Valthume (Skyrim)

Valthume (Skyrim)
Hold	The Reach
Location	Southeast of Markarth
Type	Tomb
Sublocations	Valthume Catacombs
Quests	Evil in Waiting
Characters	Valdar's spirit
Location ID	Valthume00 Valthume01 Valthume02

"We stand at the tomb of Hevnoraak, who has been dead for many generations. I fear, however, that his return may be at hand."

―Valdar

Valthume is an ancient Nordic tomb in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Located southeast of Markarth in the Reach, it serves as the tomb of a Dragon Priest named Hevnoraak. It can also be reached by going up the hill, to the southwest of Gloomreach, or following the path south from Dushnikh Yal.

Since it is not the location of any non-radiant quest, this dungeon is easy to miss. However, it is not possible to get all levels of all Dragon Shouts without it.

Sublocations

• Valthume
• Valthume Catacombs
• Valthume Vestibule

Enemies

There are a great number of leveled Draugr here, as well as the Dragon Priest Hevnoraak.

Enemy types

• Draugr
• Dragon Priest – Hevnoraak
• Draugr Deathlords
• Draugr Death Overlords
• Frostbite Spiders
• Draugr Scourges
• Skeevers
• Restless Draugrs
• Draugr Wights

Traps

• Pressure buttons causing lamps filled with hot coals to fall in oil slicks.
• Large trap door in floor; it looks like a metal grate. If fallen into, the Dragonborn will land in a pit with a small tunnel off of it. There are four frostbite spiders and a draugr in the tunnel, and an expert locked door. Key can be found on the draugr.
• Upon entering the Valthume catacombs, there is a trip-wired chest that releases a giant frostbite spider.
• A pressure plate that activates swinging axes is seen down the first hallway in the catacombs.
• Soul gems that shoot fire can also be found. The gems can be disabled by grabbing the soul gems from the room looking out at the hallway they shoot into, or knocking them off with arrows or the Unrelenting Force Dragon Shout. The room next to the hallway has a Draugr Deathlord in it before coming to the flame hallway.
• Pressure plate activating a swinging spike wall.
• When the iron dragon claw is picked up, it activates a pressure plate, and the four statues around the pedestal will begin to breathe fire.
• There is also a swinging log, which is activated when a door is opened.

Notable items

• Hevnoraak's Staff - on Hevnoraak
• Hevnoraak (Mask) - on Hevnoraak
• Ebony Shield - found in room where the dragon priest's spirit/ghost is first seen. Can only be reached by jumping on the wood on the side of the room, then leaping to the platform. Chest with random loot can be found above the shield.
• Ancient Nord Helmet - near Valdar's throne
• Spell Tome: Oakflesh
• Withershins Skill Book: Restoration - close to the entry in Valthume
• Possible location for Kahvozein's Fang
• A Flawless Emerald on a plate on a shelf, along with an Amethyst and Garnet, in a room to the left of the room where Hevnoraak's spirit is first seen.

Dragon Shouts

• Word Wall — Aura Whisper

Facilities

• Alchemy Lab

Quests

• Evil in Waiting
• Letter from a Friend
• Possible location for Shalidor's Insights
• Possible location for Alteration Ritual Spell

Gallery

Valthume Vestibule

Defeat Hevnoraak

Bugs

This section contains bugs related to Valthume (Skyrim). Before adding a bug to this list, consider the following: Please reload an old save to confirm if the bug is still happening. If the bug is still occurring, please post the bug report with the appropriate system template  360  /  XB1  ,  PS3  /  PS4  ,  PC  /  MAC  ,  NX  /  PS5  ,  XS  , depending on which platform(s) the bug has been encountered on. Be descriptive when listing the bug and fixes, but avoid having conversations in the description and/or using first-person anecdotes: such discussions belong on the appropriate forum board.

Click to see the list of bugs encountered

It is possible that the vessels will not be able to be taken from their pedestals (the option to take will not appear), therefore making the quest unfinishable. This can be fixed by reloading a save and taking the vessel as you normally would (solution worked for 360). If the throne the skeleton is sitting in in the first room is sat in and then stand up, the Dragonborn may be unable to move.  360   The rings to the Door Puzzle may not move correctly. Easy fix, save in front of door with the claw in inventory. Load the save. Should work. Repeat if necessary. The gate in front of the Word Wall may close on the Dragonborn while they are inside. Reloading an old save or using a ranged shout (such as Unrelenting Force or Fire Breath) on the pedestal where the vial was located, it may open the gate momentarily. This gate can also stay closed, in this case shooting it with a ranged spell or weapon, or jumping on it may open it. Like the PS3 version, it may be impossible to collect the word of power from the wall. The sounds will play but nothing else will happen.  PS3   If having trouble getting the Iron Dragon Claw's door to work, reload to a previous save, go to the Puzzle Door first (easy to find path if the Shout quest marker is activated) kill the spiders in the room, but do not pick up the Dragon Claw into the inventory. Instead, literally pick it up (mind the fire trap), look at the combination, drop it, key the combination into the door and then obtain the Dragon Claw and use it on the door. PS3-Fix to confirmed Claw may not be able to be moved from pedestal without adding to inventory. It may also be possible for the puzzle door not to open, no matter how much the saves are reset.  PS3   If any pressure plate is shouted at, it will push it down but not go back up until an item is put on top, and then removed.  360   By standing next to Henvnoraak's sarcophagus and casting Circle of Protection will increase the level of Restoration safely. Sometimes, the second vial will be located within the chest behind the gate, making the Word Wall unreachable. If this is the case, the gate may be opened by leaving and returning. If the quest pointers are followed, it will lead to the third vial and the second vial will be lying on the floor in the room it's located in.  360   As the last vessel is on top of a pressure plate, if the pressure plate is "disturbed" after taking the bottle, such as getting hit by errant spells, arrows, or the Unrelenting Force shout from nearby Draugr, the plate can be put back into "pressed" position, meaning that the bars go back up and the word for Aura Whisper and the boss chest can't be obtained. A fix is to take an object and lay it on the pressure plate and take it off, so the bars will lower.  360   Various doors may open despite being barred.

Appearances

• The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim