Skyrim Unarmed Build: The Complete Fist and Punching Guide (2026)
Short answer: play a Khajiit and take the Fists of Steel perk. Khajiit claws give you 22 base unarmed damage — five and a half times what every other race gets. Add Fists of Steel for up to +18 from Daedric gauntlets, and Fortify Unarmed on both gloves and a ring, and you can punch for more damage than most one-handed weapons.
Unarmed is the strangest build in Skyrim because it has no skill tree. You cannot level it. But you can stack flat bonuses until it out-damages steel.
Here’s exactly how.
The race question: Khajiit or don’t bother
This is not a preference. It’s arithmetic.
| Race | Base unarmed damage | Total |
|---|---|---|
| Khajiit | 10 base + 12 claws | 22 |
| Argonian | 10 base | 10 |
| Every other race | 4 base | 4 |
| Werewolf (Beast Form) | — | 20 |
| Vampire Lord | 10 base + 20 | 30 |
Khajiit does 22. Everyone else does 4. That’s 5.5× the damage from race selection alone.
Two corrections to things you’ll read elsewhere:
- The in-game text says Khajiit claws add 15 damage. The actual value is 12. The game lies.
- The game data also claims “claws do four times a man’s punch.” Also wrong — it’s 5.5× (22 vs 4).
Neither error matters to your build, but it tells you which guides actually checked.
If you’re not playing Khajiit, unarmed is a novelty, not a build. It’s fine for brawls and early levels. It will not carry you past level 30.
The damage stack — every bonus that exists
Unarmed has no skill tree, so damage comes from four flat sources. Stack all of them.
1. Race: Khajiit claws — 22 base
Nothing else gets close. Argonian is the distant second at 10.
2. Fists of Steel (Heavy Armor 30) — up to +18
This perk adds your gauntlets’ base armor value to your unarmed damage — but only for heavy armor gauntlets.
| Gauntlets | Base armor | Unarmed bonus |
|---|---|---|
| Iron | 10 | +10 |
| Steel | 13 | +13 |
| Dwarven | 15 | +15 |
| Orcish | 16 | +16 |
| Ebony | 17 | +17 |
| Daedric | 18 | +18 |
Critical detail most guides miss: smithing your gauntlets to Legendary quality does not increase this bonus. Neither does leveling Heavy Armor. It’s the base armor value only. A flawless Daedric gauntlet gives the same +18 as a plain one.
So don’t waste materials improving them. Wear the highest base-tier gauntlets and move on.
3. Fortify Unarmed enchantment — the multiplier
The Gloves of the Pugilist, found in The Ratway under Riften, are the only item in the base game with the Fortify Unarmed enchantment.
Disenchant them. Then apply the enchantment to:
- Both gloves/gauntlets
- A ring
That’s the key move: you can enchant a ring with Fortify Unarmed as well. Most players only enchant the gloves and leave damage on the table.
4. Vampire Lord or Werewolf — if you’re going there
Werewolf Beast Form punches for a flat 20. Vampire Lord does 30. Neither stacks with the gear bonuses above — they replace your character’s attacks entirely. Different build, worth knowing about.
The build, step by step
Stats
60% Health, 40% Stamina, 0 Magicka.
You have no weapons to swing, so Stamina only matters for sprinting and power attacks. Health keeps you alive in the range where punching happens — which is very close range.
Skills to actually level
Unarmed has no tree, so you level the skills that support it:
| Skill | Why |
|---|---|
| Heavy Armor | Unlocks Fists of Steel. This is the one that matters |
| Enchanting | Fortify Unarmed on gloves + ring |
| Smithing | Make your own Daedric gauntlets (for base value, not quality) |
| Sneak | Unarmed sneak attacks apply the multiplier |
| Alteration | Mage Armor perks give you armor rating while bare-handed |
Perk priority
- Fists of Steel (Heavy Armor 30) — non-negotiable, +18 damage
- Juggernaut ranks (Heavy Armor) — you’ll be in melee, survive it
- Conditioning (Heavy Armor 70) — heavy armor no longer slows you
- Enchanter ranks (Enchanting) — to make strong Fortify Unarmed gear
- Backstab / Assassin’s Blade (Sneak) — sneak-attack multipliers work unarmed
Skip Dual Flurry and Dual Savagery. Contrary to widespread belief, these perks have no effect whatsoever on unarmed attacks. They’re for dual-wielded weapons only.
