Dragonborn is the first quest of the Dragonborn add-on and the door to Solstheim. A pair of masked cultists decide you are a fake Dragonborn and try to fix that with spells. Their orders point to a ship in Windhelm in Eastmarch, and from there the trail leads across the sea to a man named Miraak, who supposedly died thousands of years ago.
How to start
- You must have at least started The Horn of Jurgen Windcaller from the main questline. (The source infobox also mentions level 25 as an alternative requirement in some cases; this is unclear, so treat the Horn quest as the reliable trigger.)
- After that, enter a city in one of Skyrim’s major holds during daytime. Two cultists will stop you, ask whether you are the Dragonborn, announce that the first Dragonborn, Miraak, is coming back, and then attack.
Walkthrough
Deal with the cultists
The cultists rely mostly on magic such as Ice Spike, Flames and Conjure Flame Atronach. Because they jump you in town, consider pulling them outside the walls so the locals do not get caught in the fireworks; town guards will usually help. Search the bodies for the Cultists’ Orders and read them. They tell you to look for the boat they used, the Northern Maiden, at the Windhelm docks.
Passage to Solstheim
Speak to Gjalund Salt-Sage aboard the Northern Maiden. He is a bit shaken: one moment he was in Solstheim, the next the cultists had come aboard and he was in Windhelm. To get a ride you can pay him double his usual fare, persuade him or intimidate him. Once he agrees, you sail to Raven Rock.
Ask around Raven Rock
Adril Arano, second councilor of Raven Rock, meets you at the docks and wants to know your business. Whatever you answer, he reminds you that the town belongs to House Redoran and that Morrowind’s laws apply here. Ask him about Miraak again and he vaguely links the name to the Earth Stone, which gives you the next marker. Afterwards he chats with Gjalund about supplies and the East Empire Company’s rising prices.
Shortcut: talk to Mogrul, the only Orc in town, and he will point you straight to the temple, skipping the Earth Stone.
Investigate the shrine
At the Earth Stone, Raven Rock residents in a trance are building a shrine around the stone. The Telvanni wizard Neloth walks up, curious why you are not acting like the others. He remembers Miraak as someone long dead and suggests the ruins of Miraak’s temple near the middle of the island. You can also quiz him about Morrowind’s history, which does not affect the quest. If you touch the Earth Stone yourself, you briefly fall under the same control; Neloth watches with interest and is impressed when you shake it off.
Reach the Temple of Miraak
The Temple of Miraak lies northeast of Raven Rock, near the centre of the island. Arriving there ends this quest and starts The Temple of Miraak.
Rewards
- Access to Solstheim.
- Outlander achievement (20 Gamerscore) / bronze trophy for arriving on Solstheim.
Tips and notes
- If you sleep on Solstheim before finding the temple, you may wake up at one of the All-Maker Stones, working under Miraak’s influence. With luck it is the Beast Stone just outside the temple, or even inside the temple itself.
- If you already asked someone else where the temple is, Neloth will not walk up to you at the Earth Stone on his own.
- If you reached Solstheim before starting The Horn of Jurgen Windcaller, you still need to go back to Windhelm and speak to Gjalund later.
- You can sail to Solstheim early by paying Gjalund 250 gold. If you then learn Bend Will at Saering’s Watch and use it on the All-Maker Stones, you skip Cleansing the Stones; Storn Crag-Strider then sends you to Frea, and this quest shows as complete without ever meeting the cultists (it may not appear in the journal).
- The music in the cutscene introducing Solstheim reuses the drumbeat from the Morrowind main theme. The boat cutscene is missing in Skyrim VR.
