Time in Skyrim is measured by the passage of "game time" or "real time". Game time passes faster than real time by a factor of 20 (i.e., 1 minute real time = 20 minutes game time).
The game clock (showing the in-game date and time) can be seen on the main character menu, the Journal, as well as on the Map menu. The time is measured using a standard 24 hour clock, but the date is based upon Tamriel's calendar. Game time always pauses when you are in Journal mode or have any other menu open. Many events in the world of Skyrim are dictated by the time of day:
- Sunrise is always at 5am and sunset is always at 7pm (this is particularly important for characters subject to Sun Damage).
- Most people in Tamriel have daily schedules. In particular, merchants offer services within fixed time periods.
- Most items (containers, dungeons, creatures, flora) will change (be reset) after thirty or ten days.
There are 12 months in Tamriel's calendar and anywhere between 28 to 31 days in each, as well as seven days in a week. The game begins on the 17th of Last Seed in the year 4E 201. The year will continue to increment as in-game time passes (4E 202, etc.) even though these years do not exist in the timeline of later games.
On the other hand, the durations of magical effects such as spells and potions are measured in real time, not game time (i.e. a detect life potion with a duration of 120 seconds will last 2 minutes real time, rather than game time). Time spent in menus does not count against effect durations.
Any advanced passage of time (sleeping or waiting) will count against any timed magical effects you have. For instance, if you cast a spell and then wait for an hour, the spell's effects will be finished by the time you're done waiting. The same holds true for any spells cast on you. Sleeping and waiting also replenish all of your vital statistics (Health, Fatigue, and Magicka), and is a good way to heal yourself if you've got no other way to do so.
When fast traveling, game time moves at a normal rate. The game estimates the time that it would take the player to get from one location to another based on their movement speed. Unlike in Oblivion, it does not take into account if you are on horseback/sneaking/walking. You will arrive at the same time. Fast travel times are also rounded off to some degree, though the exact formula is unknown. Because of this, it is sometimes faster to travel to a location without using fast travel. The same rules that apply to timed magical effects and replenishing stats with sleeping and waiting also apply to fast travel, because it is technically a passage of time.
Real time passes continuously while you are in the game.
TipsEdit
See AlsoEdit
- Calendar: Details of the calendar used in Skyrim.
Set timescale: A Console command that can be used to alter the default ratio of game time to real time.