The Fate of the Skaal is a main quest of the Dragonborn DLC. Fresh from the strange vision in the Temple of Miraak, you follow Frea home to Skaal Village, where her father, the shaman Storn Crag-Strider, is struggling to keep the last free villagers safe. His plan: learn the Word of Power that Miraak once learned and turn it against the Wind Stone that enslaves his people.
How to start
The quest begins automatically when you leave the Temple of Miraak at the end of The Temple of Miraak. Frea asks you to come with her to consult the Skaal shaman.
Walkthrough
Accompany Frea to Skaal Village
Follow Frea across the north of Solstheim. On the way she points out the Wind Stone, where her people are being held, and the magical barrier protecting the village. In the village she joins her father, who sits in a circle with two other Skaal maintaining the barrier, and tells him you have confirmed Miraak is behind their suffering.
Talk to Storn Crag-Strider
Tell Storn about the Black Book and the vision of Miraak. When he learns that you, like Miraak, are Dragonborn, he concludes the two of you must be connected, which could mean salvation or ruin. He explains that the controlled Skaal spend every waking moment building a strange shrine around the Wind Stone, and believes destroying it will free them. He sends you to Saering’s Watch to learn the word Miraak learned long ago. Frea stays behind to help hold the barrier.
Learn the Word of Power
Saering’s Watch lies on the north side of the island. When you arrive, a dragon is already fighting draugr; at higher levels expect a Serpentine Dragon and tough draugr such as Scourges and Deathlords. Once both sides are dealt with, Miraak appears and steals the dragon’s soul before you can reach it. Climb to the Word Wall at the top to learn the first word of Bend Will.
Use Bend Will on the Wind Stone
Go back to the Wind Stone near the village, where the Skaal are working in a trance. Shout Bend Will at the stone to shatter the structure built around it. The villagers snap out of it, confused about what they were doing.
Defeat the Lurker
Purging the stone provokes a Lurker, which bursts out and attacks both you and the freshly woken Skaal. Kill it; the villagers will help.
Talk to Storn
Report back to Storn. He declares you a friend of the Skaal and suggests freeing the other stones of Solstheim the same way, which may slow Miraak down. He wants nothing to do with the Black Book himself, calling it dark and unnatural, but tells you that the Dark Elf wizard Neloth came asking about Black Books and lives to the south.
Rewards
- Word of Power: Bend Will (first word).
- The friendship of the Skaal.
Tips and notes
- Completing the quest starts both The Path of Knowledge (the main story) and Cleansing the Stones.
- If you already cleared Saering’s Watch and learned the word before talking to Storn, the quest skips straight to the Wind Stone. In that case Miraak takes the soul of the next dragon you kill instead.
- Freeing the Skaal also opens up village side quests such as Filial Bonds.
