Another problem with the two Dark Brotherhood followers is they are so generic that their inventories are set to reset periodically. So any gear you give them will get deleted. I lost Chillrend that way once.
more sweet beth 'quality' programing there wich saddly where tolerated far to long ...after their comments on critics about that starfield crap i more or lees decided any talent or customer respecting people among them is either so under the thumb of the 'leaders' they have no input or left years ago
Accents are so inconsistent in skyrim. But I can just headcannon it as one losing the accent as time went by interacting with the rest of the world while the other kept his. Or just headcannon them all as speaking Nordic or tamrielic.
Both male Khajiit followers say that. And in fact any other male Khajiit that you make into a follower through console commands will say the same. Female Khajiit made into followers don't have any unique dialogue because sadly there are no female Khajiit followers by default in the game.
@@dasik84in addition to the detect life and detected spells there's actually a shout that allows you to detect the aura of all moving things so it adds in the dwemer machines as well. So it's very useful for not being caught off guard by a drauger playing dead or one of the centurion suddenly standing up and attacking you.
I've had two Irish Wolfhounds as a kid, the breed that Meeko is modeled after. I loved them very much, the last one passed in 2008. So adopting a kid and giving Meeko to them is mandatory for me in every playthrough.
There's more to people preferring Lydia than her just being many players' first follower. All followers are influenced by the hidden stas of Aggression, Confidence, Assistance. Lydia's Aggression stat is set to _Aggressive_ so she attacks a lot more in combat, her Confidence is set to _Foolhardy_ so she will fight until knocked down, and her Assistance is set to _Help Friends & Allies_ meaning she'll quickly rush close to your side if you're in trouble. Taking these hidden stats into account, Lydia is _by far_ one of the best followers available to the player.
and when ya enchant all her gear with health regen and leech on the weapon, she never goes down.. At least when i did that to her gear she didnt.. Such a tank.. 90% of my playthroughs she is my follower.. only in the last 2 have i used Jenassa.. Even tho she duel wields, depending on what 1h weapons you give her, she will only use one.. which confused the hell out of me.. lol
@@Joffie69 Health absorption on hit is indeed terrific for longevity, but health regen on armor piece is one of many effects that- for some reason- Bethesda decided just wouldn't work for followers. For followers, the increased health regen from enchantments is only active _outside_ of combat. During combat, it essentially just turns off. Stamina and magicka regen effects function fine, however. And amusingly, followers don't have their resistances capped so a follower _can_ achieve 100% magic immunity through their enchantments which _does_ remain active in combat. By endgame, I once had Lydia fully decked out in hand-crafted ebony equipment, enchanted for stamina regen and full magic immunity. Pair that with a health absorption ebony sword, she could go toe-to-toe with the Ebony Warrior himself and put a _damn_ good fight lol
For me it's not even that, though all that is a solid reason. It's because of everyone in the story, she's the one who would logically be there for all of it. She's a simple person, a good person who takes her new position in life seriously yet isn't afraid to backtalk a living dragon to their face from minute one. Everyone else treats you like a living legend, Lydia treats you as her boss and a friend.
@@aidankeogh9994 That was super informative I was just about to start a warrior playthrough and now I know who's going to be my tank and what enchantments to deck her out with. Thanks!
My best friend and I grew up gaming together. While we never got into Skyrim for some reason, it was something we both would’ve enjoyed. The year before I tried Skyrim for myself for the first time, he had passed to cancer. After I had learned of Erik the Slayer, he’s been my main companion ever since
Cant top Lydia. There I was, 12 years old, and the story is just getting juicy. I’m hailed a hero of the biggest city I’ve seen so far, by the most fatherly character I’ve yet met, and then he basically says “and I’m assigning you a new partner for your journey. Lydia! Get over here! You two will be spending a lot of time together.” It was like starting a new TV show, where the show’s protagonist gets a brand new partner in the pilot, and everyone knows it’s the start of a beautiful friendship.
Yeah, that feeling I remember - yet, Lydia made it cool down fast by getting in the Way a lot and not properly Tanking/Kiting. Then, I found out it is not her - it is all of them beeing Braindead. That Day Lydia and others became just Mules to me - only Faendal somewhat has my respect for beeing at least a good Steward and synegizing with the Huscarl well when it comes to fighting.
For me, J'zargo is my favorite follower. That boy is confident and has the skills to back it right up. His quest is also pretty hilarious. I love the idea that he can develop his own spells and they're more destructive than he intended.
One interesting note about Annekke: You can marry her daughter, who is also one of the more attractive NPCs. So, that's something, you can hang out with your mother in law. Erandur is my favorite follower, though. I love an atonement story. Glad to see he made it up to A.
Sylgja is probably the best wife in the game for good-natured heroes. Hard-working, sweet, gives you a house, and makes a miner's outfit look pretty good. Too bad you can't give her better clothes.
I did that in my 2nd playthrough. Think about how awkward that is tho 😂. Like yea your hanging with your mother in law but her life is also in your hands. It would be super awkward if she died.
Teldryn Sero is my forever follower. He’s an absolute unit in battle especially if you give him upgraded gear. And I love his snarky personality so much, he’s always got something to say. He’s been by my side in Skyrim for over a decade now and I ain’t ever gonna betray him by choosing another follower though I do like seeing what the other good ones are.
I got Barbas (if you never go to the axe--he can't die and I have the ability of tuning him out of my mind) and Teldryn (whom I just found and was like, "this is my guy,") as soon as I found out about solstheim. Oh, the aggro my character did. Leveling and getting the coolest weapons/completing the coolest quests became so much easier and faster with that team. Plus, it was the way I could explore solstheim early on and that place is where my heart is.
Mine too. Unfortunately caps at Lv 60 I believe. I go to Solstheim on a new playthrough just to bring him though and by 60 tbf I've had enough of hearing him talk about his chitin armor and Blacklight lol
I fell asleep to this video and then dreamt the video was playing on a radio and we couldn't get it to turn off lol We even unplugged the radio but could still hear this video playing and we were wondering how the radio could still be playing with no power.
Fun thing to do when something strange happens in real life think to yourself I must be dreaming then when something weird happens like this radio in your dream you can lucid dream
Totally happened. That's pretty imaginative to just make up for a comment. I posted this after waking up cause I thought it was silly. And it makes sense we still heard the "radio" because obviously the video was still playing while I was sleeping @@Voltar_99
I will NOT take this shade against Vorstag. He's legitimately one of my favourite followers. He may be a bit bland on the surface, but that's part of what makes him so great in my eyes. He really feels like a typical mercenary - which I find to be oddly rare in Skyrim. And, once you start travelling with him, you will notice he has some neat quirks to his character. For instance, he'll display in interest in ancient technology, such as that which went into the building of the ancient Nord ruins and, perhaps more interestingly, that of the Dwemer. His fascination with the Dwemer, paired with his proficiency with heavy armour (despite what he starts out with) along with his skill with archery and one handed make him a good fit for Dwemeri kit, too. Another thing I love about him is a line he says when exploring caves, where he says something along the lines of "Gods willing, we'll find some treasure in _this_ cave!". I'll end this off with a story from when I was travelling with Vorstag. I had come across a witch fort, with *many* witches patrolling the outside, and practically right off the bat I had been completely immobilised by them, leaving Vorstag to fight the horde of witches on his own. When I had managed defrost from the spell that froze me in place (mods), I saw that Vorstag was covered in blood, in the middle of a pile of the witches' corpses, having soloed them all. I generally find him to be a fun follower to have around, and I think you folks here who have bothered to read this far should give him a chance.
I've had this type of situation but with Derkeethus. I swear he's the best archer in the game. He hits like 95% of his shots and has saved me from some pretty fucking scary situations in my warrior playthroughs. His aim on moving targets is impeccable at times, too
Right there with you, pal, Vorstag is my favourite follower. During one of my playthroughs with him, Vorstag managed to nail his commentary for pretty much every situation and his strengths complimented my build really well. It even motivated me to do Dwemer stuff which I typically avoid doing. Really added to my experience of the game.
i am on my first ever play through of skyrim ever. so far i’ve had three followers. lydia died within about half an hour of me getting her when she died randomly in a side quest. i didnt even get a chance trade items. then i hired jenassa. i loved jenassa. i felt a genuine soft spot for her. i was determined to keep her around forever, but unfortunately i think she must have died in my civil war final battle, not that i ever found her body. i’m currently travelling with kharjo. i wasn’t sure i would be able to find another follower that i would be as attached to after jenassa, but kharjo was so polite and it feels like i’m filling the hole jenassa left. i’m really fond of him.
How can a follower die ? Mine never die unless I hit them when there crouching over by accident or a friendly fire with a spell. Then I just reload my saved game. I cant wait to get annaversary edition and play survival, Can the enmies alone kill them on survival ?@@Draezeth
Not if they're an essential follower. Essential NPCs can only be killed by the player continuing to hurt them when they drop to one knee to try to heal.
@@savagex466-qt1iothe only way they can die is if they take damage from the player if they’re not essential. If they are essential you can’t kill them at all.
