Forsaken Cave

Forsaken Cave
Map
Hold	The Pale
Location	West of Windhelm
Type	Cave
Sublocations	Forsaken Crypt
Quests	White Phial
Characters	None
Location ID	ForsakenCaveExterior ForsakenCave01 ForsakenCave02

Forsaken Cave is a cave in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. It is located in The Pale just north of Bronze Water Cave (west of Windhelm—halfway between Windhelm and Dawnstar), and east of the Nightgate Inn. It leads to a Nordic burial chamber with all the usual traps, and the Forsaken Crypt. It is also the final resting place of the master alchemist Curalmil and his artifact, the White Phial.

A Word Wall can be found inside the crypt. The fight in the last room involves three leveled draugr and Curalmil. If the crypt is re-entered for another quest, Curalmil is replaced by either a draugr deathlord, a draugr death overlord or a dragon priest.

Sublocations

Forsaken Crypt

The Forsaken Crypt is essentially two rooms; one on three levels with corridors, stairs and crypt chambers in between. In the last room is a Word Wall where the Dragonborn can learn one of the words for Marked for Death. The mini-encounter that occurs upon entering the last room involves roughly four regular draugr and Curalmil.

Below the Word Wall, there is a short corridor, and a small room with an empty bowl. This is for "The White Phial" and needs Nurelion's mixture to activate. Using the mixture in the bowl will open the hidden door. The room is filled with alchemy ingredients, along with the cracked White Phial. If Nurelion's mixture has not yet been obtained, it is still possible to access the chamber using a wooden plate to press through the door. At least two wooden plates will be required—one to get in, and one to get out.

The exit to the final chamber is accessed by following the left wall, before coming to the stairs that lead up to the Word Wall, to an iron door in the corner which leads back to the beginning cave area.

Quests

• The White Phial
• Shalidor's Insights (radiant)
• Salty Sea-Dogs (radiant)
• Find Ring of Pure Mixtures
• The Break of Dawn (radiant)
• Lost Relic ^DG (radiant)
• Wind and Sand (radiant)

Notable items

• Skill book (Alchemy): A Game at Dinner – On a pedestal in the phial chamber.
• Skill book (Block): The Mirror – On a stone table in the burial halls.
• Cracked White Phial – On a pedestal in the phial chamber.
• Possible location of the Ring of Pure Mixtures.
• Possible location of Meridia's Beacon – In the loot chest in the main chamber.

Enemies

• Curalmil
• Snow Bear, snowy sabre cat, or: two ice wolves, two frost trolls or two ice wraiths, depending on level at time of entering the location – at the entrance of the cave.
• Leveled draugr or frost trolls.

Facilities

• Alchemy lab in the Forsaken Crypt, in the final chamber, behind the word wall.

Gallery

The Forsaken Crypt

Forsaken crypt location

Trivia

• This location may also be found by following the Headless Horseman.
• A dragon burial mound is nearby.

Appearances

• The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim