The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim has become infamous not only for its scale and freedom but for the many bugs that have somehow persisted since its launch in 2011. Despite numerous patches and re-releases, some of these glitches have remained, either due to their complexity or because they’ve become oddly beloved. Here’s a look at the funniest bugs that continue to make Skyrim a chaotic delight.
1. Flying Mammoths
One of Skyrim’s most iconic and inexplicable bugs involves mammoths occasionally floating or flying into the sky. Sometimes they drift upward slowly like oversized balloons; other times they launch into the air as if shot from a catapult. The bug seems tied to collision physics or spawn pathing, but Bethesda never fully addressed it. It’s become such a common sight that many players now see it as a quirky feature rather than a flaw.
2. Decapitated Enemies Who Keep Talking
In certain fights, if a kill animation triggers at just the wrong moment, enemies can be decapitated yet still deliver post-mortem dialogue. Guards will shout warnings even after their heads have hit the floor, and bandits can beg for mercy with no visible mouth. It’s both absurd and grimly hilarious, particularly during tense combat where immersion takes a sudden nosedive.
3. Inverted or Stretched NPCs
Occasionally, characters or creatures will be rendered as twisted, noodle-like abominations, stretching into bizarre shapes across the screen. This visual bug often arises from mod conflicts or physics hiccups, but it’s been known to happen in vanilla Skyrim too. There’s nothing quite like walking into Dragonsreach and finding Farengar’s limbs tangled around the ceiling beams.
4. The Giant Space Launch
Get hit by a giant’s club and you might be sent rocketing into the clouds, your corpse sailing hundreds of feet into the air. This was partly patched to reduce frequency, but it still happens, particularly at lower levels. The sheer spectacle of being turned into a human projectile is equal parts terrifying and ridiculous.
5. Animals Reporting Crimes
There was a long-standing bug where animals such as chickens or goats could report your crimes, triggering bounties in nearby holds. If you murdered a chicken in Riverwood, you might find yourself pursued by the law shortly after, all because a bird saw you do it. This bug became so well known that even Todd Howard referenced it in interviews.
6. NPCs Sitting in Mid-Air
Due to pathfinding or missing furniture meshes, it’s not uncommon to see NPCs casually sitting in mid-air, chatting as if perched on invisible benches. Taverns are the most frequent location for this, especially if a mod has altered furniture positions. The deadpan normality of it only makes it funnier.
7. Weapon Ragdoll Madness
Sometimes when dropping or interacting with weapons, they can fling themselves across the room or begin vibrating violently. This often happens with enchanted or quest-related items, and while harmless, it can be disruptive during moments where you’re trying to be sneaky or serious.
8. Horses That Defy Gravity
Skyrim’s horses are loyal but ill-behaved. They can climb near-vertical cliffs, phase through walls, or occasionally start floating away during combat. Sometimes they ignore terrain altogether and glide across surfaces like ghosts. It’s not unusual to see a horse calmly walking halfway up a mountain with no regard for physics.
9. Items That Refuse to Stay Still
Tables, plates, and food items are notorious for jittering uncontrollably when entering certain locations. It’s a Havok physics issue, often triggered by new cells loading too quickly or improperly. The result is a room full of objects clattering and bouncing as if haunted.
10. Followers Blocking Doors Forever
Companions like Lydia often love to stand in doorways. While this is more a design flaw than a traditional bug, the AI pathing can break entirely, causing followers to get stuck, refuse to move, or even stand in fire without reacting. Some players develop elaborate rituals just to get past them.
The Seven Swords takeaway:
Bethesda’s games have always balanced ambition with chaos, and Skyrim is the most vivid example. While some bugs are immersion-breaking or frustrating, many have become part of the game’s identity. Even after more than a decade, players continue to stumble upon strange physics, awkward animations, and bizarre AI behaviour that make Skyrim feel oddly alive.
