The Dragonborn should not be outclassed by other Mages. Let's look at some mods to make sure they won't be. 

It’s no secret that Bethesda’s release of Skyrim left much to be desired for the up and coming mages of the world. A linear, one dimensional way to become the best mage was all that we could do. No Harry Potter-esque choice of future. Well, the modders of the world have created something for us: A better, magical place. These mods will make you the mage you always should have been.

1. Immersive College of Winterhold

Rework the College into something impressive, and pass off the Arch-Mage job if you want.

Let’s start with the college. This College of Winterhold is an embarrassing excuse for a mage college. This mod seeks to correct all of that.. In IMC the College becomes a brand new version of it’s old, unimpressive self.  There are random books lying around open that can each teach you something new. There are rooms dedicated to each of the studies. There’s research constantly being carried out. The library is larger and better. You can become the arch-mage, but if you’re too busy running around Skyrim, you don’t have to be the Arch-mage! Pass it off, and keep doing what you need to. (And feel free to continue on to Summerset Isle, if you want.)

2. Apocalypse – Magic of Skyrim

One of the problems with Skyrim is that the vanilla spells get boring. As you progress you get used to, and tired of, the same things again and again. Apocalypse adds over 100 brand new spells. They come with new animations, and are included in every school of magic. Want to create new objects? Feel like attacking with hailstones? Do it with this mod. The mod page has an in-depth description of all spells, but if you’re like me, you’ll want to download and find out for yourself.

Control the weather, fight with dragon’s teeth, or build magical bridges.

3. Balanced Magic

This mod fixes some of the original problems I had with Skyrim magic. It made no sense! As I got more powerful, I had to purchase my spell upgrades. This mod, among many other things, makes sure that as you level up your spells get more powerful. Your Magicka regenerates faster, and the less armor you’re wearing, the less it costs to cast spells, because your body is less encumbered. I love this mod because it makes sense. Wearing less should logically make it easier to cast spells, and with this mod it does.

4. Smart Cast

Common sense parameters mean you automatically heal yourself if your health falls too low.

My favorite thing about Smart Cast is that it brings in more common sense features than Balanced Magic could do alone. Smart Cast will automagically begin spells without your help if the right conditions are met. My personal favorite Smart Cast spell is the healing spell. If I’m in danger of dying, I don’t necessarily have time to equip healing and try and save my life. Smart Cast has my back. Even better, you can cast more than one spell with each hand. (That’s not quite as realistic, but go for it anyways.)

5. Wrath of Nature – The Path of the Druid

Turn into a tiger, a lion, or a bear, oh my!

This mod allows you to magically turn into powerful monsters that can destroy all of your enemies. (Personally, I love the tiger.)  You begin this mod by discovering a book that teaches you about druidic lore. You spend your time leveling up and become a more powerful transformation master. If you enjoy this mod, you can continue your powerful ride with Wrath of Nature – The Champion of Kynareth.

6. T3nd0’s Perkus Maximus

Become a better Warrior, Thief, or Mage.

This mod is about so much more than magic. As one of my favorite mods, Perkus Maximus reworks the major skill trees. It effects everything, from how you level up as a warrior, to the mage you can become. PerMa changes the way every part of magic works, and it’s too much to describe here. It adds over 200 new spells, and that’s just the start. I suggest you load this one up and just see for yourself. The only problem with PerMa is that if you aren’t an experienced modder than it has to be loaded at the start of a new game. If you don’t do that, you risk breaking your game.

7. Mighty Magick Skyrim

Magic is alive. Its place changes over time and grows with us.

Mighty Magick takes the magic of Skyrim and makes it matter. To be honest, in vanilla Skyrim you could get by casting one spell, maybe two (at the College of Winterhold), because you don’t need it that much. The magic just isn’t that useful. Mighty Magick seeks to change that. The creator has also been improving this mod since the days of Morrowind. If that’s not a reason to add this mod to your repertoire, I don’t know what is.

8. Flying Mod Beta

Fly around Tamriel and bring your followers, too.

This is just a fun mod, but it does allow you to do something in Skyrim that I always wondered why we couldn’t. This is a simple spell that turns you into a flying Dragonborn. It comes with its own animations, and includes a spell to help your followers fly too. Take to the sky like the dragon-blooded warrior you are!

9. Wintermyst – Enchantments of Skyrim

I have never cared about enchanting items. For the longest time there was just no point. I could spend time ripping things apart to put their powers on other things, or I could just not do that at all. Wintermyst changed my mind about that. Wintermyst provides 124 new enchantments so you can enchant to your heart’s content. This mod is no longer updating,

10. Forgotten Magic Redone

Take a few spells, and make yourself more powerful than you’ve ever been before.

Forgotten magic does what so many Skyrim Magic mods do: It brings you new spells! The difference between this mod and others on my list is the number of spells it brings you. Instead of going for breadth, this mod goes for depth. You take a small collection of new spells and level them up to unlock their full potential. 39 new spells doesn’t sound like much, but when you can improve them as much as this mod allows you to, they become more powerful then you could expect.

11. Skyrim Spells and Powers

Become a more powerful, more feared, Mage.

And, to round out the list is my final magical mod. When looking to feel powerful, this mod must be in your load order. More spells, more weapons, and more armors, all in one little package. Want to clear the weather? Check. Want to fortify your carry weight? Check. Want to be bored? Nope, not here. You want boredom, go somewhere else.

Now that you’ve read up on some of my favorite magic mods, go try them! Did I miss something here? Let me know! I’m always up to try new mods. Can’t know you love something if you don’t try it. Now, get out there and do something magical.  

Looking for even more mods? Check out these:

• 31 of the Best Skyrim Mods of All Time

• 15 Skyrim Armour Mods You Should Be Using Right Now

• 10 Best Skyrim Mods