Bears are among the first serious wild threats a new adventurer meets in Skyrim. They are heavy, quick on their feet and perfectly able to run down a traveller who thought a brisk jog would do. Most of the time they are content to sleep or laze about, but stray too close and you will hear a warning roar – usually the only polite thing a bear ever does. Three kinds roam the province: the ordinary bear, the tougher cave bear and the even larger snow bear.
Variants
| Variant | Level | Health | Stamina | Soul | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bear | 12 | 260 | 225 | Lesser | Black fur, yet it drops a brown Bear Pelt. |
| Cave Bear | 16 | 450 | 425 | Common | Brown fur, but its Cave Bear Pelt is black; can also carry Rockjoint. |
| Snow Bear | 20 | 550 | 400 | Common | White fur and pelt; resists frost by 50% and is the strongest of the three. |
The colour mix-up between fur and pelt is a well-known oddity: only the snow bear drops a hide that matches its coat. Cave bears are modelled on the extinct real-world animal of the same name, while snow bears are clearly Skyrim’s answer to the polar bear.
Where to find them
Bears favour hills and mountains, and the slopes around Ivarstead in The Rift are notorious for them. Honeystrand Cave is a classic den where one is often found asleep – a chance to sneak past or open with a sneak attack. They also wander out onto the tundra and are sometimes found resting right in the middle of a road.
- Bear – mountainous areas across Skyrim; the very first one most players meet is a weak, low-level bear inside the keep at Helgen, which you can fight or quietly avoid.
- Cave Bear – in and around caves and at random in rugged terrain all over the province.
- Snow Bear – the frozen north, especially The Pale and Winterhold.
Bears are frequently seen mauling elk or goats. Don’t count on that to cover your approach: the bear and its prey may both decide you are the bigger problem.
Notes
- Disease: every swipe can pass on Bone Break Fever, and cave bears can also give you Rockjoint. A shrine or a cure disease potion fixes both.
- Grin and Bear It: Temba Wide-Arm, who runs the mill in Ivarstead, wants ten bear pelts because bears keep wrecking her trees. Pelts from all three kinds count.
- A New Order: Gunmar will only join the Dawnguard after you help him clear out a pack of cave bears.
- The Companions may send you after a bear in their radiant job “Animal Extermination”.
- A bear is the emblem of Ulfric Stormcloak, his followers and the city of Windhelm.
- Their shapeshifting cousins, werebears, appear in the Dragonborn add-on.
