Skyrim:Dragonborn (quest)

Travel to the island of Solstheim to find out what's happening there. Quest Giver: 2 cultists Location(s): The Northern Maiden, Raven Rock, Earth Stone, Temple of Miraak Prerequisite Quest: Dragon Rising Next Quest: The Temple of Miraak Reward: Access to Solstheim ID: DLC2MQ01/DLC2WE09

"Well, here we are. Welcome to Raven Rock."

Quick Walkthrough

1. Survive the cultist attack and find a note on one of the bodies.
2. Speak to Gjalund Salt-Sage at the Windhelm docks for passage to Solstheim.
3. Travel to Solstheim onboard the Northern Maiden.
4. Ask the townsfolk of Raven Rock about someone named Miraak.
   • (Optional) Investigate the shrine situated at the Earth Stone.
5. Reach the Temple of Miraak.

Detailed Walkthrough

A False Dragonborn

Once you have completed The Way of the Voice, you will be approached by a pair of hostile cultists at the first city or town you enter. These cultists will question you, "You there! You're the one they call Dragonborn?" You have several dialogue options with which to respond:

"You there! You're the one they call Dragonborn?"

Player Response	Cultists' Response
"Yes, I am Dragonborn."	"Your lies fall on deaf ears, Deceiver. The True Dragonborn comes... You are but his shadow."
"The Greybeards seem to think so."	"Then it is too late. The lie has already taken root in the hearts of men. So we shall expose them to the falseness in their hearts by tearing out yours, Deceiver!"
"I don't know what you're talking about."	"Your lies fall on deaf ears, Deceiver! We know you are the False Dragonborn! You shall not stand in the way of the true Dragonborn's return. He comes soon, and we shall offer him your heart!"

No matter what dialogue option you choose, however, the response will always end with the cultists' saying: "When Lord Miraak appears all shall bear witness. None shall stand to oppose him!" You also have the option to walk away from the cultists. Doing so will cause them to taunt you: "You cannot escape the truth. You cannot escape the True Dragonborn! When Lord Miraak appears all shall bear witness. None will stand to oppose him!" Whether you engage in dialogue or walk away, the cultists will attack you. Once they lie dead, search them for the cultists' orders. This now initiates the actual quest and directs you to speak with Gjalund Salt-Sage at the Windhelm docks about passage into Solstheim.

The Northern Maiden

"If you're looking for passage to Solstheim, you won't find a finer vessel than the Northern Maiden."

Once you arrive at the docks, head over to a boat called the Northern Maiden and speak with Gjalund Salt-Sage about passage to Solstheim aboard his vessel. You will have different dialogue options with Gjalund depending on your status with the cultists. If you have not yet encountered the cultists, continue reading onward (see notes for further information). However, if you have encountered them, skip to Finding Answers section below.

Approaching Gjalund, he will proudly state, "If you're looking for passage to Solstheim, you won't find a finer vessel than the Northern Maiden." From this you can choose to either ask how much the fare is (250 gold) or to further inquire about the island. If you choose to question him about Solstheim, he will exclaim "Surprised you've never heard of it. It's an island northeast of here. Has a small dark elf town called Raven Rock and a handful of Nords living in Skaal Village. People don't usually sail over there unless they have a particular reason. It can be a pretty rough place." Once you pay the fare, he will tell you "You've got yourself a ship. We'll cast off immediately." If you change your mind, he will sternly say "Suit yourself. I'll be here if you change your mind."

Finding Answers

• Note: This section refers to dialogue options if you have previously encountered the cultists.

Having already encountered the cultists, approaching Gjalund will have a somewhat different response: "If you're looking for passage to Solstheim, too bad. I'm not going back there anymore." From this point onward you have several dialogue options to choose from.

If you choose to ask him if he's the captain, he will suspiciously confirm "Sure. Yeah. That's me. Why? Who sent you?" Stating that you were attacked by the cultists, he will exclaim "Now hold on! That wasn't my fault... I didn't know they were going to attack anybody. I don't even know how I got here." Further questioning him will lead him to tell you "It's hard to explain... I remember those people with the masks coming on board, then... Next thing I remember, I was here and they were gone. That's not right, losing whole days like that. There's been something strange going on there for a while, but after this... I'm done. I'm not going back to Solstheim." If you try to convince him otherwise, he will object "Have you been listening to me? I'm not going back there." You can also inquire about Solstheim, to which he will answer "Surprised you've never heard of it. It's an island northeast of here. Has a small dark elf town called Raven Rock and a handful of Nords living in Skaal Village. But I'm not going back there. There's something wrong about that place." Leaving the conversation and approaching him again, you will be able to tell Gjalund again that you need a passage into Solstheim, to which he will respond "I already told you, I'm not going back to Solstheim." However, now you have several dialogue options available at your disposal:

Option	Dialogue				Reaction
I'll pay you double your usual rate. (Give 500 gold)	Passed: "Well... a man's got to make a living, after all. Fine. We'll cast off immediately." Failed: "That's a tempting offer... when you actually have the gold, I might be willing to consider it."				Passed: Passage to Solstheim. Failed: Back to dialogue options.
You owe me. Those cultists you brought here tried to kill me. (Persuade)	Passed: "Alright, you have a point. Taking you back to find out who sent them is the least I can do. Besides, maybe you can put a stop to whatever's going on over there. I owe them a bit of payback myself." Failed: "Look, I'm sorry about your troubles, but I've got to look out for myself. I'm not going to risk it."				Passed: Passage to Solstheim. Failed: Back to dialogue options.
People are trying to kill me. I'm not taking no for an answer. (Intimidate)	Passed: "Hold on, now. I'm just a simple sailor. I never wanted to get mixed up in any of this. Alright, I'll take you. But we leave immediately." Failed: "Yeah, well, and I don't want them trying to kill me. So the answer is still no."				Passed: Passage to Solstheim. Failed: Back to dialogue options.
I'll be back.	"Whatever you want. The answer isn't going to be any different later though."				Ends dialogue.

After setting sail, you will arrive off the coast of Solstheim and a short cutscene will play as the boat docks in Raven Rock. Gjalund will comment, "Well, here we are. This is Raven Rock. Can't say I'm all that glad to see it again. Good luck. Maybe you can figure out what's going on around here." The Northern Maiden will then arrive into port shortly afterward.

An Outlander on Solstheim

"I don't recognize you, so I'll assume this is your first visit to Raven Rock, outlander. State your intentions."

Upon arrival at the docks of Raven Rock on Solstheim, if you have never been here before, you will be approached by Adril Arano, the Second Councilor of Raven Rock. At this first meeting he sternly greets you with, "I don't recognize you, so I'll assume this is your first visit to Raven Rock, outlander. State your intentions." Depending on quest actions, you are given two or three options to reply to him. If you have already started the quest, you can question him if he knows someone named Miraak, to which he will reply, "Miraak... I... I'm not sure that I do." Further questioning him, he will respond "I... I'm unsure. I swear I know the name, but cannot place it." Pressing him further about the issue, he will then reveal, "I don't think so. I'm not... The name has something to do with the Earth Stone, I think. But I'm not sure what." This now gives you the optional objective to investigate the shrine. Regardless of which, Adril will then depart the conversation by saying "Just remember, Raven Rock is sovereign territory of House Redoran. This is Morrowind, not Skyrim. While you're here you will be expected to abide by our laws." The location of the Earth Stone is almost directly west of the docks, a short distance away from the settlement of Raven Rock. However, visiting the stone itself is purely an optional objective and is not necessary in order to advance through the quest.

The Earth Stone

"Here in his shrine, that they have forgotten. Here do we toil, that we might remember. By night we reclaim, what by day was stolen. Far from ourselves, he grows ever near to us. Our eyes once were blinded, now through him do we see. Our hands once were idle, now through them does he speak. And when the world shall listen, and when the world shall see, and when the world remembers, that world will cease to be."

"You there... You don't seem to be in quite the same state as the others here. Very interesting. May I ask what it is you're doing here?"

Upon arrival at the stone, you will notice several of the inhabitants of Raven Rock alongside some of the Redoran guards working on what appears to be a mysterious shrine surrounding the stone. Walk toward the shrine and you will be approached by Neloth, a Telvanni wizard, and you may ask him about what is happening. He will either remark: "You there... You don't seem to be in quite the same state as the others here. Very interesting. May I ask what it is you're doing here?", or simply ask you what brings you to Raven Rock. When you explain to Neloth that you are searching for Miraak, he will exclaim: "Miraak... Miraak... It sounds familiar, and yet I can't quite place... Oh. Wait, I recall. But that makes very little sense. Miraak's been dead for thousands of years." Inquire about the meaning of this and he will answer: "I'm not sure, but it is fascinating, isn't it? Perhaps it has some relation to what's going on here. Quite unexpected. I'm afraid I can't give you any answers. But there are ruins of an ancient temple of Miraak's toward the center of the island. If I were you, I'd look there." This will now direct you towards the Temple of Miraak to investigate further about the cultist attack.

You may also choose to further question Neloth. Asking what exactly they are building, he will reply: "Building something, clearly. And yet they don't seem to have much to say about it. I'm very interested to find out what happens when they finish." If you also question him as to stopping the workers, he will exclaim: "Certainly not! Doing so would interfere with whatever is going on, and I would be unable to see how this all turns out."

Temple of Miraak

"Here in my temple, here in my shrine, that you have forgotten. Here do you toil, that you might remember. Here you reclaim, what faithless minds have stolen. Far from yourself, I grow ever nearer to you. Your eyes once were blinded, now through me do you see. Your hands once were idle, now through them do I speak. And when the world shall listen, and when the world shall see, and when the world remembers, that world will cease to be."

Dragon skeletons litter the pathway leading up to the temple.

If you choose not to visit the Earth Stone, you can speak with various citizens of Raven Rock about Miraak. You will realize that most citizens recognize the name, but are uncertain why, just like Adril. Some will again mention the Earth Stone, while others will mention the Temple of Miraak. Once you've been told about the location of the temple, a new objective marker will lead you there.

In order to reach the temple, head east from Raven Rock, towards the center of Solstheim. As you approach the exterior of the temple, you'll see skeletons of several dragons littering the pathway leading up to the temple. As you climb up the stairs and further to the temple, you'll see many of Miraak's thralls working to rebuild it. They will also be chanting, as were the thralls at the Earth Stone. None of the enthralled people will attack you, but some cultists will appear and become aggressive if you wait outside of the temple too long. Once you reach the center of the exterior portion of the Temple of Miraak, near the Tree Stone, this quest will be complete, and the next quest will begin automatically.

Achievements

One achievement is unlocked during this quest if you have not yet visited Solstheim:

• Outlander (20 points/Bronze) — Arrive on Solstheim

Notes

• If you choose to travel to Solstheim before encountering the cultists, you may be attacked by cultists on the island later on, and can find the note on one of their bodies there. However the quest will not be named in your journal upon arrival, and you may miss out on certain dialogue options with various NPCs on Solstheim.
• Alternatively, you may travel to the Temple of Miraak and speak to Frea, starting the next quest.
• Anytime you sleep on Solstheim you may be transported to one of the All-Maker Stones. This will continue until the stones have been purged during Cleansing the Stones.
  • This may include the Tree Stone at the Temple of Miraak, which thus completes this quest and starts the next one.
• If you have already started From the Ashes, Neloth may not appear at the Earth Stone.
• The boat ride scene upon arriving into Raven Rock for the first time is not included in Skyrim VR.

Bugs

• You might not be transported to Solstheim if you attempt to do so when over-encumbered.
  • The Unofficial Dragonborn Patch, version 1.0.1, fixes this bug.
• The bodies of the Cultists that initially attack you may never disappear, even if they are raised and subsequently become ash piles.
  • The Unofficial Dragonborn Patch, version 2.0.1, fixes this bug.
  • To remove a body, open the console, click on the body to be removed, and use the disable command.
• The quest may not start when killing the cultists or reading their orders.
  • Load a previous save, go past the cultists to trigger their dialogue, then skip it. Before they finish their words and become hostile, quickly enter a nearby room. The quest can trigger normally after you enter the room, or after you reload this autosave.
• Captain Gjalund may not speak to you, making it impossible to get to Solstheim.
  • In the console, select Captain Gjalund, then type disable followed by enable.
  • Save the game, exit, and re-load.
• Captain Gjalund speaks but does not give options to travel to Solstheim after reading cultist' orders. Console command disable followed by enable does not resolve it. ^?
  • resetquest DLC2MQ01 enables dialogue for traveling, but not as "Finding Answers" part.
• The cutscene for your arrival in Solstheim may not work properly, or you may crash to desktop upon loading Solstheim after sailing on the Northern Maiden.
  • In the console, type setstage DLC2Init 100, then use the fast-travel marker to travel to Solstheim directly. You will have to approach Adril yourself, rather than him coming to you, and a later scene between Adril and Gjalund will never happen, but nothing critical should be missed.

Quest Stages

Dragonborn (DLC2MQ01)
Stage	Finishes Quest	Journal Entry
5		I've been attacked by a group of cultists. I need to see if they have any evidence of what prompted this assault. Objective 5: Find out who sent the Cultists
7		I've found a note on one of the cultists who attacked me. Perhaps it has some clue as to what prompted them to come after me. Objective 7: Read Cultists' Orders
10		I've been attacked by a group of people claiming to work for someone named Miraak. I need to find out why they're trying to kill me, and so I should look for the boat in Windhelm they used to travel from Solstheim.
		Objective 10: Travel to Solstheim
15		Objective 20: Search for information about Miraak
20		I have arrived on Solstheim in search of the "Miraak" mentioned in a note as being behind the attempt on my life. Perhaps someone in the town of Raven Rock will know about him. Objective 20: Search for information about Miraak
30		The people of Raven Rock know the name Miraak, saying that he has a temple near the center of the island. I should seek him out and find out why people have attacked me on his behalf. Objective 30: Reach the Temple of Miraak
200	Finishes quest	After an attempt on my life, I've tracked the people responsible to the isle of Solstheim, where someone named Miraak has a temple near the center of the island. It's time to find out what's going on.
Unknown		Objective 25: Investigate the shrine
Cultists vs Player (DLC2WE09)
Unknown		Objective 10: Search the <Alias=Actor1>

• The following empty quest stages were omitted from the table:
  • DLC2MQ01: 0, 25.
  • DLC2WE09: 0, 1, 10, 255.

Notes

• Any text displayed in angle brackets (e.g., <Alias=LocationHold>) is dynamically set by the Radiant Quest system, and will be filled in with the appropriate word(s) when seen in game.
• Not all Journal Entries may appear in your journal; which entries appear and which entries do not depends on the manner in which the quest is done.
• Stages are not always in order of progress. This is usually the case with quests that have multiple possible outcomes or quests where certain tasks may be done in any order. Some stages may therefore repeat objectives seen in other stages.
• If an entry is marked as "Finishes Quest" it means the quest disappears from the Active Quest list, but you may still receive new entries for that quest.
• On the PC, it is possible to use the console to advance through the quest by entering setstage DLC2MQ01/DLC2WE09 stage, where stage is the number of the stage you wish to complete. It is not possible to un-complete (i.e. go back) quest stages, but it is possible to clear all stages of the quest using resetquest DLC2MQ01/DLC2WE09.

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Next: The Temple of Miraak