Malacath is the Daedric Prince of the spurned and ostracized, keeper of the Sworn Oath and the Bloody Curse, and above all the chief god of the Orcs. In Skyrim he has a shrine in Fallowstone Cave and altars in the Orc strongholds. He has very little patience for weakness, which a certain Orc chief learns the hard way.
In Skyrim
His quest is The Cursed Tribe, set at Largashbur. The stronghold is cursed because its chief, Yamarz, let giants overrun Malacath’s shrine. When the wise-woman Atub performs a ritual, Malacath answers in person and tells Yamarz exactly how pathetic he is, then demands the giant leader’s club as an offering.
Yamarz tries to scheme his way out of the job, which goes about as well as you would expect. Malacath later sums him up as a fool who always dodged responsibility, and is pleased to have two problems solved at once. Malacath is delighted that both the giants and Yamarz are dealt with, names Gularzob the new chief, and has you place Shagrol’s hammer on the shrine. As the only one who proved worthy, you get to keep it. The hammer, Volendrung, appears on our Daedric artifacts page.
Lore
Malacath is also called Malak, Orkey, Mauloch and the Blue God, and the Dunmer count him among the House of Troubles. The common story says he was once the Aedra Trinimac, swallowed by Boethiah during the Chimer exodus and expelled as Malacath, while his followers became the Orcs. The Orcs tell it differently: Trinimac was betrayed by Boethiah and Mephala, cast into the Ashpit, and reborn through his own disfigurement. His teachings put heavy weight on conflict, and he seems to enjoy watching mortals fight. Volendrung went to the Hero of Daggerfall, lost its enchantments for a time in Morrowind, and regained them when it returned to him. You can read more in Orsinium and the Orcs.
Good to know
- His summoning date is the 8th of Frost Fall, and he accepts troll fat as an offering.
- The Orc leader Gortwog gro-Nagorm once called him a false god and revived worship of Trinimac, which most Orcs considered heresy.
- In the Fourth Era he greeted Prince Attrebus in his realm disguised as an elf named Silhansa.
Details checked against community wiki articles and the Skyrim game files, written in our own words.
