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The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Anniversary Edition

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Dragon Shouts

By
Scott Peers

This page details an overview of the basics of Dragon Shouts and Dragon Wall Locations in Skyrim, including the location of each Word of Power for specific shouts.

Dragon Shouts in Skyrim.

Dragon Shouts: The Basics

Dragon shouts are central to the main story of Skyrim. They’re uniquely powerful abilities which make your character special, giving you the edge over most enemies in battle. To acquire dragon shouts, you’ll need to learn specific Words of Power from dragon word walls. These words are part of the Thu’um, an ancient form of magic that allows those who are practiced (or naturally gifted, as the case may be) to use their Voice to Shout into existence a variety of effects. The first Shout you’ll learn, for example, is “Unrelenting Force”, or the word “Force” in the Thu’um - by merely speaking it you blast an enemy with a wave of force. Such is the power of the Thu’um.

There are 20 Dragon Shouts in total in the base game, with an additional 3 introduced with the Dawnguard DLC, and 4 with the Dragonborn DLC, each with their own special abilities. You’ll learn several of these just by playing through the main story, but many will have to be found by locating the aforementioned dragon word walls. Even if you learn a word of the Thu’um, however, that’s not enough to utilize it; you’ll need to defeat dragons to obtain their souls, which in turn unlock aspects of the shout. Many Shouts have three words to them, and each one will require one dragon soul to unlock. You can cast longer, more powerful versions of dragon shouts by holding down the appropriate button, while pressing the assigned button once will quick-cast the basic version of the shout.

Overview of Dragon Shouts & Dragon Wall Locations

Animal Allegiance

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Raan Animal Call nearby animals to aid you for 30 seconds 50 Angarvunde
Mir Allegiance Call nearby animals to aid you for 45 seconds 60 Ancient’s Ascent
Tah Pack Call nearby animals to aid you for 60 seconds 70 Ysgramor’s Tomb

Aura Whisper

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Laas Life Detect all life (and undead) in wide area around you for 10 seconds 30 Northwind Summit
Yah Seek Detect all life (and undead) in wide area around you for 20 seconds 40 Valthume
Nir Hunt Detect all life (and undead) in wide area around you for 30 seconds 50 Volunruud

Become Ethereal

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Feim Fade Become invulnerable to damage and stamina drain for 8 seconds 30 Ironbind Barrow
Zii Spirit Become invulnerable to damage and stamina drain for 13 seconds 40 Lost Valley Redoubt
Gron Bind Become invulnerable to damage and stamina drain 18 seconds 50 Ustengrav

Call Dragon

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Od Snow Summons the dragon Odahviing to fight beside you 5 Sky Haven Temple / High Hrothgar
Ah Hunter Summons the dragon Odahviing to fight beside you 5 Sky Haven Temple / High Hrothgar
Viing Wing Summons the dragon Odahviing to fight beside you 300 Sky Haven Temple / High Hrothgar

Call of Valor

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Hun Hero Summons Gormlaith Golden-Hilt to fight beside you 180 Sovngarde
Kaal Champion Summons Felldir the Old to fight beside you 180 Sovngarde
Zoor Legend Summons Hakon One-Eye to fight beside you 180 Sovngarde

Clear Skies

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Lok Sky Clears weather effects for 20 seconds 5 High Hrothgar
Vah Spring Clears weather effects for 40 seconds 10 High Hrothgar
Koor Summer Clears weather effects for 60 seconds 15 High Hrothgar

Disarm

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Zun Weapon Disarms enemies within shout range and causes them to stagger 30 Eldersblood Peak
Haal Hand Disarms enemies within shout range and causes them to stagger 35 Silverdrift Lair
Viik Defeat Disarms enemies within shout range and causes them to stagger 40 Snow Veil Sanctum

Dismay

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Faas Fear Causes enemies to flee 40 Dead Crone Rock
Ru Run Causes enemies to flee 45 Lost Tongue Overlook
Maar Terror Causes enemies to flee 50 Shalidor’s Maze in Labyrinthian Ruins

