Complete the mission beyond death. All The Elder Scrolls V: Dawnguard Quests Walkthrough and Expansion Review
Short walkthrough
- Kill the Boneyard Keepers.
- Follow Valerica.
- Retrieve the Elder Scroll.
Detailed walkthrough
Follow your quest marker to Serana "s mother, Valerika. She" ll tell you to defeat the Boneyard Keepers, who are equipped with dragon armor and are difficult to kill.
If you happen to see a ritual happening go to it and to the quest, this gives you Avark (a boss skeleton horse) to summon via Sorcery. After you return to Serana "s mother, follow her and" slay "Durnehviir. There will also be skeletons in combat, but they will die along with him. Take the Elder Scroll, and the quest is complete.
Notes
If you wish to get Arvok (the skeletal horse), just stay on the path in the Soul cairn and go toward the palace-like building, which happens to be where Serana "s mother is trapped. On the path to or from the palace you will meet a ghost who is frantic, saying that he and Arvok were trapped in the soul cairn together, but they were separated when some monsters attacked and hetold Arvok to run. According to him, Arvok is still running.
He will beg you to save Arvok, you can do this by claiming Arvok "s skull, which is located past the right side of the palace (When facing the palace) in a temple-like structure surrounded by four Mistmen. Defeat them and claim Arvok "s skull. Walk away from the temple in any direction and the ghost should materialize within sight. Talk to him and he will express his gratitude by teaching you the conjuration spell "summon Arvok". Afterward, you can summon Arvok in and out of the Soul Cairn to act as your own loyal steed.
Achievements
One achievement is unlocked when you complete this quest:
- Beyond Death
Bugs
- After you kill Durnehviir, there will be a prompt to search him but it is impossible to do so.
- Sometimes after you retrieve your fragmented soul, the stairs leading back to Volkihar Castle on the return trip will be unusable and be part pixelated and you will walk right through them. Re-load a previous save to correct.
- Killing the Boneyard Keepers before talking to Valerica will cause: Serana to disapear, the barrier to be removed, and prevent Valerica from speaking with you. Rendering any progression in the quest impossible.
Quest stages
Beyond Death (DLC1VQ05) | ||
---|---|---|
Stage | Status | Journal entries |
0 | ||
10 | Serana and I have entered the Soul Cairn in pursuit of her estranged mother, Valerica, and the Elder Scroll she took when she fled Castle Volkihar. (Objective is assigned) : Locate Valerica |
|
20 | (Objective is assigned) : Speak to Valerica | |
25 | ||
28 | ||
29 | ||
30 | Serana and I have located Valerica imprisoned within a massive ruin. When confronted by us, Valerica revealed that Serana "s blood is an integral part of the Tyranny of the Sun. After the reconciliation between the two of them, Valerica confessed to having the Elder Scroll hidden in her ramshackle living space. In order to free her from the prison, Serana and I will have to locate and slay the Keepers who maintain the barrier around the ruins. (Objective is assigned)
: Kill the Boneyard Keepers ( |
|
40 | (Objective is assigned) : Speak to Valerica | |
50 | Serana and I have slain all three of the Keepers and the barrier around Valerica "s prison has faded. We rejoined Valerica, who has agreed to take us to the location where the Elder Scroll is hidden. (Objective is assigned) : Follow Valerica |
|
60 | (Objective is assigned) : Retrieve the Elder Scroll | |
70 | (Objective is assigned) : Slay Durnehviir | |
80 | As Valerica was leading us to the Elder Scroll, an ancient dragon named Durnehviir swooped into the ruins and attacked. It proved to be a challenging battle, but we "ve emerged unscathed. | |
90 | (Objective is assigned) : Speak to Valerica | |
95 | (Objective is assigned) : Follow Valerica | |
100 | (Objective is assigned) : Retrieve the Elder Scroll | |
110 | (Objective is assigned) : Speak to Valerica | |
120 | (Objective is assigned) : Return to Tamriel | |
130 | ||
140 | ||
200 | We "ve exited the Soul Cairn with the Elder Scroll in hand. Serana" s mother, Valerica, is unwilling to return with us to Tamriel until we "ve dealt with her husband and thwarted the Tyranny of the Sun. or We "ve exited the Soul Cairn with the Elder Scroll in hand. Serana" s mother, Valerica, is unwilling to return with us to Tamriel until we "ve dealt with her husband and completed the Tyranny of the Sun using our own methods. |
Notes
- Any text in angle brackets (for example,
) is a parameter set by the Radiant Quest engine that will be assigned a value when a quest is received. - Not all of the specified entries may appear in the game log: which entries appear and which do not depend on how the task is completed.
