Soul Gem
Soul gems store the magical energy of a slain creature. The player must cast a Soul Trap spell on the victim and then slay it. Normal soul gems can only hold the souls of creatures. Black soul gems can hold the souls of NPCs. Creatures are rated for the "size" of their soul. High level creatures have larger souls than low level creatures. Each soul gem is rated for it's capacity. The empty soul gem must be large enough to hold the soul. Once filled, a soul gem will not accept another soul.
Black Soul Gems, as well as Azura's Star, are hard coded into the game - the Construction Kit can not replicate their attributes in any simple manner.
Soul gems are used to power magical items, or create new ones. By using the soul gem, the player can add energy to a magical weapon. Magic armor does not need to be powered in that way.
Creating a magical item requires a soul gem. The larger the soul gem, the more magical energy is available. For weapons, this translates to the number of uses it has before it is depleted. For armor, it determines the magnitude of the enchantment.
- Capacity: The maximum soul size that the gem can hold.
- Soul: The size soul already in the gem.
| Soul | Energy |
|---|---|
| None | Empty |
| Petty | 150 |
| Lesser | 300 |
| Common | 800 |
| Greater | 1200 |
| Grand | 1600 |