Stony Creek Cave is a bandit hideout southeast of Windhelm and north of Ansilvund. On the surface it’s a damp cave with a few bandits and a mining operation, but it hides two extra layers: pockets of flammable gas that can blow up in your face, and a hard-to-reach route that leads on to the Dwemer ruin Kagrenzel.
What you’ll find
- A partly flooded entrance path leading upstream, with a dead Breton draped over a pole in the first open area.
- Bandits along the main route, including one guarding a wooden ramp.
- An easy-to-miss side passage, protected by a tripwire, leading to an alchemy lab with a mage and a chest.
- A large waterfall cave where a bandit is mining two moonstone ore veins, with an apprentice-locked chest next to him.
- Shimmering air throughout the cave – flammable gas that ignites from fire spells, shouts or even a torch.
- Beyond the top of the waterfall: a tunnel with a Falmer chest, a Centurion Dynamo Core, a flawless diamond on a stone arch, ambushing Falmer and an expert-locked Dwemer chest at the bottom of a murky pool.
Quests
The cave can be a target for Finn’s Lute, No Stone Unturned (the Stone of Barenzia), Shahvee’s amulet and several radiant and bounty quests, among them Recover Hrolfdir’s Shield and The Forgemaster’s Fingers.
Notable items
- Finn’s Lute, in the chest in the alchemy lab room
- Mystery of Talara, Book IV, on a table by the alchemy lab
- Stone of Barenzia
- Bliss Bug in a Jar
- Two moonstone ore veins
Tips
Treat the gas with respect: just holding a fire spell ready is enough to set it off. Put away the flames, or use the gas against the bandits by lighting it while they stand in it.
To reach the upper tunnel, climb the rocks across from the waterfall (or to its left – sneak-jumping helps) and finish with Whirlwind Sprint. Vampire Lords can use the bat ability (Dawnguard). For the diamond on the arch, shoot it down, use Telekinesis or blast it with Unrelenting Force. The Dwemer chest underwater may call for Waterbreathing.
Good to know
Despite the map suggesting otherwise, there’s no normal walkable route from here into Kagrenzel’s main hall – players only get there by exploiting glitches.
Nearby
Closest places covered on TamrielSaga: Eastmarch Imperial Camp, Ansilvund, Cragslane Cavern, Mzulft, Kagrenzel.
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.