- The stages are not always listed in the order of the assignment. This happens, as a rule, in cases with tasks that have several possible outcomes or where certain tasks can be performed in an arbitrary order.
- If the entry is marked as " Completing the quest", this means that the task is excluded from the list of active ones, but new records of the stages of this task can be added to the log.
- When playing on a personal computer, you can use the
Our passage of Dawnguard will continue in the Cairn of Souls - this is the Oblivion plan, in which the lost souls found their refuge. While you are traveling around the location, all available skills and spells will be available to you, there are no restrictions on talents and weapons. And if for the first time it will be possible to enter here only as the tasks of the main storyline for the Guard of the Dawn are completed, then after that it will be possible to return at any time you want.
So, if you decide to return, you will again enter the portal in Valerika's laboratory in Wokihara. There will still be a reason to return - there are two side quests in the Cairn of Souls, "The Impatience of the Saint" and "Skull of Arvak". And there you can also collect the shells of souls, which can later be exchanged with Morwen Stroud for weapons or armor.
Now, directly with regard to our main task here, in the Cairn of Souls: you need to find Valerika, in order to do this, follow the marker, do not miss. Along the way, collisions are very likely with enhanced skeletons of three varieties - Bone, Mist and Furious. But you should not be afraid of lost souls, moreover, some can even give us side tasks, now we are talking about Jiuba and one of the warrior's souls.
When you reach your destination, you will see Valerika, she was imprisoned in ancient ruins. Hear what she has to say about the Tyranny of the Sun prophecy, after which she will talk to her daughter. When mutual understanding and agreement finally emerges between them, we must destroy the barrier that serves as the grate for imprisoning Valerika in order to continue the passage of Dawnguard. The barrier is destroyed by killing three Burial Wardens.
To find them, be guided by the map - each of them will be marked with a marker. In battle, things are a little more complicated by the fact that they call on skeletal minions in numbers from one to four. When you have eliminated all the Overseers, you can return back to mother Serana, who now, thanks to our efforts, will finally find freedom. She will lead us to the courtyard, where we will stumble upon the dragon Dornevir.
To obtain the desired Ancient Scroll, for the sake of which we came here in general, the dragon will have to be defeated. When you manage, leave this place, going outside. There you will stumble upon the just defeated dragon, this time at least he is no longer hostile, in any case, we just need to listen to what he has to say, after which we will learn a new word of power - the call of Dornevir.
When this is all over, simply take the Elder Scroll you are looking for and make your way back to Tamriel.
Finally I got my hands on the first addition to Skyrim - Dawnguard. In order to start exterminating vampires, or vice versa - vampire hunters, you need to reach level 10. Level 10 gains very easily and quickly. But there is one thing: you cannot complete the questline in Dawnguard if you do not have an ancient scroll, which you can get during the course of the storyline. So, first go through the storyline, and then take on the expansion. Oh yeah, one more thing. The passage of the supplement involves the choice of a faction. Either the hunters or the vampires. Also the second task will be different. Vampires: "Hematite Bowl". Hunters: "Awakening"."Guardian of the Dawn".
After reaching level 10, or even better to go through the storyline, head to any city or village. Talk to the guard, and he will say that some faction has appeared, recruiting recruits for their difficult business. Or you can come to Riften and talk to Dorak, well at least not the Fool. After the conversation, head north of Riften and find a cave there that leads to the Dawnguard fortress. On the way to the fortress, you will meet Irwin, he also wants to become a recruit from the guards, but is terribly afraid that he may not be accepted. We go with him to the entrance to the fortress, talk to the sentry and enter. We observe the scene and speak with Izran. He agrees to accept us into the ranks of the guards and immediately gives the first assignment. Thank you, at least not to kill rats. It turns out that vampires got out into the light and began to attack people who hunt Daedra, vampires and other evil spirits. Weak guys, I can tell you, I remember how in Skyrim I shouted at one FUS RO DAH and he died of a broken rib in a nearby cliff. Oh yeah, what am I talking about? About vampires, so Tolan asks to check the situation in one cave, he believes that the forces of vampires are directed there, and this must be prevented. Izran agrees and sends us to the cave. Once in the cave, get ready to kill everything that moves. I do not. Just kidding. There are a lot of vampires, we also meet a new enemy: the hound. After killing the first party at the beginning of the cave, we go upstairs and pull the lever. We go down and go further, exterminating all vampires in our path. After that, you will get to the sub-location and hear a conversation between two vampires and a warrior, they torture him, asking about the ancient scrolls. You will not have time to save him, this is a script scene, and he dies anyway. After killing two vampires, go to the pedestal and activate it. After activation, move the braziers so that they are engulfed in flames. If you did everything correctly, then a monolith will open, which you need to open. We open it and meet there a charming girl - a vampire. Call her Serana, alas, you cannot marry her."Blood Ties".
Now we need to work as a carrier, alas, we won't become Jason Statham, and we don't have an Audi, so we'll have to stomp on our own two feet. Serana will ask you to take her to Volkihar Castle - to her father. This castle is located very far away, so it is better to immediately make a quick trip to the northern fortress, if you have it open, and from there walk a couple of steps to the northern pier, then take a boat and you will find yourself at the castle. On the way to the castle, Serana will stop us and ask us to keep our mouths shut so that they won't be torn off. We agree and go to the castle, we are greeted solemnly and at the end they will be offered to become a vampire. If you become a vampire, you cannot be a hunter, and vice versa. If you accepted Harkon's offer, then read on.After accepting the offer, you become a vampire lord. Just listen to Harkon, and then get a new assignment.
If you rejected Harkon's offer, then return to Isram with the bad news.
"Hematite Bowl". Vampires.
After talking with Harkon, go out to the main hall and head towards Garn. Talk to him, and then follow him, he will hand you a hematite bowl and send you to the cave, so that you fill it. Upon arrival, you will encounter a vampire thrall, and behind him there will be a trap door to a cave. We climb there, talk to the guard and pass on. Although, you can cut out everyone, take the key from the door and go further - into the cave. In the cave we kill vampires and their thralls. After the massacre, you will find yourself in a room where you need to fill the bowl. After filling, 2 vampires will attack you, who want to take the cup from you and take it to their masters. That's it, even in a vampire family, not everything is all right. We return to Garn, give the bowl and complete the quest."New order". Guardian of the Dawn.
Izran declares war on the vampires! But for this he needs old acquaintances whom he can trust. He will ask you to find them and bring them to the castle.We are looking for Gunmar - he hunts bears and asks for help. We agree and go into the cave, clean it up and return to Gunmar. We talk about the situation and send him to the castle. The first one went!
We are looking for Sorina - she is located near the Dwemer ruins. We talk to her and outline the situation. She will agree to go if you find her bag with gyros. What the hell is a bag if there are vampires running around Skyrim. You can persuade her if you have pumped the skill of eloquence, or look for her bag. One way or another, but she agrees to go to the castle. We return to Isran and report.
"Prophet".
We rise to Izran on the second floor and follow him. He shows us Serana and asks if we can trust her? The answer is yes. And we talk to her. We need to find the priest of Moths. We make a quick trip to Whiterun and after that we speak with the cab. He will inform us that the priest has gone to the Dragon Bridge. We come to the Dragon Bridge and talk to the guard. After that we cross the bridge and see a destroyed wagon. We take a note from the body of a dead vampire and read it. We go into the cave, it is next to the crash site. We kill vampires inside and go deep into the cave. We kill the leader of the vampires and raise the stone, go upstairs, insert the piece into the pedestal and remove the energy barrier. The monk is under the spell. We beat him up and hypnotize him again if you are a vampire. If not, then he expresses his gratitude and goes to the castle of Dawn. Return to the castle, listen to the priest, watch him read the scroll, and complete the task."Chasing the echo."
We speak with Serana and learn about her mother. Now we need to find out where she might be hiding. We offer the castle Volkihar, she agrees, and offers the back entrance to the cave of Volkihar. We get into the boat and go to the castle, go around it, kill the skeletons and go into the cave. In the castle, we kill everything that moves, solve puzzles and do the daily tasks of a warrior. We pass to the end of the cave and leave the garden. We listen to Serana and look for the missing parts. The first is in the pond, the second in the bushes, the third on the balcony. After collecting them, we set them in their rightful place, the game itself will tell you, so you will not confuse anything, do not be afraid.We activate and go down to the basement. In the basement, again we break through with a fight, pull the levers and other utensils. We kill gargoyles, vampires and their hounds. After that, we find ourselves in the room of Valerika - Serana's mother. We listen to the dialogue and look for Valerika's diary. It's on the bookshelf. The diary is red, so don't miss it. We give to Serana and look for the missing ingredients. Having found them, we put everything in a large goblet and talk with Serana. She activates the portal and now you need to go down to Cairn of Souls.
