calls Me "Chicken"!: One of the dialogue options for recruiting him essentially boils down to this. Ghorbash takes it as a challenge.
- Retired Badass: Previously served in the Imperial Legion before returning to the stronghold.
- Small Town Boredom: Of a sort. Although his brother acted against usual orcish sensibilities by welcoming him back into the stronghold after Ghorbash left to serve in the Legion, he still has a strong urge to wander. The speech check required to make him a follower calls him out on this.
Vorstag
Voiced by: Christian Svensson (English)note
A Nord mercenary found in the Silver-Blood Inn.
- Adventurer Archaeologist: He's fascinated by the Dwemer and will comment about them frequently when in Dwemer ruins.
- BFS: Like Cosnach, Unofficial Skyrim Patch changes him to a two-handed Barbarian warrior to suit his armor better, so giving him a greatsword, battleaxe, or warhammer would be best.
- Bow and Sword in Accord: Like most non-mage followers, he will use a bow against far away enemies.
- Speech Impediment: Has a noticeable lisp when he talks.
Followers from The Rift
Followers who are part of the Thieves' Guild can be found in Skyrim: Factions. Illia
Voiced by: Colleen Delaney (English)note
An Imperial witch. She enlists the Dragonborn to help stop her mother from becoming a Hagraven.
- Action Girl: A pretty good witch.
- The Atoner: It's implied that she did many morally questionable things before her Heel Realization.
- Heel Realization: Upon realizing that she simply isn't comfortable with crossing the
Moral Event Horizon. - Hot Witch: She's really fairly attractive, unlike some of her ilk.
- An Ice Person: Her primary combat spells are ice based.
- Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: How most of her kills will end up, due to her reliance on Icy Spear for offense.
- It Only Works Once: Due to a bug, you may only get the follower recruitment dialogue with her once. It can even be squandered if you already have a follower when you ask.
- Not What It Looks Like: What she says after the Dragonborn witnesses her killing another witch.
- Self-Made Orphan: Although it's in self-defense.
- Token Heroic Orc: Most witches you come across are wicked Daedric worshipers that attack on sight. Illia is about the only exception.
- Video Game Caring Potential: After you help her end her quest, she doesn't really know what to do anymore and becomes a follower for you as a way to move on, staying in the tower where she killed her mother when you dismiss her. On the bright side, she is available to become a Steward in Hearthfire, so it is possible to recruit her, thus giving her a new home, a new life, and a new purpose. Unfortunately, she is not essential, and can possibly be Killed Offscreen by something attacking your home while you're away.
Marcurio
Voiced by: Jon Curry (English)note
An Imperial magician usually found in the inn in Riften who can be hired.
- Adventure Archaeologist: He claims to be highly knowledgeable on the topic of Nordic ruins and will consider taking a few items from Dwemer ruins to take back to Cyrodiil.
- Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy: "If these ruins frighten you, take comfort in the knowledge that I am here."
- Badass Bookworm: Some of his dialogue suggests he is well-educated.
- Deadpan Snarker: He's one of the more talkative followers who often make comments on some places even when not talked to, and complains that you're using him as a pack mule when asked to carry things.
- Disc-One Nuke: He's actually one of the more offensively powerful followers, and will join you as long as you have 500 gold when you get to Riften.
- Shock and Awe: Uses Lightning Bolts as his main spells.
- Trigger-Happy: Since he has Chain Lightning, he can (and will, repeatedly) electrocute you in combat.
- Tsundere: If you marry him and use him as a follower, then you'll get both the standard marriage dialogue and his snarky remarks.
Mjoll the Lioness
Voiced by: Martina Lotun (English)note
A former adventurer, she retired after a brush with death in the depths of a Dwemer ruin. She's taken it upon herself to try and clean up Riften, but hasn't had much luck. If you can return her enchanted blade Grimsever, she will take up adventuring again at your side.
- Berserk Button:
- She considers the Thieves' Guild even lower than the Dark Brotherhood, since she believes the latter have some degree of standards. As a follower, however, she can be taken to the Ragged Flagon with no ill effect and can even be present during your initiation as a Nightingale or being named leader of the Thieves' Guild.
- This can possibly be explained by the fact that she really hates bandits as well, since bandits burned down her village and killed her brother when she was a child.
