Hagravens are the wicked witches of The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim. Making use of powerful magic and razor-sharp claws to attack their foes, they make for fearsome enemies. Known for their crone-like appearance, the hagravens of Skyrim (and beyond) have been around as early as the First Era. Since then, they’ve spread across the land, though the player can find plenty of them in the Reach.
However, this raises the question of where the hagravens came from. Looking into some of Skyrim’s quests and in-game texts reveals that hagravens were once human. Specifically, they were witches.
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The Price of Ultimate Magical Power
In a Skyrim book entitled “Herbane's Bestiary: Hagravens,” the author tells the story of how a beautiful young woman was cast out of her town for practicing the dark arts. She fled from the Reach and never returned to her former home. Sometime later, sightings of a strange half-woman, half-bird creature were reported deep in the mountains. This creature was the hagraven and, following its sightings, more young women began to disappear.
Herbane, the titular author, traveled to the Reach to see a hagraven for himself. After having come face to face with the creature and defeating it, he writes that it was an abomination — “nothing more than a husk of humanity surrendered in exchange for possession of the powers of dark magic.” Its deformed, misshapen body was likely a necessary consequence that came with acquiring magical prowess.
Further information can be gleaned from “Herbalist's Guide to Skyrim.” The book corroborates Herbane’s claim that hagravens were once humans, then goes on to explain that the transformation infused the creature’s body with magical power. This is likely what elevated the hagraven’s magical capabilities. Additionally, the transformation also granted hagravens an increased resistance to magic, as shown by the alchemical effects of hagraven claws.
Despite their morbid appearance, however, hagravens are revered by the Forsworn as well as the Reachfolk that lived before them. This is shown in “The Legend of Red Eagle,” when an unnamed hagraven makes a pact with Faolan, the so-called Red Eagle of the Reach. In the text, the hagraven and its kind are described as “ancient and venerable,” suggesting that the Reachfolk have a long history of worshipping the hagravens. There is further proof of this in the treatise “The “Madmen” of the Reach,” where a Forsworn is quoted saying that these “hags” have been in the Reach since the beginning and that they are on the side of the Reachfolk.
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Despite the Forsworns’ devotion to the hagravens, it would seem that many of these creatures go off with agenda of their own. While there are, indeed, hagravens living among the Forsworn, there are others who live in the further reaches of Skyrim, tending to other matters. This is seen in multiple side quests in Skyrim.
For instance, witches from the Glenmoril Coven — a group of witches dating back as early as the Second Era — underwent the transformation in the Fourth Era. Sometime before that, they struck a deal with the Companions, allowing them to turn chosen members into werewolves. In the events of Skyrim, the player is then sent to kill the witches and retrieve their severed heads as these provided a cure to lycanthropy. Thus, allowing the afflicted Companions to enter Sovngarde after death, instead of Hircine’s Hunting Grounds. This is done for the quest “Blood’s Honor” of the Companions questline.
Another example of this is seen in the “Repentance” side quest. In this quest, the player must assist Illia, an Imperial mage, in killing her own mother, Silvia. Illia explains that she was once a part of the hagraven’s coven but that she couldn’t take their evil doings anymore. Her mother, however, was still part of the coven and was to undergo “The Initiation,” where she would become a hagraven. According to Illia, the transformation required a human sacrifice.
Not All Hagravens Are the Same
Yet another instance is “The Affairs of Hagravens” quest. This one is unique in that it allows the player to speak to a hagraven and even team up with them. The premise is quite simple: help Melka the hagraven retake her tower from another hagraven. What’s interesting, however, is the fact that Melka cannot speak complex sentences. She doesn’t even recognize the player’s race, mistaking humanoid races as Bretons, and Khajiit and Argonians as Orcs.
This is an interesting distinction, as mages and witches are often seen as intelligent individuals who’ve a deep understanding of the arcane arts. That said, fans may wonder why Melka is unable to tell a Dark Elf from a Breton. One theory is that perhaps hagravens don’t just lose their physical human characteristics, but their “humanity” as well. This could include their knowledge of human (and elven) affairs as well as abilities needed to assimilate into society, namely speech. However, this may not be the case, as the player can meet another hagraven who is much more eloquent.
In the infamous “A Night to Remember” quest, the player is challenged to a drinking contest by Sam Guevenne (later revealed to be the Daedric Prince Sanguine), who also offers a staff should the Dragonborn best him. Accepting the offer will inevitably end with the player falling unconscious and then waking up in a Temple of Dibella. Thus begins the player’s quest to find Sam Guevenne and claim the staff.
While retracing their steps, the player will learn that they have a spouse-to-be, to whom they gave an expensive wedding ring. This trail will lead them to Moira, a hagraven and the Dragonborn’s fiancé. Compared to Melka, Moira immediately recognizes the player and speaks in complete sentences. Unfortunately, the player doesn’t end up marrying them. That aside, this suggests that hagravens have varying levels of intelligence (but are still capable of love). Though it isn’t clear what factors affect this intelligence.
One possible factor could be the hagraven’s age. Perhaps the longer a hagraven lives, the more it loses its humanity, becoming more monstrous as time passes. Alternatively, it could have something to do with the actual transformation ritual. Botching it may have adverse effects on the resulting hagraven’s cognitive abilities. Note, however, that these are only theories, and there exists no answer in The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim as to the specific nature of these creatures. Perhaps the next entry in The Elder Scrolls series can shed more light on the matter.
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim is available for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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