How much weaker are you in The Soul Cairn?

In Skyrim's Dawnguard DLC, if you choose to have your soul partially trapped to enter the Soul Cairn (instead of becoming a vampire), you are affected by the Weakened Soul ability. This makes you weaker in the following ways:
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Should I become a vampire or let Serana Soul trap me?

For most players, letting Serana soul trap you (partial soul trap) is the better choice, as it's a minor debuff in the Soul Cairn you can recover from, while becoming a Vampire Lord locks you into vampirism (unless cured), potentially hindering the Dawnguard questline and causing issues if you want to remain mortal or a Werewolf; you can always become a Vampire Lord later if you want, even after the main quest. 
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What happens if I become partially soul trapped?

If you become partially soul trapped in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, your health, stamina, and magicka regeneration slow down significantly (by 45 points each) while you're in the Soul Cairn, but this is temporary and fixable; you just need to find your soul essence gem during the "Beyond Death" quest to restore your stats and remove the "Weakened Soul" effect, making it a viable choice to avoid becoming a Vampire Lord. 
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How to remove Soul Cairn debuff?

Health, Magicka and Stamina recover slowly while in the Soul Cairn and are reduced by 45 points. The ability can be removed if the Soul Essence Gem is found whilst in the Soul Cairn.
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What happens when you enter the Soul Cairn?

One cannot enter the Soul Cairn without being a vampire or being partially soul trapped. Being soul trapped causes the Weakened Soul ability to activate, which decreases magicka, health, and stamina by 45 points and causes them to recover slowly while in the Soul Cairn.
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Skyrim: 5 Things They Never Told You About The Soul Cairn

What quest gives you 20,000 gold in Skyrim?

Another option is to complete the Dark Brotherhood. Doing so will net you 20000 gold for the final mission and this will start a repetable mission called The Dark Brotherhood Forever.
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How many times will Serana make you a vampire?

Serana can turn you into a Vampire Lord an unlimited number of times, provided you've completed the Dawnguard questline and haven't persuaded her to cure herself. After the main quest, you can simply ask her to transform you as often as you like, but you'll need to get cured by Harkon or a priest to interact normally with the Dawnguard again. 
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Is it better to side with the vampires or the dawnguard?

Choosing between Dawnguard or Vampire in Skyrim's DLC depends on your playstyle: Dawnguard offers powerful crossbows, unique sun-based spells, trolls, and a focus on traditional vampire hunting, while Vampires provide the potent Vampire Lord form with unique powers, vampire-specific jewelry, and a darker roleplaying experience, though becoming a vampire early can alienate Dawnguard members and vendors. You can even join the Vampires later as a Dawnguard member for a mix of rewards, but expect bugs with Dawnguard interactions.
 
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Is it worth playing Skyrim unmodded?

Playing Skyrim without mods saves you time, letting you enjoy the game immediately. And you won't quit after just an hour or two, as if you had taken an arrow to the knee, realizing you've spent more time installing mods than actually playing.
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What is the most powerful soul gem in Skyrim?

The strongest soul gems in Skyrim are the Black Soul Gem, the Grand Soul Gem, and the unique reusable versions, The Black Star and Azura's Star, all capable of holding the most potent Grand level souls for maximum enchantment power. While Grand Soul Gems hold creature souls, Black Gems capture human/NPC souls (always Grand), making them highly efficient, with The Black Star being the reusable version of the Black Gem, and Azura's Star the reusable Grand Gem.
 
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Can you still become a Vampire Lord if you refuse Harkon?

Yes, you absolutely can become a Vampire Lord even after refusing Harkon's offer; you just need to get turned by Serana later in the questline or after completing it, either during "Chasing Echoes," "Kindred Judgement," or as a follower, as long as she hasn't been cured of her vampirism. This allows you to get the Vampire Lord form and powers without siding with Harkon initially, though it might affect your relationship with the Dawnguard if you're actively helping them. 
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Is there a downside to being a vampire in Skyrim?

Being a vampire in Skyrim comes with severe drawbacks like massive penalties to health, magicka, and stamina in sunlight, extreme fire weakness, and being attacked on sight by NPCs at higher stages, forcing you to feed constantly or risk becoming a vulnerable, hated monster, which severely hinders exploration and social interaction unless you manage stages carefully. 
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What is the best spouse to turn into a vampire in Skyrim?

For the "best" spouse to turn into a vampire in Skyrim (Dawnguard DLC), players often pick Ysolda (Whiterun) for unique dark red eye markings or Muiri (Windhelm) for her Dark Brotherhood ties fitting an evil path, though any non-follower spouse generally works, with Serana (modded) being popular for lore; just avoid Aela, Farkas, Vilkas (unless cured), and others on the exclusion list. 
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How many times can Serana turn you?

Serana can turn you back into a Vampire Lord an infinite number of times, but only after the entire Dawnguard questline is complete. She loses this ability if you persuade her to cure herself of vampirism. When you are a vampire, the Dawnguard will refuse to interact with you except to tell you how to cure yourself.
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How old is Serana?

Serana from The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is over 1,000 years old, having been sealed in Dimhollow Crypt for centuries, though her exact age when turned into a vampire (around the late Merethic or early First Era) isn't specified, she appears as a young adult, likely in her 20s or 30s, due to her vampiric nature stopping her aging process.
 
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Will Serana still follower if you choose Dawnguard?

Yes, you absolutely can get Serana as a follower if you join the Dawnguard; she's a core companion for the entire Dawnguard DLC questline, regardless of which faction (Dawnguard or Vampires) you ultimately side with, and remains a permanent follower after completion if you choose. She'll follow you through most of the main story as an essential guide, and after the questline, she'll stay at Fort Dawnguard (or Castle Volkihar if you chose vampires) and can be recruited indefinitely. 
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What is a dirty mod in Skyrim?

Dirty edits are often a side-effect of mod creation, and are often due to bugs in the utilities Bethesda has provided to create mods, rather than bad practice by mod authors. Dirty edits can cause a wide range of issues, including incorrect game settings, missing content, broken quests and crashing to desktop.
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Has anyone ever 100% beaten Skyrim?

Skyrim finally truly beaten as fanatical player does 'everything that can be done' in the game, nabbing every item and perk in quest to hit level 1,337. This is how our grandparents felt watching the Moon landing.
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Are people still playing Skyrim in 2025?

As of 2025, Skyrim's player count is hitting its highest peak since 2016 when Special Edition was released 9 years ago.
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Can I become a Vampire Lord if I side with Dawnguard?

Yes, you absolutely can become a Vampire Lord after finishing the main Dawnguard questline in Skyrim by asking Serana to bite you, even if you sided with the Dawnguard. This ability remains available even after the DLC concludes, allowing you to switch between forms, though being a vampire will make the Dawnguard hostile and stop most of their radiant quests unless you cure yourself. 
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What happens if I accept Harkon's gift?

Accepting Lord Harkon's gift in Skyrim's Dawnguard DLC instantly turns the Dragonborn into a Vampire Lord, aligning you with the vampires against the Dawnguard, giving you immense power but making you weak in the sun and blocking normal Dawnguard quests unless you get cured and later choose the Vampire path again via Serana. Refusing banishes you but leaves the choice open, and you'll be attacked on sight by vampires.
 
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Is it better to become a vampire or get soul trapped?

You should become partially soul trapped, as it makes little difference, and you can always re-enter the Soul Cairn and regain it from a chest; Valacia will even tell you where it is. Become a vampire and you can go in as one fine, but you'll miss out on other side-quests.
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How many times can Aela turn you into a Werewolf?

That's right, you can only become a Werewolf twice (with the Dawnguard DLC installed). Before Dawnguard, it was only once. In the words of Aela, Hircine doesn't usually bestow his favor on the fickle.
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Can you marry Serana after she's cured?

No, you cannot marry Serana in the base Skyrim game, even after curing her vampirism, as she doesn't have the necessary dialogue or mechanics for marriage; however, you can marry her by using various player-made mods (like Serana Dialogue Add-On, Amorous Adventures, or Marry Me Serana) that add this functionality. Her character, due to past trauma, is naturally hesitant about marriage in the vanilla game, but mods can create a more in-depth romance and marriage path.
 
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Should you become a Werewolf in Skyrim?

Yes, you should become a werewolf in Skyrim for the powerful benefits and unique gameplay, especially for melee builds, as it offers disease immunity, incredible speed, and combat power, though it means losing sleep bonuses and risking guards' hostility during transformation; it's highly recommended to get it via the Companions questline for controlled access and the Dawnguard DLC skill tree.
 
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