Mjoll: I hope there's more bandits around... Their numbers could use a little more thinning. - BFS: She's better at two-handed than one-handed, so giving her a greatsword rather than a regular one is better for her. The Unofficial Patch makes Grimsever a two-handed glass greatsword.
- Blood Knight: She loves to fight, as repeatedly stated in her dialogue.
- Boisterous Bruiser: A rare female example.Mjoll: Ha! Think you can take me?
- Deadpan Snarker: When talking to Maven Black-Briar, she's much more rude and sarcastic, naturally.Mjoll: Maven. How's the criminal underworld treating you this fine day?
- Deceased Parents Are the Best: She'll fondly remember some things about her parents when you adventure with her, always speaking of them in the past tense or mentioning that she misses them.
- Developer's Foresight: She comments on it if you bring her to Mzinchaleft, where she was severely injured.Mjoll: Mzinchaleft. I swore I'd never return here.
- Doomed Hometown: When in a bandit hideout, she will mention that her village was destroyed by bandits when she was young.
- Foil: To Maven Black-Briar. Both are Nord women who live in Riften; while Maven is a corrupt businesswoman who backs the Thieves' Guild and treats the player with hostility even after they help her more than once, Mjoll is a warrior who opposes all corruption, despises the Thieves' Guild, and is never rude to the player (even if they're in the guild). Ironically, though, Mjoll's morality is set to 0 (Any Crime) whereas Maven's morality is set to 3 (No Crime), so Mjoll will commit any crime the player asks her to whereas if modded as a follower, Maven would refuse.
- Friendly Enemy: It's never mentioned in-universe, and it's most likely just a case of Gameplay and Story Segregation, but you can befriend her even if you are a Thieves' Guild member, or even the Guildmaster. That's right, you can be friends with her even though, from her perspective, you are pretty much part of the Big Bad Ensemble (the other part being Maven Black-Briar).
- Just Friends: Apparently, herself and Aerin. Aerin will go anywhere Mjoll goes - including your house, should you marry her. He will even follow her to Sky Haven Temple, should you get her to join the Blades! This can be bad, as he'll follow her on their dragon hunting expeditions.
- Made of Iron: Because of her quest (and her
Dummied Out role against the Thieves' Guild), Mjoll is permanently tagged as "essential" and thus literally cannot be killed by any enemy in the game, or even friendly fire. This alone makes her one of the most useful companions in the game, as you don't have to worry about her getting killed in combat, though she'll still turn on you if you attack her enough.
- Motor Mouth: One of the more talkative followers, to the point that she will talk during excursions into danger-filled caves and tombs and will talk over other NPCs during scripted story moments.
- Named Weapons: Her sword, Grimsever.
- Older Than They Look: You'd never know it from just looking at her, but some of her comments imply that she's somewhat past her prime.
- Permanently Missable Content: Before patch 1.9, if you were level 81 before talking to her the first time, you could never recruit her, since she'd only give you the quest to retrieve Grimsever after you leveled up once after meeting her.
- The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: Despite her claims to be an opponent of the Thieves' Guild and the Black-Briars, she's never seen doing anything other than lamenting their presence in Riften. Even if you tell her that you're interested in joining the Thieves' Guild, she simply expresses mild disappointment at you. Dialogue between her and Aerin suggest that she does have run-ins with them offscreen, but he tries to convince her into limiting her actions to avoid having Maven send her to jail "or worse." She also does help the guards take down thieves whenever one shows up. Of course she is a follower, and thus this can be subverted if the player takes her along to do things that undermine the Black-Briars.
- Platonic Life-Partners: With Aerin, to whom she remains very close even if she marries the Dragonborn.
- Retired Badass: Though you can inspire her to make a comeback.
- Tribal Face Paint: Wears blue face paint on half of her face.
- Unknown Rival: To the Thieves' Guild. Despite being the only resident of Riften who openly opposes them, none of them seem that concerned with her as they never even talk about her. That said, there is a "Danger" shadowmark on her door.
- We Help the Helpless: Her reason for staying in Riften.
- Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: She dislikes Dwemer ruins, after almost losing her life in Mzinchaleft, and will wearily remind you of this if you take her into one, remarking that she had hoped to never see one again. If you take her to Mzinchaleft in particular, she will mention that she had never intended to return there.
- Woman Of The City: Sees herself as Riften's protector, and vehemently opposes both the Thieves' Guild and Black-Briar dynasty (or at least she claims to do so). As noted above, it's been indicated that there was supposed to have been a questline in which she worked more actively against them, but it was cut.
