Nine years of playing Skyrim, and I had no idea you could shoot birds out of the sky Eurogamer.net If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. Nine years of playing Skyrim, and I had no idea you could shoot birds out of the sky Hawk eye. News by Wesley Yin-Poole Deputy Editorial Director Updated on 19 Jul 2020 22 comments Skyrim is still teaching me things about how it works - nine years after it came out and after I've pumped hundreds of hours into it. This time, it's the revelation you can shoot birds out of the sky with your bow and arrow. Now, of course some of you - many of you, perhaps - will know this already. But I did not. And so when I stumbled across this clip by redditor shadysnore, who nailed a hawk after eight years of trying, I was astonished. 8 years later I've finally managed to hit a hawk from r/skyrim To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings Here we see a hawk sniped out of the sky with an arrow shot, then fall to earth with a thud for looting. Well, you learn something new every day. The clip sparked my journey down the rabbit hole of birds in Skyrim. It turns out birds and butterflies in Bethesda's fantasy epic disappear when they detect any attack, and in that instant drop a container - in the case of the hawk, a hawk-shaped container with loot, or in the case of a butterfly, ingredients. I missed this at the time, but the 2011 video below shows a Skyrim player show off their bird-shooting skills. It's pretty impressive. And here's a clip of a Skyrim player shooting a butterfly, which then turns into a butterfly wing - aka its ingredients - that drops to the ground. I have also learned that the Dragon Shout Kyne's Peace - one I thought largely useless and so didn't use at all really - instantly knocks out birds, causing them to fall from the sky. This shout calms all wild animals, except frost trolls, within the range of approximately 100 paces. But for birds, it's an instant K.O. So! Now I know what I'm doing during my next Skyrim run: bird killer. That's perfectly normal, right? Become a Eurogamer subscriber and get your first month for £1 Get your first month for £1 (normally £3.99) when you buy a Standard Eurogamer subscription. Enjoy ad-free browsing, merch discounts, our monthly letter from the editor, and show your support with a supporter-exclusive comment flair! Support us View supporter archive More News Splatoon 3 Amiibos will be out next month Ink-coming! 3 Fans think Phil Spencer's shelf is teasing the Xbox Game Pass streaming box UPDATE: Xbox confirms old Keystone prototype. 59 Modder dives into Demon's Souls files following PS5 jailbreak, discovers fabled Ring of the Chieftain Who knows what's nexus? 3 Google announces cloud gaming Chromebooks less than a fortnight after Stadia shutdown GeForce Now preinstalled. 10 Latest Articles Preview Football Manager's new Console edition is the best you'll get without a PC Getting Touch-right. Splatoon 3 Amiibos will be out next month Ink-coming! 3 Fans think Phil Spencer's shelf is teasing the Xbox Game Pass streaming box UPDATE: Xbox confirms old Keystone prototype. 59 Modder dives into Demon's Souls files following PS5 jailbreak, discovers fabled Ring of the Chieftain Who knows what's nexus? 3 Supporters Only Premium only Off Topic: Take a minute to appreciate Cookin' with Coolio's incredible scallops recipe. What a great book. Premium only Off Topic: Reading City of Glass in comic form "Where exactly am I going?" Premium only Off Topic: Il Buco is a transporting film about a really big hole Underlands. Off-Topic Netflix handled Sandman brilliantly It was Dreamy. 9 Buy things with globes on them And other lovely Eurogamer merch in our official store! Explore our store