But no, you can't, when you approach the portal, your health begins to melt. We speak with Serana and choose: either become a vampire, or give part of the soul, but then return. If you are a guard, then ... I honestly don't know what happens if you take a bite. (author's note). So we choose the option with a soul and go down to Cairn."Beyond Death".
We find ourselves in Oblivion, or something similar to Oblivion. We go down the steep steps and go straight to the large building. Valerika is there. On the way to Valerika, you will exterminate skeletons and spirits. Upon reaching your destination, you will see a barrier. Serana will call Valerika and her mother will come out, followed by a dialogue, after which Valerika will talk to you. If you are the guardian of the dawn, then she will pester you, do not pay attention. After talking with you, she will tell you about three guardians that we need to kill. We agree, follow the markers and kill them. If you have a high level, then dragon weapons can be removed from their corpses. Personally, I came across a bow, an ax and a mace. You may come across something else. After killing the keeper, we return to Valerika and go to the fort. We kill the dragon, and we take the ancient scroll from the chest. Now you can leave here. On our way out, Dornevir, a slain dragon, will meet us and make us an offer. He teaches us how to cry, and you will call him for help during the battle in Tamriel. You now have the second dragon in your collection, congratulations."In search of disclosure."
To complete this quest, you will need two scrolls: one you have already obtained in the Cairn of Souls, and the second during the storyline quest. If you sold an ancient scroll, you will have to redeem it. We head to the Urag Gro Shubu in the College of Winterhold and redeem the scroll. It will cost 4000 gold, but if you are an archmage, then demand for 2000 gold, you will succeed. After receiving the scroll, we return to Isran or Charon, depending on the faction, and complete the task."Unseen visions".
The monk had already gone blind while we were running around looking for the scrolls. We will find out from him what can be done, and he will send us to the "Glade of the Ancestors". We go there, move through the cave and take the scraper, scrape the bark of the tree, and then collect the moths behind us. It is enough to approach them and they will follow you. After collecting all 7 groups - we go into the pillar of light and read the ancient scroll (blood). Visions of the cave visit us. After waking up, we communicate with Serana and complete the task."Touching Heaven".
Next comes the tedious part. I will not describe it, because it will take more than an hour. In short: we kill the Falmer, collect loot from them and make sure that Serana does not lag behind.After a while, we find ourselves in a branch of the cave, where we meet Geleborn - one of the snow elves.
We talk with him and agree to kill his brother. Before leaving, we get a jug and one more task: to collect water from five springs with the help of a jug. We pass the cave and find ourselves in a location reminiscent of Skyrim in another dimension. We visit five springs and collect water. After that, we go to the castle and pour water into a special stand. The huge castle door opens and we can enter. We go in and go to the snow prince. He starts a conversation and then summons the minions. First the Corus, then the Snow Falmer, and finally summons the Ice Atronach. The prince, seeing such a picture, brings down the ceiling and runs away. But we are Dovahkiin, so we get up and run after him. After that, move to the Volkihar castle and start fighting. First the gargoyles, then the inhabitants of the castle will run out. After that, go into the castle hall and start destroying everyone and everything. After the battle, approach the grate and pick it up. This will take you to Harkon. Watch the dialogue between Harkon and Serana, after which Harkon will turn to you and ask you to give the bow, it is better not to do this, otherwise you will regret it. During the battle, the boss summons gargoyles, skeletons, and also knows how to teleport. Sometimes it becomes invulnerable to all weapons. This is where we use Auriel's Bow... Continue until victorious. Don't forget to pick up Harkon's katana. An excellent weapon, I can tell you. Also accept congratulations from the order and that's it. We are waiting for the next addition. Also, Serana can make you a vampire if you want to.Shower cairn
After Dovahkiin in the company of Serana ends up in the Cairn of Souls, you should go straight along the road to the marker, simultaneously fighting off the foggy, furious and bone ones. When the main character approaches the goal, namely the magical barrier, Serana will call her mother and a conversation will begin.
Valerika
After talking with her daughter, Valerika will explain to Dovakin everything that is happening. She will also say that she kept the Elder Scroll, but the magic barrier keeps her in ruins. To disable the barrier, it is necessary to destroy three caretakers of the Burial Ground, which is what the Dragonborn has to do.
