Redoran’s Retreat is a cave a short way northwest of Whiterun, home to three bandits and a dog. It is small, close to the city and shows up in plenty of radiant quests, so many players end up here early and often. The main prize sits right next to the bandit chief, which makes for a tidy little stealth puzzle.
What you’ll find
- A dog near the entrance and its master, a low-level bandit archer to the right, guarding a chest and some potions.
- A passage down to the main chamber, where one bandit patrols while the bandit chief works at the far end.
- Bones on a string that rattle when someone walks through them.
- A dead-end room near the chief with the skill book and a treasure map.
- Six kinds of mushrooms: fly amanita, bleeding crown, Namira’s rot, blisterwort, white cap and imp stool.
- An iron ore vein on top of the rock the door is set into.
Quests
A possible location for Amren’s family sword (the chest by the chief), and a frequent target for bounty quests. The Companions radiant quests “Stealing Plans”, “Hunting the Monster” and “Striking the Heart” can also send you here, in which case the Silver Hand may be the ones waiting inside.
Notable items
- 2920, vol 08 – Last Seed (Sneak)
- Treasure Map IV
- Amren’s Family Sword (one possible location)
Tips
Shoot the dog first – it dies in one hit and otherwise tattles. Taking out the archer won’t alert the rest. Arrows on the patrolling bandit, however, will wake the chief. Low-level and outmatched? Wait until the patrol walks left into the bone chimes, sneak right into the shadowed nook, let the bandit pass again, then slip forward to the chest. Once you have the loot you can just sprint for the exit; the chief won’t follow you outside. Avoid losing the chief at a chokepoint, though – they stay where they last saw you, which can block the treasure.
Good to know
The cave shares its name with House Redoran, one of the Great Houses of Morrowind – no Dunmer in sight, though.
Nearby
Closest places covered on TamrielSaga: Dustman’s Cairn, Greenspring Hollow, Hamvir’s Rest, Fort Greymoor, Bleakwind Basin.
Location data (hold, map position, editor ID) read from the Skyrim game files; details checked against community wiki articles and summarised in our own words.