Followers from Whiterun Hold
Followers who are part of the Companions can be found in Skyrim: Factions. Erik the Slayer
Voiced by: Jason Marsden (English)note
A young man from Rorikstead who dreams of being an adventurer.
- Ascended Fanboy: A meta example. Erik the Slayer is based off of Erik West, who was known as "Immok the Slayer" on the forums before he died of cancer in May 2011.
- Farm Boy: Subverted in that he's not resistant to adventure - it's his biggest dream, and he doesn't miss farming at all.
- Jumped at the Call: Takes the first opportunity that he can to just leave and start adventuring.
- Missing Mom: She died when he was a little child.
- Nice Guy: To the point where he's actually enthusiastic about helping you carry stuff. Really, he's almost too nice to become a feared mercenary.
- Mythology Gag: One of his ancestors may have been a guard in Cyrodiil, since he'll say in combat, "This is the part where you fall down and bleed to death!"
- Pet the Dog: The Dragonborn can offer to pay for his armor, so his father won't go into debt.
- Red Baron: "The Slayer". Erik explains that his father wanted him to take a sobriquet that fits him, but he chose this one to make himself seem more impressive to potential enemies. After all, no one's gonna quake in fear of "Erik Greenthumb" or "Erik Hoe-Pusher".
- Small Town Boredom: Why he wants to be an adventurer.
- Strong Family Resemblance: He looks a fair bit like his father, the owner of the village inn. He inherited his mother's eye and hair color, presumably, as those don't match. And hopefully his mother's hair retention, as Mralki is bald on top.
- Video Game Cruelty Potential: Completing his quest makes him not only available as a follower, but also as a husband. He's also one of the characters who can become a steward in Hearthfire. There is absolutely nothing keeping the player from enacting any of the two latter options as soon as they become possible, then never, ever, having him as a follower while traveling.
Faendal
Voiced by: Jon Curry (English)note
A Bosmer from Riverwood. He is in a Love Triangle, competing with Sven for Camilla Valerius' attentions. He will offer to follow you if you help him out (either by telling Camilla that Sven had written a fake note to pretend it was from Faendal, or by giving Camilla the fake note he wrote to pretend it was from Sven).
- Badass Normal: He can only level up to level 30 and he doesn't know any magic, but he's so good with his bow that it often doesn't matter.
- Deadpan Snarker: "Riverwood's agreeable enough, I suppose. For a Nord village."
- Disc-One Nuke: Getting him as a follower is not only possible within five minutes of leaving Helgen, but he's also a trainer, and as a companion you can get Archery lessons from him and then take back the gold from his inventory for free lessons. Enjoy having your pumped-up bow skills deal a One-Hit Kill to early enemies.
- Love Triangle: With Sven over Camilla. He's no better and no worse than Sven; both of them hatch a completely identical plot to win over Camilla's affections: write a forged note insulting Camilla and make it look like the other guy wrote it, so Camilla will turn on him and fall for the forger instead. Faendal's letter is the more blunt, being essentially a Stylistic Suck poem on Stay in the Kitchen, while Sven more or less depicts Faendal as a stereotypical Thalmor elf.
- Never Hurt an Innocent: His morality is set to 3 (will not commit any crimes), which means he'll turn on the Dragonborn if they instigate a fight with a civilian.
- Nice Guy: All Love Triangle issues aside, he's perfectly happy to help you out, he's extremely loyal to the point where he never objects if you turn him into a pack mule, and he's got none of the Fantastic Racism most of his species does.
- Would Not Shoot a Civilian: Ask him to kill a civilian and he will say, "Not for you, not for anyone." Kill one yourself without due cause (basically in cold blood) and he'll join the guards in killing you. If one of them attacks you first, however, he'll side with you since they started it.
Golldir
Voiced by: Michael Gough (English)note
A Nord warrior who meets the Dragonborn at Hillgrund's Tomb, where his ancestors are being experimented on by a necromancer. After the Dragonborn helps him, he offers his services as a follower.
- Abusive Dad: His dad locked him in Hillgrund's tomb for three days. It's an ambiguous example, however, because the note from his aunt says that it was actually his brother who did it. So it's hard to say what actually happened in that specific instance (to muddy the waters further, the Unofficial Skyrim Patch changes the note to say it was his father), but Dad sounds like a nasty piece of work regardless, to judge by some of his other comments.note
- Disappeared Dad: But that may be for the best. His dad was a drunken bastard.