I have a fond memory with Marcurio, from the first time I discovered Black Reach. We entered the cave and Marcurio couldn't help but shout "By the Nine!", which was an obvious blasphemy considering the then current Thalmor ban of Talos. But that original and spontaneous line felt so vivid and lore anchored 😊
I always spare Cicero, regardless of his actions, as they were only done with the brotherhood’s health in mind, if it continued the way Astrid wanted it to, they’d lose their way
Fantastic list. I am glad that J'zargo is properly recognized, especially being the only follower without a level cap in the vanilla game. He has also heard that you found the Staff of Magnus. Perhaps J'zargo can borrow it?
If she leaves your party, Illia actually just goes back to the coven tower you got her at. if i remember she just sits or stands somewhere near the right wall if you go back.
Dude I went crazy over this recently. Remembered I sent her home during the main questline at some point and she never reappeared back at the tower, apparently she WALKS home and can get attacked on the the way back to the tower 🥲. Tried to use mods to spawn her near me but Xbox mods and commands are lame lol.
She got replaced by the Companions in their quest line for me and left for that tower with 500 pounds of my stuff. When I came to her, she wouldn't even start the dialogue, so I had to slit her throat and take it all back. I don't blame her, I blame Bethesda
Mjoll is a top S-tier follower. Her being great at 2-Hand is made way better when you do the Giant's Club glitch (you can tell followers to pick up a usable one at Tumble Arch Pass on the rocks up top) and her charge attacks are devastating. She's essential AND marriable. For the whole "b-but Aerin" thing, just go sneak into Aerin's bedroom at night and dispose of him, then voila, no more problems. The vast majority of my hours with a follower has been with her. I don't really feel compelled to choose anybody else.
Lost the giant's club with Lydia :( whenever people say a character is essential, they mean they're immortal until the player so much as sneezes at them by accident when they're down...
@@topiheimola69Mjoll feels invincible with the Legendary enchanted Daedric Armor that I have on her. Giant's Club and heavy armor is the best thing for her.
@@ElKITENAUT yeah, I know. So wait, Lydia isn't essential? I've seen her get launched to space by giants, fus ro dah'd her off high hrothgar and she has survived it all BUT when I started my current playthrough I once accidentally hit her with a weak "fus" while she was down and that did it. She died.
@@ElKITENAUT well to be honest then I have no idea what it means for an NPC to be essential. Faendal won't come back after getting NASA'd by a giant, but Lydia will come back. What's the difference between those two followers, for example? I seem to recall a term "partially essential", but that might just be a product of my imagination
I always go with Erik the Slayer. Even before I knew the IRL story I liked him for his enthusiastic personality. The fact that he’s a tribute character makes it all the better. Also with a good two-hander he hits like a truck, and I swear he seems to activate the kill animations more often than other followers I’ve had. It’s not uncommon to have him just instakill an enemy the second their health drops. Only downside is that he blocks… A LOT, and since he’s best at two-handed weapons he can get stuck just standing there with his guard up.
@@justbenice7448 I guess it means that the developpers added him as a tribute to somebody who really exists/existed, IRL. He must resemble that person in some way. I don't know about this story either though.
Thats bcuz he has mid stats in all combat stats. I think its 50 in all physical combat so you can make him how you want easier than someone with 100 2h but 20 1h
And it always makes me roll my eyes. Same as the other enshrined cancer-victim in the south end of Fallout 4's Nukaworld DLC. It just comes across as shallow virtue-signalling on the part of Bethesda. Maybe when I get cancer I should contact Bethesda so I can become an NPC in TESVI. I mean most of my family are probably going to die of it sooner or later. Maybe I can get all of us in there. Maybe if we all try hard, we can get the game populated entirely by cancer victims.
@@SotiCoto I share your hatred of shallow virtue-signalling but I'm puzzled as to why you think Erik the Slayer is an example of that? His last significant wish was to go for a tour of Bethesda and his knowledge of their games impressed them to the point that they let him play a test-build; it was clearly very meaningful to him and you just know that he would've been wishing to live to play the release build at least once. In recognition of how much their games reached him (which has got to be a pretty touching feeling to know that your work has influenced one so much that their dying wish would be to come see more of it) they permanently depicted him in Skyrim and now his story is known to the vast majority of elder scrolls fans. Shallow virtue-signalling would have been a tweet or something from the Bethesda account acknowledging his passing. Proliferating his memory in the minds of hundreds of thousands of players, creating meaning for some who took him along as a companion and made new memories with him in the game, I find that to be anything but shallow. I'm sure Erik would have been honoured by it if he was here, and at the end of the day what matters most is what he would've thought of it. How can you signal to a person that isn't alive anymore? That was actual virtue I think.
@@SotiCotocome on. In order to virtue signal you actually have to signal it. The only place you find these facts are little factoid videos like this. It’s not a secret, but at the same time there are no signs posted in game or pop up windows that explain the meta story as you’re trying to play the game. This is the furthest thing from virtue signaling I’ve ever seen and we need to stop lumping in actual acts of genuine kindness with the shallow “I have the correct beliefs” dog whistles that virtue signaling actually is. Just because one can twist the situation to seem like it by being as pessimistic as possible, doesn’t mean one should.
@@SotiCotoEither this is some masterclass bait or you’re genuinely the most joyless and cynical person alive. I can’t really tell and both are equally pathetic.
Don't let Annekke dual wield pickaxes, give her two enchanted Forsworn swords (fire damage + absorb health). Also, you can marry her daughter Sylgja and keep Annekke around as a house steward. 😉
To me every follower truly blossoms when you have them with you for a while, even if some of them have similar dialogue, I always seem to get attached to followers than most people would never consider. I’ll never forget the playthrough where my buddy Ahatar was slain by a dragon priests and I actually tried to bury him. R.I.P
I had to drag Stendarr to an area with flowers. 😅 I remember the first time I had to kill pit wolves, I was so upset. They probably lived such horrible lives. So I dragged their bodies onto a nice patch of what looks like soft grass, in the moonlight, with flowers and butterflies, so they could rest somewhere that was gentler than the world was to them. 😭 My husband woke up and was like “are you TEARING UP?” 😭 “I know they’re just pixels, but they’re SAD PIXELS.”
Cicero cant be topped, he just randomly starts getting sturdy in the middle of whiterun. Cicero is a whole vibe and im totally down for it, he's low-key the only reason I do the dark brotherhood quest line anymore.
All 5 followers that I have ever used: Serana, Teldren Sero, Lydia, Aela, Faendal. Honorable mention to Cosnach as a good sacrifice for Boethia as no one of importance gets lost.
I Use a follower mod his name is croc and he is a summonable follower that can be seen in the drunken huntsman apprently his summon book can be found in river wood on top of a barrel next to the giants inn
Benor has to be one of my personal favorites, as I took him through the story mode in one of my playthroughs, and when we fought Alduin, Benor died and my brother and I just kept yelling “Benor!!! Nooooo!!!” It was a great time. RIP Benor
I did the exact same thing, and only Alduin was powerful enough to kill him. He still stays rested up against the wall Paarthanax sits on. What a hero.
Kharjo was definitely my favourite follower, mainly because in my play through he was a bit stupid, at the point in the game where u capture a dragon at dragons reach and then ride him, silly cat man decided he would titanic it and stand on the nose of the dragon as we were taking off, he promptly flew through the sky with incredible graze for about 3 seconds then he fell and broke is leg
Marcurio has always been my go-to follower. He’s quirky and fun, while being amazing in combat with lightning spells and fireball. When traveling Skyrim you need a bit of humor to keep it fun
I am falling in love with Marcurio! He's so fun and I love his sass. He's also the perfect complement to my warhammer swinging Khajiit build. Having a mage by your side as you rush the enemy is so much fun!
I keep him at Goldenhills, he is often holding a book, and it's great to hear "Oh look what the Horkers dragged in!" And "I knew you couldn't resist me!"
I made fendal my housecarl at one of my houses and everytime I went in there he was acting like he owned the place. I was going there a lot because I was putting decorations and still building it. When I had to sacrifice someone I knew exactly who I was gonna take. I do not miss hearing “what are you doing here” and “do you need something”
I honestly wish we could marry him... or any Khajiit really. I know they wish for the warm sands of Els'wyer but... my Khajiit feels lonely okay? That being said, I think for this playthrough I'm gonna marry Marcurio
Stenvar is special. He is the only follower I've found so far outside of the Companions that is not afraid or hostile to the werewolf form, and he has NO MORALS. He'll kill an entire city if you ask.
I always respected Cicero, as mad as he is, his respect for the old traditions and for sithis is commendable, considering that the dark brotherhood is in shambles, is worthy of admiration that he is still a true dark brother.
Derkeethus might’ve been bugged at some point because I remember him being ridiculously op when I was playing near launch. Might’ve been before any dlc came out. He’d fucking shoot dragons out of the sky. Swear to god I’d hear a dragon screech, and arrow fly, and a dragon crash into the ground. Best boy.
