Conjuration (Skyrim)

For other uses, see Conjuration.

Conjuration is a skill in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and is one of the six skills that fall under the Path of Sorcery or The Mage constellation of skills.

Description

"The School of Conjuration is used to raise the dead, summon creatures from one of the planes of Oblivion, and soul trap opponents killed in combat."

―Loading Screens (Skyrim)

The conjuration skill is raised by casting Conjuration spells while enemies have detected the caster. The Summoning aspects of Conjuration raises the skill by the amount of time/damage output used in combat; these spells identify themselves as Conjuration spells and generally focus on summoning creatures from the planes of Oblivion or creating ethereal weapons from soul energy. Since Mysticism was removed, Soul Trap is now a Conjuration spell.

Skill Books

Main article: Skill Books (Skyrim)

The following books provide a permanent skill up to Conjuration. Exact locations of each book are found on their individual pages.

• 2920, vol 09 - Hearth Fire
• 2920, vol 10 - Frostfall
• Liminal Bridges
• The Doors of Oblivion
• The Warrior's Charge

Oghma Infinium also can increase the Conjuration skill - reading the "Path of Magic" increases Conjuration by five, as well as all other Mage skills.

Quests

The following Quests increase the Conjuration skill:

• Find Pantea's Flute for Pantea Ateia in the Bards College in Solitude. This quest also increases Alteration, Enchanting, Destruction, Restoration, and Illusion.

Spells

The following is a complete list of Conjuration spells:

Novice (skill level 0)

Spell Name	Description	Magicka Base Cost
Bound Dagger DR	Creates a magic dagger for 120 seconds. Sheathe it to dispel.	32
Bound Sword	Creates a magic sword for 120 seconds. Sheathe it to dispel.	93
Conjure Familiar	Summons a familiar for 60 seconds wherever the caster is pointing.	107
Raise Zombie	Reanimate a weak dead body to fight for the player for 60 seconds.	103
Summon Unbound Dremora	Summons an unbound Dremora.	100

Apprentice (skill level 25)

Spell Name	Description	Magicka Base Cost
Bound Battleaxe	Creates a magic battle axe for 120 seconds. Sheathe it to dispel.	169
Conjure Boneman DG	Summons a Boneman archer for 60 seconds wherever the caster is pointing.	129
Conjure Flame Atronach	Summons a Flame Atronach for 60 seconds wherever the caster is pointing.	150
Flaming Familiar	Summons a Flaming Familiar which will charge into battle and explode.	57
Reanimate Corpse	Reanimate a more powerful dead body to fight for the player for 60 seconds.	144
Soul Trap	If a target dies within 60 seconds, fills a soul gem.	107
Spectral Arrow (Bound Bow)	Fires a Spectral Arrow at the target doing 30 points of damage and staggering the target (shot from Bound Bow, but can be obtained alone with console commands).	0
Summon Arniel's Shade	Summons the Shade of Arniel Gane for 60 seconds wherever the caster is pointing.	0
Summon Arvak DG	Summons the horse Arvak wherever the caster is pointing.	136

Adept (skill level 50)

Spell Name	Description	Magicka Base Cost
Banish Daedra	Weaker summoned Daedra are sent back to Oblivion.	196
Bound Bow	Creates a magic bow for 120 seconds. Sheathe it to dispel.	207
Conjure Ash Spawn DR	Summons an Ash Spawn for 60 seconds wherever the caster is pointing:.	186
Conjure Frost Atronach	Summons a Frost Atronach for 60 seconds wherever the caster is pointing.	215
Conjure Mistman DG	Summons a Mistman from the Soul Cairn for 60 seconds wherever the caster is pointing.	193
Conjure Seeker DR	Summons a Seeker for 60 seconds wherever the caster is pointing.	157
Revenant	Reanimate a powerful dead body to fight for the player for 60 seconds.	183

Expert (skill level 75)

