Dead Thrall Dead Thrall is a master - level Conjuration spell in . Characteristics . Casting Dead Thrall raises the dead body of most humanoid beings ( Men , Mer , and Beastfolk ) whose level is 40 or under to " permanently " fight alongside the Dragonborn . The thrall follows and defends its master until banished , killed , or turned . Occasionally , the thralls will vanish , even if within eyesight , or when entering certain areas they may not follow , but they may show up again later , even if on the other side of Skyrim . Unlike other reanimation spells , thralls that die will not turn to ash and may be raised again if so desired . If the conjurer has the Dark Souls perk , the thrall will be raised with an extra 100 hit points ; however , once these are spent they are not recoverable unless the thrall dies and is re - enthralled . If the Dragonborn has the Twin Souls perk , two Dead Thralls may be summoned at one time , or a Dead Thrall and an atronach . Equipment . Upgrading the thrall ' s equipment may increase its effectiveness . Thralls will use any weapon given to them as long as the weapon matches its proficiencies . For instance , mages will prefer to continue using their spells and wielding staves rather than equipping powerful melee weapons . Most thralls , regardless of proficiencies , will also use the shields given to them , provided they have a free hand available . However , thralls are much more picky about the armor / clothing they will wear . Here are the details : Notable Thralls . The characters listed below are thralls that have been deemed exceptional in some way by the community . The first three sections deal with thralls of different class , and the final covers thralls that retain their vocal clips upon death . All thralls listed here are able to be thralled at any level unless otherwise noted . Some of the named NPCs listed have unique abilities , while others are effective and easy to find . Mages . These thralls will use destruction spells and readily wield staves you give them . Some will even conjure allies using their own spells . Melee . These thralls generally have good armor and use melee weapons effectively . They will also use ranged weapons given them when fighting at a distance . Archer . These thralls use ranged weapons more effectively . They will switch to melee weapons in close quarters . Retain Vocal Clips . These thralls do not switch to the standard moans and groans of reanimated corpses . They instead continue to use the unique vocal clips they had in life . " * Levels with ( max ) mean the thrall will scale with the Dragonborn up to a maximum of that level . Levels without ( max ) mean the thrall is set at that level . " " * * Vampires can be thralled above the level 40 cap of Dead Thrall if the Dragonborn has taken the Necromage perk found in the Restoration tree . This perk affects all spells that target vampires including Dead Thrall . With this perk all versions of vampires found in the game are thrallable except Volkihar Master Vampire s ( level 53 ) . Of note are Volkihar Vampire s ( level 48 ) and Master Vampire s ( level 42 ) , the two highest level natural candidates for thralls in the game . "