- Fantastic Racism: Defied; when describing what the Necromancer (a Dark Elf) is doing to his ancestors, he talks about "filthy Dark Elf Necromancy". If the Dragonborn is a Dark Elf, however, he will immediately add that there was "no offense intended", as he assumed they weren't in that kind of practice.
- Luckily, My Shield Will Protect Me: He prefers a axe and shield fighting stance and has the "Deflect Arrows" perk and receives little damage from them.
- Nice Guy: Wants to clear a family's crypt inhabited by a necromancer that's an enemy of his family.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Calls the Dragonborn out if they steal treasure from his family's ancestral tomb. He reluctantly agrees that they can keep it as a reward for helping him out, but he's clearly not happy about it. note
Jenassa
Voiced by: Lani Minella (English)note
A Dunmer mercenary found in Whiterun's Drunken Huntsman. Will follow for 500 gold.
- Affably Evil: She makes no bones about being a killer, but she also likens it to an art and generally remains polite and professional about it.
- Aristocrats Are Evil: If she's taken into a mine, she'll bemoan the fact that the very people who dig up precious minerals are so poor, implying she's of upper class status.
- Blood Knight: Jenassa enjoys fighting and killing a lot, but only if paid and in the service of a worthy employer.
- Combat Aestheticist: She gushes over the aesthetics of blood spray, and describes combat as "making great art".
- Dual Wielding: One of the few followers who prefer dual wielding over using a shield.
- In Love with Your Carnage: She can be married after being hired.
- Leeroy Jenkins: Regards you as being this if you go into a Draugr crypt with her.Jenassa: Few would dare to trespass in these ruins. What you lack in wisdom, you make up for in courage.
- Professional Killer: She works as a bodyguard for hire, but also thinks like an assassin in her methodology.
- Stealth Expert: She has one of the better sneak skills for followers in the game, and will frequently advocate sneak kills or tricking enemies while in fort ruins.
- Übermensch: Has strongly held views which are uniquely hers, and is very outspoken about them.
Sven
Voiced by: Jason Marsden (English)note
A Nord bard living in Riverwood who, like Faendal, is a potential companion if you side with him in his love triangle.
- Berserk Button: If you complete the love triangle quest in Faendal's favor, he becomes very frosty towards you.
- Joke Character: He's a cowardly twit who lives with his mom, he's one of the weakest fighters, and he has the shortest span before he can stop leveling up, only going to 20, the lowest except for Roggi Knot-Beard, who also only levels to 20. It's one of the reasons that he often gets snubbed and people travel with Faendal. The one real upside he has is that he's willing to commit crimes, and even then that's very situational when the Dragonborn could just do it themself.
- Love Triangle: Both Sven and Faendal are competing for Camilla's affections. Sven is no better and no worse than Faendal; both of them hatch a completely identical plot to win over Camilla's affections: write a forged note insulting Camilla and make it look like the other guy wrote it, so Camilla will turn on him and fall for the forger instead. Faendal's letter is the more blunt, being essentially a Stylistic Suck poem on Stay in the Kitchen, while Sven more or less caricaturizes Faendal as a stereotypical Thalmor elf.
- Not Now, Kiddo: At first, he believes his mother is crazy for thinking a dragon attacked Helgen. He takes it back (though not to her face) if you inform him there really was a dragon.
- Overshadowed by Awesome: Faendal usually gets chosen over Sven, since Faendal is both a trainer and levels to 30 vs. Sven's 20.
- Quirky Bard: Sven's job is to stand around in an inn and keep people entertained with music. Are you really surprised in any way that he's terrible in combat? Well, you can always just sacrifice him to Boethiah.
- Real Men Wear Pink: Sort of. Sven is a bard and plays in the Sleeping Giant Inn. That's the "pink" of this trope. He's also a lumberjack, as dialogue from Hod reveals that he works at the town's sawmill. That's the "real men" of this trope.
Uthgerd The Unbroken
Voiced by: Claudia Christian (English)note
A Nord warrior found in the inn in Whiterun. She was a candidate to become a Companion, but was rejected because she accidentally killed her sparring partner.
- Action Girl: Implied by her love of fighting, and her attempt to join the Companions.
