Players will often come across powerful enemies in Skyrim Special Edition that deplete their health bar in just one or two hits. Enemies like giants and legendary dragons can easily take down players in a matter of seconds. In order to survive these attacks, players need armor with a high armor rating.
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The game allows players to improve their armor to a certain degree, but due to an exploit, players can improve their armor rating up to a million. In order to make sure the exploit works as intended, players must make sure that the Unofficial Skyrim Special Edition Patch is disabled in their mod load order.
Acquire Alchemy Ingredients
Players will need to make three potions for the exploit to work. They will need about 30 Fortify Restoration Potions, 6 or 7 Fortify Alchemy Potions, and 6 to 7 Fortify Smithing Potions. To make these potions, players will need certain ingredients that are found easily throughout Skyrim.
Yellow Mountain Flowers
The Yellow Mountain Flowers were added as part of the Dawnguard DLC, and are commonly found in areas added by the DLC. Players will need to get to the Ancestor Glade, where they will these flowers in abundance. Find the Ancestor Glade by heading East of Falkreath and taking the way up the mountain.
Since these are one of the components of the Fortify Restoration potion, players need to pick at least 30 flowers in total. A thorough sweep of the area should yield enough flowers.
Ancestor Moth Wings
The Ancestor Moth Wings are required to make a Fortify Enchanting potion. These moths are also found at the Ancestor Glade East of Falkreath, and players can easily pick a few moths inside as they are found in abundance here.
Players only need about 5 to 6 wings, but it is recommended to pick a few back-ups as well. Alternatively, players can pick Blue Butterfly Wings, which are found at the farms outside Whiterun or at Clearing areas across Skyrim.
Salt Piles
Players will next need to acquire 30 Salt Piles to craft the Fortify Restoration potion. They can easily buy them from the various Alchemy vendors in Skyrim, or take them from NPC homes.
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Vendors will have the Salt Piles in limited quantities and in order to acquire more, players will need to use a glitch. Players must buy all piles, save their game, kill the vendor, and then reload the game. In doing so, the vendor's stock will have replenished and players can buy more Salt Piles. Alternatively, players can wait two days in-game until the vendor restocks.
Spriggan Sap
Spriggan Sap is another component that will allow players to craft a Fortify Enchanting potion. These are found at various alchemy shops and player homes. Players will need nearly 12 Spriggan Sap for both the Fortify Enchantment and Fortify Smithing potions.
To get the necessary amounts, players can exploit the above glitch in which they kill the vendor and then reload the game. Alternatively, players can check other alchemy vendors or wait until the sap is in stock.
Blisterwort
Blisterwort is almost always in stock at alchemy vendors, and in the event they are not, players can simply check other alchemy vendors in the game. Additionally, it grows commonly in caves throughout the world. Players will need only one Blisterwort, for their Fortify Smithing potion.
Acquire Filled Grand Soul Gems
Soul Gems are required to enchant gear that will provide bonuses while improving armor. By using a Grand Soul Gem that is filled with a Grand Soul, players ensure the enchantment will be the strongest. Players can find the Soul Gems for purchase at the various court wizards in Skyrim's hold capitals. A court wizard may have to up to two filled Grand Soul Gems at a time for sale and players will need to go to other court wizards for more Soul Gems.
How To Fill Grand Soul Gems
Alternatively, players can buy unfilled Grand Soul Gems and fill them themselves by slaying certain enemies after casting the Soul Trap spell on them. However, these enemies pose a significant challenge, and players need to be careful facing them. Mammoths that roam the wilds of Skyrim or Draugr Death Overlords are some of the enemies that yield a Grand Soul. Players will need six soul gems in total, but having backups can be beneficial.
Acquire Fortify Alchemy & Smithing Enchantments
Players who already know these enchantments don't need to hunt them down — they can skip this step. However, those who still need to learn will need to find items with these enchantments, in order to learn them via disenchanting.
The various blacksmiths and general goods merchants in Skyrim are known to have gear with Fortify Alchemy and Fortify Smithing enchantments. They are randomly generated, so if players do not find the items in stock, they can wait two days in-game for the vendor inventory to refresh. Alternatively, they can travel to another hold and try a different blacksmith.
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The Silver Blood questline in Markarth yields a ring with the Fortify Smithing enchantment if players side with the Silver Bloods. Players can also find a ring with a Fortify Alchemy enchantment, during Frida's quest in Dawnstar. However, both quests can take time and effort on the players' parts.
Make Fortify Restoration Potions With Enhanced Alchemy Skill
Players need to enchant some gear with the Fortify Alchemy enchantment. They will need a helmet, a pair of gauntlets, a necklace, and a ring with the enchantment. By using the Grand Soul Gems mentioned above, players ensure that the enchantments they put on are stronger than using Common Soul Gems or even Greater Soul gems. Once the gear is enchanted, follow these steps:
- Put this gear on, and make a Fortify Restoration potion using a Salt Pile and a Yellow Mountain Flower.
- Take the potion.
- Unequip the enchanted gear and put it on again.
Players will see the enchantment percentage increase when they re-equip the enchanted, gear due to a glitch. Players must repeat steps 1-3 until the Fortify Alchemy enchantment percentage is in millions.
Craft Fortify Enchanting & Fortify Smithing Potions
While players have the overpowered alchemy enchantment gear equipped, they must make a Fortify Enchanting potion using an Ancestor Moth Wing and some Spriggan Sap. Players can craft some extra potions while they have the opportunity to use them later on in the game.
Secondly, players must now make a Fortify Smithing potion. To do so, players will need one Blisterwort and one Spriggan Sap.
Enchant Gear With Fortify Smithing
Players must now first drink the Fortify Enchanting potion and enchant another set of gear with the Fortify Smithing enchantment. Players will need a helmet, a pair of gauntlets, a ring, and a necklace for this purpose. They can use the cheapest gear they can find at a blacksmith for this purpose.
Players can also use this opportunity to enchant a ring with the Fortify Alchemy enchantment. In doing so, players will not need to go through the entire exploit process from beginning to end again, and can simply wear the ring to create extremely powerful potions.
Craft Armor And Improve Armor
When players have finally acquired the gear with the Fortify Smithing enchantment, they must head over to a forge and craft the armor set of their choosing. Once done, players must now drink the Fortify Smithing potion and put on the gear with the enchantment.
The Dragonborn must now approach a workbench and then improve the armor set they have just made. With the buffs from the potion and the gear, they will find that the improved gear now yields an armor rating in the millions. If players want to go above and beyond this point, they can take one of the Fortify Enchanting potions and put a Fortify Health enchantment on it, just to make themselves extra invincible.