Skyrim talk:Bleak Falls Barrow (place)

Location

Bleak Falls Barrow is located in the Hold of Whiterun, not Falkreath, (as shown on this page). Both the map that comes with the official game guide and this online map show this clearly. Helgan 15:19, 2 December 2011 (UTC)

The official game guide map shows that it is in Falkreath Hold. It is location 8.18 on their map, where the leading 8 stands for Falkreath Hold. Furthermore, on the map itself the marker is clearly south and west of the hold border. The online map that you link to is fanmade and incorrect. Its hold borders in particular are very inaccurate.

Furthermore, the information on the article was taken directly from the game data, where the location record for Bleak Falls Barrow states explicitly that the Barrow is in Falkreath Hold. Which, among other things, means that any radiant quests looking for locations in Falkreath Hold will include Bleak Falls Barrow in the possible locations -- but Whiterun radiant quests will not. Therefore, as far as gameplay is concerned, the location is part of Falkreath Hold. --Nephele^Talk 06:01, 4 December 2011 (UTC)

Trolls?

I've never found any trolls in this dungeon across two games. I've been levels 2-8. The only inhabitants I've found are the two bandits, big spider, a few skeever, the Golden Claw thief and draugr. Playing on Xbox 360. Is this a glitch or are the trolls level-dependent? Melleh17 07:45, 15 December 2011 (UTC)

Dungeon enemies are level dependent, and based on your level the first time you enter that dungeon. Chris3145 19:02, 15 December 2011 (UTC)

OK, thanks. It was mentioned on the page that there is a place within the dungeon with trolls, that should probably be changed by someone who knows what place that refers to. Melleh17 22:54, 15 December 2011 (UTC)

Where is Thomas?

Can we get a picture of Thomas? I'm looking for him, and while I see plenty of ledges, none of them appear to have a body hanging off of them. Swk3000 22:08, 17 December 2011 (UTC)

Hi! Heh! Just by coincidence, I took a picture of him for "Facebook:" purposes, and I came here to relearn his name. (I'm glad too, since I thought he was "Steve".) Where do you want the picture? Leo Star Dragon 1 (talk) 18:07, 5 February 2014 (GMT)

Since he isn't always present, and a minor feature of the dungeon, a picture of him would probably be best placed in a new Gallery section at the bottom of the article, similar to Skyrim:Dark Brotherhood. BTW, I hope you noticed that you were responding to a post that was over 2 years old, making it unlikely that the OP would see it. --Xyzzy ^Talk 06:01, 7 February 2014 (GMT)

Predictable Dragon Fight

Bleak Falls Barrow is the key to a secret that only becomes apparent if you choose to visit AFTER you have already cleared the dungeon and defeated the Dragon near Whiterun. If you choose to re-enter the dungeon and travel all the way through, you will find a hidden door on the rear wall in the location where you found your first Word of Power. Although this door can be used prior to the Dragon battle outside Whiterun, normally there is no special significance to this other than it being a fast exit from Bleak Falls Barrow. The location you emerge from through using the rear exit to Bleak Falls Barrow always triggers a guaranteed Dragon fight the first time it is used once Dragons have been unleashed upon Skyrim (tested on XBox360/PS3 and works with every patch version so far). — Unsigned comment by 178.99.224.235 (talk) at 22:06 on 18 December 2011

Moved from main article

Thomas (Easter Egg)

"There's a very well hidden easter egg in this section near the areas with the Trolls. If you look up from the bridge with the waterfall. You might notice a ledge with a body hanging off it. Shouting or shooting an arrow at the body should knock it down to the ground where you'll discover Thomas and a Note to Thomas that gives a little insight into how he ended up there."

I moved this here because while there is a dead NPC named Thomas in Bleak Falls, I fail to see what this so called "Easter Egg" is referencing. Someone fill me in please? Kitkat ^{•Talk•Contrib•E-mail} 08:31, 19 December 2011 (UTC)

Frankly, I just want to know where Thomas is. I always head through Bleak Falls Barrow before level 10, so I never encounter any trolls. I literally have no idea where he is, and that's the only mention I've ever seen of this guy. Swk3000 02:26, 20 December 2011 (UTC)

Same here. I spent a good hour trying to find him at all the areas with waterfalls. Perhaps he only appears if you're at the level where trolls could appear. Melleh17 02:32, 20 December 2011 (UTC)

Thomas is level-dependent. After the first durgar area, you follow a stream down a tunnel until it falls down a pit. There will be a chest on the right, just before the pit. If you step up to the edge of the pit and look to the right, you will see a ledge with a brown bush on it. If you are at a high enough level, Thomas will be on that ledge, and if you look up you will see a rope hanging from the lip of the pit. On a PC, entering Bleak Falls for the first time at level 3, Thomas is not there (and neither is the rope). Entering for the first time at level 39, Thomas is there. I'm not sure what is the exact level required. Dragonsey 64.56.1.103 03:45, 20 December 2011 (UTC)

Results of testing on a PC

Enter Bleak Falls Barrow for the first time at level 17 or lower = No body of Thomas, no rope, enemy at pit bridge is a leveled draugr.

Enter Bleak Falls Barrow for the first time at level 18 or higher = Body of Thomas and rope are there, enemy at pit bridge is a troll.

Dragonsey 64.56.1.103 00:18, 22 December 2011 (UTC)

(←) In response to the testing performed by Dragonsey and having personally confirmed myself that Thomas is present at level 18, I have added a Notes section to Skyrim:Thomas to help clarify under what criteria Thomas will appear. AquaticPossum (talk) 20:13, 2 July 2013 (GMT)

amulet of mara?

On the marriage page, it states that Bleak Falls Barrow is a "confirmed" location for the Amulet of Mara. Exactly where in Bleak Falls Barrow is the amulet?71.224.13.163 03:44, 1 January 2012 (UTC)Marcus

That would be incorrect and if it's not removed yet I'll go remove it. They were talking about that first chest where the 2 bandits are camped right after entering the barrow. It seems to have a higher chance to drop one of the Amulets of the Divines but not necessarily an Amulet of Mara. I've had it drop one of the amulets about 75% of the time. So yes it's sorta a location for one of the Amulets of the Divines but not a guarantee. Lord Eydvar 17:46, 22 February 2012 (UTC)

Dragonstone looting bug

The info mentions that the bug "has occurred when the Golden Claw from the side quest has been looted BEFORE killing the Guardian." Wouldn't the Golden Claw *always* have been looted before killing the Guardian, seeing as how the Guardian is in a chamber that is unlocked by the Claw? I haven't run into this, so I'm not sure what I'd put instead in the "how to fix" part, although I suspect leaving the zone and reentering might do the trick. Vardis 15:56, 9 January 2012 (UTC)

Yes, I saw the bug note and came to the same conclusion. There is no "how to fix" part for that to be relevant to, because it's impossible to do them the other way around. Looking at the page's history, the original report makes sense and just got a bit garbled by later edits. Aliana 04:41, 24 January 2012 (UTC)

Unmoving ring symbols bug on PC

The bug info here says this bug only occurs on PS3 and Xbox 360, but I had the unmoving ring symbol bug happen to me on PC as well, can anyone confirm? Kronos o 02:22, 30 January 2012 (UTC)

Boss Changes Post 1.4

I have been through the quest twice since 1.4 released for Xbox and both times no matter how low level I was the Draugr Overlord now had Disarm shout as well. Can anyone else confirm that Patch 1.4 gives the boss Draugr in Bleak Falls the Disarm shout at all levels? Lord Eydvar 02:51, 15 February 2012 (UTC)

I'm using Patch 1.4.27, and looking at the Creation Kit, at character levels 21 and above, all versions of the Bleak Falls boss Draugr have Disarm; below that, though, they shouldn't. – Robin Hood↝talk 07:13, 8 March 2012 (UTC)

The draugr Wight Lord I encountered at level 14 used disarm on me. Using Patch 1.6.90.0.6. 176.24.235.38 13:07, 4 August 2012 (UTC)

Yeah, we now know a little more about how encounters are generated, and in some cases, encounters well above your level can happen. Draugr are one such case. If I recall correctly, you can get a level 21 draugr as low as level 13. – Robin Hood↝talk 03:42, 1 September 2012 (UTC)

Ebony Mail

I literally just looted Ebony Mail off one of the "permanently dead" Draugr lying in the tombs in the walls. Pretty useful since this I guess is the first dungeon most people enter. Unless the Draugr has a "leveled armor" on him (if that's even possible? didn't use the CK that much), because then it could be the result of some mod but I doubt that. — Unsigned comment by 87.246.219.49 (talk) at 19:14 on 19 April 2012 (UTC)

Ebony Mail is a daedric artifact and should not be available as loot. If you mean Ebony Armor then I have seen Draugr drop Ebony items at higher levels so I would asume its level based. — Kimi the Elf ^{(talk | contribs)} 19:38, 19 April 2012 (UTC)

Pillar bug

So i was passing through Bleak Falls Barrow for the first time and when i got tot he pillar room the bandit that is supposed to activate the lever attacked me and i killed him. I then could not turn the pillars by activating them. I tried activating the lever but this did not resolve the issue. I am not sure if this is a bug due to the bandit not activating the lever or if this is a bug with the pillars. 176.24.235.38 10:54, 4 August 2012 (UTC)

I confirmed this bug on the main Bleak Falls Barrow entry. It has happened to me several times on the Xbox 360 version of the game. It seems to happen infrequently, and only if you kill the bandit chief instead of letting the dart trap kill him. This bug can be solved by leaving and re-entering the dungeon (simply saving and reloading the save doesn't seem to work). 68.226.99.219 01:50, 8 July 2013 (GMT)

Iron Ore Vein

There is an iron ore vein located just before the waterfall which is just before the chest that contains two fireball scrolls. — Unsigned comment by 174.17.143.94 (talk) at 12:03 on 9 October 2012‎

Added under Notes. -- CompleCCity (talk) 18:23, 1 March 2014 (GMT)

I was having a lot of trouble finding this iron ore vein based on the description on the main page. I didn't realize it's on the ground, to the right of the pillar with the cluster of glowing mushrooms, where there is indeed a skeleton with a pickaxe. If you reach the opening that overlooks the bridge with the leveled draugr / troll, you've gone a few steps too far. FrozenWolf150 (talk) 20:37, 1 July 2015 (UTC)

Follower doesn't exit barrow

When I went through the barrow with Faendal, he wouldn't leave it. Couldn't get him to follow me outside, until I dismissed and immediately re-recruited him. Is anyone else having that problem, or is it just me? I thought it was just my bad luck or Faendal being "stupid" and getting stuck somewhere over and over until I read about a similar glitch occurring in Tel Mithryn. 46.5.64.100 22:20, 13 January 2013 (GMT)

This could be moved into the bugs section of the page with a verification needed tag, or we can wait here to see if anyone replies. In any case, it's good to have the information on this talk page at least. It only happened once to you, right? --JR (talk) 09:57, 14 January 2013 (GMT)

The Dragon Claw Door Is Stuck??

The Dragon Claw Door is stuck on the three owls, as if I've put in the combination and activated it. I fixed it by reloading a save, but I felt it needed to be shared. I have no idea what caused this though. — Unsigned comment by 68.59.111.232 (talk) at 16:31 on 27 January 2013

Chest

There's a chest that I've not known about in my last 9 characters that I just found tonight, I didn't see it mentioned in the article either and don't know where it should go, either in the body or under notes. It's a locked chest located behind the word wall, kinda nestled in the middle of three rocks against the cave wall. AlphaOmega (talk) 04:20, 13 April 2013 (GMT)

Enemy level changing?

I first entered Bleak Falls Barrow very early in my main character's career (less than level 5). I just now entered it again (for the umpteenth time for testing) at level 115, and Thomas, the rope, and the frost troll were present. Now, I can't say for sure what kind of leveled enemies I encountered on my first through umpteenth-1 time, but if the enemies in this dungeon don't level with you, then Thomas and the frost troll shouldn't have been there this last time. Can anybody check, whether through in-game testing or by searching the game data, whether the package for Thomas and the frost troll level with you? --Xyzzy ^Talk 06:17, 7 February 2014 (GMT)

See above "Moved from Main" : "Thomas Easter Egg"

I'm assuming it wasn't there to start with because of the low level but on returning at higher level caused the script to fire that places him there. Philbert (talk) 01:48, 24 November 2014 (GMT)

Tower along the path to BFB

Should we consider the bandit-occupied tower just east of BFB, along the path from Riverwood, to be part of BFB, or should it be added to Skyrim:Unmarked Places? When I get a chance, I'll check some items/structures from the tower in CSList and see if they have any editor IDs that may connect them to the barrow. --Xyzzy ^Talk 06:38, 7 February 2014 (GMT)

After checking CSList, the cell where the tower is located is called Bleak Falls Tower. IMO, this is similar to Bandit Bridge: Pinewatch and should be documented in the same manner. I will add it to the Unmarked Places article, and add a note to the BFB article. --Xyzzy ^Talk 22:09, 16 February 2014 (GMT)

Quest walkthrough

This page is written as a walkthrough for the quest. We might want to consider linking to the Bleak Falls Barrow quest page for people who want the quest walkthrough, and rewriting this page as a non-quest, regular dungeon walkthrough; otherwise, it's fairly redundant. For example, re-entering Bleak Falls Barrow wouldn't respawn Arvel the Swift, I believe. —Lyra001 (talk) 10:33, 11 July 2015 (UTC)

Chest Outside

Only a minor point but outside bleak falls barrow just before you enter. If you stick to the left hand wall you will find a small satchel and a small locked box. I'm guessing its levelled loot. — Unsigned comment by Ryumit (talk • contribs) at 17:02 on 11 December 2016 (UTC)

More or less but its never high end loot. Mainly, the lock is a fixed adept level and can give good lock picking XP if you're at a low level. (Philbert) 72.131.11.225 20:46, 28 May 2018 (UTC)

Strongbox and Apothecary's Satchel .... where?

I spent a full 30 minutes searching for the Adept-locked Strongbox and Apothecary's Satchel, and could not find either. Perhaps someone could make the directions a little clearer, because "facing the entrance and following the left wall", which I did repeatedly, simply led to my stealthy archer plummeting to her death from a very high rock. I am not criticising the person who posted this, I'm just obsessive about finding everything that Skyrim has to offer: I inspect every chest, barrel, sack, etc., and tend to rage when I can't find something like this.... sorry! — Unsigned comment by 86.163.195.126 (talk) at 17:26 on 17 November 2017 (UTC)

If you're falling down the mountain you're not on the top platform where the entrance door is. Unsure how to make this clearer. Facing the entrance to the barrow, follow the left wall, there is a ledge when it turns the corner. Stay on the ledge hugging the wall until you find a gap you can enter. Enter the depression (gap) and there's another depression where they are. (Philbert) 72.131.11.225 20:42, 28 May 2018 (UTC)

I didn't understand what Philbert just said, but the original directions seem clear enough. I just tested them with my new level 3 Nord. Standing exactly in front of the door, I turned left (south). I walked about 14 paces and hit a wall, so I turned east, walked one step, turned south again, and ended up standing by some kind of thin bridge to nowhere. Heading directly west from there (never dropping in elevation) I looped clockwise around a temple pillar and found the satchel and strongbox. Took about 30 seconds.

-- Emma Emma of Falkreath (talk) 17:53, 29 May 2018 (UTC)

The bandit who dies at the puzzle room.

The bandit in the room with the lever, poison darts and pillars does not have a scripted death, because I used mora's grasp on him and the bandit froze then I ran around solved the puzzle and pulled the lever, when the bandit unfroze he walked forward and pulled the lever which closed the gate. then the Bandit just stood there.Werewolfvampirre (talk) 01:28, 24 September 2018 (UTC)

What's your point? Neither this page nor the quest page say anything about a scripted death, even Arvel's isn't scripted, just certain. Silence is Golden^{Break the Silence} 18:43, 24 September 2018 (UTC)

There isn't much of a point, it just seemed strange that the Bandit just stood around, also it's mostly for readers who think he has a scripted death. Feel free to delete this whole conversation if you think it's irrelevant.Werewolfvampirre (talk) 17:58, 30 September 2018 (UTC)

It isn't irrelevant, its just that you've written your post as if you were addressing something that was on the page or mentioned elsewhere. It's probably a script that makes him just stand there after pulling the lever so that under normal circumstances he will get hit by the poison darts. Silence is Golden^{Break the Silence} 19:07, 30 September 2018 (UTC)

Ok, I get it now.Werewolfvampirre (talk) 03:56, 6 October 2018 (UTC)

Missing Room?

In the room with the injured Giant Frostbite Spider, there is a trapdoor set into the floor. I am currently doing BF Barrow backwards (well, why wouldn't you?) and when I killed the Giant Frostbite it vanished down the pit (when doing the barrow in the normal direction, the GFS just dies on the grid over the pit). My question is, has anyone found an entrance to a passage that might lead to said pit? I've done a good deal of searching around in the immediate area, but without any conspicuous success. There is a section of wall immediately North of the trapdoor that looks as though it could be a secret stone door, but I can't find a lever, chain or pull handle. Any ideas? Upstartthread97 (talk) 20:48, 20 May 2019 (UTC)

The room at the bottom is an empty room with no doors or hallways. It's just there for visual effect. The trapdoor cannot be opened, so if the spider fell through it in your game, it was just a one-off physics glitch that happened to coincide with you doing the barrow backwards. – Robin Hood  ^(talk) 00:58, 21 May 2019 (UTC)

Ok thanks for the info. I just wondered if I was missing out on something obvious, but seemingly not. Thanks again. Upstartthread97 (talk) 05:37, 21 May 2019 (UTC)