Summary
Even without any mods or add-ons,The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrimis still a pretty engaging game. There’s such a large map to see and so many different quests to finish that players who plan on finishing the game vanilla-style aren’t likely to get bored any time soon. For those wanting to change things up and introduce challenges into the game, turningSkyriminto a survival experience might just be the solution.Countless modsout there change the gameplay in a way that makes it essential for players to focus on details like hunger, diseases, and even temperature changes.
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Given how active the modding community forSkyrimis, it’s easy to see why the gameplay of this game can be overhauled in such a major manner. No one could’ve expected this simple open-world RPG to turn into a competent survival title, but the power of mods has managed to turn this, and many other things, into a reality that impresses many people.
Updated Jul 19, 2025 by Ritwik Mitra:Skyrim is one of the greatest video games ever made, and it’s easy to see why players just can’t get enough of this wonderful RPG. Even now, more than a decade after its launch, Skyrim still sees an impressive player count as players spend hours upon hours in this incredible title.
The modding support for this game has contributed a lot to letting players enjoy a wonderful time as they tweak every aspect of the game or overhaul major systems altogether, making for a unique, personalized experience every single time. Players who love Skyrim and can’t get enough of this great game can check out a wealth of mods to turn the open-world RPG into a brilliant survival RPG!
1Realistic Needs And Diseases
Downloads: 119,212
Any player will love a mod that heightens their immersion while playingSkyrim, and the Realistic Needs And Diseases mod is a perfect fit for players who want to make the game more nerve-wracking than ever before. With this mod, players have to be extra careful while exploring the world of this game.
The Dragonborn needs to manage their hunger and thirst levels all the time. Overeating can cause players to feel rather bloated, which reduces their stats in combat. Based on how healthy the player’s eating patterns are, the Dragonborn can either be really muscular or skinny and weak, which does a great job of forcing players to interact with the game in a way they never have before!
2Usable Vanilla Lanterns
Downloads: 30,837
Having a light source inSkyrimis important if players want to turn the game into a hardcore survival experience, with revamped nights making it a pain to see in the dark. This makes it important to find lanterns that can light the Dragonborn’s path whenever required.
With this mod, most of the vanilla light sources that look like lanterns but can’t be interacted with in the game are swapped with functioning lanterns. It may sound like a small change, but players seeking out a hardcore survival experience will love this immersive change that reduces player frustration if they run out of lanterns.
3Survival Mode (Creation Club)
Downloads: N/A
The Creation Club was met with huge fan outcry, prompting fans to roll back their changes and only allow a few select mods to qualify for the paid category. The Survival mode that players can download in the Creation Club is a great way to make the game more challenging to play.
In fact, most people would argue that this mod is downright necessary for players whowant to turnSkyriminto the ultimate survival experience. It’s a great and simple way to add numerous balanced survival mechanics toSkyrimand force players to approach the game differently.
4Fast Travel Cost
Downloads: 13,100
Fast travel is one of those gameplay features that makes traversing the open world easier, but it also really breaks the immersion. Moreover, it can be easy to abuse to get out of sticky situations by running far away from an enemy and then fast traveling away.
The Fast Travel Costs mod tweaks fast travel so that every time a player uses it, they lose a bit of gold. The amount depends entirely on the distance traveled. This makes fast travel a more strategic choice and forces players to consider when to use it and when to not use it. It also ensures players can’t escape the harshness of other survival mods by just skipping any travel time.
5Requiem
Downloads: 114,163
If having too many mods is a concern, then Requiem is an excellent choice for players who want to start small and expand from there. Though, Requiem is anything but small. It changes many aspects of the game, making Skyrim much more lore-friendly, immersive, and realistic.
The most important change Requiem introduces is to stop the scaling ofthe enemies in Skyrim. This means that early on, some areas in the world will feel incredibly difficult and will encourage the player to engage in combat with a more strategic mindset.
6Advanced Cooking
Downloads: 3,238
While other mods on this list will make cooking more interesting with new recipes and ingredients, Advanced Cooking tweaks the actual mechanics of cooking to be more skill-based. After all, why would the Dragonborn know instantly how to cook the heartiest, most powerful meal?
Advanced Cooking introduces a sort of cooking skill system. The higher the player’s level, the better recipes they can cook. This prevents players from abusing how overpowered some of the recipes in Skyrim are and just how easy they are to make.
7Immersive Horses
Downloads: 229,686
With some survival mods and the principles of survival gameplay, fast travel is a big no-no, as it allows players to go past the hostility of the wilds. Due to this, having a good mod that overhaulsthe horses of Skyrimis a necessity, and there’s no better one for this than Immersive Horses.
Not only does it add a bunch of commands and a whole system for summoning a specific horse to the player’s location, but it also brings in a few new breeds. Moreover, horses won’t just be docile vehicles from now on. They can also attack and move in different ways, making them more adjusted for combat.
8Simple Taxes
Downloads: 35,600
Survival isn’t just about living and camping in the wild. It’s also about managing money and the economy in an era of medieval cities and merchants. Without making things too complicated, the mod Simple Taxes introduces the burden of taxation on the Dragonborn’s shoulders.
With money already scarce, the player now also has to budget with taxation in mind.Property like horses and houseswill need to be paid for, although their respective cost and whether these systems are active can be tailored depending on the player’s wants and needs.
9Wearable Lanterns
Downloads: 692,630
One of the most annoying features ofSkyrimis the inability to carry a lantern on one’s belt for some extra light during the night or in dungeons. Instead, the player is forced to sacrifice either hand to carry a torch or cast a mage light. Wearable Lanterns change this.
The Dragonborn can now carry a lantern on their belt, one which they’ve crafted themselves as well. This becomes especially useful in Campfire as well since the two mods complement each other when making a campfire or paper lanterns.
10Hunterborn SE
Downloads: 388,174
Survival deals a lot with cooking food inSkyrim, which is a generally underappreciated mechanism of the game. As such, it’s nice to have a few additional recipes with new effects to make survival a bit more plausible. Slaying a dragon will now not only yield a bit of loot but alsosome ingredientsfor hearty food.
It’s not just new recipes that the mod Hunterborn introduces. The process of actually hunting and preparing the animal for cooking is more complex as well. Foraging for food in the forests of Skyrim has also been changed to feel more realistic, so there’s a real reason to get cooking.
