Bannermist Tower

Half-ruined Nordic watchtower in the woods northwest of Falkreath, taken over by bandits, with gems, a tanning rack and the skill book Advances in Lockpicking.

Bannermist Tower is a partly collapsed old watchtower standing in the forest northwest of Falkreath and southeast of Rorikstead. Nobody has kept watch here for a long time, so a group of bandits has moved in and turned it into a hideout. It is a quick climb from bottom to top, with a skill book and a few gems as the reward.

What you’ll find

  • Bandits occupying the different floors.
  • A locked gate at ground level opening onto a room with a table and a chest. A collapsed stairwell blocks the way further down.
  • A wooden ramp to the right of the gate leading to the upper levels: first a room with barrels, sacks, two bedrolls and a chest.
  • A wooden stair through the broken ceiling to a room with a weapon rack, a tanning rack and a table with a skill book.
  • The open roof at the very top, where another book lies on a table.
  • A beehive under the wooden ramp and a bird’s nest beside it.

Quests

The tower is one of the possible spots for Meridia’s Beacon, which leads into The Break of Dawn.

Notable items

  • Advances in Lockpicking – Lockpicking skill book on the upper level next to the weapon rack.
  • An amethyst and a garnet on a table at ground level.
  • Tanning rack on the upper floor.

Tips

If the lockpicking book refuses to be read, it has probably fallen through the table. Look at the floor directly below where it seems to be resting, and the read prompt should appear.

The bandits are spread across several small floors, so archers can pick them off one level at a time while they funnel down the ramp. Once they are gone, the tanning rack is a nice little bonus if you have been hauling pelts around the forest.

Good to know

According to players, the chests here refill far faster than usual – roughly every five in-game hours instead of after days. A quick fast travel to Falkreath and back can be enough to find them restocked.

Nearby

Closest places covered on TamrielSaga: Hunter’s Rest, Evergreen Grove, Moss Mother Cavern, Knifepoint Ridge, Half-Moon Mill.

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.

Characters found here

Aval Atheron in Skyrim: Dark Elf pawnbroker and meat vendor in Windhelm’s market who sells goods of doubtful origin. Shop, family and his rescue quest.

Quests that lead here

Creatures you will meet

Weapons found here

Armor found here

Items found here

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Sources checked: Skyrim game files (map markers, location records, read 2026-10-11); Elder Scrolls Fandom location articles (export 2026-10-11)