Long before the last Dragonborn started their journey in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim to destroy Alduin, Tamriel was ruled over by the Dragon Cult. This oppressive rule of the dragon kind was further promoted by Dragon Priests, which were powerful mages and ruthless individuals who acted as the right hands of their dragon leaders.
Following the liberation of mankind from the Dragon Cult, many of these priests were killed or confined through magical means into various Nordic ruins and tombs. It isn’t until the Dragonborn sets foot in these untouched chambers that they finally awaken from their slumber in the form of horrible, powerful liches with unique, powerful, and valuable masks that can be looted from them. Here’s every Dragon Priest to be found in Skyrim and its DLCs, ranked from easiest to hardest.
13 Morokei
Morokei is a priest that’s encountered during the College of Winterhold questline. As such, he’s not an immensely difficult priest to deal with, and there’s plenty of cover in the dungeon chamber where he’s found. Players have plenty of time to prepare for this confrontation.
Morokei uses shock spells, which are the weakest form of magic in the game. His mask, however, is pretty useful, as it boosts magicka regeneration by 100%.
12 Volsung
Volsung is fought outside, on top of a snowy mountain after going through the Volskygge dungeon. That being said, players have also found ways to climb to his location without actually going through the ruins themselves.
Volsung uses mostly frost spells, but he’s proficient in a number of magic schools, making him a real headache to fight. However, the area has ample space and favors players who are able to take him down from a distance. His mask boosts prices by 20%, increases carry weight by 20, and lets the wearer breathe underwater.
11 Hevnoraak
During the quest “Evil in Waiting,” Hevnoraak will be found at the end of the Valthume ruins. Valdar will be the one to task the Dragonborn with getting to him and killing him once and for all.
Hevnoraak uses shock spells, which are the weakest form of magic. As such, he shouldn’t be too hard to deal with. His mask also makes all the effort worth the player’s time, as it gives them complete immunity to diseases and poison.
10 Vokun
Vokun is the boss fight for the quest “A Scroll For Anska,” and he’s quite an annoying one to deal with. He uses fire spells above all, which makes him a really devastating opponent due to his ability to deal tons of damage over time.
However, what makes this fight actually tolerable is that Anska will fight alongside the Dragonborn. Plus, if the Dragonborn has a follower with them, it’ll be a total of three combatants going up against Vokun. His mask lessens the cost of Conjuration, Illusion, and Alteration spells by 20%.
9 Vahlok The Jailer
Vahlok is a Dragon Priest located on Solstheim in the Dragonborn DLC. The Dragonborn is bound to fight him at the end of his own tomb during the “Lost Legacy” questline. He’s a unique one, as he doesn’t wear a mask at all.
Of all the DLC priests, he’s probably the weakest, capped at level 50. What makes him a decent challenge is that his tomb chamber has a bunch of traps that make the fight incredibly annoying for the player. Moreover, he can conjure a Flame Atronach to fight for him.
8 Rahgot
Rahgot is the big bad that’s fought at the end of the quest “Siege on the Dragon Cult,” in Forelhost. He favors fire magic, which, as mentioned, can be rough going considering the damage over time. Plus, his tomb room will be filled with a bunch of leveled draugr that will make the fight even more annoying.
However, Rahgot’s mask is fantastic for players who rely on their stamina. It gives a 70 point stamina pool increase to the Dragonborn.
7 Zahkriisos
Depending on when Zahkriisos is encountered, he can be quite weak or fairly tough. His level varies from 25 to 60, but he should not be underestimated regardless. He uses mostly shock spells to his advantage.
What makes him tough is his ability to summon a Seeker, which will make things trickier for the player when fighting him. These creatures can teleport and move around quickly, which is a real headache. Zahkriisos’ mask grants 50% resistance to incoming shock damage and a 25% damage increase to any shock spells used by the player.
6 Otar The Mad
Although Otar the Mad is lower in level than most DLC dragon priests, what makes him annoying are the two guardians that need to be defeated before him. Saerek and Torsten are special Draugr Deathlords, and the pair of them make for a difficult fight.
Otar himself will use shock spells when on the offensive, which can be complicated by the fact that the player is most likely still recovering from fighting his draugr guardians. His mask provides a 30 point resistance to all three elements, making it one of the best masks out there.
5 Dukaan
Found in Solstheim in White Ridge Barrow, Dukaan is a priest talented in frost spells. As such, players will be dealing with not only damage to their health but stamina as well, making power attacks and flurries difficult to pull off, if not impossible. Dukaan also summons Seekers, which can be a pain to deal with at the same time due to their quick movement.
Dukaan’s mask increases frost resistance by 50% and frost damage by 25%, making it excellent for any Destruction mage characters.
4 Ahzidal
A strong case can be made for fire being the best magical element to work with in Skyrim, and Ahzidal definitely seems to be perfectly aware of that. He’s among the hardest dragon priests in the game. He’s known for using a particularly devastating spell called Fire Stream, which deals immense amounts of damage and is very hard to avoid.
If that’s not terrifying enough, he’s also assisted by a bunch of Draugr. The chamber he’s in is quite small, making the fight even more high stakes. His mask grants the player 50% fire resistance and 25% higher damage for fire spells.
3 Krosis
Krosis and Ahzidal are almost equally difficult, but for different reasons. What makes Krosis special is his location at Shearpoint, which also features a leveled dragon the player must deal with at the same time.
Krosis specializes in frost spells, but what makes him horrifying to fight is his ability to also cast fire spells with his fireball staff. His mask is quite the treasure though, as it boosts Lockpicking, Archery, and Alchemy by 20%.
2 Nahkriin
Some consider Nahkriin to be an anti-climactic and inconsequential boss considering his placement before the majesty of Sovngarde, but he’s more special and powerful than many give him credit for. He’s actually able to harness all three elements: fire, frost, and shock. As such, he has a huge arsenal of spells to choose from.
Nahkriin’s location is also swarming with variations of Draugr, some located on high ground. It’s definitely no easy fight at all, but the good thing is that there’s plenty of space and cover. His mask adds 50 points to magicka, and makes Destruction and Restoration spells 20% cheaper.
1 Miraak
Miraak is the final boss and main antagonist of the Dragonborn DLC, and he certainly lives up to that name. With a wide range of shouts at his disposal, as well as a poison sword and a summoning staff, he’s able to deal hefty amounts of poison and stamina damage.
Moreover, he has his two dragons to sacrifice when he needs their vitality to continue fighting. So just when the Dragonborn thinks it’s over, it’s back to fighting him again. Miraak’s mask boosts magicka by 40-70 points, depending on the player’s level. He also drops a bunch of other gear, namely his wild-looking and claw-like sword that absorbs stamina on striking.
NEXT: Skyrim: The 10 Most Evil Characters, Ranked
