Elk (Skyrim)

Elk are passive, wild animals in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. They are found in the wild and can be hunted for their venison, antlers, and hide. Their hide is used in Smithing, and when using a tanning rack, it can be turned into two pieces of leather, which then can be used in armor-making. Their antlers can be used as alchemy ingredients. Their venison can be used in cooking or to be eaten raw.

Elk are an abundant source of petty souls, needed for enchanting. This is because they are very common, and with the right hunting tactics, fairly easy to kill.

Behavior
They can often be seen running from other predators such as Bears and Hunters. Although normally passive, elk will still attack the Dragonborn, if spells like Fury are cast on it and the Dragonborn is the closest thing to the elk. Elk can also be seen wandering together with deer. With the right tactics, you can kill both of them and get easy leather and antlers.

Combat strategy
Elk are relatively weak, but fast. Two effective tactics are to sneak from a distance with a bow or dual-cast Destruction spells, such as Firebolt. Melee weapons, like a sword can be used to strike Elks, but the attack must land quickly, because Elks flee when startled. The Unrelenting Force, Ice Form, and Kyne's Peace shouts can be used to immobilize Elks.

Elk can be reanimated with the Conjuration spell, Raise Zombie. They do not aid their summoner in combat, but can be used as a distraction.

Elk can also be used to carry extra items to avoid becoming over encumbered. Doing this requires the following steps:
 * 1) You need to find and kill an elk
 * 2) Click the loot option when it shows up
 * 3) When in the items menu, place your excess items on the elk carcass
 * 4) After this step proceed to use the Raise zombie spell on it
 * 5) The Elk will now follow you and act as your pack mule until the spell runs out.

Loot

 * Deer Hide
 * Large Antlers or Small Antlers (Rare)
 * Venison

Trivia

 * Elk can sometimes drop gold or gems such as garnets.
 * Hunters commonly pursue these animals.
 * The elk in Skyrim seem to be Megaloceros, also called an Irish Elk, a species of extinct giant deer.

Bugs

 * Sometimes Elk can run along the ground underwater.