The reach problem, and the dagger trick
Unarmed reach is 0.68 — shorter than a dagger (0.7) and much shorter than a one-handed weapon (1.0). You have to be closer than any other melee build, which means you eat more hits.
The trick: hold a dagger in your left hand and punch with your right. This brings your attack speed up to dagger speed (1.3), which is faster than default unarmed speed.
The cost: you can’t block, and your punch damage is unaffected. It’s a straight speed increase.
This is the single most useful mechanical tip in the unarmed playstyle, and almost nobody mentions it.
Sneak attacks — the damage multiplier
Unarmed attacks do benefit from sneak multipliers. Combined with the Assassin’s Blade perk and the Shrouded Gloves from the Dark Brotherhood (which double backstab damage), a Khajiit landing a sneak punch can deal well over 100 damage in one hit at low levels.
This is how unarmed stays viable past level 20 — not by out-damaging a sword in a straight fight, but by ending fights before they start.
What unarmed actually can’t do
Let me be straight with you, because most unarmed guides aren’t.
Unarmed damage does not scale with level. A sword gets stronger as you level One-Handed. Your fists do not. The flat bonuses (claws, Fists of Steel, enchantments) are fixed.
By level 40, a well-built sword character out-damages you. Significantly.
Unarmed works as:
- A full playthrough on Adept or below
- A themed roleplay build
- An early-game powerhouse (Khajiit out-damages steel weapons until roughly level 10)
- A brawling build for the many fistfight quests
Unarmed does not work as a Legendary-difficulty endgame build. If someone tells you it does, they’re either running mods or haven’t tried it.
Brawls — the one place you’re unstoppable
Skyrim has several fistfight quests where weapons and magic are disabled. Most players strip their gear and hope. You don’t have to.
In a brawl, Fists of Steel and your Fortify Unarmed enchantments still apply. You walk into a fistfight doing 40+ damage per punch against NPCs doing 4.
Brawls are available in almost every hold and several are quest-gated — beating someone in a brawl is a prerequisite for some property purchases.
Frequently asked questions
What’s the best race for unarmed in Skyrim?
Khajiit, without question. 22 base damage versus 4 for every other race. Argonian is second at 10.
Does unarmed damage increase with level in Skyrim?
No. That’s the defining limitation. Unarmed damage comes from flat bonuses only — race, Fists of Steel, and Fortify Unarmed enchantments. It never scales with your character level.
Is unarmed viable in Skyrim?
On Adept and below, yes, for a full playthrough. On Expert or Legendary past level 40, no — weapon builds will out-damage you badly.
Where do you get the Gloves of the Pugilist?
In The Ratway beneath Riften, worn by an NPC in the brawling area. It’s the only base-game source of Fortify Unarmed — disenchant it to learn the effect.
Does smithing improve Fists of Steel damage?
No. The perk adds the gauntlets’ base armor value. Improving quality or leveling Heavy Armor does nothing.
Do Dual Flurry and Dual Savagery affect unarmed attacks?
No. Both perks have zero effect on unarmed combat despite common claims otherwise.
Can you block while unarmed?
No. You can’t block with your fists. This is why the dagger-in-off-hand trick costs you nothing — you weren’t blocking anyway.
What’s the highest unarmed damage possible?
Roughly 22 (Khajiit) + 18 (Daedric Fists of Steel) + Fortify Unarmed on two gloves and a ring. Stacked with sneak multipliers, individual hits exceed 200.
The bottom line
Unarmed is a real build, but it’s a narrow one. Play Khajiit or don’t play it. Take Fists of Steel. Disenchant the Gloves of the Pugilist and put that enchantment on both a glove and a ring. Hold a dagger in your off-hand so you punch at dagger speed.
Then accept what it is: the best early-game build in Skyrim and a genuinely fun mid-game one, that falls behind weapon builds in the late game.
Punch the room. Just bring a backup plan for the dragon.
Sources: UESP — Unarmed Combat · UESP — Heavy Armor · UESP — Enchanting
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