Dragonrend

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Joor Mortal Forces dragons to land 10 Throat of the World (during Alduin’s Bane)
Zah Finite Forces dragons to land for a longer period 12 Throat of the World (during Alduin’s Bane)
Frul Temporary Forces dragons to land for an extended period 15 Throat of the World (during Alduin’s Bane)

Elemental Fury

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Su Air Increases melee attack speed by 50% for 15 seconds 30 Dragontooth Crater
Grah Battle Increases melee attack speed by 75% for 15 seconds 40 Shriekwind Bastion
Dun Grace Increases melee attack speed by 100% for 15 seconds 50 Statue to Meridia

Fire Breath

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Yol Fire Staggers enemies and inflicts 50 fire damage 30 Dustman’s Cairn
Toor Inferno Staggers enemies and inflicts 70 fire damage 50 Sunderstone Gorge
Shul Sun Staggers enemies and inflicts 90 fire damage 100 Throat of the World

Frost Breath

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Fo Frost Slows enemies and inflicts 50 frost damage 30 Bonestrewn Crest
Krah Cold Slows enemies and inflicts 70 frost damage 50 Folgunthur
Diin Freeze Slows enemies and inflicts 90 frost damage 100 Skyborn Altar

Ice Form

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Liz Ice Freezes enemies for 20 - 30 seconds & inflicts moderate frost damage 60 Frostmere Crypt
Slen Flesh Freezes enemies for 20 - 30 seconds & inflicts good frost damage 90 Mount Anthor
Nus Statue Freezes enemies for 20 - 30 seconds & inflicts excellent frost damage 120 Saarthal

Kyne’s Peace

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Kaan Kyne Calms and detects nearby animals 40 Ragnvald
Drem Peace Calms and detects nearby animals 50 Rannveig’s Fast
Ov Trust Calms and detects nearby animals 60 Shroud Hearth Barrow

Marked for Death

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Krii Kill Causes enemy to lose -25 armor and -1 health each second for 60 seconds 20 Autumnwatch Tower
Lun Leech Causes enemy to lose -50 armor and -2 health each second for 60 seconds 30 Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary
Aus Suffer Causes enemy to lose -75 armor and -3 health each second for 60 seconds 40 Forsaken Cave

Slow Time

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Tiid Time Slows time by 70% for 8 seconds 30 Hag’s End
Klo Sand Slows time by 80% for 12 seconds 45 Korvanjund
Ul Eternity Slows time by 90% for 16 seconds 60 Labyrinthian

Storm Call

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Strun Storm Summons storm for 60 seconds, inflicting 40 damage every 3-6 seconds 300 Forelhost
Bah Wrath Summons storm for 120 seconds, inflicting 60 damage every 3-6 seconds 480 High Gate Ruins
Qo Lightning Summons storm for 180 seconds, inflicting 80 damage every 3-6 seconds 600 Skuldafn

Throw Voice

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Zul Voice Throws voice into direction of shout, causing enemies to gather and investigate 30 Shearpoint
Mey Fool Throws voice into direction of shout, causing enemies to gather and investigate 15 Shearpoint
Gut Far Throws voice into direction of shout, causing enemies to gather and investigate 5 Shearpoint

Unrelenting Force

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Fus Force Pushes enemies back and staggars them for a brief period 15 Bleak Falls Barrow
Ro Balance Pushes enemies back and staggars them for a moderate period 20 High Hrothgar
Dah Push Throws enemies back and inflcits damage upon impact with environment 45 High Hrothgar

Whirlwind Sprint

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Wuld Whirlwind Allows player to dash forward to a moderate distance 20 Dead Men’s Respite
Nah Fury Allows player to dash forward to a good distance 25 High Hrothgar
Kest Tempest Allows player to dash forward to a great distance 35 Volskygge

