Bleak Falls Barrow (Location)

Template:SkyrimTombs It is a large temple built by Ancient Nords to worship dragons.

It is one of the places where ancient Nords buried their dead, and as such, the Barrow is infested with aggressive Draugr. There may be a dragon perched on the arch outside the temple if the Dragonborn has completed enough of the main storyline, otherwise there will be a small number of bandits.

Description

The first section of Bleak Falls Barrow that is encountered is known as Bleak Falls Temple. This is an underground-style dungeon rather that the normal ancient Nord style of dungeon. There is also an inner section, Bleak Falls Sanctum, which is blocked by another gate that only the Golden Claw can open after a puzzle is solved.

Interactions

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Bleak Falls Barrow (Quest)

During the course of the Main Story, Jarl Balgruuf the Greater will ask the Dragonborn to assist his court wizard Farengar Secret-Fire with his research into Dragons. The Dragonborn will be tasked with retrieving the Dragonstone, an ancient tablet with a map of Dragon Burial Mounds, from Bleak Falls Barrow.

The Golden Claw

Lucan Valerius, owner of the Riverwood Trader, may ask the Dragonborn to go to Bleak Falls Barrow and retrieve his Golden Dragon Claw, which was stolen by bandits. This quest can be completed simultaneously with the Bleak Falls Barrow quest. Template:Endspoiler

Enemies

• Bandits
• Draugr
• Frostbite Spider
  • There is one "Wounded" Frostbite spider in the chamber with Arvel which acts as a mini-boss.
• Skeever
• Dragon
  • Dragons can be waiting outside the exit behind the Word Wall despite not completing the quest; this allows random dragon encounters, however, they are not part of the dungeon itself. (Confirmed on PS3 and Xbox 360.)
  • Possible Troll (after completing Bleak Falls Barrow).

Notable items

• Pickpocket Skill Book - Thief
• Golden Claw - Arvel
• Dragonstone - End Boss
• There is a strongbox and apothecary's satchel, both containing random items, on the outside of the left hand temple wall, (if facing the temple door from the outside look to the left, walk to the corner of the temple, turn right, and continue to the end of the wall - they are in the corner).
• A chest with an apprentice lock up the stairs to the right of the first set of swinging blades.
• Two hidden treasure chests in the Word Wall room behind waterfalls on either side of the Word Wall.
• There is a chest hidden in the cobwebs next to a lootable skeleton which contains random loot just before fighting the frostbite spider and cutting down/killing Arvel the Swift.

Word Wall

Thu'um	Dragon Language
	Transliteration	Translation
Unrelenting Force Locations: Bleak Falls Barrow
Fus	File:Fus-wordwall.gif
	HET NOK FaaL VahLOK DeiNMaaR DO DOVahGOLZ ahRK aaN FUS DO UNSLaaD RahGOL ahRK VULOM	Here lies the guardian Keeper of dragonstone And a force of unending Rage and darkness

Quests

• Bleak Falls Barrow (Quest)
• The Golden Claw

Gallery

The path leading to the ancient tomb

Bleak Falls Barrow concept art

View at the Bleak Falls Barrow early in the morning

Trivia

• This location does reset enemies and chests after a time. However, it does not generate an additional Dragonstone or the NPC and quest item required in The Golden Claw.
• A Dragon may appear after exiting Bleak Falls Barrow if the player has completed the quest, Dragon Rising.
• This was the first dungeon and respective quest seen by players of Skyrim. As it was shown in the very first demo.
• There is a bandit outlaw seen trying to open the puzzle, but gets shot by the poisoned arrows for failing.
• The exterior of Bleak Falls Barrow has four large beautifully carved stone archs. These arches are very popular in Ancient Nord architecture, and because the Ancient Nords who built the gigantic barrow were Dragon worshippers, stone Dragon heads can be seen on top of the archs.
• Sometimes after clearing the ruins and fast traveling back after a while can result in several Draugr battling some leveled Bandits near the entrance of the ruin.
• If the Dragonborn has not yet spoken to Lucan Valerius about his missing "ornament", upon entering the Barrow, they will overhear two bandits talking about it, thus beginning the quest "The Golden Claw"
• Although the enemies reset after a period of time, like most dungeons, the enemies within Bleak Falls Barrow stay at the same level they were when first encountered, resulting in a place which is good for testing newly enchanted weapons or learning a new skill.

Bugs

• The puzzle to open the gate by turning pillars may not work; the pillars won't turn when activated. Exiting the cave and re-entering or saving and reloading may fix this.
• The door the Dragon Claw opens may not work, the rings won't move. Loading the last save may fix this.

Appearances

• The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Template:1st