Ancient Falmer Armor (Dawnguard) is the pale, elegant armor of the Snow Elves from the days before they became the twisted Falmer. It is light armor with real late-game protection: the 38-point cuirass equals Glass, and the gauntlets and boots match Glass too. The set has no helmet – just a cuirass, gauntlets and boots – but what’s there is top-quality.
How to get it
This is a unique set tied to the Dawnguard main questline. During Touching the Sky, you and Serana climb to Auriel’s Chapel to confront Arch-Curate Vyrthur, the last Snow Elf priest. He wears the ancient armor, and once he’s defeated you can take it from him. There’s no forge recipe and no merchant sells it, so if you skip looting him, it’s gone.
Since this is one of the final Dawnguard quests, expect to get the set fairly late. The quest also rewards Auriel’s Bow, so it’s a good day for archers.
Is it worth wearing?
Yes – it’s one of the best light sets for its weight. The three pieces give 60 armor for 11 weight, with the cuirass weighing just 7. There are no enchantments, which actually makes it a great base for your own Enchanting work. Tempering uses Refined Moonstone, just like Elven Armor, and the Elven Smithing perk doubles the improvement – combine that with Light Armor perks such as Custom Fit and it gets very sturdy.
The catch is the missing helmet. You’ll need another head piece, which rules out a Matching Set bonus unless you skip the perk. Many players pair it with an enchanted circlet or the Glass helmet. Compared with Dragonscale it is slightly weaker, but it is much lighter and you don’t need to grind dragons for it.
Good to know
- Only one playable set exists; Knight-Paladin Gelebor wears a version of the cuirass that the player can’t equip.
- A matching Ancient Falmer Crown exists in the game files but is normally unobtainable.
- No helmet belongs to the set.
- Value is high – 900 gold for the cuirass – if you ever want to sell it.
Set pieces
| Piece | Slot | Armor | Weight | Value | ID |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ancient Falmer Cuirass | Body | 38 | 7 | 900 | 0200C816 |
| Ancient Falmer Gauntlets | Hands | 11 | 2 | 190 | 0200C817 |
| Ancient Falmer Boots | Feet | 11 | 2 | 190 | 0200C815 |
Crafting and upgrades
This set can’t be forged by the player – you have to find, buy or earn the pieces.
Improve (temper) the pieces at a workbench with Refined Moonstone.
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.