Are Black Soul Gems Better for Enchanting? A Skyrim Enchanter’s Guide
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Let’s cut to the chase: Black Soul Gems aren’t inherently better than Grand Soul Gems for enchanting in terms of the strength of the enchantment. A Grand Soul Gem filled with a Grand Soul will produce the same enchantment potency as a Black Soul Gem filled with a Grand Soul (humanoid). The key difference lies in what you can trap within them and the relative availability of Grand Souls. Black Soul Gems can capture the souls of humanoids (Men, Mer, and beast races), which always count as Grand Souls. This means they offer a reliable way to acquire Grand Souls, especially early to mid-game when hunting down creatures with Grand Souls might be more challenging.
The Nuances of Soul Gems and Enchanting
To truly understand this, we need to delve deeper into the mechanics of soul gems and enchanting in Skyrim. It’s not just the gem itself, but the size of the soul within it that determines the enchantment’s power.
Soul Sizes and Their Effects
Skyrim recognizes different soul sizes, ranging from Petty to Grand:
- Petty: Least powerful, usually from small creatures like rats and mudcrabs.
- Lesser: Slightly more potent, found in wolves and skeevers.
- Common: A decent mid-tier option, often found in draugr and other common enemies.
- Greater: A noticeable increase in power, typically from trolls and sabre cats.
- Grand: The most potent souls, found in high-level creatures, mammoths, and humanoids trapped with Black Soul Gems.
The larger the soul, the stronger the enchantment. For example, a Fortify Carry Weight enchantment using a Petty Soul might only grant you +5 carry weight, whereas the same enchantment with a Grand Soul could easily give you +25 or more.
The Black Soul Gem Advantage: Reliability
The primary advantage of Black Soul Gems is their ability to consistently provide Grand Souls. While you can find Grand Soul Gems and fill them with the souls of creatures like mammoths, it’s often easier to fill a Black Soul Gem by targeting bandits or other humanoid enemies. This is particularly useful early on when you need powerful enchantments but haven’t leveled up enough to reliably hunt Grand Soul-bearing creatures. Later in the game when you have a higher conjuration skill, it may be easier to summon creatures that give Grand Souls to fill a normal Grand Soul Gem.
Think of it this way: you are guaranteed to get a grand soul with a black soul gem when you capture a humanoid. Other soul gems are hit or miss.
Is it all about the Soul?
Yes, the game engine only looks at the soul when calculating enchantments. Any soul gem that contains a grand soul is just as good as a black soul gem that contains a grand soul.
FAQs: Your Enchanting Questions Answered
To further clarify the intricacies of soul gems and enchanting, let’s tackle some frequently asked questions:
1. What is the most powerful soul gem for Enchanting?
From a raw power perspective, it’s the gem containing the Grand Soul, regardless of whether it’s a regular Grand Soul Gem or a Black Soul Gem. The soul size dictates the enchantment strength.
2. Does it matter which soul gem I use for Enchanting?
Yes, it does matter, but only indirectly. The gem type itself (Petty, Lesser, Common, Greater, Grand, Black) determines what size soul it can hold. A Petty Soul Gem can only hold Petty Souls, while a Grand Soul Gem (or Black Soul Gem) can hold any soul up to Grand size. Thus, the gem limits the potential power of the enchantment.
3. What is the point of Black Soul Gems?
The sole purpose of Black Soul Gems is to capture the souls of humanoids (Men, Mer, and beast races) for use in enchanting. These souls always count as Grand Souls.
4. Where is the best place to fill Black Soul Gems in Skyrim?
The best place is any location with a high concentration of humanoids. Bandit camps, forts occupied by bandits, and areas with hostile NPCs (like Forsworn camps in the Reach) are all excellent choices. Some merchants, like Enthir at the College of Winterhold, often sell empty Black Soul Gems, making him a reliable source.
5. Will a bandit fill a Black Soul Gem?
Absolutely! Bandits, hostile mages, and any other hostile humanoid will fill a Black Soul Gem. That’s the beauty of them: readily available Grand Souls.
6. What is the best stone for Enchanting?
The Mage Stone is a great option early on, as it boosts the leveling of all magic skills, including Enchanting, by 20%.
7. What is the best Enchanting method in Skyrim?
The fastest way to level Enchanting is a combination of:
- Getting increased XP effects (Mage Stone, Well Rested bonus).
- Crafting cheap items like Iron Daggers or Dwarven Bows.
- Enchanting every item you craft.
- Selling the enchanted items for profit.
- Disenchanting items to learn new enchantments.
8. What is the best combination for Enchanting?
This question is slightly ambiguous. If you mean the best order of enchantments on gear, that depends on your character build. However, if you’re asking about the best enchantments to use for leveling, Fortify Sneak, Fortify Carry Weight, and Waterbreathing are often cited as granting good experience.
9. Are there different levels of souls?
Yes, as mentioned earlier, there are five levels of souls: Petty, Lesser, Common, Greater, and Grand. Black Soul Gems only capture Grand Souls from humanoids.
10. Do Soul Gems disappear after enchanting?
Yes, the soul gem is consumed and destroyed in the enchanting process, regardless of its type.
11. Are Black Soul Gems better than Grand (regular) Soul Gems?
Not inherently, but practically, they can be more useful. If both contain Grand Souls, the enchantment result will be the same. However, Black Soul Gems offer a guaranteed Grand Soul source (humanoids), whereas finding Grand Souls in regular Soul Gems requires hunting specific creatures, which can be more difficult.
12. What gives the most Enchanting XP in Skyrim?
Disenchanting items to learn new enchantments provides a significant XP boost. Also, using enchantments like Fortify Sneak, Fortify Carry Weight, and Banish Daedra seems to yield more XP than others.
13. What difference does a soul gem make when Enchanting?
It’s the size of the soul within the gem that matters, not the gem type itself. A larger soul yields a more potent enchantment.
14. Are Black Soul Gems rare?
Yes, Black Soul Gems are relatively rare compared to other types of soul gems. They are often found as loot or can be purchased from specific vendors like Enthir.
15. Can you duplicate Black Soul Gems in Skyrim?
Yes, there are glitches and exploits that allow you to duplicate soul gems, but they usually lose their contained soul when dropped.
Conclusion: Black Soul Gems – A Tool for the Efficient Enchanter
In conclusion, while Black Soul Gems don’t inherently create stronger enchantments than Grand Soul Gems, their ability to reliably capture Grand Souls from humanoids makes them an invaluable tool for any aspiring enchanter in Skyrim. They offer a consistent and readily available source of Grand Souls, particularly useful in the early to mid-game. By understanding the nuances of soul sizes and enchanting mechanics, you can optimize your enchanting process and create truly powerful gear.
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