No yeah Derkeethus deserves a better ranking. His essential status doesn't change after his quest, if you marry him he'll go back to Darkwater Crossing every day and his mood is always set to afraid. He's immortal and has high functioning anxiety and is so much on his grindset that he kept his job after starting his own business.
I've always liked Derkeethus as a follower more than his stats would suggest. But I've also only ever played with the unofficial patch in place which may change his character. He's never gone back to Darkwater Crossing for me. I think part of it is the voice actor, he's got a very friendly calm voice for Derkeethus.
I always end up sneaking around with Cicero, love his dialogue but I’ve really come to love erandur he is so wholesome and such a likable guy I can never murder him for a subpar staff and a guilty conscience.
I really struggle to be dark in the game being unable to bring myself to do the dark brotherhood, I mean it was her wedding day. I ended up feeling bad when shaking down the innkeepers in riften as part of the thieves guild when their attitude changed towards me and abandoned it. Erandur was so friendly and seemed to have genuine care for my well being when taking the dream potion that I refused without a second thought.
Also a mod that lets you have 2 followers. Several have dialogue sets that mean they bicker and interact with each other while you are playing. Which adds to the immersion.
Hey bud. If you want as many fighters as you can get you can up to 12 beings fight for you. There is your character . Your companion ( say Lydia even lol ) 2 sommoned dreamora , Serana the vampire ( just dont finish her missions ) 6 flame cloak spiders . your horse lol hell even use Barbos the dog ( i dont i get tired of his barking lol ) You can be the leader or a healer and just heal them and enjoy watching the battle. Give them good armour and paralize / absorb health weapons and your golden. May you walk on warm sads :) May the Lord watch over you.
Brelyna is my choise. No matter how low your health if the enemy won't be able to reach you, but mostly important, I choose this dunmer girl because of her personality. She is cute, shy, elegant, kind, has a great voiceover and also really love to discover everything, especially dwarven ruins. She also comes from a noble house Telvanni, so if you also want to marry a girl from aristocratic family, that's Brelyna. BTW, a very few people know that all students of the College have unique phrases while you travel with them during the College storyline.
You can still unlock Atar as a follower even if you kill the bandit leader before meeting him. I accidentally did that but if you drop expensive items in front of him he can pick them up and ask you if he can keep it and if you say yes hell offer to follow you
Does he happen to be a forsworn? I had a Forsworn do that recently. Then he attacked me when he saw another dead one so I had to kill him because he was blocking me from leaving one of the tents while he tried to kill me.
Faendal, Lydia, Erandur, Marcurio and Freya, are my favourite followers in the game. I personally used Marcurio for the entirety of my playthrough. Marcurio has excellent commentary on all aspects of the game. Freya is very wholesome and Erandur is overall fantastic.
Benor has been my surprise savior for the last couple playthroughs! I definitely did not see that coming, but I was VERY early game and desperate (to avoid whiterun), but was pleasantly surprised! I assumed he’d be a Lydia and die in five minutes. 🤣 But if this video includes AE, Rulnik is usually my goal, and Katria is my favorite follower (glitch)
Farkas was my preferred follower because he remains Essential...until I accidently discovered that the Storm Call Shout ignores Essential statuses and killed him by accident. I reloaded an earlier save to bring him back and now he's a house husband. He's been my husband in every playthrough except my first one. I generally don't have followers with me since I find they get in the way, especially since I graduated from an "in your face" warrior to the typical stealth archer. Followers just ruin my sneak attacks. Serana, I take me with me throughout Dawnguard since the story demands it but once it's done, she's left to chill at the Dawnguard keep.
If you like Annekke you can always marry her daughter, Sylgja. She doesn't look exactly the same but she's sweet. I like to marry her in my playthroughs. She also has a interesting story crossover with Erandur. Also, you missed a noteworthy feature about Derkeethus that might warrant him going up a tier: the devs forgot to program him with the ability to die. He is an npc that is totally immortal.
Onmund is a sweetheart and my favorite character in the Collage of Winterhold. You did him very dirty here. I also appreciate there actually being a Nord mage for once, because tbh, Nords have somewhat decent mage potential.
Nah I’ve recently learned to love roggi, he’s a good best friend to my nord warrior, and actually lasted throughout the main quest, he’s now back at kynesgrove with a bunch of stories to tell
Lydia and Galldir got in a fight on the first quest. Lydia slew him with the Bloodskall blade. I think I must have hit him and turned him hostile and that made Lydia attack him while i was dealing with Deathlords in the next room. Now I can't finish the quest. Oh well. Sounds like I ain't missing much. Kagrumez Dwarven Sphere or Dwarven Spider are available as followers. It's in Solsteim. Better than the barking dog.
Erandur is a favorite of mine cuz his backstory. He’s on a road to redemption and defies a daedra, so after making him a follower he eventually “earns” a place as a Blade. I also love how when you go to Falkreath he says,”let us bow our heads in respect” or something like that
"Kharjo is an honest soul and too wholesome to abandon." *3 seconds later* "Eola is a sadistic cannibal who leads a cult, and for that I love this character!"
Dude I loved your script, images, and also I loved your placement for the characters, but the quality of your sound and voice, the edition, the whole thing envolving the sound. AH! Beautiful, the person who edited this sound, she should be the S Tier in the editors rank.
Lydia is easily my favorite follower. Though nowadays she's become more of a steward for my house. When I first saw her, I thought... "Yeah, you'll make a fine meat shield!" Then as time went on. I saw how valuable of a companion she was. She came in clutch so many times during my time as a mage. Until one day, I was a bit too careless with a fire spell. And she died. Not wanting to save scum anything. I recrafted the armor I gave her and put it up on one of the mannequins in my home in Lakeview.
One unfortunate thing about Farkas is that when he joins you to retrieve the fragment of Wuuthrad, when he shapeshifts into a Werewolf, he drops his Skyforged Steel Greatsword. After that moment, the game defaults him to an Iron Greatsword, severely crippling his damage output. You can pick it up yourself, which can help if you're a Two-Handed build (but you get access to a Skyforged Weapon upon completion of the quest), but you can't trade it back to him since he's assigned as a temporary companion.
Ralis really should be S Tier. Give him deathbrand gear and he pretty much kills anything. Getting him is hard but also pretty fun if you have the cash since you'll also get a load of unique loot. Also caps at 70 which is really good
Not entirely sure how, but I must have done something wrong (or right) at the end of the dawnguard questline and now Serana has permanently joined me and Cicero on our adventures^^ she has all the normal functions of a follower, as does he. Only downside is that I barely even get to actually fight anymore because they usually take out enemies all on their own if I’m not fast enough 😅😂 but yeah, I’m not complaining, they can carry so much stuff 😳
It’s pretty hilarious how the follower mechanic became one of my favorite aspects of Skyrim despite the fact what inspired me to check out the game was a clip on TH-cam of somebody betraying their follower for the Boethiah’s Calling quest.
Can we just call to attention the fact that this guy is calling Dunmer "Bosmer"? Edit* 1:55 Beleval 100% looks like a Dunmer not a Bosmer, but it turns out she is indeed a Bosmer, so I'm actually wrong in this instance. To be fair, the lighting in Fort Dawnguard is absolutely terrible. Honestly, the hair should have been a dead give away that I was wrong.
Derkeethus being the only Argonian follower instantly puts him in the S tier for me, they're my favourite race so I was disheartened to find out he was the only one
Dude I remember being a kid and being afraid of bleak falls burrow so I took FOREVER to even really begin the main quest, this never meeting Lydia until soooooo much later. What good times getting lost such a wonderful world. Definitely gotta not go with serana instantly again next playthrough, I’ve forgotten so many of these could even be followers 😅
I actually have a soft spot for most of the lower ranked-Mid tier followers. I always played with mods to make companions unkillable, so I just used ones I’d find naturally in the game. Goldir, Roggi and Kharjo were the first 3 I found out in the wild on the game (excluding the Riverwood and Whiterun ones) so I’ve always had a soft spot for them. Cosnach ain’t so bad either tbh, when I play as a Breton I usually run around with him for a bit as he’s one of only 3 Breton companions in the game, with the other two being Eola (a cannibal) and Celann who you have to do the Dawnguard to get.
Kharjo is the best companion. Period. He's the only one who gives a damn about YOU. While he will be happy to get his amulet back, he says right up front that he doesn't want you to be hurt or killed; he values your life more than his own interests. He also has a funny, friendly personality that adds to any playthrough, is easy to find, and is well equipped from the first (level-appropriate) moments he is with you. Mechanically, he can be given (or will pick up) and will use magic staves. He's a good archer if you give him a good bow. He's a tank that does well with sword-and-board one hand weapons, very good in heavy armor. Download a mod to break his low level cap and you have the most S-tier of companions.
I once took Faendal to solsthiem because the lurkers that were spawned from the stones during the Dragonborn quest line were too hard for me to take down myself, and miraaks servants just ran away
@@Minka-ot9xl I never said she disappears. What made you think that? The bug is that after you dismiss her, she goes back to the place you first met her BUT you can't recruit her anymore. THAT IS THE BUG.
