Skyrim Smithing perks
Forging and improving weapons and armor. Smithing is a warrior skill with 10 perks and 10 perk ranks.
- Perks
- 10 perks, 10 perk points to complete
- Skill type
- Warrior (Combat)
- Race bonus
- Nord, Orc, Redguard +5
- XP 15 → 100
- 91,601 skill XP
- Training 15 → 90
- 120,450 gold (75 sessions)
Smithing perk tree
| Perk | Rank | Skill | Requires | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steel Smithing | — | 0 | — | Craft and improve steel items at double the bonus |
| Dwarven Smithing | — | 30 | Steel Smithing | Craft and improve Dwarven items at double the bonus |
| Elven Smithing | — | 30 | Steel Smithing | Craft and improve Elven items at double the bonus |
| Advanced Armors | — | 50 | Elven Smithing | Craft and improve Scaled and Plate armor at double the bonus |
| Orcish Smithing | — | 50 | Dwarven Smithing | Craft and improve Orcish items at double the bonus |
| Arcane Blacksmith | — | 60 | Steel Smithing | Improve magical weapons and armor |
| Glass Smithing | — | 70 | Advanced Armors | Craft and improve Glass items at double the bonus |
| Ebony Smithing | — | 80 | Orcish Smithing | Craft and improve Ebony items at double the bonus |
| Daedric Smithing | — | 90 | Ebony Smithing | Craft and improve Daedric items at double the bonus |
| Dragon Armor | — | 100 | Daedric Smithing or Glass Smithing | Craft and improve Dragon armor at double the bonus |
When a perk lists two prerequisites, you need only one of them.
Planning your Smithing perks
Completing the whole Smithing tree costs 10 of the roughly 80 perk points you get by level 81, so most builds take only the perks they will really use. Start with the perks at the bottom of the tree, then follow the branch that suits your play style up to its top perk.
The highest perks in the tree need a skill of 90 or 100: Daedric Smithing (90), Dragon Armor (100).
How to level Smithing
Every time Smithing goes up, your character earns experience equal to the new skill level, so a high Smithing skill also helps you level up quickly. Raising it from 15 to 100 takes about 91,601 skill experience in total. Trainers can take it to 90 for about 120,450 gold, five sessions per character level. Use the skill XP calculator for exact numbers between any two levels.