Barbas (Skyrim)

"Skyrim is now host to giant, flying lizards and two-legged cat-men...and you're surprised by me? Yes. I just talked. And am continuing to do so."

- Barbas

Barbas is a large gray hunting dog found along the road outside Falkreath. But don't let those baleful eyes fool you: this is no typical, lovable mongrel. Barbas is Clavicus Vile's companion, a supernatural creature that usually takes the form of a dog. (You can also go to Falkreath and accept the mission from the blacksmith then continue doing other quests, after awhile of you not going to find him he will instead come find you. Tell him you're busy and he'll go wait at entrance to Haemar's Cavern). Barbas cannot be killed during the course of gameplay. He may sustain enough damage in a single attack to kill him if he were not protected, however, in which case he will flee, but he will return to the fight immediately if healed.

Barbas is a useful follower to have in a fight. His bite is strong enough to kill many weaker enemies in one strike, and he's an effective decoy against more powerful enemies. However, he is an incredibly annoying follower to have in any other situation. His barking, though it will apparently not alert enemies, is incessant, and often drowns out other sounds or voices. He also "detects" you while sneaking and bumps into you - a lot. He maintains a very close proximity to you, and if you attempt to stop, he will almost certainly shove you, making many basic actions difficult (and cliff edges especially dangerous). He may box you into corners; he will normally move if you sprint into him, like other followers, but you may be forced to strike him in order to break free.

Quests

 * A Daedra's Best Friend
 * Speak to Lod

Bugs

 * If you choose to follow Barbas to the Shrine, his route through Helgen will see some bandit attacks take place - this may cause Barbas to do a second run through in Helgen.
 * As Barbas comes to the Helgen gate that requires opening from you, the opening of the door tends to slam poor Barbas against the wall. Close, then reopen to let him through.
 * If you decide not to kill Barbas, and talk to him before he gets turned into stone, the whole statue of Clavicus Vile will disappear and Barbas will remain in the room forever. He will no longer follow you or respond to you in any way but remains stuck in your party restricting your ability to recruit any dog companions thereafter.
 * Lod, the blacksmith, may be dead, but the quest may still show up.
 * If you've decided to follow Barbas through Helgen, if the main exit is locked, Barbas might start climbing the door erratically because he can't follow his scripted path. If the door gets unlocked during the process, Barbas might get stuck behind it, causing the game to crash. To prevent this issue, if the door isn't unlocked before the pursuit, one can still get it opened by reaching it before he does or during a fight with bandits, since Barbas cannot be killed at that point. You can also unlock the door and then close it again, and somehow Barbas will open the door himself.
 * There is a glitch where Barbas is invincible when you decide to kill him if you don't do things correctly.
 * Barbas can sometimes magically go through the metal gate behind the Clavicus Vile shrine and start fighting the boss vampires - this is really annoying since the über boss keeps his distance so you can't loot his body after the fight.
 * Sometimes, when approaching Haemar's Shame, it won't say onscreen that you discovered it, but you are still able to fast travel to it.
 * Glitch about Barbas not showing up at his quest marker after speaking to Lod. To avoid this glitch complete any misc quest (e.g. treasure hunt quest) involving Rimerock Burrow before speaking to Lod about the dog. Clearing Rimerock Burrow will not affect the quest to retrieve The Rueful Axe.
 * Entering haemar's cavern after getting the Rueful axe can cause objects to spawn in you when you enter the cavern.
 * Telling Barbas to wait inside Rimerock Burrow may cause him to disappear at the moment you take the axe.

Trivia

 * Barbas' flippant dialogue, along with his apparently telepathic conversation, may be an allusion to the film/book "A Boy and His Dog", which was a major influence on Fallout. The dog's voice has a Brooklyn accent, alluding to the "Son of Sam", a mass murderer who claimed his dog was the servant of Satan and told him to kill people.
 * Barbas' name probably refers to the talking dog Barnabas from The Sandman.

Appearances

 * The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim