Skyrim:Before the Storm

Inform the Jarl of Whiterun about the dragon attack on Helgen. Quest Giver: Hadvar or Ralof Location(s): Riverwood, Whiterun Prerequisite Quest: Unbound Next Quest: Bleak Falls Barrow Reward: Leveled Armor Disposition: =1 (Balgruuf) =1 (Alvor or Gerdur) ID: MQ102

Alduin flying over Bleak Falls Barrow

Quick Walkthrough

1. (Optional) Speak to Alvor or Gerdur in Riverwood.
2. Go to Whiterun.
3. Seek out Jarl Balgruuf the Greater.

Detailed Walkthrough

First Steps

"That place always used to give me nightmares."

"See that ruin up there? Bleak Falls Barrow."

As you head out from the dungeon with either Hadvar or Ralof, the dragon that attacked Helgen will travel over your head. Hadvar or Ralof will advise you to get down, but you're free to stand up and watch the dragon fly away. Hadvar or Ralof will comment on the dragon and continue on the path. You can now explore the area and advance to Riverwood at your own pace or follow whoever is accompanying you down the path. Following Hadvar or Ralof does not grant any special bonuses, but you do get to listen to your companion comment on the world around you, and they will point out the Guardian Stones and let you pick one that suits you. He will comment differently depending which stone you choose.

The Warrior Stone (Hadvar): "Warrior, good! I knew you shouldn't have been on that cart the minute I laid eyes on you." The Warrior Stone (Ralof): "Warrior, good! Those stars will guide you to honor and glory." The Mage Stone: "Mage, eh? Well, to each his own. It's not for me to judge." The Thief Stone: "Thief, eh? It's never too late to take charge of your own fate, you know."

A Friend of a Friend

Hadvar recounting the events at Helgen to Alvor's family

Ralof telling Gerdur and Hod what happened in Helgen

Once you arrive at the village of Riverwood, you will be directed to speak to Alvor, the local smith (if you chose to follow Hadvar during the flight from Helgen) or Gerdur, the woodmill owner (if you chose to follow Ralof). Explain your situation and he or she will recommend you seek out the jarl of the region, Jarl Balgruuf the Greater at his palace in Whiterun. They will also offer you what assistance they can (in the form of some low level food, potions, and jewelry) to get you started. Only Gerdur will give a key to her house.

If you arrive in Riverwood very late, then the person you're directed to meet won't immediately offer you assistance. If you ask whether you can take any supplies, you will be allowed to take some things, and be directed to see the jarl.

To Whiterun

Head out over the bridge out of town and follow the path north to Whiterun. Upon arrival at the main gate, a guard will tell you the city is closed to visitors. Any one of the dialogue options you are presented with will have him let you in the city, except for trying to intimidate the guard. Once inside, follow the path up to Dragonsreach and enter. When you approach Jarl Balgruuf, his housecarl, Irileth, will ask you why you are interrupting the meeting; any dialogue option will gain you an audience. Speak with Jarl Balgruuf to complete the quest and begin the next. He will reward you with a piece of leveled armor. Whether you receive light or heavy is governed by your aptitude in those skills. If they are equal, Balgruuf will give you heavy armor.

Notes

• Meeting with Alvor or Gerdur is completely optional as they only direct you to Whiterun and offer you a few items.
  • If Alvor or Gerdur die before you speak with them, the objective "Talk to Alvor"/"Talk to Gerdur" will fail; however the quest can be continued by visiting Dragonsreach as normal.
• If you accompanied Hadvar out of Helgen, you will have free access to the low-value items at Alvor's smithy, including the stacks of ingots (useful for learning smithing), and also the low-value items inside their house. If you accompanied Ralof, you will be able to take low-value items inside Hod and Gerdur's House.
• No matter what choice you have made, you can also help Alvor around his shop for some Smithing experience, and Gerdur's husband Hod will pay you for any firewood.
• Progressing to Stage 30 of this quest ("Talk to the Jarl of Whiterun") is a trigger to enable Falkreath Stormcloak Camp if all other required conditions are met.
• It is possible to enter Whiterun without ever speaking to the gate guard who stops the player by pick-pocketing the key from him, although it is very difficult to get into pick-pocket range without ever speaking to him.
  • The most consistent way to prevent talking to the guard is to pick-pocket him from behind the gate in out-of-bounds Whiterun, which happens to also be the fastest way to enter Whiterun during this quest.
• It is never actually possible to intimidate the Whiterun Guard to let you in to the city.

Bugs

• Sometimes Gerdur will not have an option to ask about the dragon, causing the main quest to be frozen.
  • Ask Alvor for supplies. After you look through his inventory, he will start by saying "The Jarl needs to know if there's a dragon on the loose. Riverwood is defenseless..." Listen to him speak and he will mention that you should inform the jarl. After that, the quest will update.
• Similarly, Alvor may not have an option about the dragon, and the quest will not be able to progress.
  • Go to Whiterun and talk to the jarl to advance the quest.
• The real time timer for entering Alvor's home to trigger the scene is very short, potentially causing the overall scene to fail.
  • The Unofficial Skyrim Patch, version 1.3.0, fixes this bug.
  • Talk to Alvor to continue the quest regularly. The scene is skipped.

Quest Stages

Before the Storm (MQ102)
Stage	Finishes Quest	Journal Entry
10		Hadvar suggested that I head to the nearby town of Riverwood. His uncle is the blacksmith there and should be able to help me. Objective 10: Talk to <Alias=RiverwoodFriend> in Riverwood
		Ralof suggested that I head to the nearby town of Riverwood. His sister owns a lumbermill there and should be able to help me. Objective 10: Talk to <Alias=RiverwoodFriend> in Riverwood
20		Hadvar suggested that we head to the nearby town of Riverwood. His uncle is the blacksmith there and should be able to help us.
		Ralof suggested that we head to the nearby town of Riverwood. His sister owns a lumbermill there and should be able to help us.
30		Hadvar's uncle Alvor asked me to take word to the Jarl of Whiterun of the dragon attack on Helgen, and to ask the Jarl to send soldiers to protect Riverwood. Objective 30: Talk to the Jarl of Whiterun
		Ralof's sister Gerdur asked me to take word to the Jarl of Whiterun of the dragon attack on Helgen, and to ask the Jarl to send soldiers to protect Riverwood. Objective 30: Talk to the Jarl of Whiterun
100		I've arrived in Whiterun. I should tell the Jarl about the dragon attack on Helgen.
110		When I arrived in Whiterun, I told the Jarl about the dragon attack on Helgen.
160	Finishes quest	Hadvar's uncle Alvor asked me to take word to the Jarl of Whiterun of the dragon attack on Helgen, and to ask the Jarl to send soldiers to protect Riverwood. I delivered the news to Jarl Balgruuf in Whiterun, and he rewarded me for my help.
	Finishes quest	Ralof's sister Gerdur asked me to take word to the Jarl of Whiterun of the dragon attack on Helgen, and to ask the Jarl to send soldiers to protect Riverwood. I delivered the news to Jarl Balgruuf in Whiterun, and he rewarded me for my help.
	Finishes quest	When I arrived in Whiterun, I told the Jarl about the dragon attack on Helgen, and he rewarded me for my efforts.

• The following empty quest stages were omitted from the table: 0, 1, 2, 5, 12, 14, 15, 17, 22, 23, 25, 26, 50, 60, 75, 80, 82, 85, 90, 150, 200.

Notes

• Any text displayed in angle brackets (e.g., <Alias=LocationHold>) is dynamically set by the Radiant Quest system, and will be filled in with the appropriate word(s) when seen in game.
• Not all Journal Entries may appear in your journal; which entries appear and which entries do not depends on the manner in which the quest is done.
• Stages are not always in order of progress. This is usually the case with quests that have multiple possible outcomes or quests where certain tasks may be done in any order. Some stages may therefore repeat objectives seen in other stages.
• If an entry is marked as "Finishes Quest" it means the quest disappears from the Active Quest list, but you may still receive new entries for that quest.
• On the PC, it is possible to use the console to advance through the quest by entering setstage MQ102 stage, where stage is the number of the stage you wish to complete. It is not possible to un-complete (i.e. go back) quest stages, but it is possible to clear all stages of the quest using resetquest MQ102.

Prev: Unbound

Up: Main Quest

Next: Bleak Falls Barrow