Can you kill important characters in skyrim

However, if they're needed for a Quest or something, an NPC is usually marked as Essential and unable to be killed this is mostly so the game won't mess up completely if someone important dies! I'd say play however you want, and what you decide to do in Skyrim is completely up to you. But I tend to Quicksave before I go on killing sprees, if I do so at all lol. A named NPC will go to a holding cell a while after death.

Generic enemies just despawn as far as I know. Reddit user Menschletzt has discovered a way to kill essential NPCs in Skyrim , something that usually cannot be done without the assistance of mods. NPCs marked as essential by the game merely fall into a recovery position when their health is depleted, getting back up after a while with full health, seemingly unharmed. However, Menschletzt reveals that casting the Reanimate Corpse spell repeatedly on NPCs will cause them to eventually disintegrate, leaving behind a pile of ash in their place.

Ask Question. Asked 10 years ago. Active 6 years, 11 months ago. Viewed 43k times. Improve this question. Elise It's been confirmed that shopkeepers and such will stay dead - not sure about key characters.

Back up your save and have a go ; — Jarrod Mosen. Another great question title. Please restore a backup to continue. I was just about to roll the title back before OrigamiRobot did, but see meta. You can go on a killing spree, however your "karma" will make passing through certain areas a pain, since guards will essentially chase you before you even know which side you're on.

Show 1 more comment. Active Oldest Votes. Important NPCs are invulnerable, like Oblivion. So feel free to go nuts. Improve this answer. This method involves the use of the Reanimate Corpse spell. Players can cast this spell on an Essential NPC and, if done correctly, they will disintegrate into a pile of ash. As these NPCs aren't meant to die, the animation for this looks bizarre, with the NPC's head often being the last thing to stop walking around.

Unfortunately, killing an Essential NPC in this way makes it impossible for the player to loot the pile of ash and get any items or interact with them for quests, so players will still want to be careful when they use this method. Although this is a bit macabre, this exploit also works on children.