As hard as writers and creators try to keep their work free of plot holes, there is only so much they do without impacting the final version of their vision. Some plot holes are easy to spot and can impact the enjoyment of a game. Others aren't quite as cut and dry as they first appear to be and have been addressed by the creators. But the player may not find these fixes to be "fixes".
In The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, for being such an enormous game, there aren't that many plot holes for players to find. However, there are quite a few more false plot holes that, on the surface, bring into question how the story could even unfold until the right information is found.
10 The Greybeards Not Trying To Stop Alduin
One of the biggest plot points that many players will point to as a problem in Skyrim is that, despite how they are apparently all-powerful beings capable of flinging the player from the top of High Hrothgar with nothing but a whisper, the Greybeards do little in the way to help stop Alduin.
If the player talks to the Greybeards after their initiation, they will discover that there is a very good reason for this. They are trying to prevent the mistakes made by those gifted in the Thu'um in the past as they used their powers in war to great effect. While having the Greybeards in a more active role may have helped defeat Alduin sooner, it may have also resulted in a much bigger problem for Skyrim in the long run.
9 The Greybeards Not Trying To Stop Ulfric
Before becoming the High King of Skyrim, Ulfric was in training to become a Greybeard. He spent some time at High Hrothgar before the events of the game. With this in mind, it seems like the Greybeards would be anxious to stop him once he decided to start an all-out war with the Imperials and the Thalmor.
This sticking point can be summed up with one interaction the player has with Arngier. After asking for details on Dragonrend, Arngier tells the player that their role is to guide people in the right direction. In this case, the Dragonborn takes a more passive role rather than actively interfering in people's lives.
8 Going To Sovngarde Despite Not Being A Nord
At the conclusion of the main story, the player, regardless of their race, is able to go to Sovngarde to confront Alduin one last time. As many astute players will realize, this goes against the very nature of the realm as it is reserved only for those Nords who proved themselves to be great warriors during their lifetime.
One big difference here, however, is how the player gets to Sovngarde. They use a portal to enter the realm rather than dying and moving on as is the case with everyone else. This means that, even if the player isn't a Nord, it should be reasonable to assume that they can enter Sovngarde.
7 The Dragon Claw Keys Having The Combination On The Back
One of the strangest aspects of the Dragon Claw keys that can be used to explore certain Dragon Priest ruins is that, somewhat counter-intuitive to how combination locks should work, the combination is carved into the key itself. This means that any idiot who gets a hold of the Dragon Claw could potentially get inside the ruin.
One very easy-to-miss piece of lore, however, states that the Dragon Claws aren't designed to keep people from getting in. Their sole purpose is to keep the Draugr inside from getting out.
6 Aventus Performs The Black Sacrament With No Obstacles
Very early in the game, if the player talks to an innkeeper, they will learn about an orphan child in Windhelm who is trying to perform the Black Sacrament and summon the Dark Brotherhood. This is something that any right-minded adult should have probably tried to stop. However, the Black Sacrament isn't an easy ritual to perform.
Most people need a guide of some sort to even come close to performing it correctly. This means that the people of Windhelm may have simply left Aventus alone to sort through his grief rather than interfere. There is also the possibility that interfering may have incurred the wrath of the Dark Brotherhood -- something that no citizen would want.
5 The Assassination Of Titus Mede Has No Consequences
The main target for the majority of the Dark Brotherhood questline is the current Emperor of Cyrodiil, Titus Mede. The player is able to assassinate him towards the end of the questline. However, there is a notable lack of consequences from this assassination that is very easy to see once the Dark Brotherhood quests have been completed.
But this may not be as big a plot hole as is first apparent. After all, the entire assassination plot is being orchestrated by a man vying for the throne himself. There was always someone to step into the position as soon as Mede was taken off the board and may have allowed for minimal fallout from his death.
4 Harkon's Entire Plan To Block Out The Sun
In the Dawnguard DLC, the player is tasked with either assisting the Dawnguard or Serana in stopping Harkon from following through with his plans to block out the sun. This would let vampires roam free as they pleased, but it also seems like a particularly stupid idea. Most life needs sunlight to survive including a vampire's main food source, but there is one big exception.
As shown with Serana, vampires are capable of going without food for hundreds of years (perhaps even longer). This would indicate that, even if all of mankind went extinct as a result of the death of all other life on earth, the vampires would probably still survive for a time.
3 The Vigilants Of Stendarr Were Destroyed So Easily
Before the Dawnguard DLC was introduced to Skyrim, the Vigilants of Stendarr were found quite frequently around the land and even had their own headquarters that was conveniently placed right in front of a vampire's lair. However, they are quickly exterminated by Harkon's vampires -- something that seems fairly unlikely seeing how they were professional killers of the undead.
One aspect of Harkon's vampires that may have had a hand in this is just how old they are compared to other vampires in Skyrim. They have probably had to deal with much bigger threats than the Vigilants.
2 Gaining Favor With All Daedric Princes
This isn't a so-called plot hole that only exists in Skyrim as the ability to gain favor with every Daedric Prince has been around for many Elder Scrolls titles. What should be remembered, however, is that not all events that take place in an Elder Scrolls game are considered canon to the overall timeline.
Furthermore, several in-game events that players can take part in are never referenced in future games. Or one version of events is considered canon over another.
1 You Can Be The Head Of Every Guild At Once
The player can be the head of just about every Guild in Skyrim. Like the ability to gain the favor of every Daedric Prince, this is nothing new in the series. However, just like with the Daedric Princes, not every questline that the player takes part in will be considered canon in the future.
It may come to pass that the Last Dragonborn destroyed the Dark Brotherhood rather than joining them and killing Titus Mede. The ability to end the Civil War with one side victorious over another may also never happen, too. There are many fan theories to suggest that the events of the Civil War questline won't carry on into The Elder Scrolls VI. We'll just have to keep waiting to find out.