@@Minka-ot9xl Really? Happened to me every time in the last version I care to get. I had an Edition that had several Creation Club mods integrated into it, most notably a stupid Survival Mode option that you can turn on & off on the fly. I say stupid because you are constantly in danger of hypothermia freezing and Fire Spell or a BURNING torch only temp delay, NOT STOP, the freezing and yet somehow food made with rare fire salt can stop hypothermia for a longer time. A FRICKING NAKED FLAME except for inns and certain settlements cannot prevent freezing. Stupid. Anyway the version also had the Saints and Sinners mod.
Back in the PS3 days, I accidentally shouted my boi darkeethus off a mountain. I didn’t see him for several realtime days. Then one day out of the blue he appeared to help me kill an enemy and reunite with me lol
@@shinymainespoon I was looking through the List and Most followers are Nord, then Dunmer, then Orcs, then Imperials, Arround 4 or 5 are Bretons, Like 3 Khajit and Bosmer, 2 Redguard 1 Argonian 0 Altmer. (Without mods)
@@siac888 Zero Altmer. Really? I know there's a thalmor in Markarth you can befriend. I know he can help with Diplomatic Immunity. Likely not a follower though
@@shinymainespoon Yes, and all the other Altmers are either Thalmor, or no fighters. I think, it makes sense. For one because Skyrim is so far away, its in the other Side of Tamriel. There are plenty other lands, a high Elf could go to. Secondly, Summerset is ruled by a Nazi Regime. So every fighter is in the army (Thalmor), or died trying to defend his home. So there cant be a lot of Altmer fighters out there, and If one desertet, He may ended somewehre outside the influence of the Thalmor. Maybe Hammerfell.
In my first playthrough I had J'Zargo traveling with me. I was attacked by three orc bandits posing as guards or something, and nearly got killed in a melee fight with two of them. After just barely managing to kill them, I wondered where J'Zargo had gone and why he didn't help me. Then I heard some spell sounds and banter from around the corner and found J'Zargo locked in a mage duel with the third bandit 😂
Never knew Erik’s story. Was always my goto companion. Liked the idea of investing in someone who wanted to be an adventure, then coming back to see he actually had was awesome.
Personally my favorite companion is Serena. Something you didn’t mention is that she is an essential character, so she can’t die, meaning there is no risk of losing her in a fight. However, an honorable mention goes to Kharjo. While I don’t personally use him, I have watched Skyrim videos featuring him, and they have made him iconic
I'm an extreme introvert, that almost never goes outside or socializes and I have more followers than Starfield. That being said, I LOVE that you can have even the most worthless NPCs as followers, it adds to the ability to role play and really make the game yours. I've hired coznak as a "follower" despite being terrible, because I was RPing as a Miner and crafter in the city, and hired him for "protection". They all serve a purpose, even if they aren't fleshed out and deep.
I agree. Since most of the followers are rather bland, you can project anything you want onto them. This is perfect for Roleplaying. I travelled all across Skyrim with Cosnach. And when you mod the game in order to make it more challenging, a Cosnach is better than no follower at all. My favorite folloower os Gorr, a Redguard former Arena combatant with a taste for horkers.. He's added in the interesting NPCs mod. There are plenty more interesting followers in that mod. I highly recommend it.
Erandur and Serana are by far my favorites in the game. Serana is self explanatory, but Erandur I found by happenstance and I really love the dude, acquiring him is easily one of my first priorities in every play-through. His spells are great, he packs a good punch, and I just love his demeanor. Glad he's up high
I just love how insane Marcurio’s destruction magic gets. He starts throwing exploding fireballs before you’ve even seen a dwarven sword on a playthrough and it made me laugh until I cried when I first saw it.
Another problem with the two Dark Brotherhood followers is they are so generic that their inventories are set to reset periodically. So any gear you give them will get deleted. I lost Chillrend that way once.
That's awful 😞. I hate the lizard didn't survive
@@bobdollaz3391 Veezara 💔
Honestly I didn’t know this! Just saved my loot lol.
more sweet beth 'quality' programing there wich saddly where tolerated far to long ...after their comments on critics about that starfield crap i more or lees decided any talent or customer respecting people among them is either so under the thumb of the 'leaders' they have no input or left years ago
I'm not convinced this isn't a mod issue. I had one of the DB initiates for a few hundred hours and never lost any gear this way
I like how Farkas and Vilkas are twin brothers yet have different accents.
from another mother
@@turbanheadless - I don't think that's how twins work.
@@emptyhand777 from different fathers 💀
they lived on opposite ends of the house
Accents are so inconsistent in skyrim. But I can just headcannon it as one losing the accent as time went by interacting with the rest of the world while the other kept his. Or just headcannon them all as speaking Nordic or tamrielic.
i love jzargoo because if enemy's are nearby he can sniff them out
Or not
We will see
You can also use "detect life"(or detect dead) spells to reveal enemies not on line of sight
@@matheusjahnke8643 It was my most used spell in Oblivion. And is my most used spell in Starfield. But I don't remember having it in Skyrim.
Both male Khajiit followers say that. And in fact any other male Khajiit that you make into a follower through console commands will say the same. Female Khajiit made into followers don't have any unique dialogue because sadly there are no female Khajiit followers by default in the game.
@@dasik84in addition to the detect life and detected spells there's actually a shout that allows you to detect the aura of all moving things so it adds in the dwemer machines as well. So it's very useful for not being caught off guard by a drauger playing dead or one of the centurion suddenly standing up and attacking you.
"all the exaggerated swagger of a khajiit sorcerer" almost slipped past me lmao
Stray dog has never let me down and barbus can't be killed.
I've had two Irish Wolfhounds as a kid, the breed that Meeko is modeled after. I loved them very much, the last one passed in 2008.
So adopting a kid and giving Meeko to them is mandatory for me in every playthrough.
Just never finish the quest he introduced to you
Barbus is just broken. Hide away in the corner and he'll grind anything down.
I usually don't use companions bc I'm a hardcore stealth player, but I keep Barbus around for longer than any other companion lmao.
@@curvytangerinethose 2 don't go together. Babus fucks up your sneaking eye
the marcurio disrespect will not be tolerated
“i am an apprentice wizard not a pack mule! oh okay very well make it quick”
"and I'm a master wizard, take my gear before I cast lightning storm"
hes so sassy i love him
There's more to people preferring Lydia than her just being many players' first follower. All followers are influenced by the hidden stas of Aggression, Confidence, Assistance.
Lydia's Aggression stat is set to _Aggressive_ so she attacks a lot more in combat, her Confidence is set to _Foolhardy_ so she will fight until knocked down, and her Assistance is set to _Help Friends & Allies_ meaning she'll quickly rush close to your side if you're in trouble. Taking these hidden stats into account, Lydia is _by far_ one of the best followers available to the player.
and when ya enchant all her gear with health regen and leech on the weapon, she never goes down.. At least when i did that to her gear she didnt.. Such a tank.. 90% of my playthroughs she is my follower.. only in the last 2 have i used Jenassa.. Even tho she duel wields, depending on what 1h weapons you give her, she will only use one.. which confused the hell out of me.. lol
@@Joffie69 Health absorption on hit is indeed terrific for longevity, but health regen on armor piece is one of many effects that- for some reason- Bethesda decided just wouldn't work for followers.
For followers, the increased health regen from enchantments is only active _outside_ of combat. During combat, it essentially just turns off.
Stamina and magicka regen effects function fine, however. And amusingly, followers don't have their resistances capped so a follower _can_ achieve 100% magic immunity through their enchantments which _does_ remain active in combat.
By endgame, I once had Lydia fully decked out in hand-crafted ebony equipment, enchanted for stamina regen and full magic immunity. Pair that with a health absorption ebony sword, she could go toe-to-toe with the Ebony Warrior himself and put a _damn_ good fight lol
For me it's not even that, though all that is a solid reason. It's because of everyone in the story, she's the one who would logically be there for all of it. She's a simple person, a good person who takes her new position in life seriously yet isn't afraid to backtalk a living dragon to their face from minute one. Everyone else treats you like a living legend, Lydia treats you as her boss and a friend.
I killed her with the Ebony Blade
@@aidankeogh9994 That was super informative I was just about to start a warrior playthrough and now I know who's going to be my tank and what enchantments to deck her out with. Thanks!
My best friend and I grew up gaming together. While we never got into Skyrim for some reason, it was something we both would’ve enjoyed. The year before I tried Skyrim for myself for the first time, he had passed to cancer. After I had learned of Erik the Slayer, he’s been my main companion ever since
😢
crying in the club rn 😭😭😭😭
Was your friends name erik?
😢 🙏🙏🙏💪❤
I raise a flagon of mead in your friend's memory.
Cant top Lydia. There I was, 12 years old, and the story is just getting juicy. I’m hailed a hero of the biggest city I’ve seen so far, by the most fatherly character I’ve yet met, and then he basically says “and I’m assigning you a new partner for your journey. Lydia! Get over here! You two will be spending a lot of time together.”
It was like starting a new TV show, where the show’s protagonist gets a brand new partner in the pilot, and everyone knows it’s the start of a beautiful friendship.
