Nimhe is the oversized frostbite spider that has made the Nchuand-Zel Excavation Site, beneath the city of Markarth, her personal larder. For months she has been disrupting the dig run by the court wizard Calcelmo, and the workers gave her the nickname she now goes by, which Calcelmo says means ‘The Poisoned One’. She is unique, leveled from 1 to 14, and spits venom at anything that intrudes on her nest.
The name is a neat piece of real-world borrowing: nimhe is the Irish Gaelic word for poison. She also seems to have claimed at least one victim already, Alethius, a guard who accompanied one of the expeditions.
Where to find her
Nimhe lives in her lair inside the Nchuand-Zel Excavation Site, reached through Calcelmo’s dig in Markarth in the Reach. Very rarely she has been reported outside the excavation, including near the Markarth Stables. Although unique, she can respawn after a long time has passed.
Related quest
Calcelmo hands out Nimhe, the Poisoned One, asking the Dragonborn to clear the spider out of his excavation. Kill her and he rewards you with the keys to his Dwemer Museum and to the excavation site, opening up a good deal of Dwemer exploration in the city.
Notes
- Her level range runs from 1 to 14 and her health from 15 to 380, so taking the quest early in a playthrough makes her far less of a threat.
- She holds a Common soul and drops two portions of Frostbite Venom.
- Her lair is full of webs and egg sacs; the egg sac on the raised platform near the exit doubles as useful cover during the fight.
