The Ancient Nord Bow is the old, battered bow that draugr archers love to pepper you with from the far end of a burial chamber. It deals 8 base damage and weighs 12, so it is not exactly a masterpiece of the bowyer’s art.
Its main appeal is that it is everywhere in Nordic ruins, so it’s a free early option for archers who don’t mind a bit of ancient grime. It fits the Ancient Nord Armor look if you want to dress like the dead.
Stats
| Type | Bow |
|---|---|
| Skill | Archery |
| Material | Ancient Nord |
| Damage | 8 |
| Weight | 12 |
| Value | 45 gold |
| Speed | 0.88 |
| Stagger | 0 |
| Critical damage | 4 |
| Add-on | Base game |
| Item ID | 000302CA |
Where to find
- Carried by most draugr and skeletons, usually inside ancient Nordic tombs and burial grounds.
- It can’t be crafted, so looting the undead is the way to get one.
Crafting and upgrading
This weapon cannot be crafted at a forge – you have to find, loot or buy it.
Improving at a grindstone: 1 × 
Steel Ingot. The Arcane Blacksmith perk doubles the improvement.
Compared with other bows
Base stats of all regular (unenchanted) bows in Skyrim, weakest first:
| Weapon | Damage | Weight | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Long Bow | 6 | 5 | 30 |
| Hunting Bow | 7 | 7 | 50 |
| Ancient Nord Bow | 8 | 12 | 45 |
| Imperial Bow | 9 | 8 | 90 |
| Orcish Bow | 10 | 9 | 150 |
| Nord Hero Bow | 11 | 7 | 200 |
| Dwarven Bow | 12 | 10 | 270 |
| Falmer Bow | 12 | 15 | 135 |
| Forsworn Bow | 12 | 11 | 145 |
| Elven Bow | 13 | 12 | 470 |
| Nordic Bow | 13 | 11 | 580 |
| Supple Ancient Nord Bow | 14 | 18 | 235 |
| Falmer Supple Bow | 15 | 20 | 410 |
| Glass Bow | 15 | 14 | 820 |
| Ebony Bow | 17 | 16 | 1440 |
| Stalhrim Bow | 17 | 15 | 1800 |
| Daedric Bow | 19 | 18 | 2500 |
| Dragonbone Bow | 20 | 20 | 2725 |
Tips and notes
- Improve it with a steel ingot at a grindstone; Steel Smithing doubles the improvement.
- After Glory of the Dead, you can turn it into a Nord Hero Bow at the Skyforge.
- Unique relatives include the Drainspell Bow and the Gauldur Blackbow. The Supple Ancient Nord Bow is a stronger non-enchanted version.
Stats from the Skyrim LE 1.9 master files (Skyrim.esm, record DraugrBow). Values are base values before perks, smithing improvements and enchantments.