Didn't know followers were a thing until Lydia, so she gets that bonus too
Yeah, that feeling I remember - yet, Lydia made it cool down fast by getting in the Way a lot and not properly Tanking/Kiting. Then, I found out it is not her - it is all of them beeing Braindead. That Day Lydia and others became just Mules to me - only Faendal somewhat has my respect for beeing at least a good Steward and synegizing with the Huscarl well when it comes to fighting.
"she's the best because she was my first and not because of any material advantages"
You never forget your first 🥵@@xbirdshorts5075
i just got this for the switch and i accidentally killed her because she went in my way 😫
For me, J'zargo is my favorite follower. That boy is confident and has the skills to back it right up. His quest is also pretty hilarious. I love the idea that he can develop his own spells and they're more destructive than he intended.
One interesting note about Annekke: You can marry her daughter, who is also one of the more attractive NPCs. So, that's something, you can hang out with your mother in law.
Erandur is my favorite follower, though. I love an atonement story. Glad to see he made it up to A.
i always marry Sylgia
Sylgja is probably the best wife in the game for good-natured heroes. Hard-working, sweet, gives you a house, and makes a miner's outfit look pretty good. Too bad you can't give her better clothes.
Erandur is the 🐐
@@admiralalyssa as always, mods are the answer
I did that in my 2nd playthrough. Think about how awkward that is tho 😂. Like yea your hanging with your mother in law but her life is also in your hands. It would be super awkward if she died.
Teldryn Sero is my forever follower. He’s an absolute unit in battle especially if you give him upgraded gear. And I love his snarky personality so much, he’s always got something to say. He’s been by my side in Skyrim for over a decade now and I ain’t ever gonna betray him by choosing another follower though I do like seeing what the other good ones are.
Yeah he is one of the best ones. Strong and can use conjuration
I got Barbas (if you never go to the axe--he can't die and I have the ability of tuning him out of my mind) and Teldryn (whom I just found and was like, "this is my guy,") as soon as I found out about solstheim. Oh, the aggro my character did. Leveling and getting the coolest weapons/completing the coolest quests became so much easier and faster with that team. Plus, it was the way I could explore solstheim early on and that place is where my heart is.
Teldryn really is great.
Mine too. Unfortunately caps at Lv 60 I believe. I go to Solstheim on a new playthrough just to bring him though and by 60 tbf I've had enough of hearing him talk about his chitin armor and Blacklight lol
Oh man, he reminds me of a Fallout character, too!
I fell asleep to this video and then dreamt the video was playing on a radio and we couldn't get it to turn off lol
We even unplugged the radio but could still hear this video playing and we were wondering how the radio could still be playing with no power.
Fun thing to do when something strange happens in real life think to yourself I must be dreaming then when something weird happens like this radio in your dream you can lucid dream
Ngl I’m not sure if I believe you cause I could see it being real but it also sounds extremely whack even by dream standards
Totally happened. That's pretty imaginative to just make up for a comment. I posted this after waking up cause I thought it was silly.
And it makes sense we still heard the "radio" because obviously the video was still playing while I was sleeping @@Voltar_99
I have lucid dreamt before by weird stuff happening and being like, wait this must be a dream. @@sholsy2785
Falling asleep while watching TH-cam is always fun 😂
I will NOT take this shade against Vorstag. He's legitimately one of my favourite followers. He may be a bit bland on the surface, but that's part of what makes him so great in my eyes. He really feels like a typical mercenary - which I find to be oddly rare in Skyrim. And, once you start travelling with him, you will notice he has some neat quirks to his character. For instance, he'll display in interest in ancient technology, such as that which went into the building of the ancient Nord ruins and, perhaps more interestingly, that of the Dwemer. His fascination with the Dwemer, paired with his proficiency with heavy armour (despite what he starts out with) along with his skill with archery and one handed make him a good fit for Dwemeri kit, too. Another thing I love about him is a line he says when exploring caves, where he says something along the lines of "Gods willing, we'll find some treasure in _this_ cave!".
I'll end this off with a story from when I was travelling with Vorstag. I had come across a witch fort, with *many* witches patrolling the outside, and practically right off the bat I had been completely immobilised by them, leaving Vorstag to fight the horde of witches on his own. When I had managed defrost from the spell that froze me in place (mods), I saw that Vorstag was covered in blood, in the middle of a pile of the witches' corpses, having soloed them all. I generally find him to be a fun follower to have around, and I think you folks here who have bothered to read this far should give him a chance.
I've had this type of situation but with Derkeethus. I swear he's the best archer in the game. He hits like 95% of his shots and has saved me from some pretty fucking scary situations in my warrior playthroughs. His aim on moving targets is impeccable at times, too
Right there with you, pal, Vorstag is my favourite follower. During one of my playthroughs with him, Vorstag managed to nail his commentary for pretty much every situation and his strengths complimented my build really well. It even motivated me to do Dwemer stuff which I typically avoid doing. Really added to my experience of the game.
I sacrificed him to boethia . Sorry not sorry
i am on my first ever play through of skyrim ever. so far i’ve had three followers. lydia died within about half an hour of me getting her when she died randomly in a side quest. i didnt even get a chance trade items.
then i hired jenassa. i loved jenassa. i felt a genuine soft spot for her. i was determined to keep her around forever, but unfortunately i think she must have died in my civil war final battle, not that i ever found her body.
i’m currently travelling with kharjo. i wasn’t sure i would be able to find another follower that i would be as attached to after jenassa, but kharjo was so polite and it feels like i’m filling the hole jenassa left. i’m really fond of him.
That’s how I feel about Onmund I always marry him every play though expect my current one. I just love the Nord
Oh man, I remember playing with followers who could die.
How can a follower die ? Mine never die unless I hit them when there crouching over by accident or a friendly fire with a spell. Then I just reload my saved game. I cant wait to get annaversary edition and play survival, Can the enmies alone kill them on survival ?@@Draezeth
Not if they're an essential follower. Essential NPCs can only be killed by the player continuing to hurt them when they drop to one knee to try to heal.
@@savagex466-qt1iothe only way they can die is if they take damage from the player if they’re not essential. If they are essential you can’t kill them at all.
I have a fond memory with Marcurio, from the first time I discovered Black Reach. We entered the cave and Marcurio couldn't help but shout "By the Nine!", which was an obvious blasphemy considering the then current Thalmor ban of Talos. But that original and spontaneous line felt so vivid and lore anchored 😊
his lines are so sassy and out of place sometimes, i will never get tired of him LMFAO
I always spare Cicero, regardless of his actions, as they were only done with the brotherhood’s health in mind, if it continued the way Astrid wanted it to, they’d lose their way
yeah leave a murdering psychopath alive...
I did that too lol...
his kill streak is still going haha
and unlike Astrid he never broke these 5 rules
@@65.187 They're all murdering psychopaths. Actually, I think Astrid may have been a murdering sociopath, but still.
That’s pretty much why I left him alive@@DarkMaze-bd4ov
I'm surprised there's anyone who wouldn't spare him. I mean, he bleeds Dark Broship, he's 100% loyal. Loyalty should be rewarded, not punished.
Fantastic list. I am glad that J'zargo is properly recognized, especially being the only follower without a level cap in the vanilla game. He has also heard that you found the Staff of Magnus. Perhaps J'zargo can borrow it?
If she leaves your party, Illia actually just goes back to the coven tower you got her at. if i remember she just sits or stands somewhere near the right wall if you go back.
Dude I went crazy over this recently. Remembered I sent her home during the main questline at some point and she never reappeared back at the tower, apparently she WALKS home and can get attacked on the the way back to the tower 🥲. Tried to use mods to spawn her near me but Xbox mods and commands are lame lol.
Having mods in general probably didn’t help 😂
Heh, she was bugged since launch in 2011 bethesda never bothered to fix it
She got replaced by the Companions in their quest line for me and left for that tower with 500 pounds of my stuff. When I came to her, she wouldn't even start the dialogue, so I had to slit her throat and take it all back. I don't blame her, I blame Bethesda
She is like my favorite magic follower and I chose her as my steward, but once you dismiss her she won’t follow you again smh terrible
Mjoll is a top S-tier follower. Her being great at 2-Hand is made way better when you do the Giant's Club glitch (you can tell followers to pick up a usable one at Tumble Arch Pass on the rocks up top) and her charge attacks are devastating. She's essential AND marriable. For the whole "b-but Aerin" thing, just go sneak into Aerin's bedroom at night and dispose of him, then voila, no more problems. The vast majority of my hours with a follower has been with her. I don't really feel compelled to choose anybody else.
Same. Mjoll is best. ❤
Lost the giant's club with Lydia :( whenever people say a character is essential, they mean they're immortal until the player so much as sneezes at them by accident when they're down...
@@topiheimola69Mjoll feels invincible with the Legendary enchanted Daedric Armor that I have on her. Giant's Club and heavy armor is the best thing for her.
@@ElKITENAUT yeah, I know. So wait, Lydia isn't essential? I've seen her get launched to space by giants, fus ro dah'd her off high hrothgar and she has survived it all BUT when I started my current playthrough I once accidentally hit her with a weak "fus" while she was down and that did it. She died.
