The Rift (Online)

For other uses, see The Rift.

The Rift is one of the nine Holds of Skyrim, located in the southeast of the province and is one of the four Old Holds in The Elder Scrolls Online. Major settlements include Riften, Nimalten and Shor's Stone, among many other settlements dotted throughout the hold such as Ivarstead.

Background[]

"Skyrim's southernmost hold has a relatively temperate climate, thanks to northern mountains that block the frigid gales of the Sea of Ghosts, and warming volcanoes in the Velothi Mountains to the east. Its capital is Riften, on the shores of broad Lake Honrich."

―The Rift Loading Screen^[src]

The Rift is a relatively temperate, autumnal region, protected from the frigid gales of the Sea of Ghosts by the northern mountains and is warmed by the Velothi Mountains to the east. Its capital is Riften, on the eastern shore of broad Lake Honrich. Many crafters and traders frequently visit the city due to its compactness and the fact that most trading facilities are in close proximity to each other.^[1]^[2]

The Rift is located in the southeastern corner of Skyrim and borders Stonefalls in Morrowind to the east, Cyrodiil to the south, Eastmarch and Whiterun to the north and northwest, and Falkreath to the west.^[1]

The Rift (Online)Sabrecats — Two sabre cats blend in to their environment, waiting for unwary prey to ambush.

Most of the Rift is composed of lush, autumnal valleys and river basins, surrounded by mountains to the south, east, west and northeast. The hold itself is located atop a large vertical ridge that separates it from Eastmarch, and the western mountain range south of Throat of the World goes along its border with Falkreath, making it one of the most isolated holds in Skyrim. In fact, there are only two known roads that lead into other zones: the one at Fort Virak in Stonefalls and the one in Eastmarch.^[1]

The Rift is teeming with wildlife, both docile and hostile. It serves as an excellent hunting ground due to the presence of so much wildlife. Bears, sabre cats and wolves are common in the wilderness, and mammoths and giants also appear regularly.^[1]^[3]

Locations[]

Main article: Locations (Online)

The following are locations accessible in the Rift and, with the exception of unmarked locations, are discoverable on the map. Points of Interest serve as locations with unique side quests, while cities serve as the centralized areas with multiple sublocations and act as a hub for services and merchants. Explanations of the types of locations are provided in the main locations page.

Wayshrines	Dungeons	Points of Interest
Fallowstone Hall Wayshrine Fullhelm Fort Wayshrine Geirmund's Hall Wayshrine Honrich Tower Wayshrine Nimalten Wayshrine Northwind Mine Wayshrine Ragged Hills Wayshrine Riften Wayshrine Skald's Retreat Wayshrine Taarengrav Wayshrine Trolhetta Summit Wayshrine Trolhetta Wayshrine	Avanchnzel Blessed Crucible Broken Helm Hollow Faldar's Tooth Fort Greenwall Lion's Den Scrivener's Hall ^SoF Shroud Hearth Barrow Snapleg Cave	Boulderfall Pass Fallowstone Hall Forelhost Frostmoon Farmstead Fullhelm Fort Geirmund's Hall Honrich Tower Ivarstead Lost Prospect Nimalten Northwind Mine Pinepeak Cavern Riften Shor's Stone Skald's Retreat Taarengrav Treva's Farm Trolhetta Vernim Woods
Set Stations	Mundus Stones	Dark Anchors	Striking Locales
Eldbjorg's Hideaway (Night Mother's Gaze) Smokefrost Vigil (Willow's Path) Trollslayer's Gully (Hunding's Rage)	The Apprentice The Steed	Ragged Hills Dolmen Smokefrost Peaks Dolmen Stony Basin Dolmen	Autumnshade Clearing Grethel's Vigil Honeystrand Hill Jenedusil's Claw Linele Skullcarver's Camp Mammoth Ridge Three Tribes Camp
World Bosses	Housing	Unmarked locations
Angarvunde Mound Frozen Ruins Giant Camp Troll Cave Wisplight Glen	Autumn's-Gate Hunter's Glade Old Mistveil Manor	Arcwind Point To Eastmarch To Stonefalls Vampire Ritual Site Werewolf Ritual Site

Quests[]

Main article: Quests (Online)

The Rift features a series of zone story quests and unrelated side quests. The zone story quests conclude the Ebonheart Pact's overarching storyline and carries on from Eastmarch, but it is not necessary to complete the story quests for zones prior to those in the Rift. Side quests are non-sequential and can be completed in any order, except where one carries on from another, and repeatable quests can be completed multiple times: weekly for arenas and trials and daily for all others. Pointer quests are optional zone quests that send the Vestige to the tarting location of another zone quest.

Zone quests

Pointer quests

Side quests

Solo dungeon quests

Group dungeon quests

A War of Scribes ^SoF
Fires of Battle
Pledge: Blessed Crucible
Pledge: Scrivener's Hall ^SoF

Faction quests

Companion quests

Tempting Fates ^NE

Prologue quests

Characters[]

Random encounters

Anirione – A merchant who can be robbed during random encounters.
Farmir – A traveler having trouble lighting their campfire during random encounters.
Filthwhisker – A beggar who can be donated to during random encounters.
Haghai – A traveler having trouble lighting their campfire during random encounters.