Spell Name	Description	Magicka Base Cost
Conjure Ash Guardian DR	Creates an Ash Guardian that guards that location until destroyed. Consumes a heart stone from your inventory, without which it will be hostile.	207
Command Daedra	Powerful summoned and raised creatures are put under the player's control.	243
Conjure Dremora Lord	Summons a Dremora Lord for 60 seconds.	358
Conjure Wrathman DG	Summons a Wrathman from the Soul Cairn for 60 seconds wherever the caster is pointing.	301
Conjure Storm Atronach	Summons a Storm Atronach for 60 seconds wherever the caster is pointing.	322
Dread Zombie	Reanimate a very powerful dead body to fight for the player for 60 seconds.	302
Expel Daedra	Powerful summoned daedra creatures are sent back to Oblivion.	215

Master (skill level 100)

Master spells cannot be purchased initially. To unlock Master Conjuration spells, the "Conjuration Ritual Spell" quest must be completed upon reaching level 90 Conjuration.

Spell Name	Description	Magicka Base Cost
Dead Thrall	Reanimate a dead body permanently to fight for the player.	1000
Flame Thrall	Summons a Flame Atronach permanently.	900
Frost Thrall	Summons a Frost Atronach permanently.	1100
Storm Thrall	Summons a Storm Atronach permanently.	1200

Starting spells

The following are Conjuration spells that the character can start with if the correct race is selected:

• The Conjure Familiar spell is unlocked for Bretons at the start of the game.

Perks

These perks become available to select as the skill is leveled up:

Perk (Ranks)	Requirements	Description	ID
Novice Conjuration	None	Cast Novice level Conjuration spells for half magicka	000F2CA7
Conjuration Dual Casting	Conjuration 20, Novice Conjuration	Dual casting a Conjuration spell overcharges the effects into a longer lasting version	000153CE
Mystic Binding	Conjuration 20, Novice Conjuration	Bound weapons do more damage	000640B3
Apprentice Conjuration	Conjuration 25, Novice Conjuration	Cast Apprentice level Conjuration spells for half magicka	000C44BB
Summoner (2)	Conjuration 30/70, Novice Conjuration	Can summon Atronachs, raise undead or Dremora Lords twice as far away (three times as far for the second rank at Conjuration 70)	00105F30 00105F31
Soul Stealer	Conjuration 30, Mystic Binding	Bound weapons cast Soul Trap on targets	000D799E
Necromancy	Conjuration 40, Novice Conjuration	Greater duration for reanimated undead	000581DD
Atromancy	Conjuration 40, Summoner	Double duration for conjured Atronachs and Dremora Lords	000CB419
Oblivion Binding	Conjuration 50, Soul Stealer	Bound weapons will banish summoned creatures and turn raised ones	000D799C
Adept Conjuration	Conjuration 50, Apprentice Conjuration	Cast Adept level Conjuration spells for half magicka	000C44BC
Dark Souls	Conjuration 70, Necromancy	Reanimated undead have 100 points more health	000581DE
Expert Conjuration	Conjuration 75, Adept Conjuration	Cast Expert level Conjuration spells for half magicka	000C44BD
Elemental Potency	Conjuration 80, Atromancy	Conjured Atronachs are 50% more powerful	000CB41A
Twin Souls	Conjuration 100, Elemental Potency OR Dark Souls	The player can have two conjured creatures	000D5F1C
Master Conjuration*	Conjuration 100, Expert Conjuration	Cast Master level Conjuration spells for half magicka	000C44BE

Training

Trainers

• Runil (Adept): Falkreath
• Phinis Gestor (Expert): College of Winterhold
• Falion (Master): Morthal
• Talvas Fathryon (Master): Tel Mithryn (requires Dragonborn DLC)