@@ElKITENAUT well to be honest then I have no idea what it means for an NPC to be essential. Faendal won't come back after getting NASA'd by a giant, but Lydia will come back. What's the difference between those two followers, for example? I seem to recall a term "partially essential", but that might just be a product of my imagination
I always go with Erik the Slayer. Even before I knew the IRL story I liked him for his enthusiastic personality. The fact that he’s a tribute character makes it all the better.
Also with a good two-hander he hits like a truck, and I swear he seems to activate the kill animations more often than other followers I’ve had. It’s not uncommon to have him just instakill an enemy the second their health drops.
Only downside is that he blocks… A LOT, and since he’s best at two-handed weapons he can get stuck just standing there with his guard up.
What is a tribute player. I haven't heard that term before. Thanks in advance.
@@justbenice7448 I guess it means that the developpers added him as a tribute to somebody who really exists/existed, IRL. He must resemble that person in some way. I don't know about this story either though.
@@justbenice7448Actually it's all explained at 21:22 sorry - let's watch the whole video before I answer to any comment next Time 😅
Thats bcuz he has mid stats in all combat stats. I think its 50 in all physical combat so you can make him how you want easier than someone with 100 2h but 20 1h
His voice actor also does the voice for Haku in Spirited away so I always feel like I’m adventuring with a secret river spirit.
No matter how many times I hear the story behind Erik the Slayer, it always makes me tear up
And it always makes me roll my eyes. Same as the other enshrined cancer-victim in the south end of Fallout 4's Nukaworld DLC. It just comes across as shallow virtue-signalling on the part of Bethesda. Maybe when I get cancer I should contact Bethesda so I can become an NPC in TESVI. I mean most of my family are probably going to die of it sooner or later. Maybe I can get all of us in there. Maybe if we all try hard, we can get the game populated entirely by cancer victims.
@@SotiCoto I share your hatred of shallow virtue-signalling but I'm puzzled as to why you think Erik the Slayer is an example of that? His last significant wish was to go for a tour of Bethesda and his knowledge of their games impressed them to the point that they let him play a test-build; it was clearly very meaningful to him and you just know that he would've been wishing to live to play the release build at least once. In recognition of how much their games reached him (which has got to be a pretty touching feeling to know that your work has influenced one so much that their dying wish would be to come see more of it) they permanently depicted him in Skyrim and now his story is known to the vast majority of elder scrolls fans. Shallow virtue-signalling would have been a tweet or something from the Bethesda account acknowledging his passing. Proliferating his memory in the minds of hundreds of thousands of players, creating meaning for some who took him along as a companion and made new memories with him in the game, I find that to be anything but shallow. I'm sure Erik would have been honoured by it if he was here, and at the end of the day what matters most is what he would've thought of it. How can you signal to a person that isn't alive anymore? That was actual virtue I think.
@@SotiCotocome on. In order to virtue signal you actually have to signal it. The only place you find these facts are little factoid videos like this. It’s not a secret, but at the same time there are no signs posted in game or pop up windows that explain the meta story as you’re trying to play the game.
This is the furthest thing from virtue signaling I’ve ever seen and we need to stop lumping in actual acts of genuine kindness with the shallow “I have the correct beliefs” dog whistles that virtue signaling actually is. Just because one can twist the situation to seem like it by being as pessimistic as possible, doesn’t mean one should.
@@SotiCotoEither this is some masterclass bait or you’re genuinely the most joyless and cynical person alive. I can’t really tell and both are equally pathetic.
@@SotiCoto Life must have really taken a dump on you to be this bitter.
Don't let Annekke dual wield pickaxes, give her two enchanted Forsworn swords (fire damage + absorb health). Also, you can marry her daughter Sylgja and keep Annekke around as a house steward. 😉
kinky stuff that mate 😂😂😂
To me every follower truly blossoms when you have them with you for a while, even if some of them have similar dialogue, I always seem to get attached to followers than most people would never consider. I’ll never forget the playthrough where my buddy Ahatar was slain by a dragon priests and I actually tried to bury him. R.I.P
I had to drag Stendarr to an area with flowers. 😅
I remember the first time I had to kill pit wolves, I was so upset. They probably lived such horrible lives. So I dragged their bodies onto a nice patch of what looks like soft grass, in the moonlight, with flowers and butterflies, so they could rest somewhere that was gentler than the world was to them. 😭 My husband woke up and was like “are you TEARING UP?” 😭
“I know they’re just pixels, but they’re SAD PIXELS.”
Anytime a follower I really like dies I go back to my most recent save lol
I just saw your pfp and I’m wearing a shirt right now with the same vault boy 😁
My wife made me the shirt, it says
“have a day”
I just saw your pfp and I’m wearing a shirt right now with the same vault boy 😁
My wife made me the shirt, it says
“have a day”
Cicero cant be topped, he just randomly starts getting sturdy in the middle of whiterun. Cicero is a whole vibe and im totally down for it, he's low-key the only reason I do the dark brotherhood quest line anymore.
You writing this:
*Must..... Have.... The words.... Vibe... And.... Low-key..... At least.... Once... Each..*
Nah, fuck him and the dark brotherhood, I destroy the brotherhood every play through, nobody is laying a finger on Lurbuk, not on my watch
Im 99% sure Suckero is a bottom so he gets topped all the time
I had a brain aneurysm reading this. No wonder GenZ is so dumb.
What does "...getting sturdy in the middle of Whiterun" mean?
Also what does "Cicero is a whole vibe" mean?
All 5 followers that I have ever used: Serana, Teldren Sero, Lydia, Aela, Faendal.
Honorable mention to Cosnach as a good sacrifice for Boethia as no one of importance gets lost.
I Use a follower mod his name is croc and he is a summonable follower that can be seen in the drunken huntsman apprently his summon book can be found in river wood on top of a barrel next to the giants inn
give a chance to Erandur as well, he's very charismatic and powerful, at least for an early mid to mid game.
Try ralis, give him dual weapon
Came here to say Serana!
I've only used Lydia and Mjoll
Benor has to be one of my personal favorites, as I took him through the story mode in one of my playthroughs, and when we fought Alduin, Benor died and my brother and I just kept yelling “Benor!!! Nooooo!!!” It was a great time. RIP Benor
Yeah Benor!
I love benor because his name sounds funny
I did the exact same thing, and only Alduin was powerful enough to kill him. He still stays rested up against the wall Paarthanax sits on. What a hero.
Kharjo was definitely my favourite follower, mainly because in my play through he was a bit stupid, at the point in the game where u capture a dragon at dragons reach and then ride him, silly cat man decided he would titanic it and stand on the nose of the dragon as we were taking off, he promptly flew through the sky with incredible graze for about 3 seconds then he fell and broke is leg
What’s worse is the thieves guild is full of interesting people and two more even join once it’s restored….yet there’s zero followers from the guild.
For me it’s always Lydia. There’s something about the first one that goes a long way
Gregor
You never forget your first
Give her some legendary armor and weapons all enchanted and she will be a great tank
*IM SWORN TO CARRY YOUR BURDENS ....* 😂
Lydia always got so much unwanted hate when Skyrim first came out and I never understood why. She's so good.
Marcurio has always been my go-to follower. He’s quirky and fun, while being amazing in combat with lightning spells and fireball. When traveling Skyrim you need a bit of humor to keep it fun
I am falling in love with Marcurio! He's so fun and I love his sass. He's also the perfect complement to my warhammer swinging Khajiit build. Having a mage by your side as you rush the enemy is so much fun!
@@KarmatheCorgi So true. He's even more enhanced with follower mods that expand their dialogue pool. His quirkiness becomes even quirkier.
I came looking for this and was upset he was not included. Love rolling with the true lightning sass god, Marcurio.
@@Deadline63 he was included, he was put in A-tier
I keep him at Goldenhills, he is often holding a book, and it's great to hear "Oh look what the Horkers dragged in!" And "I knew you couldn't resist me!"
I made fendal my housecarl at one of my houses and everytime I went in there he was acting like he owned the place. I was going there a lot because I was putting decorations and still building it. When I had to sacrifice someone I knew exactly who I was gonna take. I do not miss hearing “what are you doing here” and “do you need something”
J'zargo all day everyday. Not only he is based because he only use destruction magic but also because he is a khajiit
Valid and sound arguments. No disagreement here.
Facts
I honestly wish we could marry him... or any Khajiit really. I know they wish for the warm sands of Els'wyer but... my Khajiit feels lonely okay? That being said, I think for this playthrough I'm gonna marry Marcurio
@@KarmatheCorgireal wish I could marry khajiit
Stenvar is special. He is the only follower I've found so far outside of the Companions that is not afraid or hostile to the werewolf form, and he has NO MORALS. He'll kill an entire city if you ask.
YES! Another Stenvar fan! He was probably my biggest friend in the world of Skyrim with his cocky attitude and his classic barbarian personality! ❤
I always respected Cicero, as mad as he is, his respect for the old traditions and for sithis is commendable, considering that the dark brotherhood is in shambles, is worthy of admiration that he is still a true dark brother.
