Hadvar

"Dragonborn" huh? Was it your ma or your pa that was the dragon?"

- Hadvar

Hadvar is a Nord and a soldier in the Imperial Army.

Background
It is likely that Hadvar and Ralof knew each other as children. Both of them are from Riverwood and their interactions during Unbound seem to imply they are at least familiar with each other.

Unbound
A group of prisoners are being taken to Helgen. Upon arrival, he and other guards begin calling the names of suspected Stormcloaks, intending to execute them. Alduin begins attacking Helgen, and, in the confusion, Hadvar spots the Dragonborn (the player character) trying to find cover. He asks the player to follow him, but the player also has the option of regrouping with Ralof, a fellow prisoner, to escape. If the player follows Hadvar through the keep, he will reach freedom and Hadvar will direct the player to his uncle, Alvor. Once the Quest is completed, Hadvar suggests the player travel to Solitude to join the Imperial Legion and serve under General Tullius. If you join, you will encounter Hadvar once more. After you talk to his uncle, Alvor, Hadvar will be living in Alvor's house. If you choose to join Ralof and not Hadvar, even though Ralof states "Looks like we are the only ones who made it", Hadvar will survive and will be present at the Imperial Legion quests.

He is also a large figure through the Imperial quests, although he rarely shows much more than a "Ah, hello friend.", followed by whatever more details on your orders, that Rikke just gave you. Some notable examples is "Compelling Tribute", where he will be leading a few soldiers. Another one is during Resuce From Fort Kastav, and he'll tell you "the plan".

Appearances

 * The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Skill training exploits

 * Hadvar is invincible in the beginning of the game. After you obtain your first weapon, keep attacking Hadvar and you can level up quickly. Also, in the Whiterun follow glitch, attack him in the middle of town. No guards will attempt an arrest. Also, his "Quest NPC" downed recovery time is almost instant.
 * The best place to do this is in the cavern just before the bear. Attack him with one-handed weapons, two-handed weapons, and magic to level up quickly.
 * Kill him normally, then just after he gets up and has little health, quickly kill him once again. He will then have full health ( best done with swords ).
 * You can also Sneak Attack him to level up "Sneak". Crouch behind in sneak attack mode, and hit him every 5 seconds. If you attack him too many times during sneak attacks and he detects you, he will turn hostile and attack you whenever he sees you, unless you join the Legion and do the first quest.
 * During or after the Civil War string of quests (if siding with the Legion), he will be at the Sleeping Giant Inn with the heavy Imperial Armor for the rest of the game.

Quotes

 * "'Dragonborn' huh? Was it your ma or your pa that was the dragon?"
 * "I don't think Rikke even knows my name. Probably because I'm not 'The Dragonborn.'"
 * "Ever get the impression Rikke's not always sure what side she's on? I'm not doubting her loyalty. Just, she seems rather sympathetic to the rebels."
 * "Ever wonder if maybe we should call a truce with the Stormcloaks, join forces for just a little while, and take care of some of these dragons?"
 * "Ha! You're still alive?"
 * "Who do you think killed more Rebels? You or me?"
 * "Hello friend."
 * "Huh. I had heard you died."

Unique interpersonal dialogue
If Hadvar and Ralof are near each other, they will engage in some unique dialogue. Based on the dialogue it is likely that Hadvar and Ralof are indeed friends yet it also shows some error because Hadvar asks Ralof why he joined the Legion yet Ralof provided Stormcloak-advocate reasoning.
 * Hadvar: "How'd you end up here?"
 * Ralof: "My cousin disappeared one night. Some say the Thalmor grabbed him. It wasn't long before I found myself under Ulfric's banner."
 * Hadvar: So why did you join the Stormcloaks?
 * Ralof: I'm a true nord. Simple as that.


 * Ralof: So why'd you join the Legion?
 * Hadvar: My father was a Legionnaire, and his before him. I guess I never considered doing anything else.

If the Dragonborn followed Hadvar during the mission, Unbound, and did not start the Imperial Legion quests, he will say the same dialogues as other imperials, like:
 * "Damn Stormcloak Rebels."
 * "Watch for trouble, it's only a matter of time."

Bugs

 * Some players may experience a bug after taking Windhelm for the Legion, where Hadvar follows them around in Whiterun, seemingly for no reason at all, with his sword drawn. He will occasionally say things, such as, "Ha! You're still alive?" or, "Who do you think killed more rebels? You or me?"
 * Solution for the above bug is to get as close to him as possible, save the game, exit to the dashboard/xmb/desktop, and load the game back up. He should put his sword away and walk out of Whiterun. Sometimes this might not work, if you wait a couple in game days Hadvar will leave you and go to the inn in Riverwood.
 * Another, more simple solution is to simply leave Whiterun though the front gate. He will start walking towards Riverwood.(does not work on Xbox)
 * After you leave the caves just as you complete Unbound, once you come close to the Guardian Stones he may wander off the path and never initialize the conversation regarding the stones. To fix this, sprint into him when you reach the turn towards the stones. He should redirect his course and walk to them.

Hadvar

Хадвар