Ancient Nord Armor is the bronze-colored, battered heavy armor of long-dead Nord warriors, the kind of gear you see on the draugr haunting Skyrim’s burial mounds. In terms of power it’s firmly early game: a full four-piece set gives 60 armor, the same as Iron Armor, but at slightly less weight.
How to get it
There are two ways. The first is tomb raiding: pieces turn up in some Nordic ruins, and Forelhost near Riften is the place where it’s commonly found. Draugr-heavy crypts such as Ustengrav or Volunruud are worth checking along the way.
The second is the Skyforge in Whiterun. After you finish Glory of the Dead, the final Companions quest, talk to Eorlund Gray-Mane and new options unlock at the Skyforge. The Ancient Nord armor recipes then show up – oddly filed under the Daedric section of the menu – and they need no Smithing perk at all, just steel, iron and leather. They only work at the Skyforge itself, not at ordinary forges. The exact ingredient list appears in the recipe table on this page.
Each piece tempers with an Iron Ingot. Because the set is flagged as Daedric for crafting, the Daedric Smithing perk is the one that doubles its tempering bonus – a fun quirk if you somehow have both.
Is it worth wearing?
Honestly, mostly for looks. The protection matches Iron, but the cuirass is lighter (28 versus Iron’s 30), and the four pieces weigh 41 in total. By the time you’ve finished the Companions questline, you’ll usually have far better options, from Steel Plate upwards; even Wolf Armor from the same smith gives more protection for less weight.
Where it shines is roleplay: a Nord dungeon-delver wearing the armor of their ancestors is a strong look, and the helmet is a fan favourite. If you go that route, temper everything and lean on Juggernaut and Well Fitted.
Good to know
- There is no Ancient Nord shield.
- The crafting recipes only appear at the Skyforge after Glory of the Dead and a chat with Eorlund.
- The gauntlets are misclassified as Daedric, so they add more unarmed damage with Fists of Steel than their armor rating suggests.
Set pieces
| Piece | Slot | Armor | Weight | Value | ID |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ancient Nord Helmet | Head | 15 | 4 | 60 | 00056A9E |
| Ancient Nord Armor | Body | 25 | 28 | 125 | 00018388 |
| Ancient Nord Gauntlets | Hands | 10 | 4 | 25 | 00056B17 |
| Ancient Nord Boots | Feet | 10 | 5 | 25 | 00056A9D |
Full set totals
- Ancient Nord Armor – helmet, cuirass, gauntlets and boots: 60 armor, 41 weight, 235 gold.
Crafting and upgrades
Recipes (Skyforge only) – no perk needed:
- Ancient Nord Helmet: 2 Iron Ingot, 2 Leather, 3 Leather Strips, 3 Steel Ingot
- Ancient Nord Armor: 2 Iron Ingot, 2 Leather, 4 Leather Strips, 5 Steel Ingot
- Ancient Nord Gauntlets: 2 Iron Ingot, 2 Leather, 3 Leather Strips, 3 Steel Ingot
- Ancient Nord Boots: 2 Iron Ingot, 2 Leather, 3 Leather Strips, 4 Steel Ingot
Improve (temper) the pieces at a workbench with Iron Ingot.
Stats from the Skyrim game files (Skyrim.esm and the official add-ons): base armor rating, weight and value before Smithing improvements and perks. The ID is the item’s form ID for the console.