Leveling

• Summoning or reanimating a valid target will raise the skill (summoning creatures must be done while being detected by enemies). This can be done effectively by being in a place where the enemies are unable to reach out to the Dragonborn (such as behind locked doors) and repeatedly summoning or reanimating a target.
• To take advantage of the much faster magicka regen outside of combat, use Calm, Pacify, or Harmony from the Illusion school to temporarily pacify hostiles nearby and regain full magicka reserves while training. Switching to Magicka Regeneration gear will make this process even faster.
• Banishing a valid target will raise the skill (works for all summons). Summoning a creature and then subsequently banishing it also levels the skill quickly.
• Casting a Bound Item spell while in combat will raise the skill.
• Damage done by summoned or reanimated creatures will raise the skill.
• Casting a summoned creature and attacking it with Bound Sword or a Bound Dagger will raise the skill quickly.
• Lure an enemy to the Western Watchtower (usually a giant or mammoth, since there is a camp nearby) and repeatedly cast Soul Trap.
• Cast Soul Trap on Shadowmere or Frost. They will never become hostile, unlike followers or a purchased horse.
• Cast Soul Trap on a dead enemy; do this with the Mage Stone, the apprentice Conjuration perk, Robes of Conjuration (Conjuration spells cost 15% less, magicka regenerates 50% faster), the Necromancer Amulet and Nahkriin's mask. Combined with a good reserve of magicka (400 or greater) the Conjuration skill can be raised from 40 to 100 in roughly 15 minutes. These items can also help with other methods of leveling.
  • Alternatively, waiting for an hour when magicka runs dry will fully regenerate magicka, allowing Soul Trap to be cast again. This can prevent the need to acquire these items, although it might take longer to level up.
• Cast Soul Trap on the four prisoners in the torture chamber inside the Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary in Dawnstar.
• With the Mage Stone and clothing and/or jewelry to lessen the cost of Conjuration spells, the Flaming Familiar is a fast way to level up the Conjuration skill, especially when cast against powerful land-based enemies, such as Draugr Deathlords, Mammoths and Giants, as many Flaming Familiars will be needed to defeat such enemies.

Quests

Upon reaching Conjuration skill level 90, Phinis Gestor at the College of Winterhold offers the "Conjuration Ritual Spell" quest to teach the Dragonborn how to permanently summon a Flame Atronach / Frost Atronach / Storm Atronach / Dead Thrall. After completion, Phinis first gives Summon Flame Thrall, then offers all other Master level Conjuration Spell Tomes for a fee of roughly 3,000 : this price varies with the Speech skill perks and/or Barter enchantment(s) on items or from potions.

Trivia

• Casting a stronger Raise Dead spell on an enemy zombie while it is still in animation of reanimating will turn the corpse into your own summon while not taking any slot of your summoning creature count.
• Casting the same Raise Dead spell on your reanimated corpse will disintegrate it into an Ash Pile.
• You cannot reanimate decapitated (beheaded) corpses or corpses that have disintegrated into Ash Piles. Therefore taking perks like Savage Strike and Disintegrate are not recommended. Skeletons can only be reanimated if they are intact and not scattered bones.
  • Alternately, if a character does not use necromancy, using body destroying attacks will prevent enemy necromancers from raising them against you
• Dead Thralls may get "lost" in the environment, much like followers can. Waiting (using the "wait" function) or fast traveling can bring them back to the player character's position, though sometimes they will appear a few minutes after a fast travel, not immediately, like regular followers.
• Dead Thrall can reanimate Dremora Kynval.
• Casting Soul Trap on a corpse will cause it to become immune to any attempts at resurrecting it.
• Conjured followers are unaffected by the difficulty setting and thus retain the same effectiveness across all difficulty settings.
• If an enemy that is a conjurer is raised, its summoned creatures and undead may be hostile to that conjurer. They may then kill the conjurer, causing them to disappear.
• A quick way to level up the Dragonborn's Conjuration skill is to purchase Soul Trap, which can be purchased via a Court Wizard or Phinis Gestor if the Dragonborn's Conjuration is level 25+, killing any enemy and constantly casting Soul Trap on it. When magicka reserves are depleted, wait 1 hour in-game and keep using the spell until the desired level is achieved. If the Dragonborn is an Altmer then use the Highborn power to regenerate magicka quickly, use Magicka Potions, or use items that improve magicka reserves like Arch-Mage's Robe (after completing "The Eye of Magnus") or Morokei. Choosing the Apprentice Conjuration perk in the conjuration tree can also halve the cost of the spell.
• Another good way is to use Bound Weapons in combat. It will also level up the respective weapon, and also a good way to level One-Handed, Two-Handed, or Archery.
• A very effective combination using Twin Souls is a conjured Dremora Lord (using two hands) and the shout Call of Valor to summon one of the three original tongues. Since Call of Valor is a shout and not a spell, both can be cast one after the other. There is very little that can stand against both a Dremora Lord and Hakon One-Eye. There may be a bug when using typical conjurations (Summon Dremora Lord) and special conjurations (Call of Valor) even using Twin Souls, a Dremora Lord will disappear if Call of Valor is cast after it. To avoid this remember to cast special conjurations first, then cast a typical conjuration.
• It is not recommended to summon Atronachs at low levels while fighting Dragon Priests as they can use the Expert spell Command Daedra to gain control of them.
• A good way to level up Conjuration for those specializing in the One-Handed perk skill tree is to buy the Bound Sword and use it often, as it increases One-handed and Conjuration rather quickly. Even without the The Mage Stone, it levels quickly.
• The shout Summon Durnehviir functions as a Conjuration spell, unlike Call of Valor. Therefore, if there is already a creature summoned, the shout will replace the summoned creature, also, summoning something else while Durnheviir is still active will prematurely end him.
• Another technique is to find a store owner in a small town, and continuously attack them with a Conjuration spell or any other form of attack magic, while at the same time casting an Alteration or Illusion spell. This will raise the magic class level and also give an endless supply of experience, making leveling up easier. For a quick and easy level up, use an Alteration spell, like Oakflesh, and an Illusion spell, like Clairvoyance (Bound Sword and Bound Battleaxe can do this too) and cast them (not continuously but in bursts). This raises these skills quickly to level up and get perks.
• A creature from Aetherius is summoned in a light blue sphere while a daedra is summoned in a dark blue sphere.
• When Conjuration is a high level, Hold Guards will sometimes say "Hail, summoner. Conjure me up a warm bed, will you?"

