After Starfield Shattered Space, I returned to my favorite Skyrim expansion and ended up seeing a new side to it entirely

Standing before a keep full of bandits in Skyrim, I pan the camera up to see a big, full moon hanging in the night's sky above me. Its luminous glow decorating the darkness feels almost like kismet. From a role-playing perspective, it doesn't get much better than this. I know just what to do next. With the tap of the shoulder button on my PS5 controller, my Dragonborn begins to transform. My first-person view shifts to third person as I watch their outstretched limbs mold into the shape of a werewolf. Now in beast form, I complete the change by letting out an intimidating howl so every enemy in the vicinity knows I'm here.

The scene is perfectly set for me to put my lycanthropy powers to good use, so that's exactly what I do. With reckless abandon, I charge into the rundown keep, mauling everyone in sight and feeding on their bodies in order to unlock more abilities. Before long, I'm the only one left standing. There's nothing left to do but wait for my bloodlust to pass so I can turn back into my usual unassuming Imperial warrior self.

I originally returned to Tamriel after Starfield Shattered Space ignited a desire to revisit my favorite Skyrim expansion: Dawnguard. But, as ever, Bethesda's sprawling fantasy RPG distracted me from my intended path, and suddenly I was starting a new run that saw me committing to the ways of the Companions and turning into a werewolf. As I quickly discovered, this lycanthropic diversion actually worked in my favor, because when I did at last start the expansion again, my inclination to role-play encouraged me to approach the Dawnguard quests differently.

I'm not a vampire!

Starfield Shattered Space left me reflecting on some of the best DLCs we've seen from Bethesda over the years, and for me, Dawnguard has always been a firm favorite. Not only did it introduce us to the powers of a vampire lord, it also brought us the beast form skill tree, a memorable story, and one of the best companions in the RPG in the ancient vamp, Serana. While Starfield may have been the initial impetus for yet another Skyrim playthrough, I also fancied getting stuck into something befitting of the season; nothing says the month of Halloween like vampires, gargoyles, and large gothic castles, after all.

October felt like just the right time to relive Dawnguard's questline, which I hadn't revisited for a few years. Since the craving to come back to Tamriel had overtaken me, I decided to start fresh as a new Dragonborn. In past runs, I've delved into magic, gone all in on stealthy skills to create the perfect Thieves Guild leader, and mastered the bow, but I'd never gone down the warrior path. So, with the itch to shake things up as much as possible and try out new avenues I hadn't done before, I settled on the warrior path, devoting skills points to two-handed weapons, heavy armor, and blacksmithing.

Given my chosen talents, doing the Companions quest lines made perfect sense to me. I'd unlock the unique armor at the Skyforge and have access to followers who could help me improve my skills easily. The fact that you also get to become a werewolf also added another Halloween-adjacent ingredient into the cauldron. After all, the Dawnguard are vampire hunters, and if I'm going to join them, there's no better way to do that than to become the bloodsuckers' iconic pop culture rival. Historically speaking, I'd only ever played the expansion one way: after finding Serana and bringing her home to her father, Lord Harkon, I always opted to take him up on his offer for some of his blood, thus becoming a vampire lord myself.

But as my new werewolf warrior, becoming a fanged lord would negate my beast form and disrupt the role-play I'd immersed myself in - you know, the one that saw me howl at the moon and feed on bandits. Plus, I'd also married Farkas, a fellow member of the Companions who likewise followed the ways of lycanthropy. I could hardly turn my back on my beast form now, could I? So, for the first time, I turned Harkon down and was swiftly banished from the gothic premise that he, Serana, and a lot of other fanged friends called home.

"Heard they're reforming the Dawnguard"

Before I knew it, I was making my way down a different path for the first time, entirely driven by my werewolf role-play, which suddenly made the expansion feel fresh. Not only was I rediscovering the vampiric DLC I've always held such fond memories of, I was doing it in a new way. To be honest, I can't believe it's taken me this long to actually commit to fighting against the vampires with the Dawnguard, rather than becoming a vampire lord myself at some point down the line, but I'm already enjoying revisiting the experience from a new role-playing perspective.

After finishing up Shattered Space, which didn't quite deliver the kind of experience I was hoping for in Starfield, Dawnguard's strengths stand out all the more. While I'm still working my way through it once again, I'm constantly reminded of why it's one of my favorite DLCs. Even without making use of the new vampire lord powers it introduces, it pulls you into a memorable adventure with an actual Elder Scroll at the heart of it. I'd also argue that the company of Serana alone - who's such an interesting character with a lot of history - makes it one of the best expansions.,

I'm curious to see how my werewolf ways will shape my approach to not only the Dawnguard, but Skyrim as a whole. If nothing else, the expansion and that moonlight night against the bandits are giving me just the kind of seasonal vibes I've been yearning for.

Starfield Shattered Space review: "delivers an intriguing opening and strong ending that bookends a lackluster middle".