Caretakers
The Overseers are easy to find by following the quest markers. Only one of them will be out of reach, at the top of the tower. You need to jump into the purple well of souls, which teleports the main character up.
Upon returning to Valerika, it turns out that the barrier has already disappeared. The main character, together with Serana and her mother, will have to go to the Burial Ground. Another threat awaits there - the undead dragon Durnevir. After defeating the dragon, Valerika will open a chest with an Elder Scroll.
Return trip
At the exit from the Burial of Heroes, the revived Durnevir will meet. However, this time he will not show aggression and will greet Dovahkiin as the winner. As a sign of respect, he will teach the protagonist the Scream "Call of Durnevir" and ask Dovahkiin for help to return to Nirn. To do this, you just need to go to the portal and return to Skyrim, and then use the Shout "Call of Durnevir". After that, Durnevir will appear in front of Dovahkiin and teach him the first word of the Scream "Soul Rip", and with two subsequent calls, Durnevir will teach Dovahkiin and the rest of the words of this Scream.
Immediately upon returning to Valerika's laboratory through the portal, the quest "Beyond Death" will end.
Return of the soul
If Dovahkiin decided not to become a vampire in order to go to the Cairn of souls, but allowed Serane to capture part of his soul, then after killing Durnevir in the Burial ground, you can talk to Valerika about returning part of the soul back. After the conversation, a quest will open in the "Miscellaneous" section, the essence of which will be to return the soul stone with a part of the Dovahkiin's soul. The soul stone itself will be in the fortress nearby. This fortress is guarded by bone warriors. After Dovahkiin takes the soul stone, the quest will be completed; the active effect "Weakened Soul" will be removed, and the indicators of health, magic and reserve of strength of Dovahkiin will be restored to the previous level. In the future, the player can visit the Soul Cairn without a negative effect.
A stone with a part of Dovahkiin's soul can be found in the process of researching the Soul Cairn. In this case, the "Weakened Soul" effect is removed without the occurrence of a third-party quest. Then the corresponding line in the dialogue with Valerika will no longer exist.
The quest can be obtained from a soul named Jiub. The old-timers of the Elder Scrolls universe will undoubtedly remember this Dunmer from the Morrowind game (he was the first person the protagonist of the game saw when he woke up on a ship sailing to Seida Nin). As it turns out, Saint Jyub wrote an autobiographical opus, the pages of which are scattered throughout the Cairn of Souls. Find all the pages of the first volume and return them to the owner. You can find Jiuba in the southeast of the Burial Ground. As a reward, you will receive a unique copy of Saint Jiub's Opus and Jiub's Amulet (increases stamina and carry weight by 50 units).
Page 1 - In the massive wall dividing the Soul Cairn roughly in half, find a passage in the middle. Facing him, turn right, southeast and go to the stairs. After climbing it, you will see a page.
Page 2 - To the left of the entrance to the Burial Ground (where Valerika lives) there will be a small building with a broken Wall with words of Power. This is the very building on which Dornevir sits. Near the wall you will see a chest, and to the right of it - a page from the opus.
Page 3 - Before the passage in the wall separating the Soul Cairn, turn left. You will see a tower, which consists of only one chamber with a chest. Exit the cell on the other side and you will notice a building with a soul stone. After going up the stairs, you will find an opus page on the roof of the building next to the chest.
Page 4 - Stand facing the entrance to the Burial Ground and walk around it on the right along the wall until you reach the annex. Climb the steps, turn left and climb up again towards the chest. The page lies next to the chest.
Page 5 - South of where Jiub is sitting by his fire is a stone dais. On it, near the energy source, you can find a page and other items.
Page 6 - From the entrance to the Soul Cairn from the side of the stairs, head southwest until you see a small tower. The page is inside, in the corner, next to the chest.
Page 7 - From where you found the fourth page, head east to the edge of the map until you see an altar. On the altar there will be a book called The Misty Call. The seventh page and the pouch of coins lie on the ground at the base of the pedestal.
Page 8 - From the entrance to the Soul Cairn, go straight to the right until you see a building with a grate. To enter, use a spell or shoot an arrow. Page inside.
Page 9 - Walk west of the entrance to the Burial Ground until you see a structure with a huge floating soul stone. Look for a portal in the building that takes you to the upper floor. The page is located next to the chest, under the stone. In order to go down, you have to jump - there are no stairs in the building.
Page 10 - The last page of the opus can be found near the wall near the merchant Morven Stroud. The desired leaf lies on the barrel.