Farkas

"Skjor says I have the strength of Ysgramor, and my brother has his smarts."

- Farkas

Farkas is a lycanthropic Nord resident of Whiterun, as well as a member of The Circle, the group made up of the most formidable and experienced warriors (and unbeknownst to the rest of Whiterun, werewolves) in the Companions. He serves as the Dragonborn's shield-brother when searching for the fragment of Wuuthrad in Dustman's Cairn. Like the rest of the Companions, he lives in Jorrvaskr, in the Wind District of Whiterun.

After the Companions quest-line is complete, the Dragonborn can go to Farkas for more work. Eventually, he will also give the quest "Purity" to them.

Personality
Farkas is very close to his twin brother, Vilkas, and is known for being the stronger of the two; however, Vilkas is known to be smarter than Farkas. Kodlak states in his journal that Farkas is kindhearted, and usually follows along with his brother's views in most situations. He also tends to be kinder in his dealings with others; he is the first of the Companions, apart from Kodlak, to be genuinely friendly and welcoming toward the Dragonborn when they join the order. Vilkas jokes about Farkas being the more dim-witted of the two, a fairly honest assessment. This is shown in his dialogue as a companion, as well; he tends to be very blunt and does not use many words.

Follower
Farkas is available as a follower once the Companions quest-line has been completed. Farkas can train up to level 90 in Heavy Armor, though his Heavy Armor skill is actually a low level.

In addition, if he is taken as a follower, he can still be used to train Heavy Armor, and will allow the Dragonborn to take the gold paid to do so out of his inventory afterwards.

Even though he starts with a greatsword, he is actually more skilled with one-handed weapons.

Trouble in Skyrim
Like Aela the Huntress and Vilkas, Farkas has an unlimited amount of work to be done. Even after completion of the quest Purity, he still has more work for the Dragonborn to do.

Hired Muscle
Another radiant quest given to the Dragonborn by Farkas is the hired muscle quests. These require the Dragonborn to brawl with an NPC.

Proving Honor
During the quest Proving Honor, the Dragonborn and Farkas are in a ruin. The Dragonborn is trapped behind a gate and Farkas is surrounded by Silver Hand members. To kill them Farkas transforms into a werewolf. Afterwards, he opens the gate to free the Dragonborn and acquire the lost fragment of Wuuthrad.

Glory of the Dead
During the quest Glory of the Dead, Farkas accompanies the Dragonborn, along with Vilkas and Aela the Huntress, to Ysgramor's Tomb to cure Kodlak's lycanthropy so he can ascend to Sovngarde. While in the tomb, Farkas' fear of Frostbite spiders, gained from the encounter in Dustman's Cairn, gets the better of him, and he leaves the Dragonborn and Aela to finish the quest on their own.

Purity
Farkas wishes to rid himself of his curse. The Dragonborn has the option of helping him become normal again by throwing a Glenmoril Witch Head into the fire and then killing Farkas' beast spirit.

Dragon Seekers
After Farkas' curse is removed, the Dragonborn can speak to him again for more radiant quests. Eventually, he will have the quest Dragon Seekers for the Dragonborn, indicated by the speech option "Is there any work to be done?" Farkas will tell the Dragonborn of people coming to Whiterun with rumors of dragons, and how he would like to see one for himself. He will then give the Dragonborn the location of one of the Word Walls to travel to and kill the dragon located there.

Marriage
Farkas becomes a potential marriage candidate after the completion of the Companions' questline, and after the Dragonborn obtains an Amulet of Mara.

Training exploit
After completing "Glory of the Dead," Farkas can be asked to join the Dragonborn as a follower. In his speech text there are dialogue options for both training and looking into his inventory. If both are present, Farkas can be paid for training in Heavy Armor and then his inventory can be opened and the given to him during training can be taken back.

Conversations
Farkas "Relax, new blood."

Torvar "I've been hunting on my own for years."

Farkas "Fighting people is different. Smarter."

Torvar "Some of 'em, anyway."

Athis: "You might do well to learn a new weapon. Vary your style a bit."

Farkas: "Tiny blades don't hurt enough. A sword needs weight."