I love his dialogue when you trade stuff with him. 😂
I would say, Freya will always my favorite since I am playing Skyrim and she is as much of a Nord as any one could be.
the Skaal aren’t traditional nords but yeah they honor battling....
I like to use Freya because she is by far the strongest follower in combat
Frea is the best follower in the game by strength easily. She is pretty much like a Paladan and she can duel wield
@@troyjohnson1186 Agreed. Fall Damage putting her on A tier is a mistake.
Derkeethus might’ve been bugged at some point because I remember him being ridiculously op when I was playing near launch. Might’ve been before any dlc came out. He’d fucking shoot dragons out of the sky. Swear to god I’d hear a dragon screech, and arrow fly, and a dragon crash into the ground. Best boy.
No yeah Derkeethus deserves a better ranking. His essential status doesn't change after his quest, if you marry him he'll go back to Darkwater Crossing every day and his mood is always set to afraid. He's immortal and has high functioning anxiety and is so much on his grindset that he kept his job after starting his own business.
Derkeethus is absolutely best boy. He ran away crying from a draugr deathlord one time though. He's always so positive, "ours is to follow friend"
I've always liked Derkeethus as a follower more than his stats would suggest. But I've also only ever played with the unofficial patch in place which may change his character. He's never gone back to Darkwater Crossing for me. I think part of it is the voice actor, he's got a very friendly calm voice for Derkeethus.
I always end up sneaking around with Cicero, love his dialogue but I’ve really come to love erandur he is so wholesome and such a likable guy I can never murder him for a subpar staff and a guilty conscience.
I really struggle to be dark in the game being unable to bring myself to do the dark brotherhood, I mean it was her wedding day. I ended up feeling bad when shaking down the innkeepers in riften as part of the thieves guild when their attitude changed towards me and abandoned it. Erandur was so friendly and seemed to have genuine care for my well being when taking the dream potion that I refused without a second thought.
Erandurs voice lines are great until he gets to whiterun and won’t stop saying he’s never been there before
Cicero and Serana shouldn't be on this list because they are immortal, which is borderline cheating.
In my headcanon, the Dragonborn always takes Erik the Slayer on as a plucky sidekick for all of their adventures
I wish we can recruit a army and own every single battle
there's actually a mod where you can do that :D
Also a mod that lets you have 2 followers. Several have dialogue sets that mean they bicker and interact with each other while you are playing. Which adds to the immersion.
Same
Hey bud. If you want as many fighters as you can get you can up to 12 beings fight for you. There is your character . Your companion ( say Lydia even lol ) 2 sommoned dreamora , Serana the vampire ( just dont finish her missions ) 6 flame cloak spiders . your horse lol hell even use Barbos the dog ( i dont i get tired of his barking lol ) You can be the leader or a healer and just heal them and enjoy watching the battle. Give them good armour and paralize / absorb health weapons and your golden. May you walk on warm sads :) May the Lord watch over you.
I've done it before with mods on PC. It's funny for a bit then it gets boring lol.
Brelyna is my choise. No matter how low your health if the enemy won't be able to reach you, but mostly important, I choose this dunmer girl because of her personality. She is cute, shy, elegant, kind, has a great voiceover and also really love to discover everything, especially dwarven ruins. She also comes from a noble house Telvanni, so if you also want to marry a girl from aristocratic family, that's Brelyna.
BTW, a very few people know that all students of the College have unique phrases while you travel with them during the College storyline.
"Got any sausages?"
@@DJShamtown what?
You can still unlock Atar as a follower even if you kill the bandit leader before meeting him. I accidentally did that but if you drop expensive items in front of him he can pick them up and ask you if he can keep it and if you say yes hell offer to follow you
Does he happen to be a forsworn? I had a Forsworn do that recently. Then he attacked me when he saw another dead one so I had to kill him because he was blocking me from leaving one of the tents while he tried to kill me.
Faendal, Lydia, Erandur, Marcurio and Freya, are my favourite followers in the game.
I personally used Marcurio for the entirety of my playthrough. Marcurio has excellent commentary on all aspects of the game.
Freya is very wholesome and Erandur is overall fantastic.
Marcurio was the only follower who used destruction magic if I remember correctly. I always used him.
Marcurio is the best!
Marcurio will ALWAYS be my follower. I've used a few of the "S" tier followers and always go back to Marcurio!
You guys see the truth!^ he has some of the best exploration/dungeon dialogue lines, too
I always go with Marcurio as well. He's a bit of a complainer but he always has my back when I need him 👍
Benor is the GOAT how dare you sir. Man was the meat shield to my summoner, the real MVP.
Benor has been my surprise savior for the last couple playthroughs! I definitely did not see that coming, but I was VERY early game and desperate (to avoid whiterun), but was pleasantly surprised! I assumed he’d be a Lydia and die in five minutes. 🤣
But if this video includes AE, Rulnik is usually my goal, and Katria is my favorite follower (glitch)
Farkas was my preferred follower because he remains Essential...until I accidently discovered that the Storm Call Shout ignores Essential statuses and killed him by accident. I reloaded an earlier save to bring him back and now he's a house husband. He's been my husband in every playthrough except my first one. I generally don't have followers with me since I find they get in the way, especially since I graduated from an "in your face" warrior to the typical stealth archer. Followers just ruin my sneak attacks.
Serana, I take me with me throughout Dawnguard since the story demands it but once it's done, she's left to chill at the Dawnguard keep.
If you like Annekke you can always marry her daughter, Sylgja. She doesn't look exactly the same but she's sweet. I like to marry her in my playthroughs. She also has a interesting story crossover with Erandur.
Also, you missed a noteworthy feature about Derkeethus that might warrant him going up a tier: the devs forgot to program him with the ability to die. He is an npc that is totally immortal.
Derkeethus is an A solely because his archery is incredible
Onmund is a sweetheart and my favorite character in the Collage of Winterhold. You did him very dirty here. I also appreciate there actually being a Nord mage for once, because tbh, Nords have somewhat decent mage potential.
Agreed; I really like Onmund
You're right, he's a very sweet dude! Overall just pleasant to be around
''The exaggerated swagger of a Khajiit Sorcerer'' man i'm dead
Nah I’ve recently learned to love roggi, he’s a good best friend to my nord warrior, and actually lasted throughout the main quest, he’s now back at kynesgrove with a bunch of stories to tell
8:18 that was an unfair sucker punch and it hurt like hell
Lydia and Galldir got in a fight on the first quest. Lydia slew him with the Bloodskall blade.
I think I must have hit him and turned him hostile and that made Lydia attack him while i was dealing with Deathlords in the next room. Now I can't finish the quest. Oh well. Sounds like I ain't missing much.
Kagrumez Dwarven Sphere or Dwarven Spider are available as followers. It's in Solsteim. Better than the barking dog.
that takedown at 3:28 is so hilarious lmao good video
I do not know why this was recommended to me...
BUT WHY THE HELL WASNT IT SOONER? 5 HOURS IS TOO LONG TO BE LEFT OUT OF THIS AMAZING VIDEO.
Erandur is a favorite of mine cuz his backstory. He’s on a road to redemption and defies a daedra, so after making him a follower he eventually “earns” a place as a Blade. I also love how when you go to Falkreath he says,”let us bow our heads in respect” or something like that
Onmund is one of my favorite followers. I love his shock spells and whenever you’re adventuring and come across something big he says “By the nine!”
"I really don't think we should be here."
"Thanks to her vampiric powers sucking enemies dry"
I blame my friends ENTIRELY, for that sentence sounding so bad.
Mage followers are not bad except that if they use chain lightning, it agros sometimes friendlies to attack them.🙄
Wow that was a great, great video. Blasts from the past combined with some new people I never even met yet
I started watching your videos 2-3 months ago and damn your voice is so pretty deep and cool haha 😂
"Kharjo is an honest soul and too wholesome to abandon."
*3 seconds later*
"Eola is a sadistic cannibal who leads a cult, and for that I love this character!"
Solid tier list, now I have to start another playthrough
Dude I loved your script, images, and also I loved your placement for the characters, but the quality of your sound and voice, the edition, the whole thing envolving the sound. AH! Beautiful, the person who edited this sound, she should be the S Tier in the editors rank.
Lydia is easily my favorite follower. Though nowadays she's become more of a steward for my house. When I first saw her, I thought... "Yeah, you'll make a fine meat shield!" Then as time went on. I saw how valuable of a companion she was. She came in clutch so many times during my time as a mage. Until one day, I was a bit too careless with a fire spell. And she died. Not wanting to save scum anything. I recrafted the armor I gave her and put it up on one of the mannequins in my home in Lakeview.
Lura Bailey just always makes a good surprise with her iconic voice.
I just found out she voiced chi chi in the first dragon ball series
@@Spartan-bl4pqexactly what I mean
Real shit, Erik the Slayers story still makes me tear up a bit, Bethesda are elite for that
One unfortunate thing about Farkas is that when he joins you to retrieve the fragment of Wuuthrad, when he shapeshifts into a Werewolf, he drops his Skyforged Steel Greatsword. After that moment, the game defaults him to an Iron Greatsword, severely crippling his damage output.
