First Lessons

"Cross the bridge at your own peril. The way is dangerous and the gate will not open. You shall not gain entry."

―Faralda^[src]

First Lessons is a quest available in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. This quest is obtained upon arriving at Winterhold and approaching the beginning of the bridge to the College of Winterhold. It is the first quest in the College of Winterhold's questline.

BackgroundEdit

ObjectivesEdit

1. Join the College of Winterhold
2. Cast:
   1. Summon Flame Atronach
   2. Firebolt
   3. Fear
   4. Healing Hands
   5. Magelight
3. Report to Mirabelle Ervine
4. Tour the College of Winterhold
5. Listen to Tolfdir

WalkthroughEdit

When approaching the bridge to the College, the guardian of the bridge, Faralda, will ask the Dragonborn in order to prove their ability to enter the College, by casting a spell, selected randomly. The spell's level will depend on one's level and perks. If the Dragonborn does not know the spell, they can buy its spell tome from her for cheap (30 ). They must, however, possess enough Magicka to cast the spell that she asks them to demonstrate. The Dragonborn may try to circumvent this test by Persuasion; however, it requires a very difficult Speech check.

Alternatively, the option to say they are the Dragonborn can be chosen, and instead of a spell, they will be asked to demonstrate the Voice. (This is only an option during the quest "Elder Knowledge.")

She will then lead the Dragonborn to the College and give them a quest to speak with the College leader Mirabelle Ervine (Master Wizard), a mage in the courtyard. This allows the Dragonborn access to the College of Winterhold. She will give some Novice Robes and a Novice Hood to wear if one chooses so. These robes will have an enchantment to make certain spells cost less. The set is basically the same as the first robe and hood they came across when escaping from Helgen Keep.

The Dragonborn will then be taken on a short tour of the Hall of Attainment and be told to see Tolfdir in the Hall of the Elements where he is giving a lecture on Magic safety while the students want to skip over it. After a brief exchange with everyone, he decides to ask for the Dragonborn's help in a practical demonstration of ward spells. If one does not have a ward spell learned, he will teach them the Lesser Ward spell for free. Then they will be asked to defend themselves with a ward spell while he casts a long-range fire spell at them (either always a weakened version of firebolt, OR, it's possible the type and power of which is determined by one's level and one's ward spell's level). Once the Dragonborn has defended themselves successfully, Tolfdir will ask the class to travel to Saarthal to take part in an expedition.

JournalEdit

TriviaEdit

• After agreeing to Faralda's test, the Dragonborn does not actually need to complete the demonstration. The Dragonborn can skip directly to the Hall of Elements to participate in Tolfdir's lecture. The gate up ahead prevents passage, however, it can be bypassed with a wooden plate. After finishing Tolfdir's lecture, the next mission, "Under Saarthal," will begin and the gate will become open as he and the students approach it. Faralda will then leave her place and resume her schedule. Doing this, however, will leave an unfinished objective in the "First Lessons" quest.
• When heading towards Mirabelle, the Dragonborn can see her having an argument with Ancano. She says that the Thalmor will not get special treatment, like with the Empire, but Ancano is here because the Arch-Mage is allowing him to be.
• It is acceptable to use Spellbreaker when asked to cast a ward by Tolfdir.

BugsEdit