- Best Her to Bed Her: It's possible to marry Uthgerd, but only if you defeat her in a fistfight first.
- Blood Knight: Fighting is one of the things that makes her happy.
- Brawn Hilda: A female Nord warrior with rough facial features, whose starting gear includes a bulky armor, and who can only be hired after being defeated in a fist fight. She's probably not supposed to actually be unattractive in-universe, since she's one of the potential spouses.
- Defeat Means Friendship: To get her to follow you, you need to defeat her in a brawl.
- Desperately Looking for a Purpose in Life: To an extent, she's this; the only thing that seems to make her at all happy is fighting. She's a popular choice for recruitment into the Blades, because it means she can spend the rest of her life doing exactly that.
- Does Not Know Her Own Strength: To the point of beating someone to death in a practice fight.
- Drowning My Sorrows: Assuming you don't recruit her for some adventures, she spends 24 hours a day drinking quietly in a corner of the Bannered Mare in Whiterun. She will never even visit the house she owns in the city.
- The Lad-ette: Due to buggy AI, she just stays in the inn drinking all day.
- Proud Warrior Race Guy: In true Nord fashion.
- Stone Wall: She has steel plate armor at the start.
- Underestimating Badassery: She claims that the Companions purposefully sent a "young whelp" to fight her for practice because they underestimated her for being a woman. She ended up killing him by accident. Of course, this sort of sexism is never shown, other than maybe the Empire having no female troops, and none in the Companions, with 2 of the 4 members and 1 of the 4 of the Circle being women, plus the Dovahkiin if they're a woman.
Followers from Winterhold
Followers who are part of the College of Winterhold can be found in Skyrim: Factions. Aranea Ienith
Voiced by: Lani Minella (English)note
The Dunmer Priestess at the Shrine of Azura, and the last faithful follower who there remains. She joins the Dragonborn after they complete Azura's quest.
- Dark Is Not Evil: Azura is a Daedric Prince, but she's one of the nicer ones. Aranea is completely loyal to her and is quite nice herself.
- Desperately Looking for a Purpose in Life: After Azura informs her she won't receive any more visions, she's left lost, not knowing what to do, and decides to join you as a result. Unlike some of the other followers in a similar situation, like Illia, she's not an option for Steward in Hearthfire; however, she can be recruited into the Blades.
- Gameplay and Story Segregation: If you decide to turn Azura's Star into the Black Star, Aranea will threaten to kill you any time you return to the shrine, but will never actually attack.
- High Priestess: Of Azura.
- Hot Witch: She's cute for a Dunmer, who usually have pretty harsh features.
- Really 700 Years Old: It's implied she was one of the original pilgrims that built the Shrine, over two centuries ago. She likewise mentions that Azura granted her a vision foretelling the Dragonborn's arrival at the Shrine, long before they were even born.
- Undying Loyalty: She is the only follower of Azura who remained at the statue after waiting a couple hundred years. Even after Azura stops giving her visions and she decides to join you, she will still stay at the Shrine in her free time to pursue her duties as a High Priestess.
Wandering followers
Kharjo
Voiced by: André Sogliuzzo (English)note
A Khajiit caravan guard for the Khajiit Traders traveling between the Pale and Rift. His Moon Amulet, his only reminder of home, is stolen by a quick-fingered bandit. Return it to gain his friendship and favor. One of only two Khajiit followers.
- Made of Iron: Starting in steel plate, he makes a great tank.
- Memento MacGuffin: His Moon Amulet was a gift from his mother when he was very young.
- My Species Doth Protest Too Much: Unlike most Khajiit (including J'Zargo, the only other Khajiit follower, and even his own employers, who can become fences for the Thieves' Guild late in the questline), he refuses to do anything illegal if you ask him, stating that "even Khajiit have their limits".
- Nice Guy: One of the few Khajiit who is genuinely friendly to the Dragonborn. Even when asking you to retrieve his amulet, he warns you to be careful, noting that as much as he misses it, he doesn't feel it's more valuable than your life.
- The Nose Knows: Played with. "If anyone tries to sneak up on us, I will smell them coming. Or... I might not. We will see."
- Off the Wagon: Kharjo advises you that drinking and gambling do not mix - whatever he did when he combined the two resulted in him landing in prison. Akhari got him out and he is repaying the debt by guarding the caravan.
