Skyrim One-handed perks
Fighting with swords, war axes, maces and daggers. One-handed is a warrior skill with 10 perks and 21 perk ranks.
- Perks
- 10 perks, 21 perk points to complete
- Skill type
- Warrior (Combat)
- Race bonus
- Redguard +10; Imperial, Khajiit, Nord, Orc +5
- XP 15 → 100
- 528,804 skill XP
- Training 15 → 90
- 120,450 gold (75 sessions)
One-handed perk tree
| Perk | Rank | Skill | Requires | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Armsman | 1/5 | 0 | — | +20% one-handed weapon damage |
| 2/5 | 20 | Armsman 1 | +40% one-handed weapon damage | |
| 3/5 | 40 | Armsman 2 | +60% one-handed weapon damage | |
| 4/5 | 60 | Armsman 3 | +80% one-handed weapon damage | |
| 5/5 | 80 | Armsman 4 | One-handed weapons deal double damage | |
| Fighting Stance | — | 20 | Armsman | One-handed power attacks cost 25% less stamina |
| Bladesman | 1/3 | 30 | Armsman | Swords: 10% chance of a critical hit |
| 2/3 | 60 | Bladesman 1 | Swords: 15% critical chance, +25% critical damage | |
| 3/3 | 90 | Bladesman 2 | Swords: 20% critical chance, +50% critical damage | |
| Bone Breaker | 1/3 | 30 | Armsman | Maces ignore 25% of armor |
| 2/3 | 60 | Bone Breaker 1 | Maces ignore 50% of armor | |
| 3/3 | 90 | Bone Breaker 2 | Maces ignore 75% of armor | |
| Dual Flurry | 1/2 | 30 | Armsman | Dual-wielding attacks are 20% faster |
| 2/2 | 50 | Dual Flurry 1 | Dual-wielding attacks are 35% faster | |
| Hack and Slash | 1/3 | 30 | Armsman | War axes cause extra bleeding damage |
| 2/3 | 60 | Hack and Slash 1 | War axes cause more bleeding damage | |
| 3/3 | 90 | Hack and Slash 2 | War axes cause even more bleeding damage | |
| Critical Charge | — | 50 | Fighting Stance | Sprinting power attacks deal double critical damage |
| Savage Strike | — | 50 | Fighting Stance | Standing power attacks deal 25% bonus damage and can decapitate |
| Dual Savagery | — | 70 | Dual Flurry | Dual-wielding power attacks deal 50% bonus damage |
| Paralyzing Strike | — | 100 | Critical Charge or Savage Strike | Backwards power attacks have a 25% chance to paralyze |
When a perk lists two prerequisites, you need only one of them.
Planning your One-handed perks
Completing the whole One-handed tree costs 21 of the roughly 80 perk points you get by level 81, so most builds take only the perks they will really use. Start with the perks at the bottom of the tree, then follow the branch that suits your play style up to its top perk.
The highest perks in the tree need a skill of 90 or 100: Bladesman (90), Bone Breaker (90), Hack and Slash (90), Paralyzing Strike (100).
How to level One-handed
Every time One-handed goes up, your character earns experience equal to the new skill level, so a high One-handed skill also helps you level up quickly. Raising it from 15 to 100 takes about 528,804 skill experience in total. Trainers can take it to 90 for about 120,450 gold, five sessions per character level. Use the skill XP calculator for exact numbers between any two levels.