You can pick it up yourself, which can help if you're a Two-Handed build (but you get access to a Skyforged Weapon upon completion of the quest), but you can't trade it back to him since he's assigned as a temporary companion.
you have the best Skyrim Videos!
If Skyrim is re-re-re-re-re-released somewhen around 2030 in 16K with AI downscaled AA at 390FPS, I'll probably buy and play it again a couple times
Ralis really should be S Tier. Give him deathbrand gear and he pretty much kills anything. Getting him is hard but also pretty fun if you have the cash since you'll also get a load of unique loot. Also caps at 70 which is really good
Not entirely sure how, but I must have done something wrong (or right) at the end of the dawnguard questline and now Serana has permanently joined me and Cicero on our adventures^^ she has all the normal functions of a follower, as does he. Only downside is that I barely even get to actually fight anymore because they usually take out enemies all on their own if I’m not fast enough 😅😂 but yeah, I’m not complaining, they can carry so much stuff 😳
It’s pretty hilarious how the follower mechanic became one of my favorite aspects of Skyrim despite the fact what inspired me to check out the game was a clip on TH-cam of somebody betraying their follower for the Boethiah’s Calling quest.
Can we just call to attention the fact that this guy is calling Dunmer "Bosmer"?
Edit* 1:55 Beleval 100% looks like a Dunmer not a Bosmer, but it turns out she is indeed a Bosmer, so I'm actually wrong in this instance. To be fair, the lighting in Fort Dawnguard is absolutely terrible. Honestly, the hair should have been a dead give away that I was wrong.
Timestamp ?
when
Gregor was an actual idiot. I was channeling lightning storm and this man *RAN* into the stream and vaporized himself
Not going to lie, hearing you talk about Lydia gave my 12 year old self a huge hug.
I just trick my brain into reading EVERY follower's name as Packhorse
Derkeethus being the only Argonian follower instantly puts him in the S tier for me, they're my favourite race so I was disheartened to find out he was the only one
You can locate Illia but she's hard to find. She starts wandering from the original tower to Windhelm and back.
Dude I remember being a kid and being afraid of bleak falls burrow so I took FOREVER to even really begin the main quest, this never meeting Lydia until soooooo much later. What good times getting lost such a wonderful world.
Definitely gotta not go with serana instantly again next playthrough, I’ve forgotten so many of these could even be followers 😅
11:49 Jordis is most beautiful, Validar is a spellsword and Lydia is most amusing with her attitude
I actually have a soft spot for most of the lower ranked-Mid tier followers. I always played with mods to make companions unkillable, so I just used ones I’d find naturally in the game. Goldir, Roggi and Kharjo were the first 3 I found out in the wild on the game (excluding the Riverwood and Whiterun ones) so I’ve always had a soft spot for them.
Cosnach ain’t so bad either tbh, when I play as a Breton I usually run around with him for a bit as he’s one of only 3 Breton companions in the game, with the other two being Eola (a cannibal) and Celann who you have to do the Dawnguard to get.
Kharjo is the best companion. Period.
He's the only one who gives a damn about YOU. While he will be happy to get his amulet back, he says right up front that he doesn't want you to be hurt or killed; he values your life more than his own interests. He also has a funny, friendly personality that adds to any playthrough, is easy to find, and is well equipped from the first (level-appropriate) moments he is with you.
Mechanically, he can be given (or will pick up) and will use magic staves. He's a good archer if you give him a good bow. He's a tank that does well with sword-and-board one hand weapons, very good in heavy armor. Download a mod to break his low level cap and you have the most S-tier of companions.
I once took Faendal to solsthiem because the lurkers that were spawned from the stones during the Dragonborn quest line were too hard for me to take down myself, and miraaks servants just ran away
I love Cicero!! He’s so much fun to have around. Plus, I feel like he’s one of the only followers who won’t judge your crimes
Fun Fact: The bug regarding Illia is till present today. Bethesda never fixed it since they are incompetent and don't know how to do it.
True, i always make her a steward of one of the heartfire houses after i do her quest
She goes back to the place you recruit her from, she doesn't dissappear from the game
@@Minka-ot9xl I never said she disappears. What made you think that? The bug is that after you dismiss her, she goes back to the place you first met her BUT you can't recruit her anymore. THAT IS THE BUG.
@@foofoo3344 weird, I've never had that happen before
@@Minka-ot9xl Really? Happened to me every time in the last version I care to get. I had an Edition that had several Creation Club mods integrated into it, most notably a stupid Survival Mode option that you can turn on & off on the fly. I say stupid because you are constantly in danger of hypothermia freezing and Fire Spell or a BURNING torch only temp delay, NOT STOP, the freezing and yet somehow food made with rare fire salt can stop hypothermia for a longer time. A FRICKING NAKED FLAME except for inns and certain settlements cannot prevent freezing. Stupid. Anyway the version also had the Saints and Sinners mod.
Back in the PS3 days, I accidentally shouted my boi darkeethus off a mountain. I didn’t see him for several realtime days. Then one day out of the blue he appeared to help me kill an enemy and reunite with me lol
He's a true bro.
1:55 why do you say she's a bosmer but she's clearly a dunmer?
Erik got endless amount of dialogues lines for a vanilla follower
“jzargo has all the exaggerated swagger of a khajit soldier” 😭😭
Sorcerer*
Cicero is the best follower. He doesn't give a shit about how evil you are.
12:52 Ahtar is the ONLY Redguard follower in the base game, and is (supposedly) essential/protected. I'd say that moves him up a tier
Amren is redguard as well
Edit: And Raddya, Huscarl from Falkreach
@@siac888Amren isn't a follower, but you got me that Rayya is. She requires Hearthfire, but I'm sure most players have the trio of DLC
@@shinymainespoon
I was looking through the List and
Most followers are Nord, then Dunmer, then Orcs, then Imperials,
Arround 4 or 5 are Bretons,
Like 3 Khajit and Bosmer,
2 Redguard
1 Argonian
0 Altmer. (Without mods)
@@siac888 Zero Altmer. Really? I know there's a thalmor in Markarth you can befriend. I know he can help with Diplomatic Immunity. Likely not a follower though
@@shinymainespoon
Yes, and all the other Altmers are either Thalmor, or no fighters.
I think, it makes sense.
For one because Skyrim is so far away, its in the other Side of Tamriel. There are plenty other lands, a high Elf could go to.
Secondly, Summerset is ruled by a Nazi Regime. So every fighter is in the army (Thalmor), or died trying to defend his home.
So there cant be a lot of Altmer fighters out there, and If one desertet, He may ended somewehre outside the influence of the Thalmor. Maybe Hammerfell.
In my first playthrough I had J'Zargo traveling with me. I was attacked by three orc bandits posing as guards or something, and nearly got killed in a melee fight with two of them. After just barely managing to kill them, I wondered where J'Zargo had gone and why he didn't help me. Then I heard some spell sounds and banter from around the corner and found J'Zargo locked in a mage duel with the third bandit 😂
Never knew Erik’s story. Was always my goto companion. Liked the idea of investing in someone who wanted to be an adventure, then coming back to see he actually had was awesome.
I always gave him to the Blades since he wanted to be an adventurer.
Personally my favorite companion is Serena. Something you didn’t mention is that she is an essential character, so she can’t die, meaning there is no risk of losing her in a fight.
However, an honorable mention goes to Kharjo. While I don’t personally use him, I have watched Skyrim videos featuring him, and they have made him iconic
I'm an extreme introvert, that almost never goes outside or socializes and I have more followers than Starfield.
That being said, I LOVE that you can have even the most worthless NPCs as followers, it adds to the ability to role play and really make the game yours. I've hired coznak as a "follower" despite being terrible, because I was RPing as a Miner and crafter in the city, and hired him for "protection". They all serve a purpose, even if they aren't fleshed out and deep.
I agree. Since most of the followers are rather bland, you can project anything you want onto them. This is perfect for Roleplaying. I travelled all across Skyrim with Cosnach. And when you mod the game in order to make it more challenging, a Cosnach is better than no follower at all. My favorite folloower os Gorr, a Redguard former Arena combatant with a taste for horkers.. He's added in the interesting NPCs mod. There are plenty more interesting followers in that mod. I highly recommend it.
Yeah I'm pretty sure you're not introverted just anti-social
Erandur and Serana are by far my favorites in the game. Serana is self explanatory, but Erandur I found by happenstance and I really love the dude, acquiring him is easily one of my first priorities in every play-through. His spells are great, he packs a good punch, and I just love his demeanor. Glad he's up high
Aela is the werewolf mommy. Literally the werewolf mommy because it is through her blood that the player becomes a werewolf.
Kharjo has always been my favorite vanilla follower thanks to Scatsbury
Jordis is one of the nicest ones, I always choose her
I just love how insane Marcurio’s destruction magic gets. He starts throwing exploding fireballs before you’ve even seen a dwarven sword on a playthrough and it made me laugh until I cried when I first saw it.