Bugs

This section contains bugs related to Conjuration (Skyrim). Before adding a bug to this list, consider the following: Please reload an old save to confirm if the bug is still happening. If the bug is still occurring, please post the bug report with the appropriate system template  360  /  XB1  ,  PS3  /  PS4  ,  PC  /  MAC  ,  NX  /  PS5  ,  XS  , depending on which platform(s) the bug has been encountered on. Be descriptive when listing the bug and fixes, but avoid having conversations in the description and/or using first-person anecdotes: such discussions belong on the appropriate forum board.

•  PC   360   PS3   Sometimes, when casting a Conjure Familiar/Atronach/Dremora Lord, the portal may appear on-time, but the summoned creature may not. They will eventually summon, and the full 60/120 timeframe on non-thralls will not be affected.
• Spells of a summoning nature (Summon Dremora Lord, Summon Familiar, Summon Atronach, etc.) may not work. The sound effect will play and the screen will wash out for a moment, but the creature will not appear. This is caused by two things:
  • The Absorb Spell effect. May be given by a Guardian Stone, having the Atronach perk, or the Breton Dragonskin ability.
  • Summons appearing below the graphics. This can sometimes be caused by graphics not being properly registered in the Creation Kit as solid for a summon to spawn.
    • Solution: Try performing the summon spell on a different area of the game world.
• Elemental Atronachs can sometimes attack the Dragonborn if hit by a Destruction spell cast by the Dragonborn that causes no effect on the Atronach. (e.g. a Flame Atronach may attack the Dragonborn if hit by a few Firebolts.)
• A reanimated human corpse that is completely unarmed and made hostile by attacking them will search for the nearest weapon. If the said character enters a building, the body will turn to ash at the doorway.
• Sometimes, when reanimating a dead body, switching to a different spell immediately after the reanimate spell hitting the body, the body will remain dead with the reanimating effect around it.
• Thralls will not level up Conjuration when attacking.
• Currently a glitch exists where if the Dragonborn has an active Spell Absorption effect (Alteration perk, Atronach perk, Dragonskin Power, etc.) summon spells will be absorbed when cast for no net magicka cost.
• Occasionally summoned thralls will appear in your active effects menu but not be actively following you.
  • Solution: Summoning a new thrall will fix this issue.

Appearances

• The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind
• The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
• The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim