Wuunferth the Unliving

"Strength and steel are well and good, but magic is the true power in this world."

- Wuunferth the Unliving

 is an elderly mage serving as the court-wizard for Jarl Ulfric Stormcloak. He also teaches Adept-level Destruction magic.

Location
Wuunferth resides in the Palace of the Kings in Windhelm. He has a room at the end of the hall on the second floor (first door on the left when entering the Palace of the Kings), which has an Arcane Enchanter and Alchemy Lab. Wuunferth may attend the wedding of a person who invests in him.

Hired Muscle
It is possible that Wuunferth is the target of a radiant quest for the Companions. Farkas asks the Dragonborn to intimidate a random NPC in Skyrim. It is the Dragonborn's duty to track down the person of interest and "rough them up" by initiating a bare-knuckle fight with them until they yield. Returning to Farkas completes the quest. Killing the target while on the job will result in failure of the quest.

Blood on the Ice
He is framed by Calixto as the "Butcher" of Windhelm during the player's investigation into a series of murders most foul, and depending on the Dragonborn's decisions, he may be wrongly imprisoned and if so, will mock his accuser's "detective" skills. Even if his jail cell is unlocked, he remains in the cell and appears oblivious to the fact.

He may also send hired thugs after the culprit if something is stolen from him.

Trivia

 * During the quest Blood on the Ice, Wuunferth may be confronted with the possibility of being the Butcher. He denies the allegations by mentioning that, as a Mage of the College of Winterhold, Necromancy is not allowed. However, when asked, Phinis Gestor, will specifically mention that Necromancy was in fact never disallowed at the College. He considers the Mages Guild's ban on Necromancy to have been an "archaic policy."
 * Wuunferth's name might be a reference to the character Unferth from the epic poem Beowulf, who serves as the thane of the Danish lord Hrothgar.
 * Wuunferth seems to be unhappy if the Dragonborn sides with Imperial Legion and finishes the quest line. He will have dialogue such as "Leave me alone! Can't an old man have some peace!".

Bugs

 * The game may fail to load Wuunferth, and any quests that involve him will be unable to be completed.

Appearances


Wuunferth der Unlebendige Вунферт Неживой