Nelkir is the youngest son of Balgruuf the Greater, Jarl of Whiterun, and easily the grumpiest child in Dragonsreach. Where most kids in Skyrim pester you for a game of tag, Nelkir prefers snide remarks and dark hints about the secrets he has picked up. Those secrets did not come from nowhere: a mysterious voice he calls the Whispering Lady has been feeding them to him.
Where to find them
He lives in Dragonsreach and usually hangs around the lower floor beneath the kitchen or wanders upstairs. While The Whispering Door is active and you haven’t had your second talk with him, he may even trail after you into Jorrvaskr.
Quests
Nelkir is the heart of The Whispering Door. Once the Jarl has asked you to look in on his troubled boy, Nelkir opens up about what he has learned: that his father still worships Talos, despises the Thalmor nearly as much as the Stormcloaks do, fears being driven out of the city, and that Nelkir himself was born to a different mother than his brother and sister. He credits all this to a voice behind a locked door in the basement and dares you to go and listen.
After you have heard the Whispering Lady for yourself, Nelkir knows it at once. He explains that only two people can open the door, his father and the court wizard Farengar Secret-Fire, and leaves the method up to you, while cheerfully hinting that nobody would miss Farengar.
If the Stormcloaks win the Battle for Whiterun, he begs for mercy during the assault.
Personality & relationships
Nelkir is bitter towards his father, calling him names and claiming the Jarl knows nothing about him. His siblings are Frothar and Dagny, though he believes they don’t share his mother. The sneering tends to soften once The Whispering Door is done.
Good to know
- If Whiterun falls to the Stormcloaks, Nelkir and his siblings stay behind in Dragonsreach when Balgruuf leaves for Solitude, hiding out in the small basement area near the Whispering Door. His dialogue doesn’t change, even though his father has been exiled.
- The Creation Kit lists Nelkir as Balgruuf’s brother rather than his son, which would fit his remark about a different mother. It may just be a development slip.
- (Hearthfire) Adopted children who used to live in Whiterun describe the Jarl’s kids as mean.
Quick facts
- Gender: Male
- Level: 4
- Class: Child
- Status: Killable
- Found in: Whiterun
- Base ID: 0001434D
Also in Whiterun
Olava the Feeble, Olfina Gray-Mane, Ri’saad, Saadia, Saffir, Sam Guevenne, Severio Pelagia, Sigurd, Sinmir, Skulvar Sable-Hilt, Tilma the Haggard, Ulfberth War-Bear.
Race, level, class and factions read from the Skyrim game files; story details checked against community wiki articles and written in our own words.