Athis: "But ten little cuts..."

Farkas: "All I need is one to cut you in half."

Athis: "Well, when you put it that way..."

Farkas: "Time to train."

Torvar: "Enough with the training, I want to go fight something."

Farkas: "No fighting, not just yet. Not 'till Skjor says so. You train now."

Torvar: "Easy for you to say. You get to fight."

Farkas: "But before I fought, I had to train."

Farkas: "You only use the little swords."

Athis: "It's called a shortsword, you oaf. Its quicker. Sharper. And it can cut through a whale like a razor."

Farkas: "But whales eat razorfish."

Athis: "And they always come to regret it."

Quotes

 * "You look strong. Come to Jorrvaskr and be a Companion!" - When met at the Pelagia Farm
 * "Skjor says I have the strength of Ysgramor, and my brother has his smarts."
 * "My brother Vilkas is a better talker than me. He should be around someplace."
 * "Some people don't think I'm smart. Those people get my fist. But you, I like."
 * "Getting tired of hanging around talking all day."
 * "Thinking I need to train some more."
 * "I'm here to help."
 * "Um... You've got no clothes. You should get some." - if the player is wearing nothing
 * "Oh, you don't need to worry about me. I do what I'm told. Congratulations!" - After telling him that the player is the new Harbinger
 * "Vilkas says you're the new Kodlak. I don't know what that means, but you seem honorable, so that's good." - After Glory of the Dead
 * "Its like I'm relaxing into a mug of warm spiced mead. I'm losing aches I didn't even know I had." - When talked to after curing him of Lycanthropy
 * "This is how a warrior should feel. Alive and alert. Not clouded with thoughts of the hunt." - When spoken to after curing his Lycanthropy
 * "You're a very brave woman/man. But I already knew that." - When accepting Dragon Seekers
 * "Now, that was a battle!" - After killing a Dragon during Dragon Seekers

Trivia

 * "Farkas" means wolf in Hungarian. His brother's name, "Vilkas," also means wolf in Lithuanian.
 * His default steel armor outfit is randomized between the set with pauldrons, and the set without. His boots and gauntlets are also randomly chosen between the different varieties of steel armor.
 * Because of the game's tendency to mix-and-match the gauntlets and boots between Nordic and Imperial styles, Farkas can be given a matched set if the game is saved before he is within spawning distance (when he is first encountered at the Pelagia Farm fighting a giant), and reloaded until the desired set is equipped.
 * Farkas is afraid of Frostbite spiders after the events in Dustman's Cairn. This is revealed during the Glory of the Dead quest, meaning he will not continue to follow the Dragonborn for the rest of the quest.
 * Farkas may be recruited into the Blades. If Farkas joins them, he might still travel back to Jorrvaskr.
 * Farkas' voice actor, Michael "Popeye" Vogelsang, is the lead vocalist and guitarist for the band Your Favorite Train Wreck.
 * During the quest Proving Honor, if the Dragonborn asks Farkas if the Companions are werewolves, after explaining it, he will say "It is a secret to everyone," a reference to the well-known line from the The Legend of Zelda games.
 * Farkas' skill with Heavy Armor is unusually low, despite being a master trainer in its use.
 * Farkas is the only Companion who is essential even as a follower, and after Glory of The Dead.
 * Farkas can pass through Orc strongholds without any trouble. He has no reason to be there; he just walks in one entrance and out the other, usually Dushnikh Yal.
 * Farkas has very mismatched skills. He is skilled in One-Handed, although he starts with a Two-Handed weapon; he has a high Sneak skill despite being a non-sneaking character; and he has a higher skill in Light Armor than Heavy Armor, although he can train the Dragonborn in Heavy Armor. Additionally, he possesses skills that are not available for training, such as Speech and Smithing. It is also peculiar that although he seems to merit the term "ice-brain" with which he is occasionally teased by other Companions, and although he is not eloquent and uses few words, his Speech skill is at the master level of 100.
 * Farkas still says "Skjor says that I have the strength of Ysgramor and my brother has his smarts" after Skjor is dead. He uses the present tense instead of the appropriate past tense. He also uses Skjor's name in present tense in a conversation with Torvar, instead of the proper past tense.
 * If Farkas gives the Dragonborn a Trouble in Skyrim quest against any rogue mages, he, like many other Nords, will mention his distrust in magic users, even going as far as saying the College of Winterhold "is bad enough." Oddly, when he's a follower, he has no issue with the Dragonborn using Restoration spells, such as Healing Hands and Heal Other, on him.
 * He may rarely ask the Dragonborn if he can keep any equipment they drop near him. Saying yes makes him available as a follower, even if one has not yet joined the Companions.
 * When the player is trapped in Dustman's Cairn, the Silver Hands will threaten Farkas, saying "He wears that armor, he dies," referring to the Wolf Armor that most of the Circle wears. Since Farkas does not wear Wolf Armor but rather wears steel armor, this could mean that Farkas was going to wear Wolf Armor, but this was scrapped before release of the game.
 * If trying to level up Farkas to the player character's current level, note that most of the Wabbajack's effects will not work on him; it will only cast Destruction spells.
 * After finishing the first job from Farkas, before he sends the player on to Skjor, if asked what Skjor wants them for, Farkas replies that he doesn't know, but not to wait, as "I don't like making him angry," suggesting that Farkas could have been afraid of Skjor.
 * If Farkas is a follower and his inventory is checked, it will reveal that he carries a key to Whiterun's gate.
 * Although all of Farkas' conversations with Athis consist of him belittling One-Handed weapons, humorously, Farkas actually is more proficient with One-Handed than Two-Handed.
 * Based on Aela's dialogue during The Silver Hand, Farkas was likely the newest member of the Circle before the player character joined the Companions and was inducted into the Circle.
 * In his dialogue, Farkas shows a favor for spiced mead, yet ironically, the many bottles of alcohol in his bedroom consist of ale and wine.

Bugs
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Dragon Seekers bugs

 * The Dragonborn may experience this bug after the dragon is killed; nothing will happen and there won't be any new dialogue with him to complete the quest. He'll continue to follow the Dragonborn everywhere, he's immortal, and the quest never ends.
 * This can be fixed by opening the console and typing . The quest should complete and the follower should be released.
 * It is possible to get away from him by finishing a conversation, then as he is sheathing his sword quickly pausing the game which makes the Dragonborn free to travel.
 * Waiting 31 days for the dragon to respawn then killing it again will help. Farkas' regular finishing dialogue for the quest starts once one talks to him and the quest completes.
 * During the quest, there may be just a floating cursor at the area in which a dragon needs to be killed. However, there is no dragon to be seen, causing Farkas to follow the Dragonborn without normal dialogue options.
 * Setting the quest stage to 20 using the console command "SetStage CR14 20" will cause normal dialogue options to be restored as if the dragon has been killed.
 * The only known solution is to revert to a save prior to taking the quest. A temporary fix so he does not interrupt dungeons is to use the Ice Form shout on Farkas before entering. This should make him only continue following after the dungeon is exited.

Other bugs

 * If the Dark Brotherhood contract: kill Anoriath, is finished before accepting the quest from Farkas about intimidating Anoriath, The Companions Guild will become unfinishable due to Anoriath being dead. He will also continue to follow the Dragonborn and attempt to talk even if they are having another dialogue.
 * (Save in case of accident), go to console (` by default) and type "player.placeatme 13B97" without the quotes. This will place a living Anoriath on the Dragonborn and make Farkas leave them alone. If Farkas does not stop, target him whilst in console by clicking on him and type resetai.
 * After the Dragonborn releases Kodlak's soul from Hircine, each time Jorrvaskr is entered, Farkas will start following them, initiating dialogue, and unsheathing his weapon. This disrupts talking to NPCs, smithing, and combat. Farkas has also been known to behave this way even prior to releasing Kodlak's soul.
 * Clearing all bounties owed by the Dragonborn or by serving jail time may fix this. This is because Farkas and Vilkas are in the guard faction and so will keep disrupting the Dragonborn until all bounties are cleared.
 * Using the console to kill him is possible by first removing his essential setting. Opening the console and typing  turns it off. After this, typing   with him selected should work.
 * During the quest to free Kodlak's soul he will say "For Kodlak!" and repeat it until the quest is finished, even when in combat.
 * This may be fixed by reloading a save from after Farkas first begins to follow the Dragonborn.
 * After finishing the Companions quest line, there may not be an option 'I'm looking for work' in the dialogue with Farkas or Vilkas, and there will only be the follower request line available.
 * Taking a few radiant quests from Aela the Huntress should help. After that Farkas and Vilkas will give out quests again.
 * If Farkas is a follower and the Dragonborn uses the spell Clairvoyance, the spell's light may only guide them to Farkas and not to the objective.
 * If Farkas is left in Dustman's Carin for a long period of time, at least a month, upon returning to the area, he will continually engage in conversation with the Dragonborn. This will interrupt combat. He will also follow them everywhere, including prison. Finishing the quest in Dustman's Cairn will not fix this.
 * Sometimes Farkas will show up about half-way between Nightgate Inn, and Anga's Mill. He still has the same dialogue options, but will comment that he is "tired of wandering around".
 * If given the wolf armor, after some time it will turn into his default armor. This may happen since he was intended to wear this as his default armor.
 * Farkas, as with a few of the Companions, may act as if Skjor is still alive, with dialog stating he is. This may or may not be related to the bug where Skjor actually comes back to life, due to essential characters returning after one month game time.
 * If Farkas is tagged as essential, he may still pursue the Dragonborn around Whiterun, regardless of his injuries. For instance, if a Dremora Lord is summoned to kill him, he may be decapitated, resulting in a headless Farkas running around the city. If he is headless, dialogue boxes are open, but not usable.
 * Dropping armor near Farkas will cause him to open the dialog box, asking if he can have the armor that was dropped. Even if he has permission to keep the armor, he won't pick it up; it'll stay there. Talking to him again will make him ask for the armor once more. This continues until he is told he can't keep the armor.
 * Like his brother, he also can be very difficult to recruit into the Blades, as he may initiate dialogue with the Dragonborn anytime they try to speak to Delphine, or any other time dialog is finished.
 * Farkas may set any or all armor in his possession as his starting armor, even if it isn't, making it impossible to take it away from him.
 * This can be resolved by using the console commands  after selecting Farkas by either clicking on him or using his ID.
 * After marrying Farkas, his steel armor will be sold in the shop he opens. He may not wear it when he is not a follower.
 * After purchasing his steel armor, he may refuse to carry anything heavy.
 * After marrying Farkas and choosing to keep on living at Jorrvaskr, he may vanish during the night.
 * A possible fix is to complete Purity, once he returns to Jorrvaskr, he will hurry to his room.
 * In Dustman's Cairn, if the Dragonborn accidentally hits Farkas while killing the draugr in the first room, he will continuously limp around, even at full health. Dialogue with him will be disabled and he will not help when the Dragonborn gets trapped behind the bars and the Silver Hand come in. He will not turn into a werewolf and the Silver Hand will never come.
 * This can be fixed by loading from a point previous to him limping around at full health.
 * If married to him, he may not sleep in any house beside Hjerim, where he will choose the housecarl's bed instead of the one in the master bedroom.
 * It is possible for Farkas to marry the Dragonborn if he is made a follower by dropping armor, before completing the Companions questline.
 * If B is pressed during the conversation after Farkas shows the Dragonborn his room after entering the Companions, the quest "Intimidate Faendal" may not appear on the journal, nor will Farkas or anyone else will give another Companions' quest.
 * After being killed by anything he will still follow the Dragonborn, and he can still be talked to. This can be fixed by fast traveling somewhere.
 * Sometimes, if given an Orcish battleaxe, he will equip it like a one-handed axe after fast traveling.
 * Both Farkas and Vilkas suffer from a bug that will sometimes prevent them from entering combat. They will still shout combat dialogue, but will not enter the fight until they are made to yield, after which they will stand back up and enter the fight. Letting hostiles attack the player first will sometimes break the bug, but not always.
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Appearances


Farkas Farkas Farkas Фаркас