Overview of Dawnguard Dragon Shouts

Drain Vitality

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Gaan Stamina Drain 5 health per second from opponent and convert to stamina for 30 seconds 30 Arcwind Point
Lah Magicka Drain 5 health per second from opponent and convert to stamina and magicka for 30 seconds 60 Dimhollow Crypt
Haas Health Drain 5 health per second from opponent and convert to stamina, magicka, and health for 30 seconds 90 Forgotten Vale

Soul Tear

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Rii Essence Inflict massive damage and tear the soul from an opponent, reanimating them as an ally for 60 seconds 5 Soul Cairn
Vaaz Tear Inflict massive damage and tear the soul from an opponent, reanimating them as an ally for 60 seconds 5 Soul Cairn
Zol Zombie Inflict massive damage and tear the soul from an opponent, reanimating them as an ally for 60 seconds 90 Soul Cairn

Summon Durnehviir

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Dur Curse Summons the undead dragon Durnehviir from Soul Cairn 5 Soul Cairn
Neh Never Summons the undead dragon Durnehviir from Soul Cairn 5 Soul Cairn
Viir Dying Summons the undead dragon Durnehviir from Soul Cairn 300 Soul Cairn

Overview of Dragonborn Dragon Shouts

Battle Fury

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Mid Loyal Enchants nearby ally weapons for 60 seconds 20 Vahlok’s Tomb
Vur Valor Enchants nearby ally weapons for 120 seconds 30 Vahlok’s Tomb
Shaan Inspire Enchants nearby ally weapons for 180 seconds 40 Vahlok’s Tomb

Bend Will

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Gol Earth Used specifically to purge All-Maker Stones during Cleansing the Stones 10 Saering’s Watch
Hah Mind Allows control of targeted humanoid and animal enemies, making them temporary allies 90 Apocrypha
Dov Dragon Allows control of targeted dragon enemies, grants ability to ride them 120 Skaal Village

Cyclone

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Ven Wind Creates a small cyclone which swirls enemies upwards, inflicting damage during and after the fall 30 Benkongerike
Gaar Unleash Creates a small cyclone which swirls enemies upwards, inflicting damage during and after the fall 45 Kolbjorn Barrow
Nos Strike Creates a small cyclone which swirls enemies upwards, inflicting damage during and after the fall 60 White Ridge Sanctum

Dragon Aspect

Word of Power Translation Effect Cooldown Location
Mul Strength Grants massive damage, armor, and resistance bonuses while also boosting other shout power effectiveness 5 Apocrypha
Qah Armor As above, but also summons an Ancient Dragonborn to aid you in battle when health falls below 50% 5 Bloodskal Barrow
Diiv Wyrm As above, but further increases damage, armor, resistance and shout effectiveness 5 Temple of Miraak

As you explore Skyrim you’ll find “Word Walls” which contain fragments of Thu’um. Simply put, approach these relics to learn new shouts (left). Shouts can be equipped like any spell, and have a cooldown period between uses (right).

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Guide Information
  • Publisher
    Bethesda Softworks
  • Platforms,
    PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, XB 360, XB One
  • Genre
    Action RPG
  • Guide Release
    11 November 2021
  • Last Updated
    7 November 2021
    Version History
  • Guide Author
    Greg Wright

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Skyrim is the homeland of the Nords, a fierce and proud warrior people who are well suited for the bitter cold and mountainous terrain which defines the land. Now scarred by civil war, Skyrim faces its darkest days with the return of the legendary dragons and their leader, the World-Eater Alduin. The future of Skyrim and even the lands beyond hangs in the balance, as the people await the prophesized Dragonborn, a hero born with the power of The Voice and the only one who can contend with the dragons. You are that Dragonborn; your task is to investigate why the dragons are returning, and discover a way to defeat them. At the same time, you’re free to explore Skyrim at your own pace, uncovering its many wonders along the way.

Version 1.2

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