Enemy Weaknesses, Resistances, and Immunities
Most enemies in The Elder Scrolls: Blades are weak to one weapon type, and one spell type. There are a few exceptions to this rule: Bandits, Mercenaries, Necromancers, Skeevers, Thalmor Agents, Wispmothers and Wisps. This means that if you're struggling with a difficult enemy type, you can often change your weapon to deal a lot more damage, and cast specific spells to counter them. Additionally, enchanting a weapon to deal a specific type of spell damage can trivialize even the toughest of enemies.
Updated:
Enemy weaknesses
| Enemy | Weakness |
|---|---|
| Ancient Dragons | Slashing Weapons, Shock |
| Bandit | Poison |
| Bear | Slashing Weapons, Shock |
| Dragon | Slashing Weapons, Frost |
| Dremora Raiders | Slashing Weapons, Frost |
| Dremora Warlocks | Slashing Weapons, Frost |
| Goblin casters | Bashing Weapons, Frost |
| Goblin Warriors ** | Bashing Weapons |
| Mercenaries | Poison |
| Necromancers | Poison |
| Nether Liches | Slashing Weapons, Fire |
| Outcasts | Cleaving Weapons, Shock |
| Skeevers | Fire |
| Skeletons | Bashing Weapons, Shock |
| Spiders | Cleaving Weapons, Frost |
| Spriggans | Cleaving Weapons, Fire |
| Thalmor Agents | Poison |
| Trolls | Bashing Weapons, Fire |
| Warmasters | Cleaving Weapons, Poison |
| Wights | Cleaving Weapons, Fire |
| Wispmothers and Wisps | Fire |
| Wolves | Slashing Weapons, Shock |
| Enemy | Weaknesses |
Weakness and resistances chart
| Bashing | Slashing | Cleaving | Fire | Frost | Shock | Poison | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ancient Dragons * | Weak | Resist | Weak | Resist | |||
| Bandit | Resist | Resist | Weak | ||||
| Bear | Resist | Weak | Resist | Weak | Resist | ||
| Dragon | Weak | Resist | Resist | Weak | Resist | ||
| Dremora Raiders | Weak | Resist | Resist | Weak | Resist | ||
| Dremora Warlocks | Weak | Resist | Resist | Weak | Resist | ||
| Goblin casters | Weak | Resist | Weak | Resist | |||
| Goblin Warriors ** | Weak | Resist | |||||
| Mercenaries | Resist | Resist | Resist | Weak | |||
| Necromancers | Resist | Resist | Weak | ||||
| Nether Liches | Resist | Weak | Resist | Weak | Resist | Resist | Resist |
| Outcasts | Resist | Weak | Resist | Weak | Resist | ||
| Skeevers | Weak | Resist | Resist | ||||
| Skeletons | Weak | Resist | Resist | Weak | Immune | ||
| Spiders | Resist | Weak | Weak | Resist | Resist | ||
| Spriggans | Resist | Weak | Weak | Resist | Resist | ||
| Thalmor Agents | Resist | Resist | Resist | Weak | |||
| Trolls | Weak | Resist | Weak | Resist | Resist | ||
| Warmasters | Weak | Resist | Resist | Weak | |||
| Wights | Resist | Weak | Weak | Resist | Resist | ||
| Wispmothers and Wisps | Resist | Resist | Resist | Weak | Immune | Resist | |
| Wolves | Resist | Weak | Resist | Resist | Weak | ||
| Bashing | Slashing | Cleaving | Fire | Frost | Shock | Poison |
* Ancient Dragons also resist the type of their breath's damage.
** Goblin warriors have various additional weaknesses and resistances.
Full list of in-game tips
“Ancient Dragons are weak to slashing and shock damage, but resist cleaving and poison damage, as well their breath's damage type.”
“Bandits are weak to poison damage, but resist frost and shock damage.”
“Bears are weak to slashing and shock damage, but resist bashing, frost, and poison damage.”
“Dragons are weak to slashing and frost damage, but resist cleaving, fire, and poison damage.”
“Dremora Raiders are weak to slashing and frost damage, but resist cleaving, fire, and poison damage.”
“Dremora Warlocks are weak to slashing and frost damage, but resist cleaving, fire, and shock damage.”
“Goblin casters are weak to bashing and frost damage, but resist fire and shock damage.”
“All Goblin warriors are weak to bashing damage and resist poison damage, but additional weaknesses and resistances vary.”
“Mercenaries are weak to poison damage, but resist cleaving, fire, and frost damage.”
“Necromancers are weak to poison damage, but resist fire and frost damage.”
“Nether Liches are weak to slashing and fire damage, but resist all other damage types.”
“Outcasts are weak to cleaving and shock damage, but resist bashing, fire, and poison damage.”
“Skeevers are weak to fire damage, but resist shock and poison damage.”
“Skeletons are weak to bashing and shock damage, immune to poison damage, and resist slashing and fire damage.”
“Spiders are weak to cleaving and frost damage, but resist slashing, shock, and poison damage.”
“Spriggans are weak to cleaving and fire damage, but resist bashing, frost, and shock damage.”
“Thalmor Agents are weak to poison damage, but resist slashing, fire, and shock damage.”
“Trolls are weak to bashing and fire damage, but resist slashing, frost, and shock damage.”
“Warmasters are weak to cleaving and poison damage, but resist frost and shock damage.”
“Wights are weak to cleaving and fire damage, but resist bashing, shock and poison damage.”
“Wispmothers and Wisps are weak to fire damage, immune to frost damage, and resist poison and all physical damage.”
“Wolves are weak to slashing and shock damage, but resist bashing, fire, and frost damage.”