Traveling merchant

Aluri – On the road between Honrich Tower Wayshrine and Trollslayer's Gully.
Balynor – On the road between Ragged Hills Wayshrine and Angarvunde Mound.
Dratholar – On the road between Autumn's-Gate and Eldbjorg's Hideaway.
Greca – On the road between Lost Prospect and Fullhelm Fort.
Walks-with-Bargains – On the road between Hunter Camp and Fallowstone Hall Wayshrine.

Item Sets[]

Main article: Item Sets

Item sets are related armor and weapons that, when worn together, provide unique benefits. Overland sets can be acquired from world bosses, world events, delves, public dungeons and containers and as quest rewards; dungeon sets can be acquired from within group dungeons; monster sets can be acquired from the final boss of veteran group dungeons and Undaunted Enclaves; and crafted sets can be created at specific locations across the zone.

Overland

Dungeon

Abyssal Brace (Heavy; Scrivener's Hall) ^SoF
Apocryphal Inspiration (Medium; Scrivener's Hall) ^SoF
Nikulas' Heavy Armor (Heavy; Blessed Crucible)
Noble Duelist's Silks (Light; Blessed Crucible)
Runecarver's Blaze (Light; Scrivener's Hall) ^SoF
Sword Dancer (Medium; Blessed Crucible)

Monster

Ozezan the Inferno (Scrivener's Hall) ^SoF
The Troll King (Blessed Crucible)

Craftable

Skyshards[]

Main article: Skyshards (Online)

Sixteen Skyshards can be found in the Rift totaling in five skill points with one left over. The zone guide provides clues as to the location of each Skyshard, but many can be found simply by exploring and watching for the distinctive pillar of light they emit. Skyshards will appear on the map and compass when the Vestige is close to one and will remain discovered on the map even if it was not collected.

#	Description	Location
1	Braced against wind near the mine.	By the exit of Northwind Mine.
2	Be Shor to search all over the stone.	Above Shor's Stone Mine.
3	Nearly discovered by a mauled stablehand.	North of Trevor's Farm.
4	Cultists' prize near Ragged Hills.	Between Ragged Hills Wayshrine and Angarvunde Mound, east past the ritual site.
5	Scour the crags near Avanchnzel.	Northeast of the entrance to Avanchnzel.
6	South where worms swarm the barrow.	Southwest of Taarengrav.
7	A prospect found.	North of the entrance to Lost Prospect Sanctum.
8	Walk above the clouds.	South to the clif's edge at Forelhost after exiting the Dragon Cult Temple during the relevant quest.
9	Stay alert between Riften and Greenwall.	Between Riften and Fort Greenwall.
10	Clank of gears and hiss of steam.	Westmost section of Avanchnzel.
11	Guarded by bears in the hollow.	Eastmost alove in Broken Helm Hollow
12	Deep in the roots of the tooth.	Down the left-side hall after entering Faldar's Tooth.
13	Where green grows in the fort's wall.	Down a hole leading to the lower floor in the center of Fort Greenwall.
14	Take a shrouded approach.	Eastmost chamber of Shroud Hearth Barrow.
15	Tread carefully; don't break a leg.	Eastmost area at the top of an elevated section of Snapleg Cave.
16	Protected by wraiths in a beast's den.	By the southmost entrance to Giant's Crush in the Lion's Den.

Achievements[]

Main article: Achievements (Online)

Achievements can be earned by completing specific tasks such as completing quests and discovering locations. Achievements are separated into categories and their progress is viewable from the journal. Earning achievement provides the Vestige a number of points, and some achievements unlock unique rewards such as furnishings that can be bought from Achievement Furnishers or collectibles.

Character
Skyshards

The Rift Skyshard Hunter

Dungeons
Public Dungeons

Lion's Den Conqueror
Lion's Den Group Event
Lion's Den Vanquisher

Group Dungeons

Blessed Crucible Vanquisher

Veteran Dungeons
General

Blessed Crucible Conqueror

Death Challenges

Coronation by Fire

Slayer Challenges

Veteran Durzog Slayer
Veteran Gladiator Slayer

Speed Challenges

Blessed Crucible Assassin

Survivor Challenges

Blessed Crucible Survivor

Exploration
Ebonheart Pact

Avanchnzel Explorer
Broken Helm Hollow Explorer
Faldar's Tooth Explorer
Fort Greenwall Explorer
Frost Atronach Destroyer
Ghost Banisher
Giant Slayer
Khajiiti Hunters' Bane
Shroud Hearth Barrow Explorer
Snapleg Cave Explorer
The Rift Cave Delver
The Rift Master Explorer
The Rift Pathfinder
Troll Killer
Wispmother Vanquisher

Fishing

Rift Angler

Quests
Ebonheart Pact

Reach Crusher
Shattered Remnants
The Rift Adventurer
Wormsquasher
Ysgramor's Prodigy

Scribes of Fate
General

Fate's Secrets
Missing Map Recovered
Reinfyr's Hero
Scribes of Fate Scout
Scrivener's Hall Vanquisher
Vault Guardian

Veteran

Battlescribe Slayer
Critical Review
Dousing Exterminator
Familiar Slayer
Harsh Edit
Iced Enemies
Inflammable
Keeper of the Keys
Liberate Combatant
Magnastylus in the Making
Pest Control
Scrivener's Hall Challenger
Scrivener's Hall Champion
Scrivener's Hall Champion
Scrivener's Hall Conqueror
Speed Reader
Too Hot to Trot
Unburnt Footwork
Unstilled Quill

Shalidor's Library[]

Main article: Shalidor's Library

Twenty-nine books that are a part of Shalidor's Library can be found in the Rift and added to the collection. Books that have already been found in other zones will already be marked as completed in the zone tracker.

Fish[]

Main article: Fishing (Online)

Fish can be caught from fishing hotspots, ideally with the correct bait. Common fish will be caught most often while rare fish and alternative bait are rare catches. Each zone has unique rare fish than can be caught from hotspots. Slaughterfish and trodh can be caught from foul hotspots, dhufish and longfin can be caught from saltwater hotspots, silverside perch and spadetail can be caught from lake hotspots, and salmon and river betty can be caught from river hotspots. Chub, minnow, shad and fish roe can be caught and used as bait from foul, saltwater, lake and river hotspots, respectively.

Fish	Source	Quality
Bream	Foul water	Fine
Grouper	Rivers	Fine
Ice Koi	Lakes	Fine
Ilinalta Trout	Lakes	Superior
Jarl Salmon	Lakes	Fine
Muskellunge	Rivers	Superior
Skate	Foul water	Fine
Skorrn	Foul water	Fine
Sockeye Salmon	Rivers	Fine
Sulfursucker	Foul water	Superior
White Roughy	Rivers	Superior
Zebra Oto	Lakes	Fine

Gallery[]

Interactive map[]

Appearances[]

The Elder Scrolls: Arena
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
- The Elder Scrolls V: Dawnguard
The Elder Scrolls Online
- The Elder Scrolls Online: Scribes of Fate
The Elder Scrolls: Legends (mentioned only)

References[]

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 ^1.3 Events of The Elder Scrolls Online
↑ Rivers of Profit in Riften
↑ Rilaso's Guide to Tamriel, Ch. 21

[Online-1] 1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 ^1.3 Events of The Elder Scrolls Online

[2] Rivers of Profit in Riften

[3] Rilaso's Guide to Tamriel, Ch. 21

[1]

[2]

[3]

Online Locations
Provinces	Black Marsh Cyrodiil Elsweyr Hammerfell High Rock Morrowind Skyrim Summerset Isles Valenwood
Aldmeri Dominion Zones	Auridon (Iluvamir Calambar Vafe) Grahtwood (Long Coast Green Hall Tarlain Heights) Greenshade (Wilderking Court Drowned Coast Green's Marrow) Malabal Tor (Broken Coast Silvenar Vale Xylo River Basin) Reaper's March (Northern Woods Jodewood Dawnmead) Khenarthi's Roost
Daggerfall Covenant Zones	Glenumbra (Daenia Cambray Hills King's Guard) Stormhaven (Alcaire Menevia Gavaudon) Rivenspire (Eyebright Feld Westmark Moor Boralis) Alik'r Desert (Myrkwasa Hollow Wastes Tigonus) Bangkorai (Mournoth Ephesus Fallen Wastes) Stros M'Kai Betnikh
Ebonheart Pact Zones	Stonefalls (Daen Seeth Zabamat Varanis) Deshaan (Redolent Loam Lagomere Siltreen) Shadowfen (Reticulated Spine Leafwater Venomous Fens) Eastmarch (Giant's Run Frostwater Tundra Icewind Peaks) The Rift (Stony Basin Ragged Hills Smokefrost Peaks) Bleakrock Isle Bal Foyen
Neutral Zones	Coldharbour (Black Garrison Fist of Stone Shrouded Plain) Craglorn (Lower Craglorn Upper Craglorn) Cyrodiil (Covenant Territory Dominion Territory Pact Territory) Eyevea
Chapter and DLC Zones	Imperial City Wrothgar (Western Wrothgar Central Wrothgar Eastern Wrothgar) Hew's Bane Gold Coast Vvardenfell (Ascadian Isles Ashlands Azura's Coast Bitter Coast Grazelands Molag Amur West Gash) Clockwork City Summerset Artaeum Murkmire Northern Elsweyr Southern Elsweyr Western Skyrim Greymoor Cavern The Reach Arkthzand Cavern Blackwood The Deadlands High Isle and Amenos Galen and Y'ffelon Telvanni Peninsula (Fungal Lowlands Padomaic Crest) Apocrypha (Chroma Incognito Endless Library) West Weald (Colovian Highlands Dawnwood Gold Road Wildburn)
Other Locations	Unzoned Locations